Help with Workstation build!!!

[joelmcwilliam]

I would suggest to buy your stuff in stages. First get a i7 (k version) and a asus z87 (dont need the most expensive) mobo (if you don't render much get the i5 and overclock it for more single core speed). If you dont want to overclock get a non k cpu and a b85 mobo. If you do want to overclock the haswell to its limits, you need a very good cpu cooler (http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/?category=CPU+Coolers&manufacturer=&pp=25&order=date). Also start with 16 gb ram (1600mhz). Go to the website of kingston or crucial or to the website of your mobo manufacturer and look at what they recommend. And get a 500-600 W power supply from seasonic.

 

Try using your old gpu and see how it works. For gaming you do want a better gpu (msi 660/760/770, which one you choose depends of the fps you want to reach and what kind monitor you have). http://lanoc.org/review/video-cards/6606-gtx-780-sli-results . An i5 with 8 gb ram is plenty for gaming. Overclocking the cpu will do almost nothing for gaming http://www.ocaholic.ch/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=1061&page=6 (unless you a using a very cpu intense game)

 

This way you are way cheaper and you only buy what you need.

[numerobis]

Go to a 4770K CPU. The 3930 is about 20% faster at rendering (which isn't a lot)

 

I think it's close to 30% faster (~28%) and we have the 4930K now which has improved by a few percent (~32% faster)

http://www.tomshardware.de/charts/cpu-charts-2012/-02-Cinebench-11.5,3143.html

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/hardware-canucks-reviews/63119-intel-i7-4930k-i7-4820k-ivy-bridge-e-review-3.html

 

and they overclock better than Haswell...

[AJLynn]

It depends what renderer you run. Cinebench is one that goes more toward the 3930, others go less, 20% is a rough average. Also the 3930 does not appear on that chart. And if you want overclocking, a Haswell with a heatsink that large and an 850W PSU is going to do quite well.

 

Where you want to fall on the pricing curve is a business decision and going higher is a valid choice but if it were me I'd go more conservative. I've been saying that for years and I still believe it. The sweet spot on the price/performance curve for these workstations hovers around builds in the $1600-2000 range, plus or minus depending on where the major components are in their product lifecycles and whether there are special needs like GPU rendering. Spend less and you cut some corners, spend more and the value per incremental dollar diminishes.

[Dimitris Tolios]

Also keep in mind that despite the Cinebench 11.5 being a cross platform rendering test, it is suffering of certain optimizations that favor intel CPUs, but that's not even entirely true in itself: it is quite old as a rendering engine (Maxon, the author, has upgraded the engine quite a bit with the latest releases of their products), so it doesn't take into account many of the newer features intel CPUs offer.

 

It definitely doesn't cut any slack with AMD results, as real life performance (yes, less controlled and not cross-platform as cinebench, yet replicable/verifiable with ease) using the industry standard renderers (Vray and Mental Ray) has proven that FX-8350s with all their ineficiencies in single thread performance and slightly higher consumption, actually beat i7 CPUs up to the 3770K handily.

I would guess the 9590 - again, with all its shortcomings in other areas - would beat a 4770K, despite Cinebench indication.

[numerobis]

3930 does not appear on that chart.

therefore i posted the other link...

http://www.tomshardware.de/charts/cpu-charts-2012/-02-Cinebench-11.5,3143.html

 

...a Haswell with a heatsink that large and an 850W PSU is going to do quite well.

i think 850W would be quite oversized for a 4770K even when overclocked...

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2013/06/12/intel-core-i5-4670k-haswell-cpu-review/6

Edited September 16, 2013 by numerobis