Cpu's are irrevelent to cuda crunchers?

If you mean just Cuda crunching, it matters a little. If you mean ultimate cruncher it matters a lot. My i7 CPU 980 is capable of 15,000 RAC by itself. It is heavily overclocked, and blasts through anything. Also I use my rig for much more than crunching, and having the CPU power is a real help. I can't quantify how much it contributes to my Cuda crunching, as there is some contribution. If all I am doing is crunching on the GPU's the CPU will downclock to below 3 GHz, from its normal of 4.235 GHz.

Steve
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Warning, addicted to SETI crunching!
Crunching as a member of GPU Users Group.
GPUUG Website

okay, you're building the ultimate cuda cruncher.
does it even matter what cpu you put in the box?

okay, you're building the ultimate cuda cruncher.
does it even matter what cpu you put in the box?

Irrelevent?
No.

Consqeuential?
Yes.

The power of the cpu has a direct impact upon the preprocessing of Cuda work before the GPU takes over.
It might be 15 seconds instead of 20.....for every WU the GPU is gonna undertake.

It adds up.

So, although the real impact of the cpu is no longer the major player it once was, it DOES make a difference.

I don't even overclock cpu's the way I used to.......it does not pay off.
It is better to have a rig run 24/7 without burping than it is to have it cough in the middle of the night puking.

Just no payback in running at the edge anymore.
OCing the GPU's is about the same.......running the F out of them until they downclock when you are not looking is a waste of resources.
I've backed that down to the point where I don't have to babysit their sorry asses all the time.
You wanna argue with me? Go ahead......and see who comes in first.
I have been at this far longer than most.

Stats don't lie.

Neither do kitties....LOL.

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"Ask not, what your kitty can do for you. Ask what you can do for your kitty."

As it is kitten, so shall it be done.

You wanna argue with me? Go ahead......and see who comes in first.
I have been at this far longer than most.

Stats don't lie.

Neither do kitties....LOL.

You wanna argue with me? Go ahead......and see who comes in first.
I have been at this far longer than most.

Stats don't lie.

Neither do kitties....LOL.

Hey!

Why so upset and try to persuade people to argue?!
You're totally right! I've noticed it too.
Better having the equipment running at 25% overclocked stable nonstop 24/7 than having it running unstable at 30% overclock.
The power usage is so much higher to an extent that it's not worth it powerbill wise.
Man if i'd even think about it 10 years ago that it wouldn't be worth overclocking extremely in the future due to the fact that power is costing that much more now i would've considered myself crazy! But here we are and running totaly full bore is not worth it wattage wise and stable wise!

I have my 460 set at 800/1600/1800.
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I guess it has to make make "Some" difference.

If money is no object, then you buy the best CPU AND GPUs that you can, and get the most performance. That gets expensive though.

If you have a budget, then it's probably better to skimp on the CPU, maybe just a fast dual core, and use that to feed a couple of good GPUs.

But going too wimpy on the CPU is going to have an effect on the non-GPU part of the work unit. So matching up an old Celeron CPU and a brand new GPU isn't ideal. OK it will be the best performing Celeron out there, but it wont feed the GPU at 100%. Matching it up with a 1/2 decent 3gz Pentium dual core or AMD equivalent will be able to keep the GPU fed pretty much as well as a top of the line I7 or X6. Using the $$ you save on the cheap CPU to buy a better GPU will give you more "bang for your buck"

That's my theory anyway.

Ian