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Hot!Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did

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cotter32
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2024/08/24 20:26:41 (permalink)
As you all know Supermicro makes industrial grade server computers,
but they also throw out a few gaming motherboards from time to time , so I bought one .
Got a C9 Z790-CGW .  The same board that holds the number six spot on HWBOT's
world record CPU frequency leader board @ 8725.49 MHz ( on liquid nitrogen w/13900K ) .
I just have an EKWB liquid cooler, but hey, I'll see what I can do with it :)
 
Below is the GAMDIAS case, and Supermicro Z790 mainboard .

 
Below is the Supermicro C9Z790-CGW in the GAMDIAS case

 
This is an inexpensive case made of steel and plastic ( I'm not made out of money, after-all ) .
I chose it because it's lightweight, and is friendly to horizontal builds like I like .  It can also be used upright .
 
Below is another view of the installed board .

 
This board has an LED debug code display, and beep speaker built in .  I like those, and haven't had them since my last
EVGA motherboard .  The Z370 Classified K that I'm using right now .  Still the fastest booting computer that I have,
so it gets the most internet and computer chores work .  Never lets me down .
 
Next below are the incredibly expensive EKWB radiator, and cold plate/pump/reservoir combo unit for intel socket 1700 motherboards .
 
 
It's an EK 420 radiator, and EK Quantum VelocitySquared pump unit .  Costly, but handy to make your own AIO, and using the EKWB fittings
and tubing ( with just a tiny, tiny film of vaseline on the outside ends of the fitting barbs ) it is easy to have a 100% leak free water cooler on the first try .
I hate leaks, and don't want to deal with them, so I pay more money .  Oh, the pump is lighted too, if you like that, and is high volume and very quiet .
 
Below is the radiator and pump installed with one of the Noctua redux 140mm fans on it .  The redux fans are cheaper, with less accessories, but still whisper silent .

 
Below is another shot of the pump unit showing a better view of the layer cake design .

 
It is PWM controlled, and PCIe powered .  The construction is nickel plated bronze, and acrylic plastic .  Build quality is excellent .  The back plate is excellent .
If you ever fill one, note that you have to tilt the computer to a vertical position to get the pump to prime .  After that, it works very well .
 
That's all for now, the thing is already built and running, but I must stop posting, and eat dinner and go to bed early, so I can work OT tomorrow
to pay for all this stuff !
 
Too The Moon, on a Super-rocket !
 
 
#1

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    rjohnson11
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/25 04:07:35 (permalink)
    This is looking great. I love that color. 

    AMD Ryzen 9 7950X,  Corsair Mp700 Pro M.2, 64GB Corsair Dominator Titanium DDR5  X670E Steel Legend, MSI RTX 4090 Associate Code: H5U80QBH6BH0AXF. I am NOT an employee of EVGA

    #2
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/25 17:12:55 (permalink)
    rjohnson11
    This is looking great. I love that color. 


    Thanks, Mr. Johnson .  I thought I would go for a little color this time, always liked red and black together .
    You might approve of a feature of this case .  It has mounts for 10 fans !
     
    Too the Moon !
     
    post edited by cotter32 - 2024/08/25 18:48:48
    #3
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/25 18:47:01 (permalink)
    Continuing .  Backing up a little bit, I'm using Crucial T500, 2 TB NVMe SSD for my main drive .  It's Gen4 .  The board only supports gen4 SSD,
    so I got a very highly rated, cool running one .  The speed difference between gen4 and 5 SSD will not be detectable by a human being .
     
    Below is Crucial T500 gum stick .

     
    This board is also not known for supporting extreme high performance RAM ( the qualified RAM list is just depressing, yuk, not for me ),
    so I got some reasonably priced, high compatibility RAM for now .  It works really well, and runs at XMP 6000 with loose timings .
    I may get some snappier sticks later depending on how testing goes ... and what sales can be had :)
     
    Below are two Patriot Viper Gaming Elite 5 DDR5 RAM modules installed .  48 GB total .

     
    I ended up installing eight fans .  Three 120mm to feed the graphics card area, and Five 140mm fans; 3 for radiator, one for VRM and RAM area ( side ),
    and one exhaust .  They are all Noctua PWM redux fans .  Very quiet, lots of air .  Six of them run on PCIe power, more on that later .
    I cut down the right side fan bracket to hold just one fan so as to allow the water tubing to take nice gentle bends .  The case can hold ten fans .
     
    Below are three GPU area fans .  The four spots on the corners are where the feet go if you use the case in the upright position .

     
    Below are the 140mm fans installed .

     
    The brains of this outfit is the intel 14900KS CPU .  Known to be an effective space heater, it is the reason for the heavy duty water cooler .
    So far it purrs like a kitten, but I have not yet hit it with cinebench .  When I do, I will use the new R24 version .  It's got a new picture .
     
    Below is the mighty 14900KS in its natural environment :)

     
    The brawn is none other than the EVGA 1000W FTW ATX 3.0, PCIe 5.0 power supply .  You guys knew I would have to work an EVGA product
    into the assembly somewhere .  I still love EVGA, and wish they would make some graphics cards n' stuff again .
     
    Below is the EVGA 1000 FTW .  Powerful and compact .

     
    Don't know why everything turned gray in the picture .  It's really all black .  Oh, well, digital camera .  So, after all that it started right up, no problems .
    There was more work to be done, but I could not wait to see some fire !
     
    Below is the first startup,. and a glimpse of the interesting Supermicro BIOS .

     
    Below is the startup splash sceen .  Interestingly, the user has the opportunity to go into an "EFI shell" on this screen by entering the boot menu .
    It's also a boot menu, of course .

     
     
    OK, I'll post some more stuff later, right now I need to feed !
     
    #4
    Cool GTX
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/25 19:59:06 (permalink)
    Nice rig

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    #5
    rjohnson11
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/26 00:20:05 (permalink)
    This build is looking great. Looking forward to final build pictures. 

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    #6
    Hoggle
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/26 15:46:36 (permalink)
    Looks good

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    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/08/26 17:45:52 (permalink)
    With the machine start up successfully out of the way, the wiring needed to be restrained a bit .  It's all on the bottom .
    I used Noctua fan speed controls/PCIe power taps to give power and PWM control from the mother board to the radiator,
    and GPU area fans, three each, two controllers .  One controller gives board power, and generates PWM signal to
    the right side VRM/RAM area fan, as the board header is power only .
     
    Below is a Noctua controller and accessory cables .

     
    Below is a shot of the bottom wiring restrained by case straps, and tie wraps .  The two controllers on top of the cables
    use board PWM signal to control the fans, and PCIe power to power them .  The controller on the right uses board power,
    and generates its own PWM signal to control one fan .  It protrudes up above the main board tray thru a tray cut out
    so that the user can adjust fan speed with the knob .  It is supported from the bottom by an old coffee stir stick .
    I had to incorporate a little garbage in my build, as usual :)

     
    After that I put the case back together .  Here's what the left side looks like .

     
    The whole thing sort of looks like a toaster oven, or large bread box when the smoked glass panels are on it .
    Below is the right side view .

     
    Below is the front view .

     
    Below is the final inside with the glass panels off .  Noctua controller is on right side under hoses .

     
    Since then the BIOS was updated, and Win11 installed .  Updating the Supermicro BIOS is a little intimidating,
    especially if a person is not familiar with DOS-like command line stuff, but it had to be done to ensure maximum
    CPU gen 14 compatibility .  It is done thru the "EFI shell" that I mentioned earlier .
    Well, that's all for now .  I will be waiting for a gen 5 graphics card, fine tuning, testing, and loading software .
    I hope you all were entertained, and, "make it a great day", to all !
     
    P.S.  The integrated graphics works great .
     
    Too The Moon !
     
     
    #8
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/14 17:26:52 (permalink)
    Well, then it was time to thermal stability test the toaster oven . I ended up using Cinebench R23 because the system reqs. for
    R24 include a graphics card . I don't have one yet . Also, with R23 I can compare the 14900KS with the 14900K in my other
    Gigabyte computer .
    I installed Win11 Pro offline, with no internet . For anyone interested I used the first of these methods https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4mhTUx_7Ys
    It worked great, but since then I have connected it to microsoft . The tests were done after connection, but internet cable, and RCA sound disconnected .
    Also, with microsoft defender on, since I couldn't figure out how to turn it off :) And running HWiNFO64 concurrently .
    I tried to post this stuff last night, but lost it all while doing a spelling edit, so now I'll try posting it again bit by bit .
    XMP1 6000 42 42 42 was used for the final two tests, default 4400 for the first test . This machine likes the 6000 RAM speed with loose timings .
    It does not like tighter timings, even at 5600 MGhz . Intel specifies memory support up to 5600 .
    The Supermicro BIOS has three canned setups called Quiet mode, Default mode, and Performance mode .
    Below, Quiet mode first, then Performance mode . The Brown and Orange bars on left .

     
    Quiet mode scores 30819, temps. were below 70C, and Performance mode scores 37112 at 71C .
    Maximum CPU Package power is 252 watts .
     
    #9
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/14 17:56:27 (permalink)
    The above results were similar to the 14900K in the Gigabyte machine .  The Supermicro BIOS is complicated, and meant
    for very experienced personnel .  The board even has jumpers to "change how it operates", but the manual does not elaborate .
    So, I used a simple overclocking procedure for the Supermicro Z490 board from TweakTown videos .
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MTB7NwxmAs
    The Z490 BIOS GUI is nearly the same .  Below are the results "locked", which is not really locked, to 5.7 GHz .

    c
    Score is now 41538, temp. 102C, but no thermal throttling .  Power consumption is up to 413 watts max.
    Intel max. operating temp. is 100C, so this was not acceptable to me .
     
    #10
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/14 18:13:13 (permalink)
    I needed more cooling, so I repurposed one of the 3.5" drive cages that reside under the mother board tray into a fan bracket .
    I had to do some drilling for fan mounting holes, but it turned out good .
    Below is the new fan assembly featuring Noctua 92mm fan .

    c
    This gets some air into the back side of the CPU socket when installed .
     
    #11
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/14 18:40:29 (permalink)
    Shown below is the fan installed in the bottom of the case .  The other 3.5" drive bracket is laying on top of the PSU .
    The fan points up into the case mother board tray CPU area cut out, blowing air around the edge of the EK CPU cooler mounting bracket,
    and into the back side of CPU socket, and also through the tray cut out to the under side of the mother board .
    Now there are 9 fans total .  Almost in Mr. rjohnson's league ;)

    c
    The new fan is on the left .  The digital camera makes it glow white-ish .  It is really Noctua mud brown .
     
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    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/14 19:11:16 (permalink)
    The final "locked" run with the new fan is shown below .  Also, the bottom and right side case dust filters are removed this time .

    c
    Score is now up to 42133 at 98C max. temperature .  CPU Package Power consumed 408 watts .  Better .
    I think it was worth the work   I saved the profile, but I must admit that the thing runs beautifully in Default mode with XMP1 6000 .
    Under moderate load it will turbo two, or three cores to 6.1 Ghz, even flashing to 6.2 from time to time, and stays at about 40C .
    At idle it runs at 1.1 GHz, and 30 to 35C .
    That's all on testing for now .
     
    Too The Moon !
     
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    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/16 19:50:21 (permalink)
    I found the PL1 and PL2 power limits control in the BIOS, and lowered the Pcore freq. to "locked" 5.6 GHz for a better overclock .
    The BIOS default setting for PL1 and PL2 power limits is over 4000 watts .  Seems a little high :|  Pcore base freq. is 3.2 GHz .
    With PL1 and PL2 limits set to 377 watts, and processor set to 5.6 I get nearly the same score at lower temperature .
    Score 41932, maximum core temp. 89C .  CPU package power is 356 watts .
    See test below .

    c
    I decided to save this one .  I'll use it again .
     
    Too The Moon
     
    Gamdias Neso P1 case, Supermicro C9Z790-CGW main board, Intel 14900KS CPU, 2 x 24 GB Viper ELITE5 DDR 5 RAM, one 2 TB Crucial T500 gen.4 main drive,
    two 1 TB Crucial P3 gen.3 storage drives, EK Velocity Sq. pump, heat sink, and reservoir combo, plus 420 MM radiator, nine Noctua case fans .
     
    #14
    B0baganoosh
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/17 08:40:25 (permalink)
    Looking great!

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    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/19 16:09:38 (permalink)
    B0baganoosh
    Looking great!


    Thanks very much, Mr. BObaganoosh .  Also to Mr. rjohnson11, Mr. Cool GTX, and Mr. Hoggle .
    Your kind words have encouraged me .  I hope it's been entertaining, I've got just a little more, below :)
     
    Too The Moon !
     
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    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/19 16:40:46 (permalink)
    To improve my keeper overclock temperatures I decided to lower the Ecore speeds to 4.4 GHz .
    It seems like you don't get a lot out of making them go faster, except heat :)
    See run below with Pcores "locked" at 5.6 GHz, and Ecores at 4.4 GHz .

    c
    My score dropped a little to  41308, but my CPU package temp. is down to 85C .  I can live with that under heavy load .
    CPU package power 323 watts .  At these settings all cores seem to stay locked better .  In fact sometimes the
    Ecores and Pcores all run at the same speed when in Windows "balanced" power mode .
     
    #17
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/19 17:09:38 (permalink)
    Also at these settings it will run RAM better at XMP2 5600 38-48-48-78 .  At the BIOS default settings XMP1 6000 42-42-42-82
    works best .  Anyway I got a few points back on my R23 score by using XMP2 profile .
    See XMP2 results below .

    c
    Temperature is down to 84C now .  CPU power 322 watts .  Score is 41510 .
     
     
     
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    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/19 17:35:03 (permalink)
    Now that the temperature is under control, and everything is all synced up, I raised the PL1 and PL2 wattage limits up to 433 .
    The idea being that it will provide for voltage spikes, or power excursions, as Intel calls them .
     Below is my final settings run .

    c
    CPU package temp. went up 1C to 85C . CPU package power 322 watts .  Score up to 41551 .
    I am keeping this overclock to use in heavy work scenarios :)
     
    #19
    cotter32
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/09/19 17:55:37 (permalink)
     
    Just a couple more pictures .  First here are the twin NVMe SSD gumsticks I got on sale for $57 each at Best buy .  Nice to get and go .  No shipping :)
    Two one TB Crucial P3 gen. 3 NVMe SSD posed on my hotdog pillow .

    c
    They go in the motherboard under two heat sinks shown below .  Better to get them in now, before I find a huge 50 series graphics card to install .

    c
    The heat sink-SSD covers are at the bottom of the picture, one with a blue light on it, and the other just above it in the usual place .
    Now I have 4 TB of solid state storage .  All the memory products are Micron, although I did not intend them to be :)
     
    Too The Moon !
     
     
    Gamdias Neso P1 case, Supermicro C9Z790-CGW main board, Intel 14900KS CPU, 2 x 24 GB Viper ELITE5 DDR 5 RAM, one 2 TB Crucial T500 gen.4 main drive,
    two 1 TB Crucial P3 gen.3 storage drives, EK Velocity Sq. pump, heat sink, and reservoir combo, plus 420 MM radiator, nine Noctua case fans .
     
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    Brad_Hawthorne
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    Re: Well, I always wanted to build a Supermicro computer ... so, I did 2024/10/06 19:40:53 (permalink)
    I like it. Cool to see a Supermicro not be in a rack. 

    I'm in the middle of a Supermicro build myself at the moment and am tempted to un-rack the thing to be more desk friendly. It was already a rude awakening when I had to deal with the server fans to Noctua fan conversion. 
    #21
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