I took your specs and planned a system on them. I have some questions.

1. How loud is Herb's present system and is it in a rack or midtower?

2. Have you heard the Supermicro unit to determine how loud the fans and the power supply are since it comes with its own ps?

3. In your best judgment can the Supermicro 1U be used in the studio or should it be in a separate machine room?

4. I want to really clarify loading 112,000 samples. If an average matrix is 4000 samples, does this mean you can load 20+ Instruments? On the Supermicro, does this mean 40 instruments? Is this suggesting that by moving to XP64 system with 16GB of RAM that a user would potentially only need one (1) computer dedicated to the VI cube?

5. With memory being loaded into RAM, what impact does using Raptors have over a 750GB at 7500RPM?

6. The processor you picked is valued at $1100US. With that processor, what performance gain are you really expecting to get?

Thanks in advance.

Peter Alexander

Hello Peter, we meet again on yet another forum! To be fair to Herb, the system he has listed is the 1U server version - you could alternatively just buy the motherboard in standard ATX format and then put it in whatever case you wished.... particularly as they have recently launched one capable of 32Gb..... tempting!

I spec'ed the system with the 1U rack and my question has to do with performance and loudness. The 1U rack comes with the motherboard built in and is capable of going 32GB. However, with a 4GB RAM stick running around $500 or more, you're looking at $4000 just for 32GB of RAM. The 1U also comes with its own power supply and onboard video.

Yep the RAM will indeed be expensive, was merely suggesting that by chosing the board seperately, you chould spec the case to your requirements, rather than be stuck with the 40mm noisy fans in a 1U setup. Sorry, I shall leave you in peace!

i really can't recomend the 1U version if you don't have a separate machine room .. it is definately too loud (the fans with little diameter are very noisy) ... in fact i cannot recommend any server system in a studio except if it is in a really first class  sound-absorbing case.

actually the components (harddisks, CPU cooler, HD cooler) are a little bit noisy.

the supermicro systems go up to 64 GB, the 7-series up to 192 GB RAM, but the decision for this system was too complex to answer with a simple *why this processor*.

if you don't need it for certain multiple purposes have a look at intel S5000 series motherboards and 3U housings.

on a predecessor of herb's system (netburst architecture) i had 48 instances running with about 10% CPU - so such practical experience has also impacted selection of the model.

christian

And Peter, if you're looking for a 3U rack (Antec) let me know. I've a spare one.

Mahlon

@cm said:

i really can't recomend the 1U version if you don't have a separate machine room .. it is definately too loud (the fans with little diameter are very noisy) ... in fact i cannot recommend any server system in a studio except if it is in a really first class  sound-absorbing case.

actually the components (harddisks, CPU cooler, HD cooler) are a little bit noisy.

the supermicro systems go up to 64 GB, the 7-series up to 192 GB RAM, but the decision for this system was too complex to answer with a simple *why this processor*.

if you don't need it for certain multiple purposes have a look at intel S5000 series motherboards and 3U housings.

on a predecessor of herb's system (netburst architecture) i had 48 instances running with about 10% CPU - so such practical experience has also impacted selection of the model.

christian

Separate from the 1U unit, overall, with 48 instances does this mean that potentially one machine could do the job with 16GB of RAM, or as you see it, are we still looking at two or more 64bit systems with VI? Have you fbeen able to do a full orchestral mock-up on one system?

Let me put it this way.

SInce you have the research, what I as your customer would really appreciate from you, the OEM, is direction, suggested system/studio setups. For example:

PC Sequencer -> PC Farm machines

Mac Sequencer -> PC Farm Machines

Mac Sequencer -> Mac Farm Machines

What's the better value as you see it? All PC farm machines? All Mac farm machines?

With the kind of cash 64bit systems are going to cost, some very specific direction, how about with demos, would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

PA

@RedLeicester said:

Yep the RAM will indeed be expensive, was merely suggesting that by chosing the board seperately, you chould spec the case to your requirements, rather than be stuck with the 40mm noisy fans in a 1U setup. Sorry, I shall leave you in peace!

No problem! I apologize if I came across as curt.

@Mahlon said:

And Peter, if you're looking for a 3U rack (Antec) let me know. I've a spare one.

Mahlon

Thanks for the consideration. I do appreciate it.

PA

@RedLeicester said:

Yep the RAM will indeed be expensive, was merely suggesting that by chosing the board seperately, you chould spec the case to your requirements, rather than be stuck with the 40mm noisy fans in a 1U setup. Sorry, I shall leave you in peace!

No problem! I apologize if I came across as curt.

No worries Peter, we're both charging along the same path, though I'm admittedly more PC-centric than you, but the end goal is the same, and const considerations perfectly apposite. Might I suggest a pooling of minds on the subject? PM me if you'd be so inclined.

Hi -

I thought I would chime in, as I last April built a system with an eye towards taking advantage of ultimate 64-bit compatability.

I don't have a lot of room in my 1 bedroom apartment, and I hate noise, so I built this.  From scratch.  4 hours? It is WHISPER quiet.

Here are my specs:

Intel S5000PSLSATA Server Board ($500)

2.33 Ghz Xeon quad core, 2.33 Ghz ($937)  [Now $485!! Damn.  You get 2 for my price of 1]

Windows XP x64 ($153, OEM)

Lian Li PC-V1200S-Plus-II (Silver) Aluminum Tower Case (with Cooling Kit) ($205)

HD_CTRL 3WARE|9650SE-4LPML SATAII R - Retail (Qty=1, Price=$334.99)  (RAID Controller)
HD 320G|WD 7K 16M SATA2 WD3200AAKS - OEM (Qty=1, Price=$89.99) (System Drive)
HD 500G|WD 7K 16M SATA2 WD5000AAKS - OEM (Qty=2, Price=$134.99) (RAID ARRAY)

Memory: Crucial

Part Number: CT2KIT25672AF667
Price: $729.99
Description: 4GB kit (2GBx2), 240-pin DIMM  Upgrade for a Intel S5000PSL System
Line total: $1459.98  [Now would be 1/2 of this, or this much for 16GB]

ATX Nesteq Semi-Fanless ASM 620 Watt Quiet Power Supply: ($199.95)

Noctua NF-S12 1200 RPM 120mm Quiet Case Fan  3x $24.90  ($75)

About $4200 for the whole thing, but you would get 16GB and 2 Xeons for the same price I paid for half of this.

Oh, yeah:  The stock XEON fans are LOUD.  Get this, from Veraxfans.com

X21NGA
Cooling system designed for Intel XEON Dempsey
Woodcrest Covertown socket LGA771   $99.00

(Not even Zalman makes one for this socket)

Being able to load 16GB (and potentially 32GB) of Samples in VE in a single tower without having to swap collections and samples and Vienna keys around?  Priceless.

I hope that helps!

Best regards,

Eric

Hi, the server I built is actually the 8GB, and now you could build the 2-Xeon, 16GB server for the same price. 

Stephen - don't know if your question is for me.  There is no soundcard,  I use it as a FX Teleport slave.  Haven't figured out how to get VE 64-bit hosted yet?  I know there is a 64bit version of Teleport  in early release...  DG?  Anyone?

The Intel board specs are here: http://download.intel.com/support/motherboards/server/s5000psl/sb/s5000psl_tps_rev_1_3.pdf

I don't know if the several PCI-Express or PC-X 64Bit slots will take your existing sound card, etc. 

Best regards!

-Eric

Hi Peter - Thanks for your interest.  I'm happy to contribute what I can, but I may be slow to do so - I'm barely an amateur musician.  Just a weekend jockey (if that) who has always wanted an orchestra at his fingertips to see what my simple ideas would sound like.  Started with the S760, then Gigastudio and Garritan, now VI.  We may finally be getting there. 

I am indeed running VI on this system, as of tonight.  Actually, Vienna Ensemble.  To my delight, it appears at present that 32-bit Teleport can host 64-bit Vienna Ensemble, which is reporting all 7.2GB of RAM available for samples.  I think that they designed the Vienna Ensemble Service to do just this?  I intend to get another 8GB, and maybe fill that second processor slot (bringing us to 16GB).

Here's the catch - I'm just an amateur (professionally, a scientist and financial analyst) and thus I don't have any good mock-ups to try - I also work insane hours, presently, at my real job (hence the 2am post).  So, I don't have a lot of time to play with this.  I still haven't realized my dream of being able to write purely on the score, changing dynamics and articulations purely with annotations.  But we're getting close.  Maybe Logic 8 will have midi meanings?  I'm currently a dedicated Logic user because nothing else has the same score features (running PC Logic platinum, old school).  But I digress...

I'm going to be traveling for the next week; when I get back, I'll try to find some time to load up one of the heavy demos that are posted here, and see what it can do, and post what I find.  I am not very skilled with Vienna generally, which is why I jumped at the opportunity to give back to this forum by contributing my thoughts on building a server. 

I'll try and post some usage results when I get back, but it will be at least a week or 10 days.

Thanks for your comments...

Best regards,

Eric