The Member's Systems Discussion Thread

[Daniel Sudakov]

Here's what I have going on right now
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($227.98 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($136.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston Blu 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($86.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($84.64 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.44 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.44 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.44 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 2GB Dual-X Video Card ($178.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Inwin GRone White (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($146.81 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24F1ST DVD/CD Writer ($19.94 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: BenQ GL2460HM 60Hz 24.0" Monitor ($139.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1417.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-28 14:54 EDT-0400

I would say you can get more for your money.

 

[ImDaBaron]

Why the 3 500gb HDD's? Doesn't that make a lot of noise?

+ Uses more power, and is expensive vs a 2tb HDD from seagate

Why do you think I'm running 3 drives in comparison to 1 single huge drive? It's not as black and white as this costs less if you understand storage.

 

[Daniel Sudakov]

Why the 3 500gb HDD's? Doesn't that make a lot of noise?

+ Uses more power, and is expensive vs a 2tb HDD from seagate

Why do you think I'm running 3 drives in comparison to 1 single huge drive?

You can also have the HDD be in different partitions, and will be cheaper

 

[ImDaBaron]

Why the 3 500gb HDD's? Doesn't that make a lot of noise?

+ Uses more power, and is expensive vs a 2tb HDD from seagate

Why do you think I'm running 3 drives in comparison to 1 single huge drive?

You can also have the HDD be in different partitions, and will be cheaper

Why would I do that? You know the purpose of running Raid 5 right?

 

[Daniel Sudakov]

Why the 3 500gb HDD's? Doesn't that make a lot of noise?

+ Uses more power, and is expensive vs a 2tb HDD from seagate

Why do you think I'm running 3 drives in comparison to 1 single huge drive?

You can also have the HDD be in different partitions, and will be cheaper

Why would I do that? You know the purpose of running Raid 5 right?

Oh, I'm not familiar with Raid sadly, but I guess if that's how you set it up, then my bad. Didn't see the other reply.

 

[Onus]

RAID-5 on a mobo controller seems like a lot more trouble than it is worth, and you can't use cheap drives in RAID-5, you need TLER / Enterprise class drives.
I'd suggest a RAID-1 setup instead, with a pair of 2TB drives. With RAID-1, you can even use LP or "Green" drives.

 

[ImDaBaron]

Oh, I'm not familiar with Raid sadly, but I guess if that's how you set it up, then my bad. Didn't see the other reply.

Personally as long as I'm building a computer I'll never run a single HDD drive again. Basically I can lose a drive without data loss. Between the performance and the redundancy its a good route to go. Sorry if I was short with you but that's the quick run down. So far the array has been working perfectly.

 

[ImDaBaron]

RAID-5 on a mobo controller seems like a lot more trouble than it is worth, and you can't use cheap drives in RAID-5, you need TLER / Enterprise class drives.
I'd suggest a RAID-1 setup instead, with a pair of 2TB drives. With RAID-1, you can even use LP or "Green" drives.

I'm running Raid 1 in my brothers computer. Works fine for what he is doing. Raid 5 is actually pretty easy to set up on the newer motherboards.

 

[g-unit1111]

Damn, you know what you want lol.

I'm sitting here, with money to spend, but I don't know what I want. 880 SLI would be great ...

Ideally that's what I want. Realistically... fat chance. :lol:

Especially with the cost of DDR 4...

 

[Onus]

RAID-5 is not difficult to set up, but: 1) you NEED drives with TLER, otherwise your RAID will drop a random member from time to time, degrading until it is rebuilt. If two members drop, you're hosed; and 2) mobo RAID-5 is [very] slow compared to using a dedicated controller board. The performance may be a non-issue on a desktop, but then you're back to #1.

 

[ImDaBaron]

So for 8GB its basically double the price....and it wont be out until the 15th

 

[ImDaBaron]

RAID-5 is not difficult to set up, but: 1) you NEED drives with TLER, otherwise your RAID will drop a random member from time to time, degrading until it is rebuilt. If two members drop, you're hosed; and 2) mobo RAID-5 is [very] slow compared to using a dedicated controller board. The performance may be a non-issue on a desktop, but then you're back to #1.

The performance isnt an issue at all. Well ofcourse if two members drop your hosed. If you drop a single HDD drive in some of the systems I'm seeing built on here your cooked. But that's one point of running Raid. You also certainly do not need a TLER drive to run Raid.

 

[g-unit1111]

So for 8GB its basically double the price....and it wont be out until the 15th

Yeah and the motherboards and CPUs will start trickling out tomorrow... seems like poor timing on the manufacturers' part.

 

[ImDaBaron]

So for 8GB its basically double the price....and it wont be out until the 15th

Yeah and the motherboards and CPUs will start trickling out tomorrow... seems like poor timing on the manufacturers' part.

I mean I may buy it in bits and pieces...but for 160 bucks you can get 16GB of DDR3.

 

[Onus]

2TB of space requires either 3x1TB TLER drives in RAID-5, or 2x2TB [any identical] drives in RAID-1. Omega, Phoenix, Abomination (yes, even that one), Greenhouse (my wife's PC), and Piglet (my Dad's; he's the family Pooh, so he needed a Piglet), are all running RAID-1. I've had a couple of crashes on my systems that have caused rebuilds, but no drive has failed, and no one has lost any data.

 

[ImDaBaron]

2TB of space requires either 3x1TB TLER drives in RAID-5, or 2x2TB [any identical] drives in RAID-1. Omega, Phoenix, Abomination (yes, even that one), Greenhouse (my wife's PC), and Piglet (my Dad's; he's the family Pooh, so he needed a Piglet), are all running RAID-1. I've had a couple of crashes on my systems that have caused rebuilds, but no drive has failed, and no one has lost any data.

Good..that's what I like to hear. But seriously you dont need to run enterprise grade drives for Raid 5 to be effective.

 

[Onus]

A primary reason to run RAID (other than 0, which is for speed) is to get data security. Using non-TLER drives in RAID-5 entirely defeats the purpose. I used to be a Netware Administrator, and wasted multiple consecutive weekends fighting with a constantly-degrading RAID-5 because the boss' boss micromanaged my drive choice. Finally after the second weekend my boss convinced the guy to relent. I got the drives I'd wanted in the first place, and the RAID became rock solid.

 

[ImDaBaron]

A primary reason to run RAID (other than 0, which is for speed) is to get data security. Using non-TLER drives in RAID-5 entirely defeats the purpose. I used to be a Netware Administrator, and wasted multiple consecutive weekends fighting with a constantly-degrading RAID-5 because the boss' boss micromanaged my drive choice. Finally after the second weekend my boss convinced the guy to relent. I got the drives I'd wanted in the first place, and the RAID became rock solid.

It doesnt defeat the purpose at all. Especially for what people want to do on this website.

 

[USAFRet]

A primary reason to run RAID (other than 0, which is for speed) is to get data security. Using non-TLER drives in RAID-5 entirely defeats the purpose. I used to be a Netware Administrator, and wasted multiple consecutive weekends fighting with a constantly-degrading RAID-5 because the boss' boss micromanaged my drive choice. Finally after the second weekend my boss convinced the guy to relent. I got the drives I'd wanted in the first place, and the RAID became rock solid.

It doesnt defeat the purpose at all. Especially for what people want to do on this website.

For most users on this website, RAID (0 or other) should be considered nothing more than a hobby.

 

[ImDaBaron]

A primary reason to run RAID (other than 0, which is for speed) is to get data security. Using non-TLER drives in RAID-5 entirely defeats the purpose. I used to be a Netware Administrator, and wasted multiple consecutive weekends fighting with a constantly-degrading RAID-5 because the boss' boss micromanaged my drive choice. Finally after the second weekend my boss convinced the guy to relent. I got the drives I'd wanted in the first place, and the RAID became rock solid.

It doesnt defeat the purpose at all. Especially for what people want to do on this website.

For most users on this website, RAID (0 or other) should be considered nothing more than a hobby.

Exactly

 

[Onus]

Hmmm, I guess I never thought of data loss as a hobby, but I suppose to each his own.

 

[USAFRet]

Hmmm, I guess I never thought of data loss as a hobby, but I suppose to each his own.

Right. I guess I should have clarified that:
"Time consuming, fail-prone, hobby."

 

[ImDaBaron]

Hmmm, I guess I never thought of data loss as a hobby, but I suppose to each his own.

What we're doing on here is a hobby is that I wasnt kind of pointing towards. I must say I got a big laugh around the office when you said we had to use Enterprise grade drives for Raid 5. I'm interested in what lead you to that conclusion.

 

[Pcbuilder123]

Awesome! You went overkill on the Psu, like me. Only things left are the CPU/motherboard in your build

 

[Onus]

You'd have big cries around the office if they had to waste their weekends rebuilding failed RAID-5s. I have. If you're interested, read up on RAID levels and on TLER; wikipedia actually has some good articles on the subject.