Building Server from scratch - SuperMicro X7DBE

[ibexpiotr]

its time to replace my old poweredge 840 running esxi hosting 3vm (dc, ex, ts) with something more powerful. The build just like the previous one is going to be for learning/testing.

a X7DBE motherboard from SuperMicro fell into my hands along with 2 xeons 5160s (thinking of upgrading going 2x quad later).
so above are things I have...not much
things I need:
*PSU min 500W
*heatsinks+fans (probably something inexpensive from http:// )
*RAM found compatible 16GB on ebay
*HDDs (might have raid controller, if not onboard)

for the most part thats it.
for the case I'm thinking of using an IKEA picture frame, got an idea from hak5.

any toughs / suggestions.. my main concern is not spending too much money..

 

[stoatwblr]

Ram on these babies runs HOT and draws about 12-20W/stick.

The power consumption of my 32Gb x7dbe+ box is over 450W just idling (it doesn't go up much)

If you're sensitive to power pricing a current C222 atom system has as much grunt as one of these old boxes and only draws 20-30W. It will probably pay for itself in power savins within 6 months.