New Dev PC for AI/ML applications

R

rk1103

Active member
Hi all,

Just want some advice on PC spec I have listed below
  • Main use will be for Deep Learning/AI and Big Data Applications. But may use it for some gaming e.g FIFA, FarCry etc. Would like this build to serve me for next 5-7 years or so,
  • The main things I'm concerned about are the case (if it provides sufficient airflow) and cooling. Does the liquid cooling require any maintenance and would the platinum warranty cover this ?
  • I have a budget between 3.1-3.5K but ideally would like to get my current spec costs closer to 3/3.1 K if possible. The few bits i could tweak/downgrade are the processor to 12 cores. Ive gone with Corsair150i but not sure if Corsair H115i would suffice ? Any other areas which could downgrade ?
  • I would like some advice on the monitor - i've added the pc specialist monitor to the build as not sure what the good options are, and which would be more suitable for my chosen build and use case - assuming would need a refresh rate of > 144 Hz and resolution 1440p? Is there a cheaper alternative on Amazon or elsewhere (i would like to spend no more than £200-£250 on this)

Seeing some other threads, looks like the wait time for RTX 3080 - is around 20 days so hoping to get this in time for Christmas.


Thanks in advance
Ryan


Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 5950X 16 Core CPU (3.4GHz-4.9GHz/72MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X570-F GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO DDR4 3200MHz (4 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
10GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3080 - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st Storage Drive
6TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 5400RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 6900MB/R, 5000MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 530 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 7300MB/R, 6000MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H150i ELITE CAPELLIX RGB Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
LED Lighting
2x 50cm RGB LED Strip
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Monitor
PCS GD27 27" GAMING MONITOR - 1440p, IPS, 165Hz
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Subject to stock availability on pre-order products
Price: £3,529.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/wVjtqNSsBU/
 
Last edited:
AgentCooper

AgentCooper

At Least I Have Chicken
Moderator
Hiya. What type of deep learning and data work will you be running? It’s quite possible that these system uses will be more CPU and memory bound and you may be able to save hundreds by adjusting the choice of graphics card if that’s the case.

Your spec isn’t far off being a beaut, once we know more we should be able to help you get it on point. You’d benefit from the Crosshair motherboard with the 5950X and I’d split that 6TB HDD into two separate 3TB as they have a higher write speed. Depending on your uses we could also potentially tweak the NVMe drives, you’ve two of the fastest options in there but you may not need Gen 4 speeds on both.

Looking forward to hearing back from you 🙂👍
 
R

rk1103

Active member
Hey thanks for your response.

I will basically be using Tensorflow and Pytorch which requires NVIDIA GPU for CUDA
https://developer.nvidia.com/how-to-cuda-python
and CuDNN for parallelization of computations and GPU accelerated functions for training neural network models https://developer.nvidia.com/cudnn

Ive noticed that 3080 has about 10GB memory - but 3070 has less, im assuming there is no way to increase this ?
Ive gone with 64GB RAM and 16 cores (although i may benefit from 128GB - im not sure). I definitely would benefit from distributed processing in which case more cores the better.

Sorry for the very basic question - but how easy is it to replace the GPU in future - does it invalidate the warranty or can PCS help with this ? Anything else i need to upgrade to change GPU in future ?

Thanks
Ryan
 
R

rk1103

Active member
One more thing i should also add to the above, is that I would definitely benefit from fast read/write speeds from disk

Any suggestions would be very helpful. Planning on getting this before end of month.
 
AgentCooper

AgentCooper

At Least I Have Chicken
Moderator
Hi. Sorry, didn’t see your reply the other day amongst all the other notifications.

I think @SpyderTracks and @Scott would potentially have more practical knowledge on these applications than myself.

I’ve got an idea of where I’d go but I hate the possibility of giving you poor advice and that’s the brilliance of the forum, there’s a lot of expertise here to help.

Let’s call in the big guns!

A905D115-8FF1-405E-AE36-D16A18B5FBD7.gif
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
rk1103 said:
Sorry for the very basic question - but how easy is it to replace the GPU in future - does it invalidate the warranty or can PCS help with this ? Anything else i need to upgrade to change GPU in future ?
Click to expand...
You're free to upgrade the PC as you like and you retain warranty. Bear in mind warranty is only for 3 years whichever you choose, normally a GPU upgrade wouldn't be done during this time particularly but for you it may well be worthwhile to keep cutting edge. A GPU upgrade is incredibly simple, just a case of plugging in the card to the PCIe slot, one screw into the case, then plugging in 1 / 2 power cables from the PSU, and that's it. If you need any help, you're welcome to post here or phone PCS and get help. PCS also do an upgrade service where you can send the PC into them and they'll carry out any upgrades for a fee, but a GPU and most upgrades such as RAM or SSD are actually very simple.
rk1103 said:
I will basically be using Tensorflow and Pytorch which requires NVIDIA GPU for CUDA
https://developer.nvidia.com/how-to-cuda-python
and CuDNN for parallelization of computations and GPU accelerated functions for training neural network models https://developer.nvidia.com/cudnn
Click to expand...
For CUDA acceleration, 3080 is a great option.

rk1103 said:
The main things I'm concerned about are the case (if it provides sufficient airflow) and cooling. Does the liquid cooling require any maintenance and would the platinum warranty cover this ?
Click to expand...
These All in One coolers are sealed units and require zero maintenance other than the usual dusting of the fans / grills in the case as you would normally have to do once every 6 months or so. I'd recommend picking up one of these, makes the job far easier:

www.itdusters.com

CompuCleaner Xpert Electric Air Duster

Blast away dust with more power and more control at your fingertips. The Xpert uses a 550 watt motor ad features 2 speed settings for maximum performance and accuracy.
www.itdusters.com www.itdusters.com

As for the build, I've had a little play about and put comments by my choices:

Case
BE QUIET! BASE 601 TOWER GAMING CASE A more industrial choice for this kind of build, will also help offset some of the noise
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 5950X 16 Core CPU (3.4GHz-4.9GHz/72MB CACHE/AM4) Excellent CPU, wouldn't change it.
Motherboard
ASUS® CROSSHAIR VIII HERO WIFI (DDR4, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX/SLI) - RGB Ready! The CPU and the loads you'll be using require an optimum mobo
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO DDR4 3200MHz (4 x 16GB) You can reduce cost by £30 selecting non rgb (non pro) version
Graphics Card
10GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3080 - HDMI, DP, LHR
1st Storage Drive
3TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE Split drives as faster (7200rpm) and works out cheaper
1st Storage Drive
3TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 6900MB/R, 5000MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 530 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 7300MB/R, 6000MB/W)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET Gives a bit more headroom on the GPU and allows for future upgrades.
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H150i ELITE CAPELLIX RGB Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler Fully closed unit, no maintenance required.
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 13 to 16 working days
Price: £3,355.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/DbwGgmysGD/
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Additionally, for a screen, I'd suggest buying elsewhere to PCS as there are some very good deals on at the moment in the black friday sales.

An Ultrawide may be a great option which is a 1440p down screen, but with 1.5 x the width, so you get extra screen real estate to work with, so works out great for gaming and productivity. You can also use your TV if it's 4k for productivity which you may find more beneficial.

From budget up a little:

Box Ltd

www.box.co.uk

Box Ltd

www.box.co.uk

 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
Martinr36 said:
Click to expand...
Just to add, @Martinr36 has this monitor and loves it, there's a little thread on it here:

Gigabyte M34WQ Ultrawide

Just got to love DPD, I'd tried changing to an afternoon delivery as I've got my booster jab later this morning, that obviously didn't work, as when I looked at the app when i woke this morning it said delivery between 10:00 - 11:00, about 10:03 the doorbell rang......... I'll post more photos...
www.pcspecialist.co.uk www.pcspecialist.co.uk
 
R

rk1103

Active member
Oh wow thanks guys, i was just going to ask about the screen and there you answered my question ! :p This is going to be my first desktop in 10 years and never had a GPU one before ...... really looking forward to it ! I love this forum - you guys do a great job with volunteering your time for advising others !

Yeh for the screen - something from Amazon would be ideal as i do have a few discount vouchers which i could use. Ill check out the ones you both recommended though ! Just one question - i've seen on a number of posts on here suggesting screens based on pairing with specs one has chose. is that specifically for gaming use cases or general as well ? Would going upto 165 Hz make any difference ?

Also, from your experience and based how long on average would you say this build should last (5 yrs ?). @SpyderTracks im assuming if and when 4000 RTX comes out - i should be able to replace it directly without having to change anything else right (including power supply) ?
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
rk1103 said:
Yeh for the screen - something from Amazon would be ideal as i do have a few discount vouchers which i could use. Ill check out the ones you both recommended though ! Just one question - i've seen on a number of posts on here suggestion screens based on pairing with specs one has chose. is that specifically for gaming use cases or general as well ? Would going upto 165 Hz make any difference ?
Click to expand...
It's purely for gaming.

For the ML uses you're using you could scale up to any GPU and it would make use of it, the screen is irrelevant.

For gaming, the 3080 would normally warrant a 4k 144Hz screen or Superwide, but the budget isn't there, and it's not the main purpose of your build, so an ultrawide would be a good second option.

Over 120Hz isn't really noticeable, it's all very much the same, visually, no difference whatsoever, all it does is give a slight reaction time improvement, but only for the 1% of humans that can notice over 120Hz.

rk1103 said:
Also, from your experience and based how long on average would you say this build should last (5 yrs ?). @SpyderTracks im assuming if and when 4000 RTX comes out - i should be able to replace it directly without having to change anything else right (including power supply) ?
Click to expand...
We will normally spec a build to last for 7 - 10 years. This is quite a niche usage though and you may find the CPU becomes a bottleneck before that, but definitely over 5 years, with one or 2 GPU upgrades during that time.

Yeah, the 1000W is to cover any eventuality for future GPU upgrades. PCIe 5 which is due for release next year allows for significantly more wattage on the GPU (600W), so we're expecting power requirements to perhaps step up a little over the next few years which is why I beefed it up to 1000w.
 
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
rk1103 said:
Just ordered this beast :p .......thanks all, for the suggestions and amendments to the spec !
Will get the monitor separately as you suggested.
Click to expand...
Amazing, hopefully you'll be looking at around 25 working days roughly for delivery, if there are no complications, but the parts you've ordered are all in good stocks I believe.

Do keep us updated, and pictures when you get it would be awesome (y)
 
R

rk1103

Active member
Actually - need some cheaper suggestions for monitors - was looking at Iiyama that @SpyderTracks suggested but now out of pocket after splashing out on main kit :cry:

Need Something between £230-£280. Would any of these pair well with my spec (and RTX 3080) ?

Box Ltd

www.box.co.uk

Note: my primary use will not be for gaming (maybe light gaming).
 
Last edited:
R

rk1103

Active member
AgentCooper said:
The TUF is an excellent monitor and is IPS panel so is mildly more delightful to look at.
Click to expand...

Thanks - and would be ok for RTX 3080 as well right ? I read somewhere on this forum that 4K 1440p is recommended for that card - not sure what the 4K means.
Sorry for the silly questions - im quite a noob
 
AgentCooper

AgentCooper

At Least I Have Chicken
Moderator
rk1103 said:
Thanks - and would be ok for RTX 3080 as well right ? I read somewhere on this forum that 4K 1440p is recommended for that card - not sure what the 4K means.
Sorry for the silly questions - im quite a noob
Click to expand...
If anything, the monitor will be the bottleneck for a 3080, it’s a beast of a GPU and will likely max out 90% of games available.

You might be getting mixed up with the review blurb, 4K is a higher resolution than 1440p and the 3080 is capable of outputting significant frames per second on a 4K 144Hz monitor.
 
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