Help Me Design a Server

[ebmindstorm]

Hello,

I am looking to build an inexpensive server. I work with Adobe Premier Pro and would like to be able to use AME to encode projects on a separate machine. I would also like to have about 10-20TB of storage. A small Plex server is also needed. I am not new to PC building, but I am very new to servers. I would like some recommendations on CPU, GPU, etc. I was thinking about a consumer CPU like a Ryzen 1700X for the extra CPU cores for a cheaper cost. I'm not sure. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[cj09beira]

will it be in a rack or normal case is just fine?

[ebmindstorm]

Just now, cj09beira said:

will it be in a rack or normal case is just fine?

I am looking at a case or a small rack.

[manikyath]

i'd dare say ryzen would be a really good pick for a system like this, paired up with a feature rich ATX mobo, slot in 16 gigs of ram (which is what they recommend, pick 2x8GB so you can add another kit later), pick an "adobe-recommended GPU" to accelerate rendering, and then pick your poison for hard drives.

[manikyath]

1 minute ago, ebmindstorm said:

I am looking at a case or a small rack.

if this will be your only server (presumably it will be) getting rackmount stuff is a waste of money.

[ebmindstorm]

Just now, manikyath said:

if this will be your only server (presumably it will be) getting rackmount stuff is a waste of money.

Thanks! Any cases you would recommend for this type of use?

[cj09beira]

1 minute ago, ebmindstorm said:

I am looking at a case or a small rack.

for server you really need reliable parts so you would want a good power supply (doesn't mean high wattage) seasonic or similar

 

1 minute ago, manikyath said:

if this will be your only server (presumably it will be) getting rackmount stuff is a waste of money.

the problem with normal cases might be hdd space

[Droidbot]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD RYZEN 7 1700 3.0GHz 8-Core Processor  ($328.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus PRIME B350M-A Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($89.99 @ B&H) 
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($97.99 @ Newegg) 
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury 4GB NITRO Video Card  ($234.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Fractal Design Define Mini C MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.99 @ NCIX US) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($56.98 @ Newegg) 
Total: $883.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-03-06 18:05 EST-0500

 

I have no idea about 'adobe recommended gpus' @manikyath but this is a bloody good value for a rendering server with all dem cores

[manikyath]

Just now, cj09beira said:

the problem with normal cases might be hdd space

some full towers can take quite a bunch of drives, and rackmount stuff... is just stupidly expensive for what it is..

[ebmindstorm]

Just now, cj09beira said:

for server you really need reliable parts so you would want a good power supply (doesn't mean high wattage) seasonic or similar

 

the problem with normal cases might be hdd space

That is what I was concerned about.

[NumLock21]

Real server or just any build you want to call it a "server".

[cj09beira]

1 minute ago, Droidbot said:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD RYZEN 7 1700 3.0GHz 8-Core Processor  ($328.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus PRIME B350M-A Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($89.99 @ B&H) 
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($97.99 @ Newegg) 
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury 4GB NITRO Video Card  ($234.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Fractal Design Define Mini C MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.99 @ NCIX US) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($56.98 @ Newegg) 
Total: $883.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-03-06 18:05 EST-0500

 

I have no idea about 'adobe recommended gpus' @manikyath but this is a bloody good value for a rendering server with all dem cores

for what he will do he should get a better board to avoid vrm temp problems 

[ebmindstorm]

2 minutes ago, Droidbot said:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD RYZEN 7 1700 3.0GHz 8-Core Processor  ($328.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: Asus PRIME B350M-A Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($89.99 @ B&H) 
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($97.99 @ Newegg) 
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury 4GB NITRO Video Card  ($234.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Fractal Design Define Mini C MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.99 @ NCIX US) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($56.98 @ Newegg) 
Total: $883.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-03-06 18:05 EST-0500

 

I have no idea about 'adobe recommended gpus' @manikyath but this is a bloody good value for a rendering server with all dem cores

Thanks man!

[manikyath]

Just now, Droidbot said:

 

I have no idea about 'adobe recommended gpus' @manikyath but this is a bloody good value for a rendering server with all dem cores

this is their list:

Quote

nVidia GeForce: 400, 500, 600, 700 series 
nVidia GeForce GTX 965M & 980M
nVidia Quadro: 2000, 4000 (Windows® and Mac OS), CX, 5000, 6000, K600, K2000, K4000, K5000 (Windows® and Mac OS), M4000, M5000, P2000, P4000, P5000
nVidia GRID K1, K2
AMD/ATI Radeon: 5000, 6000, 7000, R7, R9 series, 7950 Mac OS
AMD/ATI FirePro: 3800, 4800, 5800, 7800, 8800, 9800, 3900, 4900, 5900, 7900, W8100, W9100, D300, D500, D700
AMD/ATI FireGL: W5000, W7000, W8000
Intel® HD Graphics: P530, P630, 5000
Intel® Iris Pro Graphics: P5200, P6300, P580

and for cards not in the list they have this "very helpful" list of requirements:

Quote

The card was released in the year 2014 or afterwards

It has the minimum amount of graphics processor VRAM required for Photoshop (512 MB). 2 GB or more of VRAM is recommended, though.

 

[Droidbot]

2 minutes ago, cj09beira said:

for what he will do he should get a better board to avoid vrm temp problems 

yeah, I'd say get a little bit better board but for <$900 the machine is solid as hell. 

2 minutes ago, manikyath said:

this is their list:

and for cards not in the list they have this "very helpful" list of requirements:

 

Good to know. R9 Fury is in the middle of 1060 and 1070 with better OpenCL support, and at $239 it's a great value.. if your PSU can handle the warm beast it is. 

[cj09beira]

OP how many hard drives ? thats important so that we can find out which cases support it, if you are still deciding on the hdd, at least on wd red the 3tb one is where price/Tb is 

[manikyath]

5 minutes ago, cj09beira said:

for what he will do he should get a better board to avoid vrm temp problems 

it's seemingly the only board on pcpp list, trying to figure out if i just have some strange incompatibility or some...

[ebmindstorm]

1 minute ago, cj09beira said:

OP how many hard drives ? thats important so that we can find out which cases support it, if you are still deciding on the hdd, at least on wd red the 3tb one is where price/Tb is 

I was thinking 3 WD Red 4TB drives. 

[cj09beira]

1 minute ago, ebmindstorm said:

I was thinking 3 WD Red 4TB drives. 

are you considering raid ?

then you need a bit bigger case, something like an fractal R4 / R5

that and a better board and you are set

Edited March 6, 2017 by cj09beira

[Droidbot]

3 minutes ago, manikyath said:

it's seemingly the only board on pcpp list, trying to figure out if i just have some strange incompatibility or some...

Case is M-ATX, it's the only M-ATX board. 

[ebmindstorm]

1 minute ago, cj09beira said:

are you considering raid ?

Not sure. Would like the redundancy but would like the most storage I can get. 

[cj09beira]

1 minute ago, ebmindstorm said:

Not sure. Would like the redundancy but would like the most storage I can get. 

i would advise then to get those 3 and in the future you get more to serve as a back up, all you need is a bigger case like a fractal design r4/r5

[Droidbot]

Just now, cj09beira said:

i would advise then to get those 3 and in the future you get more to serve as a back up, all you need is a bigger case like a fractal design r4/r5

This, I picked the Mini C because of the size, the understated looks, and the noise foam it has inside. Go for it's bigger brother the R5 if you want some extra drive bays, etc. 

[ebmindstorm]

1 minute ago, Droidbot said:

This, I picked the Mini C because of the size, the understated looks, and the noise foam it has inside. Go for it's bigger brother the R5 if you want some extra drive bays, etc. 

Does the R5 support the M-ATX mobo? Nevermind. Looked it up.

[Droidbot]

Just now, ebmindstorm said:

Does the R5 support the M-ATX mobo?

Yes, but if you want more stability and more SATA go for full ATX.