Chugiak

It's currently $79.99 as of this posting.

$299 + Promo code $30 savings http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157419 USD $30 off w/ promo code 0616USNGG36, ends 6/18

Up to $157.99 as of this posting. Still a good price for the NAS drive.

Something to do with this perhaps? http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?p=37487990

I've got the E3-1231v3 in my desktop system and am insanely happy with it's performance and thermals. Depending on what else you may want to use the server for, you might consider bumping up to the E3-1241v3. Performance per $ is almost the same, so if you want the headroom then spend a little more for the more capable CPU. You probably are well aware that the motherboard only has a D-sub video connector. Not an issue when running headless, just a reminder not to throw out that old spare monitor with the 15 pin connector for those rare times when you need to see video. Or does IPMI moot those concerns anyhow?

TK, you've got me pondering the wisdom of recommending the G3258 based on the Passmark CPU score. It's certainly a capable chip and can do some remarkable overclocking, but is the reported Passmark score indicative of what one will see in the way of performance at stock speeds? http://ark.intel.com/compare/83538,82723 Comparing the specs of G3258 agains the G3250 it appears that the only difference is being unlocked. I suspect that specs aren't written consistently even between these two processors, as differences in the comparison (clear graphics, security key) may be down to how a clerk put in the info rather than having distinctly seperate specs.

Have a look in the Hardware forum for a discussion on cheap unRAID upgrade options: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=40539.0 I think a Haswell processor like i5 and an H97 board put you in the best bang for buck category. To have 8 onboard SATA ports you need to move up to a pricier motherboard like a Z87 or Z97.

I'm inclined to think that the reported Passmark score is for factory or near-factory clock speeds. The overclocked database gives the G3258 an average score of 4666, compared to the stock speed score of 3966. https://www.cpubenchmark.net/overclocked_cpus.html Passmark is aware of overclocking and addresses it in this post: http://www.passmark.com/forum/showthread.php?3575-New-algorithm-for-determining-overclocking-in-charts

I obsess a bit over the merits of various PSUs and have done some calculations on the costs versus benefits of going with the more expensive and efficient PSU compared to the cheaper and less expensive PSU. If you're buying new, 80+ Gold is generally the most economical option when calculating in the cost of your electricity. If you're running a system 24/7 that uses 125 watts or more continuously, then a gold PSU will save electricity, enough to pay for itself in a few years. But if your system is on occasionally, uses less electricity, or your electricity is relatively cheap, then it doesn't make economic sense to invest in a gold PSU when bronze will do just fine. A server system that averages 50 W will in three years consume 1,314 kilowatt-hours of electricity. Most PSUs, regardless of overall efficiency rating, will be pretty inefficient at such low power, probably in the ballpark of 75% - 85%. Based on U.S. average residential electricity cost of $0.1235 per kwh, the cost to run the 75% efficient PSU will be $216.37 whereas the cost to run a unit with an 85% efficient PSU will be $190.92. If the purchase cost premium for the more efficient PSU is less than $25.45 then it makes sense to get the more efficient PSU. If your system idles at 25 W and spends most of its time in idle, then two things happen: 1) the PSU is even less efficient, and 2) the overall cost is reduced by consuming less electricity. In this case it's probably pointless to invest in gold over bronze if energy savings are the only consideration. All that said, if your current PSU is more than a few years old it is probably a good idea to consider replacing it or at least having a spare PSU on hand for when it or another power supply meets its maker.

if cheap and performance are your two main criteria, one option is to pick up a Xeon E5520 and an LGA 1366 motherboard. Assuming you can pick up said motherboard on the cheap. But the processor scores an admirable 4446 Passmark score and can be had for $40 new and considerably less used. What you don't get is recent generation tech, nor an upgrade path. But it's cheap!

See this post by MrHexen regarding the G1840 and Plex transcoding. What I know about Plex is limited to what I read on these forums, but if you want that option you probably should go with at least a Pentium. http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=39507.msg382726#msg382726

Sorry for 3rd post in a row, but it just registered on me that you're looking at the Node 304 case and not the 804. Although the 304 will take an ATX sized power supply, it will be really cramped in that small case. Take a look at the small form factor PSUs by Silverstone. They are a bit more expensive, but the SFX size will allow for easier construction and improved airflow. I don't have firsthand experience with this case, but that's the advice from folks that do.

In the interest of being fair to the CS450M, it receives a favorable review at Anandtech: http://www.anandtech.com/show/9343/the-corsair-cs450m-psu-review

Thanks for the feedback. I'll keep an eye on these and may grab one for my next drive, just for the sake of adding another user data point.

The Sempron in my sig only does NAS and is more than adequate for that purpose. if you want the option of doing more with the server then you are wise to go the newer generation route. You can't beat Haswell chips for performance on the cheap, so I concur you should go with the LGA1150 plan. Plex streaming with video conversion uses a lot of CPU cycles so you want one with some muscle. The Passmark performance rating appears to be a useful metric for gauging a CPU's ability to stream Plex. The guidance on this forum is to have a passmark rating of about 2000 for each media stream. So if you want to run two consecutive streams a Passmark score of 4000 is recommended. As a rule of thumb there may be some slop in that, and you might get away with two streams on a Celeron G1840, which has a Passmark score of 2939. http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php If you look at bang for buck (Passmark divided by cost) in the <$100 processor range the Pentium G3258 is king. With a Passmark score of 3977 it should be able to deliver two Plex streams handily. I would build a system around that CPU and make whatever other compromises needed to get that minimum level of performance. Plus if you find you need more horsepower in the future you can replace the G3258 with an i7 or whatever.

The stock cooler on the Xeon E3-1231v3 is pretty darn quiet too. If you opt for the Xeon CPU I'd suggest trying the stock cooler and see if that's sufficient.

I'd probably opt for the Seasonic over that Corsair PSU. In recent reviews at HardOCP, the G 450 fared much better than the CS550M. It's probably safe to assume that the CS450M won't be much different from its big brother. http://www.hardocp.com/article/2014/04/03/seasonic_gseries_g450_power_supply_review/9 http://www.hardocp.com/article/2014/01/15/corsair_cs550m_550w_power_supply_review/9

I'm looking at PCPartPicker.com and the Toshiba drives come up as cheapest $/TB for 4TB and above. Anyone have opinions, or better yet experience, regarding the use of these in unRAID? Newegg reviews are limited: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822149569

I think that is called win-win

if you're going with a discrete GPU then I suggest getting a Xeon E3 v3 such as the 1231 or the 1240. i7 performance at i5 price. it has all the VM features and gives you the option of using ECC RAM.

Gotta keep the boss happy! ;-) Either Kabini or Haswell will give you a low power system, you just want to be sure that you get the one that meets your performance needs. Gary's point about single thread performance is worth considering. The Pentium G3258 has a passmark Single Thread rating of 2175, whereas the Athlon 5350 has a Single Thread rating of 810 ( http://www.cpubenchmark.net/singleThread.html ). I wouldn't take it for granted that more cores is going to mean better performance for what you need your system to do. You might do a bit more web surfing trying to find performance metrics on these two processors for a range of different benchmark software. I checked out CPUBoss and the Pentium wins in every performance category. It may be more than you actually need, but I'm fairly certain that it will be far better value for your purchase dollars.

I'd consider an Intel CPU and motherboard from the Haswell line. They are generally very power efficient, particularly when idle. Something like a Pentiuim G3258 would outperform the AMD 5350 at near the same purchase price and probably with lower overall power consumption. Worth looking into anyhow.

In comparing the Xeon E3-1231 v3 against the E3-1241 v3, I looked at the cost per unit of performance. Because prices are so dynamic this comparison will be stale in a day or two. PC Partpicker shows the 1231 available at $232: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646e31231v3 And the 1241 is available at $255: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646e31241v3 Based on the Passmark numbers Gary quoted above, the Passmark/$ for each is: 1231 41.24 1241 39.48 If you don't see a need for that extra little bit of performance headroom, my recommendation would be to purchase the 1231 v3.

If you want to be sure about the X650 PSU, pick up a Kill-A-Watt or its equivalent and measure the current draw of your system at bootup and during parity check. No household should be without a Kill-A-Watt anyhow, so you'll just be fulfilling your civic duty if you don't already have one.

Anyone downloading a Windows executable off an unknown server should take appropriate protections to prevent a malware infection. An unknown application from a Russion server doesn't inspire a high dgreee of trust.