I used to run a number of machines for SETI when I first got into it, but over the years have sort of lapsed. At the moment I have a spare Core2Duo at work doing some processing, but I'd like to become a bit more active again.

Doing some reading through the boards and a few things come out as obvious:
* GPU is preferred over CPU
* You need enough CPU power to feed the GPU
* NVidia is more efficient for Seti@Home then ATI, though both are good
* Tons of memory are not critical
* Storage is not critical
* No such thing as too large a power supply... :-)

So with that being said, what kind of a system do people use/recommend for a dedicated machine? Off the top of my head I would assume something like this:

* MicroATX motherboard with PCI Express 3.0 x16 port(s)
* Intel Core i3
* 8G of RAM
* 250G (or even less) HD
* 500W power supply
* Case with lots of cooling

Any suggestions for video cards? Something decent, but I'd rather not spend >$500 on it... :-)

Thanks!

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A GTX780 is just about in your budget, but you would want a bigger PSU, something in the region of 600-700w

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

You are going to get a lot of responses on different options. Nvidia GTX 750 Ti just came out, only uses power from the PCI (66 W max) unless you get one that's being modified and needs a 6 pin connector for power. It just slower in some aspects than my GTX 650 Ti Boost and runs around $ 160-170 depending on where you get it. You don't need a MB with a lot of PCIx16 slots, you can use PCI with riser to PCI x16 for expansion. You wouldn't need to change out your power supply as it uses such a low amount. I mounted mine is a store bought unit, only has 300 W PSU and it runs great.

Or 2 GTX750/760's maybe.

But I would suggest at least a good quality 650W PSU (or greater) with a single 12v rail.

Cheers.

For SETI performance the key is buy the biggest GPU you could afford. The 780FTW is a good choice, but cost a little more than US500, in his place a 770SC its a good replacement 2GB GPU´s are cheaper than the 4GB models and you dont use more than 1 GB when you crunch SETI anyway.

If you think in a future, buy a MB with at least 2xPCIe 3.0 and a large PSU 750-850W (bigger it´s better) who could drive 2 mid/high end GPUs. That allow you to easely add another GPU in the future. AMD or Intel, it´s your choice, if you go for an Intel CPU take an I5 at least. One example of a MB with this caracteristics is: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131965

Take a look at my hosts you will see clearely what i try to explain. Powerfull GPU´s drived by relatively slow I5 in cheap MB´s (most of my MB are Asus P8B75-M LE) who produces high RAC.

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But I would suggest at least a good quality 650W PSU (or greater) with a single 12v rail.

Agreed. And I would also argue that there is such a thing as too large of a power supply (PSU). Most power supplies are at their best when you stay within 70% load. Too much load and you'll burn out your PSU faster, but too little load and you could have power/efficiency issues.

Another thing to consider is that not all work, VLAR's, will run on a GPU so an i5 makes some sort of sense unless all you want is the highest RAC/$.

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Another thing to consider is that not all work, VLAR's, will run on a GPU so an i5 makes some sort of sense unless all you want is the highest RAC/$.

I got to agree with the i5 as both my main rigs are and mostly the CPU cores do AP's and VLAR's while the cards just do the rest of the MB's (I'm really not that impressed with hyperthreaded cores, but that's probably just me).

Cheers.

OP just look at the top crunchers and go down the list until you come to one that fits you budget.

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pbako, I would advise you to consider energy costs. The new 750TI is so much more energy efficient that I would buy two 750TI(2*155$=310$) instead of a single 780(500$). The two Maxwells would not be much slower than the 780 but in a year's time you will have saved 150$ (not mentioning AC costs) that could be spend on the next latest GPU for crunching. Not to mention that they would probably depreciate much slower than the 780, which would help you unloading them on ebay.

You could also wait a month or too for bigger Maxwells to come out and buy a couple of 250$ cards.

To reiterate. Calculate the energy costs.

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This is excellent information, just what I was looking for - thank you to all!

One more wrinkle for this discussion - is there any benefit from OS? Specifically things like Windows vs Linux, type of Windows (I'm more familiar with that world), 32-bit vs. 64-bit, etc?

Assuming we are staying on the Windows side of the world, does an entry level version, such Windows 7 Home, cause more limitations than Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate? What about Windows 8.x?

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This is excellent information, just what I was looking for - thank you to all!

One more wrinkle for this discussion - is there any benefit from OS? Specifically things like Windows vs Linux, type of Windows (I'm more familiar with that world), 32-bit vs. 64-bit, etc?

Assuming we are staying on the Windows side of the world, does an entry level version, such Windows 7 Home, cause more limitations than Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate? What about Windows 8.x?

The OS does not matter.............much.
I prefer XP 64 bit. Just the best one running.
My 7 daily driver does not do too bad. But I somehow perceive that XP is the leaner, better cruncher.

I got no issues with XP........it simply works and runs hard.

Like I said, daily driver is 7, only because there are some issues with drivers and certain sites that don't support XP any longer. But, they are few and far between.

Meow

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"Freedom is just Chaos, with better lighting." Alan Dean Foster

This is excellent information, just what I was looking for - thank you to all!

One more wrinkle for this discussion - is there any benefit from OS? Specifically things like Windows vs Linux, type of Windows (I'm more familiar with that world), 32-bit vs. 64-bit, etc?

Assuming we are staying on the Windows side of the world, does an entry level version, such Windows 7 Home, cause more limitations than Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate? What about Windows 8.x?

64-bit is the better way to go and my rigs are all Win7 (either Home Premium or Pro).

Cheers.

Remember XP has 17 days to go, get you last update before April 8.

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Remember XP has 17 days to go, get you last update before April 8.

And choose the custom install or you'll get that silly Windows popup annoying you (it was on this month's update).

Cheers.

Remember XP has 17 days to go, get you last update before April 8.

The kitties are not sceered. XP is gonna be running here long after some have let go of it.
Unless some driver demon or such pops up that prevents it.
I got no worries on crunch only rigs.

You wanna try my firewall? I'll prop the door open with a brick so's you can get in the back way...LOL.
Chimney is also open if you wanna try that way.

Just don't wake the kitties, they shall tear you apart with their bare claws.

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"Freedom is just Chaos, with better lighting." Alan Dean Foster

WRONG
XP support from Microsoft has only a few days left to run.
That does NOT mean XP will stop on that date, it just means there will be no more updates from MS.

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

WRONG
XP support from Microsoft has only a few days left to run.
That does NOT mean XP will stop on that date, it just means there will be no more updates from MS.

Correct. If it's a dedicated Cruncher and not used for Web browsing and email the chance of getting compromised (behind a NAT firewall) is VERY remote.

Heck I have a couple of Win2000 boxes that still run just fine. I only run them when the weather is cold of course. They are better space heaters than Crunchers, But there is not a problem running them.

So if you have a spare WinXP license that you can reuse, it will run, and you can sit it in the corner and let it crunch. Saves you a few $$ that you can spend on a better GPU or gruntier PSU. Standard XP (32 bit) limits you to something less than 4gb of RAM, but again with SETI work, this isn't an issue.

Eventually XP Will drop off the end of the BOINC supported list, but as Win2K is still working, that will be few years away.

Ian

WRONG
XP support from Microsoft has only a few days left to run.
That does NOT mean XP will stop on that date, it just means there will be no more updates from MS.

I know, I still run a pure DOS machine, Win 98 SE. It never will stop working but new programs and drivers will not work. I get a kick when I go to update Adobe or Zonealarm; it says it was expecting a later version of Windows. Windows update goes into a very rapid looping of the web page in total confusion.

If XP is like 98 there will be some third party geek drivers for a few years after M$ stops writing them. Win 98 USB drivers is one example.

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