Raptor Launching Talos II Lite POWER9 Computer System At A Lower Cost

[coder]

Hey Timothy, I have a question for you. Would it be possible to get the board and stick it in any case that classifies itself as E-ATX capable? I had my eye on the following case, as it really reminds me of the venerable Apple PowerMac G5 design.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lian-Li-PC-...item4675dddb68

Perhaps this would be of interest:

https://wiki.raptorcs.com/wiki/Talos_II/Hardware_Compatibility_List#Cases

[curaga]

Still out of my budget

[blacknova]

Ports set is concerning one pcie16 and one pcie-4, if you get it with ssd it will use pcie-4 and that leave you with single pcie-16 for gpu and no sas/sata ports for additional storage.
So the question is why no integrated sas/sata controller by default for lite version? For full two socket mb it make sense to keep storage options open since you have a lot of pce-e connectors for expansion cards, but it is not so for lite.

[darkbasic]

Interesting, but with the same price of the quad core version you can buy an eight core plus an Optane 900p 480GB.
I wish them good luck, I hope they'll start selling more and the price will get lower.

[rmoog]

madscientist159 can we please get a TDP on all the CPUs available from RaptorCS? I'm interested in the <95W segment because I'm only interested in things that can run with just a heatsink.

[chithanh]

Ports set is concerning one pcie16 and one pcie-4, if you get it with ssd it will use pcie-4 and that leave you with single pcie-16 for gpu and no sas/sata ports for additional storage.
So the question is why no integrated sas/sata controller by default for lite version? For full two socket mb it make sense to keep storage options open since you have a lot of pce-e connectors for expansion cards, but it is not so for lite.

I agree that the Talos II Lite is seriously lacking in the PCIe department (though it is x16/x8, not x16/x4 as you wrote), which breaks the deal for me. With fast storage moving rapidly towards PCIe, for a high end workstation this simply isn't enough especially considering the TR4/SP3 competition.

Unfortunately, PCIe is a major driver of cost so more lanes/slots would have made the mobo more expensive.

Hopefully the PCIe x8 slot can physically fit x16 cards, so you can install a graphics card there and a x16 PCIe to 4 M.2 adapter in the x16 slot. Possibly combined with this if you want SATA...

[darkbasic]

I agree that the Talos II Lite is seriously lacking in the PCIe department (though it is x16/x8, not x16/x4 as you wrote), which breaks the deal for me. With fast storage moving rapidly towards PCIe, for a high end workstation this simply isn't enough especially considering the TR4/SP3 competition.

Unfortunately, PCIe is a major driver of cost so more lanes/slots would have made the mobo more expensive.

Hopefully the PCIe x8 slot can physically fit x16 cards, so you can install a graphics card there and a x16 PCIe to 4 M.2 adapter in the x16 slot. Possibly combined with this if you want SATA...

Exactly. With the 18-core processor it starts to get interesting for less than 3000$, but I truly need at least another x4 slot.

[dungeon]

madscientist159 can we please get a TDP on all the CPUs available from RaptorCS? I'm interested in the <95W segment because I'm only interested in things that can run with just a heatsink.

Well, you have written for 4 cores it is 90W, for 8 cores 160W... for 22 cores you can sneak in a bit:

Official TDP is still 190W. Note that POWER9 is able to exceed the TDP if desired as long as thermal parameters stay within acceptable ranges, so some extra power may be consumed while in WoF (ultra turbo) mode.

https://twitter.com/RaptorCompSys/status/984488111634776064

Turbo wanna juice, you know

[blacknova]

I agree that the Talos II Lite is seriously lacking in the PCIe department (though it is x16/x8, not x16/x4 as you wrote)

Yeah, it is x8, missed that bit. If it just like their 2-socket MB it would be physical x8 connector.
And if it is like their 2-socket MB, it would be 2 upper connectors, which mean you cannot fit 2 2-slot expansion cards nearby. Well, unless lite version have different layout.

[madscientist159]

I agree that the Talos II Lite is seriously lacking in the PCIe department (though it is x16/x8, not x16/x4 as you wrote), which breaks the deal for me. With fast storage moving rapidly towards PCIe, for a high end workstation this simply isn't enough especially considering the TR4/SP3 competition.

While we understand this, bear in mind that Talos II is the only actually owner-controlled system in this performance class. TR4/SP3 both require a massive amount of signed proprietary "black box" code to function; this can never be replaced. Combined with vendors such as Intel actively preventing research and reverse engineering, this may not be a good place to be for privacy-conscious people or those processing high value data.

On the PCIe front, we offer an optional PCIe to 4x OCuLink card on the checkout page, along with U.2 cables. Basically you can attach four U.2 drives to the Lite board this way, while still leaving the x16 slot open. Bear in mind the Talos II endpoints are all PCIe Generation 4 as well, and that the POWER9 is highly optimized for fast I/O. You might just be surprised what you can do with the Lite system!

If you really want to get creative, there are even boards that will take the U.2 connector back to x4 PCIe slots. Octopus, anyone?