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Building a new computer...geek speak...

Started by Exterminator, March 24, 2011, 05:41:23 PM

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Exterminator

March 24, 2011, 05:41:23 PM
I hesitate to even start this conversation as I'm sure someone will claim I'm not really building a computer or not using the components I say or that Intel is lying about the specs of my processor or blah, blah, blah but anyway...

My Dell desktop was starting to show its age and so I started learning about what's currently available so I'd be able to make good decisions when ordering a new one and I ultimately came to the conclusion that once I'd done the research, I knwe enough to go ahead and build the damn thing myself so...  never built one before; it's sort of fun!

I've named him Watson Jr. in honor of the IBM computer that recently trounced the competition on Jeopardy.  He's currently not complete but is up and running and is freakin' fast...

I am not a gamer but I always thought their cases with the windows and the lights inside looked cool so I went with an Antec Nine Hundred Two case.

Inside so far is an Intel DX58SO2 motherboard, Intel Core i7-990X processor cooled by an Antec H20 620 liquid cooling unit,  EVGA GeForce GTX 580 video card, 12 GB (triple channel set of 3x4GB) of Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600 memory and a SeaSonic X Series X-850 power supply unit.  I'm running 64 bit Windows 7, operating system and application hard drive is an Intel X-25 SATA II 120GB Solid State Drive and the data drive is a 1TB SATA Western Digital Caviar Green.

I bought and am currently using a 27" Samsung HD monitor with an internal TV tuner...not sure if I'm going to keep it as a monitor or just use it as a TV somewhere else in the house but it'll do for now.

Still left to do...I'm going to get a few more 1TB WD Green drives for a RAID 10 cluster for my data with an avaialble hot swap spare and an additional SSD to mirror the operating system drive in a RAID 1 configuration.  Still also want to get some new speakers and maybe a new keyboard and mouse so if anyone has any recommendations...

More later...
Arguing with Christians is like playing chess with a pigeon.  No matter how good I am at chess, the pigeon is just going to knock over the pieces, shit on the board and strut around like it's victorious.

The truth is slow, but relentless. Over time it becomes irresistible.

The Troll

#1
March 24, 2011, 05:52:43 PM

  That's all geek and Greek to me.  It is nice to hear about a real smart electrical technician or maybe an inventor. :thumbsup.

Nighthawk

#2
March 24, 2011, 06:30:28 PM
sounds cool  8)

One thing though. Make sure that the drives you get for the RAID array are compatible.

Non-TLER (Time Limited Error Recovery) drives may take to long with their error correction and the controller will drop it from the array.

Western digital does make RE (RAID Edition) Green drives.

Exterminator

#3
March 24, 2011, 07:03:42 PM
Do I need to worry, Nighthawk, about simply buying more of the same drives I already have?
Arguing with Christians is like playing chess with a pigeon.  No matter how good I am at chess, the pigeon is just going to knock over the pieces, shit on the board and strut around like it's victorious.

The truth is slow, but relentless. Over time it becomes irresistible.

Palehorse

#4
March 24, 2011, 07:13:57 PM
Great idea, and one I once pursued myself awhile back. Eventually I came to the conclusion, (due to budgetary considerations primarily), that I'd be better off buying a Mac; and I did over 4 years ago. . .

Kind of nice not having to keep the Gates pipeline filled with a constant replenishment of cash. . .  :biggrin:

Seriously though, I think its great and something everyone should try at least once. My effort worked great for me, compared to an off the shelf unit, but eventually the MS OS punked me one too many times, so I went Mac.

I'm sure you have, but just in case; check out Frys just north of 96th on Hague road. . . But move any cash you don't want to spend from your checking account to your savings account first. And disable automatic cash transfers from savings too. . .  :biggrin:

(I'll be reading this so keep us up to date when you can!)  8)
R.I.P. - followsthewolf - You are MISSED! 4/17/2013

That which fails to kill me. . .should run!

Any "point" made by one that lacks credibility, is only as useful as toilet paper; and serves the same purpose. ~ Palehorse 4/22/2017

May you find charity when it is needed, and the ability to extend it when it is not. ~Palehorse 7/4/2012

To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell's heart, I stab at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee.~Herman Melville

Nighthawk

#5
March 24, 2011, 07:30:20 PM
Quote from: Exterminator on March 24, 2011, 07:03:42 PM
Do I need to worry, Nighthawk, about simply buying more of the same drives I already have?

the Green drives should work in a RAID 10 (RAID 1+0) Since neither of these RAID levels use error correction then there should be no problems.

However, If you are looking to increase performance then I would go with something other than the green drives. The green drives use less power and accomplish that by variable spin speeds which hurts performance a bit.

Exterminator

#6
March 24, 2011, 08:21:01 PM
Quote from: Palehorse on March 24, 2011, 07:13:57 PM
Kind of nice not having to keep the Gates pipeline filled with a constant replenishment of cash. . .  :biggrin:

Much to the surprise to many, Bill Gates is not the anti-christ and, in fact, epitomizes the American dream.  If you can introduce, effectively market and continually improve an innovative product, I have no problem with your getting rich off of it.  It's the people who become enormously wealthy producing nothing with whom I take issue.  That Gates seems intent on giving most of his money away to those less fortunate doesn't make me hate him either.

I know that the green drives are a bit slower, Nighthawk, but they carry with that lower energy consumption and, more importantly, less heat production.  All things considered, performance isn't really an issue for me right now and by the time it might become one a couple/few of years from now, mechanical drives will probably be a thing of the past.  I can't say enough good things about the speed of the solid state drive housing my OS.
Arguing with Christians is like playing chess with a pigeon.  No matter how good I am at chess, the pigeon is just going to knock over the pieces, shit on the board and strut around like it's victorious.

The truth is slow, but relentless. Over time it becomes irresistible.

Palehorse

#7
March 24, 2011, 08:33:26 PM
Quote from: Exterminator on March 24, 2011, 08:21:01 PM
Much to the surprise to many, Bill Gates is not the anti-christ and, in fact, epitomizes the American dream.  If you can introduce, effectively market and continually improve an innovative product, I have no problem with your getting rich off of it.  It's the people who become enormously wealthy producing nothing with whom I take issue.  That Gates seems intent on giving most of his money away to those less fortunate doesn't make me hate him either.

I know that the green drives are a bit slower, Nighthawk, but they carry with that lower energy consumption and, more importantly, less heat production.  All things considered, performance isn't really an issue for me right now and by the time it might become one a couple/few of years from now, mechanical drives will probably be a thing of the past.  I can't say enough good things about the speed of the solid state drive housing my OS.

My issue is, and always has been, twofold: the comparable vulnerability ( and inflexibility, resource eating, etc. compared to OSX) of the MS OS and the built in obsolescence of that OS driven by each new rev of it. That he gets richer off it is of very little concern to me, other than its negative impact upon my personal budget and the need it drives to maintain a line item to address it as a contingency/redundant expense!  :biggrin:

I am very interested in how the SS drive delivers surrounding longevity, and in fact am strongly considering a SS drive for a future MAC purchase I am considering.

The general business world does however drive a nagging necessity for MS software at times though. (Which is why I have it on my Mac, where it performs better)  :biggrin:
R.I.P. - followsthewolf - You are MISSED! 4/17/2013

That which fails to kill me. . .should run!

Any "point" made by one that lacks credibility, is only as useful as toilet paper; and serves the same purpose. ~ Palehorse 4/22/2017

May you find charity when it is needed, and the ability to extend it when it is not. ~Palehorse 7/4/2012

To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell's heart, I stab at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee.~Herman Melville

Exterminator

#8
March 25, 2011, 10:54:08 AM
I fully understand your reasoning behind going Mac, PH, and you make some valid points.  Of course, when we start discussing vulnerabilities, I would remind you that a) there are no perfect or impenetrable systems; and, b) fewer people write malicious code aimed at Macs simply because it isn't nearly as much fun to disrupt a relatively small segment of the population.

As you mention, the business world drives the necessity for MS software and that's the arena I play in most often.  Additionally, I'm not even sure how much flexibility one has when building a Mac?  Can you even reasonably build one from parts?  I was looking at the new iPad recently but was turned off by my inability to upgrade the worthless back camera and or to buy a cheaper version and expand it later.

The solid state drive is well worth the price of admission, IMO.  It's as close as we're likely to get in the near future to having everything in RAM all of the time speed wise.  Some will claim that the drive will wear out before a mechanical hard drive because of an issue referred to as write endurance.  While this might have been a real concern 10 or 15 years ago, it's unlikely that it's one any of us will ever encounter over the useful life of any of our systems: http://www.storagesearch.com/ssdmyths-endurance.html
Arguing with Christians is like playing chess with a pigeon.  No matter how good I am at chess, the pigeon is just going to knock over the pieces, shit on the board and strut around like it's victorious.

The truth is slow, but relentless. Over time it becomes irresistible.

Palehorse

#9
July 24, 2011, 04:30:16 PM
So. . . what'd you end up with and how's it working out?
R.I.P. - followsthewolf - You are MISSED! 4/17/2013

That which fails to kill me. . .should run!

Any "point" made by one that lacks credibility, is only as useful as toilet paper; and serves the same purpose. ~ Palehorse 4/22/2017

May you find charity when it is needed, and the ability to extend it when it is not. ~Palehorse 7/4/2012

To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell's heart, I stab at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee.~Herman Melville

Exterminator

#10
July 24, 2011, 04:49:12 PM
Pretty much everything listed above...never did get additional drives and build a RAID disc array though.  The machine is faster than snot!
Arguing with Christians is like playing chess with a pigeon.  No matter how good I am at chess, the pigeon is just going to knock over the pieces, shit on the board and strut around like it's victorious.

The truth is slow, but relentless. Over time it becomes irresistible.

Palehorse

#11
July 24, 2011, 04:54:00 PM
Quote from: Exterminator on July 24, 2011, 04:49:12 PM
Pretty much everything listed above...never did get additional drives and build a RAID disc array though.  The machine is faster than snot!

Excellent!

There are a few things I'd like to do, but given the current climate (economy) I am not so sure I want to spend my discretionary cash right now. . .
R.I.P. - followsthewolf - You are MISSED! 4/17/2013

That which fails to kill me. . .should run!

Any "point" made by one that lacks credibility, is only as useful as toilet paper; and serves the same purpose. ~ Palehorse 4/22/2017

May you find charity when it is needed, and the ability to extend it when it is not. ~Palehorse 7/4/2012

To the last, I grapple with thee; From Hell's heart, I stab at thee; For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee.~Herman Melville

The Troll

#12
July 24, 2011, 09:19:19 PM
Quote from: Palehorse on July 24, 2011, 04:54:00 PM
Excellent!

There are a few things I'd like to do, but given the current climate (economy) I am not so sure I want to spend my discretionary cash right now. . .

  I agree with you on that, you know where you were a  year ago.  They say you need at least 6 months of living expenses in the bank.  If you can't take it off your taxes and it's still working you don't need it.   :wink: :smile:
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