Threadripper - Titan Xp workstation (baby Nvidia DEVBOX alternative?)

dussa · September 22, 2017, 00:09

Hi all,

I've got the opportunity to spec a new machine for research purposes. We will be using this machine as a prototyping platform for jobs (OpenFOAM, LIGGGHTS, CFDEM, Fluent etc.) in our research group before we submit long running jobs to the Raijin cluster (national cluster) as our university is decommissioning its cluster in December with no replacement.

Also I already have a GTX Titan Xp, so despite people probably suggesting that of course I just use Raijin, we also would like a workstation to house the Titan Xp.

I saw the NVIDIA Devbox (https://developer.nvidia.com/devbox), obviously aimed more at deep learning than CFD, however I am curious if using it as inspiration for my workstation is a good idea. So far I am thinking of:

Threadripper 1950x (16-core)
1 x Titan Xp (possibly SLi in future when more funds are available)
64gb (4 x 16gb) RAM 3200MHz (128gb at 8x 16gb again when more funds are available)
512gb SSD
Large storage drives etc.

Does anyone have any opinion or experience with something like this? Any issues with the Threadripper CPUs?

Regards,
Rob

flotus1 · September 22, 2017, 12:42

I won't be the one to start the discussion Intel I9 vs. AMD TR vs AMD Epyc. I guess you already made up your mind about the choice of CPU.
So my only advice is be careful which memory exactly you buy. Many 16GB DIMMs will not run at DDR4-3200 on Ryzen/Threadripper CPUs. Especially when using two DIMMs per channel.
Memory that uses "Samsung B-die" chips is known for better compatibility with AMDs new CPUs. For example "Gskill FlareX"

dussa · September 23, 2017, 01:45

I liked the TR over Epyc for the higher clock speeds which some users will benefit from, and also over i9 for the price.
Ill have to look into the memory, I have been told by many that the 3600MHz memory is not working well at the moment with threadripper, but wasnt aware of other issues. Ill look into the Gskell FlareX you suggested.

September 22, 2017, 00:09	Threadripper - Titan Xp workstation (baby Nvidia DEVBOX alternative?)	#1
dussa Member Robert Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 32 Rep Power: 10	Hi all, I've got the opportunity to spec a new machine for research purposes. We will be using this machine as a prototyping platform for jobs (OpenFOAM, LIGGGHTS, CFDEM, Fluent etc.) in our research group before we submit long running jobs to the Raijin cluster (national cluster) as our university is decommissioning its cluster in December with no replacement. Also I already have a GTX Titan Xp, so despite people probably suggesting that of course I just use Raijin, we also would like a workstation to house the Titan Xp. I saw the NVIDIA Devbox (https://developer.nvidia.com/devbox), obviously aimed more at deep learning than CFD, however I am curious if using it as inspiration for my workstation is a good idea. So far I am thinking of: Threadripper 1950x (16-core) 1 x Titan Xp (possibly SLi in future when more funds are available) 64gb (4 x 16gb) RAM 3200MHz (128gb at 8x 16gb again when more funds are available) 512gb SSD Large storage drives etc. Does anyone have any opinion or experience with something like this? Any issues with the Threadripper CPUs? Regards, Rob

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September 22, 2017, 12:42		#2
flotus1 Super Moderator Alex Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Germany Posts: 3,427 Rep Power: 49	I won't be the one to start the discussion Intel I9 vs. AMD TR vs AMD Epyc. I guess you already made up your mind about the choice of CPU. So my only advice is be careful which memory exactly you buy. Many 16GB DIMMs will not run at DDR4-3200 on Ryzen/Threadripper CPUs. Especially when using two DIMMs per channel. Memory that uses "Samsung B-die" chips is known for better compatibility with AMDs new CPUs. For example "Gskill FlareX"

September 23, 2017, 01:45		#3
dussa Member Robert Join Date: Sep 2016 Posts: 32 Rep Power: 10	I liked the TR over Epyc for the higher clock speeds which some users will benefit from, and also over i9 for the price. Ill have to look into the memory, I have been told by many that the 3600MHz memory is not working well at the moment with threadripper, but wasnt aware of other issues. Ill look into the Gskell FlareX you suggested.