Hi. Recently I got an idea stuck in my head that I kinda grew fond of. It is to try and build a new "PC" (in quotations because it'll likely be a server) that will pay for itself (hopefully entirely) with crypto mining (CPU-favored mining algos like RandomX). With the existence of dedicated crypto miners on the market, this has been demonstrated to be a difficult task but I believe I just struck gold with rather great deals on AMD EPYC cpus (AMD EPYC 7K62 CPU Unlocked 2.6-3.3 GHz 48 Cores (OEM version of AMD EPYC 7642 ) | eBay) and a dual SP3 socket motherboard that doesn't cost an arm and a leg (the H11DSi). The whole rig might cost up to 2000 CAD before taxes but I don't think it'll go much over that.
Motivations:
Based on the validated benchmarks of XMRig (RandomX Benchmark - XMRig), a pair of my CPU of predilection can easily achieve a hash rate in excess of 70kH/s on RandomX and according to crypto profitability calculators with the (rather cheap) energy cost in my area, I should break even in 4 to 5 years. This is without accounting for the heating cost I will "save" (replace heating with crypto mining) during the winter. I don't want this rig just so it can turn a profit but it is a very big plus and even if it doesn't break even, the crypto mined will still count as a HUGE deferred rebate on a rig that is not that crazy expensive nowadays. The other reasons are first a concern for my 10+ years old AMD bulldozer rig still acting healthy (almost) all the time that I worry might kick the bucket at any moment but performance is not really an issue (yet). I use this old rig mostly to work from home, watch YT vids and do other web browser tasks (it's the one I am using right now). I have no time nowadays to play games on it but NGL.... ....just the idea of having a 96-cores 192-threads rig at my disposal when the most powerful CPU I've ever truly owned is a fake hexa-core sounds SO F...NG LIT !
The memory:
It looks like the RAM will cost a major part of the whole budget since these 96 cores will need an equally breathtaking amount of memory bandwidth to mine efficiently so I'd like to cut cost wherever I can but I'm having doubts. Apparently, AMD EPYC cpus do support non-ECC RAM but I am having serious doubts that the motherboard H11DSi will allow it. Also, Idk what the people who say ECC RAM is cheaper than non-ECC one are smoking. This has NEVER been true in my entire online-shopping life and today is no different. I would really like to use plain and cheap desktop RAM if I can but I am wary this might be a bad idea. So my questions pertaining to the memory are as follows:
1. ECC or non-ECC RAM with EPYC 7K62 and H11DSi ?
2. How much does RAM bandwidth matter for XMRig and how much do I need to not turn it into a bottleneck ? I'm hesitating in the 2400 MHz to 3200 MHz range.
3. Is having 6 channels populated with 3200 MHz RAM going to perform exactly the same as having 8 channels populated with 2400 MHz RAM because 6x3200 = 8x2400 or is there some reason unknown to me for which that might not be true ? Total amount of GBs of RAM doesn't matter. It's gonna be too much anyway. I'd only do it for the bandwidth.
4. 1Rx8 or 2Rx4 or it doesn't matter ? Any other thing I might need to know ?
The cooling:
The cooling didn't worry at all me until I read about the overheating VRM of the H11DSi. Now I'm not as confident in my selection but any other dual SP3 mobo is prohibitively expensive.
1. Is there some heatsink upgrade or even a water-cooling solution including the VRM I can buy to keep temperatures at a safe level ? I doubt the choices of water cooling solutions is as extensive for servers as it is for desktop PCs.
2. If I adopt the default fan+heatsink solution for this kind of rig, how loud can it be ? I'm not looking for something actually quiet but it kind of matters how loud it's really going to be.
The PSU:
Does this need a special power supply unit ? I think I already have a PSU that can do the job because it is a 1200W monster that has the 24-pin connector plus 2 8-pins CPU power connector. Is that all that is required ?
The case:
Is any E-ATX compatible case with good air flow sufficient ? This one (Montech AIR 903 BASE, E-ATX Mid Tower Case, High Airflow with Max Capacity, 3x 140mm PWM Fans Pre-installed, Tempered Glass Side Panel, Mesh Front, TYPE-C, Support 4090 GPUs, White - Newegg.com) doesn't seem too expensive.
The peripherals:
I rarely care about fluff and 25000 USB ports and other add-ons they usually put into consumer mobos but no audio is rather barebone if you ask me, lol ! Is the audio function of audio-video outputs from normal graphic cards fully functional within the graphic card alone or could I possibly need to purchase something extra just to get audio from this titanic machine ?
The OS:
Can I put any OS in there ? SHOULD I put any OS in there ? What's the advantages of a Windows "Server" Edition ? My only significant life experience with linux is the normie linux mint with cinnamon desktop btw and I would favor the kind of OS that will give me less trouble.
Power efficiency:
And last but not least, will the current combination of CPUs and mobo allow me to underclock and undervolt the CPUs ? I imagine great benefits from that including reducing the temperature, power consumption and component aging a great deal for what I believe will be a far lesser sacrifice in hash rate and I would really want to have the option to make my rig work in this more power efficient regime from time to time. In theory, any undervolting should increase the profit margin from mining crypto due to reduced energy cost per hash computed, right ? But I don't think the barebone mobo will give me that option so can any of you tell me if this is achievable regardless ?
Overall, is this idea sound ?
Any other pitfall I should be wary of ?
Motivations:
Based on the validated benchmarks of XMRig (RandomX Benchmark - XMRig), a pair of my CPU of predilection can easily achieve a hash rate in excess of 70kH/s on RandomX and according to crypto profitability calculators with the (rather cheap) energy cost in my area, I should break even in 4 to 5 years. This is without accounting for the heating cost I will "save" (replace heating with crypto mining) during the winter. I don't want this rig just so it can turn a profit but it is a very big plus and even if it doesn't break even, the crypto mined will still count as a HUGE deferred rebate on a rig that is not that crazy expensive nowadays. The other reasons are first a concern for my 10+ years old AMD bulldozer rig still acting healthy (almost) all the time that I worry might kick the bucket at any moment but performance is not really an issue (yet). I use this old rig mostly to work from home, watch YT vids and do other web browser tasks (it's the one I am using right now). I have no time nowadays to play games on it but NGL.... ....just the idea of having a 96-cores 192-threads rig at my disposal when the most powerful CPU I've ever truly owned is a fake hexa-core sounds SO F...NG LIT !
The memory:
It looks like the RAM will cost a major part of the whole budget since these 96 cores will need an equally breathtaking amount of memory bandwidth to mine efficiently so I'd like to cut cost wherever I can but I'm having doubts. Apparently, AMD EPYC cpus do support non-ECC RAM but I am having serious doubts that the motherboard H11DSi will allow it. Also, Idk what the people who say ECC RAM is cheaper than non-ECC one are smoking. This has NEVER been true in my entire online-shopping life and today is no different. I would really like to use plain and cheap desktop RAM if I can but I am wary this might be a bad idea. So my questions pertaining to the memory are as follows:
1. ECC or non-ECC RAM with EPYC 7K62 and H11DSi ?
2. How much does RAM bandwidth matter for XMRig and how much do I need to not turn it into a bottleneck ? I'm hesitating in the 2400 MHz to 3200 MHz range.
3. Is having 6 channels populated with 3200 MHz RAM going to perform exactly the same as having 8 channels populated with 2400 MHz RAM because 6x3200 = 8x2400 or is there some reason unknown to me for which that might not be true ? Total amount of GBs of RAM doesn't matter. It's gonna be too much anyway. I'd only do it for the bandwidth.
4. 1Rx8 or 2Rx4 or it doesn't matter ? Any other thing I might need to know ?
The cooling:
The cooling didn't worry at all me until I read about the overheating VRM of the H11DSi. Now I'm not as confident in my selection but any other dual SP3 mobo is prohibitively expensive.
1. Is there some heatsink upgrade or even a water-cooling solution including the VRM I can buy to keep temperatures at a safe level ? I doubt the choices of water cooling solutions is as extensive for servers as it is for desktop PCs.
2. If I adopt the default fan+heatsink solution for this kind of rig, how loud can it be ? I'm not looking for something actually quiet but it kind of matters how loud it's really going to be.
The PSU:
Does this need a special power supply unit ? I think I already have a PSU that can do the job because it is a 1200W monster that has the 24-pin connector plus 2 8-pins CPU power connector. Is that all that is required ?
The case:
Is any E-ATX compatible case with good air flow sufficient ? This one (Montech AIR 903 BASE, E-ATX Mid Tower Case, High Airflow with Max Capacity, 3x 140mm PWM Fans Pre-installed, Tempered Glass Side Panel, Mesh Front, TYPE-C, Support 4090 GPUs, White - Newegg.com) doesn't seem too expensive.
The peripherals:
I rarely care about fluff and 25000 USB ports and other add-ons they usually put into consumer mobos but no audio is rather barebone if you ask me, lol ! Is the audio function of audio-video outputs from normal graphic cards fully functional within the graphic card alone or could I possibly need to purchase something extra just to get audio from this titanic machine ?
The OS:
Can I put any OS in there ? SHOULD I put any OS in there ? What's the advantages of a Windows "Server" Edition ? My only significant life experience with linux is the normie linux mint with cinnamon desktop btw and I would favor the kind of OS that will give me less trouble.
Power efficiency:
And last but not least, will the current combination of CPUs and mobo allow me to underclock and undervolt the CPUs ? I imagine great benefits from that including reducing the temperature, power consumption and component aging a great deal for what I believe will be a far lesser sacrifice in hash rate and I would really want to have the option to make my rig work in this more power efficient regime from time to time. In theory, any undervolting should increase the profit margin from mining crypto due to reduced energy cost per hash computed, right ? But I don't think the barebone mobo will give me that option so can any of you tell me if this is achievable regardless ?
Overall, is this idea sound ?
Any other pitfall I should be wary of ?
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