thinking of building a 24/7 folding machine, suggestions?

I was thinking a server type mother board would be best, but I'm open to better ATX's if possible. I won't use the system at all and I want it to be not only small but also very quiet.

I read some article sating hardware for folding differs from the norm, so I want the best specifically for folding. Some part suggestions would be very appreciated.

as long as it's not over a grand, I'll be fine with the price.

 

Buy a PS3, it would be the cheapest and most powerful option.

 

I already have one, but I don't want to leave it running all day. I run folding randomly with that thing.

 

Donate money to someone with a proper server who folds.

Running your own PC just for folding is a big waste of money and electricity.

Just run it on your own PC when it isn't doing anything, and support the folding project by donating.

 

QFT :cheers:

I fully agree there, buddy.

 

If you realy want to drop money, then a quad pcie slot motherboard with 4 3850's (4850s?) and a quad core would dominate. But I am not sure the gpu core can fold on multipule cards? I did see where somthing similar was done with 4 gx2 for medical imaging and it beat out a million dollar super computer. http://www.techpowerup.com/index.php?61702

 

Wouldn't it be cheaper to just buy a PS3?

The folding performance is meant to be excellent as that is what its cpu is good at.

 

Couldn't agree more. I don't see what the big thrill is with folding. All it does it cost a lot of money and generates a lot of heat. I genuinely can't see the thrill in seeing who can get the most points. I tried it for a few weeks on all my pcs and PS3 and all it did was cost me a fortune in electricity and made most of rooms hot !

 

These are my temps while folding 100% cpu usage all cores q6600 at 3.0ghz
q6600 just dont get hot unless you have a poor cooling solution.

Motherboard Name Abit IN9 32X

Temperatures
Motherboard 37 °C (99 °F)
CPU 48 °C (118 °F)
CPU #1 / Core #1 61 °C (142 °F)
CPU #1 / Core #2 58 °C (136 °F)
CPU #1 / Core #3 55 °C (131 °F)
CPU #1 / Core #4 55 °C (131 °F)
PWM1 69 °C (156 °F)
PWM2 69 °C (156 °F)
PWM3 70 °C (158 °F)
PWM4 67 °C (153 °F)
PWM5 66 °C (151 °F)
GPU1: GPU 62 °C (144 °F)
GPU1: GPU Diode 69 °C (156 °F)
GPU1: GPU Ambient 58 °C (136 °F)
GPU2: GPU 62 °C (144 °F)
GPU2: GPU Diode 67 °C (153 °F)
GPU2: GPU Ambient 59 °C (138 °F)

Cooling Fans
CPU 1320 RPM
GPU1 1502 RPM (60%)
GPU2 1757 RPM (60%)

Voltage Values
CPU Core 1.32 V
+3.3 V 3.32 V
+5 V 5.07 V
+12 V 12.00 V
+12 V 4-pin 12.06 V
+5 V Standby 5.13 V
CPU VTT 1.21 V
North Bridge Core 1.39 V
South Bridge Core 1.52 V
HyperTransport 1.44 V
DIMM 1.88 V
DIMM VTT 0.94 V
GPU1: GPU Vcc 3.15 V
GPU2: GPU Vcc 3.17 V

oh and the thrill is if a cure is found by team Guru although it's a huge team effort from all teams..

largest supercomputer in the world, and free to use.

 

Cost pretty minimal? running 4 pcs each with fairly hefty graphics cards, 2-5 hard drives each and dual / quad core processors? Oh and not forgetting 500-1000 watt PSU's? Trust me, i pay the electricity bill and it's not cheap.

a PS3 folding 24/7 uses a ridiculous amount of electricity as well.

 

So i suppose the only logical way to save money whilst folding on your gaming pcs, is to strip the unneccesary components out before starting the folding?

I didn't say the quad core box uses less electricity, its fairly obvious that's not the case, i was merely stating that leaving your PS3 to fold 24/7 is far more expensive than you think.

 

wait a minute, computers don't cost much electricity, i got 5 computers in the house and 3 of them stay on 24/7, the cost in electricity.. practically doesn't exist, maybe its because i live in Dubai, pretty cheap here, what really takes a toll is running six 2 ton Airconditioners (I'm going to hell for wasting all that energy)

 

You'll be fine as long as you bring the air conditioners with you !