Dell Precision Workstation Quad Xeon(I7 Extreme) off lease YMMV

Dead, sadly. I would have picked one up.

You clearly have not seen the inside of a dell.
Here is the 3500:
https://support.dell.com/support/...td_pws.htm
Note the nonstandard form factor of the power supply.
Also note the nonstandard cables of the power supply.

Sure, with enough work, you can get in inside a different case.
However, by the time you have done it, the case will be severely hacked.
Dell does a very good job with physical integration and thermal control with their cases.
But they use a lot of nonstandard form factors.
Look where the hard drives are. Never seen that in a conventional computer case.

Quote from lopgok : You clearly have not seen the inside of a dell. Here is the 3500: https://support.dell.com/support/...td_pws.htm Note the nonstandard form factor of the power supply. Also note the nonstandard cables of the power supply. Sure, with enough work, you can get in inside a different case. However, by the time you have done it, the case will be severely hacked. Dell does a very good job with physical integration and thermal control with their cases. But they use a lot of nonstandard form factors. Look where the hard drives are. Never seen that in a conventional computer case.

That's a standardized form factor case. Looks like ATX or BTX at first glance.

You're claiming that since the PSU uses modular cabling with custom routing that it's not standard. NOBODY makes standardized cables for power supplies. Even the units from the same ODM aren't directly interchangeable.

Workt case he'd need a new PSU. $50 or less.

http://www.redplanettrading.com/i...op-800.jpg

http://www.redplanettrading.com/D...T3500.html

that isn't any atx motherboard I have ever seen. I hope you like drilling holes, as most of them
are in nonstandard places compared to an atx. Notice the two behind the parallel port for example.

The power supply isn't even a standard atx shape if you look carefully.
And the modular connector has what looks like 2 really big square connectors for all the wires.

ATX power supplies are quite standardized and interchangeable. If this one breaks, you will be hard pressed to replace it with a generic ATX power supply.

Quote from lopgok : http://www.redplanettrading.com/i...op-800.jpg http://www.redplanettrading.com/D...T3500.html that isn't any atx motherboard I have ever seen. I hope you like drilling holes, as most of them are in nonstandard places compared to an atx. Notice the two behind the parallel port for example. The power supply isn't even a standard atx shape if you look carefully. And the modular connector has what looks like 2 really big square connectors for all the wires. ATX power supplies are quite standardized and interchangeable. If this one breaks, you will be hard pressed to replace it with a generic ATX power supply.

It's actually worse than you know. I've tried in the past. The power supply that failed on my system, took three tries before I found one that worked in system and that one still had to be modified. Not worth the hassle when Dell's own case is plenty good.

Best of luck if you try it though. It's an interesting experience. I once built a Precision from scratch with parts purchased via Ebay over the course of 6 months. Good thing I had another one to go by, I'd have never figured out how to stick it all together otherwise.

I did finally score one in OP's suggested configuration a few minutes ago. Should be fun to play with. Hope I can unload the card for $200+ as suggested.

These are still dropping into inventory.

Just picked up a second with the W3570 processor and the FX3800 graphics card.

I got one with the Xeon W3570, how good of a GPU can I put in there without changing the PSU? And how good can it take if I change the PSU?

Quote from superduperasian : I got one with the Xeon W3570, how good of a GPU can I put in there without changing the PSU? And how good can it take if I change the PSU?

This has a 525 watt power supply. Dell is known for being conservative in its ratings as well. Drop anything you want in it. You shouldn't have a problem running it. Fortunately the newer GPU's (even the best) are more power efficient than in years past. I don't see any recent single GPU being overpowered for this power supply.

Don't count on being able to easily replace power supply with something else. You'd need a compatible power supply and being non-standard, they are pricey.

Is this still worth it for the W3570 + NVS295 card? I was looking to build a new comp from scratch but saw this and it seems like it still may be worth it

Quote from brklyn : Is this still worth it for the W3570 + NVS295 card? I was looking to build a new comp from scratch but saw this and it seems like it still may be worth it

It wasn't to me. What made the deal was the prospect of flipping the FX3800 on ebay or Amazon. You still can't build a machine yourself for the price, but you still have to change out the video card, the NVS295 isn't going to be one you want to use for anything but office work. You'll still want to upgrade the OS, the Ram and the HD.

I have all that sitting in a drawer for the two systems I purchased.

Still, under $375 isn't much of a risk, and those other items can transfer to a new build later.
I'd still wait for one with a FX3800 or better to drop.

Just got one with W3570 + FX3800, and I think there's another left still...

What kind of ram should I buy for this thing?

Quote from brklyn : Just got one with W3570 + FX3800, and I think there's another left still... What kind of ram should I buy for this thing?

Congrats. Glad to hear you scored one.

I'm going to try some Kingston HyperX that I bought too much of last year. Bought another 6 sticks of similar spec'd 4GB a couple days ago. Hope it's compatible. If not I'll send back.

This works in a tri-channel format, so six sticks will allow operation in Tri-Channel mode. Specs show 24GB Ram support, so buy in 4gb size. 3 pairs should do you and will set up back less than $100 if you buy on sale.

Current memory is faster than this needs but should be backwards compatible. Not sure about voltage though. Guess I'll see. Sorry I can't be of more assistance.


** Update: Ram worked fine. System took the 1.5 v DDR3 without a hiccup. http://slickdeals.net/f/5348348-K...2-8G-29-99

I'm putting in 3 sticks of similar spec'd 2GB and 3 sticks of the 4GB for a total of 18 GB in each system. I've got other systems the ECC memory can be put into or I'll sell it. By the time I've sold the Video cards, Velociraptor's and memory, I'll be down to about $135-150 for each box. Not too shabby.

So I got mine in today and the front does look a bit beat up, and there's a lot of dirt inside and where the fans are so be sure to open up and clean up.

I found out the Dell PSU only has ONE 6-pin cable for gfx, so I cannot put my ATI 6950 card that requires 2x 6pin. I see online that I could get an adapter that connect 2x regular 4pin to 6pin so I could get that, but that will severely limit my connections without getting more adapters.

Now I'm wondering if I should just switch my i7 920 into this box and take the Xeon into my i7 920 build, then make this precision my VM server. Decisions, Decisions.

Quote from teaberry : So I got mine in today and the front does look a bit beat up, and there's a lot of dirt inside and where the fans are so be sure to open up and clean up. I found out the Dell PSU only has ONE 6-pin cable for gfx, so I cannot put my ATI 6950 card that requires 2x 6pin. I see online that I could get an adapter that connect 2x regular 4pin to 6pin so I could get that, but that will severely limit my connections without getting more adapters. Now I'm wondering if I should just switch my i7 920 into this box and take the Xeon into my i7 920 build, then make this precision my VM server. Decisions, Decisions.

Unless you are planning on overclocking the W3570, I wouldn't bother. Not enough difference to be worth the trouble. If you are planning on overclocking with your other box though, I've heard good things about the W3570 in that arena.