dream my GREEN dream?

[nyker96]

I have been reading several sites on building a Green office machine that runs fast yet consumes very little. Here's some candidate, need some good advice to fill out the actually parts for the build.

CPU: E73xx or E8xxx (pretty decent 45nm chips light on power)
m.b.: G33 for on board graphics OR DS3L w. a cheap PCI-e card (good for OCing later in needed)
RAM: 2x2GB G Skill (2 sticks better than 4 for power saving)
HDs: WD GreenPower or Samsung Spinpoint F1 series
PSU: earthwatts series or corsair HXs ( most important for their 80+ rating)
case: P182 or something silent.
HSF: Tuniq 120 or Vendetta 2 (no point not keeping the CPU nice and cool here)

I'd appreciate any suggestions from people with some experience in this.

I haven't made up my mind on OCing yet not sure how much impact will have on things.

ANother temping thing is AMD's X4 9100E with 780G. I must say 780G is a very very good chipset, loaded with features. And supposedly runs on very low power.

 

[lightstar]

hmm, green computer- sounds like an oxymoron. . . .prob a good idea though; my comps crunch 24/7 like gas guzzlers. . . .the new gigabyte motherboards have power saving features; i think they add the letters EP to the model- there's one for the DS3L. . . .best of luck

 

[aigomorla]

lol.... i am going for a greener cruncher/server.

The route i decided to go on was the sossoman setup, using dual laptop yonah processors.

Makes the system a quadcore dual cpu system off laptop processors!

http://i125.photobucket.com/al...aigomorla/IMG_1079.jpg


Totally wattage off the wall is said to be somewhere near 100-130W loaded.

Few things about a green system.

1. pay a little bit more and go passive. Since the system draws such little heat, the passive option is only a 10-15% addon to the price.

 

[boomhower]

Originally posted by: lightstar
hmm, green computer- sounds like an oxymoron. . . .prob a good idea though; my comps crunch 24/7 like gas guzzlers. . . .the new gigabyte motherboards have power saving features; i think they add the letters EP to the model- there's one for the DS3L. . . .best of luck

The new gigabytes were the first thing that popped in my head as well. But I don't know how the total power draw would work out when you add a dedicated GPU compared to integrated.

 

[theAnimal]

CPU AMD X2 4850e - 45W
MB GeForce 8200 based - lowest power consumption in Anandtech's recent comparison
HDD Velociraptor - very fast and uses very little power
PSU Seasonic SS-300ES - 80plus and much more appropriately sized - 80Plus doesn't mean always over 80, only tested at 20, 50 and 100%

 

[nyker96]

Thanks guys I'm gonna look into this EP version of DS3L. Good info! I also thinking about a 2.5" HD drive, heard they are very low in power consumption but performance is slow though. @theAnimal, I think velociraptor is outta my price range but may be a good suggestion to look into. Thanks, Seasonic always a top of the line consideration. However, I don't see them to be too much more power saving compare to corsair/earthwatt duo yet. But will do more research now you brought them up. Thanks for suggesting.

 

[AmberClad]

Heh, when I read the title of the thread, I assumed he meant a double-green AMD/Nvidia platform. Don't get me started on that whole EPU vs DES spat...I wish Gigabyte and ASUS would just leave each other alone :roll:.

 

[dv8silencer]

just paint your case green

 

[nyker96]

Originally posted by: AmberClad
Heh, when I read the title of the thread, I assumed he meant a double-green AMD/Nvidia platform. Don't get me started on that whole EPU vs DES spat...I wish Gigabyte and ASUS would just leave each other alone :roll:.

Well since we got CPU->GPU why not EPU? Anyways, I thought this EPU is only implemented on higher end m.b. with multuphasic power plant. Anyways, I think the most efficient m.b. are still the low end simple ones. But what is DES? ok .. maybe not go there. :]

@dv8silencer thanks! I ... never quite thought of that :}

but seriously, any suggestions on LCDs that's more power efficient than the rest?

 

[hans007]

i actually more or less built the machine you are thinking of building.

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2190646&enterthread=y



except i used a e7200 and a g31 board.


that said, skip the video card unless you are gaming. most video cards use at least 15-20watts idle. and something like an 8800GTS probably uses 30 or something.

my entire computer uses 47-50 watts @ idle.

according to intel's spec, if you use only integrated video, the chipset itself uses less power than with a video card installed since it doesnt have to drive the pci-e x16 port.

if you can get away with less fans, they generally save you about 2 watts a piece also , so use as few case fans as possible.

 

[DSF]

Originally posted by: nyker96
Thanks guys I'm gonna look into this EP version of DS3L. Good info! I also thinking about a 2.5" HD drive, heard they are very low in power consumption but performance is slow though. @theAnimal, I think velociraptor is outta my price range but may be a good suggestion to look into. Thanks, Seasonic always a top of the line consideration. However, I don't see them to be too much more power saving compare to corsair/earthwatt duo yet. But will do more research now you brought them up. Thanks for suggesting.

The Earthwatts line and most of Corsair's PSUs are made by Seasonic.

 

[Duvie]

You want a green computer....Turn the Goddamn thing off when you aren't using it....That is likely most peoples main issue. Most of us use the system for 3-4 hours max a day if not using it as a work or school machine....If you use it for work at home perhaps that balloons to 10-12hours.

Other then that it still is one of the biggest power draws in the house.....All this crap you are wasting a few bucks on here and there will amount to small amounts and maybe save you a few bucks during the month


I stopped F@H for exactly the reason of power use and AC load....The whole concpet is not green. If the IRS let us write off those expenditures as tax related charitable work I would continue....but they dont so I stopped. I had 3 boxes running full time (2 duals, and 1 quad) and when I stopped in the winter time no less, I saw a near 30 dollar drop in my electric rate. No added heating was needed because my home was like a sauna and in the winter I had to run the AC. In the summer it could have been more if I watched it...

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: Duvie
You want a green computer....Turn the Goddamn thing off when you aren't using it....

:\

server cant not go down at my house. If it does it will make a lot of family members very angry. Which is why im finally going enterprise platform without overclocking.

You have 4TB of storage and information go down, and see if that makes you happy.

Seems like the house server got more and more important each month that goes by seeing how its the one computer in my entire arsenal that hasnt had a down time ever since conception.

Well, minus the flushes it needs. :T


And its always on load. So like the OP, my option was to truely find a greener alternative.

 

[ther00kie16]

Well, if you are looking for an efficient power supply, at least check out the new 80 Plus categories. There are now Bronze, Silver and Gold categories in addition to the original one. And Dell seems to have a couple of PSUs with >90% efficiency @ lower power draws. They are only 255 watt models, but you won't need much for a "green" pc.

 

[nyker96]

@hans007: This is fantastic! 50W for entire system?! How's your load power usage? I will most likely OC mine though cause I OC almost everything I get my hands on. I use a 3.1Ghz E2140 M0 at home and it's about 65W idle 110W loaded. So I am wondering if the system post OC can still be efficient. As for EW 380 I'd get the 500W version for any future expansion. But yeah I think 380W will probably be more than enough for such a machine. I agree with ya on integrated been much more power efficient. But if I get a G33 I forgo my option to OC the rig later. But we'll see.

@Duvie: yeah I'm doing that as well, even put the router on a switch so I can turn them off at night. I agree use only when needed = big energy savings. But I do use it to encode H264 quite a bit so have to turn it on like 10 hours a day at least for encoding jobs.

@ther00kie16, DSF: thanks for tips on PSU. I'd love to get a >90% if possible. Doing a bit research tonight on it. I think I'd love a 500W but if I get get a 90%+ I would go with it, probably 300W is enough for the system I'm building w/ integrated g-card. Damn, so many choices and compromises to work out. Thanks for the info!

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: ther00kie16
Well, if you are looking for an efficient power supply, at least check out the new 80 Plus categories. There are now Bronze, Silver and Gold categories in addition to the original one. And Dell seems to have a couple of PSUs with >90% efficiency @ lower power draws. They are only 255 watt models, but you won't need much for a "green" pc.

i refuse to believe dell makes a better psu then seasonic and etasis.

:T

great site tho, but im still in denial.

 

[Yanagi]

Thats because Dell are not making them. These are OEM PSUs. Now I dont know which manufacturer but why is that figure so hard to believe?

 

[Acanthus]

I will make up for your savings by increasing my OC 200 mhz and up about .11v

As for green... Id get an E7200 and undervolt the hell out of it.

 

[wwswimming]

lower power consumption is one thing.

if you've ever worked around electronics manufacturing, e.g. in Silicon Valley
in the '80's ... there's a lot of pollution involved. all we've done with that is
push manufacturing offshore so that the citizens of Tijuana Taiwan etc. can
live with the effluents.

nothing green about that.

so then there's the option of buying a used computer - but that will usually have
higher power consumption.

hard to nail this one down.

 

[Markfw]

green and overclocking sounds like an oxymoron....

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: Markfw900
green and overclocking sounds like an oxymoron....

lol people said that about the lexus GS450 hybrid.

 

[AmberClad]

Oh god, after reading about the latest round in that "energy saving" spat (ASUS is apparently suing GIGABYTE now), I'm just shaking my head at this whole eco fad. To make it worse, MSI and Foxconn are getting in on the trend too...I foresee a whole lot more mudslinging all around about whose energy saving features are better and whose is pure fluff, etc :roll:.

Energy-saver features lexicon for those not keeping up:

ASUS - EPU (Energy Processing Unit)
GIGABYTE - DES (Dynamic Energy Saver)
MSI - Dr. MOS
Foxconn - Green Series / 3G

In practice, I think GIGABYTE's DES is probably the only one proven to actually show decent results as far as energy usage. (and now I'll probably find a court summons from ASUS in my inbox ...)

 

[Martimus]

This is the HTPC I was about to build until I realized that Linux doesn't support Bluray. I tried to make it consume as little power as I could to keep the cooling low enough to mak e a silent box. Too bad I never got to build it

Antec New Solution NSK2480

Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H 780G uATX MB

AMD Athlon X2 4450e 45W CPU

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB HD

Lite-On SATA Blu-ray drive

For $500, but I hadn't picked out some RAM yet.

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: Martimus
This is the HTPC I was about to build until I realized that Linux doesn't support Bluray. I tried to make it consume as little power as I could to keep the cooling low enough to mak e a silent box. Too bad I never got to build it

Antec New Solution NSK2480

Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H 780G uATX MB

AMD Athlon X2 4450e 45W CPU

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB HD

Lite-On SATA Blu-ray drive

For $500, but I hadn't picked out some RAM yet.

LOL.... Almost identical on my friends HTPC setup.

Same hardware minus the cpu. Instead i put a tricore phenom inside. I should of gotten her the BE tho. :\

 

[taltamir]

the most important aspect of environmentalism is the SOURCE of your power...

If you move to a 100% renewable energy plan you pay a little more per kwh. But the more you waste the BETTER. By WASTING more kwh you are paying more to a renewable source (that does no damage to environment) which in turn subsedizes the construction and reseach of more renewable energy sources, in turn decreasing the cost of renewable and making MORE people make the switch.

Paying more money for a slightly more efficient machine = pollute a little less...
Paying more money for green power = 0 pollution, and the more power you waste the better off the environment cause it is cheaper for other people to make the switch...


I utilize power savings everywhere it makes sense ECONOMICALLY. I calculate to the cent the cost per year on EVERY part that I purchase. And I know exactly how much money i save/waste by buying each part, corrolate it with it's expected lifetime, and make a "cost of ownership" chart to see how much it will cost to own AND operate a device...

Correct environmentalism has nothing to do with power savings.