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Aurora R12, Quadro RTX 4000 as a second GPU?
Hello everyone!
I am an Engineering student and I need a "powerful" PC basically for CAD- 3D Modeling and Engineering Simulation.
Workstations are quite expensive, so I like the configuration of Aurora R12 (with Intel i9-11900KF + Geforce RTX 3090). BUT I found out that many CAD softwares (Inventor, Solidworks etc.) suggest and support ONLY Nvidia Quadro GPUs instead of Geforce). So my question is:
With a 1000W power supply, can I add (don't even know if possible inside that compact case/chassis of the Alienware) a second GPU? for example RTX 3090 + Quadro RTX 4000 (or any Quadro)? or it may cause heat problems or any performance related issues?
Another (bad, but it seems to be safer) solution would be to just substitute the RTX 3090 with Quadro P4000 (and put the 3090 back when I need it, for gaming maybe!). BUT can I mount/attach Quadro RTX 4000 without issues? is the R12 motherboard compatible with it? (even the form/dimension of the two cards are different: the Quadro RTX 4000 is tiny if compared to RTX 3090).
What do you think? Any suggestions?
Thank you!!
Vanadiel
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April 28th, 2021 05:00
I don't know much about the Quadro RTX 4000 besides the tech specs: tech specs
Due to the form factor of the R12, you will be hard pressed to put this is in a second card. It might fit, as it is a single slot card. However, it will be next to the RTX 3090 and influence the cooling of the RTX 3090. It might not fit because of the size factor of the motherboard.
Due to limited air flow in the R12 case, it might be a challenge.
You will have to check to make sure your power supply comes with the required spare power connector(s) for the second card.
A few other things to keep in mind:
- R12 is a gaming machine, not a workstation machine. It might not be a good solution to pair this card with a gaming machine.
- The R12 has full length PCIe slots, but they only link at X8 instead of X16. that could affect performance of this card and compatibility.
- Could not directly locate the recommended power supply for this card, but I think 1000 Watts would be sufficient, especially since you would not run both cards at the same time.
Maybe someone else has more experience with this card, but I would give DELL tech support a quick call to see what they think about doing this before investing in this solution. You might be better served purchasing a separate workstation machine.
r72019
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April 28th, 2021 07:00
In any event they are both small cards with low-ish probably sub 150W power consumption, your main concern with is heat and restricted airflow since you have the 3090.
r72019
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April 28th, 2021 07:00
Nvidia just released the RTX Ampere A4000, which replaces the last gen RTX Quadro (ie Turing) RTX 4000.
Msrp is $1000, which is less than you can probably find the last gen card since its OOS aside from scalpers. May be worthwhile to try for that instead if this is your plan.
https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/design-visualization/rtx-a4000/
AllDayBreakfast84
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April 28th, 2021 16:00
You'd be so much better off buying a Precision 5820 or the like with an RTX4000 instead of an R12 with a 3090. I have experience with both. I own a fully loaded R11 (i9, 3090, 64GB, etc.) and use a Precision 5600 at work. Right now, with their 35% off sale, a Precision 5820 is about HALF the price of a loaded R12. Especially if you're going to be using Solidworks or similar software. They're very picky about supported video cards and won't even touch gaming cards.
ahmedfarrag17
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April 29th, 2021 04:00
@r72019
Yes! I even thought about getting the RTX 3090 out of the case and substitute it with Quadro! but the point is that the Dell support team told me that Quadro GPU cards are NOT compatible with the Alienware motherboard. So in order to get it, I must buy a Workstation! which is not a good solution for me! (can't even afford it with my budget).
I will get the Aurora R12, try to use CAD software with RTX 3090 anyway, if there are issues I will give it back to Dell. (even if it is a wonderful gaming PC).
Thank you so much for replying!
ahmedfarrag17
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April 29th, 2021 04:00