Massive CPU powerhouse meets gloriously over-endowed GPU and spawns ultimate workstation offspring.
The term ‘workstation’ is an often-abused label for computers that are marginally better than run-of-the-mill desktop solutions. Historically those considered critical workers often got given Workstation class systems, the logic being that they had a high hourly rate, so anything to speed these people up was a solid investment. Where this strategy failed was that much of this hardware didn’t deserve a Workstation description in the classic Sun Microsystems ‘Pizza box’ Unix Workstations origins. They were merely high specification PCs, but with a few more expansion options and a correspondingly hefty price tag. Conversely, the Supermicro AS-5014A-TT Workstation by Boston Labs in this review earns the label of Workstation. We’re talking all a guns-blazing Workstation built with parts explicitly designed for high-performance systems that aren’t generally found in standard computers. And, yes, it costs plenty, but the performance on offer here dwarfs most desktop PCs by orders of magnitude. If you must ask, you probably can’t sign this purchase order off. A system with the specification of the review system is in the order of £9,500 or $12,785 since the video card alone costs a whopping £2,500 MSRP if you could find one to buy at anywhere near that theoretical price. When you factor in the heavy-duty case, workstation-class motherboard, monstrous processor, and the considerable amount of RAM that Boston pre-installed, the only surprise is that it doesn’t cost even more. While Workstation-class systems aren’t usually renowned for their visual appeal, this system is rather elegant if you like neo-brutalist pillars of sheet metal, precision moulded plastic and acrylic. To provide the space needed for the potential parts that could be mounted inside, Supermicro made a huge E-ATX specification enclosure that needs two people to safely handle. Realising that the system inside could be very heavy, Supermicro put a large and robust carry handle on the top front but omitted to put equally strong support at the rear.
