Quanta 2ML Render Farm - rack, 10 dual e5-2670 and 10Gb switch $3850

Notice: Page may contain affiliate links for which we may earn a small commission through services like Amazon Affiliates or Skimlinks.

DonJon

Member
Apr 9, 2016
50
6
8
47
Does anyone have the link to specs for this server? Eager to see what OSs its compatible with.. what 10gbe mezz card.. how is the noise in ambient environment.. BIOS updates possible etc.
 

nrtc

New Member
Dec 3, 2015
23
4
3
54
Went and saw Natex Today, Pretty cool joint, lots o gear in the warehouse @Patrick Your Rack says HI!

I have my hands on a 2ML System they also having me test another system thats they called a Chenbro/Foxconn... So far things are working on em ill give more updates when i got them... From what i can tell with the 2ML its possibly from the Amazon Cloud as when the Ethernet tries to boot it says Amazon on it.

IPMI so far is dedicated so its got a single 10GB link on it... im looking around on the board to see if i can share it or not...

I can post pics whatever u wanna see Lemme know!

Noise at startup of course is loud, it does quiet down pretty well tho especially for a 1U
Please do share your experience with the 2ML and Chenbro/foxconn (presumably the T2491601 on their website). I'd be interested to buy one or two of them purely for cheap compute and would like to know if the Intel system is worth the extra bucks.
 

DonJon

Member
Apr 9, 2016
50
6
8
47
The Chenbro/Foxconn shows free on their site (just add processor, ram and shipping). Pretty sweet if you add a 2 x E5507 and 8GB stick comes out to $33. But when you go to checkout the shipping is >$130. Oh no, then I decide not to buy them and to offer them to keep them free in their stock. That's how I do business. ;)

Was anyone able to grab the 2ML? Their site shows them as out of stock now.
 

DaSaint

Active Member
Oct 3, 2015
282
79
28
Colorado
I am testing out this other Chenbro/Foxconn Model that is a Socket 2011 (doesnt run GUI os's on it) i might have a dud board as the 10Gb Controller on it is not showing even in the bios [learning curve] it also has the Narrow HSF rather than the 2ML that has a Square HSF

One thing to mention about both of these, the Bios menus interaction is SLOW its not zippy but this exists on both units.

So far the comparisons
Foxconn Board
  • 1PCIe 16x Slot
  • 1PCIe 8x Slot
  • Onboard SAS Connector 8087 Onboard Intel 3Gb Controller
  • Does NOT run a GUI OS on it Even linux GUIs dont show nicely CMD line stuff or ESXi's semi-gui works fine (could be the video ram on the board 8Meg)
  • Need to use a VM with Lower Java version (currently using 7U40) to access the Console (later 8 Editions say File not found)
  • Board Shows up as a ZTSystem BANFF12
  • Does Have VT-D and VT Capabilities in the BIOS
  • Much Noisier than the 2ML on Idle
  • Still working on the 10Gb SFP but so far mine is non-functional.
  • RJ45 Connector only for IPMI/BMC
  • Narrow ILM HSF
2ML
  • GUI OS seemed to work fine (Windows/Linux)
  • Onboard 10Gb works fine identified in ESXi OS
  • 1PCie 16x Slot (no other slots)
  • Quieter than Foxconn in 1U at Idle (Has high spin up but quiets down)
  • Ethernet Identifies as Quanta/Amazon in the PXE boot menus
  • VT-D and VT Capabilities in BIOS
  • Full Model Number 2SML3A09
  • RJ45 Connector only for IPMI/BMC
  • Square ILM HSF
IMO i like the Foxconn better due to the extra PCIe Slot, that adds value for me in multiple areas but again im doing some weird stuff and migrating it out of that 1U Case into a 4U case so noise will be vastly reduced at that point... (to convert it you will have to bend/cut some metal to get the 10Gb interface capabilities (mine was dead prior to removing it from the 1U so) ill send up pics when i take them (currently moving) but ill get something up for all to see!

More to come
 

nrtc

New Member
Dec 3, 2015
23
4
3
54
Thanks a lot for your detailed experience. I'm really close to ordering 2 ML systems purely for compute and maybe just an SSD or two for local storage. It seems to fit that bill well with excellent price/performance.

If I'm not asking too much, would you perhaps know
  • if the ML2 can be set to boot always from USB;
  • can take sata drives without any caddy (it appears so on the pictures);
  • any idle/full load temperature and power figures.
 

NATEX

Natex Representative
Mar 7, 2016
94
28
18
Hi Guys
Here is the new link for those servers
Quanta QSSC-2ML Dual LGA2011 Sockets 16 DIMM 1u Rack Server (Build you own Server)

Quanta QSSC-2ML 1u 19" Rack Server Case w/ AcBel FS9020 500w Power Supply and Rails

Foxconn Reworked DA0S2MMB8B0 Rev: B Motherboard

Dual LGA2011 Sockets
16 DIMM Slots Quad Channel

8x SAS
6x SATA (4 connected to HDD Plane, no caddies included)
BMC_NIC (RJ-45)
Mini GBIC 10gbs SFP+ Port
1 PCI-E 16x Port (no riser card or bracket)

Does not include any hard drives or hard drive caddy

$125.00

Quanta QSSC-2ML Dual LGA2011 Sockets 16 DIMM 1u Rack Server



Save 5% on this product by using Coupon Code:STHQUANTA
 

WeekendWarrior

Active Member
Apr 2, 2015
356
145
43
56
I think one pci slot is sufficient for such a tiny unit. Please share here if you find such a compatible rise.

BTW, does anyone have any idea how loud this server farm is? Thinking about putting one in the lab if it is not too loud.
FYI on the riser issue: Natex now offers risers for $10 when buying these boxes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chuntzu

DaSaint

Active Member
Oct 3, 2015
282
79
28
Colorado
Hey all sorry for the not so quick responses i have been out due to moving... Anywho...

The board i like a lot that didnt seem to have an issue with ESXi is this one below (however as i mentioned above my SFP port was dead its not recognized by the BIOS or OS (with lspci and other commands) - Assuming mine is bad.
Foxconn T2491601 Motherboard in a Chenbro 1u Case

The reason i like this board a lot is due to the dual PCIe slots on it rather than the 2MLs version of a single PCIe slot i was trying to do some VSAN awesomeness.. One thing i noticed is the onboard SAS Controller (SCU) was not too friendly with VSAN but keep in mind it wasnt meant to... i was able to overload it with capacity flash while using NVME SSD on PCIe bay and had some dropouts due to the SCU driver just quitting...

The one thing i wasnt fond of on this board was the noise compared to the 2ml this one was much louder (idle).. Other than that good compute node! had no other issues or complaints about it.

@Patrick the BMC on this board was pretty old had to use WinXP/7 with old java (pre java 8) version for the console to play nice.. i dont recall the brand but ill pull it up and let u know.
 

illamint

New Member
Dec 25, 2015
26
20
3
36
Anyone buy one of these yet? Interested in noise levels and power consumption relative to, say, an HP DL380 G6.
 

voltarc

New Member
Jun 1, 2016
5
1
3
Using Sound Meter on my phone I got 75 - 80 dB when first turning on / fans at full, and 55 - 60 dB at idle, though since the phone isn't calibrated that should be taken as a ballpark. Not sure on power consumption, don't have a Kill A Watt yet.

ADDED: Should note this is for a single 2ML, not the 10 node cluster.
 
Last edited:

NATEX

Natex Representative
Mar 7, 2016
94
28
18
Wonder how these were even tested before shipped if they didn't arrive with heatsinks on em.
Our servers are fully tested with CPU's and memory. This was purchased as our "Build your own server" . The order did not include any memory or CPU's and so the memory and CPU's were pulled. It was by mistake that the heat sinks did not ship with the order.
Thanks,
Pam
 
  • Like
Reactions: frogtech and tjk