we will possibly go for a rack of 3.0 or 3.2 P4’s with 2Gb dual ddr ram. Mostly just going intel because for us its tried and tested reliability
fairly cheap now, especially if you dont get them in fancy rack mounted cases
I dont know what most people do, but I think now that Dual Xeon as the main working machine anc cheaper P4’s for the farm is a good option…I dont have much experience with distributed rendering though so maybee this is a really bad idea? decisions decisions!
paulison - we have been slowly building our render farm for the last 2 years or so, and the best option is to spend more money on your workstations (because you can works faster and it nicer to work on a fast machine). Then with your render boxes, buy some p4 (ht) computers with the bare minimum and no extras (ie no video or sound card). This is a cheaper option and then you can buy more render boxes over time.
If you have any questions just email me I am more than happy to answer any questions.
have you encountered any major problems with max and Vray?
Ive just been quoted a IBM render rack system which is right out of my budget. Buying a series of p4’s is financially a better option for me. my only concern is the reliability of this type of setup.
Im also weighing up buying dual xeon hp pc’s against clone pc’s?
Your best advantage for getting a rack and not a series of workstations is not price, it is space and maintenance. If you plan on buying more than 15 computer, you will be happier with a rack. 15 computers takes up a lot of space and is really loud. While a rack is load, it aint as loud as 15 computer in one room. Plus you can put it in a closet easier then 15 computers. Just make sure that your closet has a LOT of airflow.
Tony- yeah we havent encountered any problems with the HT p4’s I have read about other people having problem but I have had none!
If youhavent got the budget for a rack mounted system, go with the p4’s. As for the clone vs. HP thing go with clones, you can get more bang for your buck.
example- my new workstation is a dual 3.2 xeon 4gig ram 256mb video card and so on, for a HP wx8000 with the same specs it was going to cost about NZ15k, for a clone it was NZ10k
On the downside the HP support is fantastic, but if you have a good local computer store they should be just as good.
Tony- just out of interest how much was the IBM rack system?
Yeah I know exactly what you mean. We purchased a dual xeon 2.8, 2.5 gig of ram, 128mb nvidia 980xl about 2 years ago and cost about 7kAU, i purchased a clone (xeon) a few months later of simliar specs for 4kAU. The major difference that I found was the over heating of my clone pc. when i started rendering my clone box starts heating up, (the box actually gets hot) it is also very noisey. My HP is silent and has a better cooling stystem within the case. Maybe I just need a better case?
The IBM rack system started at 25k and worked its way up from there. for 25k it didnt even get me much rendering power. They try to sell them on their reliability, monitoring, adaptability and also the fact that animal logic and weta use them. Its out of my budget for now but maybe in the future if i get alot of animation work and the fees to go with it.
They are sending me some quotations for various options including the rack system, if your interested i can pass on the prices for you.
Its good to see 3d work in NZ is happening. Ive been in Sydney for about 6 years producing 3d renderings for Architectural/ Landscape environements using max, electric image and archicad. There is alot of work here and is picking up everyday. We have done a litle bit of work in Auckland but not much. I was working in Auckland previously for 5 years trying to do as much 3d work as i could. Back then if you could produce anysort of 3dmodel you were a legend now its a completely different story.
small vray renderfarm and got these 2 offers: