[PC BUILD - dual 1080 Ti] Need advice on system build

[stefanmathez]

Hi guys I’m looking for some solid feedback on this setup, as I am by no mean an expert when it comes to this.

The PC is for Octane Renderer with Cinema 4D & After Effects
(amazon.es prices)

CPU: Intel Core i7 - i7-6800K 3.4 GHz - 15 MB Cache - LGA2011 (449€)
CPU Cooling: NZXT Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (150€)
Motherboard: X99A XPOWER GAMING TITANIUM (430€)
GPU1: Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti (not in SLI) (815€)
GPU2: Nvidia GTX 1080 Ti (not in SLI) (815€)
Storage1: Samsung 950 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive (349€)
Storage2: Hitachi Ultrastar K4000 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (230€)
RAM: G.Skill TridentZ Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (334€)
PSU: Corsair HX1200i (260€)
Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 750D Airflow Edition (150€)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM 64-bit (100€)
Cooling: Fans vs Liquid? // Need advice

GPU concern: 2x1080Ti vs 3x1080
The GPU choice is based on the fact that I would mainly use C4D+Octane and After Effects, and 3x1080 (1900€, 7680cuda) vs 2x1080ti (1630€, 7168cuda) seems a smarter choice in the end, as most of AE’s plug-ins use only one card at for a very close Cuda Cores count there’s a decent -300€ on the cost and cooling.
Am I missing something?

Cooling system:
I have absolutely no idea what’s best to do here. Advice would be absolutely fantastic.

(Please note that some of the parts have been chosen due to availability.)

[rappet]

I would prefer Two Ti's... Then in future you can add another gpu.

I would not choose windows 10, but windows 8,... W10 eats some vram (of all gpu) and you have less availbale for rendering, or you just do not need that much vram for your rendering...and really want windows 10.. Then you might go for it. But just make sure you are aware of this issue (see other threads on the forum)

[stefanmathez]

I would prefer Two Ti's... Then in future you can add another gpu.

I would not choose windows 10, but windows 8,... W10 eats some vram (of all gpu) and you have less availbale for rendering, or you just do not need that much vram for your rendering...and really want windows 10.. Then you might go for it. But just make sure you are aware of this issue (see other threads on the forum)

Thanks rappet.

Yeah I'm pretty convinced about the GPUs now. Thanks for pointing the Win10 issue out! Hopefully it's something that gets fixed soon, but I'm considering using Win8 until then.

[rappet]

About cooling air versus liquid?
Aircooling is much cheaper.
With two cards you can space them out on your motherboard and your airflow will be great.
I am not sure how the 1080ti 's perform when you have four cards and stick them close together in case you invest in more cards later.
If I were you I firstly would invest money in more cards rather then two cards on water.
It also depends on what budget you have to invest more then your current config and what your longterm plan is?
I.e. for four cards in future a 40 lane cpu (6850k) is better.

[Iceman9]

Buy two 1080 TI.

If your you find your temperatures are high you can add hybrid cooling to one or both:
http://www.evga.com/products/product.as ... HY-5388-B1