Seeking parts advice - first time unRaid builder

[Fishbits]

I'm looking to order parts and build my first unRAID rig in the next couple of weeks.  A couple of things are on sale right now, so I wanted to run my current parts list past this forum to seek advice, corrections, confirmations...

I've only been looking into this recently and haven't had time to bring myself completely up to speed on parts.  Hopefully this will be a good kickstart for me and help get things rolling. 

 

Since the P5B-VM DO boards are all but extinct now, I've been looking at some of the more frequently mentioned alternatives.  The ABIT AB9 Pro is currently on sale at NewEgg, plus there is a MIR that knocks the total price down to $49.99.  I am currently thinking either that board or the Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3R.

 

So, my parts list so far:

 

Mobo: Abit AB9 Pro

Mobo-alternate: GA-EP35-DS3R

Memory: Crucial Ballistix (2 x 1GB)  - I know I only need 1GB total, but the price delta between 1GB and 2GB is marginal so why not future proof. 

Memory  --  If I get the Abit mobo:  DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model BL2KIT12864AA804

Memory  --  If I get the Gigabyte mobo: DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model BL2KIT12864AA804

Case: Coolermaster Stacker 830

CPU: E4500 Allendale Core 2 Duo  2.2GHz

Video: Something cheap, possibly passively cooled

SATA Backplane: AMS 5-in-3 backplane -- Likely just buy all 3 of these at once to keep it looking tidy.

PSU: haven't decided yet.  Sounds like the current line of thought is to get something with a single 12V rail to better handle the draw during startup.

 

The boards all have built in LAN support, but it seem like a fair number of posts here show people also buying dedicated cards.  I'll probably try the onboard in the beginning unless someone thinks that is a bad idea.  I don't mind dropping $50 on a NIC card.  (How would this do:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833106005 ??)

 

I can't wait to get something put together so I can resume ripping my library.  I've currently got a pair of 500GB drives in my HTPC that are quickly approaching capacity.

 

Any advice is appreciated!! 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest Sparkie]

Hey Fishbits,

 

I have both the Abit AB9 Pro and the Gigabyte GA-EP35-DSR. I have setup Unraid on both boards.

 

Here are my recommendations for you and reasons.

 

Gigabyte Board- All 8 Sata ports work reliably. Abit board was hit and miss. Gigabyte board was easier to boot from USB.

Corsair XMS2 - Better compatibility with Motherboard. (Only use 1 GB RAM in Unraid, use the other stick in another machine. Unraid wont use near 1 GB)

Case - Whatever you like (Gigabyte board is mATX..check compatibility)

CPU - 4500 is great (future proof).

SATA Backplane - Whichever you prefer. Look into the ICY Docks. They are nice.

Video - Passive cooled...cheapest you can find.

PSU - Corsair 620HX (Great Quality. Lots of power for all the hardrives. Modular so you only use the cables you need)

Network Card - Get the Intel card. It will perform better and is more reliable than the onboard. Intel has great drivers for Linux.

 

*TIP* the Intel proc. needs lots of forced when installing.Its kind of ridiculous. Don't be shy  Expect the motherboard to flex atleast a centimeter when installing it. Its stupid how much pressure is needed with the stock fans. I recommend pushing one of the pins near the backplate first. It will be easier to put the pressure on the the last pin because it has more room around it.

 

Good Luck.

 

 

 

[GaryT]

Fishbits,

 

Sparkie is right, the Gigabyte board is a great choice (I am also using this board). I was using the AB9 pro before  Unraid 4.3beta was released. I had issues with the on-board LAN and the JMicron controller for Sata ports 8 and 9. I'm pretty sure that both problems have been fixed with Unraid 4.3beta, and for about $50.00 from Newegg or Fry's you really can't go wrong with this board.

 

Good luck with your build. I think if you choose either one of these boards you will be very happy.

 

Gary T.

[Fishbits]

 

Thanks for the info guys.

 

 

 

Corsair XMS2 - Better compatibility with Motherboard. (Only use 1 GB RAM in Unraid, use the other stick in another machine. Unraid wont use near 1 GB)

 

 

Sparkie, for the corsair memory, I can't find any specific parts called out on the Gigabyte website's compatibility list.  I've never really had any problems with board/ram matching in the past, but since everyone here seems to have a lot of experience with this specific hardware I figure it won't hurt to ask    This seems to be my DDR2 800 option from newegg:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145040  Thoughts?

 

I appreciate the help guys.  I'm hoping to have everything sorted out and ordered in the next week or so.

[fotd]

 

Thanks for the info guys.

 

 

 

Corsair XMS2 - Better compatibility with Motherboard. (Only use 1 GB RAM in Unraid, use the other stick in another machine. Unraid wont use near 1 GB)

 

 

Sparkie, for the corsair memory, I can't find any specific parts called out on the Gigabyte website's compatibility list.  I've never really had any problems with board/ram matching in the past, but since everyone here seems to have a lot of experience with this specific hardware I figure it won't hurt to ask    This seems to be my DDR2 800 option from newegg:  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145040  Thoughts?

 

I appreciate the help guys.  I'm hoping to have everything sorted out and ordered in the next week or so.

 

I can't speak for that particular board, but typically those ram matching problems stem from the voltage.  Some boards don't like to go over 2.0V on the memory and some memory needs in the 2.1V range.  I'm pretty sure that's where most of the matching issues come in, or people running the memory at the default 1.8 when they need to be at 2.1V.  For instance a lot of the OCZ memory needs to be closer to 2.1, I experienced a few issues until I upped it from 1.8.  So what you need to is verify that board will allow you to change the memory voltage (almost all of them do now).  By the way the corsair memory is rated for 2.1V, but in my experience will typically work fine in the 1.8-9 range.

 

A suggestion though, you may want to go with 2x1GB instead of 2x512, just for future upgrades sake.  There has been talk that getting up to 4GB isn't to far off for Unraid and since the price difference is pretty small I would just go with a 2x1GB pack for now.

[WeeboTech]

A suggestion though, you may want to go with 2x1GB instead of 2x512, just for future upgrades sake.  There has been talk that getting up to 4GB isn't to far off for Unraid and since the price difference is pretty small I would just go with a 2x1GB pack for now.

 

4GB usable memory for unRaid is available now in the Beta Version.

(depends on your chipset, mine sees 3.2 GB).

 

 

[limetech]

4GB usable memory for unRaid is available now in the Beta Version.

(depends on your chipset, mine sees 3.2 GB).

 

Where did 800M go???  Perhaps used by on-board video??

[Vynce]

4GB usable memory for unRaid is available now in the Beta Version.

(depends on your chipset, mine sees 3.2 GB).

 

Where did 800M go???  Perhaps used by on-board video??

 

All 32-bit systems can only address up to 4GB of memory. Most systems use the upper ~700MB of address space for memory mapped I/O -- most onboard hardware is assigned memory addresses to make access easier and faster. There's an option in the kernel to enable physical address extension (PAE). This enables the kernel to address more than 4GB of memory on a 32-bit system (with a performance hit though). Some BIOSs allow you to remap the memory addresses used by hardware to above the 4GB mark so that you regain access to the missing ~700MB. Apparently this also requires support in the processor.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physical_Address_Extension

[Guest Sparkie]

Fishbits,

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145590

 

There is a $25 mail-in rebate for the above two sticks.  I used those with the Gigabyte Board and they worked great without having to change any settings. Just set the BIos settings to Auto.

[Fishbits]

Fishbits,

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145590

 

There is a $25 mail-in rebate for the above two sticks.  I used those with the Gigabyte Board and they worked great without having to change any settings. Just set the BIos settings to Auto.

 

Sparkie, thanks for the info.  I'm just getting back to looking at all this again and unfortunately missed the rebate time limit 

 

Thanks everyone for the responses so far.  At this point, after reading more posts and talking to friends, it sounds like the Gigabyte board is going to be my winner.  Going to slap 2GB of ram on it as well.  Now I'm just trying to decide on the case   My local Fry's has the Stacker 830 for a decent price.  It's a little large, but they don't carry anything else with 9 front bays like the Coolermaster Centurion 590.

 

Any other opinions out there on PSUs?  I'm starting light with only 3 or 4 drives, but I'm building to max out at 15.  Initial drives are all 500GB SATA II.

 

Probably going to load the case with some good 120mm fans as well.  Any recommendations for quiet fans?  I'm using a SilenX iXtrema 120mm fan with my HTPC and love how quiet it is.