I just bought an Intel Core 2 Dou  1.8 with a 22" Flat screen in hopes to get motivated to do more work. Howeve I have just put Bryce Lightning on the old system a AMD 1.4 and did a test render.

The Dou  pulls off the render in 5 minutes where as the AMD pulls it another 7. A bit nickles and dimes you ask me. Then I go and do a network render and it take 10 minutes total. WHAT GIVES???

Any suggestions?

Thanks~

Bryce Lightning 2 c?

I am very interested in seeing if the new version(6.1 Lightning) can do better render times. I won't try Lightning again until I see better times. After almost two years working in Bryce, and posting about Lightning, I have not seen many using Lightning to any advantage. I also believe, that when I was using Bryce Lightning network, that some scenes would render only a little faster(few min) but most were slower,...why I dunno(I was using a direct connect too)? As far as I have read, you have to have at least three computers that are almost identical in specs for improved rendering(correct if wrong..).

Yes. Bryce 6.1 Lightning 2c.

*The Dou  pulls off the render in 5 minutes where as the AMD pulls it another 7. A bit nickles and dimes you ask me.

*Maybe I don't understand your point there....that's rendering 40% faster (5 minutes vs 7 minutes), that would be a a bit better than "nickles and dimes"....?

But, yeah, I'm wondering what's up with your network rendering setup there.....!

As far as I have read, you have to have at least three computers that are almost identical in specs for improved rendering(correct if wrong..). 

-If that's true, that's ridiculous.

Gonna have to break out and re-setup my Lightning....

I don't know what's going on with Vile's lightning setup. I'm using 7 computers in my render farm of mixed specs and the renders are coming out quick.

Vile, how are your computers networked together? Using a hub, switch, router?

I used only two, and amd and an intel, and got better render times than just using one.

2 are cat5 router and I have not tested but 1 wireless. Hmm Yeah I have a AMD and Intel. I am going to try another image and see. Still getting used to my Vista system so I am not trying to be crazy about it.

Smith you are right. But I did expect more from a Dual core 1.8 vs. single core 1.4 like 50% or better. But this is Bryce.

Comparatively a single very slow machine can slow things down, when I attach my old k6 machine into the render farm, everything ends up waiting for it to complete it's tiles still on bryce 5 and old lightning....

But at least what I've seen with my farm, when one machine is slow, working on one part, the others are working on their parts. So when a faster machine finishes it's part, it gets the next section of data to render while the slow machine is still working on the same part. So it's not like the fast machines must wait for the slow one to finish so they can get a new part to work on.

That depends on whether you have the mnaster rendering too (or at least on my setup it appears to), all machines wait for the slowest tile before moving on

Strange strange strange.

I'm curious, you're using B5 type lightning? All I get with B6 version of lightning is a small blue window. I rather the older tile... get to see where things are.

Ah, its a Dual core 1.8. I wasn't completely sure from the name "Core 2 Dou", seemed logical, but every company seems to be sticking the words Duo, or HD on their boxes these days.

Yes, a dual core should be (in theory) 80% faster than a single core of the same speed. 50% faster is nice, but heck yeah I too would have expected at least 10%-20% more than that.

If Bryce lightning must wait for the slower machine, that (stupidity) must be changed!

Yeah, the slower machine here would seem to slow me down too, but I think it was because I was using the host to help render and Bryce Lightning doesn't seem to like that(and only Lightning, using 2 comps). My other 3d app would use both my machines at 44% more render speed on same network. Bryce also seemed to get slower times with larger scenes with host helping render, small scenes would be a little faster. Others have said the same thing about slower times with host comp networking rendering too. So maybe its just BL, and not the setups.

...As far as I have read, you have to have at least three computers that are almost identical in specs for improved rendering(correct if wrong..). 

...-If that's true, that's ridiculous.

I meant with three or more computers, not using the host to help render, which is what the Bryce manual suggested at the time for Lightning. I've read everywhere else, that it is a good idea to have near identical specs, for better networking renders if possible(to avoid any other problems).

YEah, I use B5.1 I'm still trying to decide whether to grab B6, I'm not using bryce that much lately, much more Blender work going on....

(to save Bryster the trouble I'll say it myself - Heresy! ) :)

Dumb Question:  I'm thinking of getting a dual core PC, do you have to do anything (for Bryce) to take advantage of the dual core, or does the operating system take care of that?