Dead Mobo, Monarch gone.(Can't wait for new System to arrive!)

**EDIT**
UPDATE 3-2007
When I finally got this system my feelings of the Vendor, Monarch computers, was mixed.
The System itself is awesome and was very well put together with a high attention to detail.
This same detail is one of the reasons that many reviews historically had rated Monarch Highly.
However it seems I purchased at the end of Monarchs reign..

Monarch Computers is GONE!

I find this out as a growing issue has revealed itself to be a now dead Motherboard.

No recourse left with Monarch.

Thsi is mixed news, as I have to foot the bill for a system that was under warranty, but on the other hand, at least I know where I stand and can avoid the wasted time dealing with Monarch.

This will be the first Computer I have owned that I did not build myself since,, well, the first PC I ever owned (a 486)

Why didn't I build it myself this time? Two reasons:

1. No price advantage. In fact it was less expensive to have it built with a warranty thn to get the parts through Newegg.

2. I just don't find trying to figure out which compnent out of a dozen is the problem any more, and I will stiull have to dedicate a month to fighting the latest install of a Microsoft product to bend it to my will anywyas.

So what's the bid deal?

My current system is very long in the tooth. I try to "future proof" a system as best I can, and lasty time I did a great job of it. Current rig is now nearly 5 years old. Larger files and many filters bog it down.

So in keeping with the need for speed and future proofing as best I can, I have built custom specced "SkyNet V 3.0"

It starts with the Mobo, Dual Opteron by Supermicro, the H8DCe (click pic for larger image)

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Whooohooo! That sounds like some system! Congrats, Jake!

I've always built my own so I knew the quality was there, but am ready for an overhaul after 4 years. So, have you spec'd it and someone else is building it then, or what? I might follow your general purchase lead as I'm sure you checked it all out for value and performance.

and there was me thinking upgrading my RAM to 1GB was exciting!

nice setup indeed. who did you order from?

Yes, I specced it and it is being built for me, thus I will get a 2 year warranty (could have done three, but figured in two years of anything breaks it will be cheap to replace anyway)

It's all good solid stuff. I'll leave it up to the boys to get it all talking to eachother

I decided on "Monarch"
I found four on line vendors that deal in such workstations with very similar value, Monrach and "Polywell" had the best prices.

But AVA Direct and JNCS probably would be better choices for cutomer support.
JNCs unfortunately did not have the Mobo I wanted as an option, the SuperMicro is far more accepted in the real workstation world than the Tyan's that JNCS is pushing.

Polywell, I think this may have been the best of both worlds, but they are on the West coast, JNCS and Monarch are a few hours from me, so I went based on location once I narrowed it down.


Those beastly air coolers from Zalman should give me leeway to push those CPUs up to about 2.5GHz or so..

looks great...
I have to get a new system myself... I have Mac thoughts though

Did anyone else lose POTN for a few minutes there?! For a moment I was concerned that Cyberdyne's Skynet3 had become self aware and decided the fate of POTN in a microsecond!!

Nice system CDS!

what a fine setup that would, the only question I have is why AMD. I thought that the lastest intel chips would be better in the long run and be a lot coller than a couple of amds

A number of reasons really
1. I've been married to AMD since the first Athlon,
2. Have you looked at the cost of a Dual XEON system with Dual Cores?
3. There is no published data to be found anywhere that the new Intels have closed the gap in performance running Photoshop that the Opterons have had for the past few years.
4. There is published data that still shows the Dual Opteron's in XP64 as the fastest Photoshop Machines on the planet (sorry Mac fans)
5. I'm sure the new intels will be faster for a lot of apps, I bet that games in particular will be faster on the new intels,. whoop dee doo..
6. I began the work to configue this sytem and began saving for it before the new intels existed. (do they exist now, or is this still a "will be soon" thing anyway?)
7. Cooler? I could have gone for the low wattage Opterons at nearly double the cost per unit, they run at 55watt as opposed to 95watts,. very very cool. But unless I am a massive server farm running dozens/hundreds of servers, the difference in price is not really cost effective for me.

SimonG wrote:

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Nice specs. I've been running a dualie Opteron (246s) machine for three years now, and it's still plenty powerful enough for most things (though I'd love to drop in a pair of 275s). Your system should keep you happy for at least a few years!

BTW, the CM Stacker is a gem of a case. I'd outgrown my previous server case (Yeong Yang 0221 Cube), and found that the Stacker was the perfect fit, particularly since it can hold a pair of PSUs. Just glad the thing has castors.

Glad to hear it, yep those 248's should be fine for a few years to come. What's the Mobo?
IF you ever felt the NEED to upgrade, it may take the Dual Cores no problem.

I've been eyeing that "Stacker" for some time. though it will be physically smaller and lighter than the old steel server case my current "Skynet V2.6" is installed in, it looks easier to work in and .. NOTHING else has the 11 front drive bays! Since I install all my hard drives in removeable racks, the more front real estate I have the better. I do not use internal drive cages at all, so those would be wasted space.

Skynet V-2.0 circa 2002 = The one on the right

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Does XP 64 actually have a lot of apps that take advantage of it?

My mobo is an Iwill DK8N, which will take dual core chips if I ever am able to pay for them (which is doubtful, because I'd rather have a new lens than a faster computer).

What are you planning for storage? I presume that you're going all SATA? Maybe a Raptor or two?

Your pocket protecter is showing again.

Sure wish I knew what you were talking about...but it certainly sounds impressive and should surely carry you through another 20,000 or so posts.

Congratulations.