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Anyone interested in building a multi GPU system


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#1 chungenhung

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Posted 10 July 2008 - 05:16 AM


Was just wondering, would anybody be interested in building a Multi GPU system?
At least a dual GPU system using 8800GT will be a solid 10k PPD system.
I can generally get cheap Motherboards, and am keeping up with current deals all the time. Also, I've been a computer builder for several years.
I would recommend Intel CPUs, as they are FAR superior than AMD, but if you budget is tight, AMD system can be significantly cheaper due to low Motherboard price.

At the moment, I am waiting for someone to tell me whether a AMD dual core will be able to push 4 GPUs in a system, I will update that once I hear from the guy.

#2

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 01:28 AM

What are you going to do with 4 GPU's in a system? Seriously, I have a 5 year old computer I built for 400 dollars and it will still do whatever I want, the one thing it won't do well is play crysis (the lamest game ever made).

#3 chungenhung

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 01:49 AM

What are you going to do with 4 GPU's in a system? Seriously, I have a 5 year old computer I built for 400 dollars and it will still do whatever I want, the one thing it won't do well is play crysis (the lamest game ever made).

I thought this is a Folding @ Home forum. You can have a supercomputer performance using 4 GPUs pumping Folding @ Home work units like crazy.
Yes, a 5 year old computer can still do a lot of things people normally use computer for, but it is no match for a 4 GPU system for scientific research.

Edited by chungenhung, 11 July 2008 - 02:02 AM.


#4 Live Forever

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 02:43 AM

Good luck in your efforts, chungenhung! You are a boon to the team.

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 03:31 AM

What are you going to do with 4 GPU's in a system? Seriously, I have a 5 year old computer I built for 400 dollars and it will still do whatever I want, the one thing it won't do well is play crysis (the lamest game ever made).

I thought this is a Folding @ Home forum. You can have a supercomputer performance using 4 GPUs pumping Folding @ Home work units like crazy.
Yes, a 5 year old computer can still do a lot of things people normally use computer for, but it is no match for a 4 GPU system for scientific research.


Well, I am actually starting to get the urge to make a new computer. I intend to hold off as long as I can though. What do you think of the EVGA nForce 750i Motherboard? I'm a bit in the dark about power supplies as well as far as if any manufacturers or particular power supplies stand out. If you have any suggestions of things to look at... Feel free to go off on all the little details about exactly what all the best computer components are. The only things I think I'm pretty set on is I like the antec 300 case, an intel processor and 8800GT GPU.

#6 chungenhung

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 04:49 AM

What are you going to do with 4 GPU's in a system? Seriously, I have a 5 year old computer I built for 400 dollars and it will still do whatever I want, the one thing it won't do well is play crysis (the lamest game ever made).

I thought this is a Folding @ Home forum. You can have a supercomputer performance using 4 GPUs pumping Folding @ Home work units like crazy.
Yes, a 5 year old computer can still do a lot of things people normally use computer for, but it is no match for a 4 GPU system for scientific research.


Well, I am actually starting to get the urge to make a new computer. I intend to hold off as long as I can though. What do you think of the EVGA nForce 750i Motherboard? I'm a bit in the dark about power supplies as well as far as if any manufacturers or particular power supplies stand out. If you have any suggestions of things to look at... Feel free to go off on all the little details about exactly what all the best computer components are. The only things I think I'm pretty set on is I like the antec 300 case, an intel processor and 8800GT GPU.

That will depend on if you want to Fold with your machine and whether dual or quad core, single/dual GPU.
Most decent power supplies can easily run a dual core and 8800GT.

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 06:27 AM

As I understand it intel will probably release 8 core cpu's within a year from now. I'll wait 6 months or so after that happens and then decide what processor I want based on the prices for everything at that point. I doubt I will be getting a dual core though. What are the considerations involved for folding@home?

#8 chungenhung

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 02:23 PM

As I understand it intel will probably release 8 core cpu's within a year from now. I'll wait 6 months or so after that happens and then decide what processor I want based on the prices for everything at that point. I doubt I will be getting a dual core though. What are the considerations involved for folding@home?

For folding @ home, you don't need a 8 core CPU. The GPUs give a lot more raw processing power. So far, there is no 8 core cpu scheduled for release, only a 4 core with HT. The price of that would be like $1000, which is just too much.
Yes, if you keep waiting, prices would eventually come down.

#9 dnamechanic

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 06:22 PM

Good luck in your efforts, chungenhung! You are a boon to the team.


Yes, agreed!

Chungenhung, your PPD for The Lonegvity Meme team is astounding.

You obviously have experience with many different kinds of computing hardware. In several cases you may be one of the few to first try out new folding hardware combinations.

Will be reading your comments about folding hardware with interest.

This topic should be especially informative for anyone looking for a fast gaming system. It is very good that fast gaming is compatible with fast folding.

Folding is one of the most demanding applications for a computer.

Gamers, put your rig to the real test, Fold!

#10 Mind

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 06:32 PM

Fear&Obey...we are talking about folding here and what will help to fold the most for our team (and win money, if you are competing for the prize)

My computer is 8 years old but still works for most apps (not gaming). I will be upgrading soon and will try to get a configuration well suited for folding and thus I am very thankful for chungenhung's offer and expertise.

#11 FunkOdyssey

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 06:58 PM

I don't know about folding@home, but you should be aware that the new generation of ATI cards (HD 4850 and 4870) are superior to the Nvidia counterparts in their price range for gaming and do have more processing power in terms of teraflops. Nvidia chipsets have never been as robust and stable as Intel's chipsets, and to make matters worse for Nvidia, Nehalem (Intel's next processor microarchitecture) will not support SLI. The combination of an Intel chipset (P45, X38 or X48) with an Intel CPU and one or multiple ATI GPU's offers the best price/performance ratio for a gaming system right now.

#12 frenchhorn1

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 07:29 PM

Chungenhung,

I need a price quote:
q6600
mobo with two vid slots
two 8800gt's
2gb mem
cheap power supply (i have a good one in another pc i can swap)
cheap hd
cheap case
cheaper cdrom
no mouse, kb, speakers, monitor
Win xp (price w/ and w/o)


Please and thank you,
frenchhorn1

PS. "We're not worthy. We're not worthy."

#13 chungenhung

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 08:18 PM

I don't know about folding@home, but you should be aware that the new generation of ATI cards (HD 4850 and 4870) are superior to the Nvidia counterparts in their price range for gaming and do have more processing power in terms of teraflops. Nvidia chipsets have never been as robust and stable as Intel's chipsets, and to make matters worse for Nvidia, Nehalem (Intel's next processor microarchitecture) will not support SLI. The combination of an Intel chipset (P45, X38 or X48) with an Intel CPU and one or multiple ATI GPU's offers the best price/performance ratio for a gaming system right now.

I would agree with you IF you are not using this for Folding @ home

#14 lunarsolarpower

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 10:01 PM

I really haven't kept up on desktop PC hardware since the days when the Pentium 4 was brand new. What is the current price/performance ratio for PCs built to process F@H work units compared with PlayStation3s? If F@H is the main reason one is buying/building a new machine would a multi GPU PC be superior to a PS3 of equal cost?

#15 chungenhung

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 10:12 PM

I really haven't kept up on desktop PC hardware since the days when the Pentium 4 was brand new. What is the current price/performance ratio for PCs built to process F@H work units compared with PlayStation3s? If F@H is the main reason one is buying/building a new machine would a multi GPU PC be superior to a PS3 of equal cost?

The PS3 is old now, and I do believe that GPU2 is doing more work. There is no direct comparisons as stated by Pande Vijay, as the PS3 and GPU2 process different proteins.
A desktop PC is definitely the way to go now. The best bang for the buck should be a low end dual core, with 2x8800gt in a 650i motherboard.

#16

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Posted 11 July 2008 - 10:14 PM

How about a USB noodle strainer?

http://www.everythin...e_strainer.html

#17 chungenhung

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 04:44 AM

With the prices added that I can remember from the top of my head

Chungenhung,

I need a price quote:
q6600 $190
mobo with two vid slots. I would get 650i refurbished, you can get them for like $50 - $60
two 8800gt's $130 each new.
2gb mem $20 After rebate
cheap power supply (i have a good one in another pc i can swap)
cheap hd
cheap case
cheaper cdrom
no mouse, kb, speakers, monitor
Win xp (price w/ and w/o)


Please and thank you,
frenchhorn1

PS. "We're not worthy. We're not worthy."



#18

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 05:50 AM

For the hard drive you might want to go for one of those western digital green ones. Good brand, should save a little bit of electricity, fairly cheap. I got a 500 GB one recently for 80 dollars. If you build a dedicated Folding computer you'd be leaving it on 24/7 right?

#19 Shepard

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 06:30 AM

If you build a dedicated Folding computer you'd be leaving it on 24/7 right?


That's the idea.

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 07:58 AM

I don't know about folding@home, but you should be aware that the new generation of ATI cards (HD 4850 and 4870) are superior to the Nvidia counterparts in their price range for gaming and do have more processing power in terms of teraflops. Nvidia chipsets have never been as robust and stable as Intel's chipsets, and to make matters worse for Nvidia, Nehalem (Intel's next processor microarchitecture) will not support SLI. The combination of an Intel chipset (P45, X38 or X48) with an Intel CPU and one or multiple ATI GPU's offers the best price/performance ratio for a gaming system right now.


I originally was looking at nvidia chipsets because at the time (a few months ago) they had a clear advantage in the graphics card department. I am aware that nvidia's new graphics cards are not impressing anyone (I hope this sort of thing isn't intentional. Where is the competition in a system of two competing companies that are fully aware if one goes out of business the other will have to deal with the government calling them a monopoly?). And I don't plan on doing a multi GPU setup, at least not right off the bat. So now there's nothing holding me to nvidia chipsets, I just wasn't aware that intel's were better. It makes sense that they would be though. Do you know what specific board you would pick for each of those three chipsets you mentioned? The Nehalem CPU itself will not be compatible with SLI? I would have assumed that sort of thing would only depend on the motherboard.

#21 chungenhung

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 02:46 PM

I don't know about folding@home, but you should be aware that the new generation of ATI cards (HD 4850 and 4870) are superior to the Nvidia counterparts in their price range for gaming and do have more processing power in terms of teraflops. Nvidia chipsets have never been as robust and stable as Intel's chipsets, and to make matters worse for Nvidia, Nehalem (Intel's next processor microarchitecture) will not support SLI. The combination of an Intel chipset (P45, X38 or X48) with an Intel CPU and one or multiple ATI GPU's offers the best price/performance ratio for a gaming system right now.


I originally was looking at nvidia chipsets because at the time (a few months ago) they had a clear advantage in the graphics card department. I am aware that nvidia's new graphics cards are not impressing anyone (I hope this sort of thing isn't intentional. Where is the competition in a system of two competing companies that are fully aware if one goes out of business the other will have to deal with the government calling them a monopoly?). And I don't plan on doing a multi GPU setup, at least not right off the bat. So now there's nothing holding me to nvidia chipsets, I just wasn't aware that intel's were better. It makes sense that they would be though. Do you know what specific board you would pick for each of those three chipsets you mentioned? The Nehalem CPU itself will not be compatible with SLI? I would have assumed that sort of thing would only depend on the motherboard.

Please note that FAH does not need SLI, in fact, you need to disable it. So, any motherboard with enough PCIE slots would be good for multi GPU setup.

#22 maestro949

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 05:07 PM

How about a USB noodle strainer?

http://www.everythin...e_strainer.html


Wrong type of protein folding. Funny though. I had a sneaky suspicion I was going to be rickrolled when clicking that link.

#23 chungenhung

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Posted 14 July 2008 - 05:23 AM

One user have reported being able to run 4 GPU cards on a mobo using only a dual core AMD CPU.
I am in the process of building one, but one problem here.
It seems that Vista needs each Video card to have a monitor attached to it. Of course, I wouldn't have that many monitors.
There is this thing called a "VGA dummy". Now, most video card these days only have DVI ports, and I was wondering if there is such thing as a "DVI dummy"?
I am asking if anyone here can make a VGA or DVI dummy, I am more than willing to pay for them, and I am sure other members would find it useful as well.

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Posted 14 July 2008 - 05:42 AM

Is it possible to do a 6 GPU system? Is there some reason you don't just use XP?

Edited by Fear&Obey, 14 July 2008 - 05:44 AM.


#25 chungenhung

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Posted 14 July 2008 - 03:03 PM

Is it possible to do a 6 GPU system? Is there some reason you don't just use XP?

Yes you can do 6 GPU or even 8 GPU system.
Reason that I don't want to use XP is that you will need as many CPU cores as you have GPUs.
That means a 6 GPU system would not be possible at this moment. Only Vista would be possible.

#26 dnamechanic

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Posted 15 July 2008 - 03:22 AM

One user have reported being able to run 4 GPU cards on a mobo using only a dual core AMD CPU.
I am in the process of building one, but one problem here.
It seems that Vista needs each Video card to have a monitor attached to it. Of course, I wouldn't have that many monitors.
There is this thing called a "VGA dummy". Now, most video card these days only have DVI ports, and I was wondering if there is such thing as a "DVI dummy"?


A DVI dummy termination is, at least in principle, possible. It depends on how the Graphic card recognizes a DVI termination. If the graphic card with only a DVI ouptput needs to see a digital feedback signal, then resistive load termination will probably not work. In other words the DVI output may require an active digital return signal to be terminated.

I can take a look at the specifications of the DVI connector and try to determine what is actually the case (maybe I can let you know what I learn by tomorrow night).

I am asking if anyone here can make a VGA or DVI dummy, I am more than willing to pay for them, and I am sure other members would find it useful as well.


Chungenhung, I can make VGA dummy terminators for you or anyone on The Longevity Meme team, at potentially at no cost to you or the team members.

It looks like the local Radio Shack carries the VGA connectors (15 pin, D connector) but does not have the required 75 Ohm resistors. There is a Fry's Electronics store a few miles away that could have both, but it will be a few days before I can get to it to check it out.

Perhaps it would be good for you and others on the team to decide how many are needed, or thought to be needed in the near future, and maybe locate a mail order source for the components. I could order the desired number of components, then solder them together and mail them out to those on the team that needed them.

Of course none of the above is very quick and you would probably like a quicker solution.

In the near term, you might try a KVM switch. All ports (in the not connected position) should I believe, serve as dummy terminator for those ports. If I am correct, a two port KVM switch can terminate one port (without any monitor) a four port KVM switch could terminate 3 ports with no monitor.

#27 dnamechanic

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Posted 15 July 2008 - 10:01 PM

Regarding possibility of a the DVI terminator discussed in previous posts.

There are at least three kinds of DVI connectors/outputs:

1- DVI-D (this is digital only)
2- DVI-A (this is analog only)
3- DVI-I (this has cabability of both digital & analog, hence integrated for the "I" designation)

Looks like many of the new cards have the DVI-I specification.

Also looks like many GPU companies include a DVI-I to VGA analog adapter along with the graphics card package.

It is not certain, but a pretty good bet that by using a DVI-I to VGA adapter, then the dummy VGA terminators (already discussed) will properly terminate the DVI-I output.

I think this may be an easier and probably less costly alternative than trying to find a source for the less common DVI-I connectors and then modding them by adding terminating resistors.

#28 chungenhung

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Posted 15 July 2008 - 11:50 PM

Regarding possibility of a the DVI terminator discussed in previous posts.

There are at least three kinds of DVI connectors/outputs:

1- DVI-D (this is digital only)
2- DVI-A (this is analog only)
3- DVI-I (this has cabability of both digital & analog, hence integrated for the "I" designation)

Looks like many of the new cards have the DVI-I specification.

Also looks like many GPU companies include a DVI-I to VGA analog adapter along with the graphics card package.

It is not certain, but a pretty good bet that by using a DVI-I to VGA adapter, then the dummy VGA terminators (already discussed) will properly terminate the DVI-I output.

I think this may be an easier and probably less costly alternative than trying to find a source for the less common DVI-I connectors and then modding them by adding terminating resistors.

Yes, using a DVI-I to VGA adapter, then the dummy VGA terminator would work. Someone has already done that in foldingforum.org. Yes, he is running 4 GPU beast!

#29 chungenhung

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Posted 03 October 2008 - 08:24 AM

ebay 30% cash back. 4GPU system for sale, live.com offers 30$ cashback on ebay purchases

I came across live.com offering 30% cashback to ebay "buy it now" purchases.
This will be great for purchasing 4 GPU systems.
I have build several 2 or 4 GPU systems, mainly based on 8800GT.

With the 30% cashback, that is substantial savings!
Let me know if anyone is interested in the system.
Price will be reasonable market price.
I will list it as buy it now so you can get the cashbacks.

(edited by Matthias: threads 24721 & 23052 merged. Your post was reported as commercial spam, but it isn't ^^)

Edited by Matthias, 03 October 2008 - 02:47 PM.


#30 dnamechanic

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Posted 03 October 2008 - 03:25 PM

ebay 30% cash back. ...
...buy it now so you can get the cashbacks.

The eBay Live Cashback worked fine for me a while back, on a purchase unrelated to chungenhung's offer.

If a purchase qualifies for the "Cashback", it looks like it could be a good way to obtain a substantial discount on Folding hardware.

There are threads at the major hardware sites that discuss the eBay Cashback offer such as this one at [H]ardforum.

Edited by dnamechanic, 03 October 2008 - 03:29 PM.





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