[trampoCFD]

Hi
In the context of infinite core licenses, I've packaged this:
https://trampocfd.com/collections/workstation

64 cores, 256 GB DDR4 ECC 2.6GHz RAM, 2TB NVMe SSD HD read/write 3.5/2.1 GBps, Nvidia Quaddro P4000, 2 years manufacturer warranty: It’s pretty good!

The vision is: if you want a CFD workstation, Trampo only provides the best and latest for CFD at the best possible price.
Hardware philosophy: https://trampocfd.com/pages/cfd-hardware
Let me know if you think that's a good idea.

gui@trampo

[Micael]

You wrote

 (4 memory controllers / processor)

Don't you mean the other way around?

 (4 cores / memory controllers)

[flotus1]

His statement is correct. AMD Epyc CPUs consist of 4 dies, each with their own dual-channel memory controller.
On the other hand, the amount of cores per memory controller depends on the CPU model. It ranges from 2 cores per controller for the 8-core 7251 up to 8 cores per controller for the 32-core 7601.

Let me know if you think that's a good idea.

If I may add some constructive criticism:
"Now at Trampo, we offer optimal CFD hardware selected by CFD engineers, not by "a rushed non-technical sales person with a million other quotes to get out of the way before 5pm"
While it may have some truth to it, for my taste this sounds a little too passive-aggressive to be used as an advertisement. It might even come across as unprofessional.
Speaking of professional: I associate windowed side panels with gaming PCs. When buying a workstation case, one of my top priorities is having a closed side panel which is becoming increasingly rare for otherwise good cases. Both for the more professional look and for the possibility of adding noise insulation. And if there is a window, I prefer more attention to detail like cables with a consistent color scheme. But maybe this is just my personal preference...
And a better power supply with at least platinum or titanium efficiency would be more adequate at this price point.
Other than that I think you are in a good position. Decent pre-built workstations with AMD Epyc are hard to find.

Edit: wait a minute. You don't manufacture these in-house? You buy them from Titan computers and charge for your expertise of selecting the "right" parts? That makes it all feel a little dodgy.
http://www.titancomputers.com/AMD-EP...ers-s/1021.htm

[trampoCFD]

Hi Alex,
Thanks a lot for your comments:

• I removed my "rushed non-technical sales person" sentence;
• I also agree about the the windowed case. However for this workstation, I believe performance/cost ratio is a lot more important than the appearance of the case and the cable colors;
• Regarding your edit, what do you find dodgy in a re-seller arrangement? I wouldn't be able to do a better job at putting together a computer than Titan would. Shipping from Australia would be a challenge. And I can't see anything wrong with charging for expertise.

For your info, I intend to offer an instant selection of "CFD optimal hardware" from various manufacturers, from a "single core license" workstation all the way to small clusters. At the moment, it takes a 2-6 weeks to get a configuration right for a 200 core cluster and get a pricing.

This Hardware activity comes from a personal wish in my previous professional life: when I need to buy a computer, if only I didn't have to sift through the last 3 generations of processors, compare the performance of 5 different HD, agonize on whether I really need 4GB RAM/core or this 16GB graphics card etc...

I am going to try very hard to express hardware in terms of what a CFD engineer can do with it, and explain my selection strategy for each machine. I am going to review my hardware selection regularly, and hopefully, progressively build everyone confidence in my selections.

The workstation I have on my website is my first shot: having a single product does look a bit dodgy. I don't have a marketing team to put things together for me, so there will be "authentic" expertise on my site for a few more months ;-)

gui@trampo

[flotus1]

What about the NVMe-SSD? Is it mounted using a PCIe adapter card? I am asking because the m.2 slot on this motherboard is limited to 2 lanes. That would bottleneck the expensive SSD.

[evcelica]

Yeah, This seems pretty dodgy just picking parts you think are good and calling it expertise.

Do you perform and hardware benchmarks on this and other hardware? I have done extensive benchmarking in the past of many different systems and configurations. I just share my findings, and not try to profit from them.

You say you see nothing wrong with paying for expertise, but it seems you just picked what you think would be good, without testing. For Example, you just picked the most expensive (= the best?) processors on Titan's list. Why the P4000? Why not the P2000? Or 5000? Why not a Radeon since you are going with AMD CPUs?

No HDD at all? It would be beneficial to have a large HDD for offloading data from the SSD. You don't want to store stuff on an SSD working directory. It shortens the life of the drive and hurts performance. Offload those files when you are done. That's a damn expensive storage drive. In real CFD applications, you will have to save many Terabytes of Data from previous runs, as people will come back later for that info or to expand on it. You can't just delete it. Also you refer to the SSD as an HD, which it is not.

$19K, this is getting into the price range of a Quad CPU Skylake-EP machine with lower number of cores (but faster) and more memory channels (24 vs 16) . Did you do any testing between the two options? How do these two options compare in single vs double precision, where one requires more memory bandwidth?

Not trying to sound aggressive here, it just seems like you have not though this through; and you are judging "non-technical sales persons" when in fact a lot of those sales technicians have knowledge far beyond yours or mine, and could teach you a lot. (not from Dell, I agree with you there)

[trampoCFD]

Hi Alex, you're right. However, Titan is not giving me any other 2TB SSD option, so that will have to remain for now.
They can do both SSD set up: with an adapter or directly in the M.2 slot. There is a bit more write than read in CFD (backup files, transient output, etc...) so I'd tend to go without adapter.

The SDD speed remains phenomenal for most of us:

SSD speed test with Supermicro board using x2 M.2 Slot
Read: 824 MB/s
Write: 1788 MB/s

SSD speed test Supermicro board using PCIe to M.2 Adapter
Read: 1483 MB/s
Write: 1024 MB/s

graphical results:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/7ew4wl7so7...20PCI.PNG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/yvu3wcfxl9...%20x2.png?dl=0

gui@trampo

[trampoCFD]

Hi Erik,

Expertise-pricing: I run my own business, it's still early days, so I don't have the luxury of being able to spend time playing with hardware without it affecting my income...If you're employed and are paid to be a hardware expert and do benchmarks, you're in a totally different place than me ;-)
And yes, I've done a lot of benchmarking, up to 8,000 cores for Trampo's supercomputing service. I've spent most of the last 3 years designing and testing a cloud/super-computing service.

P4000: because it's the smallest graphics card recommended for VR with STAR-CCM+ (source: Siemens AG, Spotlight on hardware for HPC, 2018). It's mid-range. I have had a really good run with quaddro cards over the years with performance and compatibility. STAR-CCM+ doesn't use GPU during solving.

SSD and HD: I don't like having multiple drives. I feel that's a waste of time now that high endurance, high speed, "moderately priced" NVMe SSD are available. Multiple drives multiplies the risk of failure. I only keep the CFD models I am currently working on my machine, and move the rest to a backed up network drive.

Quad CPU: yes, why not! It's a more complex machine, but it would certainly have more memory controllers and channels. I'd also expect it to be a more expensive, but I'd love to be proven wrong. Do you have a pricing on an equivalent machine with 4x61xx procs? The choice of AMD EPYC comes from Siemens benchmarks as the best price/power/performance compromise (source: Siemens AG, Spotlight on hardware for HPC, 2018).

Please bear in mind this is just the beginning for Trampo. I have to start somewhere. I'll make more options/customisation available as soon as possible. And it's easy enough to press the "contact us" or help button to get a custom quote :-)

gui@trampo