Dell Workstation Owners Club

[data00]

Ok, will do.

 

[data00]

I got the wire necessary for the Nidec fan. Benchmarked it in XTU and it was a big improvement!

 

[data00]

Got the zip-tie to strap the Nidec to heatsink and ran the benchmark, it improved! But scored 382?

 

[pacmancat]

Here's a strange one, maybe someone here has experience with something like it...

I just bought a "gently used" T7610 to use as a proper workstation after having a good experience using a cheap refurbished T3500 as a home server for the past year. After getting a fresh install of 64-bit Win10 up and running on it, I noticed it was only reporting 8GB of RAM (it should have had 16GB).

A quick trip into the BIOS showed 4 active channels, but the DIMMs in slots 3&4 were being reported as "0 GB ECC RDIMM" (as opposed to *** DIMM slot empty *** or some other more obvious error)... and swapping the DIMMs around between slots 1&2 and 3&4 gave the same results, so it didn't seem to be an issue with the RAM itself.


On a lark I tried a dual-channel setup, populating only slots 1&2 for each CPU... which resulted in all 16GB being recognized.

I had planned to upgrade to 32GB, so I already had on hand an identical set of 16GB 4x4GB Micron 1866MHz RDIMMs, same part number as was already installed in the machine... and populating the RAM according to the recommended install chart for quad-channel (4GB DIMMs in slots 1,2,3,&4 on both CPUs, (the ones with the white release-levers)) results in a similar issue--DIMMs 3&4 on both CPU1 and CPU2 are reported as "0 GB" in the BIOS, showing up as 16GB in both Windows and the built-in hardware test. Even weirder: going against the recommended install chart and just putting all of the RAM in CPU1's slots also shows 16GB, but with slots 1,2,5&6 reporting "4 GB" and slots 3,4,7&8 reporting "0 GB"

Random things I've tried:

• Updated to the latest BIOS (it arrived running the BIOS it shipped with in 2014)
• Turning off RMT
• Allowing Memory Map IO above 4GB
• Booting with just about every combination of available DIMMs in only slots 1&2 just to make sure they're all working

...but nothing seems to make a difference, or point me in the right direction for a solution.

Other possible related issues:

• It came set up in a dual-processor configuration with two E5-2630 v2's, and 16GB of PC3-14900R in a 4x4GB configuration. The service tag implies that the original config was single-socket, and someone added a second 2630v2 at some point, but the machine is otherwise configured to match its service tag.
• The machine seems to have taken a spill during shipping; the front bottom corner near the SAS cage slightly crumpled and bent out of true, and some rivets had popped out of the case frame and were rattling around inside. I had hoped that this was just cosmetic, but could it have caused cracked traces on the motherboard or shorted something..?
• I've had a few "WHEA uncorrectable error" BSODs, including one from the install environment while first trying to install Windows (!). Probably not a great sign on a fresh install with everything stock and no additional software running.

I've wasted about 5 hours on this already, and am about to give up and return the thing.

Any ideas before I throw in the towel? This is my first dual-socket LGA2011 machine, so I'm not 100% confident I'm not screwing something up myself here, but I can't for the life of me figure it out. Physical/electrical issue with motherboard or DIMM sockets? (seems weird that it'd be the same slots on both CPUs)... Memory controller issue in the Xeon(s)? Or just a time-suck mystery not worth solving?

 

[lexluthermiester]

A quick trip into the BIOS showed 4 active channels, but the DIMMs in slots 3&4 were being reported as "0 GB ECC RDIMM" (as opposed to *** DIMM slot empty *** or some other more obvious error)... and swapping the DIMMs around between slots 1&2 and 3&4 gave the same results, so it didn't seem to be an issue with the RAM itself.

Seen this before. Either you have bent pins in the CPU socket, damaged conductor traces on the motherboard or a damaged CPU. Going to need to disassemble and inspect.

 

[pacmancat]

Seen this before. Either you have bent pins in the CPU socket, damaged conductor traces on the motherboard or a damaged CPU. Going to need to disassemble and inspect.

Thanks for the tip; disassembly has revealed that between the two CPU sockets there are at least a dozen bent pins. I'll probably try and source a cheap mobo replacement.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Thanks for the tip; disassembly has revealed that between the two CPU sockets there are at least a dozen bent pins. I'll probably try and source a cheap mobo replacement.

That sucks. Hope you find one for a good price!

Took the liberty of looking. Your english is very good so I'm think you're in the US? Maybe?
$160 Shipped, 100% reputation;

Dell Precision T7610 Dual Lga2011 Socket Server Motherboard 0NK70N for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dell Precision T7610 Dual Lga2011 Socket Server Motherboard 0NK70N at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

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Also $160 shipped, good reputation;

Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

This one comes with a pair of CPU's. If they're better than the ones you already have, the extra $20 is worth it at $180, decent reputation;

Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[data00]

That sucks. Hope you find one for a good price!

Took the liberty of looking. Your english is very good so I'm think you're in the US? Maybe?
$160 Shipped, 100% reputation;

Dell Precision T7610 Dual Lga2011 Socket Server Motherboard 0NK70N for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dell Precision T7610 Dual Lga2011 Socket Server Motherboard 0NK70N at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

Also $160 shipped, good reputation;

Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

This one comes with a pair of CPU's. If they're better than the ones you already have, the extra $20 is worth it at $180, decent reputation;

Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 for sale online | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Dell NK70N Dual Socket Workstation Motherboard for Precision T7610 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

On the one with pair CPUs, i recommend not buying it because the seller has 12 negatives in 1 month. The negatives say the seller is a liar, selling defective items, items never received, one of which is a motherboard, and so on. The other 2 are acceptable since they are long time sellers.

 

[Susquehannock]

At least a dozen bent pins. Ouch! A few can be bent back pretty easy. That many, not so much. Is a return and/or replacement not an option for you? Sounds like you got a defective item. If the case had CPUs already installed from the seller it is not likely the bent pins came from that shipping incident.

 

[lexluthermiester]

On the one with pair CPUs, i recommend not buying it because the seller has 12 negatives in 1 month. The negatives say the seller is a liar, selling defective items, items never received, one of which is a motherboard, and so on. The other 2 are acceptable since they are long time sellers.

Saw that, many of those negatives are from the same set of users. Vendetta feedback is something I usually ignore.

 

[data00]

Saw that, many of those negatives are from the same set of users. Vendetta feedback is something I usually ignore.

Fair enough.

 

[pacmancat]

It was an eBay sale; I got the seller to refund me $165 for the replacement since that seems to be the going rate for a used board (thanks lexluthermiester). I'll probably wait until I have some more free time to purchase and do the swap (I have a newborn at home, so things like free time and adequate sleep are in short supply).

If I'm feeling lucky I'll try my hand at the pin repair before making the purchase, but getting in there with a magnifier shows that some of the pins aren't just out of skew, they're bent backwards and clean in half. Blah. In any case, after the refund I'm only out less than $200 total, so I'm not feeling too bad about it, assuming it can be repaired.

Can I solicit a few more tips?

• Since the factory config was 1CPU, it didn't come with the plastic RAM cooling shrouds. Should I try and find a pair, or are they unneeded/over-engineered unless you're running a full bank of DIMMs and high-TDP CPUs?
• Speaking of CPUs, the aftermarket CPU addition in the second slot has a lower-profile heatsink/fan accessory than stock, looks like part # G4T9T. I assume this is intended for lower-TDP CPUs... It's currently running dual E5-2530v2's (85W), but should I be looking to replace this cooler with the larger size (part # 1TD00?) if I end up upgrading to a 115W or 130W set of CPUs down the line?

 

[dhrag5t]

Has anyone tried a Vega 56 or 64 in their T3500? I'm wondering if it will work since I've read about how they require UEFI bios to work with Windows 10, else you're stuck on Windows 7. Currently rocking a GTX 1060 which is more than enough for my light gaming but there are so many fantastic deals on local markets in my area for Vega 56 (around $200) and Vega 64 (around 240) ...

 

[totalzen]

Hi all, have a question I hope some of my fellow Dell workstation owners here can help with.

I'm currently using a T3500 with a W3680 as a secondary workstation right now, and was hoping to set up another for a friend. Exact same parts and routine as I did it last time, but the newer workstation does not want to boot from the W3680, with the LED error code being 1- Off 2- Blink 3- Blink 4- Blink (System on. BIOS not execution. This is the transition state to POST states.). I've confirmed the motherboard and parts do work from a spare W3530 I have - BIOS updated to latest A17 revision.

One thing I do notice is that both motherboards on the one I'm currently using and the one that doesn't boot are both model 09KPNV, but the working one is A00 while the newer one is A01. Is there anyone here who perhaps has some insight into this? Thanks in advance!

 

[Retrorockit]

Did you try the 2nd W3680 in the running machine to see if the CPU is bad? You might try the CMOS Clear/RST jumper to see if some old settings need to be flushed out of the BIOS.
The memory controller is on the CPU, and the new ones are different than the older ones. Not sure what specific problem this might cause but it's something to look into.

 

[data00]

Has anyone tried a Vega 56 or 64 in their T3500? I'm wondering if it will work since I've read about how they require UEFI bios to work with Windows 10, else you're stuck on Windows 7. Currently rocking a GTX 1060 which is more than enough for my light gaming but there are so many fantastic deals on local markets in my area for Vega 56 (around $200) and Vega 64 (around 240) ...

AMD GPU requires a UEFI BIOS while the T3500 is only legacy, and it doesn't matter if its Windows 7 or 10, the computer won't boot with an AMD GPU.

IIRC you can add a NVIDIA GPU along with the AMD GPU to get around this. Although I won't recommend adding a Vega 56 or 64 to your T3500 anyways because it would most likely be bottlenecked by the CPU. I have a 1080 Ti with a Xeon W3680 overclocked to 4Ghz (T3500 mobo) and although it performs well, it is definitely bottlenecked by the processor.

You should stay with your mighty GTX 1060.

If you still want to get the Vega 56 or 64, you should build a new PC instead. You will be disappointed how the Vega performs in the T3500.

 

[dhrag5t]

AMD GPU requires a UEFI BIOS while the T3500 is only legacy, and it doesn't matter if its Windows 7 or 10, the computer won't boot with an AMD GPU.

IIRC you can add a NVIDIA GPU along with the AMD GPU to get around this. Although I won't recommend adding a Vega 56 or 64 to your T3500 anyways because it would most likely be bottlenecked by the CPU. I have a 1080 Ti with a Xeon W3680 overclocked to 4Ghz (T3500 mobo) and although it performs well, it is definitely bottlenecked by the processor.

You should stay with your mighty GTX 1060.

If you still want to get the Vega 56 or 64, you should build a new PC instead. You will be disappointed how the Vega performs in the T3500.

Thanks for that info. Though I did see some guy on YouTube claiming to run a Vega on the x58 platform, and he said he was limited to Windows 7 for gaming. I'll comment on his video and check it out.

Most of my gaming is in 4K, which is why I was looking to upgrade the GPU as the 1060, while certainly capable of reaching 30-50FPS (sometimes even 60) in a lot of titles, is still a bottleneck at that resolution. Obviously the CPU matters too, but my W3690 overclocked at 4.13 GHZ has kept up very nicely in every title.

I guess I'll just wait for a 1080 or the new RTX series to drop in price. I'm not in a huge rush to upgrade just yet.

 

[Retrorockit]

UEFI support usually varies from one card vendor to another, not AMD or Nvidia. I see a couple Vegas, and other AMD cards running at userbenchmark.com in T3500. But the specific card may not always be identifiable. It is possible that Vegas ARE all UEFI, I haven't looked at them myself. But there are other issues that can keeep an AMD from running.

UserBenchmark: Dell Precision WorkStation T3500 Compatible Components

I think Susquehannock had some insight on a chipset driver issue that causes a problem, and T3400 and other BTX Dells had a specific problem with AMD cards not displaying the VESA 103 video resolution their BIOS required. I would look through the thread at Susquehannocks posts and see what results he had. He also posts in the Throttlestop Overclocking thread so it may be in there. I've had trouble with AMD cards that had a dual BIOS switch.
When I was answering questions at Tomshardware I've seen many statements that new GPUs were all UEFI, from Nvidia or AMD. Usually the 2nd tier Vendors like PNY, or Zotac provide Legacy compatable products for older computers. The sellers are typically clueless about this . AMD/ Dell issues are very real, but not always UEFI related.

 

[Susquehannock]

Cannot speak for all AMD cards but I have never had an issue. Two T3500 running RX 480 right now. MSI and Gigabyte. Have put RX 460 and 470 in other boxes for friends. That was some time ago. Believe they were PNY and ASUS cards.

First thing I do when these T3500 come into my hands is update both the BIOS and Intel chipset driver. (here) Have never tried the cards before that so not sure it helped with compatibility. Certainly worth a try. Good idea to update regardless.

[edit]
What I am wondering is if anyone has had success with 5700 or 5700 XT in these T3500. Sure it will bottleneck some but would like to have one more GPU upgrade to hold me off until DDR5 systems hit mainstream in a couple years.

 

[dhrag5t]

What I am wondering is if anyone has had success with 5700 or 5700 XT in these T3500. Sure it will bottleneck some but would like to have one more GPU upgrade to hold me off until DDR5 systems hit mainstream in a couple years.

I'm very curious about this as well. The 5700 and 5700 XT can be found open box at Micro Center (if you're fortunate enough to live close to one) for around $280-$330, which is fantastic value. There would be a bottleneck at 1080P even with a setup like mine (W3690 at 4.26 Ghz) but you can just increase the resolution to 1440p or 4K to let the GPU shine.

And even with the minimal bottlenecks at 1080P, you'd still get 60+ FPS in any title and the bottleneck wouldn't be severe to the point where your frametimes are suffering and your overall experience is sluggish. Tech Yes City has a video with an X5660 (he has an unlocked motherboard so he managed to overclock the CPU to 4.5 Ghz) paired with a 2080Ti and while there were small bottlenecks at 1080P, it didn't really impact performance all that much compared with newer CPUs (he compared them with the Ryzen 5 3600 and i5 9400F), as the average, 1% and .1% low framerates were very smooth, and there was no stutter.

Power consumption might be an issue with these cards though. I'm still rocking the stock 525W power supply on the T3500. I might just wait for the next gen RTX cards to come out in a year or two before buying the "60" tier model RTX (2160?) which are generally less power-hungry and offer comparable performance to the "70" cards of the previous series.

 

[totalzen]

Did you try the 2nd W3680 in the running machine to see if the CPU is bad? You might try the CMOS Clear/RST jumper to see if some old settings need to be flushed out of the BIOS.
The memory controller is on the CPU, and the new ones are different than the older ones. Not sure what specific problem this might cause but it's something to look into.

I did try the CPU in my primary workstation and it did work, so my earlier suspicion about the board in the T3500 still stood. Good news though, the CPU did start working on the newly bought T3500, but only after over a dozen attempts at reseating the CPU. I'm assuming the pins weren't making good contact or some nuanced situation with the socket. As to how long this will work without issue, who knows, but I'm just happy it's up and running now. Now on to overclocking it with TS and extracting all that goody value!

 

[Retrorockit]

Power consumption might be an issue with these cards though. I'm still rocking the stock 525W power supply on the T3500. I might just wait for the next gen RTX cards to come out in a year or two before buying the "60" tier model RTX (2160?) which are generally less power-hungry and offer comparable performance to the "70" cards of the previous series.

The Dell PSUs multirail design allows certain things, and doesn't allow others. Basically the 6 pin PCIe cable will supply the rated 75W of power it's supposed to, but might not allow much more than that or it will shut down to protect the system. If you look at the actual power comsumtion of the GPU, and not the suggested PSU size you may find that even though it requires a 150W 8pin adapter the GTX1070 is only a 150W total GPU and is therefore within spec. if you don't OC it. Dell PSU ratings can be misleading. They give full power continuos rating and not a peak power "advertised" rating the aftermarket uses. A 525W Dell PSU will basically equal a 600W aftermarket PSU.
You can also look at each rail on the PSU. They have different color codes on the wires, and a seperate 12V. Amp rating listed on the PSU label for each rail.
White,Yellow, and Blue are the 12V. colors. If the GPU rail also powers the HDD cable, and you moved the SSDs to say the DVD rail, then you should be able to run up to the full wattage of that rail for the GPU using an adapter (assuming it's not powering something else also). The overload protection is on a rail by rail basis. Map out the PSU rails on your wiring harness and see where you end up.

 

[Valantar]

The Dell PSUs multirail design allows certain things, and doesn't allow others. Basically the 6 pin PCIe cable will supply the rated 75W of power it's supposed to, but might not allow much more than that or it will shut down to protect the system. If you look at the actual power comsumtion of the GPU, and not the suggested PSU size you may find that even though it requires a 150W 8pin adapter the GTX1070 is only a 150W total GPU and is therefore within spec. if you don't OC it. Dell PSU ratings can be misleading. They give full power continuos rating and not a peak power "advertised" rating the aftermarket uses. A 525W Dell PSU will basically equal a 600W aftermarket PSU.
You can also look at each rail on the PSU. They have different color codes on the wires, and a seperate 12V. Amp rating listed on the PSU label for each rail.
White,Yellow, and Blue are the 12V. colors. If the GPU rail also powers the HDD cable, and you moved the SSDs to say the DVD rail, then you should be able to run up to the full wattage of that rail for the GPU using an adapter (assuming it's not powering something else also). The overload protection is on a rail by rail basis. Map out the PSU rails on your wiring harness and see where you end up.

Serious aftermarket/retail PSU brands haven't advertised peak power output for a decade or more, and anything rated by 80+ must be capable of outputting its full rating continuously (otherwise they wouldn't be able to measure efficiency at full load). Most PSUs these days are rated for their full load at 40C ambient, while good ones raise that to 50. There are of course bargain-basement garbage units that don't follow these best practices (and are only rated for full output at 25C, for example) but they are relatively rare, and nonexistent among serious brands.

 

[Retrorockit]

It's true that serious brands do use a realistic rating. The thing about Dell PSUs is the rating often as not reflect the connectors on the wiring harness as much as the actual output of the PSU.
Here is an old used Dell Optiplex 305W PSU that most people think is junk.

Dell H305P-01 Power Supply Review - Hardware Insights

Contents1First Look2Load Testing3Actual Specifications and ConclusionsFirst Look Once again, we’re looking at a unit from a major OEM. Unlike last time, however, we’re looking at a unit from a PC […]

www.hardwareinsights.com

On a test bench it makes 400W. But the cables it provides only require 305W. So that's it's official output.
It has the same 2x 18A. 12V. rails as the 375W T3400 PSU that adds a 75W PCIe cable. It's the rail protection that limits the output not the hardware itself. Dell doesn't sell PSUs by the Watt. They provide them to work in specific systems. Often in their market a low rating looks better than a high one. You can take your Dell PSU, add up the 12V. rails and calculate what you have. These old Dell PSUs also send many more watts to the 5V. rail than newer aftermarket types.
EVGA is pretty good about this but many others are not. I would always give the Dell PSU a try first. Dell does what's best for Dell. Conservatively rated reliable PSUs save them a lot of trouble in tech support , warranty, and long term lease value.

 

[Susquehannock]

The 75 watt spec on the 6-pin PCIe connector is often misunderstood. It is a requirement not a mandatory maximum. Depending how the PSU is set up the connector and corresponding wires can be capable of far more. Case in point the 525w units in these T3500s. If our suspicions on rail division are correct we have 18 amps / 216 watts for the 6-pin. Combine that with 75 watts from the PCI slot and we have potential of 291 watts for the GPU. No wonder my RX 480s can top out around 220-225 watts under heavy gaming with ease, while using 6-pin to 8-pin adapters. 75+75 = 150 watts? No way. Some of the new gaming 5700 XT are topping out around 250 watts total. With upcoming 5800 and 5900 series expected higher. Too close for my comfort. Especially with potentially 10 years old PSUs. Fortunately aftermarket units fit rather easily.