GPU Rendering

[RIck Buick]

just wanted to get everyone's feedback on this, i was wondering if there is any move to incorporate the help of GPU in conjunction with the current CPU for rendering. the program is very good but only thing that lets it down is rending speed.....it's like watching grass grow. especially if you are rendering 3 images at a time. i have a lot to do in a small amount of time so multiple renders is my main option only im sitting around waiting 10 to 20 hrs for them all to render to an acceptable standard. I GPU help was incorporated into this it would be the best improvement so far.

let me know your thoughts about this.

[Roy Hirshkowitz]

Search GPU first-- it's been discussed many times.  If you have further questions let me know.

[RIck Buick]

thanks Roy, i know it has been bought up before i just thought if i kept bringing it up that it might be incorporated in the near future. is there any chance of that happening at all mate?

[Roy Hirshkowitz]

No.  It's a big project-- not something that can be implemented quickly.  Supporting the Intel based high-performance architecture, Xeon Phi and it's descendents, is much easier.

[RIck Buick]

no problems, thanks Roy. can i ask you one more thing what cpu would you suggest would be best to run to get more speed out of it? i currently have an 8 core AMD CPU with 16gb memory but its just not fast enough once you start doing hi res (16cm X 10cm) which is not really that large. any suggestions?

[Roy Hirshkowitz]

The best thing you can do, by far, is reduce the resolution somewhat and use Photoshop or eq. to upsample to your target resolution.  Changing engines can help-- if you're using the Standard engine with a lot of plants and indirect lighting you might find the Hybrid to be faster.

Multiply # of physical cores x clock speed to get a good rule of thumb as to how fast your system will be.

[RIck Buick]

Hi Roy sorry to bother you again, that Xeon Phi coprocessor you mentioned. i have been doing a bit of research on it can you tell me, is that like a graphics card but for CPU expansion? if it just plugs into the graphics card port i think that could be exactly what i need. i just can't find a lot of info about the install on the net though. thanks mate

[Roy Hirshkowitz]

It won't help you yet, the software still has to be adapted for it.  It plugs into a PCI-e 3.0 expansion slot, I believe.  Most newer computers have these.

[RIck Buick]

thanks Roy, big help mate. i think this will be the main option for me once the software comes about. i currently have an 8 core AMD 3.6ghz with 16gb ram and im maxing that out with 3 images at a time. the other option now i was thinking about is render farming. is there some software i can buy from you that will harness all computers connected to my network? thanks mate

[Roy Hirshkowitz]

There is a render farm available.  You can try a two node farm for free and decide if you want to purchase an unlimited license.  Whether it helps or not can depend on the nature of the other machines available for your use (matching slow and fast machines on a farm usually doesn't work), speed of network, etc..