Folding/BOINC build?

[Kermit]

Ive been debating whether to build a seperate PC for folding or to just invest in better components. Although I would like a nicer cpu that doesnt bottleneck my 280x, im leaning towards the folding due to it actually helping a good cause. Anyhow, are there any suggestions as to what rig I could build for around 300-350 for this use? How does this look? http://pcpartpicker.com/user/JustAnotherBoon/saved/qjz9TW

 

thanks in advance

 

Edit: I would like to have this seperate PC to run folding 24/7 to leave my main rig free 

[FloRolf]

i'd go with a pentium (the 3258 most likely), a cheapo mobo with as many pcie lanes as possible, stock intel cooler, cheapo or no case and all out on GPU.

Edit:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/CbPbZL

and add more gpus over time

[Kermit]

i'd go with a pentium (the 3258 most likely), a cheapo mobo with as many pcie lanes as possible, stock intel cooler, cheapo or no case and all out on GPU.

Edit:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/CbPbZL

and add more gpus over time

 

thanks yeah im not sure about a case due to price and how hot it gets when the cards run for days on end

[Imakuni]

thanks yeah im not sure about a case due to price and how hot it gets when the cards run for days on end

Here. For 25$ more than FloRolf's build, you get something MUCH better:

1. This build has a 4 true cores CPU, so it could hold many more GPUs (and have space for CPU folding as well!). A rough estimate for max GPU support is 2xcores, so you could (in theory) use 8 GPUs, although I doubt that will happen.
2. The mobo has 6 slots for GPUs. Yup, that's right, 6 freaking slots. And it also has an input for molex, to provide aditional power to the mobo. Yaaay.
3. The PSU is HUGE. You could actually use 6 Gtx 750 Ti with that thing!
4. The GPU is actually clocked 20mhz higher.

Just a quick note, when you'd like to add more GPUs, make sure to buy a PCIe 1x to 16x Riser. Like this one. Make sure that it has a molex auxiliary power connector, as you'll be needing it to provide enough power for all of those GPUs.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($173.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: ASRock H81 Pro BTC ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($51.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($28.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital AV-GP 320GB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($25.99 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Superclocked Video Card  ($139.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case  ($36.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($44.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $502.93

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-18 21:47 EDT-0400

[Kermit]

 

Here. For 25$ more than FloRolf's build, you get something MUCH better:

1. This build has a 4 true cores CPU, so it could hold many more GPUs (and have space for CPU folding as well!). A rough estimate for max GPU support is 2xcores, so you could (in theory) use 8 GPUs, although I doubt that will happen.
3. The mobo has 6 slots for GPUs. Yup, that's right, 6 freaking slots. And it also has an input for molex, to provide aditional power to the mobo. Yaaay.
5. The PSU is HUGE. You could actually use 6 Gtx 750 Ti with that thing!
7. The GPU is actually clocked 20mhz higher.

Just a quick note, when you'd like to add more GPUs, make sure to buy a PCIe 1x to 16x Riser. Like this one. Make sure that it has a molex auxiliary power connector, as you'll be needing it to provide enough power for all of those GPUs.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($173.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: ASRock H81 Pro BTC ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($51.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($28.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital AV-GP 320GB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($25.99 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB Superclocked Video Card  ($139.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: Thermaltake VL80001W2Z ATX Mid Tower Case  ($36.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Power Supply: EVGA 600B 600W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($44.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $502.93

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-03-18 21:47 EDT-0400

 

 

HOLY CRAP 

are you a wizard?

 

quad core intel build for under 500. whaaat!

I'll be keeping this link for if I decide to go through with this or not. Most likely that ill do this during the summer when I have some extra spending cash after buying these parts.

 

Thanks! appreciate it

[Imakuni]

HOLY CRAP 

are you a wizard?

 

quad core intel build for under 500. whaaat!

I'll be keeping this link for if I decide to go through with this or not. Most likely that ill do this during the summer when I have some extra spending cash after buying these parts.

 

Thanks! appreciate it

That's what happens when you only need 4gbs of RAM and get 320gb of HD.....

 

Just a note, if you do decide to get it. Since this is a folding rig, dedicated to 24/7 crunching, it might have been wise to get a 80+ Gold PSU (dem electricity...). You can go with this one, for 25$ more: https://pcpartpicker.com/part/rosewill-power-supply-valens600

[Kermit]

That's what happens when you only need 4gbs of RAM and get 320gb of HD.....

 

Just a note, if you do decide to get it. Since this is a folding rig, dedicated to 24/7 crunching, it might have been wise to get a 80+ Gold PSU (dem electricity...). You can go with this one, for 25$ more: https://pcpartpicker.com/part/rosewill-power-supply-valens600

 

cool i'll keep that in mind thanks

[tobben]

Building a dedicated rig for a single gpu is a waste of resources though. With a normal

build your not going to get much out of the cpu, so the gpu is what what you are focusing

on.

 

adequate motherboard with enough slots.

adequate cpu to not starve the gpu's.

adequate ram so you don't bsod.

get a good psu and just throw whatever

gpu's you can afford at it. 

 

Basically you wan't everything to be good enough to feed the gpu's and keep them

running, i wouldn't make a dedicated machine on a 300$ budget. the return is incredibly

small compared to building a proper machine with a  couple more decent gpu's.

 

You end up spending all your money on the things that don't matter(won't do any direct

computing) motherboard, psu, ram, etc... You can still do it and have some fun with it,

just pointing it out.

[Whaler_99]

^^^

 

In your case, I would invest in good parts for my main rig, upgrade those and make use of them. Once they are good enough you can fold and do other things and not even notice. 

[Kermit]

^^^

 

In your case, I would invest in good parts for my main rig, upgrade those and make use of them. Once they are good enough you can fold and do other things and not even notice. 

 

Or upgrade parts in my main rig and use the old for a secondary rig?