[sekainishukufuku]

Hello all, (i'm sorry if i somehow violating some rules here)

So, i work at wastewater treatment equipment manufacturer, we produce bioreactor tanks that kind of stuff. I was tasked to optimize the bioreactor design, and so i thought of CFD. The problem is, i have very little knowledge of CFD. i'm planning to use OpenFoam

What i want to do is simulating fluid flow inside the bioreactor, and also for my own project of pc heat sink stuff

Need hardware advice on this, i'm considering this
xeon w-2696 v3 (+ chinese mobo) or TR 1920X (+ X399 aorus pro)
64GB RDIMM or more
some kind of GPU
Seasonic Prime PX-650


a bit bummed because i can't get LGA 2066 platform cheaply in my country

[wkernkamp]

I am assuming you are considering a E5-2696 v3 processor with 18 cores.


If yes:
Consider going to a dual cpu system. Make sure it has octo channel memory (four channels per cpu). Fill all DIMM slots with dual rank RDIMMs of the same size. Choose a DDR4 motherboard, because you will get 2133 MT/s per channel (and not 1866 MT/s with DDR3). Such a system would be nearly twice as fast as the Ryzen 1920x.


Better still:
Get two 16 core E5-2683 v4 cpu and memory DDR4 dual rank 2400 MT/s in each of 8 channels. These are now cheap too and in openfoam faster by a factor 2400/2133.


Caution:
If you want to do gaming as well, dual cpu systems are not as desirable. Also, you would want to get the 16 core E5-2697A because of the higher clock speed.


The performance difference between single cpu systems E5-2697Av4/DDR4-2400 and Ryzen 1920x/DDR4-2667 should be small both for openfoam and for gaming.


Important Note: For openfoam you should have the best possible memory configuration. The xeons prefer dual rank RDIMMs, but it appears that the 1920x need single rank at DDR4-2667 or Dual Rank DDR4-2400. I have no experience with the 1920x myself, but there is a run somewhere in the openfoam benchmark thread that shows a completion time of 142.2 seconds. My best time for dual E5-2697Av4 is 58.8 seconds. A single E5-2697Av4 should complete the benchmark in a little more than twice that, probably ~130 seconds. The E5-2683v4 is just 2% slower when running on all cores.

[sekainishukufuku]

Originally Posted by wkernkamp

I am assuming you are considering a E5-2696 v3 processor with 18 cores.


If yes:
Consider going to a dual cpu system. Make sure it has octo channel memory (four channels per cpu). Fill all DIMM slots with dual rank RDIMMs of the same size. Choose a DDR4 motherboard, because you will get 2133 MT/s per channel (and not 1866 MT/s with DDR3). Such a system would be nearly twice as fast as the Ryzen 1920x.


Better still:
Get two 16 core E5-2683 v4 cpu and memory DDR4 dual rank 2400 MT/s in each of 8 channels. These are now cheap too and in openfoam faster by a factor 2400/2133.


Caution:
If you want to do gaming as well, dual cpu systems are not as desirable. Also, you would want to get the 16 core E5-2697A because of the higher clock speed.


The performance difference between single cpu systems E5-2697Av4/DDR4-2400 and Ryzen 1920x/DDR4-2667 should be small both for openfoam and for gaming.


Important Note: For openfoam you should have the best possible memory configuration. The xeons prefer dual rank RDIMMs, but it appears that the 1920x need single rank at DDR4-2667 or Dual Rank DDR4-2400. I have no experience with the 1920x myself, but there is a run somewhere in the openfoam benchmark thread that shows a completion time of 142.2 seconds. My best time for dual E5-2697Av4 is 58.8 seconds. A single E5-2697Av4 should complete the benchmark in a little more than twice that, probably ~130 seconds. The E5-2683v4 is just 2% slower when running on all cores.

After researching the parts you mentioned, the 2696 v3 is the best deal i could find. I also found a dual cpu system bundled with the mobo. I don't game in this system as i have one in home.



thank you so much for the reply!

[flotus1]

For dual-socket 2011-3, the E5-2697A v4 is the best deal.
They start at around 90$ on ebay these days. Factoring in the costs for the other parts of the system, saving 20$ on the CPUs by dropping to older/lower clock speed CPUs is not worth it at all.

[sekainishukufuku]

Originally Posted by flotus1

For dual-socket 2011-3, the E5-2697A v4 is the best deal.
They start at around 90$ on ebay these days. Factoring in the costs for the other parts of the system, saving 20$ on the CPUs by dropping to older/lower clock speed CPUs is not worth it at all.

Unfortunately, i can't find a deal on aforementioned CPU, as i'm not from US and i'm afraid of oversea shopping. The best deal i could find is the dual socketed E5 2696 v3 + mobo + 8x16 GB RDIMM combo for roughly $800. The E5-2697A v4 alone here is $260 ._.


thank you for the reply, the man himself!

[wkernkamp]

Does the bundle have the DDR4-2133 memory? If so, your 2x E5-2696v3 should be a very decent performer on OpenFOAM. Later on, when the v4 cpus drop in your area as well, you can upgrade and gain a bit better performance.

[sekainishukufuku]

Originally Posted by wkernkamp

Does the bundle have the DDR4-2133 memory? If so, your 2x E5-2696v3 should be a very decent performer on OpenFOAM. Later on, when the v4 cpus drop in your area as well, you can upgrade and gain a bit better performance.

yes it is, i just need psu and some kind GPU to complete the system