again one question about GPU expansion

[miohn]

Hi,

render cloud seams to take more time to be released, so I'm looking
for a expansion system, becaus I have to do an animation next 2 weeks
and need extra power.

ATM I'm looking at the amfeltec-solution which is much cheaper than
the nextor na255a. Are more people using this? Any experiences about that?
I read some posts about amfeltec, but what I'm not sure:
do I have any disadvantages concerning speed (transfer etc.)
compared to nestor?

Right now I have 2 Titans in my workstation and one more Titan Z to add.
What 3 other 6 GB cards would you recommend
to add? Any recommendations? (titan z is not the cheapest)

thanks very much!
MIke

[glimpse]

Hi Mike =)

Most of Amfeltect products are x4 or x1 - what means upload speed will be why slower compared to x16, but render speed will be exactly the same =)

Amfeltec GPU cluster is widely used among this forum members & I haven't seen any issues with it =) it holds up o 4 dual/tripple slot cards without a problem & the best coolers to pair would be STRIX< wind force, etc..- those cards will shine on that cluster =)

GPU Oriented splitter (4 way) is the fastest solution, as it has x4 uplink - but the downside is that You need to place cards much closer (within 30CM from Your PCIe slot) &..You still need to think how to place them.. =)

GPU backplate.. again.. goes from x1, but it has rigid - You can mount it into any mATX compatible case. It has 4 slots to plug GPUs, but they are 1 side by side, thus means You can get only two double slot GPUs or need to modify 4 cards to single slot/ waterCooled =)

none of them are perfect, but they fit needs of some Guys. If You look for most interactivity, plunging cards directly into Your motherboard is the best solution. Nestor adapter cost a lot compared to Amfeltec's solution, but it gives higher upload speed as You utilise x16 instead.

as for 6GB GPUs, look for 780 6GB..- for around 300EU they will give You 80points in terms of OctaneBench out of the box =) or .. 100+ under water (~70EU per GPU water block, 150EU pump/res + few rads& fans)

benefit of water-cooling is that cards will run 40-50C instead of 80-90C, much more silent (depending on Your rad capacity & fan combination), ability to shrink cards to singleSlot (thus getting 4 of them into relatively small space, or up to 7 in hi-end workstation motherboard =), etc..


p.s. I'm looking to make an eGPU solution, with 4x modified 780 6GB cards on amfeltec's backplate - all shrieked to singleSlot =) I'll post some progress as I start building if You're interested to see how that is going to end up =)

[miohn]

Hi Glimpse,

thanks much for your expanations.
But the many possibilities do not really make the decision easier

I think the amfeltec Cluster would be the easiest way for me, because I'm not
a hardware specialist. (nestor is too expensive for me)
But anyway - I cannot estimate - how does the slower uploadspeed
of the cluster-solution manifest in daily work.

And sadly I cannot find a 780 6GB available on the market.

Please post about your setup when you finished it.

thanks
Mike

[glimpse]

Mike, where are You from? There are new 780 6GB on stock in UK =) honestly, that's a bargain..
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showprod ... catid=1914

[miohn]

Hi Glimpse,

from germany.
Sadly I cannot buy from overclockers.uk with my paypal account
from germany. Sh.. this was a good offer.

But back to one of my questions: is the speed difference between the amfeltec-cluster
and nestor so noticeable?

regards
Mike

[moedeldiho]

Hey Mike,

can't comment on any Amfeltec specifics - Usually PCIe speeds get noticeable with bigger scenes only. So one factor to consider is your general scene size (In VRAM) - if your scenes are below 1GB in VRAM you might not notice PCIe speed differences. At least that's my experience...

Yes the 780/6GB is a bargain yet if you can't find it in Germany there's also a decent alternative in the GTX980Ti - same amount of RAM, 147% the render speed of the 780 and not extremely expensive at around €650,00 in Germany.

If you're in need of render power for a given project yet somehow speculate on ORCs availability - another option could be to rent a Workstation from CadNetworks: https://www.cadnetwork.de/de/mietgeraete

cheers,
Mo

[miohn]

hehe,

CADNetwork told me, that sending out expensive GPU-Racks is too risky for them.
So this rental offer is not for freelancers - or even only not for me - anyway.

About ORC:
there are no news/infos since months and I don't want to rely on that.

But, luckily, I found another reseller in UK and bought 4 780s OC 6GB for 210,- £
When my cluster arrives from Canada I will report my experiences.

regards
Mike

[stijn]

Mike,

Can you tell me where you bought the 780s in the UK?

Thanks,
Stijn

[miohn]

Hi,

bought them from lambda-tec.com.
http://www.lambda-tek.com/shop/?region= ... +780&go=go
But haven't got them yet.

regards
Mike

[stijn]

Thanks!