I just finished reading Paul Ferrill’s article at Linux Planet titled Build a High Powered Linux Workstation on the Cheap. As I am a system builder this article obviously piqued my interest. Paul goes into the specifications of his high powered workstation somewhat. So, I decided to see what I as a system builder could do to come close to matching his Do It Yourself (DIY) price.
Here is the list of components Paul mentions:
AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition CPU 3.4GHz (quad-core)
MSI DKA790GX motherboard
PNY Optima DDR2 memory (4GB x 2)
Thermaltake Element G case
1 TB SATA drive (No specific model mentioned)
He comes up with a total of $665.00 for the DIY builder that wants to build his own PC. Notice Paul does not include a power supply, which is sort of necessary to make this system work. Paul also does not include shipping fees to get the parts shipped to one’s door. One would need to add a power supply that is quad-core capable to this mix which puts the total over $700.00 when the power supply is added. Granted, one can find parts from online stores that will ship via UPS Ground or FedEx Ground for “free”. So, shipping fees may not enter into the picture for the careful DIY shopper.
This is truly nice for the DIY person that likes to tinker with her own hardware. However, for the majority of PC users building one’s own PC is out of the question. The average PC user wants to buy it off the shelf or order it off the web preloaded with an operating system and probably some software. For the average PC user these are the only choices she wants to have. Most people do not get “shivery” over putting together “sexy” hardware like we hardware geeks do. More than likely the average PC user will tend to go a bit “green around the gills” just thinking about trying to build his own PC. This is where the system builders, such as my own company (An AMD only shop), ZaReason, System 76 and Penguin Computing enter the picture.
Here is what I get when I fill out a parts list form here as if for a new customer ordering a PC from my company today. I am using as close to the same components that Paul used as I can get:
AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition CPU 3.4GHz (quad-core)
MSI DKA790GX motherboard
OCZ 8GB PC2-8500 (DDR2-1066) DDR2 Memory (4GB Kit x 2)
Thermaltake Element T Case
Thermaltake TR2 Series 430W Power Supply
HITACHI Deskstar 1TB SATA II 7200 RPM 16MB Buffer Hard Drive
Preloaded “free” GNU/Linux Distribution (Any of the top 20 at DistroWatch, Mandriva recommended)
This system for the Non-DIY person would cost $793.00, plus shipping and perhaps sales tax if purchased through a system builder such as my own company. Adding a decent flat panel monitor and keyboard/mouse combo to get a complete system would add roughly another $175.00 to $200.00 to the total. I will figure the higher $200.00 for a nice monitor and keyboard/mouse giving a grand total of around $993.00 for a complete system using (roughly) Paul’s specifications. At this point I am not thinking this is all that cheap. What if we went with different components that are not quite so cutting edge? This could be done to bring the price down somewhat. In the interest of completeness I decided to do just that.
Here is my new parts form for a complete PC with GNU/Linux preloaded for the more budget conscious user:
AMD Phenom II X4 3GHz (quad-core)
ASUS AMD 780G AM3 motherboard
OCZ 4GB PC2-8500 (DDR2-1066) DDR2 Memory (4GB Kit x 1)
Thermaltake WingRS 201 Case
Thermaltake TR2 Series 430W Power Supply
SAMSUNG 500GB SATA 7200 RPM 16MB Buffer Hard Drive
LG 20in Widescreen LCD Monitor
Logitech Keyboard/Mouse Combo (PS/2)
Preloaded “free” GNU/Linux Distribution (Any of the top 20 at DistroWatch, Mandriva recommended)
This more budget conscious, high power PC system would price out at $775.00 (See correction in comments below.). This is real pricing that would be used today if someone ordered this PC from my company. One does not care to do business with my company due to my shameless self-promotion? Fine, here is a comparable system from System76 with quad-core Intel CPU and only Ubuntu available: Wild Dog Performance. That is not quite as budget conscious though. Or, go find a system builder near you at the Naked Computers web site and make a deal.
The bottom line is whether one is a DIY type or an average PC user one can get a complete, rather high powered GNU/Linux based PC system for around $800.00. If one does not need a new monitor the total is closer to $600.00. Can one do this for no more than $500.00? I tend to think that might be possible if one were willing to settle for a more mid-range system with a dual-core CPU. Such as the Limbo 2550A from ZaReason, Inc. However, hardware prices for these more powerful quad-core components continue to drop. Perhaps in another six to twelve months one could build or buy a less than cutting edge, high powered, quad-core workstation for around $500.00. Time will tell.
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Edit Sat Aug 22 15:47:18 CDT 2009: Change the incorrect “OCZ 4GB” to “OCZ 8GB” on the first build specs.
Edit Sat Aug 22 19:27:24 CDT 2009: Add link for price correction in comments. Change “under $800.00″ to “around $800.00″.
here is a good place for cheap systems:
http://www.pacificgeek.com/
anechoic (comment #1) thank you for the comment. Also, thanks for the URL but it does not really fit here. A brief perusal of that site does not show me any GNU/Linux preloaded computers. That is what my article is about, inexpensive preloaded GNU/Linux computers for average computer users.
Ah! I forgot a DVD?RW drive in those build specs. It is a bit difficult to go without one of those these days. That would add roughly $35 or so to the totals shown. I apologize for that oversight.
After a break for supper, a quick check of pricing for DVD?RW drives gives this new list:
Which gives us a new total of $807.00 for the “budget”, high powered, Linux workstation.
[...] Order a High Powered Linux Workstation on the Cheap The bottom line is whether one is a DIY type or an average PC user one can get a complete, rather high powered GNU/Linux based PC system for under $800.00. [...]
Actually I can generally get all the parts from Newegg for less money than you have projected. Especially the DVD R/RW.
Careful shopping will allow low shipping costs. However I do recommend a local case and power supply dealer due to shipping.
Ikea storage units have produced 24 core rendering farms. http://helmer.sfe.se/
Remember cases are just cubes with power supplies now. Just be sure to buy a good power supply thermotake sometimes a great thermotake case and power supply is heavily discounted. (Frys) Stay away from the China no name.
I hate to say it Intel Motherboards do better with Linux than brand new AMD Motherboards because Intel makes the boards and makes sure the parts are supported. (See articles on code lines submitted to kernel.) AMD processors generally run faster than Intel on Linux but if the board is unsupported you might find yourself without a distro that works.
embedded (comment #6) thanks for the comment.
Yes I know that many times the online shops like Newegg can beat the individual parts pricing that a white-box builder such as myself can offer. Part of what one pays for with the added cost of a prebuitd is the labor of the builder. That labor is not included in your DIY builds. The article is to show what it might cost to buy a prebuild for one who does not mind paying a little extra for the labor to get it built for ones self.
Another reason folks want to buy a prebuild is to have a single source for warranty claims on the parts when parts die. When one buys all the parts ones self, one may or may not get them all from a single source that may or may not offer a long term warranty on what they sell. When it is the middle of the third year on a five year warranty hard drive that dies the prebuild buyer can probably get some help securing a replacement part from the build shop. The DIY builder has to try to deal directly with the manufacturers in most of those cases. The DIY builder likely does not mind dealing with warranty claims direct with manufacturers himself. Others would rather chew glass than to handle a part warranty claim themselves. This is another small item one pays for when buying from a white-box, small system builder.
Edit: Let’s use the car analogy that so many like to use when talking about things like this. I am a tinkerer and do many things for myself. For example, I like to work on my own car. In the past year I have replaced the starter myself. Recently I need to schedule some time to work on the brakes. I shop around and buy the parts myself and do the labor myself. I do this because I like to do it and it saves me money. My neighbor across the street is the same way. We share tips and tricks with one another. All my other neighbors take their vehicles to a shop to get repairs done. They pay the, to me, high labor and parts prices for the convenience of not having to do it themselves. These same type of folk are unlikely to want to build their own PC system. These are the people for which this article is written.
Hi Gene,
Thanks for providing an SI perspective on this.
Warranty and support are two very important considerations. Having to make only one phone call when something goes wrong has a tremendous value.
The only thing in your article that struck me as out-of-place is that an average PC user is one who wants to run GNU/Linux, and that this person is somehow incapable of DIY construction of their own box. If someone is technically capable of running GNU/Linux, more likely than not they are technically capable of building their own PC.
PKD (comment #8) thank you for your comment.
I disagree with your implication that one must be a technical geek just to be “capable of running GNU/Linux”. I personally know of several people that are not “tech-head geeks” that do run GNU/Linux just fine. These same people turn to those of us who are “tech-head geeks” when they need assistance.
Edit: I also am not implying that someone who wants to buy a prebuild is incapable of building her own PC. It is not a matter of capability, it is a matter of desire.
Who bothers building their own PC when you can buy a Mac Pro for as little as $ 5000?
The term workstation usually implies the ability to do graphics, so you forgot the high-end video subsystem and the professional 30-inch monitors. Maybe it features HIFI-stereo sound as well and a BLU-RAY recorder.
If you want decent performance, you’ll have at least two (quad-core or better) CPUs, 64 GB or RAM, an expensive RAID array (unless you’re connected to a FC SAN), TCP-IP accellerators, etc.
Add some $ 1000 per annum on Linux OS fees and start shopping for applicatons.