Part Recommendations

[BigAl01]

I pride myself on using at least 1KW or greater PSUs in my recent builds.  I haven't gone over 1200 Watts yet, but I had no reason to.  I've had the idea of building a workstation class computer in the past, which means using AMD's Threadripper CPU, one of the pro versions of their GPUs and lots of memory / storage.   That's going to take more than just money - it means even more powerful PSUs.  Perhaps this Asus 3 KW PSU would fit the bill?  

I bet you could power two toaster ovens with this PSU.

[atmosphere]

3kW seems a bit overkill though 1,5kW should fit the bill. OC threadripper of RXPro/FireGL really isnt a nescessity or wanted on werkstations. 1 crash and all gains are lost (lost productivity vs slightly short processing-times)

Though i also have a few usecases made possible by TR&9070Pro .. would love to test a LLM setup with 2 of those

[BigAl01]

Tell us about some of your machines that use the Threadripper, if you've built them.

[FunkZ]

As mentioned at the end of the article, it would overload the typical 15 Amp circuit breaker found in most US houses. Around a 1500-1600 Watt power supply is the biggest you should run on a 15 Amp circuit assuming there's not much else on the same breaker. You have to factor what the draw would be at full load and then take ~80% of that for continuous use.

I used to run a PC farm for Folding@Home and would trip the breaker with 4 or 5 computers running full tilt. (at 400-500 Watts each) Have you @BigAl01 with all your PCs during LAN parties tripped breakers? Or are they spread out between rooms where they're balanced across multiple circuits?

[BigAl01]

I've had the breaker trip once or twice in about 1/2 of my LAN parties @FunkZ.  The last time was when a guy brought his RTX 4090-based machine and I allowed him to connect it to one of my stations.  This is one reason my latest build (Green with Envy) was on the main level in the music room, hopefully a separate circuit from the den (3 gaming computers) or the basement (7 gaming computers).  If I build another one without replacing an existing one, it might need to be located upstairs in one of the bedrooms.  In reality, I could not use a 3KW PSU in my house. 

[FunkZ]

Bathrooms and kitchens typically use 20 Amp circuits, tell Mr. 4090 he can set up in the can next time. 😆

[BigAl01]

You're too much.  But yes, I believe you are right about the bathroom circuits.  They need to support those hair curlers and curling irons.  Men's shavers aren't much of a power draw.

[johnnyenglish]

Thats a tad too much but you can power 3 computers with it.

Mmm. Imagine that, 3 computers 1 PSU, almost sounds like a dirty vídeo.

[mengelag]

What are your plans for the Workstation @BigAl01 ?

[BigAl01]

No plans in work at the moment, but I've thought about a Threadripper build for a few years now.  When I had looked into it before, I found that the CPU and the motherboards were very expensive.  Then there is that power draw too.  Toss in the fact that I don't need that kind of computing power and you can see why I haven't built one yet.  I still have a use case for gaming machines though.

[BigAl01]

Currently, I'm getting my building excitement while helping other people build their computers.  I helped a guy finish his build (1 hour) during my Memorial Day Weekend LAN party, and then just a few days ago I helped a neighbor build up his server (3 hours).  I think it's the excitement of them pushing the power button for the first time and seeing a successful boot into the BIOS that fills a void in my heart.  

One of the gamers brought over a partly-built system to my LAN party, asking me to help him finish it. I couldn't say no of course.

My neighbor Tim needed my help building his new server; he last built a computer in the year 2000, so lots of things were new to him.