I bought a Grace-Hopper server for €7.5k on Reddit and converted it to a desktop
2 days ago
- #AI Hardware
- #DIY Projects
- #High-Performance Computing
- Purchased a Grace-Hopper system for 7.5K euro, originally priced at 10K euro, featuring high-end specs like 2x Nvidia Grace-Hopper Superchip and 2x Nvidia Hopper H100 Tensor Core GPU.
- Converted the liquid-cooled server to air cooling, facing challenges like extreme noise and dust accumulation, leading to a ban on home use due to noise levels.
- Disassembled and cleaned the server using isopropanol, then designed and installed a custom water-cooling system with CNC-milled adapter blocks.
- Encountered critical errors including fan failures and a GPU temperature sensor reporting 16 million degrees Celsius, which was debugged and fixed by soldering damaged components.
- Successfully assembled the desktop with custom mounts and a structural frame, enabling it to run large language models like a 235B parameter model at home.
- Total cost of the project was approximately 8,930 euro, including the server, cooling system, and other components, providing a cost-effective solution for high-end AI computing.