my way from graphic design to motion design – workstation upgrade

[Kseh]

Hey everyone!

My name is Lukas, I’m a communication designer getting into the 3D world as a freelancer and currently using c4d + octane as a base. The transition is still an adventure, sometimes really confusing, but plenty fun!

I bought my PC workstation 4 years ago and upgraded it a year ago with your help! Many, many thanks again!

My current setup is:

Motherboard: MSI X399 SLI PLUS
CPU: Ryzen TR 1950X (Base Clock Speed 3.4GHz)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro TR4
GPU: 2x RTX 2070 Super (Asus Turbo, Blower Style)
RAM: 64GB (4x16GB): Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3000MHz C15 XMP 2.0
NVME: SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus SSD 2TB
SSD: Samsung 860 EVO 2TB SATA 2,5"
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3,5"
PSU: EVGA 850 GQ (850W)
Case: Fractal Define 7 XL

Big Upgrade (2020)​

Replacing my EVGA RTX 2070 with two blower style GPUs by Asus,
doubling the RAM from 32GB to 64GB, more fans, bigger case and added NVME SSD​

Replacing the CPU cooler.
I’ve seen crazy stuff happening with the enermax cooler and couldn’t risk it.
After upgrading to the Dark Rock Pro TR4 I did even get better results! Love it.
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Current Status (2021)​

I had to put my PC into the basement, because I’m working from my bedroom
and long days of rendering were too much in the end.
Now I’m using Parsec on my MacBook for remote access to my workstation.
This was a great workflow enhancement for me –
especially in my current situation!

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I’m currently doing a clean install of windows on my workstation and trying to get everything right this time.

I was hella confused when I was building this workstation the first time. So I did research a lot and kinda got it working, but I was really hoping for some fine tuning recommendations from you guys! I’m still not sure about so many things, especially bios stuff.

I’m always wondering if I should run my hardware at base clock speed or overclock anything.
Is overclocking a thing in 3D or does it make everything unstable and might reduce the lifetime of my hardware a lot?

I’m not sure if I get everything out of my PC, especially RAM and CPU. CPU running on base clock speed and RAM currently running at x-amp 1 2666 mhz. I couldn’t get it running at 3000mhz with amp profiles. All the guides on youtube are kinda directed towards gamers and I’m really not sure if I can rely on that, as CGI and rendering in general is a different load on the system.

I do have the feeling that I should run everything on stock, update my drivers and only change the bios settings for my ram, but I’m really not sure about this.

How do you guys think about overclocking? After building your workstation, installing windows and all the important drivers – what is the next thing to do? Do you change any specific settings of your hardware/drivers?



I’m really looking forward to your recommendations!
Any help is much appreciated.

PS: Thanks for making this journey possible CGDirector! You did help plenty and I wouldn’t have been able to receive this result without you guys!

 

[Alex Glawion]

I don't usually overclock on my professional workstation. I have the CPU boost features enabled, but nothing else apart from that. I did some testing a while back, but the additional power-draw and noise from the fans isn't something I need when working.

Your build looks great!

 

[Kseh]

I don't usually overclock on my professional workstation. I have the CPU boost features enabled, but nothing else apart from that. I did some testing a while back, but the additional power-draw and noise from the fans isn't something I need when working.

Your build looks great!

Many thanks, Alex! Really appreciate it!

That’s interesting! Do you enable the cpu boost feature via bios or 3rd party software?

Would love to hear about how you handle your RAM. Do you only use amp profiles or do you tweak the timings and volts to get to the stock speed of the ram? Do you leave it untouched?

I’m really struggling to get it to 3000mhz, but I’m a bit afraid of touching the volts and frying my parts.

 

[Alex Glawion]

I run the RAM at stock XMP Profiles and set the CPU boosting in the BIOS. I am not sure what boost gen the TR1950X has, it certainly doesn't have PBO, but should have something like default automatic boosting.

I know the 1950X struggles in single-core performance, but that's just the gen and clock speeds in general that aren't that great on that generation TRs.

 

[Kseh]

I run the RAM at stock XMP Profiles and set the CPU boosting in the BIOS. I am not sure what boost gen the TR1950X has, it certainly doesn't have PBO, but should have something like default automatic boosting.

I know the 1950X struggles in single-core performance, but that's just the gen and clock speeds in general that aren't that great on that generation TRs.

Thanks a lot, Alex! Definitely gonna check that out! Much appreciated!

You’re right! For now it works out!
I think in the future this machine will be transformed into a render node. Hopefully the market goes back to normal by mid 2022.

The time for a new workstation will come! Packing the render node with 4 GPUs and another PSU. Looking forward to that!

 

[Andrey]

I run the RAM at stock XMP Profiles and set the CPU boosting in the BIOS. I am not sure what boost gen the TR1950X has, it certainly doesn't have PBO, but should have something like default automatic boosting.

I know the 1950X struggles in single-core performance, but that's just the gen and clock speeds in general that aren't that great on that generation TRs.