I am looking to configure a system for use with ipisoft.

If anyone knows of a Dell/HP/etc solution that would be great as its a pain building your own system. Alternately, I would also like to know components people might be having luck with.

Thanks in advance.

Here is the short of what I am thinking:

Motherboard that can handle 64gb of ram or greater
32 to 64GB ram for (huge) ram disk. I assume 8 to 10 gigs for OS, the rest for the ram disk.
I7 or Xeon processor(s)
GT 640 or better video card
64 Bit Windows 7 Pro
1 TB WD caviar black for OS, apps etc.
2 mirrored 2TB WD Caviar Black drives for Data backup
Several USB 3.0 controllers

And the long version:

1. I want to write camera data to a huge ram disk. Like 64GB.

Earlier this week we shot with 4 cameras creating 11gb of video data. That was about 80 10-30 second takes. I would consider that a days shoot. If I were using 6+ cameras + move controllers, that data size could double in size. I want to be able to accommodate all that onto a ram disk. I do realize more than 6 is experimental at this point.

Also, since the data will need to be processed (And there is currently no batch processing), I am assuming one bottleneck on the processing side is drive access. I am wanting to put all the data to be processed on the ram disk assuming this will help with read and write times to and from the graphics card.

2. For a physical backup drive, I am thinking of using 2 2TB WD Caviar Black drives mirrored in a raid. The OS would be 64 bit windows 7 pro and reside on a single 1TB WD caviar Black drive.

3. Since there are potential usb 3.0 conflicts, are there suggested USB 3.0 controllers that work properly with the ps3 cameras, move controllers and multiple versions of itself? I see general recommendations in the docs, not specific models. I also know nothing about current slot form factors and am also wondering how many controller cards can one hope to put in higher end computers. (servers and workstation class machines).

5. My understanding is that processor speed is not as important as the graphics card performance. Right now we have a EVGA GT640 with 2gb of ram in our test machine. I would consider using this card or a slightly newer one with 3gb of ram. From what I can tell you can get a top end consumer card for around 400 USD. I would only consider NVIDIA cards due to past issues with ATI based boards and 3D applications. Does anyone know if I will see a huge performance jump going to a faster card?

6. Since I assume processor performance is not as important, I would configure the computer with whatever middle of the road i7/Xeon processor(s) that the motherboard could handle. Unless of course someone could convince me there would be a huge performance boost with faster CPU(s).

7. Does anyone have any issues with audio playing from their capture machine while the capture is running? I assume capturing 6 or more cameras + move controllers can be taxing on the system.

Mike

Anyone using or having issues with this usb 3.0 card?

http://www.startech.com/Cards-Adapters/ ... ~PEXUSB3S4

Disk
RAM disk is a help for recording. For processing, disk speed is not actually a bottleneck.
CPU
Upper-middle range CPU is sufficient, like Core i5 with 4 cores.
Video
It's usually better to have higher model from previous generation then not so high model from the current generation. E.g. GTX 560 is better than GT 640, but worse then GTX 660.
Extension slots
Motherboards of ATX form factor typically have 6-7 extension slots, several of which (1-3) are PCIe x16 for video card(s).
USB
Yeah, it is the hardest choice in terms of compatibility :( I can confirm that PS Eye work well with my motherboard's integrated NEC/Renesas uPD720200 USB 3.0 chipset. But has heavy frame loss issues with STLab U-610 extension card based on VLI VL800 USB 3.0 chipset.
The PEXUSB3S4 card you've mentioned is based on Texas Instruments TUSB7340 chipset, which has never come in my way. So I cannot give a straightforward "yes" or "no" recommendation.
I think you can try to start with the onboard USB controllers - modern CPUs/motherboards provide at least 2 USB 2.0 controllers and 1 USB 3.0 controller. Which is sufficient for 6 PS Eye cams, if no compatibility issues arise.
Bluetooth
As you are planning to work with motion controllers, you'll also need a Bluetooth adapter. Either on motherboard, or as a separate USB dongle. I use ASUS USB-BT211 with no issues.

Vmaslov,

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

Sounds like the current machines I have access to will do for the most part. I did more processing with various configs on 3 machines with multiple video cards/ram, and more or less agree with everything you posted.

My current computers dont have USB 3.0 onboard and need more controllers if I want to go to 6 cameras I will need to get something. I hope I can get USB 3.0 cards without conflict issues. I may use a local vendor for any so I am not wasting days waiting for returns. I'll stay away from that chip you mentioned.