Acquiring a discrete GPU...

About 6 months after I built my first desktop, I ended up taking "parallel processing", a class about CUDA programming and GPU acceleration. I needed to write CUDA, basically C++ that compiles for a Nvidia GPU. However I had an AMD iGPU. AMD did have some stuff going on back then for their own version of GPU programming, but their toolchain did not support any of their integrated graphics. I could have (and did) use a AWS VM with a Nvidia GPU to test/run my assignments in the cloud. But, having to use a cloud VM is mildly annoying. Also, the class provided an wonderful excuse to purchase a GPU (hey, its no more expensive then buying a textbook, right?). Remember, this is back in the day when you could buy the latest mid-range GPU, a Nvidia 1060, for about $170. I found one made by PNY for $150, so I bought it. It was amazing, the performance increase in games was unbelievable! It also let me do all my class assignments locally.

You might be wondering at this point "Ben, you can't fit a 1060 in that tiny itx case you got, and even if you could, the PSU is not powerful enough. Did you get a different case?" Glad you asked. No, I did not get a different case, I got a (cheap) testbench frame, and a (cheap) 80+ Bronze PSU. The result is this monstrosity, please take note of the power button zip-tied to the top of the frame from some old 2004 HP desktop:

Specs:

• Random bench frame
• AMD Ryzen 5 2400G
• MSI B450i ITX motherboard
• PNY Nvidia 1060
• Cheapest 3600MHz DDR4 8GB x2 I could find
• XPG M.2 256GB (back of motherboard)
• Generic 500GB HDD from an old laptop
• EVGA 80+ bronze 500W ATX PSU

I think I did a great job of cable management! It worked well, until the GPU broke after about 2 months... However this is not as surprising as you might think. It was the cheapest 1060 I could find, and it came in a sketchy unmarked box. Rip 1060:

How was I going to finish my class with no Nvidia GPU!? Well, my brother's old 2010 Nvidia 630 was still sitting around. It had worse performance than my 2400G iGPU, but it was able to run CUDA programs well enough to finish the class! Yay! Around this time, my bother had also finally upgraded from his old FM2+ CPU & single channel RAM motherboard, to a AMD Ryzen 5 2600 and AM4 mobo. I 'borrowed' the old mobo, popped in the Nvidia 630, and lashed together a frame from old beach umbrella ribs and some scrap wood (I do mean that literality, the whole thing is tied together with string (not "human hair, from my back" that's for sea turtles... haha?)). Reused my 'new' 500W PSU, and a collection of random HDDs I had lying around. I used the resulting affront to PC enthusiasts everywhere to run Linux for CUDA development:

While it may have looked like a fire hazard, it actually worked well. In the next chapter of low budget PC adventures, the fire hazard becomes a server, and the InWin Chopin goes back into service!