General Intel HEDT Xeon/i7 Discussion

[Zando_]

Welcome to the Intel HEDT massive conglomeration of people, who can either justify their need for HEDT or people who can't but use it anyway!

 

Started out as a thread for X58/5520, now merged with the X99/C612 thread, and now welcoming X79/C6xx (according to Wikipedia there's a few server chipsets) peeps!  Hell we'd probably let X299 peeps in too

This is really just a megathread for all things Intel HEDT/server chipset related (if you have another chipset/socket that's rare or wacky but still Intel HEDT, feel free to bring it here). Began with OCing/value builds back when Ryzen had just dropped and X58 actually had a value proposition, now it's more of an enthusiast platform. We've got server guys, hardcore overclockers, people just interested in the platform, and everything in between. 

 

Have some resources (if there's any essential guides/downloads just ping me with them and I'll add 'em here): 

 

Thanks to @panther420, we have a ZIP file with the latest BIOS for most X58 boards, along with instructions and utilities for flashing them: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5ovrrGliZffS3B5TnZHQ0JYUW8/view?usp=sharing

 

Legacy intro:

Spoiler

@Ground, @WhisperingKnickers, you guys will want to be in on this. 

 

 

For those of you who don't know, X58 Xeons are naturally superior i7s with sometimes higher core counts and often better overclocking. You can pick up a 6c/12t one with a base clock of 2.66GHz (boost of 3.06, stock performance almost at R5 1600 level) for $20 or so on eBay. X58 motherboards are usually around $170-120, and DDR3 RAM is pretty affordable. Basically you can build a dope system for not a massive amount of money, and most people can get a 4+GHz OC on air, and 5+ on water. 

 

EDIT: We happily welcome our X58 i7 brethren as well! Considering X58 i7s are just Xeon by another name, I feel this is justified. 

 

if you move to mainstream Ryzen you're a traitor and I will be sad

[rip]

Im bout to upgrade to a 1240 sandy

[juretrn]

*Peeks inside*

[TVwazhere]

Xeon... Core? Technically from work I'm part of the XCMR, but at some point I will have switched to the 7700K, so I'll have a limited stay here  

[Zando_]

3 minutes ago, TVwazhere said:

Xeon... Core? Technically from work I'm part of the XCMR, but at some point I will have switched to the 7700K, so I'll have a limited stay here  

Ask @WhisperingKnickers. I said it should be Xeon CPU Master Race, but he said it should remain a mystery.

[Zando_]

8 minutes ago, rip said:

Im bout to upgrade to a 1240 sandy

This one: https://ark.intel.com/products/52273/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E3-1240-8M-Cache-3_30-GHz 

[juretrn]

I bought my X58 when they first came out - december 2008.

Not so long ago upgraded the 920 to the 6 core goodnes of X5660.

[Ground]

Well, lets start with my collection.

 

Motherboards:

MSI x58 Pro-E (really bad for x Xeons, but works pretty well with the e Xeons) sold

x58a-oc - solid board, sold because money

Rampage II Extreme - my best board, does 273+ BCLK and is really stable

EX58-UD3R - random Board i picked up on ebay for 25€, sold

X58a-ud7 - decent board, picked up really cheap

x58a-ud3r - picked up dead in a bundle, sold at cost

x58 Deluxe3 - picked up dead, not fixed yet

Dfi x58 dk T3eH6 - sold

 

CPU1: Xeon e5649 @ 4.5 GHz(1.36V); it is "cinebench stable (no more than that though lol) at 4.6 GHz(1.36V) Cinebench Run; my default CPU

 

CPU2: i7 930 @ 3.8 GHz(no idea) - this one came with my board and I just quickly tested if it would overclock and couldn't get more out of it. Not gonna do anything more with it.

CPU3: Xeon e5620 @4.25 GHz(1.5V); a dud. Overclocks terribly considering its a 32nm chip; it stays very cool but requires a lot of VCore. Cinebench Run

 

CPU4: Xeon l5640 (6c12t, 2.26 GHz, 60W) A low power Xeon I have ordered (it hasn't arrived yet) as I wanted to test if the L Xeons overclock even better than the e Xeons.

 

CPUs tested:

34x E5606 -> 1 does 273 BCLK under air
24x W3520 -> best chip does 4.83/1.33V single threaded
16x E5640 -> best one does 272 BCLK under air; 4.74 R15 at 1.4V under air
12x W3530
3x X5650 -> all pretty bad
3x E5620 -> 1 does 4.9 bench able under air
1x W3680 -> 4.0 unstable with 1.4V
1x L5640 -> was pretty bad compared to others
1x E5649 -> best CPU I have have, 269.6 BCLK under air, 4.76 R15 with 1.4V

 

 

[NoxiousOdor]

I'll be one of the first to mention my system. I don't currently have pictures because my side panel is being professionally painted and it is looking really cool

 

As far as hardware goes my system was not really a budget machine. I had initially wanted it to be but I got sucked in and ended up making it more custom than I had originally planned too.

 

My specs are in my signature but I will past them here with the amount I paid for each of them:

 

CPU: (x2) Xeon X5690 

I bought the xeons as a pair for about $360 If I remember correctly. It is still expensive but hey man two cpus.

 

Motherboard: Supermicro X8DTI-F

I got this motherboard after I bricked my old  dual socket. I got this one on ebay for $90 plus shipping.

 

RAM: 56GB ECC Server Memory

I actually have 64gb (8x8) but I think one of my dimms is bad (how will I get by with just 56?!). I bought all 64 gigs from a cool guy on the forums for $90

 

GPU: MSI GTX 1060  GAMING X 6GB

I wanted a 1080 but those were expensive so I got the 1060 for about $300 including shipping I think.

 

Case: NZXT S340

I got this case because I wanted a small mid tower on a budget, as well as I knew that this mid tower could specifically hold my eATX motherboard which almost entirely fills the entire case.

 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO 500Gb and a 2Tb HDD

I got the SSD originally as a gift for the laptop I used to use and I got the HDD for free from a friend.

 

PSU: XFX 750W PRO Black Edition

I bout this PSU because it had dual CPU support and I bought it for $50 from a guy on the forums here.

 

Display(s): 24" Acer G246HL and an older dell screen

I got this for $60 from a friend of mine.

 

Cooling: Noctua NH-U12DXi4 and a Noctua NH-U9DXi4

I actually ordered two of the NH-U12Xi4 but they sent me a mismatched pair. These are two of the few heat sinks that naively fit the special server board mounting holes. They were about $40 each on Newwgg if I remember correctly.

 

Keyboard: Corsair Gaming K70 LUX RGB MX Browns

I got a refurbished one on Newegg for about $100

 

Mouse: Logitech G600

I got this as a gift when a old friend broke my previous mouse accidentally. It supports up to 72 macros and it costs around $60

 

Sound: Creative Sound Blaster Audigy FX 5.1 Sound Card with 600 ohm Headphone Amp

My motherboard doesn't have integrated sound and so I bout this on Newegg for about $30

 

Operating System: Windows 10 Pro

I spoiled myself and spent $200

 

 

 

I can run every game I have tried aside from ARK survival on ultra and very high settings and my highest cinebench score was 1564

 

I also have the x58 ASUS Rampage 3 which I am planning to put an X Xeon into and overclock

 

 

~~~~~This system has now been rebuilt. See my signature for current build~~~~~~

Edited October 19, 2018 by WhisperingKnickers
Build update info

[Intelfreak]

It sounds to me like you say there are no 6 core  i7 x58 cpu?

 

If thats the case, its not true. There are 4 i7 models with 6 core aswell. I7 970, 980 non x, 980x and i7 990x. Where i have the i7 980x.

 

But i do agreed. What ever its i7 or xeon. These x58 6 core chips. Does great job on keeping up to still being relevant.

 

I wouldent mind to get my dirty hands on a evga sr2 mobo and a 2 x xeons for some 12 core/24 threads glorines.

[NoxiousOdor]

@Lord Nicoll You might like this thread that Zando started

 

As well as you @crzyces Thank you for your help finding a motherboard and case!

[rip]

38 minutes ago, Zando Bob said:

This one: https://ark.intel.com/products/52273/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E3-1240-8M-Cache-3_30-GHz 

yup

[bimmerman]

I bought my system in 2010 as a going off to grad school present long ago. It was one of the Newegg super deals.

 

Started with: i7-950, Gigabyte GA-X58-UD3R, Coolermaster HAF932, CM V8 cooler (heh, V8, brap brap), 6GB DDR3, 2x HD5870s, some number of watts in the PSU, 2x Dell 2709w 16:10 monitor goodness. I was a fairly big gamer at the time, but never messed about with overclocking.

 

In 2012 ish I knocked a Nalgene into the computer and drowned (killed to death) one of the graphics cards. Thankfully no other damage. Don't drink water over your computer after going to a tap room.

 

In early 2015 I had finally finished grad school and was now gainfully employed. I added an 850 Pro SSD and replaced the surviving HD5870 with an R9 290 Tri-X, and upgraded to 24GB of ram. I started messing about with overclocking on the i7-950, because why not it's ancient so who cares. It was sorta stable at 4GHz, but really was best at 3.8. I ended up going back to stock after a couple months. I bought a Cooler Master Glacier 240 (I think ?) AIO to improve water cooling but didn't install it, since I had to remove the motherboard from the case to put the support bracket in.

 

Late 2015 I started getting heavily involved in racecars and was doing a motor swaps (S54 E36, California legal for those who know/care), and lost interest in computers pretty heavily. I'd already stopped gaming pretty much at all.

 

Then comes 2017. I'd discovered you could do the X58 Xeon upgrade, and had $60 lying around in the 'I have enough beer for now' fund, so I bought an X5675 on a whim. I then dived both feet into overclocking, not expecting any success given how poorly the i7 did and how hot it got. Using the AIO that had been sitting on a shelf, I managed to get 4.5GHz stable, at 215x21, with pretty solid temps.

 

I still don't game more than once or twice a month, but I've really got little reason to upgrade to a newer platform at the moment. The machine is fast enough for now, and with a GPU upgrade once race season is over I'll be able to better play PC2 and AC, maybe even in VR. It's lasted a LONG time considering I bought/built new and dumped a bottle of water on!

 

So, list of current parts:

Xeon X5675, 4.5GHz

Gigabyte GA-X58-UD3R 2.0

24GB of ram, at 1720 MHz. Don't remember brand.

R9 290 Tri-X.

850 Pro SSD

>1TB HDD, don't remember exactly

Coolermaster Glacer 240 AIO, don't recall the model. It's a square looking pump.

Coolermaster HAF932

Bluray drive

Logitech MX mouse, the nice one

Logitech wireless keyboard, it's ok. A bit cramped, but it's silent.

2x Dell 2709w monitors (27" 16:10 1920x1200)

1x Dell 3415w monitor (34" 21:9 3440x1440)

Beyerdynamic DT990 600ohm

Schiit Micro stack (ultra I think)

 

[NoxiousOdor]

5 minutes ago, bimmerman said:

I bought my system in 2010 as a going off to grad school present long ago. It was one of the Newegg super deals.

 

Started with: i7-950, Gigabyte GA-X58-UD3R, Coolermaster HAF932, CM V8 cooler (heh, V8, brap brap), 6GB DDR3, 2x HD5870s, some number of watts in the PSU, 2x Dell 2709w 16:10 monitor goodness. I was a fairly big gamer at the time, but never messed about with overclocking.

 

In 2012 ish I knocked a Nalgene into the computer and drowned (killed to death) one of the graphics cards. Thankfully no other damage. Don't drink water over your computer after going to a tap room.

 

In early 2015 I had finally finished grad school and was now gainfully employed. I added an 850 Pro SSD and replaced the surviving HD5870 with an R9 290 Tri-X, and upgraded to 24GB of ram. I started messing about with overclocking on the i7-950, because why not it's ancient so who cares. It was sorta stable at 4GHz, but really was best at 3.8. I ended up going back to stock after a couple months. I bought a Cooler Master Glacier 240 (I think ?) AIO to improve water cooling but didn't install it, since I had to remove the motherboard from the case to put the support bracket in.

 

Late 2015 I started getting heavily involved in racecars and was doing a motor swaps (S54 E36, California legal for those who know/care), and lost interest in computers pretty heavily. I'd already stopped gaming pretty much at all.

 

Then comes 2017. I'd discovered you could do the X58 Xeon upgrade, and had $60 lying around in the 'I have enough beer for now' fund, so I bought an X5675 on a whim. I then dived both feet into overclocking, not expecting any success given how poorly the i7 did and how hot it got. Using the AIO that had been sitting on a shelf, I managed to get 4.5GHz stable, at 215x21, with pretty solid temps.

 

I still don't game more than once or twice a month, but I've really got little reason to upgrade to a newer platform at the moment. The machine is fast enough for now, and with a GPU upgrade once race season is over I'll be able to better play PC2 and AC, maybe even in VR. It's lasted a LONG time considering I bought/built new and dumped a bottle of water on!

Neat story, thanks for sharing! I find it interesting how people come to have the hardware they have

[IKnight]

What's up boys. Anyone know if a hot northbridge could cause OC issues? 

I should get a fan for it soon, but can't really be bothered. Might even take the cooler of and check for bent pics when I have time off from studying. 

 

[asand1]

I'll post pics and screenshots of mine after work.

[NoxiousOdor]

3 minutes ago, ImadKnight said:

What's up boys. Anyone know if a hot northbridge could cause OC issues? 

I should get a fan for it soon, but can't really be bothered. Might even take the cooler of and check for bent pics when I have time off from studying. 

 

If it gets too hot I imagine that it could cause problems, hot hot is it getting? and what is your voltage at?

[IKnight]

Just now, WhisperingKnickers said:

If it gets too hot I imagine that it could cause problems, hot hot is it getting? and what is your voltage at?

Voltage is just auto. Can't remember off the top of my head.

It runs at 50ish under no load. Definitely too hot to touch. 

[NoxiousOdor]

2 minutes ago, ImadKnight said:

Voltage is just auto. Can't remember off the top of my head.

It runs at 50ish under no load. Definitely too hot to touch. 

If you don't have a fan on your cooler that is very likely the issue

[Lord Nicoll]

sweet. Here's Erebus and Ragnarok. my two inside servers. They're pretty nice beasts. 

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, Lord Nicoll said:

sweet. Here's Erebus and Ragnarok. my two inside servers. They're pretty nice beasts. 

Those are neat looking! I haven't seen board layouts like that before. Look at all those dimms!

[IKnight]

Just now, WhisperingKnickers said:

If you don't have a fan on your cooler that is very likely the issue

I have a fan on the CPU cooler but not northbridge. Which I probably shouldn't do, cause the mobo is designed in mind with you using the stock intel cooler which blows air down. 

[Lord Nicoll]

8 minutes ago, ImadKnight said:

What's up boys. Anyone know if a hot northbridge could cause OC issues? 

I should get a fan for it soon, but can't really be bothered. Might even take the cooler of and check for bent pics when I have time off from studying. 

 

Yes, X58 is a traditional northbridge, so it would get very hot since it's doing a lot and often forgotten about. Consider looking for a fan for it, it could make an OC unstable as it controls PCIe lanes. 

[Lord Nicoll]

Just now, WhisperingKnickers said:

Those are neat looking! I haven't seen board layouts like that before. Look at all those dimms!

Yes, OEM server boards are often like that, since they're servers and cooling is really important, these aren't off for very long (if at all) and they where still on when I took that. 

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, ImadKnight said:

I have a fan on the CPU cooler but not northbridge. Which I probably shouldn't do, cause the mobo is designed in mind with you using the stock intel cooler which blows air down. 

Yeah I would try adding a fan and see if that helps, it should be okay but it shouldnt be too much trouble to add a fan if you have one handy