Need help for workstation upgrade.

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Hello!
I'm looking for upgrading my workstation to the next level... 2016/2017 build specs. My budget for the upgrade would be 4500/5000 dollars .

This is my current 2012/2013 build including :

Obsidian 900D (Full watercooling in study/progress)
CPU : I7 4930K 3.40 Ghz
MB : Asus X79 deluxe LGA 2011
RAM : 64 go DDR 3 1866 Mhz (Mainly for Zbrush HI-RES modeling/Animation and compositing)
PSU : Corsair AX 1200i
GPU : 2 x gtx 780 (no SLI). 1 for 3 screens including Cintiq 24HD and 1 for rendering.
2 SSD and 2 HDD.

I don't play games and i don't overclock a lot.I prefer stability and reliability. I need an heavy duty system for 14h/day 6d/week for 4/5 years. For the next years, I would prefer to run more on a GPU based workstation ( Furry ball/Octane/Vray Rt). But i need also strong CPU capabilities for the others softwares more "CPU power based".

My questions are :

what are the components could you advise to me for the best price/performances ratio?

Would you wait 2017 for CPU upgrade. Eventually to check new Xeon generation?

The new Titan X 12 Go (pascal) (2X) would fit nicely for me, but do you have another suggestions? So i could keep 1 GTX 780 for display and 2 titan X for rendering? So i need also to rise PSU power, right?

If you could answer to me, it will be great and highly appreciated. Thanks for your reading. Have a nice day, Best regards, Laurent.
 
Solution


No need to wait for GTX1080Ti as you...
Here is the list:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6950X 3.0GHz 10-Core Processor ($1649.99 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H115i 104.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($110.04 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Asus X99-E WS/USB 3.1 SSI CEB LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($486.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 64GB (4 x 16GB) DDR4-3333 Memory ($499.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: NVIDIA Titan X (Pascal) 12GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($1200.00)
Video Card: NVIDIA Titan X (Pascal) 12GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($1200.00)
Total: $5147.01
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-09-13 10:26 EDT-0400

With this 10core 20thread beast as CPU most probably your needs will be satisfied.
Place 2 TITAN X PASCAL in non SLI config.(Most probably you already know it)
You can use the 780 for monitors no problem.
If you can add two more TITAN X PASCAL in future it will become killer for longer time than you expect.
 
No PSU upgrade required, with modern hardware yours could support practically any configuration.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6900K 3.2GHz 8-Core Processor ($1064.36 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-X99-Designare EX ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($410.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 128GB (8 x 16GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($739.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FTW DT GAMING Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($649.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB FTW DT GAMING Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($649.88 @ OutletPC)
Total: $3515.10

Now, here's the thing with the Pascal Titan X; right now it costs more than two GTX 1080s. Unless you're be doing simply massive projects that require more than 8GB of VRAM, GTX 1080s are a better choice at this very moment. In addition to this, professional software quite often forgoes SLI support (because this is quite simply not useful to them, they do not use AFR or Alternate Frame Rendering) and rather utilize multiple GPUs independently (Octane is an example of this). This means that although Nvidia has imposed a 2-way SLI hardcap on GPU configurations, you could literally fill your PC with GTX 1080s and programs like Octane would use them all.

Oh yeah, and you can keep your GTX 780s and use them WITH the GTX 1080s (at least in Octane). Since they're both Nvidia cards you won't have any driver issues (foreseeably).

All in all, your workload doesn't seem CPU-bound enough to warrant anything beyond a 6900k, while the greater value-for-money GTX 1080s will be great for you.

Didn't add a CPU cooler because you mentioned you'll be doing a full custom loop.
 


My mistake I did not notice the custom loop cooling.

OP quoted "But i need also strong CPU capabilities for the others softwares more "CPU power based". " so i7-6950X is recommended.

Mr Kagouris I checked the benchmarks and had chat with NVIDIA customer support team for one of the build in this forum before and they informed me that there is a solid average of 25%+ improvement on scale when compared to GTX1080 in GPU rendering. That great performance in professional tasks made NVIDIA to leave out the GTX tag for TITAN X PASCAL. TITAN X PASCAL is know to stand only next Quadro P6000. The only software and drivers which distinguish Quadro series from this TITAN X PASCAL are which require and utilize ECC VRAM. I don't think the software OP is using is ECC VRAM supportive and will loose performance with TITAN X PASCAL.
 
LaurentCoiffier,

It appears that in your use, ZBrush is the primary use, given that in animation, the source for all content is the animation program. It's also one of the most demanding kinds of program with the millions of polygons creating huge files. ZBrush is also entirely CPU-based, and can delegate tasks to as many CPU cores as available. However, most animation rendering will be GPU-based.

The following concept is based an entirely new system, based on a Supermicro Superworkstation so as to provide a dual LGA2011 motherboard to increase future expansion potential. the upgrade to a second 8-core CPU could add two or more years to the use. This provides a case, dual LGA2011 motherboard, CPU coolers, and power supply such that the user need only plug in the CPU's, RAM, GPU's, and drives. This simplifies the hardware decisions and makes configuration very fast. the cooling is designed for server-level use and these systems are rated to be very quiet. The cooling solution is designed to accommodate a heavier thermal load than is proposed in that this may use 2X 160W CPU's plus 3X 200W GPU's in reference to the use of Telsa coprocessors.

The key to this idea is employing used CPU's. By using depreciated CPU's, a much higher specification is possible and funds are released for other purposes. There are tests that indicate that in some applications, including Premiere and After Effects, additional cores do not contribute to processing efficiency, but on the other hand, Solidworks is so well-multi-threaded that every core added improves performance, so the full utilization is on the horizon. I've purchased quite a number of used Xeons that were used up to five years and never had a failure.

For the best long-term potential in a cost /performance context, the proposed system is assembled using a single Xeon E5-2687w v2. As this is 8-core @ 3.4 with a turbo speed of 4.0GHz, this has among the best ratios of single-threaded performance. The average Passmark CPU Mark is 16633 with a Single Thread Mark of 2059. the comparable scores for the i7-4930K are 13058 / 1996. ZBrush will benefit from the greater number of cores, higher calculation density, and single-thread performance. The system is proposed to be assembled initially with a single Xeon E5-2687w v2 with a potential to add a second CPU and additional RAM in the future. The RAM (DDR3-1866 ECC registered) is specified in 8X 8GB modules so CPU1 has two complete RAM channels. The second CPU then can have a matching, balanced RAM complement for a total of 128GB. On the Supermicro X9DA motherboard a pair of E5-2687w v2's has a CPU Mark up to 26646.

The GPU is the requested Titan X. The Pascal Titan X is a brilliant performer, however, in my view, it would be best to wait for third-party versions with better cooling solutions. Mr. Kagouris has a good idea to use a pair of GTX 1080 as there are two GPU's, more total memory and CUDA cores than a single Titan X.

BambiBoom PixelCannon Zebrushagrapharific iWork TurboSignature Extreme ModelBlast 9800 ®©$$™®£™©™_9.13.16

Case /Motherboard / CPU coolers / Power supply : Supermicro SuperWorkstation SYS-7037A-I Dual Socket LGA2011 Xeon 900W Mid-Tower Workstation Barebone System (Black) > $740

http://www.supermicro.com/products/system/tower/7037/SYS-7037A-i.cfm
http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=SY-737AI

CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2687w v2 Eight-Core Haswell Processor 3.4 /4.0GHz, 20MB LGA 2011 CPU,150W > $2,000 (used about $1,000 each)

http://ark.intel.com/products/76161/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E5-2687W-v2-25M-Cache-3_40-GHz

Memory: 64GB (8x 8GB) Samsung DDR3-1866 8GB/512Mx8 ECC/REG CL13 Samsung Chip Server Memory > $488 ($61ea.)

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=D3-18R8GS2

GPU 1: EVGA 06G-P4-3791-KR G-SYNC Support GeForce GTX TITAN BLACK Superclocked 6GB 384-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 SLI Support Video Card > $1,125

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA24G28N6256&cm_re=Titan_X-_-9SIA24G28N6256-_-Product

Disk 1: SAMSUNG SM951 MZHPV512HDGL M.2 / 512GB Internal Solid State Drive (AHCI)(SSD) > $309 (Amazon)

PCIe M.2 Adapter: Lycom DT-120 M.2 PCIe to PCIe 3.0 x4 Adapter (Support M.2 PCIe 2280, 2260, 2242) > $22

https://www.amazon.com/Lycom-DT-120-PCIe-Adapter-Support/dp/B00MYCQP38/ref=pd_lpo_147_lp_t_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=BXP759K2XTHDRYCWFRY4

Disks 2, 3: 2X Seagate Constellation ES.3 ST3000NM0023 3TB 7200RPM SAS3/SAS 6.0 GB/s 128MB Enterprise Hard Drive (3.5 inch)> $364 ($183 each) (Files, Backup, System Image)

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=ST3000NM23

Optical Disk: LG 16x Internal Blu Ray/DVD/CD Burner Writer Drive + Software > $92

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA7252W34113&cm_re=blu_ray_drive-_-0Y6-000N-00005-_-Product

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit English (1-Pack), OEM > $139.

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=MSFQC08289
_______________________________________

TOTAL = $4,279


Cheers,

BambiBoom

CAD / 3D Modeling / Graphic Design:

HP z420 (2015) > Xeon E5-1660 v2 (6-core @ 3.7 / 4.0GHz) / 32GB DDR3 -1866 ECC RAM / Quadro K4200 (4GB) / Samsung SM951 M.2 256GB AHCI + Intel 730 480GB (9SSDSC2BP480G4R5) + Western Digital Black WD1003FZEX 1TB> M-Audio 192 sound card > 600W PSU> > Windows 7 Professional 64-bit > Logitech z2300 speakers > 2X Dell Ultrasharp U2715H (2560 X 1440)
[ Passmark Rating = 5581 > CPU= 14046 / 2D= 838 / 3D= 4694 / Mem= 2777 / Disk= 11559] [6.12.16]

Analysis / Simulation / Rendering:

HP z620 (2012) (Rev 2) 2X Xeon E5-2690 (8-core @ 2.9 /3.8GHz) / 40GB DDR3-1600 ECC) / Quadro K2200 (4GB) / HP Z Turbo Drive (256GB) / 800W > Windows 7 Professional 64-bit > HP 2711x (27" 1980 X 1080)
[ Passmark System Rating= 5322 / CPU= 19777 / 2D= 741 / 3D = 3887/ Mem =2290 / Disk = 13426 ] 9.2.16
 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Hello !

Many thanks for your reply! :)

Very nice build!!

It confirms what i think for graphic cards. 2 Titan X (Non Sli) and 1 Gtx 780 for display from my previous build.
I will rise also the PSU power to 1500W.

About the MB, CPU and Ram, i schedule to buy mid or late 2017. LGA 2011-3 is pretty good but as i read, it is already obsolete, especially for a 5000+ dollars long term build.

This is the problem i have with LGA 2011. MB drivers are not completely updated or supported by ASUS for Windows 10 and i must to downgrade to Windows 7, prior to avoid BSOD. But Softwares are evolving... Windows 7 pro is not supported more by Microsoft. No more OS maintenance... So getting a 2011-Rev 3 Socket, worry me a LOT!

In my mind, jumping to a 2011-3, even with awesome 6950 X performances (10 cores!!! :p) , but this is already outdated LGA 2011 Rev 3 and according to the Intel roadmap... This is near over.

Probably, for a long term build... 5 years for the CPU and more for the GPUs, concerning a single processor build, i will wait for more informations about socket 1151 and I7 7xxx (8 or 10 cores) Kaby Lake family and for a multi processors build, for new Xeon Skylake or Cannonlake family.

So, this is what i have in mind. Honestly, i don't know if i'm right or not. I'm agree with you! Awesome build!! :)

Thanks again for the time you gave to me and for the quality of your reply! Best regards, Laurent



 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Thanks guys!

Mr Dragouris, Bambiboom and King Dranzer! You are awesome! I will take a bit more time to read, compare and analyse all the good tips you gave to me. They are really precious!

For garphic cards i will run next year, with 2 X TitanX 12Go (GPU rendering system based -Pascal architecture) and 1 GTX 780 for display purposes.

For the CPU, i wonder what you could reply to my last post... It will be decisive for me.

I will reply to you all the next day! So have a nice evening! Read you soon.
Best regards, Laurent
 


I am not doubting that there is a 25% improvement over the GTX 1080, but the Titan X costs more than two GTX 1080s. Since GPU-bound workloads are often not limited in the number of GPUs (to allow for render farms and such), OP can easily just go all out and get 4 GTX 1080s for the price of 2 Titan Xs.

And contrary to your list, despite the Titan X's MSRP being around 1200$, at this very moment you can only find it for around 1500$.

I will rise also the PSU power to 1500W.

As previously stated, absolutely no need to do so. Even with 4 GTX 1080s you'd be fine with a 1200W, the Pascal architecture is simply THAT efficient (total system consumption for a consumer-grade dual-1080 build has been documented at around 550W).

it is already obsolete

Obsolete? Absolutely not. The X99 platform is Intel's latest. It is at the end of its lifespan, but you won't have a better choice for a year or more.

i will wait for more informations about socket 1151 and I7 7xxx (8 or 10 cores) Kaby Lake family

1151 is a consumer-grade socket and will not support any CPU with more than 4 physical cores. Doubtless Intel will release Skylake-E for the high end, but it will not be on 2011-3 socket (see previous point for why it's pointless to wait).

I still recommend going for GTX 1080s simply because of how bad the Titan X is in terms of value. If you do you can also easily fit a 6950X in your budget now and add more 1080s later should you require additional power.
 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Hello Mr Dragouris , King Dranzer !

Thanks for you replies.

The build you advised is for me the best build i could do now. I76950x is an awesome processor. The MB is outstanding too. Titan X pascal is based on GP102 has "same architecture" as GP100 for Tesla pascal GPU, if I'm right, only 2 Rops are disabled, but TiTan X is still a beast... May be not yet in the final form of GP 102 but paired with an another Titan X, computation will be flawless.

I'm agree with you 3 GTX 1080 could match but only in Total improved versions. (Rumors said that Specs are same as Titan X pascal)
In this case, may be, yes, 3 GTX 1080 Ti could have a better Price/performance ratio than 2 Titans X.

My second reason, for the Titan x, is that i can meet "IT boys" really strong to script custom drivers. A lot of little studios buy Titan X GPU then internally customize drivers and unleash the kraken ;) No more quadro/ tesla... never... :) It will cost me 3 pizzas and 6 redbulls.... :)))

The bullshit i made with my previous LGA 2011 build is to build/buy when socket is ending his "commercial life". No support yet from ASUS on drivers especially with W10 pro compatibility.
As i said, LGA 2011-3, X99 WS, especially in the that segment, is really a good socket and I7 6950X is a dream. Totally agree.

Another reason for me, is if i can jump to another socket generation, avoiding socket 2011-3, i could get may be 2 or 3 extra working years for my components. This is essential when you work with previsional budget and accounting impacts of amortization. This is what i missed with my previous build. So, i could run on Xeon CPUs even to go more highter on budget.

@Mr Dragoulis.
Ok, i misread the description. I7700 is announced with 4 cores/8 treads. my apologies. Sorry Dude. But i still have no doubt that LGA 2011-3 will not be the next lineup for Skylake processors. As i understood. broadwell-B would be the last one. So... well... i don't know.

I know that AX 1200 i can do the job... ;) But what i could do with my previous biuld.. still nice... ;) So i will get another case and Aio cooler, And that's it. another desktop for 150 bucks.

But i don't think that Ax1200 could manage at least 3 or 4 GPUs, custom Watercooling system, fans, and all... 1500 watts is "a minima" justified. And honestly, on a 4500/5500 bucks build. AX 1500 is not a big deal.

As i wrote to King Dranzer, i don't want to build for 1/2 years. I would to get good infos to anticipate for 4/5 years. I can't upgrade every 2 years. ;)

So thanks for your replies. I hope that i answer well! Wishing you a good day, Best regards, Laurent


 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Thanks King Dranzer! :)

Yep, 1500 watts would fit well. I know builders doing with 2X AX1200 watts in Caselabs Magnum cases..... but even with Obsidian 900D, it will be hard to fit 2 PSUs with watercooling radiator/Fans in bottom section... ;) AX 1500 is a good compromise.

Really, your answers are really appreciated. For the GPUs, i will just wait for final 1080 TI specs and hightly probably going on Titan X pascal.

So, why Nvidia would sell 1080 Ti, same specs as Titan? ...I wonder the price... 1080 for gamers ( locked driver) , Titan for professionals (open driver)?? ...

http://wccftech.com/nvidia-gtx-1080-ti-gp102-specs-leaked/

So thanks again Buddy! Have a nice day. :)

Laurent
 


No need to wait for GTX1080Ti as you will not be gaming. Had a chat with NVIDIA to solve one build in this forum before and they explained that in gaming GTX1080Ti will be better than TITAN X PASCAL for gaming(at base clock) but will fall behind with 15% in performance drop when compared to TITAN X PASCAL in 3D modeling and other GPU intense professional tasks. They also explained TITAN X PASCAL to be sitting in second place only next to Quadro P6000 in non ECC rendering and modeling. The difference between Quadro P6000 and TITAN X PASCAL is of 10%.
 
Solution
I'm agree with you 3 GTX 1080 could match but only in Total improved versions. (Rumors said that Specs are same as Titan X pascal)
In this case, may be, yes, 3 GTX 1080 Ti could have a better Price/performance ratio than 2 Titans X.

Take a look at the TFLOPS of the Pascal Titan X and the GTX 1080. Two GTX 1080s actually beat a single Titan X by a bit, and that's even without perfect scaling (while GPU-accelerated programs usually have near-perfect scaling). And if you have people that can do custom drivers for the Titan X, they can do the same for a GTX 1080. The only difference between the Titan/Quadro cards and consumer-grade GeForce is that GeForce doesn't support double-precision compute operations. Unless double-precision is absolutely critical to you, there's seriously no reason to go for the more-than-twice as expensive Titan X. The GPU cores are all virtually the same with difference in compute units and the aforementioned lack of double-precision in the GeForce lineup.


i could get may be 2 or 3 extra working years for my components

Extra 2-3 years on top of what X99 will last would put you beyond the next high end socket's lifespan. Whether you go with X99 or the next platform, you will be needing a new board at your next upgrade regardless.

But i still have no doubt that LGA 2011-3 will not be the next lineup for Skylake processors. As i understood. broadwell-B would be the last one. So... well... i don't know.

Broadwell-E is the last for 2011-3. The next enthusiast grade socket is rumored to be a ~3500 pin monstrosity (2011-3 has 2011 by default) but won't be coming within the next year (possibly the next 2 years).

But i don't think that Ax1200 could manage at least 3 or 4 GPUs, custom Watercooling system, fans, and all... 1500 watts is "a minima" justified. And honestly, on a 4500/5500 bucks build. AX 1500 is not a big deal.

With modern GPU and CPU architectures it can, although it'd be quite stressed to do so. If you want to upgrade anyway, go for an EVGA 1600 T2 instead. You get an extra rated 100W for less money.

i don't want to build for 1/2 years

6950X will easily last you the 4-5 year period (unless your workload unexpectedly literally multiplies in size).

So, why Nvidia would sell 1080 Ti, same specs as Titan? ...I wonder the price... 1080 for gamers ( locked driver) , Titan for professionals (open driver)?? ...

Aforementioned double-precision support in the Titan lineup. When you're mapping underground oil reserves for example (one of the many applications Titans are bought in bulk for) you can't make even minute mistakes.

No need to wait for GTX1080Ti as you will not be gaming. Had a chat with NVIDIA to solve one build in this forum before and they explained that in gaming GTX1080Ti will be better than TITAN X PASCAL for gaming(at base clock) but will fall behind with 15% in performance drop when compared to TITAN X PASCAL in 3D modeling and other GPU intense professional tasks. They also explained TITAN X PASCAL to be sitting in second place only next to Quadro P6000 in non ECC rendering and modeling. The difference between Quadro P6000 and TITAN X PASCAL is of 10%.

Yes and "chats" with Nvidia pre-Pascal "revealed" that the 1080, 1080 Ti and Titan X would feature HBM2 and that the 1080 would be twice as powerful as a GTX 980. Unless it's a matter related to an existing product, do not trust ANYTHING Nvidia says. They thrive on hype. For one their statement of 15% better performance by the Titan X makes no sense because in such applications it will be almost purely a matter of TFLOPS, and it's unlikely the 1080 Ti could match or exceed the Titan X in games while being rated at 15% fewer TFLOPS.
 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Hello Mr Kagouris,

Thx for your reply, this is really interesting. I'm learning a lot.

To understand why i want to build heavy rig, i'm trying to diversify my digital activities.

Most of the time, i work as freelancer or in short term contracts for museums, advertising companies, publishing companies, sometimes in movies companies as lookdev artist/technician (depending your definition of digital arts).

I'm also traditional sculptor, not to design some monsters but more in scientific, paleo anthropology or even forensic sciences.

All the digital jobs are time critical. I must really especially for advertising companies to do the job on time. And on time, for them, it means near live time.
I'm developing a working method with some of them to offer something closest as possible that they would like tools during their customer brainstorming sessions. For architectural renderings too. I offer to become an integrated part of their creative processes. In europe, may be we are a few to offer this range of services. 1 in Italy, 1 in France and me, expatriated in Germany.

For lookdev works, i have no time to deal or cheat with my computers...
On set, you have minutes, not hours, to manage HDRi files, compile them in working format and show results before actors or crew (light tehnicians) leave with all the additionals lights they created and that you could not have in reference for the post production for lighting or texturing.

For forensics and museums, i offer to 3d scan items, or complete 3d scans of scenes or archeological studies/excavations, recreate in 3d animations for virtual visits or 3d models even to have safety copies for late studies or to protect the real artifact by 3d printings, for example, a piece of cup, bones, jewelry, etc...

With an state of the art build including multiple beasty graphic cards, i will be able to assign and dispatch tasks between GPUs or to use all cores to a specific work. It takes sense for me. Even expensive they are, but seriously, this is a matter of credibility and professionalism. It means for me more contracts, more time to live with my family, definitively...

So this is not the topic, to understand what i mean by 2 Titans X for computation...but also essential for "oil mapping"... ;)

Thank you for your upcoming review of components. This is really usefull for me to plan my build. Honestly, i could not wait 2 or 3 years for the CPU socket and processor. I think i will build with upcoming 2017 Xeons.

I don't check the reviews or the benchmarks. So Which model, i don't know.

If you have some informations, you are welcome! :)) Thanks again for your time, have a nice evening!

Best regards, Laurent

 
If your tasks are that time sensitive indeed might be better to go for Titans. You could beat them with 4 GTX 1080s by quite a bit, but this would hamper you a lot if you need to use a GPU-accelerated app that doesn't support multiple GPUs.

As for Xeons, I wouldn't recommend them over the 6950X. Having some 14 core beast for CPU-bound applications would be nice, but GPU-accelerated apps are known to underperform on chips that focus on many weaker cores rather than fewer strong ones. The 6950X offers a good balance between the two, and allows overclocking (I know you don't like the idea but the performance benefit is more than a little significant, and many X99 boards offer automated overclocking functionality). With a 6950X you also have very open access to high speed RAM (you would with a Xeon in an X99 board too, but beyond a certain point RAM might need things like tiny boosts to the IMC's voltage, which you cannot do on a Xeon).

Haven't heard anything about 2017 Xeons. The Broadwell-EP lineup is out, so don't know what else Intel could release.

By the way, if you do this upgrade make sure your storage solution is up to par. Recommend having at least one NVMe drive as a scratch disk (a Samsung 950 Pro is a good choice as it wouldn't take up PCIe slots or need U.2 cables).
 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Hello Mr. Kagouris!

Thank you. :)

I took a bit time to answer (sorry for that) just to search what would be the best build for me. Booth King Dranzer and you are right on this build.

X99 & I7 6950x are the best setup at this moment, even for a build ( only CPU/MB/RAM & GPUs ) estimated around 6000 bucks.

At this moment, 10 cores overclocked at 4.4GHz could do the job with stellar performances. Agree with you. At that range of price, 7000 dollars is definitively not enough for a 2X Xeons setup to equal I7 6950X performances.

I will build on 1st nor 2nd 2017 quarters. As i understood, only x99 deluxe II MoBo is certified for 128 Ram DDR4 2400.

My build would be done with the components: I7 6950x, X99 deluxe II, 128 Ram 2400, 1 GTX 780 for 3 displays, 2 Titan X 12 "Pascal" for computation/complex scenes Rendering and 1X SSD (OS) 1X SSD (apps) and multiples HDDs for apps support. my future "old" workstation will take storage HDDs and do more lightweight tasks.

I don't remember if X99 deluxe II could offer NAND SSD support but, your idea is pretty cool. Thank you. No really more expensive and pretty fast.

I will rework my open loop watercooling because i will going REALLY hot with 2 Titans X as well with an heavily overclocked I7 6950x (4.4 GHz is the most stable i read) . Also an external watercooling solution like Aquacomputer offers could be more safe and efficient than a built in solution.

So, this is how i see this build. I don't know what are, in a near future, INTEL annoncements concerning Skylake-E but, building in a 2017 timeframe, could be usefull to adapt or change building setup if needed. Nevertheless, The build proposed by King Dranzer and you is for me the best way to evolve.

Thank again for your excellent tips and the time you took to answer. If you see something wrong, by advance... thanks for your comments.

Wishing you a good day. Best regards, Laurent



 
As i understood, only x99 deluxe II MoBo is certified for 128 Ram DDR4 2400.

No, pretty much every X99 board has always supported 128GB of RAM on account of Xeons being able to use it, while Haswell-E CPUs couldn't. Broadwell-E on the other hand has full support for up to 128GB of RAM.

I don't remember if X99 deluxe II could offer NAND SSD support but, you idea is pretty cool. Thank you. No really more expensive and pretty fast.

I can't think of a single X99 board that doesn't have an M.2 slot with support for NVMe drives. Heck, even most Z170 boards have at least one, and those are consumer-grade boards. I really recommend that you get at least a 256GB 950 Pro as a scratch disk because you might actually become limited by your regular SATA SSD after this upgrade (one of the reasons I wouldn't go for the Deluxe II is that its M.2 slot is vertical relative to the board, so the M.2 drive would sort of... stick out).

I will rework my open loop watercooling because i will going REALLY hot with 2 Titans X as well with an heavily overclocked I7 6950x (4.4 GHz is the most stable i read) . Also an external watercooling solution like Aquacomputer offers could be more safe and efficient than a built in solution.

A couple of 480mm radiators and you're good to go even with a couple Titan Xs and an overclocked 6950X. Just remember to get a DDC pump instead of a D5 because a D5 won't provide enough pressure for a loop this big. Also wouldn't recommend external water cooling.
 


Hello Laurent

Going for this build makes sense if you go for it right now. If you build this in midst of 2017 it will become meaningless. Reason is that most probably in the 4Q 2017 or 1Q 2018 Skylake-X will be out then this build will become dis-satisfactory. If you build it now there will be a good difference of time and it will be more meaningful. If you want to build in 2017 then wait and go for Skylake-X.
 
Hello Laurent

Going for this build makes sense if you go for it right now. If you build this in midst of 2017 it will become meaningless. Reason is that most probably in the 4Q 2017 or 1Q 2018 Skylake-X will be out then this build will become dis-satisfactory. If you build it now there will be a good difference of time and it will be more meaningful. If you want to build in 2017 then wait and go for Skylake-X.

As per the Intel roadmap, Skylake-X is coming in Q2 2017 and will be on the 2066 socket. So I'd say around Q3 2017 before you have a decent choice of chips and motherboards. However, Skylake-X's highest end SKU will still be a 10-core, maybe with a slightly higher out-of-the-box core clock (which is irrelevant as OP will be overclocking). The only other notable difference is that the higher end Skylake-X chips will support 44 PCIe lanes rather than 40, and I don't really see how useful that would be. I guess it would allow a single NVMe M.2 drive to be connected straight to the CPU, but other than that it doesn't really do much.

The only significant benefit of waiting for Skylake-X would be that you have upgrade options later on (the last CPU family on the 2066 socket will be Cannonlake-X), up until the next socket switch in 2020.
 


Wow great news but are you sure. Because 2 months ago as I checked it was going to release in Q4 2017 or Q1 2018. If it releases in Q2 2017 it will be great.
 

LaurentCoiffier

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
9
0
1,510
Thank you guys !

WOW ! This is what i'm waiting for. :) New skylake-x and new 2066 socket :) I will wait for the release in 2017 :)

For Mr. Dagouris and King Dranzer. I would like to thank you more because this is really an awesome work you done. This is for me crucial.

I'm french and frenchies know what is real and good champagne... ;)

Is there a way to know your mailing addresses for a delivery? A good bottle, would it please you? Could you send me by email your adresses?

Best regards, Laurent