After a ten+ year hiatus, I built another (inexpensive) AMD Server machine. That first AMD machine cost less than $400. I didn’t quite match that cost, but I got pretty close.<\/p>\n
The CPU and the RAM were $20 off each. I got unlucky on the CDROM drive and paid an extra $5 compared to the price 3 days later.<\/p>\n
For the motherboard, I followed some bad advice, and paid extra for a board that had video out. The problem: the AMD FX CPU does not have built-in graphics. So I ended up needing a PCIe video card anyway. If I had noticed the bad advice in time, I would have purchased this Sata6 motherboard<\/a> instead. Live, learn, and do your own double-checking.<\/p>\n Some facts on the CPU: it is currently #38 on PassMark [9,128] cpubenchmark.net<\/a>. It is also the #1 AMD CPU on that list right now. Intel’s 3770K 3.5GHz is #27 and scores [9,596] and costs $310. The 4770K 3.5GHz is #17 and scores [10,154] and costs $350.<\/p>\n All product links are from the actual vendor.<\/p>\n
| Item<\/th>\n | Product<\/th>\n | Cost<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n |
|---|---|---|
| CPU<\/td>\n | AMD FX-8350 Vishera 4.0GHz <\/a>(4.2GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 125W Eight-Core Desktop<\/td>\n | $179<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| RAM<\/td>\n | Corsair Vengeance 16GB<\/a> (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M2A1600C9<\/td>\n | $119<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Motherboard<\/td>\n | ASUS M5A78L-M\/USB3 AM3+ AMD<\/a> 760G HDMI USB 3.0 uATX AMD Motherboard<\/td>\n | $80<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Power Supply<\/td>\n | (with case)<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Video<\/td>\n | EVGA GeForce 210 Passive 1024 MB<\/a> DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 DVI\/HDMI\/VGA Graphics Card, 01G-P3-1313-KR<\/td>\n | $32<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Case<\/td>\n | Cooler Master Elite 350 RC350-KKR500 500W Power Supply<\/a> Mid Tower Case (Black)<\/td>\n | $58<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| SD Drives<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| HD Drives<\/td>\n | (reuse 160GB Samsung Sata)<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| BD\/DVD\/CD<\/td>\n | Samsung Optical Drive SH-224DB\/BEBE<\/a><\/td>\n | $21<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Keyboard<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| OS<\/td>\n | Ubuntu 12.04p2 LTS<\/a> and VMWare ESXi 5.1<\/a> (dual boot)<\/td>\n | $0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Total<\/td>\n | –<\/td>\n | $489<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| RAM<\/td>\n | 2014 March Corsair Vengeance 16GB<\/a> (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory Model CMZ16GX3M2A1600C9 (2015\/Aug price was $80)<\/td>\n | $134<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After a ten+ year hiatus, I built another (inexpensive) AMD Server machine. That first AMD machine cost less than $400. I didn’t quite match that cost, but I got pretty close. The CPU and the RAM were $20 off each. … Continue reading |