Hands-on: Comino Grando RM-S  | WePC


*This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

The watch comes with a variety of features, including GPS functionality and an on-board 3G modem to keep track of your workouts. This is the first time we’ve seen such a versatile smartwatch that’s affordable enough for almost any budget!

Comino Grando RM-S is a PCIE riser that allows users to add more PCI Express slots to their computer. The product comes in two variants, one with 4x and the other with 8x slots. It also has an option for a single slot adapter.

Hands-on: Comino Grando RM-S  | WePC

The date on which this page was last updated was January 19, 2022.

POST THAT HAS BEEN SPONSORED

The Grando RM-S is a ‘Liquid-Cooled Multi GPU Workstation / Server,’ according to Comino. It’s the kind of computer that can transform into whatever you want it to be. A server, a multi-user workstation, and a simulation computer with four GPUs. With the sheer amount of horsepower beneath its hood, the possibilities are almost limitless.

The Comino Grando RM’s most startling feature is that all four of its RTX 3090s, as well as its gigantic Ryzen Threadripper Pro 3975WX, are completely water-cooled. Even with processors that go as hot like the RTX 3090 and Zen 2-based Threadripper Pro, the Grando RM claims to keep cool no matter what the workload is.

What is the purpose of Comino Grando RM – S? 

This system is built to handle any and all workloads, including video rendering, scientific computing, simulations, and server configurations. Whatever you throw at it, the Grando RM is more than capable of stepping up to the plate. The Comino Grando RM is intended to fit into most servers and is packed with the latest technologies and top-of-the-line components. Because the system is constructed on a conventional form factor server rack chassis, this is the case.

GPU, CPU, RAM, motherboard & PSU

Comino Grando RM 20 1

The Comino Grando RM-S features four RTX 3090s, as we briefly mentioned previously. The AIB card utilized is the Gigabyte RTX 3090 Turbo, which has an incredible 10,496 CUDA cores and a boost frequency of 1.7GHz. Nothing on the market compares to it in terms of GPU power. We’re simply pleased they got rid of the dreadful blower cooler that comes standard with this kind of card and replaced it with a strong bespoke water block. 

The Ryzen Threadripper PRO 3975WX is the processor that powers the Comino. Even though the Zen 2 architecture is a couple of years old and sitting beautifully on the sWRX8 socket, this $2,500 CPU blazes through all tasks.

The 3975WX has 32 hyperthreaded CPU cores, giving it a total of 64 logical processors with a maximum turbo speed of 4.2GHz. This 7nm CPU is lightning fast, and it usually has more cores than you could ever need. This monster of a CPU is suitable of a monolithic workstation, with a default TDP of 280W. 

Comino Grando RM 13

We were ecstatic to see that the Grando RM-S has a huge 256GB of 3200MHz Gigabyte Designare DDR4 RAM to accommodate all that CPU power. Even though it lacks the scorching clock rates of a DDR5 kit, this is more than enough for the Threadripper Pro 3975WX. 

Without a strong, trustworthy, and high-Performance motherboard to build atop, all of these very flash and powerful components would be useless. The ASUS Pro WS WRX80E-SAGE is found in the Comino Grando RM-S. This motherboard is deserving of its own evaluation, but we’ll start with the essentials. The AMD sWRX8 socket supports AMD Ryzen Threadripper Pro CPUs based on Zen 2 and has USB 3.2 Gen 2, Type-C, 10x USB 3.2 ports, and 3x PCIe 4.0 Hyper M.2 x16 Gen 4 cards for ultra-fast communication. 

When the WS WRX80E-SAGE was designed, multi-GPU capability was the name of the game. This board, with seven PCIe Gen 4.0 x16 slots, is more than capable of handling the truly absurd number of data transfers necessary. To put things in perspective, most high-end ‘gaming’ boards include three PCIe Gen 4.0 x16 slots. 

Comino Grando RM 12

Because the WRX80E-SAGE is a server/workstation motherboard, the full ECC memory supports up to 2048GB and has comprehensive error check and repair features to eliminate bit-flips. A total of 16 power stages are dedicated to the Threadripper processor, which requires only the most efficient and clean power, and this motherboard is more than capable of providing it.

SOC and DRAM heatsinks are designed with skived high aspect ratio thin fins to maximize mass and airflow. To draw heat away from the twin 10G LAN connections, the aluminum SOC heatsink is combined with a semi-passive fan. 

The back of the chassis has three Comino SFX 750W power supply. These function independently to power the Grando RM’s large number of components, and we had no power concerns throughout our testing.  

Comino Grando RM 37

Internal display & storage

The information recorded by the Logika thermal controller is shown on a Winstar display sitting underneath the 450ml reservoir at the front of the chassis. This screen has seven bits of information that may be scrolled by using two front-mounted buttons.

Comino Grando RM 11

The LTS (Long-Term Support) Ubuntu operating system is installed on a single 2TB Gigabyte Aorus m.2 disk. One Samsung PM1733 8TB SSD is included as additional storage. This gives each of our virtual computers a total of 2TB. Data is obviously designed to be read off the PM1733’s outstanding PCIe gen 4 speeds, with read rates surpassing 7000MB/s and sequential write speeds topping 3800MB/s. 

Cooling

With a single full loop arrangement flowing into a single, massive 360mm radiator, the Grando RM-S is totally water-cooled. With three Noctua 140mm 3000RPM fans to help maintain the coolant at reasonable temperatures, the 360mm Alphacool radiator is just over two inches thick and has substantial fin density, boosting the surface area even more to more effectively disperse heat.

Comino Grando RM 19

With an incredibly huge copper cold plate that cools the 16 power stages placed into the WRX80E-SAGE and the CPU, the totally bespoke AMD TR4/SP3 CPU and VRM water block keeps excessive temperatures at bay. This water block is the most critical component of the cooling loop and has a mind-boggling TDP of 280W. 

Furthermore, a rectangular Comino bespoke 450ml reservoir is located above the front-mounted LCD screen. For convenient fluid and loop maintenance, two extra fill/drain ports are located right alongside the reservoir. This system is straightforward to maintain, thanks to strong tubing and jubilee clamps that help keep leaks at bay.

A distribution plate is also located at the bottom of the chassis. This helps to disperse the liquid more thinly within the system, which improves the loop’s efficiency. This is one of the most complex and well-thought-out cooling systems we’ve ever seen at WePC, and our Thermographic Analysising confirms it.

Comino Grando RM 35

Thermographic Analysis 

Armed with a 1400W cooling capacity, the Comino Grando RM-S manages to stay cool under load through our rigorous Thermographic Analysising process. We put the Grando RM through its paces with a Furmark GPU test and simultaneous CPU burner.

Comino Grando RM Stress Idle Max alt

Idle

Idle temps on the Grando RM seldom exceed 40°C, which is amazing given the total TDP of all the components in the system. When the 3975WX CPU is idle, it has a temperature of 37.18°C. All four 3090s maintain temperatures in the 27°C range, staying below 30°C. 

Stress 

We start to feel the heat throughout the stress test, with the CPU reaching 85°C and the four RTX 3090s sitting between 68°C and 64°C. When you consider the overall TDP of all the components, this is a significant thermal burden. The fact that the 3090s keep cool under maximum load while being jammed together with hardly a slot between them is astounding, and a credit to the Comino Grando RM-sophisticated S’s cooling system.

Thermographic Analysis 

A Logika thermal controller is included in the Comino Grando RM. It monitors the system’s thermal Performance and evaluates the Grando RM’s cooling Performance and thermal efficiency. 

The findings are then shown on a front-mounted LCD screen, which looks a lot like Aida64’s sensor panels. The following are the average tertiary stress test results:

  • In an average temperature of 55.4°C, coolant is used. 
  • The average temperature of the coolant OUT is 50.8°C. 
  • The average temperature in the room is 28.3°C. 
  • The average temperature of the air OUT is 47.7°C. 
  • The average RPM of the radiator fans (3x fans) is 2735 RPM.
  • The average RPM of the pumps is 4534 RPM.  

Setup 

virtual machines comino

The Comino Grando RM-S comes with four Windows 10 Virtual machines pre-installed. Each of them has a nearly identical resource allocation. Three of the VMs each receive a 3975WX with 16 cores, 64GB of RAM, and an RTX 3090. The fourth virtual machine has just 14 cores and 50GB of RAM, but it still has its own discrete RTX 3090. Because certain resources are committed to operating LTS (Long-Term Support) Ubuntu, there is a disparity. This is where all of the VMs are managed, and without it, none of the strong VMs would be able to operate. 

LTS (Long-Term Support) Ubuntu

Software and hardware is directly managed through LTS (Long-Term Support) Ubuntu installed onto a 2TB drive. This is the beating heart of the Comino Grando RM-S, and you’re able to further manage the configuration from here, which is incredibly complex. The native Linux LTS package offers the opportunity to monitor each VM’s usage and resources individually for full control over maintenance and diagnostics, giving you easy access to resolve any issues. 

test machine hosting

You have native access to all of the Hyper-V awesomeness that Windows 10 Pro delivers since all of the VMs are already setup and set up with Windows 10 Pro. Especially if you want to run virtualization workloads on it.

Performance 

With so much power beneath the hood, it’s natural to believe that virtualization will have an impact on performance. We’ll put it through R23 Cinebench and Cyberpunk 2077, the most demanding game of the decade thus far.

To test whether there is any obvious speed reduction while running components via a VM, we built a system similar to the VMs hosted by the Comino Grando RM-S.

The ‘Control’ system consists of the following components: 

  • Ryzen 7 3700X CPU 
  • MSI Gaming X Trio RTX 3090 graphics card 
  • Aorus Pro X570 Motherboard
  • Corsair Vengeance RGB PRO 64GB RAM (3200MHz) 

Comino Grando RM VM Performance 1

R23 Cinebench   

Our control testing system performed well, with a single-core benchmark score of 1,226 and a multi-core benchmark score of 11,390. 

In the Comino Grando RM-S, however, VM1 through VM3 fared significantly better. Multi-core performance is a different story, with ratings ranging from hundreds of points higher in certain cases. The 3975WX was able to outperform the comparable-by-scale Ryzen 7 3700X because to its improved design, power consumption, and core optimizations. 

In the single-core test, VM4 received 1,258 points, while in the multi-core benchmark, it received 10,719 points. When it comes to multi-core performance, VM4 struggled a bit against the Ryzen 7 3700X, as it couldn’t keep up with the 3700X’s core count. However, because to the 3975WX’s higher core usage, single-core performance was better.

Cyberpunk 2077 gaming performance

With a 20-minute gaming benchmark, we put both the Grando RM and the control testing system to the test. 

With an average FPS of 39 in Cyberpunk at 4k and extreme settings, all VMs and the comparable system performed almost identically. The values for 1 percent and 0.1 percent fps indicate a similar pattern. This is because both systems had 3090s, which are much more essential in most gaming workloads than the CPU differences we noticed in Cinebench testing.

The fact that the Comino Grando RM-S can run four instances of Cyberpunk 2077 at 4k and extreme settings over 30fps while under stress is a testament to the machine’s raw strength.

Summary 

The Comino Grando RM-S is a system designed expressly to distribute its resources amongst four completely working virtual Windows 10 computers, and it works flawlessly and passed all of our tests. In fact, it exceeded our expectations for how far you can divide the power housed therein (and thermally manage) into four incredibly strong VMs.

Despite the fact that certain components are older than the newest cutting-edge components, the Grando RM still packs a punch. It’s a revelation for users wishing to build several, incredibly powerful systems, given its physical size and relative simplicity of use. 

Last but not least

Comino Grando RM 42 1

The Comino Grando RM-S is the ultimate workstation computer, as shown by its performance, heat load, and compact form size, which fits easily into a server rack. Obviously, a computer of this magnitude isn’t cheap, and our precise setup costs $28,000. 

If you built an equivalent system out of off-the-shelf components, it would not fit into a server rack, would not have a custom-made Logika controller to track every measurable pixel, and would not have a complete four GPU bespoke water cooling loop. 

Comino has excelled themselves yet again. Despite the fact that the Grando RM is scary on paper, it is straightforward, easy to operate, and a lot of fun to experiment with.

The “comino n1” is a product that has been created by Comino. This device allows you to play games, watch movies and TV shows, listen to music, and more.

Related Tags

  • comino rm
  • universal ilc crypto mining enclosure
  • comino power distribution bus
  • cominio
  • comino otto review

Recent Posts