[clug] wokstation for processing MRI data

[Francis Whittle]

MRI processing for x86?  Ooog.  Not an application I'd have thought of
x86 for (mind you, I don't think with my wallet often).  SPARC and the
old (discontinued?) Silicon Graphics processors, yes.  PowerPC, maybe
(With the recent developments in SIMD especially), and it could even be
an application for CellBE.  But can x86 (even 64-bit x86) handle the
bandwidth requirements properly?

On Wed, 2006-08-02 at 10:48 +1000, Nicolas Cherbuin wrote:
> Hello,
> 
> I am researching hardware specification for a workstation that will be 
> used to process resource intensive MRI data (3D brain imaging) using the 
> OSS Freesurfer running under linux. I am wondering if some of us have 
> had similar requirements (particularly in image manipulation) and what 
> their choices have been.
> 
> The guys producing Freesurfer recommend  greater CPU speed and RAM (min 
> 2gig, 4gigs recommended) with normal specs for HD drives. Given that 
> with these specs the processing of one scan can take 18 hours, I am keen 
> to get more than the minimum. I have to process potentially hundreds of 
> scan but at least in the tens.
> 
> I was thinking of getting at least a dual core Athlon 4800? and 8 gig of 
> ram and use Fedora  for simplicity (I am not a linux expert). Budget is 
> around $3-5000 possibly more if it can be justified.
> 
> I am trying to answer the following questions:
> 
> 1. If I get a 64 bit processor will it make much difference and will I 
> still be able to run 32 bit software (freesurfer is supported in 64bits 
> architectures). what processor should I choose?
> 2. What sort of motherboard should I choose and do some support 2 x dual 
> core chips?
> 3. The graphics card needs to support openGL but does not need to be 
> especially good. Which card is going to provide least trouble under linux?
> 
> Any comments would be appreciated
> 
> Cheers
> 
> Nic
> 
> 
>