Why aren't there more Dual Xeon builds?

[Pigumon]

I was checking the customac list, and the last one is listed at about $1,250, but that was back in Feb, and those parts are now only about $950.

There are Xeon 5500 processors (which support dual processor mobo) for less than that customac i7.

Adding the cost of a second processor, a mobo that supports dual processors and more ram... the price comes out around $1,500.

That's not much more than the original price of the $1,250 customac build. But you get dual processors that support hyperthreading.. so it's 16 threads compared to 4 (or is that 8?), plus more ram and more ram access. Isn't that worth the extra $250?

Of course I have never built one, so I have no clue how many things I'm missing and why this whole idea won't work, but then again maybe it will.

Thoughts?

 

[Peter R.]

The short answer : because they're expensive, slow for desktop purposes and have shite graphics.
A 3,4 GHz 4 core + 4 HT overclockable-to-4GHz CPU costs 250$. A mobo 100$. 8 GB ram 50$.
Think you can do better with a dual processor Xeon ? A half decent mobo is going to run you 400$. And that's HALF decent.

 

[Pigumon]

Xeons are used in the top workstations for music, video, and 3D rendering.

Although there are expensive Xeons, there are just as expensive i7's
And there are cheap Xeons as I stated in my original post if you had read it.

Not sure what shite graphics is supposed to mean, but again, used for video and 3D rendering... That's the top of the graphics heap.

The point is not to make the cheapest build, but to make the best build for the lowest cost. The best build is with dual processors simply because they can use and access more ram.

So again, why aren't there more dual xeon builds listed here?

 

[samisnake]

bit of a weird thread. what you are asking is similar to asking how long is a piece of string.


possible answers for you.

the cost
most users have no use for a dual cpu config.
the cpus you mention are nehalem. for lesser threaded applications, eg what most people use, a sandy bridge system will be faster.
this forum is more orientated towards the beginner. if you go on a more tech savvy forum, you might find a different story.



there are people on here who have done dual xeon systems, so i dont see what the big deal is.
its like going to an apple forum and asking why dont more people buy mac pros instead of imacs

 

[discreetlogic]

Maybe a reason is that if you're building a killer rig like this you want to run apps to make money using pro apps that have support on certified hardware and OS.

Unless you use a genuine macpro, then you're either on windows or linux for pro apps.

Been running hacks for a long time, don't care what anyone says, a hackintosh build is a personal build that has quirks when it comes down to pro apps you have to deal with.

That being said, it's worth a shot for sure, just wouldn't lay a hack on someone expecting a macpro to pump out content 24/7.

 

[dh22r]

so, pigumun, what do you envision the dual xeon rig running?

 

[Pigumon]

Thanks for all the replies. I apologize in advance for my lengthy reply... Red text is the main point of my question

Samisnake- I don't really see why this thread is "weird". That analogy is totally off.
Maybe if I had asked "Why aren't there more quadruple twined nylon strings".
Yours is more like if I had asked "How big is a computer?".
And again "its like going to an apple forum and asking why don't more people buy Mac Pros instead of iMacs". That's a completely valid question for someone who is thinking of buying a Mac Pro, but see that not many people are doing it. Maybe they think it's a bad idea, maybe there are problems with them that they didn't know about.

Aside from that, I think you justified and answered my question. You said the cost [is too high] and it just doesn't fit in with what most people are building hackintoshes for.

I am a beginner to hackintoshing, and I like to do processor intensive work. I want a multi-threading machine for 3D and Video rendering. I think maybe this forum is more for gamers than for beginners.

I'm sorry if I didn't see many threads for dual xeons, I guess I didn't search enough.

Mainly it seems that cost is the driving factor for building a Hackintosh, and I don't see why that doesn't apply to a more powerful rig. It seems like the higher you go, the better the savings are. For about $1,500, you can get a $3,500-$4,000 Mac Pro power comparable rig.

So I figured I was missing some big point like maybe "Dual Xeons don't work with iBoot" or something.

Discreetlogic- Your post was very helpful. For instance, I didn't realize that hackintoshes are still not fairly reliable machines. I figured they run as well as a windows machine would.

What problems, as far as pro apps, should I expect? I'll be very specific- Luxology Modo (3D app), Adobe After Effects, Apple Logic and Final Cut.

I guess bottom line is a should've been VERY specific like most people "This is my new build, now make it work!". I just thought that was a bit much to ask.

Anyway, thanks everyone for taking the time to reply.

 

[discreetlogic]

I'll try to elaborate on :

Discreetlogic- Your post was very helpful. For instance, I didn't realize that hackintoshes are still not fairly reliable machines. I figured they run as well as a windows machine would.

What problems, as far as pro apps, should I expect? I'll be very specific- Luxology Modo (3D app), Adobe After Effects, Apple Logic and Final Cut.

hackintoshes are still not fairly reliable machines

This is not totally true, if not false when set up right.

If this is you rig and you're going to be using it at home for projects it's going to be fine my friend, hack away.

If you're going to have the box in a studio running full blast with deadlines and such, you better know the ins and outs of hackintoshing when Murphy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy's_law comes calling. Totally doable though, but I'm still reluctant building machines for non tech savvy people who "Just wants it to work", it's a black art sometimes, but way more approachable than back in the day.

For the apps you are going to be running, it'll be fine I think, and yeah you might save enough money to actually cover all the licenses

My point was more about billing clients on say a Davinci or Smoke running on OSX86... Apps that are workhorses with pretty explicit hardware requirements.

For the rest, just make sure the parts are known working.

 

[bones123]

I'll try to elaborate on :

Discreetlogic- Your post was very helpful. For instance, I didn't realize that hackintoshes are still not fairly reliable machines. I figured they run as well as a windows machine would.

What problems, as far as pro apps, should I expect? I'll be very specific- Luxology Modo (3D app), Adobe After Effects, Apple Logic and Final Cut.

hackintoshes are still not fairly reliable machines

This is not totally true, if not false when set up right.

If this is you rig and you're going to be using it at home for projects it's going to be fine my friend, hack away.

If you're going to have the box in a studio running full blast with deadlines and such, you better know the ins and outs of hackintoshing when Murphy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murphy's_law comes calling. Totally doable though, but I'm still reluctant building machines for non tech savvy people who "Just wants it to work", it's a black art sometimes, but way more approachable than back in the day.

For the apps you are going to be running, it'll be fine I think, and yeah you might save enough money to actually cover all the licenses

My point was more about billing clients on say a Davinci or Smoke running on OSX86... Apps that are workhorses with pretty explicit hardware requirements.

For the rest, just make sure the parts are known working.

Well said..

Everyone that runs a hack and needs the computer working for home, school, work should have a least 3 HDDs

Drive 1 OSX
Drive 2 OSX clone (CCC or SD)
Drive 3 Windows 7

I schedule my CCC every night at 10:30PM and I have Time Machine on my airport extreme which all my macs use (the hack too ) as well, I only try updates and tweaking on the clone osx drive, and windows 7 I use with parallels when I need to use windows for something. If for any reason I totally screw up my OSX install and have nothing than I can fall back on booting into Windows 7. My current uptime is 8 months and counting and I expect many many more to come

 

[Pigumon]

Awesome! Ok I see now I was too vague in my original post. My apologies.

Well this is very encouraging. The main reason I was a bit disheartened about not many Dual Xeon builds is I was hoping to just build one that someone else had already worked the bugs out of.

But yeah, this will be for me, I do design, illustration, and photography as a job, the 3D , AE, music stuff will be all for me (at first). I can always fall back to my current mac for work.

Fortunately I already have the programs, they are just dead slow on my mini. Also, although I do not know much about Hackintoshes, I'm definitely a hands on type who really studies and gets things running.

I'll be asking questions again at some point, maybe after this next job pays off.