I7 4770k to Xeon (?)

[-1nf1n1ty-]

I was considering trading or selling my 4770k for a Xeon? I use a lot of Maya and I found my self rendering a LOT this month. Would this be worth it? And if so, which Xeon? I wouldn't wanna purchase another motherboard or etc cause, I still like what I have. Anyways would like feedback. Maya uses a lot of CPU and Ram power, unless I do some VFX renders, in which case then GPU helps out. But I just realize I made the mistake by grabbing an AMD card so lol. I game quite a lot so I'm also wondering if Xeon is a good gaming performer? (I don't think it is, I never heard of a gamer purchasing a xeon?)

bit of a rant: I've been using Maya for god knows how long (7 years) and I just found out that it's practically owned by nvidia?!!? WHAT?! I spent money on an R9 390 , can't help but wonder if nvidia would help that much.

 

[xvi]

The Xeon wouldn't overclock and won't be better than what you have even with that 4770k at stock speeds. I'd keep what you've got and just overclock it on that nice cooler, assuming you haven't already.

You might consider picking up an old dual Xeon workstation. They're workhorses that are built for intensive tasks. Also, check out these benchmarks from PugetSystems. GPU is the definitive way to improve performance, specifically, FirePro and Quadro cards (which get incredibly expensive). Looks like AMD is the way to go too.

 

[jboydgolfer]

that wouldnt be a smart switch

 

[newtekie1]

If you are talking about sticking to the same socket, Xeons and i7s are basically the same CPU. The only real difference being clock speed.

 

[-1nf1n1ty-]

The Xeon wouldn't overclock and won't be better than what you have even with that 4770k at stock speeds. I'd keep what you've got and just overclock it on that nice cooler, assuming you haven't already.

You might consider picking up an old dual Xeon workstation. They're workhorses that are built for intensive tasks. Also, check out these benchmarks from PugetSystems. GPU is the definitive way to improve performance, specifically, FirePro and Quadro cards (which get incredibly expensive). Looks like AMD is the way to go too.

Very interesting! Hmm, I guess I should have gotten a workstation card. But I was mainly concerned about rendering as far as I know there's only a prototype of the GPU render while using Mental Ray. My card isn't being taken advantage of and I don't know how I could "activate it". I think there are other render plugins I can install to use the GPU accelerated render, I think.

The workstation cards seem to boost overall performance for rendering and what not.

 

[Caring1]

That depends if your motherboard will support XEON.
It should, but you might have to try one to find out if a BIOS update is needed to run one.
XEON's do overclock, there are members here that do it.
Here are some for comparison that show they are basically the same as your i7.
http://ark.intel.com/compare/75123,80913,80907

 

[-1nf1n1ty-]

I think you guys answered my question thanks a ton. So I guess it's just more worth it to grab a Workstation Card to help with render times etc?

 

[xvi]

XEON's do overclock, there are members here that do it.

Haswell Xeons?

I think you guys answered my question thanks a ton. So I guess it's just more worth it to grab a Workstation Card to help with render times etc?

I'm not too familiar with Maya, but you should be able to accelerate Maya with your desktop GPU. That R9 390 should be no slouch.

Let me quote a thread on Polycount.com: They're talking about a GTX 970 vs a R9 390.

As far as I know they are very similar in performance, but you will not get any advantage on V-Ray, it uses the CPU and your system memory to do the rendering.

Another thing is OTOY OctaneRender, which uses the GPU to render and your VRAM is a very important aspect for larger projects. The only problem you'll face is that it uses CUDA, so you won't work on an AMD card.

Also, check out Maya's certified hardware list. It only has cards as new as the 290x (which is officially "Tested" and working, but not "Certified"). It really, really should be working. Does Maya let you select your R9 390 as an OpenCL device? That should be all that's necessary to take advantage of it.

 

[-1nf1n1ty-]

Haswell Xeons?

I'm not too familiar with Maya, but you should be able to accelerate Maya with your desktop GPU. That R9 390 should be no slouch.

Let me quote a thread on Polycount.com: They're talking about a GTX 970 vs a R9 390.


Also, check out Maya's certified hardware list. It only has cards as new as the 290x (which is officially "Tested" and working, but not "Certified"). It really, really should be working. Does Maya let you select your R9 390 as an OpenCL device? That should be all that's necessary to take advantage of it.

No I can't select OpenCL in Maya. I don't see an option for it. I guess it will update once it's ready?

 

[xvi]

No I can't select OpenCL in Maya. I don't see an option for it. I guess it will update once it's ready?

Weird. Perhaps run GPU-z to see if OpenCL is running on your card. If OpenCL isn't checked, when was the last time you updated your drivers?

Edit: Should be able to follow this guide to make sure you're looking in the right place to enable it.

 

[-1nf1n1ty-]

Weird. Perhaps run GPU-z to see if OpenCL is running on your card. If OpenCL isn't checked, when was the last time you updated your drivers?

Edit: Should be able to follow this guide to make sure you're looking in the right place to enable it.

GPU-Z says that it's checked. And the guide is for V-Ray. Does this mean it's only for Vray and not Mental Ray?