Recommended PC Specifications
PVCAM and Teledyne Photometrics cameras will generally work on any hardware that supports the camera interface and PVCAM installation, and we detail below a custom PC build. If unsure, we also recommend two specific prebuilt configurations from Dell and HP below. These configurations are used in-house when testing currently supported cameras.
Custom Built System
Operating System
- Windows 10 64-bit
Processor (CPU)
- Intel Xeon or Intel Core i5 with 4 or more cores
- 3.0 GHz or faster
Please note that most consumer-grade Intel processors have an insufficient number of PCIe lanes which may result in sub-optimal performance with PCIe-based cameras. We recommend verifying the number of available PCIe lanes on the CPU prior to purchase and making sure at least 8 lanes can be dedicated to the camera interface.
RAM
- 16 GB DDR3 or more
- 32 GB DDR4 (at 2666 MHz 4-channel or 3200 MHz 2- or 4-channel) or more with the Kinetix family
For optimal performance, we recommend matching the number of memory modules with the number of CPU-supported memory channels.
Storage
- 256GB or larger SATA SSD drive for the operating system
- Additional PCIe or NVMe SSD drive for streaming image data to disk. Samsung 970 Pro series MLC NVMe drives are recommended due to their ability to sustainably write large amounts of data over extended time periods.
- For streaming to disk with the Kinetix family, we recommend a PCIe RAID controller such as HighPoint SSD7101A-1 with 4x Samsung 970 Pro SSD in RAID-0 configuration.
Graphics Adapter
- 1 GB PCIe or CPU-integrated graphics card
Unless GPU processing is required, a graphics adapter performance is not important for camera functionality.
USB Ports and Adaptors
- Intel USB 3.0 or 3.1 Gen 2 ports, depending on the camera model used
We highly recommend the Intel Thunderbolt controller for USB 3.1 Gen 2 cameras.
PCI Express
- PCIe Gen 3 x4 slot for USB 3.1 Gen 2 add-in cards
- PCIe Gen 3 x8 slot for a single Kinetix family PCIe camera interface
- PCIe Gen 3 x16 slot for a dual Kinetix family PCIe camera interface
Note On Streaming To Disk
When using Kinetix or other fast PCI Express (PCIe) cameras and wanting to stream to disk, please note that a single Kinetix camera interface requires 8 CPU-connected PCIe 3.0 lanes to achieve full speed. In addition, our recommended NVMe RAID adapter requires another 16 PCIe 3.0 lanes. While most motherboards provide additional PCIe slots, these slots are mostly connected via Platform Controller Hub (PCH). The PCH to CPU bandwidth is defined by the specific DMI interconnection interface used - which is often insufficient for high bandwidth applications. Please check your motherboard specifications if building a custom PC for streaming to disk with fast PCIe cameras.
Note On Samsung 980 Pro
While the Samsung 970 Pro disk drives are still preferred and highly recommended due to their MLC NAND and sustained write performance, the newer Samsung 980 Pro will also provide adequate performance for streaming camera data to disk. However, given the TLC technology used in the newer drives, the following precautions may need to be taken:
- A minimum of 4x 1TB drives must be used in RAID-0 configuration. Lower disk capacities are not recommended.
- Depending on the file handling algorithm, the application may need to write data in blocks that are no larger than 1GB.
- Sufficient time may need to be given for the disks to recover their cache. 15 minutes between acquisitions was measured as adequate.
- If longer streaming is required with no compromises, a configuration of 8x 2TB drives (with adapters such as HighPoint SSD7540) would be recommended, however, this is currently not tested by Photometrics at this time.
Note On Dual-Processor Systems
If you are considering purchasing a system in order to run the Kinetix sCMOS at full frame rates in 8-bit Speed mode, please note that we do not recommend dual-processor systems (in other words, a PC that uses a motherboard with two CPUs). In these systems, memory is allocated between the two processors, and access of memory held by the other processor can be very slow. The access rate is dependent on the operating system, application, and motherboard architecture. For these reasons, we cannot ensure that a dual-processor system would support the full data rates available in the Kinetix, and we do not recommend these systems.
Dell Precision Tower 5820
Operating System
- Windows 10 64-bit
Chassis
- Precision 5820 Tower 950W Chassis CL
- Note:The USB C ports on the front PC I/O do not support USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Mbps transfer). Using the front I/O ports generally lead to reduced overall framerate.
Processor (CPU)
- Intel Xeon W-2245 or better
6 cores or more recommended, higher base clock preferred to core count.
RAM
- 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) DDR4 2933MHz RDIMM ECC or more
Four or more modules are recommended to fully accommodate all memory channels supported by the CPU.
Storage
- 2.5″ 256GB SATA Class 20 Solid State Drive or larger for the operating system. SATA drive is recommended to keep PCIe slots unoccupied
- Additional PCIe or NVMe SSD drive for streaming image data to disk. Samsung 970 Pro series MLC NVMe drives are recommended due to their ability to sustainably write large amounts of data over extended time periods.
- For streaming to disk with Kinetix family, we recommend a PCIe RAID controller such as HighPoint SSD7101A-1 with 4x Samsung 970 Pro SSD in RAID-0 configuration.
Graphics Adapter (GPU)
- NVIDIA Quadro P1000 4GB
PCIe I/O Cards
- Thunderbolt 3 PCIe card - 2x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type C Ports, 1 DP in
HP Z4 G4 Workstation
Operating System
- Windows 10 64-bit
Chassis
- HP Z4 G4 90 750W Chassis
Processor
- Intel Xeon W-2245 or better
6 cores or more recommended, higher base clock preferred to core count.
RAM
- 64 GB (4 x 16 GB) DDR4-2933 DIMM Registered Memory or more
Four or more modules recommended to fully accommodate all memory channels supported by the CPU.
At the time of writing, HP does not allow a 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) option for the selected CPU. For this reason, the 4 x 16 GB option is recommended.
Storage
- 256 GB SATA 2.5″ SSD or larger for the operating system. SATA drive is recommended to keep PCIe slots unoccupied
- Additional PCIe or NVMe SSD drive for streaming image data to disk. Samsung or 970 Pro series MLC NVMe drives are recommended due to their ability to sustainably write large amounts of data over extended time periods.
- For streaming to disk with Kinetix family, we recommend a PCIe RAID controller such as HighPoint SSD7101A-1 with 4x Samsung 970 Pro SSD.
Graphics Adapter
- NVIDIA Quadro P400
Accessories
- HP Dual-port Thunderbolt 3 PCIe Add-in Card
Front I/O Ports
- Premium - 2 x USB 3.1 Type C; 2 x USB 3.0 Type A
Summary Table
| PC Component | Custom | Dell 5820 | HP Z4 G4 |
| Operating System | Windows 10 64-bit | Windows 10 64-bit | Windows 10 64-bit |
| Processor (CPU) | Intel Xeon/Core i5, 4 or more cores, 3.0 GHz or faster | Intel Xeon W-2245 or better | Intel Xeon W-2245 or better |
| RAM | - 16 GB DDR3 or more - 32 GB DDR4 or more (Kinetix family) |
32 GB (4×8) DDR4 or more | 64 GB (4×16) DDR4 or more |
| Storage | - 256 GB SSD or larger boot drive - Samsung 970 Pro SSD for stream to disk |
- 256 GB SSD or larger boot drive - Samsung 970 Pro SSD for stream to disk |
- 256 GB SSD or larger boot drive - Samsung 970 Pro SSD for stream to disk |
| Graphics Adapter (GPU) | 1 GB PCIe or CPU-integrated graphics card | NVIDIA Quadro P1000 4 GB | NVIDIA Quadro P400 |
| I/O | - Intel USB 3.0 or 3.1 Gen 2 ports, depending on model - PCIe Gen 3 slots for expansion |
Thunderbolt 3 PCIe card - 2x USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type C Ports, 1 DP in | Premium - 2 x USB 3.1 Type C; 2 x USB 3.0 Type A |