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Hi.

I'm gonna buy me a new computer. I'm gonna build it myself and use it mainly for Maxwell/Maya + normal stuff, no serious gaming.

If I were to spend about $1000 on a CPU/Motherboard/RAM what would you suggest? do you get a Xeon for that kind of money and if so, is it faster than a CPU with socket 1156/1155? My CPU is 4+ years old so I'm not that familiar with the current CPU's.

Basically whatever you can get that has the most processing power. Multiply the number of cores by the Ghz of each and compare. For your price range I think the intel 2600 is still king. Very good bang for the buck.

-Brodie

yes, the i7 2600k has still the best price/performance ratio especially when overclocked... or the "old" i7 970 which gets sold out now and is only a bit above the 2600k but has 6 cores!

For ~$1000 i would buy a 3930k with 32GB RAM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819116492
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813157282
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820233232
+ a good cpu cooler

= ~$1100

make sure to get the 'k' version if you're overclocking (2600 can't be overclocked but 2600k can)

-Brodie

numerobis wrote: For ~$1000 i would buy a 3930k with 32GB RAM

+1

that is best in cost, hardware vs. software vs. life-cylce

i just built a few machines running on asus p9x79 pro, 6 cores on 4.2 Ghz w. 32Gb (just 150€!!) transcend ram

very good render node.

Thanks for the feedback guys!

Yeah 2600K seems like a good deal. 3930k is almost twice the price here in Sweden, though. What about Intel i7-3770K? It's almost the same price as 2600k? I'm not sure if it has the integrated graphics?

Seems like a pretty good deal, here's a benchmark with Fryrenderer: (in seconds, lower is better)

ivy bridge runs hotter than sandy bridge.

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/ivy-br ... 15512.html

also watch out for the socket as it is linked to maximum ram usage and number of ram channels.
socket 1155 boards have only 4 ram slots max.. so for 32gb you need these 8GB modules!

x79 chipset is best for performance. but you need extra graphics (~25€)

also for rendering, imho a gpu on die is counter productive.
we want to overclock, and that simply works better if it is not there.

***

assuming you want to spend 3000.-

3 x 3930k machines: ~1000.- = 3000.-
in theory (according to the benchmark you posted) gets you 211/3= 70 sek.

4 x 3770k machines: ~750.- = 3000.-
benchmark will be 297/4 = 74,5

and the latter costs you an extra windows license AND an extra render-node license so add another 250-300€ on top

if 3960K is too expensive and if you can get the 3770K for the same price like a 2600K then this would be the better choice.
But only if you don't plan to overclock it (or only a bit), because the 3770K seems to run very hot when it gets overclocked.

2600K, 2700K and 3770K have all integrated graphics.

Maybe you can put two 3930K on a dual motherboard. I think Tyan has some models with that socket (I don't if it is as overclockable though) but it will go over 1000€

Fernando Tella wrote:Maybe you can put two 3930K on a dual motherboard. I think Tyan has some models with that socket (I don't if it is as overclockable though) but it will go over 1000€

afaik this does not work, because non xeon cpus lack a 2nd QPI link for multiprocessing.

@blazer76

sorry i sort of missed you want to build a single workstation.. in that case like numerobis pointed out you might want to take a look at the older 6 core i7 970. maybe you can get a good offer in sweden. across the rest of the EU you can get it for ~380-400€

you can find a good cinebench comparison here:

the 970 will preform like the 990x if you bump the clock for 260mhz, which is a piece of cake.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2012/0 ... k-review/4

3930k is the best single socket CPU out now as far as Maxwell is concerned. 3960k is twice the price for no additional performance.

Thanks for all feedback guys, I think I'm gonna buy me:
i7-2600K
Corsair Vengeance 16 GB (2x8)
ASUS P8Z68-V LX motherboard
at my local retailer (in Sweden) I can get it for about $675

So instead of paying a shitload of money now for a better CPU, I can buy a new faster one in a year.

i think i would take a z77 mainboard even for a 2600k since it's almost the same price and it's the newer chipset.

So do you want to overclock it or not? If not the 3770K could be the better choice.

I'm not sure If I will overclock, I have my computer in my desk cupboard and it gets pretty hot. That's why I didn't want the 3770, but does it only run very hot when it' overclocked? So what's the benefit of a z77 mainboard?

Never keep your computer in a cupboard