Deunan wrote on 2022-02-05, 15:23:

BitWrangler wrote on 2022-02-04, 14:52:

.... the joke however was, that the storage speed would be so impressive, that gigabyte huge lookup tables would return a result faster even than a pentium FPU, which isn't listed here https://dougx.net/gaming/coproc.html#timings but gives you an idea of how slow FPUs are for being "fast".

I got the joke (I think). However there is throughput, and there is latency. A massive array of HDDs could perhaps match old PC RAM bandwidth, but surely not latency.

And not to forget the Pentium can calculate the floating point division in parallel to integer calculation. Carmack/Abrash used that to get the division basically 'for free'.

HanSolo wrote on 2022-02-05, 19:07:

I suppose most people only search in the graphics-card category and not for a full system. Nice catch!

Yeah, that's a possible explanation. I always search in the whole computer section.
Two weeks ago a Diamond Voodoo1 with loop cable was auctioned for 72€. A week ago another one was sold for 70€ per buy now. So 62€ for the whole machine is a really good deal, even though the other components are low value.

Another pro tip:
Search for description and not just title! My ALive Dual was labeled "Retro PC" or something like that.
My K6-III+ 400ATZ (1.6V) also wasn't mentioned in the title, but in the description. Another 400ACZ was sold the same day for slightly more than I paid for the whole machine. So I basically got everything else for free. If I sell that, I'll be +-0 and basically got my 400ACZ for free!

And the ultimate pro tip:
Take a risk and buy untested hardware, if the price is reasonable. For example I got a lot with an untested Voodoo Banshee for just 30€. Sadly the RAM is damaged. Hirsch isn't confident that he can repair it. Also we don't have a donor. So I'll sell it as it is. I knew broken Voodoos still sell for a third or even half. So my bid was 40€. Zero risk.
The lot also came with a working Matrox Millenium II and Vibra16, so I'll still make a small profit.

There are still a lot of bargains on Ebay, but they aren't handed to you on a silver plater. If they are, others will find them as well and drive up the price.
You need to dig deeper. Or take a risk.

I used to buy the scrap lots when they showed up an had what looked like older stuff in them.

I picked up a ton of really good parts that way.

Now I hardly see any scrap lots with anything but actual scrap in them.

cyclone3d wrote on 2022-02-06, 03:23:

I used to buy the scrap lots when they showed up an had what looked like older stuff in them.

I picked up a ton of really good parts that way.

Now I hardly see any scrap lots with anything but actual scrap in them.

yup people caught onto what you were doin !

though its more likely that the scrap boards have changed hands several times before they hit eBay and most of the good stuff has been removed from the boards or the resalable boards have been parted out by the more clued in handlers.

Today's meanderings...

I got over to the ewaste depot/store and had a look round, nothing super old in the PC line, a PIII system was oldest I saw, had a choice of 4, 15-17" CRTs, which I might bear in mind if I find what I've got is playing dead or want one or two more. Some newer stuff, but it was all "close" to stuff I'd be interested in, but not close enough. Prices looked not too terrible, not yard sale cheap, but not eBay crack pipe either. I woulda been asking about loose cards and stuff, but the staff seemed to be in the middle of some minor crisis, rush job or something and I didn't want to make a nuisance of myself.

Hit a few thrifts, nothing remarkable around, got random oddments for a buck or two here and there, Dell removable floppy cable (Use floppy while CD installed in laptop), USB capture dongle, mini displayport to VGA/HDMI/DVI, couple of webcams now the prices have dropped back to sane, to see if I can get zoneminder to tell me when someone pulls into my driveway, el cheapo "gamer" keyboard, quite compact for a full 104, much better seeming quality than the economy model logitechs (Not hard since they have zero, I've had $5 keyboards better than the ~$30 logitechs) annnnd a pair of new replacement headphone cushions (large can style) which I am hoping I can hack/mod to fit on a pair of old faithful phones that have had theirs go all crumby.

Yah I guess the only thing barely retro there is the floppy cable, heh. Mini DisplayPort adapter I might use as an excuse to get one of the dirt cheap Quadro cards that just have that output.

RaiderOfLostVoodoo wrote on 2022-02-06, 03:14:

Yeah, that's a possible explanation. I always search in the whole computer section. Two weeks ago a Diamond Voodoo1 with loop ca […]
Show full quote

HanSolo wrote on 2022-02-05, 19:07:

I suppose most people only search in the graphics-card category and not for a full system. Nice catch!

Yeah, that's a possible explanation. I always search in the whole computer section.
Two weeks ago a Diamond Voodoo1 with loop cable was auctioned for 72€. A week ago another one was sold for 70€ per buy now. So 62€ for the whole machine is a really good deal, even though the other components are low value.

Another pro tip:
Search for description and not just title! My ALive Dual was labeled "Retro PC" or something like that.
My K6-III+ 400ACZ (1.6V) also wasn't mentioned in the title, but in the description. Another 400ACZ was sold the same day for slightly more than I paid for the whole machine. So I basically got everything else for free. If I sell that, I'll be +-0 and basically got my 400ACZ for free!

And the ultimate pro tip:
Take a risk and buy untested hardware, if the price is reasonable. For example I got a lot with an untested Voodoo Banshee for just 30€. Sadly the RAM is damaged. Hirsch isn't confident that he can repair it. Also we don't have a donor. So I'll sell it as it is. I knew broken Voodoos still sell for a third or even half. So my bid was 40€. Zero risk.
The lot also came with a working Matrox Millenium II and Vibra16, so I'll still make a small profit.

There are still a lot of bargains on Ebay, but they aren't handed to you on a silver plater. If they are, others will find them as well and drive up the price.
You need to dig deeper. Or take a risk.

Well if you don't like selling off the excess buying whole systems for one part can be a problem.

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 03:36:

though its more likely that the scrap boards have changed hands several times before they hit eBay and most of the good stuff has been removed from the boards or the resalable boards have been parted out by the more clued in handlers.

Even years ago when I was into buying lots, there would be pure "take outs" just put aside and unmolested, 95% working first try typically... then there would be lots of "questionables" I'd call them, they were often in there for a reason, but majority would be minor, like failed BIOS flash, dead battery no-boots, the odd one you couldn't find a thing wrong, maybe argued with their GPU or something, and 10% definitely broken. Then there would be the lots, maybe listed "untested" but yah, only because you're not gonna test a board with a huge gouge across the back, parts missing or smashed, caps puking their guts out all over etc (pics would probably be too fuzzy to see this well.) and frequently signs of meddlers at work on them. So worst lots would be the rejects of the picked over rejects from the actual original untested pulls. So I don't think it's a new thing necessarily.

I scored a 40 $CAN Toshiba 4010CDT at the local flea market .

I had to temporarily mod a power adapter ( adapt barrel plug with heat shrink tubing) to be able to test it (will buy or solder a proper PSU later), but it seems to work fine . No battery was included (not that I really care).
Specs include
- 800x600 TFT LCD
- 2MB C&T video chip
- Pentium 2 at 266MHz
- 160MB of RAM (maxed out)
- working 2.5" 44-pin HDD (noisy but works)
- CDROM drive (works)
- 1.44MB floppy drive (works)
- OPL3-SA audio

TODO : Disassemble/clean/check and possibly replace fan(s)/replace thermal compound (maybe)/replace CMOS battery/check caps/install CF or SD or adapted SATA SSD/reassemble/get or assemble proper power adapter

Maybe TODO : replace backlight/inverter with LED (or not as will likely get used with external display anyway and current CCFL backlight is still usable)

darry wrote on 2022-02-06, 05:06:

(will buy or solder a proper PSU later)

If you've got a Factory Direct nearby, they might have some options https://www.factorydirect.ca/search?q=notebook+adapter

RaiderOfLostVoodoo wrote on 2022-02-06, 03:14:

Take a risk and buy untested hardware, if the price is reasonable. For example I got a lot with an untested Voodoo Banshee for just 30€. Sadly the RAM is damaged. Hirsch isn't confident that he can repair it.

Replacing these memory chips is easy with the right skill and a hot air station. If it's worth it to you then send it to someone for repair.

Unknown_K wrote on 2022-02-06, 03:47:

Well if you don't like selling off the excess buying whole systems for one part can be a problem.

Buying individual parts is usually the most expensive way.
If you can find a lot with the part you want for the same price as the individual parts, why not take the free bonus items?
Even if you sell them untested for a fraction of the value, you're still better off.

Kahenraz wrote on 2022-02-06, 06:07:

Replacing these memory chips is easy with the right skill and a hot air station. If it's worth it to you then send it to someone for repair.

- cost of two way shipping
- cost of a donor card
- fee for the repair guy
The repair guy would have to be in Krautland for cheap shipping, demand a very low fee (like 10 bucks) and I would have to find a cheap donor.
Not worth the hassle.

RaiderOfLostVoodoo wrote on 2022-02-05, 12:24:

ASUS K8V-VM

Worthless garbage.

A s754 board with PCI-E isn't something I'd call worthless garbage. I mean the exact same thing was said about GeForce MX 2 and MX4 some years ago.
You can send the board to me or to anyone who's really interested if you really think it's worthless garbage 😜

I've bought 3 AMD CPUs. The one I'm really happy the most is the CPU in the center, Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition.

zami555 wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:30:

I've bought 3 AMD CPUs. The one I'm really happy the most is the CPU in the center, Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition.IMG_20220205_215828.jpg

I'm thinking about eventually buying a FX9590 with a AIO and a 990FX Sabretooth R3.0 board for the shits and giggles and to see how much power I can get that rig to suck down with a pair of Radeon HD7990s and Velociraptor Raid. Sure its not exactly a retro rig but the tech is mostly obsolete these days due to lack of driver and OS support

I'm betting it'll need at minimum a 1200watt PSU just to turn on.

Never honestly wanted an AMD retro rig but a slightly more modern FX9590 sure would be a fun rig to play with. (I do have a 462 3200+ Barton machine which is the only Retro AMD machine I have currently)

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:46:

I'm thinking about eventually buying a FX9590 with a AIO and a 990FX Sabretooth R3.0 board for the shits and giggles and to see […]
Show full quote

zami555 wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:30:

I've bought 3 AMD CPUs. The one I'm really happy the most is the CPU in the center, Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition.IMG_20220205_215828.jpg

I'm thinking about eventually buying a FX9590 with a AIO and a 990FX Sabretooth R3.0 board for the shits and giggles and to see how much power I can get that rig to suck down with a pair of Radeon HD7990s and Velociraptor Raid. Sure its not exactly a retro rig but the tech is mostly obsolete these days due to lack of driver and OS support

I'm betting it'll need at minimum a 1200watt PSU just to turn on.

Never honestly wanted an AMD retro rig but a slightly more modern FX9590 sure would be a fun rig to play with. (I do have a 462 3200+ Barton machine which is the only Retro AMD machine I have currently)

Are you in a "phase"? 🤣
OR maybe you live in a cold place and it's worth the heat. 😀

I understand this kind of wondering with strange configs. Hope you do some videos.

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:52:

Are you in a "phase"? LOL OR maybe you live in a cold place and it's worth the heat. :) […]
Show full quote

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:46:

I'm thinking about eventually buying a FX9590 with a AIO and a 990FX Sabretooth R3.0 board for the shits and giggles and to see […]
Show full quote

zami555 wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:30:

I've bought 3 AMD CPUs. The one I'm really happy the most is the CPU in the center, Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition.IMG_20220205_215828.jpg

I'm thinking about eventually buying a FX9590 with a AIO and a 990FX Sabretooth R3.0 board for the shits and giggles and to see how much power I can get that rig to suck down with a pair of Radeon HD7990s and Velociraptor Raid. Sure its not exactly a retro rig but the tech is mostly obsolete these days due to lack of driver and OS support

I'm betting it'll need at minimum a 1200watt PSU just to turn on.

Never honestly wanted an AMD retro rig but a slightly more modern FX9590 sure would be a fun rig to play with. (I do have a 462 3200+ Barton machine which is the only Retro AMD machine I have currently)

Are you in a "phase"? 🤣
OR maybe you live in a cold place and it's worth the heat. 😀

I understand this kind of wondering with strange configs. Hope you do some videos.

I dont own the parts just yet ...well I own the Raptors and one of the 7990s but the rest shouldn't be too hard to get IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast.

It'll have to wait till it snows here in outback Australia 😁 before I turn it on.

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:56:

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:52:

Are you in a "phase"? LOL OR maybe you live in a cold place and it's worth the heat. :) […]
Show full quote

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:46:

I'm thinking about eventually buying a FX9590 with a AIO and a 990FX Sabretooth R3.0 board for the shits and giggles and to see how much power I can get that rig to suck down with a pair of Radeon HD7990s and Velociraptor Raid. Sure its not exactly a retro rig but the tech is mostly obsolete these days due to lack of driver and OS support

I'm betting it'll need at minimum a 1200watt PSU just to turn on.

Never honestly wanted an AMD retro rig but a slightly more modern FX9590 sure would be a fun rig to play with. (I do have a 462 3200+ Barton machine which is the only Retro AMD machine I have currently)

Are you in a "phase"? 🤣
OR maybe you live in a cold place and it's worth the heat. 😀

I understand this kind of wondering with strange configs. Hope you do some videos.

I dont own the parts just yet ...well I own the Raptors and one of the 7990s but the rest shouldn't be too hard to get IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast.

It'll have to wait till it snows here in outback Australia 😁 before I turn it on.

"IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast"
Poetry! 🤣

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 15:12:

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:56:

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:52:

Are you in a "phase"? 🤣
OR maybe you live in a cold place and it's worth the heat. 😀

I understand this kind of wondering with strange configs. Hope you do some videos.

I dont own the parts just yet ...well I own the Raptors and one of the 7990s but the rest shouldn't be too hard to get IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast.

It'll have to wait till it snows here in outback Australia 😁 before I turn it on.

"IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast"
Poetry! 🤣

Its not a very big if ....

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 15:24:

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 15:12:

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 14:56:

I dont own the parts just yet ...well I own the Raptors and one of the 7990s but the rest shouldn't be too hard to get IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast.

It'll have to wait till it snows here in outback Australia 😁 before I turn it on.

"IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast"
Poetry! 🤣

Its not a very big if ....

cpu 220w + 2x 375w + ram and stuff, 1.2kw is quite adequate.
It'll be awesome to go through benchmarks 😀
Good luck and don't use the microwave during tests... 😀

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 16:21:

cpu 220w + 2x 375w + ram and stuff, 1.2kw is quite adequate. It'll be awesome to go through benchmarks :) Good luck and don't us […]
Show full quote

TrashPanda wrote on 2022-02-06, 15:24:

Nexxen wrote on 2022-02-06, 15:12:

"IF I decide to actually build this fire breathing beast"
Poetry! 🤣

Its not a very big if ....

cpu 220w + 2x 375w + ram and stuff, 1.2kw is quite adequate.
It'll be awesome to go through benchmarks 😀
Good luck and don't use the microwave during tests... 😀

heh, I have an old 1200 AXi I could use, its been on the shelf as it suffers from the Corsair 1200 AXi OCP bug and trying to RMA a PSU from here in Australia is not worth it, Postage alone would cover the cost of a new 1300watt EVGA PSU.

Aussie wall sockets supply 240v @ 13 amps so I have ~3000 watts to pull from the wall 🤣