[ale] [OT] Monster PC < $500

[Shane McKinley]

You have learned much grasshopper. 

-----Original Message-----
From: JK [mailto:jknapka at kneuro.net] 
Sent: Wednesday, October 29, 2008 4:54 PM
To: ale at ale.org
Subject: Re: [ale] [OT] Monster PC < $500

Thanks for all the advice, everyone.  To summarize (and please correct
me if I'm wrong):

* A better-quality case and PS would be worth paying extra for. Thinking
back on some *bad* cases I've had to deal with, I can definitely see the
point here...

* WD may not be the best choice for HD, though some people like them
just fine.  Hardly anyone seems to complain about Seagate, though.
(Aren't they part of the same company now?)

* Don't forget a DVD drive :-p

* RAM timings may end up degraded due to quirks of the MB/CPU/RAM
combination; I might consider spending less on slower RAM.

* I probably can't use ESX.  This doesn't bother me much, since I'm a
total virtualization noob, and it seems as if getting hardware usable
for ESX is going to involve a lot more $$$ than I want to spend.

* Nonetheless, Xen, too, has hardware limitations, so I may need to
change motherboard based on chipset support.

-- JK

JK wrote:
> [Marked OT because not directly Linux-relevant, although Linux will 
> certainly be run on this machine.]
> 
> Hi everyone,
> 
> I'm looking at putting together a machine to run some virtualized 
> servers (maybe under Xen, maybe VMWare, maybe something else; haven't 
> decided yet).  I've put together a parts list for a 2.3Ghz quad-core 
> Phenom/8GB RAM/250GB HD machine from newegg.com, totalling $465.  Does

> that seem reasonable, or am I (a) paying too much for something, or
> (b) lowballing something critical?  I'm especially concerned about 
> cooling; I've actually never built a machine before where heat 
> dissipation was at all an issue, and cheap stock fans have always 
> worked fine for me. I suspect that won't be the case with a CPU that 
> draws 165W. (At least I won't have to run my heater as much this 
> winter.)
> 
> I'd like to be able to run four virtual machines each equivalent to 
> perhaps a 500Mhz P3 with 1GB RAM or thereabouts.
> Exact performance is negotiable.
> 
> Here's the list. I may invest in another HD for RAID, but for now I'm 
> trying to stay under $500:
> 
> 
> MB      $ 85   GIGABYTE GA-MA78G-DS3H AM2+/AM2 AMD 780G HDMI ATX AMD 
> Motherboard (this board has 4 DDR2 slots and accepts up to 16GB)
> 
> CPU     $120   AMD Phenom 9600 Agena 2.3GHz Socket AM2+ 95W Quad-Core 
> Processor Model HD960ZWCGDBOX - Retail
> 
> RAM     $130   2 x OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 
> 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model OCZ2P10664GK - 
> Retail ($65 per 2x2GB kit)
> 
> Fan     $ 40   COOLER MASTER GeminII S RR-CCH-PBU1-GP 120mm Sleeve CPU

> Cooler - Retail (or comparable)
> 
> Case    $ 35   Linkworld 3230-18 c2228u Black Steel ATX Mid Tower 
> Computer Case 430W Power Supply - Retail (Is 430W sufficient for this 
> rig? The CPU draws 165W alone, but I think it's the most power-hungry 
> component.)
> 
> HD      $ 55   Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500AAKS 250GB 7200 RPM 
> SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
> ------------
>          $465
> 
> 
> Any opinions appreciated.
> 
> -- JK
> 


--
I do not particularly want to go where the money is -
  it usually does not smell nice there. -- A. Stepanov
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