AstralBot3D
patreon
Status Update: July onto August
🕑 Added 2019-07-30 08:20:08 +0000 UTC
Hello Everyone,
The TL,DR:
- Pausing pledge charges on the 1st of August.
- Posting WIP image only on cloud servers. Will update with PDF and CBZ once comic is completed.
- Workflow insight overview.
- Got a 2080 Ti with your amazing support!!!
- Some test images to download in this post
Pause
The month of July had little to no progress in new comic content. I will be pausing pledge charges on the 1st of August. I will be taking this time to catch up with the content that was supposed to be completed for the month of July. Once the comics are completed I will message everyone that pledged in their tiers during July for the completed comics.
Testing something new...
I’m thinking of setting up a different system. I will upload image only on the cloud link of the WIP comics. Then I will upload the PDF and CBZ files once the comic is complete. I believe you can view the images on both cloud servers without having the need to download the images. But if this is a problem and you would prefer to see the PDF and CBZ work in progress files instead, let me know. I want to optimize the best way to share content with you guys.
Workflow
Following from the last month my comic output barely covered two of the tiers while the standard comic tier overflowed into the month of July. Eventually, it would be best if I can output a steady flow of comic updates.
There are still much I can improve on. Bounties Alt. 01 had 49 pages, Bounties Ch. 02 had 101 pages, and Earthlings Ch. 01 had 105 images. Adding the previous month of images total in 255 images.
So in order to produce around 255 on a consistent monthly basis I needed to improve my workflow. I am working on my workflow to be ready for when I go back to school. Which basically means I need to use my time more effectively when working on the comics.
During July, I looked for ways to improve my workflow. Complex scenes can take long to render. I’m looking more into optimizing scenes and getting rid of unnecessary textures and various other materials. Adding some postwork special effects will take some time to master as well. I will be seeing how fast I can work on bringing to life these creative fantasies. I want to implement environmental scenes that shows the world where these characters are in. But this is still tricky to work with since I’m used to rendering indoors.
2080 Ti :D HAPPYNESS OVER 9000!
Good news is I was able to grab a 2080 Ti before it got out of stock on EVGA. Oh boy! This graphics card is crazy fast! I’m sure it will increase my workflow as well as work with the scenes I want to put into the comic. Working with 11gb of VRAM over 6gb will be great. I was working with a 1060 and while that lil sucker was great, it wasn’t getting me where I want to. I did some test and the 2080 Ti definitely blows the 1060 out of the water. Here are some test time comparison. Basically the 2080 Ti is way faster than my old 1060.
But one thing I faced over some testing is that the 2080 Ti gets hot… SUPER. HOT. I have never… never realized how hot my computer can get until now. I can probably cook an egg. So I’ll need to be careful and not fry my computer.
Some next thing I’m looking to upgrade a better CPU cooler, better power supply, more case fans, and in the long run to be able to invest in another 2080 Ti to increase productivity. I’ll need to do several more tests, but I am so happy to finally render images faster.
To end this status update I want to give a big, fat, voluptuous, juicy thanks to all of my supporters. Graphics card prices are out of hand, but it’s thanks to your support that allowed me to get a 2080 Ti. Your ongoing support really helps me keep creating content.
Thank You.
- AstralBot3D 07.30.2019
Comments
AstralBot3D
No worries DrowningInIt. I have looked into the RTX Quadro lineup which has much more VRAM, but I'm pretty sure those are more used for CAD as you mention. Looking at the Quadro RTX 8000 is really good. It has 48 gb VRAM paired with 4,608 cuda cores. But the price of this card starts at $5,500... Well beyond my reach for a long time. While the 2080TI is a gaming video card, it comes with 11gb VRAM and 4,352 cuda cores priced around $1,000-1,500 depending on which model you go with. I decided to go with the 2080TI since more cuda cores help render time. While the price is still high, I see it more as an investment and something that will improve my content creation. I just need to be careful and not go over 11 gb VRAM when I set up my scenes. I think one reason why the RTX lineup is priced higher is that Nvidia sees it more as professional cards probably and introducing some new tech... but then there's the fact that Nvidia currently has no challenge from AMD or Intel for the RTX cards which in turn means that Nvidia can price their cards at whatever price they want. Plus the GPU mining made the cards higher in price and they're probably trying to recoup from the GPU overproduction. Anyways, this is just what I understand from the various forums and research I've come across. What a time to build a computer right?!
DrowningInIt
My mistake the card I’m thinking of is more for CAD and not this type of thing.
DrowningInIt
I thought that was more of a gaming video card.
AstralBot3D
Yeah. I'm using my 1060 as my display card so I can still use my computer for other tasks as the 2080Ti renders in the background. Ultimately, it would be awesome to have the 2 2080Ti since cuda cores really helps with rendering. Then the 1060 still as my display card. I was going to wait for the next gen cards too, but in the past I've waited too much. I wanted to get a 1080Ti in the past, but waited too long and they discontinued production. Plus the Bitcoin mining did not help at all with the price increase and GPU shortage... I looked at the pros and cons and saw that in the end, the VRAM and cuda cores upgrade would help me increase productivity rather than waiting around, like I did in the past. I feel like it'll be awhile til next gen of cards will be released. Probably give or take 1-2 years.
Bruce W. Liu
I see you over there with your HOT. So are you gonna run both cards in tandem until you get your 2nd 2080Ti? I'm still holding out for a 2nd 1080Ti or the next gen of cards from NVIDIA.
