• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Steam Machine by day, cruncher by night?

Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
4,665 (0.73/day)
Location
Washington, US
System Name Rainbow
Processor Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage 2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB | 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s) Samsung C27HG70
Case Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K95
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)
I've been looking for a motherboard and processor to kick off my steambox build, but I've been having difficulty deciding where I'd like to sit for hardware. The games will be newer controller-enabled titles at 1080p, but I won't be expecting MegaUltra graphics quality out of it.
I would like overclocking to be an option whenever possible.

Budget is expressed in price for additional parts. New parts are at cost while using hardware laying around is the value I could sell it at divided by my laziness coefficient (which is currently around 1.75). My current budget is flexible. I'd be comfortable up to about $300-ish, but can likely be convinced otherwise if the return is justifiable. I'll also have a second build coming soon, so the parts list below won't be just sitting around otherwise.

Hardware laying around:
Xigmatek Aquila
Something or other 1TB SATA drive (possibly 3x)
BFG 550/650 watt 80+ Bronze
Seasonic 760 watt 80+ Platinum
2x Radeon HD 5870 2GB
2x Radeon HD 6950 2GB (flashed to 6970, currently in sig rig)
Radeon HD 7870
Phenom II X2 550 (or possibly X6 1100T)
CoolIt Evo II (OEM Corsair H60)
Various watercooling parts, blocks, res, rads, etc

The PII X6 is waiting to be swapped in to a 790FX machine which currently has the PII X2, but can be stolen for the steambox. The 7870 is in the X2 machine and is pretty much just there for folding. Would like to put it to use.

My current build ideas are as follows:

Modesty, ~$150
CPU = Embedded APU? Intel Pentium?
Mobo = UEFI preferred, mini-ITX/uATX, PCI-e 1x or integrated WiFi
GPU = HD 7870
PSU = BFG 650

Modesty would likely focus on just being a steambox. That would mean value for performance, low core count, and high clock speed purely for single-threaded performance, the idea being most games don't take advantage of much more than that. I don't think the CPU would be strong enough to warrant 24/7 crunching, but I'd fire it up during competitions at least. Ability to overclock considered a bonus.
I may use the HD 5870s as long as they idle down to near nothing and fit on the board, the power hit over the 7870 shouldn't be substantial.
Pros: Fast enough for games (I hope), low idle power, low cost


The Fifth Star, $200-300
CPU = AMD FX-6xxx or Intel Core i3
Mobo = UEFI preferred, 2x PCI-e 16x, uATX at most, PCI-e 1x or integrated WiFi
GPU = 2x Radeon HD 5870
PSU = Seasonic 760w

Mostly same as above, except I'd beef up the CPU to make sure it can churn out some nice WCG numbers. I shouldn't be too far away from getting my fifth star on my WCG badge. If it's on 24/7 to crunch, I'd prefer the Seasonic PSU. If I'm going to have the power of the Seasonic PSU, I might as well give it the HD 5870s. This is my most preferred plan at the moment. Also gives the option to buy a second 7870 in the future and churn out
Pros: PPD/watt, PSU power efficiency, hardware value sweet spot


Fury of a Thousand Suns, $???
CPU = AMD FX-6xxx/FX-8xxx or Intel Core i5/i7
Mobo = UEFI preferred, uATX at most, 2x PCI-e
GPU = Radeon 7870 (possibly purchase a second one)
PSU = Seasonic 760w

The least-thought out of the three, this is basically my "I don't care if my steambox is faster than sig-rig and I don't really need to eat. These aren't tears." plan. Make it crunch, make it fold, make it kick butt.
Pros: dat PPD tho, maybe my new therapist will be cute


So, Steam Machine that occasionally crunches, or Crunch Machine that occasionally games?

@thebluebumblebee said to tag @Norton and @newtekie1 for some advice from DCers.
 
Last edited:

Norton

Moderator - Returning from the Darkness
Staff member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Messages
14,108 (3.15/day)
Location
Northeast USA
System Name Main PC- Gamer- Main Cruncher/Folder and too many crunching/folding rigs
Processor Ryzen 5900X- Ryzen 5950X- Ryzen 3950X and etc...
Motherboard Asrock X570 Extreme4- MSI X570S Tomahawk MAX WiFi- MSI B450M Bazooka Max and etc...
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S (dual fan)- EK 360 AIO with push/pull fans- Corsair H115i RGB Pro XT and etc...
Memory 2x16GB GSkill FlareX 3200/c14- 4x8GB Corsair Vengeance 3600/c16- 2x16GB Team 3600/c18 and etc..
Video Card(s) MSI Gaming RX 6800- Asus RTX 3070 TUF OC- MSI Ventus GTX 1660Ti and etc...
Storage Main PC (1TB WD SN850- 2TB PNY CS 3040- 2TB Seagate Firecuda) and etc...
Display(s) Main PC (2x24" Dell UltraSharp U2414H)
Case Phanteks P600s- Seasonic Q704- Fractal Meshify C and etc...
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z625 THX 2.1 speakers
Power Supply EVGA 750 G3- SeaSonic DGC 750- EVGA P2 850 and etc...
Mouse G300s
Keyboard Corsair K65
VR HMD N/A
Software Windows 10 Pro or Ubuntu
Benchmark Scores Why sit on the Bench when you can get in the game and Crunch!!!
Well to stick with mini ITX or mATX the AM3+ option is off the table, no mini-ITX for AM3+ and mATX AM3+ boards are budget crap mostly.

What are the preferred spec's from Valve for a Steam box?
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
May 23, 2014
Messages
67 (0.02/day)
System Name Semi-Modern
Processor AMD R9-5950X (8c @ 4.65GHz, 8c @ 4.6GHz)
Motherboard Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Hero (non-WiFi)
Cooling EK-CoolStream PE 360 w/ Unifans, Alphacool NexXxoS ST30 280mm w/ 2 x NF A-14, EKWB Classic WB
Memory 32GB Corsair Vengeance Pro RGB DDR4-3200
Video Card(s) EVGA RTX 3080 Ti FTW Ultra
Storage 1 x WD Black Gen 4 500GB, 1 x Samsung 980 Pro 1TB, 1 x 2TB SATA SSD, 2 x 4TB SATA SSD (Raid 0)
Display(s) 1 x LG 27GN950-B, 1 x LG 27UP600-W
Case Corsair 5000D
Audio Device(s) Focusrite Scarlett Solo
Power Supply Seasonic Flagship Prime 1000W Platinum
Mouse Logitech G502 Hero
Keyboard Glorious GMMK-RGB
VR HMD Oculus Rift, HTC Vive
Software Windows 11
Benchmark Scores https://www.3dmark.com/spy/41015604 https://www.3dmark.com/pr/1830072
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
Find the cheapest lga1155 i5 or higher that you can find. Get a cheaper overclockable itx or matx lga1155 motherboard. Overclock. WIN!

On gpu. Steam recommends you don't use amd gpu's yet because amd drivers are a pain on linux. Save yourself some sanity there. One of the folders just tried getting folding to work on amd on linux and it wasn't pretty. Folding can be expensive on power, so maybe don't go all out on the gpu either. A good mid range 600 or 700 series card will do.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
4,665 (0.73/day)
Location
Washington, US
System Name Rainbow
Processor Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage 2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB | 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s) Samsung C27HG70
Case Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K95
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)
Well to stick with mini ITX or mATX the AM3+ option is off the table, no mini-ITX for AM3+ and mATX AM3+ boards are budget crap mostly.

What are the preferred spec's from Valve for a Steam box?
I tend to agree about the AM3 stuff. Unless I go with the X2, I don't think most of those boards are going to have strong VRMs.

Since it's just a PC, most anything goes. Here's the SteamOS recommended hardware:
Processor: Intel or AMD 64-bit capable processor
Memory: 4GB or more RAM
Hard Drive: 500GB or larger disk
Video Card: NVIDIA graphics card (AMD and Intel graphics support coming soon!) (Ed: Actually, it's already here!)
Additional: UEFI boot support, USB port for installation

This board isn't what I would call "crap" per se, as it gives a decent option for ram, but only one PCIe slot, which limits you slightly:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157323

If you aren't going to do heavy gaming, and mostly crunching, then all you'll really need is this for RAM:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231394

Slap in the 7870, and use your BFG PSU, and that will keep you below your 150 "modest" cap.
A mATX AM3+ board was my original idea too, but I'm shying away from that 760 chipset, no UEFI, limited CPU overclocking potential, and single PCI-e slot. I do have a board for the X2, so it won't go to waste, thankfully. If I didn't, I'd be more concerned about making sure I use it.
Having two PCI-e slots is decently high up on my list of important things to have, but I'm not sure if it's a dealbreaker. If I go for the "Modest" tier, I'll probably end up getting a board like that. Sig-rig has an ASRock board and I quite like it.
That RAM might get by even for heavy gaming, depending on how stripped down Steam's linux is. I might bump up to 8GB, but yeah. Value RAM would be fine.
:toast:
Find the cheapest lga1155 i5 or higher that you can find. Get a cheaper overclockable itx or matx lga1155 motherboard. Overclock. WIN!

On gpu. Steam recommends you don't use amd gpu's yet because amd drivers are a pain on linux. Save yourself some sanity there. One of the folders just tried getting folding to work on amd on linux and it wasn't pretty. Folding can be expensive on power, so maybe don't go all out on the gpu either. A good mid range 600 or 700 series card will do.
By "cheap i5 + overclock", you mean raise FSB? I wouldn't completely hate an i5-4670K if it wasn't for the price. I think everything under that has a locked multi, doesn't it?
I'd prefer not to buy another card, but I agree the 5870s aren't ideal. I'm just using them because they'd be sitting around otherwise. Selling the 5870s and using that money to buy a new card could be an option. Could be a F@H-beneficial option. A 750 Ti looks like it's about $150 which places it (hopefully) in the nearly free category. I'd prefer a second 7870, honestly. Crossfire for when the games kick up, lots PPD when it's idle. I'd consider selling my 6950s as well, but then I'd have to buy GPUs for the main rig and while a 780 Ti/290 wouldn't break the bank, it would seriously maim it. I likely wouldn't have the self-control to get anything else. :p
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
By "cheap i5 + overclock", you mean raise FSB? I wouldn't completely hate an i5-4670K if it wasn't for the price. I think everything under that has a locked multi, doesn't it?
I'd prefer not to buy another card, but I agree the 5870s aren't ideal. I'm just using them because they'd be sitting around otherwise. Selling the 5870s and using that money to buy a new card could be an option. Could be a F@H-beneficial option. A 750 Ti looks like it's about $150 which places it (hopefully) in the nearly free category. I'd prefer a second 7870, honestly. Crossfire for when the games kick up, lots PPD when it's idle. I'd consider selling my 6950s as well, but then I'd have to buy GPUs for the main rig and while a 780 Ti/290 wouldn't break the bank, it would seriously maim it. I likely wouldn't have the self-control to get anything else. :p
By cheap i5 I mean a used 2500k or better. If you can find one used they are pretty good prices. A 3 year old cpu that performs closely as this years model.

My 750ti's are great. Honestly overperforming on beta's at the moment, but I expect it to come down eventually to just under 7850 performance.
 

Norton

Moderator - Returning from the Darkness
Staff member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Messages
14,108 (3.15/day)
Location
Northeast USA
System Name Main PC- Gamer- Main Cruncher/Folder and too many crunching/folding rigs
Processor Ryzen 5900X- Ryzen 5950X- Ryzen 3950X and etc...
Motherboard Asrock X570 Extreme4- MSI X570S Tomahawk MAX WiFi- MSI B450M Bazooka Max and etc...
Cooling Noctua NH-U14S (dual fan)- EK 360 AIO with push/pull fans- Corsair H115i RGB Pro XT and etc...
Memory 2x16GB GSkill FlareX 3200/c14- 4x8GB Corsair Vengeance 3600/c16- 2x16GB Team 3600/c18 and etc..
Video Card(s) MSI Gaming RX 6800- Asus RTX 3070 TUF OC- MSI Ventus GTX 1660Ti and etc...
Storage Main PC (1TB WD SN850- 2TB PNY CS 3040- 2TB Seagate Firecuda) and etc...
Display(s) Main PC (2x24" Dell UltraSharp U2414H)
Case Phanteks P600s- Seasonic Q704- Fractal Meshify C and etc...
Audio Device(s) Logitech Z625 THX 2.1 speakers
Power Supply EVGA 750 G3- SeaSonic DGC 750- EVGA P2 850 and etc...
Mouse G300s
Keyboard Corsair K65
VR HMD N/A
Software Windows 10 Pro or Ubuntu
Benchmark Scores Why sit on the Bench when you can get in the game and Crunch!!!
My suggestion would be to pick up a decent mATX socket 1150 board with crossfire support and a cheap i3 for now and go play ;) You have 5x video cards to mess with in a variety of configurations and you can pick up a better chip later on when folks unload for the next big thing.

My $0.02 ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Aug 11, 2011
Messages
4,355 (0.94/day)
Location
Mexico
System Name Dell-y Driver
Processor Core i5-10400
Motherboard Asrock H410M-HVS
Cooling Intel 95w stock cooler
Memory 2x8 A-DATA 2999Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) UHD 630
Storage 1TB WD Green M.2 - 4TB Seagate Barracuda
Display(s) Asus PA248 1920x1200 IPS
Case Dell Vostro 270S case
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Dell 220w
Software Windows 10 64bit
Looking at the hardware you already have:

Buy:
- Used Gigabyte 880GM-USB3 rev.3.1(AM3+ version). If you want something with warranty, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128565

I own two 880GM-USB3s and they own, considering that the VRMs aren't sinked. I have a 1090t OCed to 3.8Ghz running 12/7 on one of them. As always, YMMV.
The 78LMT-USB3 is good but not as good. CAUTION, stay away from the 78LMT-S2(P) since those are 3+1 boards, the USB3 version is 4+1.

- 4GB of DDR3-1600 RAM, or spring for DDR3-1866 if price is almost the same. The 880GM-USB3 can run 1866 modules by OCing the bus speed.


Build:
- X6 1100t
-Gigabyte 880GM-USB3 rev.3.1
-4GB of RAM
- HD7870. I have one on my Steambox/HTPC and it's godly. You'd be hard pressed to justify using an Xfire setup for 1080p
- 1TB disk. RAID0? + another disk for Linux+BOINC so that you can maximize your PPD.
-Xigmatek Aquila
- Seasonic 80+platinum (you're going to run it 24/7)
- AIO cooler

Then again, I'm a fan of building rigs out of spare parts so you might want to start fresh. :toast:
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi

t_ski

Former Staff
Joined
Apr 11, 2006
Messages
11,960 (1.82/day)
System Name My i7 Beast
Processor Intel Core i7 6800K
Motherboard Asus X99-A II
Cooling Nickel-plated EK Supremacy EVO, D5 with XSPC Bayres & BIX Quad Radiator
Memory 4 x 8GB EVGA SuperSC DDR4-3200
Video Card(s) EVGA 1080 SuperClocked
Storage Samsung 950 Pro 256GB m.2 SSD + 480GB Sandisk storage SSD
Display(s) Three Asus 24" VW246H LCD's
Case Silverstone TJ07
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Corsair AX1200
Keyboard Corsair K95
Software Windows 10 x64 Pro
I have not been crunching with the AMD side much, but when I did, the performance was not what I hoped. Aside from the monster crunchers I have now, the best performance per watt I've seen has been the i7 3770K, I got a delidded one for $180 around the time they were new, but can't swear to what they go for now. I would recommend at least an i3 or i5 though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Aug 30, 2009
Messages
4,012 (0.75/day)
Location
Sarasota, Florida, USA
System Name Awesomesauce 4.3 | Laptop (MSI GE72VR 6RF Apache Pro-023)
Processor Intel Core i7-5820K 4.16GHz 1.28v/3GHz 1.05v uncore | Intel Core i7-6700HQ @ 3.1GHz
Motherboard Gigabyte GA-X99-UD5 WiFi LGA2011-v3| Stock
Cooling Corsair H100i v2 w/ 2x EK Vardar F4-120ER + various 120/140mm case fans | Stock
Memory G.Skill RJ-4 16GB DDR4-2666 CL15 quad channel | 12GB DDR4-2133
Video Card(s) EVGA GTX 1080 Ti Hybrid SC2 11GB @ 2012/5151 boost | NVIDIA GTX 1060 6GB +200/+500 + Intel 530
Storage Samsung 840 EVO 500GB + Seagate 3TB 7200RPM + others | Kingston 256GB M.2 SATA + 1TB 7200RPM
Display(s) Acer G257HU 1440p 60Hz AH-IPS 4ms | 17.3" 1920*1080 60Hz wide angle TN notebook panel
Case Fractal Design Define XL R2 | MSI
Audio Device(s) Creative Sound Blaster Z | Realtek with quad stereo speakers and subwoofer
Power Supply Corsair HX850i Platinum | 19.5v 180w Delta brick
Software Windows 10 Pro x64 | Windows 10 Home x64
AMD GPUs don't run well in Linux, I've tried several times over almost two years including with Folding@Home several weeks ago. Only NVIDIA has offered me performance comparable to Windows. I could give my new 280X a try, but doubtful things are much better with their drivers.
 
Joined
Aug 11, 2011
Messages
4,355 (0.94/day)
Location
Mexico
System Name Dell-y Driver
Processor Core i5-10400
Motherboard Asrock H410M-HVS
Cooling Intel 95w stock cooler
Memory 2x8 A-DATA 2999Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) UHD 630
Storage 1TB WD Green M.2 - 4TB Seagate Barracuda
Display(s) Asus PA248 1920x1200 IPS
Case Dell Vostro 270S case
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Dell 220w
Software Windows 10 64bit
I have not been crunching with the AMD side much, but when I did, the performance was not what I hoped. Aside from the monster crunchers I have now, the best performance per watt I've seen has been the i7 3770K, I got a delidded one for $180 around the time they were new, but can't swear to what they go for now. I would recommend at least an i3 or i5 though.

My 8350s were getting 6-7K each. After MCM rolled out their PPD plummeted to 3-3.5K. That's why I suspect that MCM uses FPU instructions since the FX modules are 2 integer + 1 FPU
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
4,665 (0.73/day)
Location
Washington, US
System Name Rainbow
Processor Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage 2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB | 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s) Samsung C27HG70
Case Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K95
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)
By cheap i5 I mean a used 2500k or better. If you can find one used they are pretty good prices. A 3 year old cpu that performs closely as this years model.

My 750ti's are great. Honestly overperforming on beta's at the moment, but I expect it to come down eventually to just under 7850 performance.
I did a little eBay hunting earlier to get an idea on how much Intel CPUs are going for. What's ballpark for a good second-hand 2500k?
I think I might forgo a GPU and put that money towards the mobo/cpu. GPU prices are still a little high for my tastes.

My suggestion would be to pick up a decent mATX socket 1150 board with crossfire support and a cheap i3 for now and go play ;) You have 5x video cards to mess with in a variety of configurations and you can pick up a better chip later on when folks unload for the next big thing.

My $0.02 ;)
That's what I'm starting to think. Maybe a Z87/Z97 and something nice to play around with? I have a few options for water cooling laying around ranging from quiet to somewhat extreme. The old 2600k looks like it's still going for $200-ish, 2500k for ~$130. I'd have to go 1155 for that, but it doesn't seem completely outside the realm of possibility.

Looking at the hardware you already have:

Buy:
- Used Gigabyte 880GM-USB3 rev.3.1(AM3+ version). If you want something with warranty, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128565

I own two 880GM-USB3s and they own, considering that the VRMs aren't sinked. I have a 1090t OCed to 3.8Ghz running 12/7 on one of them. As always, YMMV.
The 78LMT-USB3 is good but not as good. CAUTION, stay away from the 78LMT-S2(P) since those are 3+1 boards, the USB3 version is 4+1.

- 4GB of DDR3-1600 RAM, or spring for DDR3-1866 if price is almost the same. The 880GM-USB3 can run 1866 modules by OCing the bus speed.


Build:
- X6 1100t
-Gigabyte 880GM-USB3 rev.3.1
-4GB of RAM
- HD7870. I have one on my Steambox/HTPC and it's godly. You'd be hard pressed to justify using an Xfire setup for 1080p
- 1TB disk. RAID0? + another disk for Linux+BOINC so that you can maximize your PPD.
-Xigmatek Aquila
- Seasonic 80+platinum (you're going to run it 24/7)
- AIO cooler
Then again, I'm a fan of building rigs out of spare parts so you might want to start fresh. :toast:
I don't mind this being a spare parts build. I originally intended it to be one until I realized the Xigmatek case only fit a mATX board. If I have to get a new board, I figure I might as well try something new, either an APU or something Intel. The X6 will definitely crunch no matter what the outcome of this build is and I'd like to experiment with new things if I can. The X2 will likely crunch as well, except it'll be on an AM2+ board, I think.
If my wallet wins, I'll probably do something similar to what you suggest. I'd like to crossfire just for the awesomeness, the occasional eye-candy in games, and the F@H PPD. Two 7870s should put the perfect load on the PSU for best efficiency too. The wallet will probably win this battle though.

I have not been crunching with the AMD side much, but when I did, the performance was not what I hoped. Aside from the monster crunchers I have now, the best performance per watt I've seen has been the i7 3770K, I got a delidded one for $180 around the time they were new, but can't swear to what they go for now. I would recommend at least an i3 or i5 though.
My 8350 threw down some pretty serious points back on some old WUs, but it's not doing as well on anything these days (similar to TRWOV in the post above). If I find a decently priced 3770K, I might just spring for it. I don't know how I'll feel if it outperforms my main rig though. :cry:
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
I did a little eBay hunting earlier to get an idea on how much Intel CPUs are going for. What's ballpark for a good second-hand 2500k?

That's what I'm starting to think. Maybe a Z87/Z97 and something nice to play around with? I have a few options for water cooling laying around ranging from quiet to somewhat extreme. The old 2600k looks like it's still going for $200-ish, 2500k for ~$130. I'd have to go 1155 for that, but it doesn't seem completely outside the realm of possibility.
$130 sounds good for a 2500k. I mentioned this route because it has high ppd per $.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi

brandonwh64

Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!
Joined
Sep 6, 2009
Messages
19,542 (3.68/day)
2500K is a good chip for gaming but crunching you will be missing out on the four additional threads that the HT gives the I7. 200$ is an OK price for a 2600K but I sold a 2600K and P67 board a while back for like 230$. 175$ would be the best target price if you can find one and if you do I would just throw it in a stable board with no OCing since you are pulling double duty on this machine. This would give you the benefit of 8 threads and the ability to do heavy gaming.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Feb 21, 2008
Messages
6,862 (1.17/day)
Location
S.E. Virginia
System Name Barb's Domain
Processor i9 10850k 5.1GHz all cores
Motherboard MSI MPG Z490 GAMING EDGE WIFI
Cooling Deep Cool Assassin III
Memory 2*16gig Corsair LPX DDR4 3200
Video Card(s) RTX 4080 FE
Storage 500gb Samsung 980 Pro M2 SSD, 500GB WD Blue SATA SSD, 2TB Seagate Hybrid SSHD
Display(s) Dell - S3222DGM 32" 2k Curved/ASUS VP28UQG 28" 4K (ran at 2k), Sanyo 75" 4k TV
Case SilverStone Fortress FT04
Audio Device(s) Bose Companion II speakers, Corsair - HS70 PRO headphones
Power Supply Corsair RM850x (2021)
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Logitech Orion Spectrum G910
VR HMD Oculus Quest 2
Software Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
Benchmark Scores https://www.3dmark.com/spy/34962882
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Jan 25, 2014
Messages
2,068 (0.56/day)
System Name Ryzen 2023
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7700
Motherboard Asrock B650E Steel Legend Wifi
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory G Skill Flare X5 2x16gb cl32@6000 MHz
Video Card(s) Sapphire Radeon RX 6950 XT Nitro + gaming Oc
Storage WESTERN DIGITAL 1TB 64MB 7k SATA600 Blue WD10EZEX, WD Black SN850X 1Tb nvme
Display(s) LG 27GP850P-B
Case Corsair 5000D airflow tempered glass
Power Supply Seasonic Prime GX-850W
Mouse A4Tech V7M bloody
Keyboard Genius KB-G255
Software Windows 10 64bit
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
4,665 (0.73/day)
Location
Washington, US
System Name Rainbow
Processor Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage 2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB | 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s) Samsung C27HG70
Case Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K95
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)
Take a look at this
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/i7-3770k-cpu-240-shipped.202742/
but seeing you budget and options you better just pick up an i5-2500k as you said for 130$ and buy an Z77 motherboard.
I can't lie, it's tempting.

New ASRock Z77M + used i5-2500K comes out to about $220. Another $80-ish for memory and that puts an overclockable Intel right at the high end of the "Fifth Star" tier.

Gunslinger just posted a FS thread, "4790K and 5x G3258's" with some tempting prices (I think). The G3258 plus a good board would likely make a very nice Steambox. It won't be brilliant when it comes to WCG, but it's low-power enough to warrant running F@H. Also has lots of good reports of overclocking.
With a G3258, I'd probably be looking at the ASRock Z97M OC Formula for a total of $271.90 with 2x4GB RAM. Less if I can find used and/or talk down Gunslinger (seems decent though).
I like this right now. Strong base board, good upgrade potential. Any suggestions for a different board? I'm considering the following as alternatives:
ASRock Z97M Pro4
Asus Z97M-PLUS
Gigabyte GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5
..or would a Z87 board be just as good? They don't seem to be cheaper.
 
Last edited:

FreedomEclipse

~Technological Technocrat~
Joined
Apr 20, 2007
Messages
23,306 (3.77/day)
Location
London,UK
System Name Codename: Icarus Mk.VI
Processor Intel 8600k@Stock -- pending tuning
Motherboard Asus ROG Strixx Z370-F
Cooling CPU: BeQuiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 {1xCorsair ML120 Pro|5xML140 Pro}
Memory 32GB XPG Gammix D10 {2x16GB}
Video Card(s) ASUS Dual Radeon™ RX 6700 XT OC Edition
Storage Samsung 970 Evo 512GB SSD (Boot)|WD SN770 (Gaming)|2x 3TB Toshiba DT01ACA300|2x 2TB Crucial BX500
Display(s) LG GP850-B
Case Corsair 760T (White)
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V573|Speakers: JBL Control One|Auna 300-CN|Wharfedale Diamond SW150
Power Supply Corsair AX760
Mouse Logitech G900
Keyboard Duckyshine Dead LED(s) III
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻
$130 sounds good for a 2500k. I mentioned this route because it has high ppd per $.

The 2500k is also ludicrously overclockable. I had mine at 4.9ghz
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
The 2500k is also ludicrously overclockable. I had mine at 4.9ghz
Mine tops out at 4.8ghz at high volts, so I keep it around 4.4 most of the time. But, as in my first post it is a cheap overclockable cpu that performs fantastic.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Jan 25, 2014
Messages
2,068 (0.56/day)
System Name Ryzen 2023
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7700
Motherboard Asrock B650E Steel Legend Wifi
Cooling Noctua NH-D15
Memory G Skill Flare X5 2x16gb cl32@6000 MHz
Video Card(s) Sapphire Radeon RX 6950 XT Nitro + gaming Oc
Storage WESTERN DIGITAL 1TB 64MB 7k SATA600 Blue WD10EZEX, WD Black SN850X 1Tb nvme
Display(s) LG 27GP850P-B
Case Corsair 5000D airflow tempered glass
Power Supply Seasonic Prime GX-850W
Mouse A4Tech V7M bloody
Keyboard Genius KB-G255
Software Windows 10 64bit
I can't lie, it's tempting.
For 55$ it shore seems tempting, and if you get an z97 board now it will let you update to anything else in the future if needed.
The only thing that concerns me is how good it can handle games since I haven't looked at any benchmarks yet.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Oct 21, 2005
Messages
6,874 (1.02/day)
Location
USA
System Name Computer of Theseus
Processor Intel i9-12900KS: 50x Pcore multi @ 1.18Vcore (target 1.275V -100mv offset)
Motherboard EVGA Z690 Classified
Cooling Noctua NH-D15S, 2xThermalRight TY-143, 4xNoctua NF-A12x25,3xNF-A12x15, 2xAquacomputer Splitty9Active
Memory G-Skill Trident Z5 (32GB) DDR5-6000 C36 F5-6000J3636F16GX2-TZ5RK
Video Card(s) EVGA Geforce 3060 XC Black Gaming 12GB
Storage 1x Samsung 970 Pro 512GB NVMe (OS), 2x Samsung 970 Evo Plus 2TB (data 1 and 2), ASUS BW-16D1HT
Display(s) Dell S3220DGF 32" 2560x1440 165Hz Primary, Dell P2017H 19.5" 1600x900 Secondary, Ergotron LX arms.
Case Lian Li O11 Air Mini
Audio Device(s) Audiotechnica ATR2100X-USB, El Gato Wave XLR Mic Preamp, ATH M50X Headphones, Behringer 302USB Mixer
Power Supply Super Flower Leadex Platinum SE 1000W 80+ Platinum White
Mouse Zowie EC3-C
Keyboard Vortex Multix 87 Winter TKL (Gateron G Pro Yellow)
Software Win 10 LTSC 21H2
I can get mine to 4.9, Z77E-ITX :) (TBQH its usually set to stock).


Highly recommend the i5 if you can find one for a good price. Also look for i5-2400.
 
  • Like
Reactions: xvi
Joined
Feb 21, 2008
Messages
6,862 (1.17/day)
Location
S.E. Virginia
System Name Barb's Domain
Processor i9 10850k 5.1GHz all cores
Motherboard MSI MPG Z490 GAMING EDGE WIFI
Cooling Deep Cool Assassin III
Memory 2*16gig Corsair LPX DDR4 3200
Video Card(s) RTX 4080 FE
Storage 500gb Samsung 980 Pro M2 SSD, 500GB WD Blue SATA SSD, 2TB Seagate Hybrid SSHD
Display(s) Dell - S3222DGM 32" 2k Curved/ASUS VP28UQG 28" 4K (ran at 2k), Sanyo 75" 4k TV
Case SilverStone Fortress FT04
Audio Device(s) Bose Companion II speakers, Corsair - HS70 PRO headphones
Power Supply Corsair RM850x (2021)
Mouse Logitech G502
Keyboard Logitech Orion Spectrum G910
VR HMD Oculus Quest 2
Software Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
Benchmark Scores https://www.3dmark.com/spy/34962882
Also look for i5-2400.

I already offered the OP a i5 2400 and MSI H67 motherboard for around $150. I'm actually leaving here in about 15 mins to go pick it up. If the OP don't want it, I'm sure another cruncher will take it off my hands.
 

FreedomEclipse

~Technological Technocrat~
Joined
Apr 20, 2007
Messages
23,306 (3.77/day)
Location
London,UK
System Name Codename: Icarus Mk.VI
Processor Intel 8600k@Stock -- pending tuning
Motherboard Asus ROG Strixx Z370-F
Cooling CPU: BeQuiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 {1xCorsair ML120 Pro|5xML140 Pro}
Memory 32GB XPG Gammix D10 {2x16GB}
Video Card(s) ASUS Dual Radeon™ RX 6700 XT OC Edition
Storage Samsung 970 Evo 512GB SSD (Boot)|WD SN770 (Gaming)|2x 3TB Toshiba DT01ACA300|2x 2TB Crucial BX500
Display(s) LG GP850-B
Case Corsair 760T (White)
Audio Device(s) Yamaha RX-V573|Speakers: JBL Control One|Auna 300-CN|Wharfedale Diamond SW150
Power Supply Corsair AX760
Mouse Logitech G900
Keyboard Duckyshine Dead LED(s) III
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻
Mine tops out at 4.8ghz at high volts, so I keep it around 4.4 most of the time. But, as in my first post it is a cheap overclockable cpu that performs fantastic.

Im sure i could have squeezed more out of it. I probably could have even got 5.1 or 5.2Ghz, but really what would be the point? I was running 1.38v and the temps were just amazing
 
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
6,680 (1.43/day)
Processor 7800x3d
Motherboard Gigabyte B650 Auros Elite AX
Cooling Custom Water
Memory GSKILL 2x16gb 6000mhz Cas 30 with custom timings
Video Card(s) MSI RX 6750 XT MECH 2X 12G OC
Storage Adata SX8200 1tb with Windows, Samsung 990 Pro 2tb with games
Display(s) HP Omen 27q QHD 165hz
Case ThermalTake P3
Power Supply SuperFlower Leadex Titanium
Software Windows 11 64 Bit
Benchmark Scores CB23: 1811 / 19424 CB24: 1136 / 7687
Im sure i could have squeezed more out of it. I probably could have even got 5.1 or 5.2Ghz, but really what would be the point? I was running 1.38v and the temps were just amazing
1.38v is really good for that. I needed 1.48v for 4.8ghz. To keep this on topic, this is potentially what the OP could be looking at.
 
Joined
Nov 10, 2006
Messages
4,665 (0.73/day)
Location
Washington, US
System Name Rainbow
Processor Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s) ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage 2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB | 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s) Samsung C27HG70
Case Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard Corsair Vengeance K95
Software Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)
Thought I'd posted this earlier, but I see it's still a draft. I went with one of Gunslinger's Pentiums and Norton had a mini ITX board that had more pros (wireless, right price, low power) than cons (single PCI-e, two DIMM slots, it's red :cry:). More below.

This talk has been steering in to my second build, which currently doesn't have any direction. Might just crunch at the moment, which makes all this CPU talk still quite relevant. BlueBumbleBee said he had some 2600K vs 3???K comparisons from the last WCG challenge that I'm quite interested in.
Anyways, the original message is below.

I think I can get you a i5 2400 with a MSI H67 GD43 motherboard from my local CL for about $150. HMU if you want it. http://norfolk.craigslist.org/sys/4553112187.html
The case only fits a mATX at best, sadly. I am looking at a second build in the not too distant future that would fit it, but we'll see how quickly I can get it going. That build doesn't have any particular purpose at the moment and I'm torn between a few options. Do you think you'll use it yourself or just pass it along?
For 55$ it shore seems tempting, and if you get an z97 board now it will let you update to anything else in the future if needed.
The only thing that concerns me is how good it can handle games since I haven't looked at any benchmarks yet.
I've been talking to Norton about a mini ITX z97 Z87 that it looks like I'm probably going to get (edit: did get). I nabbed one of the Pentiums from Gunslinger after I checked some benchmarks. I saw some reviews on it showing most games ran quite well relative to the modern quad cores. Upgradability is certainly one of the things I like about going this route. The mini ITX's two DDR slots and one PCI-e slot take away a fair amount of expansion options, but the LGA1150 socket should give me a few nice options for CPUs in the future. With hope, it'll hold it's value and can be sold/moved if I find I really need more slots.
 
Top