about $2k to $2.5k to spend on a dev machine this year, need CPU recommends
-
I'll be running a machine with multiple VMs so I want cores to spare. 8 cores is more than enough. 4 is about minimum. I'll need the various VM bells and whistles like HyperV support and VTx whatever of course. I don't really game per se, though for this kind of money I wouldn't mind being able to game with the machine if i wanted to. i play the fallout franchise at least. I'm considering either an i7-9700(k?) or an i9-9900 or whatever. I think the i9 will come down this year and be in budget. *knock on wood* anyone use either of these CPUs heavily and can tell me, particularly when using VMs if they're happy with it, or if they would have gone better in retrospect? Or any alternatives to suggest? (I strongly prefer Intel to AMD cpus) I'm curious mostly, leaning toward the i9 for future proofing, assuming it's not still bleeding edge by the time i buy and i can afford it.
Real programmers use butterflies
You'll be doing plenty good with any i7 that's being sold in stores today as brand new. An i9 will get you future-proofed for a while longer still. I can't even remember how old my i7-4820K is, since it's been a few years--it's only 4 cores (+ hyperthreading), but it's plenty fast for my use - with 64GB of RAM, right now I have 8 VMs running simultaneously 24/7 (sometimes more), with memory allocated to each varying anywhere between 1.5 and 8GB. Get big, fat SSDs to host your VMs. I started off with a pair of 512GB, and have since added a single 2TB (not including the boot drive). Before that, I was using an i7-2600K, and the main reason I moved away from it is that I wanted to repurpose it as my gaming box (still in use today) and 32GB wasn't enough for the number of VMs I wanted to run side-by-side. That was otherwise also plenty fast. And of course now that my main VM host has 64GB, I'd really rather have it run with 128...but those boards were few and far in-between back when I purchased it. But I wouldn't settle for anything less than an i7 to host VMs. I have an i5-based NUC with 32GB of RAM, and when it's running more than 4 VMs at once, they all start to feel sluggish. This is where an i7 (or better) really makes a difference, IMO.
-
I have found i7-9750H to be fine for development with 6 cores (12 hyper-threaded). I have 32GB RAM and 512GB nvme m.2 ssd and can choose between intel integrated gfx or NVidia. This is in a laptop running linux that cost about $1800. Something similar in a desktop could probably be built for <$1000 excluding NVidia gfx, not including monitors, just the cpu box and internals. I no longer run VMs, but I used to some time ago, and this config should do fine...currently use Docker for multi-machine systems development.
thank you, that's good to know
Real programmers use butterflies
-
I'll be running a machine with multiple VMs so I want cores to spare. 8 cores is more than enough. 4 is about minimum. I'll need the various VM bells and whistles like HyperV support and VTx whatever of course. I don't really game per se, though for this kind of money I wouldn't mind being able to game with the machine if i wanted to. i play the fallout franchise at least. I'm considering either an i7-9700(k?) or an i9-9900 or whatever. I think the i9 will come down this year and be in budget. *knock on wood* anyone use either of these CPUs heavily and can tell me, particularly when using VMs if they're happy with it, or if they would have gone better in retrospect? Or any alternatives to suggest? (I strongly prefer Intel to AMD cpus) I'm curious mostly, leaning toward the i9 for future proofing, assuming it's not still bleeding edge by the time i buy and i can afford it.
Real programmers use butterflies
I am a total AMD fan so, naturally, I would advocate their CPUs. I have a bit of a bias against their video cards though because of previous bad experiences with them. Anyway, I went to newegg and configured a system and saved it as a wish list. It has a 2060 video card just in case you might want to experiment with ray tracing. If that holds no interest to you then you can save a bit of money with a less expensive card. As it is, it comes in at $1820. Here's a link : wishlist system[^]. If nothing else, it's something to consider. Have Fun. -edit- That has a 2TB M.2 drive, 32GB RAM, and a 750W PSU. Those can likely be scaled back if you prefer and/or want to save some money for a really nice monitor(s).
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
-
I am a total AMD fan so, naturally, I would advocate their CPUs. I have a bit of a bias against their video cards though because of previous bad experiences with them. Anyway, I went to newegg and configured a system and saved it as a wish list. It has a 2060 video card just in case you might want to experiment with ray tracing. If that holds no interest to you then you can save a bit of money with a less expensive card. As it is, it comes in at $1820. Here's a link : wishlist system[^]. If nothing else, it's something to consider. Have Fun. -edit- That has a 2TB M.2 drive, 32GB RAM, and a 750W PSU. Those can likely be scaled back if you prefer and/or want to save some money for a really nice monitor(s).
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
I use a 55" TV as a monitor already. The rest of the specs actually seem like what I'm after although i'll see if the drive is NVMe? i think M.2 implies it is? i'll look. Keep in mind i'm not buying right away so any of these systems are going to be cheaper by the time i buy. I figure in my budget i can get just below bleeding edge for the stuff i *want* and the rest to be acceptable. I need room for lots of ram and i need lots of cores. I'll start with 32GB of RAM. Video card is meh as I am at best a casual gamer and I have a console but it would be nice if i could play with gaming on it, just for kicks. For that kind of money it should, so long as i had a mid range video card it would do me fine - i've had good luck getting gaming cards on the cheap on ebay from people who have to have the latest all the time and sell off their newish cards as soon as the next nvidia is out Eventually, - not for this system - but for my fancy system, it won't be a speed demon, but it will have zero moving parts. Copper cauliflower heatsink and convection power supply, probably in a bespoke case i get milled. yeah, wood. or maybe a custom glass metal job.
Real programmers use butterflies
-
I use a 55" TV as a monitor already. The rest of the specs actually seem like what I'm after although i'll see if the drive is NVMe? i think M.2 implies it is? i'll look. Keep in mind i'm not buying right away so any of these systems are going to be cheaper by the time i buy. I figure in my budget i can get just below bleeding edge for the stuff i *want* and the rest to be acceptable. I need room for lots of ram and i need lots of cores. I'll start with 32GB of RAM. Video card is meh as I am at best a casual gamer and I have a console but it would be nice if i could play with gaming on it, just for kicks. For that kind of money it should, so long as i had a mid range video card it would do me fine - i've had good luck getting gaming cards on the cheap on ebay from people who have to have the latest all the time and sell off their newish cards as soon as the next nvidia is out Eventually, - not for this system - but for my fancy system, it won't be a speed demon, but it will have zero moving parts. Copper cauliflower heatsink and convection power supply, probably in a bespoke case i get milled. yeah, wood. or maybe a custom glass metal job.
Real programmers use butterflies
If you are into custom cases, check www.guru3d.com and their monthly contest. I have seen a few wooden ones and all kinds of wild stuff. Linkage : The Guru3D Rig of the Month[^]
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
-
If you are into custom cases, check www.guru3d.com and their monthly contest. I have seen a few wooden ones and all kinds of wild stuff. Linkage : The Guru3D Rig of the Month[^]
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
That's cool.
Real programmers use butterflies
-
#realJSOP wrote:
My personal pref for cpu's is AMD.
#realJSOP wrote:
I personally prefer nVidia video cards.
I agree 100%. Also, I recently did a build that included AMD AMD RYZEN 5 2600X (12Core) and an NVidia card and 16GB ram, with Gigabyte M/B for about $500 and I'm running Ubuntu (dual boot with Windows, but never boot windows really) and the machine is blazing fast even doing Android dev with emulators running and Android Studio etc.
-
it doesn't matter. i'm not putting the CPU in an existing system. I'm building a new one. The motherboard is whatever motherboard will work with it. Whoops, i thought you were replying to me. I thought the question was weird, :laugh:
Real programmers use butterflies
-
I'll be running a machine with multiple VMs so I want cores to spare. 8 cores is more than enough. 4 is about minimum. I'll need the various VM bells and whistles like HyperV support and VTx whatever of course. I don't really game per se, though for this kind of money I wouldn't mind being able to game with the machine if i wanted to. i play the fallout franchise at least. I'm considering either an i7-9700(k?) or an i9-9900 or whatever. I think the i9 will come down this year and be in budget. *knock on wood* anyone use either of these CPUs heavily and can tell me, particularly when using VMs if they're happy with it, or if they would have gone better in retrospect? Or any alternatives to suggest? (I strongly prefer Intel to AMD cpus) I'm curious mostly, leaning toward the i9 for future proofing, assuming it's not still bleeding edge by the time i buy and i can afford it.
Real programmers use butterflies
I got a Lenovo P1 (that's a laptop, not desktop) about a year ago. It's got an i7-8750H and that's handled anything I've thrown at it. 6 cores, turbo boost up to 4.1GHz, it's fine. Having said that, my work desktop workstation was acquired in 2013. It's got a Xeon E5-1650, 6 cores, 3.2GHz. It's slower than my P1 (I can tell from compilation jobs, although that could equally be because it has SATA SSDs, not NVMe), but can run multiple VMs fine. And then there's our dev server at work - we got that around 2015, IIRC. It's got a Xeon E5-2440 v2, 8 cores, 1.9GHz. And that runs 6 VMs, 24/7 (we've separated out our Git, Redmine etc applications, but did it before Docker became a thing, so they went in separate VMs. One of my 'to-do' items is dockerising them, but it's never a high enough priority!). 5 are Windows Server, 1 is Linux. RAM is more of a resource than CPU, I've found. I guess what I'm saying is - I reckon any modern i7 will be plenty good enough for running multiple VMs, given that ancient Xeons can manage it without a problem. Make sure you get at least 32GB of RAM, you'll be fine.
Java, Basic, who cares - it's all a bunch of tree-hugging hippy cr*p
-
I got a Lenovo P1 (that's a laptop, not desktop) about a year ago. It's got an i7-8750H and that's handled anything I've thrown at it. 6 cores, turbo boost up to 4.1GHz, it's fine. Having said that, my work desktop workstation was acquired in 2013. It's got a Xeon E5-1650, 6 cores, 3.2GHz. It's slower than my P1 (I can tell from compilation jobs, although that could equally be because it has SATA SSDs, not NVMe), but can run multiple VMs fine. And then there's our dev server at work - we got that around 2015, IIRC. It's got a Xeon E5-2440 v2, 8 cores, 1.9GHz. And that runs 6 VMs, 24/7 (we've separated out our Git, Redmine etc applications, but did it before Docker became a thing, so they went in separate VMs. One of my 'to-do' items is dockerising them, but it's never a high enough priority!). 5 are Windows Server, 1 is Linux. RAM is more of a resource than CPU, I've found. I guess what I'm saying is - I reckon any modern i7 will be plenty good enough for running multiple VMs, given that ancient Xeons can manage it without a problem. Make sure you get at least 32GB of RAM, you'll be fine.
Java, Basic, who cares - it's all a bunch of tree-hugging hippy cr*p
That was kind of my thoughts too. Practically speaking I figured I could do with an i7. I still kinda want the i9 though, for reasons :-D
Real programmers use butterflies
-
That was kind of my thoughts too. Practically speaking I figured I could do with an i7. I still kinda want the i9 though, for reasons :-D
Real programmers use butterflies
honey the codewitch wrote:
I still kinda want the i9 though, for reasons :-D
Yes, I know those sorts of reasons - the ones that would never fly in a properly costed business case, but are very important nonetheless ;-) My Lenovo laptop may have had some of those reasons behind its purchase as well...
Java, Basic, who cares - it's all a bunch of tree-hugging hippy cr*p
-
I'll be running a machine with multiple VMs so I want cores to spare. 8 cores is more than enough. 4 is about minimum. I'll need the various VM bells and whistles like HyperV support and VTx whatever of course. I don't really game per se, though for this kind of money I wouldn't mind being able to game with the machine if i wanted to. i play the fallout franchise at least. I'm considering either an i7-9700(k?) or an i9-9900 or whatever. I think the i9 will come down this year and be in budget. *knock on wood* anyone use either of these CPUs heavily and can tell me, particularly when using VMs if they're happy with it, or if they would have gone better in retrospect? Or any alternatives to suggest? (I strongly prefer Intel to AMD cpus) I'm curious mostly, leaning toward the i9 for future proofing, assuming it's not still bleeding edge by the time i buy and i can afford it.
Real programmers use butterflies
It is not as critical as you might think. I am still using a 3770k with 32G. It has 4 cores (8 threads) and I can (and have) run a half dozen different VMs at the same time, and never use more than 25% of the CPU. While I certainly won't recommend a CPU that old, pretty much any more modern CPU should do the trick. I would recommend water cooling -- not necessarily a custom setup, but a "complete" system. They are nearly the same cost as a fan. Just put one in my daughter's new computer. Otherwise when your CPU does pull out all of the stops, the fans can get pretty noisy. I do not game either -- however, I use a 1080 graphics card. Not for framerate, but to get good high resolution and for use in parallel applications. And a SSD for drive C is essential. The system is old, but other than a couple of GPU upgrades, it has been more than adequate development. Now, if you need very large data storage, your cost can rise substantially by the time you implement a good RAID (preferably RAID 6).
-
Yeah but it's still a pain setting up a new machine when that happens. Especially after a year or two of getting it how i like
Real programmers use butterflies
This is true, but with the performance available today, I'd take a hard look at just running inside a VM (unless you are gaming). For development, you just can't tell the difference. When you replace the base hardware, you copy the VM(s) and boom, back in business. Just a thought.
Charlie Gilley <italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape... "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
-
This is true, but with the performance available today, I'd take a hard look at just running inside a VM (unless you are gaming). For development, you just can't tell the difference. When you replace the base hardware, you copy the VM(s) and boom, back in business. Just a thought.
Charlie Gilley <italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape... "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
I'm already doing that for the most part. My host OS just pretty much has a web browser and video player
Real programmers use butterflies
-
I am a total AMD fan so, naturally, I would advocate their CPUs. I have a bit of a bias against their video cards though because of previous bad experiences with them. Anyway, I went to newegg and configured a system and saved it as a wish list. It has a 2060 video card just in case you might want to experiment with ray tracing. If that holds no interest to you then you can save a bit of money with a less expensive card. As it is, it comes in at $1820. Here's a link : wishlist system[^]. If nothing else, it's something to consider. Have Fun. -edit- That has a 2TB M.2 drive, 32GB RAM, and a 750W PSU. Those can likely be scaled back if you prefer and/or want to save some money for a really nice monitor(s).
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
Rick - just curious about the system you spec'd. I was looking at the new Ryzen chips (thinking about a build) and was astonished at the amount of power they draw. Now I really don't care about global warming, but I do care about noise. The last system I built was around a Sonata Quiet Case III. You could not hear the fans.... With the liquid cooling and a higher end Ryzen, how noisy do these units get? cg
Charlie Gilley <italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape... "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
-
Rick - just curious about the system you spec'd. I was looking at the new Ryzen chips (thinking about a build) and was astonished at the amount of power they draw. Now I really don't care about global warming, but I do care about noise. The last system I built was around a Sonata Quiet Case III. You could not hear the fans.... With the liquid cooling and a higher end Ryzen, how noisy do these units get? cg
Charlie Gilley <italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape... "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759
Actually the power draw on the latest generation Ryzens is very, very good. With liquid cooling it will be silent. My machine at work has liquid cooling and it is quite silent. It is a Corsair unit and it seems to work very well.
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
-
Actually the power draw on the latest generation Ryzens is very, very good. With liquid cooling it will be silent. My machine at work has liquid cooling and it is quite silent. It is a Corsair unit and it seems to work very well.
"They have a consciousness, they have a life, they have a soul! Damn you! Let the rabbits wear glasses! Save our brothers! Can I get an amen?"
Okay, that's good, I'll have to look into liquid cooling. I think when I started looking at the AMD processors, I ran across the ThreadRipper series - what a beast - but 180W. I understand now that a high end Ryzen is < 100W. Thanks
Charlie Gilley <italic>Stuck in a dysfunctional matrix from which I must escape... "Where liberty dwells, there is my country." B. Franklin, 1783 “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” BF, 1759