Minisforum MS-01 i9-13900H 32GB / 1TB OR i9-12900H 32GB / 1TB

[ant0shka]

Based on the latest sales in STH, it looks like a great deal:
- Minisforum has Minisforum MS-01 (Certified Refurbished, Intel Core i9-12900H, 32GB RAM, 1TB NVMe) on sale for $509 - 20% with discount code MF20 at checkout = $407.20
- Minisforum has Minisforum MS-01 (Certified Refurbished, Intel Core i9-13900H, 32GB RAM, 1TB NVMe) on sale for $599 - 20% with discount code MF20 at checkout = $479.20

 

[marcoi]

I've noticed that many people comments on refurbished from minis have been negative (slick deals/reddit). It is tempting if the price drops low enough but i would consider it a gamble.

 

[ant0shka]

Wow, interesting! I'm looking for the RV mini server I didn't know that refurbished minisforums have been negative. Thanks, @marcoi! I don't know what I'd prefer: a used one from STH or a refurbished one from the manufacturer.
Buyer, be aware in this case!

 

[dinskuns]

Anyone knows if deg1 (extra gpu dock) can be attached to ms-01?

 

[ant0shka]

By the way, they just added i5-12600H (MS-01) for 263$. It's a perfect fit for my needs. I ordered one. I'll post as refurbished minisforum goes.

 

[ceekaay1]

I just ordere 3x refurbished i5-12600H (MS-01) 379€ each ... lets see how they burn in
Gooing to check the systems each in detasil before installing anything etc..
glady keep you updated if anyone is interested.

 

[Guillem]

I just ordere 3x refurbished i5-12600H (MS-01) 379€ each ... lets see how they burn in
Gooing to check the systems each in detasil before installing anything etc..
glady keep you updated if anyone is interested.

dang, did they have stock on the EU warehouse? I can only see US right now

 

[macdaddybighorn]

I got one and it was steady at 35-40C, but having spikes up to 80-90C randomly with just windows installed (for testing) and not really doing anything. I put liquid metal on there and it lowered the temp spikes significantly. If you buy one of these, I'd just buy some liquid metal and high W/Mk thermal pads and redo the heatsinks so you don't have to worry about it. I'm pretty sure that's the majority of people's complaints. Also some taller rubber feet under it if you want better airflow and it's sitting flat.

 

[sic0048]

I picked up a i5-12600h barebone. At $263, it seems like a good deal. I'm already planning on repasting it.

Can you run more than 64gb RAM with the i5? I see confirmations that you can with the i9 chips, but I haven't found anything specific to the i5 chipset yet.

 

[chrisnetcom]

Looks like 128GB works no problem:

freebeerz comments on Minisforum MS-01 and 128gb DDR5 SODIMM

 

[sic0048]

Looks like 128GB works no problem:

freebeerz comments on Minisforum MS-01 and 128gb DDR5 SODIMM

Thanks for that information.

Now I have to decide if I really need more than 64gb of RAM. My plan is to run Proxmox on it, but I don't think my needs are going to be that demanding. If I had the i9, it would be a no brainer to max out the RAM, but if I already have reduced CPU power I'm thinking my RAM doesn't need to be maxed out either.

Also, obviously DDR5 RAM is more expensive than DDR4. Is the consensus that it is worth the cost? Again, this isn't a gaming rig, but will mostly be doing things behind the scenes. Is DDR4 "good enough" for most use cases (Home Assistant, Blue Iris, PBX in a Flash, Debian VM, Windows 11 VM, MQTT broker, Pi Hole, NGINX, Nut Server, etc, etc, etc).

EDIT - After thinking about it further, I think my best bet is to go with 96gb of DDR5 RAM. I hoping that if I'm patient, I can find this in the $200-225 range. There was some Corsair Vengeance ram on Amazon that was down to $189 just a few weeks ago. Maybe the Oct Prime Days will bring back a similar price.

 

[Joel]

Thanks for that information.

Now I have to decide if I really need more than 64gb of RAM. My plan is to run Proxmox on it, but I don't think my needs are going to be that demanding. If I had the i9, it would be a no brainer to max out the RAM, but if I already have reduced CPU power I'm thinking my RAM doesn't need to be maxed out either.

Also, obviously DDR5 RAM is more expensive than DDR4. Is the consensus that it is worth the cost? Again, this isn't a gaming rig, but will mostly be doing things behind the scenes. Is DDR4 "good enough" for most use cases (Home Assistant, Blue Iris, PBX in a Flash, Debian VM, Windows 11 VM, MQTT broker, Pi Hole, NGINX, Nut Server, etc, etc, etc).

EDIT - After thinking about it further, I think my best bet is to go with 96gb of DDR5 RAM. I hoping that if I'm patient, I can find this in the $200-225 range. There was some Corsair Vengeance ram on Amazon that was down to $189 just a few weeks ago. Maybe the Oct Prime Days will bring back a similar price.

For "typical" homelab needs, I wouldn't worry at all about DDR4 vs DDR5. In a homelab scenario, I am constantly reminding myself... "just how fast do I REALLY need ___ done?" and 99 times out of 100, the answer is, add the task to a job queue of some sort and it is done in a few hours or a few days, and that's perfectly fine.

The only workload where I'd seriously consider the memory bandwidth a priority, is CPU AI inference. Even then, DDR5 is cost prohibitive for the kind of capacity I'd need to run the really good models.

 

[mikesm]

The MS-01s are great machines, except they have a problem where for some reason the CMOS battery backup is drained during normal operation. And when it's dead, the system can't boot. Seems to be a design defect. This is the reason why people are getting rid of them. It's not that hard to "fix".

You can replace the battery with another CR2032 style cell, but that just prolongs the problem. I cut the lead and spliced in a 2xAA lithium cell pack and that should last a couple years at least without running down.

 

[Rand__]

How long does a single battery last?