Upgrading an HP Z440 Workstation

[NonSequitur777]

Yes, indeed: "Upgrading an HP Z440 Workstation".

The last four years have been most favorable to me, reason enough to keep purchasing the occasional legacy HP desktop and pushing its performance boundaries where few if any have gone before.

One of the most affordable and upgradeable legacy desktops du jour is the legendary HP Z440 Workstation. And as usual, eBay is the perfect place to shop around for great deals.  Without further ado, here are my first purchases:

But wait. Some will say: "Excuse me, HP didn't specify an i7-6900K for an HP Z440 Workstation!" -which would be, on the surface at least, a correct statement:

But that didn't stop me from digging a little deeper, because as has been often the case with official documentation, frequently compatible (high-end) processor options are left out for reasons not well understood by yours truly.

The Z440 I just purchased comes with an E5-1650 v3 (6-Cores, 12-Threads, 3.50 GHz up to 3.80 GHz, 140-watt TDP), which is a decent enough CPU to be sure, but part of the reason why I truly enjoy upgrading HP legacy desktops is to find out how far I can push its performance boundaries.

It so happens that an i7-6900K (8-Cores, 16-Threads, 3.20 GHz up to max 4.00 GHz, 140-watt TDP) is also a socket LGA 2011-3 CPU and should be compatible with an HP Z440 Workstation. An eBay Seller offered this CPU for pennies to the dollar ($90) as this processor cost a whopping $1089 when it was first launched in May of 2016.

As far as I have been able to ascertain, an Intel Core i7-6900K is one of the most powerful and best-value-for-money processors one could possibly fit in an HP Z440 Workstation.  Yes, I know there is the i7-6950X, but its overall performance score is but a negligible 1% better than an i7-6900K -mostly in terms of workstation use and not in gaming performance (which I am primarily focused on), and not worth (at least) double the cost of an i7-6900K.  And yes, an i7-6900K also outperforms a Xeon E5-2699A v4, given the (theoretical) Intel C612 chipset processor compatibility options.

Anyway, an HP Z440 Workstation is equipped with no less than 8 DIMM slots and can be fitted with up to 8 x 32GB (256GB!) of DDR4 PC4-19200, 2400 MHz, ECC Registered DIMM (Server RDIMM), 288-pin RAM modules -though I am likely to fit this PC, eventually that is, with 4 or 8 x 16GB of dual-rank (2Rx8) ECC DDR4 server RAM.

This particular HP Z440 Workstation comes with a 700-watt power supply (p/n: 758467-001 / 792339-001), which obviously is very helpful for installing/powering a high-end GPU.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[NonSequitur777]

Dear Forum,

Just remembered that about a year ago I had purchased 4 x 16GB of Samsung M393A2K43BB1-CTD6Q (DDR4 PC4-21300, 2666 MHz, ECC, Registered DIMM (RDIMM), dual-rank (2Rx8), 288-pin RAM sticks:

Since the 700-watt power supply is equipped with 2 x 6-pin PCIe power cables, I just ordered two 6-pin to 8-pin PCIe power adapter cables:

One can do this safely because these particular HP PCIe 6-pin power cables actually provide 18A x 12V meaning they can deliver up to 216 watt EACH. Btw, the HP p/n: 721859-001 I ordered is identical to the p/n: 683867-001 "SPS-CABLE GFX 6pin-8pin PWR HCS EMC ENV".

Depending on if the HP Z440 Workstation (which is shipping as we speak) is equipped with a "Cooling Assembly Workstation front chassis fan For HP Z440" with p/n: 809055-001 (753936-001), I may have to order this part from here:

Same story for a "Memory modules cooling fan assembly" with p/n: 793522-001 (748799-001 / J2R52AA), I may have to order from here:

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[NonSequitur777]

Dear Forum,

The HP Z440 Workstation showed up on my doorstep this morning and started to work on it:

As advertised by the eBay Seller, this barebone desktop is fitted with a Xeon E5-1650 v3 (6-Cores, 12-Threads, 3.50 GHz up to 3.80 GHz, 140-watt TDP), and the i7-6900K I ordered to replace the Xeon processor is still in transit.

The desktop came with the "Cooling Assembly Workstation front chassis fan For HP Z440", but not the "Memory modules cooling fan assembly", but unless I use all 8 RAM slots, I don't need it anyway according to the specs.

Installed the 4x16GB ECC, RDIMM, DDR4 PC4-21300, 2666 MHz server RAM in RAM slots #1, #3, #6, and #8 for best performance* (running at 2133 MHz which is the max RAM speed for a Xeon E5-1650 v3), a 2TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 NVMe SSD as the primary (boot) drive using a PCIe x8 to M.2 NVMe SSD adapter card, and an RX 580 graphics card (powered by a single 6-pin PCIe power cable) because I am also still waiting for the 6-pin to 8-pin PCIe power converter cables as discussed in my previous post.

Plugged in a Wireless USB Wi-Fi adapter and a prepared bootable Windows USB flash drive, and the HP Z440 Workstation started right up -one of the smoothest Windows 10 Pro installs in a while! Then updated BIOS/drivers using HP's Support Assistant and Intel's' Driver & Support Assistant, and applied Windows finetuning and optimizations including the Windows Ultimate Performance Power Plan.

* This particular RAM installment was done as per the HP Z440 QuikSpecs instructions:

Nice: the 64GB RAM is running in "Quad Channel" and in Dual-Rank mode:

So far, so good: this HP Z440 Workstation has been running great:

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[NonSequitur777]

Esteemed Forum,

Lest I forgot, updated BIOS from version v02.14 (2/18/2016) to v02.62 (1/4/2024) :

Link: HP Z440 Workstation Software and Driver Downloads | HP® Support.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[NonSequitur777]

Dear Forum,

Just for kicks, ordered a special i7-6900K sticker:

Fun Fact: As one of the most powerful Intel 6th generation processors, this CPU allows RAM to run at 2400 MHz.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[NonSequitur777]

Dear Forum,

Ran the PassMark performance benchmark:

Link: https://www.passmark.com/baselines/V11/display.php?id=205427532209.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[Bill_To]

Hi @NonSequitur777 

That is cool.

I need to try this.

I build new PCs but have never dug into working with older HP business PCs. One way to get a handle on the how HP designs these monsters.

They are work horses and very reliable.

Regards

[NonSequitur777]

Hi @Bill_To,

Yes, I think it is a lot of fun to buy legacy HP desktops for pennies to the dollar via eBay and upgrading them to the greatest/fullest extent possible.

Some of the legacy HP desktops I have worked on: HP EliteDesk G5 SFF, HP Z240 SFF, HP ProDesk 600 G4 Microtower, HP EliteDesk 800 65W G4 DM, and the HP Z2 Tower G4 Workstation.

There are many more outstanding HP legacy desktops available that would be worth-it as enthusiast upgrade projects!

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[Bill_To]

Hi @NonSequitur777 

I like to tinker with PCs but continuously building new PCs is very expensive.

I usually move existing builds to new cases when I see a new case that inspires me.

Regards

[NonSequitur777]

@Bill_To,

Understood.  I do some 'repurposing' as well to keep the overall cost down, but these upgrading projects happen to be my pastime hobby, and I'm willing to use my spending money on it.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777