Need help configuring a workstation

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by qqq, Jul 22, 2020.

  1. qqq

    qqq

    Hi,

    First I am very grateful to all of you who have helped me in past with my Dell T-7500 workstation.

    I have been using Dell T-7500 Workstation with following Config for almost 8 years & I was considering buying newer Dell 5820 about 2 years ago but many of you suggested that I really didn’t need it & you were right.

    But now I am trying out new charting app & use only tick charts. I frequently require to build a new tick chart of random high tick time frames from a pool of tick data stored in the app & it takes a long time to build a new tick chart & while the app is building a new chart, all activities on all screens stops until the chart is built. The CPU usage shows 50% & RAM 45%.

    Here is current rig :

    Win-7, Xeon E5645 @2.4 GHz, 12 GB RAM, 3 AMD, FirePro 2460 Graphics Cards supporting 12 Monitors.

    I want to now get Dell T-5820 workstation & need help with configuration.

    I don’t play any games at all. Mainly charts & streaming videos & regular stuff.

    CPU :

    I am considering Xeon W-2235 ( 6C, 3.8- 4.6 GHz Turbo, DDR4 2933 )

    RAM :

    Would 16 GB ECC DDR4 2933 be enough ?

    Grahics Cards :

    AMD Radeon WX 3200, 4 GB ( 3 of them for 12 Monitors )

    Boot Hard Drive :

    M.2 256 GB PCIe NVMe Class 40 Solid State Drive

    Extra Hard Drives :

    2 x 1TB + 3 x 2 TB ( Total 5. All 3.5 inch Sata 7200 RPM )

    Question : Would I be able insert & use one of my 3 TB, 3.5 inch HDD in one of the 2 TB bay ?

    Does anyone have one of this workstation?

    Thank You
     
  2. 931

    931

    If you tend to upgrade 5-10 year intervals, 32gb ram could be more future proof.
     
    apdxyk and guru like this.
  3. Metamega

    Metamega

    When you say tick data is stored on the app you mean you don’t have the data locally and it’s pulling from the app providers side?


    Most likely not an issue on your end and just an issue with pulling data from the app.
     
  4. qqq

    qqq

    Data is stored locally in a folder in the app itself.

    App is installed in C: drive.
     
  5. I had a 5820. It's quite a step up from the 5810. All modular, and has a "cool" factor.

    It has 4x, rack mounted front drive bays... there are additional capabilities giving you storage up the wazoo! >40TB, if you max it out.

    16GB RAM likely enough. Try that first and see. If not, you can add.

    You're plenty good on video cards.

    If you're charting tics... that puts a lot of demand on your rig. I tried it once and my CPU was pegged 100% all the time. Suggest trying something longer... like 1-min charts, or 10-seconds... much easier on your hardware/fan noise/heat... especially with the data being archived in your storage (all that data being constantly written to disk, you know).
     
    Last edited: Jul 22, 2020
    apdxyk likes this.
  6. qqq

    qqq

    So good to hear from you Scat. I always admire your in-depth knowledge & am excited to learn more about T-5820 since you owned one.

    Here are some questions :

    (1) I am ordering 3x 2TB HDD in front flex bays hoping that I will be able to use my old 3 TB HDD in them which has historical data. Am I correct to assume that I can use those bays by pulling out 2 TB that will come with my system & plug in my 3 TB HDDs in them ?

    (2) Where would they insert the 256 GB M.2 NVMe SSD ? Does motherboard has special slot for it or would it take up any of the PCIe slots ? I need 3 PCIe slots for 3 Video cards. 5820 has 5 full length. 2 Full 16x & one wired as 8x, one wired as 4x & one as 1x. Correct ?

    (3) I don’t have a choice of using minute charts because of the way my system works. So what component plays the big role in building large TF tick charts ( e.g. 3000T, 7000T, 10,000T etc of symbols like ES, NQ, SPY, etc ? ). Is it CPU, GPU or ?


    Thank You
     
  7. The 4x, front drive bays can take up to 4TB each... spinner or SSD. If necessary, you can mount 2 more drives in the optic drive bay, but you'd have to remove the optic drive. (Not having an optic drive isn't much of an inconvenience... the UEFI platform doesn't want you to boot from the optic drive anyway... a security feature.)

    There is no mobo slot for NVMe drive... you need to use an adapter which plugs into the front drive bay. I don't know exactly all the details with NVMe drives as I never used one. I looked into it and decided it was too much hassle for what I need.

    You can use the 2, x16 PCIE and the 1, x8 PCIE for your video cards.... and I believe you can then also use the x4 slot for a PCIE drive... even a combo one... with like "4x, 2TB NVMe".

    If you're graphing and archiving tic data... the CPU, GPU, and RAM will all be humping hard!

    (I don't know, "TF tic charts" or 3000T?? Are you talking about "numbers of contracts or issues traded to make one bar?)
     
  8. qqq

    qqq

    Thank you Scat.

    TF = Time Frame
    3000T = 3000 ticks

    Basically I am using say an ES chart with a time frame of 3000 ticks ( Meaning it takes 3000 ticks to make One bar )

    The software graphs as well as archives data.

    So I usually have one symbol say ES with say 1000 tick chart on one monitor, 2000 tick chart on 2nd monitor, 3000 tick chart on 3rd monitor _ _ _ 12000 tick chart on 12th monitor. Each chart has 15 indicators & draw tools on them.

    So would following configuration suffice ?

    Xeon W-2235 ( 6C, 3.8GHz - 4.6GHz Turbo HT 8.25MB DDR4-2933 )

    Three AMD Radeon Pro WX 3200, 4GB )

    16 GB DDR4 2666MHz ECC RAM

    Boot Drive 256GB M.2 NVMe with Win-10 Pro

    Any idea if Dell will come out with upgraded 5820 in next month or two ? Don't they usually come out with newer or upgraded models in October ?

    Also any idea if Microsoft is coming out with Win-11 or Win-12 ?

    Just wondering if I should go ahead & order the rig now or wait a couple of months ?

    Thank You
     
  9. When you're talking "graphing and archiving tic data", suggest you get the most powerful CPU you can afford! (A CPU with 8 cores and a high clock speed might be better than one with 16 cores and a slower clock speed. Wouldn't know how to determine that unless actually running the desired software setup in comparison.)

    The T5820 has been out for about 2 years. Don't know of an upgrade replacement for it in their line. Can't recall such info being pre-announced... just shows up one day.

    Microsoft says "W10 is the last"... I think they have some kind of plan to turn the OS into "subscription use". That would suck!

    Update... I checked Dell's Outlet... no units with W-2235 available.
    I checked Passmark... didn't list W-2235 (perhaps too new?), but it did list W-2225 @ 14,000 and W-2245 @ 19,000. .. Likely the W-2235 falls between. (My E5-1620 is 7,000.) Personally, I'd go for the W-2245, as it's 8-core and Dell only charging $111 for the upgrade.

    * Dell's RAM and drive upgrades are waaay $high and are to be avoided if possible... But you'd need to be comfy with installing your own drives and video cards if you go this route. Dell will only support the "original configuration" when you bought it.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2020
  10. Sorry, this sounds like something's missing. I deleted a paragraph where I mentioned "buying a base unit from Dell and buying your upgrades elsewhere online... save a bunch of $$$". The only problem with that is Dell will only warranty and service the computer "as originally configured + upgrades bought from Dell".

    You could still buy your "upgrades elsewhere". Initially, you buy from Dell the 5820 with the W-2245 CPU, NVMe boot drive, and 1 video card. Then buy the rest of your drives and cards online. If you need technical support on your computer, you simply remove all the parts you didn't buy from Dell before troubleshooting or getting on-site repair.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2020
    #10     Jul 25, 2020