VitalBodies new computer that can handle graphics for creating 3d art has finally arrived!

Click image to see a larger version

FIRST LOOKS:

Eco packaging, solid construction and a real key and lock - Plus wow, this workstation is big!

Need to set it up...

Heres a few links about the D10:

• Video: ThinkStation Tour
• PDF: Spec Sheet
• Web Site: Lenovo ThinkStation

THINKSTATION: This computer can support 2 Xeon 5400 series quad processors for a fast 8-core system. Plus you can add up to 32GB of Fully buffered ram and two graphics cards! You can put 5 hard drives below and there are three 5.25 inch drive bays in the front. Add one 3.5 inch floppy sized bay and you have a fully loaded system. The case is a 7U rack mountable design that can also be used as a tower.

Two 250GB drives as a raid and will run Ubuntu 64-bit Hardy Heron. The data will live on its own front loaded hot swappable removable SATA drive. There will also be a media card reader in the front.

ECO FEATURES: Of course! EnergyStar 4.0 compliant, recycled materials and High efficiency power supply.

QUIET: Another big plus for anyone using this workstation is how silent this computer is.

What is the hardware of choice for 3D content creation...
VitalBodies impression is, that the CPU handles rendering on all computer except computer using Gelato.

FACTORS:

• 3D Rendering is where one can wait and wait and wait and...
• Rendering can make your computer unusable FOR HOURS for multi-tasking unless you have enough processing power. One frame of a 3D scene can take 24 hours or more to render.
• This type of issue can even happen with Photoshop doing certain processes on large photos or photos with lots of layers...
• Graphics cards only increase the on screen OpenGL speed.
• The hard drives are waiting and waiting for the rendered image so again CPUs mater here.
• Thus the bulk of ones budget should go to processing power.
  • Each core needs ram, and you should consider at least 1GB per core.

After quite a bit of research, here are the conclusions VitalBodies reached about what to buy to build a 3D Rendering Workstation.
VitalBodies goal was not the fastest and most expensive but instead to find a the best price performance ratio.
A workstation with 2 CPUs on one motherboard seems to be the best choice.

QUAD CORE XEON E5420: LGA771
2.5 GHz 45nm 820 million transistors, 12mb Cache, 64GB addressable memory and 1333MHZ front side bus.
Can use the Intel® 5000X, 5400A or 5400B Chipsets.

Here is how we came to our conclusions and you can too.

PassMark:
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/high_end_cpus.html
If you look at the X5420 Xeons they look like they do really well in dual processor set ups for the price.

Intel Workstation Processors:
http://www.intel.com/products/server/workstation_processors/index.htm?iid=wsproc+tab_workstation

From Pricewatch:

(Note: be sure to check for the latest prices and perfomance)
$2529 -xeon x7350
$1355 -xeon x5482
$1026 -xeon x5472 - 3.00 GHz 1600Mhz FSB - PassMark 9790
$1252 -xeon x5460
$872 -xeon x5450
$1059 -xeon e5472 - 3.00 GHz 1600Mhz FSB
$850 -xeon e5462 - 2.80 GHz  1600Mhz FSB
$924 -xeon e5450 - 3.00 GHz 1333Mhz FSB - PassMark 8857
$688 -xeon e5440 - 2.83 GHz 1333Mhz FSB - PassMark 6992
$464 -xeon e5430 - 2.66 GHz 1333Mhz FSB - PassMark 6752
$322 -xeon e5420 - 2.50 GHz 1333Mhz FSB - PassMark 8118
$272 -xeon e5410 - 2.33 GHz 1333Mhz FSB
$222 -xeon e5405 - 2.00 GHz 1333Mhz FSB

Best Price Performance Ratio:

Intel Xeon E5420 (the one to beat)

Passmark:

8118 (Dual CPU) Xeon e5420

Pricewatch:

$322 x 2 = $644.

$357 NewEgg:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117147

*Pricewatch prices are for reference only. You want to choose a reliable seller not just the lowest price...

So what did VitalBodies Get?

VitalBodies ended up getting a Lenovo ThinkStation D10 which is being built for us as this post is written.

Also, check back to see VitalBodies next post on Motherboards.

Hey Nahtano,

Life has been pretty hectic lately, but I have been finishing-up my MacWorld Review and I promise that it will be ready for Monday. I am trying to get back into the grove of things, and I am almost there so please bear with me.  Also, some more links that you can check out will be ready for Monday. Check my Twitter Page for more updates...

Now that the MacWorld Keynote  is over, I wanted to do another Live Broadcast and talk about people's reactions. Here is the info you need:

Hosted By: Jonathan Brodheim

Title: Macworld: Past, Present & Future

Time: 01/18/2008 - 08:35 PM EST

Phone Number: (724) 444-7444

Call ID: 11055 

Episode Notes: In this episode, we are going to discuss MacWorld on the whole. Who was there? What was there? What was unveiled during the keynote address? The only way to find out the answers to these questions is for you to call in or download the podcast for yourself!

 

There are three ways to call on and/or listen: 

1. If you are part of the Nahtano Group on Facebook, you can visit my profile page to listen to the broadcast live.
2. If you want to call from your computer, you need a microphone & headset. Just go to TalkShoe and join the call.
3. If you want to use a phone [preferred method] just call the Phone Number listed above [724-444-7444], and enter the Call ID [11055] when prompted.

When the Podcast is finished, it will be available for download through iTunes and TalkShoe.

E' da oggi disponibile sull'Apple Store il nuovissimo MacPro con caratteristiche davvero spaventose!

Il processore è, come da qualche anno, un Intel Xeon ma la novità è che la velocità della CPU è salita a 3,2Ghz e lo standard è ben 8 core (2 processori da 4 core). La memoria di cache di questo "mostro" è di ben 12MB (L2) per processore più altri 6 MB condivisa tra i vari core.

Il Front Side Bus (FSB) ha una frequenza di 1600Mhz per ogni CPU e la banda passante puo arrivare fino a 26,5 GB/s.

Come gli altri della serie ha il supporto per l'SSE4 SIMD e il supporto per istruzioni a 128 bit

Il costo?

da 2499,00€ ad oltranza....si puo arrivare oltre 17000€ con tutti gli optional

per info visitate l'Apple Store

I just wanted to remind you about my Live Broadcast this weekend on Sunday, January 13th 2008 @ 8:15 PM. Since it is the day before MacWorld, I thought it would be best to go through and talk about all of the rumors to try and decide what is real and what is fake. Come and join the MacWorld frenzy! Click the link below for more information... 

Apple updated their Mac Pro and Xserve yesterday yesterday, exactly a week before Steve's Keynote. Neither updates have design changes, but just internal changes. The Mac Pro comes with an 8-core processor standard and the new Xserve comes with Quad-Core standard (8-core an option). The new models are shipping now from the Apple Store.

Photo via Gizmodo

My main guess is that they announced it early so they could make room for bigger and better things for the Keynote. I doubt Steve would want to introduce an update that's not really big for his biggest event of the year. 

Mac Pro - Standard Configuration - $2,799

• Two 2.8Ghz Quad-Core Xeon Penryn-Harpertown processors (meaning 8-core)
• 2 GB of 800MHz DDR2 RAM
• ATI Raedeon HD 2600 XT graphics card with 256MB of memory
• 320GB hard drive
• 16x double-layer SuperDrive

As especificações do novo modelo:

- Eight-Core: dois processadores Intel Xeon 5400 Quad-Core de 2.8GHz, 3.0GHz, ou 3.2GHz.
- Quad-Core: um processador Intel Xeon 5400 Quad-Core de 2.8GHz.
- Microarquitetura Intel Core aprimorada.
- 12MB de cache L2 por processador (cada par de cores com 6MB).
- 128-bit SSE4 SIMD engine.
- 64-bits.
- Otimização de eficiencia de energia.
- Duas Frontside Buses 1600MHz, 64-bit independentes.
- Até 32GB de Memórias 800MHz DDR2 ECC.

- Slot para placas gráficas PCIe 2.0 com uma das sequintes placas instaladas:
• ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT com 256MB de memória GDDR3 com duas portas DVI dual-link.
• NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT com 512MB de memória GDDR3 com duas portas DVI dual-link.
• NVIDIA Quadro FX 5600 com 1.5GB de memória GDDR3 com duas portas DVI dual-link, e uma porta stereo 3D.

Com isso você pode ter até 8 Cinema Displays de 30" ao mesmo tempo, no mesmo Mac Pro. Legal não?

O novo modelo ainda traz:
- 5 portas USB 2.0 (2 frontais e 3 traseiras).
- 2 portas Fire-Wire 800 (1 frontal e 1 traseira).
- 2 portas Fire-Wire 400 (1 frontal e 1 traseira).
- Entrada e saída óptica de audio.
- Entrada e saída analógica de audio.
- Duas portas Gigabit Ethernet.

[Atualização 13:54] O novo Mac Pro custa $2799 na versão 8-Core (2x Intel Xeon 5400 2.8GHz), 2GB DDR2 800MHz, 256MB ATI Radeon 2600 XT, e 320GB de HD Serial ATA 7200-rpm.

A versão Quad-Core custa $500 a menos, ou seja, temos Mac Pro a partir de $2299.

Essa maquina vai voar...
Victor Anselme

The new systems will represent the first architectural overhaul to the Mac Pro family since Apple introduced the Intel-based Power Mac successor at its August 2006 Worldwide Developers Conference. They’ll also be amongst the first machines from any PC manufacturer to employ chips from Intel’s upcoming Penryn family of 45-nanometer (nm) microprocessors — specifically the upcoming Hi-k Xeons, which will be available in dual- and quad-core variants for workstations with front-side bus speeds of either 1333MHz or 1600MHz.

Confirming reports filed by the Inquirer earlier this month, people familiar with the matter say the new Mac Pro line lineup will top out with an 8-core configuration that employs two top-of-the-line quad-core “Harpertown” chips. The top-bin Xeons, which offer the faster 1600MHz bus and 12MB of L2 cache, will start trickling in around mid-November at speeds of up to 3.2GHz.Apple, for its part, is ready to rock-and-roll with the new 45-nm Macs whenever Intel can deliver enough of those top-bin chips to trigger a manufacturing ramp. People familiar with the situation say Apple’s end of the hardware is essentially complete, with builds having made their final pass through engineering earlier this fall. Availability now hinges on the Intel’s capacity to deliver quantities of the new 45-nm Xeons, they say.Long-time AppleInsider readers will recall a nearly identical situation facing the Mac Pro last October. At the time, AppleInsider reported on Apple’s plans to release its first-ever 8-core system — a Mac Pro sporting two quad-core Xeon “Clovertown” chips. Like Harpertown, the first Clovertown processors were slated for a mid-November release and (again) Apple’s end of the hardware was similarly completed well in advance. The 8-core Mac didn’t debut for another five months, however, as Apple held out for an exclusive 3.0GHz variant of the Clovertown chip while it waited patiently for Adobe to pull the trigger on its Intel-native Creative Suite 3.0 (CS3) software. Following the release of CS3 in late-March, Apple in April finally rolled out the 8-Core Clovertown Mac Pro.With a warm reception to CS3 amongst creative professionals helping to drive sales of Apple’s professional workstations in recent months, things are likely to play out much quicker this time around. The new 8-core Harpertown Mac Pro should debut anytime after mid-November and almost certainly by Macworld Expo in January.Speed improvements made possible by Intel’s new 45-nm architecture are likely to compel large corporations to consider updating to the Penryn-based workstations. Speaking at Intel’s Beijing developer forum earlier this year, Intel senior VP Pat Gelsinger said Harpertown Xeons will offer an approximate 45 percent speed increase for bandwidth-intensive applications compared to the Clovertown Xeon chips available in today’s Mac Pros.Still, there is some slight uncertainty regarding precisely which Intel processor models will be used to progress the entry-level quad-core Mac Pros, which employ two dual-core Xeons rather than two quad-core processors. The multiprocessor, dual-core counterpart to Harpertown is “Wolfdale,” which will be made available in models that support varying front-side bus speeds…. (MORE)Read the rest of the article via Apple insider, and if you get the chance, AI is doing a great Leopard series on the history of the development.