Fastest Analysis Computer <$1000?

[shane1900]

Hi,

I'm new to over-clocking and am looking for advice on what system you would buy based on these needs.

I need a PC to run a number crunching intensive program, will crunch numbers for a few days at a time. No frills, no monitor as will RDP in.

Guessing by this page that i7-4930k is best. Is this the best way to gauge computation power for number crunching only? (Intel is recommended for my software)
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/overclocked_cpus.html

- What system would you recommend for under $1000, what type of cooling?
- I don't want to build it myself, what company would you recommend?
- I read that Sandy procs are recommended over the newer ones as they run cooler, is this true? I need the highest CPU speed possible...


Thanks in advance,
Shane

 

[kyij]

Few things..

1. For a $1000, you can easily do 4930k which will be good.
2. If you have another company build it.. your not going to get a 4930k for $1000 (doubtful) or at least not fully running.
3. I do not believe (someone correct me if I am wrong) Sandy runs cooler, per-say. By the time you overclock, it runs considerably warmer, but it can overclock a lot more than the initial clock. As the 4k series is close to max clock, but may initially run warmer since so.
3.5. For cooling, I would say air if you go intel. As your other option is watercooling, but on your budget, your only going to get a small closed loop rad which can be a pain to install. And those only cool just as well as a same cost air cooler, then no worries about leakage, etc.

Building a PC is not bad at all and can save 50% of it's value.

Edit: If your number crunching is relatively small size (does not exponentially grow in size), you may want to look at doing it on a ramdisk for faster results, but if it is going for days at a time, I would hate for a flipped bit..

Edit2: Google and other companies let you borrow server resources for what ever period you want if your only doing several tasks.

 

[KonaKona]

What hardware you need depends on what exact kind of number crunching you are doing. What software are you using?

 

[EarthDog]

What hardware you need depends on what exact kind of number crunching you are doing. What software are you using?

This... to add to that, can the software you are talking about use multiple threads? Specifically, all 12 in a 4930K? If so, that is the way to go. If it can only use 8, go 4770K. If only 4 threads or less, grab a 4670K.

Getting a 4930K rig under $1000 will be difficult, actually...

4930K - $580
Asrock X79 Extreme 6 - $220
GSkill 4x4GB DDR3 1600Mhz - $155
Corsair CX430 - $45

Total: $1000 (no case or HDD)

You can find these thing a bit cheaper in other places, but not sure you will save $100 to get a case and HDD... I also assume you have a copy of windows you can use as well...?

EDIT: Don't you need a GPU of some sort as X79 does not have a built in GPU... So... Getting a 4930K, will be pretty tough for $1000.

 

[kyij]

I typically buy parts that are lightly used. But it will still definitely come close in price.

The biggest thing will depend on what type of hardware will be needed. I.e) Size of Ram or if ECC is needed, types of HDD's, cpu, etc.

The user said it will be a headless unit, so any video card initially will do, then it could be taken out. But may be nice to get a cheap $20 one to have just in case you need to access at times.

 

[EarthDog]

Heh, yeah, used... that makes sense......now that you actually mention it.

He will need a GPU for setup, yes. However cheap, it will add to the price unless he has one already.... which was my main point there.

I think you may need a Xeon CPU to run ECC memory considering the IMC is in the CPU... not sure about X79 boards and its compatibility either...

 

[kyij]

I think you may need a Xeon CPU to run ECC memory considering the IMC is in the CPU... not sure about X79 boards and its compatibility either...

That is just it, we almost need to know what kind of crunching it is. If no ECC, then the regular i7 would be fine, if ECC then he may be looking toward a E3 Xenon

 

[shane1900]

Thanks all for your suggestions.

The software I'm using is Tradestation (beta allows you to use multiple cores and threads). I've used it on Amazon EC2 servers and the software doesn't do every well on Xeon, which is my guess. Which lead me to getting my own PC.

Pulled the trigger yesterday and customized one at www.ecollegepc.com for convenience of them putting it together.

i7-4930k, H100i water cooler, 8GB high speed ram, SSD and some other basic upgrades for case and PSU. ~$1400. I splurged over my budget. Alternative under budget computer was http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=251367260084&ssPageName=ADME:X:AAQ:US:1123



Very excited to do my first over-clock!


P.S. Planning on placing the PC outside in the cold, away from snow and water of course. I read this is okay as long as I prevent condensation which would happen if bringing the PC indoors and use right away. Will not do that.

 

[EarthDog]

Glad we gave you the info and you bought in between, LOL!

GL with your build!

PS - There is no need to put the PC outside...

 

[kyij]

Alot of parts on board are metal, including the CPU water cool block. Condensation will be very prone in this situation if your putting it outside. An H100 will keep it pretty cool, obviously depending on the clock, but remember with overclocks, then you may not have "stable" clocks which is hard to tell. So if you run something that will be going for a week, you may come back to find out it crashed the first 12 hours..

And ~1400 is not too bad considering someone else built it. Glad to hear you got what you wanted!

 

[EarthDog]

Condensation will only form outside if the temperatures go below the dew point. With the unit being outside, so long as that situation doesn't happen, no condensation will form.

 

[Jart]

Not sure why you want to OC outside of ambient running temp.

ah yes... having fun... Now that is the point.

 

[shane1900]

Hi all,

Got the computer and I'd like to set some realistic expectations on how much I can overclock this.

So far able to get to 44x, 75 celsius using H100i, 1.6 volts (less volts and windows crashes)

Tried lowering the speed of ram and did not help me get to 45x

I'm reading about a lot of tweaks such as Ring, VCCIN... I don't see those options in my bios. GA-X79-UP4 Gigabyte. Maybe I have a less tweakable board?

Was expecting I could run this hotter to 90 celsius as needed.

 

[ATMINSIDE]

1.6V, did you want to continue using the computer? 1.4 is generally considered the safe limit for daily use.

 

[shane1900]

Stable at 1.4v at 42X, 48 celsius. I was expecting a way to really get this hot and fast....

I discovered that there is software that will allow me to make more changes and overclock, will try that tomorrow.

 

[ATMINSIDE]

You want all your CPU and RAM overclocking to be done in the BIOS.

 

[shane1900]

Having a hard time getting stable past these settings. Seems like my motherboard doesn't have as many bios tweaks as others I'm reading about. GA-X79-UP4. Would appreciate any advice to help me get to x45.

Stable at 1.4v at 42X, 48 celsius.

 

[EarthDog]

1.4v is a ton for 4.2ghz... I do it at 1.19. That is way too high for that clock speed. Also, idle temps are not relevant.. what are the load temps?

 

[NiHaoMike]

Try disabling all smart fan features (run all fans at full speed) for overclocking. Then use sane settings when turning the smart fan features back on.

 

[shane1900]

Those are full load temps below, 48c. So bizarre I need high voltage to get to the same place others are at and my full load temps are so low...

"Stable at 1.4v at 42X, 48 celsius."

Will try fan settings today.