![s-l1600[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/AgFUUl8.jpg "s-l1600[1].jpg")
I'm not posting this topic in /sqt/ because it is not a stupid topic.
Let's share knowledge about the possibilities of using server and workstation motherboards in standard cases and with standard power supplies.
![dell-precision-t5610[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/ZxYLn7j.jpg "dell-precision-t5610[1].jpg")
As of right now the Xeon e5-2670 has the best price/performance ratio for any CPU on the used market. You can read about it here:
http://ark.intel.com/products/64595/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E5-2670-20M-Cache-2_60-GHz-8_00-GTs-Intel-QPI
Ideally you want two of these in a dual CPU configuration. If you can set this up you have an an outrageous amount of computational power in your hands with 32 threads, and a combined 40mb of cache. And 80 PCI-E lanes.
The cheapest motherboard which will support two of these CPUs is the motherboard found within the Dell Precision 5610.
If this motherboard keeps with standard Dell designs I am going to guess it uses a non-standard power supply connector. The question is whether or not an adapter can be found or if a power supply can be sourced from one of Dell's other product lines which may be considerably cheaper than the official 5610 PSU.
![Free-shipping-CVHT6-Power-Supply-Adapter-Card-for-font-b-Dell-b-font-Precision-font-b[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/cYNe96s.jpg "Free-shipping-CVHT6-Power-Supply-Adapter-Card-for-font-b-Dell-b-font-Precision-font-b[1].jpg")
>>54678789
These motherboards require a card which looks like this to receive power.
![31-cWMxgegL[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/bdIPuvj.jpg "31-cWMxgegL[1].jpg")
>>54678816
This board appears to use the standard Dell 24+16 power supply connectors.
It is my theory you can use an ATX to Dell PSU adapter to adapter the connector from a standard power supply to the Dell standard. If you do this you can use a generic PSU and drastically cut down on prices of components.
http://www.amazon.com/ATX-Dell-Adapter-Converter-Cable/dp/B001I3WW68
>>54678816
Actually, scratch this. I do not believe this board is required. It connects to the OEM PSU and adapts to a standard dell power connector scheme.
>>54678910
op you bought these at government auction and are selling them on ebay aren't you? you cheeky cunt m8 it's a brilliant build
>>54679070
No, I'm not but I'm thinking about getting into that sort of thing. Building custom PCs using these parts as a foundation.
>>54679092
I might make one, but can the dell motherboard overclock at all or do all the xeons for it have locked multipliers??
>>54678736
This motherboard is listed as ATX form factor. It should fit into a standard ATX case.
This case is $60 on ebay shipped
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DEEPCOOL-KENDOMEN-Black-ATX-Mid-Tower-Computer-case-Preinstalled-5-Cooling-Fans-/291412635051?hash=item43d98bedab:g:EHAAAOSwEeFVDXE9
And seems to have a good selection of workstation-esque looks and components. But I am not great expert in cases, and I think there's a good chance we can do better. Any advice for better options would be greatly appreciated.
As an alternate, a person could spend double the money on a case and get the industry standard Fractal Design Define R5
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fractal-Design-Define-R5-FD-CA-DEF-R5-TI-Titanium-Computer-Case-/301426145950?hash=item462e65fa9e:g:gswAAOSwofxUlDK4
>>54679288
it's an EATX more than likely
>>54679181
Highly unlikely they can overclock in the typical sense, but the BIOS may include the option for "Intel Enhanced Turbo Boost" which sets all cores to operate at the Turbo clock speed all of the time. This increases heat and power consumption, but I have been running for since I got my HP z800 and dual x5650 setup and have seen no issues. Both CPUs still run quite cool.
>>54678736
>Let's share knowledge about the possibilities of using server and workstation motherboards in standard cases
I cannot speak to power supplies (maybe just buy a server PSU?) but for cases:
>get online a template for the mounting holes you need to add in the non-server case (atx,etc)
>print it out 1:1 scale on 2-4 sheets of paper
>get you some WELD NUTS http://www.mcmaster.com/#weld-nuts/
>mark out and drill holes the nut will fit through
>put in from opposite side
>fix with your favorite adhesive (I use a scotch-weld)
>wait for your adhesive to set (duh)
>install motherboard.
I have built several desktop server installations in large cases this way. I am most familiar with lian-li cases in >ATX sizes
>>54679310
ah see that's no good for gaymen though it'd be a hard sell
>>54678736
>I'm not posting this topic in /sqt/ because it is not a stupid topic.
It is a small question though, you should post in the small question thread next time
>>>/g/sqt
>>54679364
gtfo this is a legit thread and i am interested.
>>54679332
This is the back-up plan if the mounting points do not match (which is a likely case to happen).
>>54679333
It's fine for gaming. See this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tony8dGupKA
This man has built a similar machine to what I'm trying to do, but has used a more expensive and standard design motherboard.
>>54679416
the particular chosen processors have low clock speed though, it sucks you can't pump them up for higher ips
![s-l500[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/sKSrXVG.jpg "s-l500[1].jpg")
>>54679303
If it is EATX that pushes the overall cost a little higher, or the builder can attempt to utilize an older EATX case. I'm not sure the airflow would be there on some of them.
Maybe a 4U case if you really want to build on a budget?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/4U-Style-Dual-Aluminum-Lock-Door-3x5-25-Bay-Rackmount-Chassis-mATX-Case-NEW-/391462289058?hash=item5b24f87ea2:g:c-gAAOSw34FVDarT
The 4U size is not actually that big (pun not intended). About the same size as a full tower PC set on it's side.
Otherwise just get this
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NZXT-SOURCE-530-ATX-Micro-ATX-eATX-ITX-Full-Tower-Case-/322091237891?hash=item4afe224203:g:p44AAOSwE6VXJDM3
And there's always the option to install on a piece of MDF and enclose the case however you like.
>>54679446
Remember that as Directx 12 becomes more used games will take advantage of many threads and high clock speeds will be less of a factor in higher frame rates.
Personally 60 fps is fine for me and I'm more interested in the insane CPU performance gains seen in video production work.
I have this dual 1366 xeon board in this mid tower and its pretty baller
>>54679507
you're right, i just hate to do an enthusiast build with no headroom for an overclock, although i will have to look at the ips and ipc for these processors in order to say whether or not i agree if such a build is justifiable pricewise
>>54679389
You may be interested in this motherboard as well then.
It is the motherboard from the HP z600 and it is the cheapest dual LGA 1366 motherboard you can get that still has a lot of PCI-E slots.
I know for a fact these motherboards take a special proprietary connector from HP and also give errors if you do not use HP's specific OEM fans.
However, there are adapters available from china for the PSU, and you can simply skip the fan error on start-up with no issues (you will need to use software in your OS to control fan speed, they will run 100% during start-up).
The OEM fans are not really that expensive if you want to swing them.
You can drop super super cheap Xeons in these and get a lot of power.
Motherboard + both CPUs will be less than $200 and give performance better than most of the recent Skylake stuff.
Currently have a server mobo in my system.
Works well.
would take a picture but its too dark
PowerEdge C1100 motherboard, standard E-ATX size and standard ATX PSU.
>>54679530
I have thought about building this exact rig before. What were your other components and your total cost to build?
>>54679552
why is there a bite taken out of the fucking motherboard? isn't hp a shit tho?
>>54679573
Ive put about 800 in this system
>dual x5680
>48gb of ram
> x4 240gb SSD in raid 0
is my hyper-visor
>>54679605
>isn't hp a shit tho?
Consumer and enterprise products are two very different things.
>>54679530
Also that board seems to have come down in some price since I was last looking at it...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPERMICRO-MOTHERBOARD-X8DTI-F-I-O-SHIELD-LGA-SOCKET-1366-/201587812505?hash=item2eef91e899:g:KwsAAOSwrb5XPjxJ
These may actually be the best price/performance you can get right now.
>>54679643
I think I paid 175 ish for it :/
>>54679634
Did you use the standard Super Micro heat sinks for the CPU?
>>54679666
I started out with Hyper 212s and the switched to some smaller random ones I found on amazon
>>54679651
Yeah, this is an interesting development. There must have been a big clear out to make room for the next generation of socket 1151 Xeons which will be out soon.
>>54679416
huh, i always figured dual cpus wouldnt be that viable for games.
>>54679687
its was about a year and a half ago, bought it from "cloudninjas" on ebay
>>54679694
Why wouldn't it be?
>>54679712
thought it would be slower than single cpu build pcs since the xeon is alot slower right?
>>54678789
>Dell Precision 5610 mobo
Fuck. Now I'm thinking about building instead of just getting a d30. It looks like i can get a full computer for cheaper if i skimp on ram...
>>54679675
Does the BIOS for that motherboard allow much control over fan speed?
Did you need to do anything special to mount the motherboard in the case?
I'm sorry for so many questions but this build is something I've contemplated many times.
>>54679725
There is nothing inherent in the Xeons which would make them slower. A CPU is a CPU is a CPU for the most part.
Some Xeons are extremely fast and beat the crap out of the i7s. For a long time the highest gaming benchmarks were held by a dual Xeon system, and might still be.
>>54679751
IDK about fans but my machine is silent to begin with. No special mounting procedures, see here on the right it in a modded source 210 at first. I've got no problems with questions. I'd like to see more people get into enterprise grade hardware
>>54679734
It is up to you anon, but I think there are some good deals on the D30s and it might be worth the $100 difference for the convenience of having a case that you know fits everything and not having to worry about fan or PSU errors.
>>54679782
pic
>>54679785
Yeah. My main draw to the d30 once an anon pointed it out to me is that it looks damn sexy. But then again im someone who thinks that a T420 is the best looking laptop within the past 10 or so years (titanium powerbook is the best withi 16 years).
>>54679840
forgot a related pic so pic related.
![311810-lenovo-thinkstation-d30-open[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/Z8D9sK5.jpg "311810-lenovo-thinkstation-d30-open[1].jpg")
>>54679849
While it does look good on the outside, I think the inside of the D30 is messier than the Dell or HP competitors.
I would still buy one if the price was right.
>>54679790
Is the motherboard E-ATX?
>>54679877
Eh. The only time i really care about what it looks like inside is when it involves women (never date crazy.) It's not like there is a case windows and flashing led fans or anything.
>>54679887
yes it is
>>54679930
isn't the single core performance of these cpus like 1/2 of an i5 3570?
![ThinkStation+D20+014[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/7vKKhFL.jpg "ThinkStation+D20+014[1].jpg")
I've been doing more research today and I think I have realized the Lenovo D20 is probably the best option these days for a full LGA 1366 workstation to be bought from ebay.
Previously I had thought the Dell Precision T7500 was the budget king for this socket, but you can find complete D20s with a x5650 AND a good amount of ram and a couple of hard drives for under $400.
Like this listing:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-ThinkStation-D20-Xeon-X5650-Hex-Core-2-66GHz-24GB-RAM-2x-1TB-HDD-/172202754137?hash=item2818158059:g:xb0AAOSw1KxXM0NL
Similar T7500 listings usually do not include hard drives and less ram.
The motherboard from the D20 is also worth looking at byself as it is goes for about $100 and seems to be a competitor to that Super Micro motherboard.
I am leaning towards thinking the Lenovo motherboards do not need any specific type of PSU adapter and can run off a standard ATX PSU. Does anyone know different?
>>54679948
Perhaps on paper, but where is it going to really matter? The only thing I have had any issue with is playing games in PS2 and Wii emulators where high clock speed single core performance is beneficial.
Everything else comes in one of two categories.
1. It's an old game that is single-threaded, and thus doesn't require much in the way of performance to begin with
2. It's a newer game that can run on 4 or more threads at once and you will have no issues at all.
>>54679987
And if it isn't a video game then...find another application that isn't single-threaded. It's 2016 fer chrissakes.
Can linux utilize these dual cpu (and fuckton core) systems better than wangdos 7 can? Xubuntu on my t420 always seems to use cores nearly equally on most things.
>>54679634
A while back I was discussing adding ram to these machines using the 2gb DD3 modules and an anon told me this was a poor idea because when using this many modules in triple channel configurations (such as 12 x 2gb modules for 24gb) I would run into a memory limit per application, where a a single application would only be able to access 6gb of ram at once.
Have you ever heard of any such thing?
>>54680012
Linux is meant for servers and used on 90%+ of them. It is able to handle server hardware for sure
>>54680012
Yes and no. I think some features of the BIOS on some workstation motherboards like NUMA split mode do not work with Linux. But I'm sure there are some other interesting things you an do there you can't in Windows.
>>54679967
Ah, but no GPU. I forgot that. Sometimes you can find a Quadro 4000 in the Dell and HP machines and that will resell for $100. I also had a BD-R/W in my z800 I could have sold for $60 if I wanted to.
![chekov_pb02[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/87UY6Sf.jpg "chekov_pb02[1].jpg")
r8 my workstation parts list, brothers
>Supermicro X8DTE-F LGA 1366 Dual Socket motherboard - $90
>2x Xeon X5570 - $30
>6 x 2gb Hynix 1333mhz DDR non-ecc non-buffered ram - $30
>1x Samsung 840 120gb SSD - $40
>1x HGST 2TB 32mb cache hard drive - $40
>2x Intel stock cooler for CPU - $20
>PNY 960 GTX 2gb - $140
>Solid Gear ATX12V/EPS12V 850-Watts Power Supply - $50
>DIYPC Silence-BK ATX Mid Tower Case - $65
Total: $495
I think this machine would do well for a lot of different things.
>>54679552
How do you plan to mount this motherboard in an ATX or EATX case? Using weld nuts like >>54679332 said?
>>54680556
That would be the plan. Alternative is to match it up with whatever holes you can and give the ol' thumbs up "good enough" approach.
>>54680517
I forgot $5 for SATA cables.
Total cost: $500
>>54680517
Seems good overall but why non-ECC? It is essential when it comes to workstations. Also you could replace the 960 with a 380. It beats the 960 in both gaymen and computing scenarios.
>>54680648
Non-ECC is cheaper. I would only use this for hobbyist work. If I have an error in encoding video or making a 3d model it isn't a big deal.
GTX 960 is $60 cheaper used than the R9 380.
>>54680517
that pricing is awfully optimistic
>>54680702
I carefully looked on ebay to make sure these were prices which are current and available.
>>54680711
link me the hgst drive pls
>>54680727
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2TB-Hitachi-HGST-Internal-Hard-Drive-HUA722020ALA331-7200-RPM-32MB-Cache-/371624930990?hash=item5686926eae:g:K~sAAOSwWntXM4DP
It's manufacturer refurbished. This doesn't bother me, but it might for you.
>>54680683
Nice. Are you going to use it as your main machine or as a closet server that you are going to offload intensive tasks on to?
>>54680814
My main machine. My only worry with the parts list is the PSU. I might have to go a little bit more expensive and get something I know will be reliable.
I'm pretty sure the Intel stock coolers will work just fine here. Do you see any reason why they wouldn't?
>>54680860
Stock coolers should work fine but they are noisy and hotter in comparison to aftermarket coolers. They do the job fine but you may not really want to use them if noise is important for you.
Also I agree on the PSU. I would buy something from a more known brand.
![s-l1600[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/AkogQfw.jpg "s-l1600[1].jpg")
>>54680987
Hmm, maybe I should go with this kind of cooler with a sideways facing fan. This is the kind of cooler I usually see in the lga 1366 workstations.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dynatron-T667-2U-CPU-Cooler-Side-Fan-for-Intel-Xeon-LGA-1366-1356-Socket-B-PWM-/152093096749?hash=item2369747b2d:g:i1EAAOSwwpdW7Fuu
A little more expensive, but not too bad at $45 for both of them, and since the X5570 is a 95 watt TDP CPU I might should go ahead and get something a little higher performance than a stock cooler.
>>54681172
Or maybe not this one. It's for servers
http://www.dynatron-corp.com/en/product_detail_1.aspx?cv=&id=23&in=0
>>54681209
This is the one to get:
http://www.dynatron-corp.com/en/product_detail_1.aspx?cv=&id=4&in=0#
>>54681209
>>54681172
You could use those too but I don't have any personal experience with those kind of coolers so I really can't say much.
>>54678858
>use an ATX to Dell PSU adapter to adapter the connector
rofl, I use GNU+Gentoo to adaptor my connectors
>>54681733
>>54679967
>>54679790
I always laugh at dual-CPU configurations. The future of render loads are GPUs with their parallel processing. Moore's law has almost permanently made CPUs obsolete.
>>54681879
there is more stuff then just render loads.
I use mine for running VM's with cpu intensive tasks
>>54680683
ECC's cheaper than non when you buy used, like ridiculously cheaper
thinkstation p900, want this so hard
>>54682426
Shame they couldn't come up with a better name, thinkstation doesn't look that good as a logo
>>54682426
That is the nicest looking (externally) pc case i have ever seen. No idea how retarded parts are, but here is a case/mobo/psu for it.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/LENOVO-THINKSTATION-P900-Barebones-MOBO-CPU-fan-heatsink-PSU-Case-ONLY-/191847508330?hash=item2cab00a96a:g:BoUAAOSw7KJXDX1I
>>54682336
This, typically under $2/gb
![1[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/EeuXq7K.jpg "1[1].jpg")