Setting up a render node - need some advice

[krimson2580]

Hello all,

 

I’m planning on making 3 render nodes and would like some advice.

 

I’m planning to set up the following:

Case: supermicro CSE-512L-260

Asus P8H67-M Pro revB3

Processor: intel I-7 2600K, 3,4GHZ 4cores/8threads

Cooler: ??? need advice on this one

Ram: DDR3 non ECC 1333 – 2x4GB

HD: western digital caviar blue SATA 7200rpm 500GB

Simple DVD

Win 7 pro 64 bit eng oem

TOTAL: 790 euros incl. VAT x 3 makes 2370 euros incl VAT.

 

My current system:

Dual intel xeon E5620 2,4GHZ – 24GB RAM – nvidia quadro fx 3800 - win7 64bit

Running 3dsmax 2011 with mentalray as renderer.

 

Is this the right way to go?

Are these the maximum cores for metal ray satellite with distributed bucked rendering?

Will this mean I can render at (2X2.4GHZ)+(3x3.4GHZ)= 15GHZ?

Will I be able to use my main workstation fully while the 3 nodes render in the mean while?

Will I be able to put GPU graphic cards in the nodes and use them for gpu based rendering like iray?

 

All information and advice welcome.

 

I’m really new at this and the info on the internet is I’m so fragmented losing my way here.

 

Thanks.

[krimson2580]

Just looked up a few things and these are some corrections:

case: supermicro CSE-512F-260. The F-type has a dvd bay, the L doesn't

HD: is the western digital WD5000AAKX

Should i get 4x4GB (16GB) instead of 8 GB? In order to handle big max files.

 

Still looking for a nice rack to go with it

As small as possible

[krimson2580]

Another change: the mainboard changed to Asus P8H67 revB3, the M series pro don't have integrated graphic card.

[Slinger]

The stock cooler should be fine for the cpu, although if you are doing a 1U rack, there may be a clearance issue.