Practical Blender Render Farm

High-Performance Starter Build for Studios | Balance of Cost & Power

Build Overview

2-4x
RTX 4090 GPUs
48-96GB
Total VRAM
128GB
DDR5 RAM
~$12K
Total Cost

1. GPUs: RTX 4090 (Best Performance per Watt)

Model Quantity Key Features
NVIDIA RTX 4090 24GB 2x (Expandable to 4x)
  • 24GB VRAM per GPU (48GB total)
  • OptiX acceleration for Blender Cycles
  • DLSS 3 for real-time previews
Why This Configuration?

A single RTX 4090 outperforms dual RTX 3090s in Blender. With 2x 4090s, you get near-linear scaling in Cycles rendering. The system can expand to 4x GPUs later without changing the motherboard.

Budget Alternative

2x RTX 4080 Super (16GB) – ~20% slower but $800+ cheaper per GPU.

2. Workstation Chassis & Cooling

Component Model Notes
Case Fractal Design Define 7 XL Fits 4x GPUs, silent & great airflow
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 (CPU) + GPU AIOs Quiet & efficient, optional liquid cooling later
Why This Setup?

No need for a server rack - fits in an office environment. Much easier to upgrade than a rackmount system while maintaining excellent cooling performance.

3. CPU & Motherboard (No Bottlenecks)

Component Model Why?
CPU AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (16C/32T) Fast single-core for Blender viewport, 24 PCIe 5.0 lanes
Motherboard ASUS ProArt X670E-CREATOR 2x PCIe 5.0 x16 slots, 10Gbps LAN + Thunderbolt 4
Alternative (More PCIe Lanes)

Threadripper 7960X (24C/48T) + ASUS Pro WS TRX50-SAGE - More expensive but better for 4x GPUs with additional PCIe lanes.

4. RAM & Storage (Fast Access to Assets)

Component Model Notes
RAM 128GB DDR5 (4x32GB @ 6000MHz) ECC not needed for most Blender work
Primary SSD 2TB Samsung 990 Pro (Gen4 NVMe) OS + Active Projects
Secondary SSD 4TB Crucial T700 (Gen5 NVMe) Scratch Disk / Cache
NAS (Optional) Synology DS1821+ (8-Bay, 64TB HDDs) Shared storage for team

5. Power Supply (Stable & Efficient)

Model Wattage Why?
Corsair AX1600i 1600W, 80+ Titanium Handles 2x RTX 4090s + upgrades, silent & ultra-efficient
Note:

If adding 4x GPUs later, get a 2000W PSU or a second unit.

6. Networking (Fast File Transfers)

Component Model Notes
Network Card ASUS XG-C100C 10Gbps Ethernet (Faster than standard 1Gbps)
Switch QNAP QSW-2104-2T 8-Port 10Gbps (For multi-workstation setups)

7. Software & Rendering Setup

Component Selection
Operating System Windows 11 Pro (Best driver support) or Ubuntu LTS
Blender Configuration Enable OptiX backend, GPU subdivision for sculpting
Render Manager Free: Blender Network Render | Paid: Deadline (Best for studios)

Performance Estimates (Blender Benchmark)

Setup BMW27 Render Time Relative Speed
Single RTX 4090 ~15 sec/frame 1x
Dual RTX 4090 ~8 sec/frame 1.9x faster
Quad RTX 4090 ~4 sec/frame 3.8x faster
Key Advantages

48GB VRAM Pool (Enough for 8K textures & complex scenes). System can scale to 4x GPUs later without motherboard swap.

Total Estimated Cost
~$8,000 - $12,000
2x RTX 4090
$3,200
Workstation
$2,500
Storage
$1,500
Networking
$500

Note: Scalable to 4x GPUs later for ~$12,000 total. Prices may vary based on market conditions.

Final Recommendations

Best for Small Studios

Start with 2x RTX 4090s, then expand as needed. This provides excellent performance while maintaining reasonable power consumption.

Power Efficiency

Uses ~800W under load (cheaper to run than older multi-GPU setups). More efficient than comparable Threadripper systems.

Future-Proof

Supports PCIe 5.0 & DDR5 for future upgrades. Can scale to 4x GPUs without replacing core components.

Need Even More Budget-Friendly?

Swap RTX 4090 → RTX 4080 Super (Saves ~$1,600). Use 128GB DDR4 instead of DDR5 (Saves ~$200).