Hi Everybody, As some may know, I am running VUE 4 d'Esprit, along with other modelling packages (3ds max 6). I know that the following could be a touchy question as it is based on opinion. Currently I am looking at building a new machine for 3D modelling and animation (more stills than animations). I was thinking about building the following computer, however I have a few questions. Does Vue support 64 bit processors, if so is going to a 64 bit processor(s) worth it? Does Vue support dual processors, if so, is it worth it? Also what is a good video card for running Vue 4 d'Esprit and 3ds max? Finally what is a good amount of ram for running Vue 4 d'Esprit? I am just looking to see what others out there are using, and if it is worth upgrading my current system (AMD Athlon 3200+ don't know the fsb speed, 1gb ram (333mhz)) It is an HP Pavilion A430N. Thank you

Vue Supports dual processor/dual core and it will have a very significant impact on your rendering. I have a dual processor machine right now with 2 gig of RAM. If I was buying/building a machine now I would tend go with an AMD Dual core machine. The price/performance levels between the Intel and AMD machines are quite different so you would have to decide what the proper balance is for you. If you plan on keeping the machine for the next iteration of Windows (Vista), having a 64 bit machine may be an advantage.

To answer your questions: -Vue does not support 64 bit processors, though I would expect that in the future it will once the 64 bit OS is out there. -Vue 5 and 4 Pro support dual processors but I don't believe Vue 4 Esprit does (see later in this post for why). -Can't help you too much on the video cards, I haven't had any problems with my radeon 9600 but I seldom actually run in open gl mode (the only time a video card matters) due to large scene files that tax the system as a whole way too much. -Your fine for Vue 4, but then again Vue 4 is practically ancient at this point (I think it's been about 5 years or so since it was released) so I would definately consider upgrading to at least Vue 5 Esprit as your current system is more than addequate for Vue 4. Hope this helps.

Attached Link: http://www.renderosity.com/messages.ez?Form.ShowMessage=2330683

This link may provide some answers. I'm picking up a new dual Opteron system before the week is out. Svdl and someone in the Lightwave forum has recommended these as fast, but it wasn't cheap. I've also heard alot of good things about the AMD X2 4800's, but they weren't available as a dual/dual core system yet. I'm expecting good stuff from it. It's my first non-intel system so I'm feeling a bit insecure...

I think I remember that many Vue 4 Esprit users had lots of problems with openGL.

Ok, now a dual Opteron may be a good bet, but will Vue support 4 rendering threads which is possible with Opterons - 2 CPU's, both with dual cores. May be worth just some clarification on if Vue's support of "multi-processor" means more than "dual". if it doesnt then try go for a dual core Athlon XP 64. For rendering, I don't think you can beat AMD....unless you want to go completely mad on a dual Intel Xeon system.

RAM -as much as you can get, but for safety I would aim for 2 gig of RAM at least.

Graphics card - for 3D graphics editing I would always reccommend a hardware Open GL card like a nVIDIA Quadro. A lot faster and more reliable than gaming cards.

Just my thoughts.

Cheers

Message edited on: 08/24/2005 03:56

Vue 5 Infinite runs 4 threads (and probably more, but I do not have a 8-way system so I did not test on a more powerful machine than a Dual Opteron 275). Vue 5 Esprit runs 2 threads maximum. I think it was the same limitation with Vue d'esprit 4. In that case a dual Opteron dual core is overkill.

Thanks for the clarification, louguet. Confirms my suspicions...and it is a subject that is often overlooked but would save people a lot of money unnessacary hardware. Cheers

Sure gives you something to think about. Yes I would like to go to VUE 5, but with my 4x4 I can't quite afford it haha. I originally purchased vue 4 d'esprite because of its reduced price. I am thinking that I may have to bite the bullet and upgrade to 5 pro studio. An off topic question, when it comes to support when will e-on stop supporting vue 4d'esprit? - This will be a major deciding factor when it comes to upgrading.

Really, E-on have already stopped supporting it bcbii. You will no longer see any new updates to fix bugs. As a customer you will probably sill have their assistance with usability inquiries, but that is about all. Cheers

Oops, getting peeps messed up, it was you louguet and not Svdl singing Opteron praises. Sorry about that. I found that thread of yours quite interesting, and it came at just the right time. Good luck bcbii.

A dual core, dual Opteron system is overkill for most people. An Athlon 64 X2 will be a lot cheaper, and still give you great performance. And if you really need the additional rendering speed, you'd get better "bang for your buck" buying a "tricked out" X2 machine for your primary system, and then buying several more "bare bones" render-only systems to use as Render Cows. You could get 2-3 X2 systems, in addition to your 1 tricked out X2, all for the price of a single dual core dual Opteron workstation. All modern graphics cards support OpenGL "in hardware". The difference between the high end cards and the "gamer" cards is not as much as you'd think. 90% of the time they're based on the exact same chips. The differences are either in drivers (yes, just the drivers - Pro card drivers are optimized for stability and OpenGL viewport performance as opposed to games and raw speed), or small (but important) hardware features are turned on or off for respective versions. Sometimes both of these methods are used. This is why some people can often turn a non-pro card into a pro-level one, or a lower-end pro card into a higher end one. The pro cards also go through more stringent QA, and tend to be clocked more conservatively, so there are some qualitative differences which may show up in the end user experience, depending on the application. Generally speaking only high end 3D apps like Maya or Softimage really benefit from a Pro card. To my knowledge there is no conclusive or even anecdotal proof that Vue in particular runs better on Pro cards. Anyone have any experience with this? Bottom line: unless you really have just way too much money to spend, go for an X2 with some render slaves as needed, and don't bother with a high end Pro card. Maybe ask E-On for a recommended graphics card configuration and buy that, if anything. But any newer card from ATI or Nvidia should be fine. - Oshyan

How about specs for the rendercow machines - is Win98 supported at all? I have a bank of small old desc and laptops which can be re-deployed. Cheers,