Hi,
Yesterday I got my brand new workstation. First thing on the list was getting KeyShot on it ;).
System Overview
Custom shop-built machine
i7-3930k, 3.2Ghz, overclocked to 4.3Ghz
Win 7, Professional, 64-Bit
16 GB RAM
240 GB Intel 520 SSD
Graphics: Nvidia Quadro 2000 & GeForce GTX 670
KeyShot 3.2.32 fps: 83
Coming from a measly 7 fps on an Intel T7500 notebook this feels like a HUGE speed bump ;D...
greetings,
Dries
Congrats Dries, happy rendering! Something like this is on my Wish List too.
Murray
Nice speed! Those 3930's are a great value for KeyShot! Can I ask who you sourced it through?
Also, 2 different graphics cards? How's that work? They don't fight each other? ???
How much does it cost?
;)
Dries - A nice improvement!
Your frame rate is consistent with my i7-3930k cpu.
Download the HWMonitor from CPUID and let us know what the core temperature is while running the KeyShot benchmark camera scene (other scenes will give a different result).
Ed
Wow - a huge jump compared to your old config! :o
I'm jealous.
Quote from: br3ttman on June 07, 2012, 08:13:54 AM...
Also, 2 different graphics cards? How's that work? They don't fight each other? ???
They do have a love-hate relationship ;D...
I now have a dual boot setup on my SSD. 1st Windows 7 with Quadro driver (nvidia control panel configured for output on Quadro only); 2nd Windows 7 with GeForce driver (nvidia cp configured for output on GeForce only). This does seem to work pretty smoothly for now. I really wanted graphics muscles for CAD and gaming in one machine. This is a great way to do it.
Quote from: Ed on June 07, 2012, 08:55:36 AM...
Download the HWMonitor from CPUID and let us know what the core temperature is while running the KeyShot benchmark camera scene (other scenes will give a different result).
Hi Ed,
Tonight I've been organising/preparing my (small) home office desk to better accommodate this behemoth :D. I'm managing three machines and 4 screens on a way too tiny footprint. Not a small feat...
So hadn't had a chance today to check temps underload. Will definitely post them once I have them.
Greetings,
Dries
Ed & others,
Here is a screencap of several things running:
- KeyShot with fps counter
- Windows Task Manager with core load
- CPU-Z with core speed
- Hardware Monitor with temps, voltages etc.
- Wallpaper of shop that built my machine ;D...
greetings,
Dries
Thanks Dries - Those are very close to the numbers I see on my i7 3930K PC. My cpu package temp was 77 deg C when OC to 4.4 GHz. I have now dropped to 4.2 GHz with a 73 deg C package temp, and very little difference in KeyShot performance.
Ed
Hi Ed & others,
Something I tried over the weekend...
I played a bit with the CPU voltages in the BIOS.
Something you might try (considering you have the exact same motherboard) is manually setting a VCORE of around 1.25V for 4.3GHz.
I have done this and now I get the same amount of fps in KeyShot and my temps are 65 deg C.
There is still room for optimization, though, since now the VCORE is fixed and doesn't throttle down when the system is idling.
I think it is worth trying...
greetings,
Dries
Dries -
Lowering the voltage does reduce temperature, but it also makes the cpu less stable. That is, you may find your PC giving the blue screen of death in the middle of a render or while running another program.
I'm not an overclock expert, so you may want to ask in one of the OC forums. My understanding is you'll want to run one of the programs designed to test for cpu stability for 24 hours before committing to lowering the cpu voltage that far.
In my case I just lowered the clock frequency slightly from 4.4 to 4.2 GHz to improve temperatures (increasing reliability) and the system automatically selects the appropriate cpu voltage taking into account stability. My system automatically throttles down the cpu voltage (with corresponding drop in temperature) when the cpu is not running all 6 cores (i.e. all my programs except KeyShot).
Let us know what settings you end up with.
Ed
Okay, I think I'm reaching a definite configuration...
I'm suspecting I don't have one of the 'better' (overclock-wise) chips out there, but I guess I have to make do with what I've got ;D!
I made all sorts of changes in the BIOS. Now I've got throttling CPU voltage (according to load) and more stable power supply to CPU.
CPU speed is still 4.3GHz.
Stress tested with OCCT (large data set), ran fine for 20 minutes (then I quit it), so looking stable.
Running KeyShot gives me 84fps (probably because I optimized and stopped some services running in background).
Core voltage is 1.32V max (CPU-Z). Package max. temp. and power are respectively 68 deg C and 165W.
I'm pretty happy with these values.
Greetings,
Dries
Sounds like you found the sweet spot Dries - enjoy.
Ed
Okay, just keeping you guys updated 8)...
I've been further tweaking my (4.3GHz OC) BIOS settings.
Did a 15' OCCT stress test run and had no BSOD or errors.
Running KeyShot, these are the new numbers:
83.5 fps
Core voltage 1.288-1.296V (CPU-Z)
Package Temp 67 deg C
Package Power 163W
Pretty sweet! ;D
btw, KeyShot is an absolute joy to use on FAST hardware. I had never realised this before...
greetings,
Dries
Quote from: DriesV on June 07, 2012, 01:33:32 AM
Graphics: Nvidia Quadro 2000 & GeForce GTX 670
Since you are a real world user has the kind of setup I have been thinking about, I wan have to ask you this question.
What do you feel about the benefit of having a Quadro 2000 card in solidworks/rhnio/alias/so on? And do you need to switch monitor input to quadro when you use any of those software? Do you need to switch monitor input to gtx 670 when you play game or watch videos? Does Quadro accelerate video trans coding?
Thanks
Okay,
My display setup and system configuration have changed quite a bit since the last time I posted here.
I used to have 2 W7 installation: 1 with Quadro driver for CAD work on Quadro 2000, 1 with GeForce driver for gaming on GTX670 and GPU accelerated apps (Quadro driver can't install GTX670!).
This setup proved to be too much of a hassle.
I decided to switch to a single W7 installation. I still have both the Quadro2000 and GTX670. They are both running on the latest GeForce driver. I do get all the benefits of the Quadro2000 that I need, even with it running on the GeForce driver.
My prime reason for using the Quadro is that it enables RealView Graphics in SolidWorks (my main CAD package). I like to use this when modelling with surfaces. I don't know exactly what benefits you get from using a Quadro in other 3D software. I guess most of the time it makes sense, EVEN THOUGH Quadros are hardware-wise underspecced compared to GeForce cards. Nvidia decided to simply not allow much OpenGL functionality on their GeForce cards through driver blocks.
**REMEMBER!**
When using a Quadro and GTX on a single Windows installation, it is important to install the GEFORCE driver! GeForce drivers do recognize and install Quadro cards. Quadro drivers can't install GeForce cards!
I have four display cables permanently hooked up to my workstation.
The Quadro2000 is connected to my primary display through DisplayPort and to my secondary display through DVI.
The GTX670 is connected to my primary display through DVI and to my secondary display through HDMI.
I DON'T MIX outputs: either both displays are displaying through Quadro or both are displaying through GTX.
As to switching between Quadro and GTX output...
I use a very handy tool called DisplayFusion (http://www.displayfusion.com (http://www.displayfusion.com)). It does all kinds of cool stuff with displays, taskbars, windows etc.
One thing it does very well indeed is manage display profiles. I have used it to create "CAD&Design" and "Gaming" profiles. The first loads the Quadro display connections; the latter loads the GTX display connections.
DisplayFusion fits neatly in the Windows System Tray and by using the menu from there it is possible to switch between Quadro and GTX in 1-2-3.
No need for dual W7 installations anymore!
Unless you would want to completely separate CAD programs/files and entertainment stuff...
Or unless you absolutely need the Quadro driver for a specific reason...
I know, it's a lot of hassle to go through and there's definitely a lot that can go wrong... But I'd rather have just a single system with as small a footprint as possible on my desk... ;D
I hope this was helpful.
Dries
That helps.
I might get a quadro 2000 the version has 2 displayports and 1 dvi since its about $300 to $350. 4000 is about double that.
I can't remember where I read this, but it states that the reasons we pay a lot of money for quadro cards include:
Small market, no competitation, ecc VRAM, all the licensing on drivers. so I supposed nvidia did a lot extra work to quadro drivers to make them specifically good for professional use.
I use desktop fusion too. I have 3 dell 2408 monitors, and my tri stand is on the way. That is also the reason I want to get quadro 2000 with 3 headers instead quadro 2000-d which has only 2 dvi ports.