May 6, 201214 yr Hi everyone! After a long time trawling this forum finding as much useful info as possible I think I have a suitable build... I want to build an unRaid server that at first will just be 3 drives but eventually expandable up to 12 as my media collection grows. I plan on using it for sabnzbd, couch potato, sickbeard and Plex. Since it will need to be able to transcode for plex I have gone for a more powerful CPU and 4Gb of RAM. Below is the list of components that I am have got so far. Any feedback on bad choices or better options would be greatly appreciated. Case: Antec 300 http://www.dabs.com/products/antec-300-three-hundred-case-black-6252.html?refs=50882 MoBo: Asus M5A78L-M LX V2 http://www.ebuyer.com/319620-asus-mb-m5a78l-m-lx-v2-amd-am3-uatx-90-mibfw0-g0eay00z-m5a78l-m-lx-v2# CPU:AMD Phenom II X4 965 http://www.amazon.co.uk/AMD-HDZ965FBGMBOX-Phenom-II-965/dp/B002SRQ214/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1336321487&sr=1-1 PSU: Corsair CX430 V2 http://www.dabs.com/products/corsair-430-watt-cx430-v2-builder-series-80-plus-power-supply-7K9K.html RAM: Kingston (2x2GB) DDR3 1333MHz http://www.ebuyer.com/234976-kingston-4gb-2x2gb-ddr3-1333mhz-hyperx-blu-memory-kit-khx1333c9d3b1k2-4g From my understanding I do not require any extra cages or SATA cards untill I expand past 6 drives. I need to purchase the 2TB parity drive and the flash drive to boot from so any suggestions for would be helpful. Most importantly do my choices above make sense and will they do want I want them to do (stream 1080p to HTPC and transcode for plex)? Thank you in advance!
May 7, 201214 yr Author OK so I have been doing some more research into hard drives for the system that I have proposed above and I have a few questions. With the power supply that I have chosen above will I need to stick to green drives to make it up to the 12 drives maximum that I am planning for? I have decided to buy two 3TB drives to go with the 2TB one I already have but I am unsure which is the best option. This is what I have so far: Seagate 3TB 7200RPM - £124 http://www.dabs.com/products/seagate-3tb-barracuda-sata-6gb-s-64mb-7200rpm-3-5--hard-drive-7W95.html?refs=54060000&src=3 Hitachi Deskstar 5K3000 3TB 5400RPM - £141 http://www.morecomputers.com/extra.asp?pn=0F12460 WD WD30EURS AV-GP 3TB 5400RPM - £137.50http://www.ebuyer.com/269098-wd-wd30eurs-av-gp-3tb-3-5-sataii-64mb-enterprise-hard-drive-wd30eurs?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products As the most power hungry is also the cheapest I would like your opinion on whether I should pay more for the greener options. Should I spread my bets and buy different makes and will they work with the set-up above?
May 7, 201214 yr Author Thank you for the input. Is this PSU a better option: Corsair CX600 http://www.dabs.com/products/corsair-memory-600w-builder-series-cx-v2-atx-psu-7JSQ.html?refs=50113&src=3 Also out of the drives I have mentioned above is there a best one to use as the parity drive or does it not matter?
May 7, 201214 yr Just read here: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=12219.0 Lots of info about PSUs. Don't underestimate the importance of a PSU. Better have one with some headroom. I lean towards Hitachi when it concerns harddisks, but I am a little biased against WDs, had a lot of trouble with WD20EARS the last year. Remember when you want to use 3TB drives as data-disk, you also will need a 3 TB parity drive.
May 7, 201214 yr Author OK after reading that thread I am going to go for a modular PSU. I am opting for the following: Corsair TX550M : http://www.ebuyer.com/279548-corsair-tx550m-550w-modular-power-supply-cp-9020001-uk?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products As far as Hard drives I think I am going to get one Hitatchi and one Seagate.
May 7, 201214 yr Author Can someone tell me what the difference is between the following motherboards: Asus M5A78L-M LX V2 http://www.ebuyer.com/319620-asus-mb-m5a78l-m-lx-v2-amd-am3-uatx-90-mibfw0-g0eay00z-m5a78l-m-lx-v2 Asus M5A78L-M LX http://www.ebuyer.com/269070-asus-m5a78l-m-lx-amd-socket-am3-8-channel-hd-audio-matx-motherboard-m5a78l-m-lx The V2 is a little bit cheaper but i don't know if I am missing something...They seem identical!
May 8, 201214 yr Author OK I think I am ready to start buying everything. Below is the list of components that I am planning to purchase: Case: Antec 300 http://www.dabs.com/products/antec-300-three-hundred-case-black-6252.html?refs=50882 MoBo: Asus M5A78L-M LX V2 http://www.ebuyer.com/319620-asus-mb-m5a78l-m-lx-v2-amd-am3-uatx-90-mibfw0-g0eay00z-m5a78l-m-lx-v2# CPU:AMD Phenom II X4 965 http://www.amazon.co.uk/AMD-HDZ965FBGMBOX-Phenom-II-965/dp/B002SRQ214/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1336321487&sr=1-1 PSU: Corsair TX550M : http://www.ebuyer.com/279548-corsair-tx550m-550w-modular-power-supply-cp-9020001-uk?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products RAM: Kingston (2x2GB) DDR3 1333MHz http://www.ebuyer.com/234976-kingston-4gb-2x2gb-ddr3-1333mhz-hyperx-blu-memory-kit-khx1333c9d3b1k2-4g HDD: 1x Seagate 3TB 7200RPM http://www.dabs.com/products/seagate-3tb-barracuda-sata-6gb-s-64mb-7200rpm-3-5--hard-drive-7W95.html?refs=54060000&src=3 1x Hitachi Deskstar 5K3000 3TB 5400RPMhttp://www.morecomputers.com/extra.asp?pn=0F12460 Flash Drive: http://www.dabs.com/products/lexar-jumpdrive-firefly---usb-flash-drive---8-gb---usb-2-0---charcoal-7536.html?refs=55980000&src=3 Is there anything extra that I need to buy (Cables?). I will wait for a few days or until someone approves of this build then I will bite the bullet and start spending all of my money...
May 8, 201214 yr Maybe another motherboard: http://lime-technology.com/forum/index.php?topic=19718.msg175265#msg175265
May 8, 201214 yr Author The Motherboard that is recommended in that thread (BIOSTAR A880G+) does not seem to be available in the UK... I am going to post in the Motherboard part of the forum to see if anyone has any alternatives.
May 8, 201214 yr Author Both of those are more readily available in the UK The MSI board is the more expensive board so what advantages does it hold over the Asrock. Thanks for the help by the way!
May 8, 201214 yr Both of those are more readily available in the UK The MSI board is the more expensive board so what advantages does it hold over the Asrock. Thanks for the help by the way! It's got more PCIe ports, so more expansion possibilities for SATA controllers, if ever you gonna need some. Also a lot of mumbo-jumbo you won't need in a server.
May 8, 201214 yr Author Am I right in thinking that the Asrock has enough PCIe connections for expansion up to the 12 drives that I plan for? If it does then I think I will opt for that over the MSI.
May 8, 201214 yr You can add an 8-port controller(SASLP or M1015) in the PCIe 16x port. That would bring your total to 14-ports.
May 8, 201214 yr Author Right, Hopefully this is the final line-up after using all of the advice I have received through this thread: Case: Antec 300 http://www.dabs.com/products/antec-300-three-hundred-case-black-6252.html?refs=50882 MoBo: ASRock 880GM-LE FX http://www.amazon.co.uk/ASRock-880GM-LE-FX-Motherboard-Processor/dp/B0072X9194/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1336492200&sr=1-1 CPU:AMD Phenom II X4 965 http://www.amazon.co.uk/AMD-HDZ965FBGMBOX-Phenom-II-965/dp/B002SRQ214/ref=sr_1_1?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1336321487&sr=1-1 PSU: Corsair TX550M : http://www.ebuyer.com/279548-corsair-tx550m-550w-modular-power-supply-cp-9020001-uk?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products RAM: Kingston (2x2GB) DDR3 1333MHz http://www.ebuyer.com/234976-kingston-4gb-2x2gb-ddr3-1333mhz-hyperx-blu-memory-kit-khx1333c9d3b1k2-4g HDD: 1x Seagate 3TB 7200RPM http://www.dabs.com/products/seagate-3tb-barracuda-sata-6gb-s-64mb-7200rpm-3-5--hard-drive-7W95.html?refs=54060000&src=3 1x Hitachi Deskstar 5K3000 3TB 5400RPMhttp://www.morecomputers.com/extra.asp?pn=0F12460 Flash Drive: http://www.dabs.com/products/lexar-jumpdrive-firefly---usb-flash-drive---8-gb---usb-2-0---charcoal-7536.html?refs=55980000&src=3 Will I need to buy any extra fans or should I just build and see if the temps are too high!
May 8, 201214 yr Looks good. How many fans come wih the case? Maybe add 1 or 2 in front of the drives if neccesary.
May 8, 201214 yr Author Ok while looking at the specs of the Antec 300 case to see how may fans it has (2) I have found out that it has 3x5.25 bays and 6x3.5 bays. Since I am aiming for 12 HDD max this case does not seem big enough. Am I missing something or do I have to find an alternative? Also does not seem to support Micro-ATX.
May 8, 201214 yr I was abou to ask the same question. Even adding a 5 in 3 cage in the 5.25 bays will get you 11 3.5 inch places. Those cages are rather expensive though. Fractal Design has some nice ones: http://www.dabs.com/category/components-and-storage,cases--cooling-and-power,cases/11145-50006
May 8, 201214 yr Author I have been looking for alternatives: Xigmatek UTGARD - £59 http://www.xigmatek.com/product.php?productid=26&type=overview NZXT Tempest 410 - £65http://www.ebuyer.com/291687-nzxt-tempest-410-elite-black-case-t410e-001?utm_source=google&utm_medium=products Antec 900 - £85 http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000JMJS7A/ref=asc_df_B000JMJS7A7778731?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE& Which do you think is best? Any other options?
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