PC Hardware Articles
One of the core values of Puget Systems is transparency
We detest hype in the midst of an industry that is full of it. Our mission is to provide the highest quality hardware and consultation services to our customers, and to back up our decisions by freely sharing what we've learned along the way. To earn a place in our product line, a computer component undergoes rigorous testing. We apply the results of our testing, along with our years of experience in learning reliability trends and manufacturer characteristics, to make prudent decisions about what we can put our name behind, whether that's an individual part or an entire computer. With the following articles, we are writing up the results of these internal processes and discussions, and taking them public. We feel we can take this on with a unique perspective as we evaluate each topic with the experience, resources, and objectivity of a system builder. If there is a topic you'd like us to write about, email us at !V-Ray CPU Rendering: AMD Threadripper 2990WX Takes the Single CPU Performance Crown
Written on August 13, 2018 by William GeorgeAMD just updated their high-performance Threadripper processor series, and the new top-end model - the 2990WX - is the fastest single CPU we've ever tested in V-Ray. This article will look at how it stacks up to other AMD and Intel chips, as well as Intel's dual Xeon configurations.
Cinema 4D: AMD Threadripper 2990WX Performance
Written on August 13, 2018 by William GeorgeAMD just updated their high-performance Threadripper processor series, and the new top-end model - the 2990WX - has given the highest Cinebench multi-core score we've seen from a single CPU. This article will look at how it stacks up to the older Threadripper 1950X and a selection of Intel chips... and just as importantly, how it performs in single-core mode.
DaVinci Resolve 14: NVIDIA GeForce vs AMD Radeon Vega
Written on August 7, 2018 by Matt BachDaVinci Resolve is able to heavily utilize the GPU (or multiple GPUs) to greatly improve performance, but are you better off using an NVIDIA GeForce card or an AMD Radeon card?.
After Effects CC 2018: NVIDIA GeForce vs AMD Radeon Vega
Written on August 2, 2018 by Matt BachAfter Effects may not be able to take advantage of the GPU as much as other applications, but the question still comes up: AMD Radeon or NVIDIA GeForce? Which performs better in Ae and which will give you more performance for your dollar?
Video: H.264 Hardware Acceleration in Adobe Media Encoder - Good or Bad?
Written on August 2, 2018 by Matt BachAt first glace, the recent addition of "hardware acceleration" when exporting to H.264 and H.265 in Media Encoder and Premiere Pro provides a huge boost in performance for many users. Unfortunately, it is not a perfect technology and result in lower quality video than using the standard "Software only" mode.
Premiere Pro CC 2018: Performance improvements for RED footage in version 12.1.2?
Written on August 1, 2018 by Matt BachAmong the updates notes for Adobe Premiere Pro CC July 2018 (version 12.1.2) was a small note of "Performance improvements for decoding RED Camera Formats". The question is, does this update dramatically increase performance if you work with RED footage or is it just a minor update that doesn't actually affect most users?
Premiere Pro CC 2018: NVIDIA GeForce vs AMD Radeon Vega
Written on August 1, 2018 by Matt BachAMD vs NVIDIA is typically a very hot topic for PC enthusiasts and we often get requests to compare AMD's Radeon Vega video cards to their NVIDIA GeForce counterparts. Premiere Pro is able to take better advantage of the GPU than most other Adobe applications, but will AMD or NVIDIA give you more bang for your buck?
Media Encoder CC 2018 Transcoding: NVIDIA GeForce vs AMD Radeon Vega
Written on July 30, 2018 by Matt BachDepending on how you use Media Encoder, the GPU may or may not have a large impact on performance. If you use it primarily as a transcoding tool, it should be mostly CPU-bound - so is there any reason to use NVIDIA GeForce over AMD Radeon or vice versa?
Photoshop CC 2018: NVIDIA Quadro vs AMD Radeon Pro
Written on July 26, 2018 by Matt BachMany users require the use of a workstation graphics card as that is the only way to display 10-bit color in Photoshop. But will an NVIDIA Quadro or an AMD Radeon Pro video card give you the best performance for your dollar?
Photoshop CC 2018 NVIDIA GeForce vs AMD Radeon Vega
Written on July 25, 2018 by Matt BachWe are often asked how AMD's Radeon Vega video cards compare to their NVIDIA GeForce counterparts. Photoshop rarely benefits from having a powerful GPU, but there is still a measurable difference between these two brands of cards.
Agisoft PhotoScan 1.4.1 NVIDIA GeForce vs AMD Radeon Vega
Written on July 25, 2018 by William GeorgePhotoScan makes use of the video cards in a computer to assist with the computation of certain steps. As such, the model of video card used can have an impact on the amount of time those steps take. In this article, we take a look at AMD's Radeon line - including the Vega 64 and 56 - and see how they stack up to NVIDIA's GeForce 1000-series.
Can You Mix Different GPUs in Octane and Redshift?
Written on June 28, 2018 by William GeorgeGPU rendering engines like OctaneRender and Redshift utilize the computational power of the graphics processing chips on video cards to create photo-realistic images and animations. The more powerful the video card, the faster the rendering process goes - and multiple video cards can be used together to further improve performance. But can those video cards be a mix of different models, or do they all need to be identical?
Redshift 2.5.72 vs 2.6.11 Performance Comparison
Written on June 19, 2018 by William GeorgeRedshift is a GPU-based rendering engine, which recently updated from version 2.5.72 to 2.6.11. That update added compatibility with NVIDIA's Volta GPU architecture, and cards like the Titan V, but did it also improve render speeds?
Redshift 2.6.11 GPU Performance Comparison
Written on June 19, 2018 by William GeorgeRedshift is a GPU-based rendering engine, and the latest version 2.6.11 introduced compatibility with NVIDIA's Volta graphics architecture and cards like the Titan V. Lets take a look at how different GeForce and Titan models perform.
Redshift 2.6.11 Multi-GPU Performance Scaling
Written on June 18, 2018 by William GeorgeRedshift is a GPU-based rendering engine, but how well does its performance scale when multiple video cards are used in a system?
Agisoft PhotoScan 1.4.1 - Apple iMac Pro and Mac Pro vs PC Workstations
Written on June 18, 2018 by William GeorgePhotoScan makes heavy use of both the central processors (CPUs) in a computer and the video cards (GPUs) to run many of the calculations involved in turning still images into a 3D model or map. Agisoft, the makers of PhotoScan, have versions available for both Windows and macOS - so let's take a look at how these two, competing computer platforms compare.
Titan V Multi GPU Performance Scaling in OctaneRender
Written on June 11, 2018 by William GeorgeNow that OctaneRender has been updated to support the Volta GPU architecture, how well does its performance scale when using multiple Titan Vs? And how does that compare to other popular rendering cards like the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti?
Is the Titan V a Good GPU for OctaneRender?
Written on June 9, 2018 by William GeorgeAs of version 3.08, the Volta GPU architecture is now supported in OctaneRender. How does it stack up compared to other Titan and GeForce series graphics cards - in terms of both performance and value?
Does the CPU Matter for OctaneRender?
Written on June 8, 2018 by William GeorgeOctaneRender is a GPU-based rendering engine, so the bulk of the processing it does is carried out on the video cards in a system. Different processors and motherboards can impact the number of cards that can fit in a single system, but do they matter beyond that? Does the CPU itself have any impact on rendering speed/performance?
Agisoft PhotoScan 1.4.1 - Xeon Scalable CPU Performance and GPU Scaling
Written on May 18, 2018 by William GeorgePhotoScan makes heavy use of both the central processors (CPUs) in a computer and the video cards (GPUs) to run many of the calculations involved in turning still images into a 3D model or map. Intel's new Xeon Scalable processors offer configurations with dozens of CPU cores, as well as the ability to support multiple GPUs - so let's see how they perform in PhotoScan.
V-Ray CPU Comparison: Xeon Scalable vs Core i7 8700K, Core X, and Threadripper
Written on May 18, 2018 by William GeorgeIntel has launched their new Xeon Scalable processor series, with very high core counts and multi-CPU configurations. How do they stack up to single-socket workstations using other Intel and AMD processors when rendering in V-Ray?
V-Ray CPU Rendering: Apple iMac Pro and Mac Pro vs PC Workstations
Written on May 17, 2018 by William George"Mac or PC?" - the age-old question among computer enthusiasts. How fast are Apple and PC workstations when rendering in V-Ray? And which offers a better value?
Cinema 4D: Apple iMac Pro and Mac Pro vs PC Workstations
Written on May 17, 2018 by William George"Mac or PC?" - the age-old question among computer enthusiasts. How do Apple and PC workstations compare for content creation and rendering in Cinema 4D?
Cinema 4D CPU Comparison: Xeon Scalable vs Core i7 8700K, Core X, and Threadripper
Written on May 16, 2018 by William GeorgeIntel has launched their new Xeon Scalable processor series, with very high core counts when used in dual CPU configurations. How do they stack up to single-socket workstations using other Intel and AMD processors in Cinema 4D?
After Effects CC 2018: iMac Pro & Mac Pro vs PC Workstation
Written on May 15, 2018 by Matt BachAfter Effects users are often held back by the performance of their workstation, yet a surprising number of users lock themselves into the Mac ecosystem. In this article we will be looking at just how much faster a PC workstation can be in After Effects compared to the iMac Pro and Mac Pro.