# hardware components for a gaming pc



## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I've selected all components for a gaming pc. 
-I do not plan to upgrade any parts, I want to use all parts as long as possible
-I won't overclock any parts or use SLI
-I hardly ever turn the pc off
-I prefer a quiet pc

These are some questions I have:
*-Is the case still good for these hardware?
-Will all parts fit in this case and are they all compatible?
-Is there enough cooling/ airflow or do I need additional cooling?
-which parts are "too strong" or "too weak" compared to other components?*

These are the components I selected:
Older parts:

-windows xp pro
-case: Antec SonataII (3 years old, without PSU)
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129155
-2 IDE hard disk
-2 SATA II hard disk
-1 DVD-player
-1 DVD-recorder
-1 floppy drive

New parts:
I've selected some parts from this $800 model:


Tumbleweed36 said:


> http://www.techsupportforum.com/f24...-are-6-suggested-models-with-spec-367415.html


-Motherboard: Gigabyte EP45-UD3L
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128372

-Processor: Intel E8400 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037

-RAM Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model KVR800D2N5K2/4G - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134582

-Power Supply: Corsair 650TX 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

-Videocard: EVGA 896-P3-1260-AR GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130370


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The case may be a little tight with the video card the GTX260 is big, The last one I used was with a 8800GT it fit but with 4 drives it may be and issue.
The rest looks good.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

I would suggest a different brand of RAM; Corsair-G.Skill-Mushkin


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Would the Sonata II case provide enough cooling/ airflow? If I'd take 1 hard disk out, would it fit?


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Tyree said:


> I would suggest a different brand of RAM; Corsair-G.Skill-Mushkin


Because of compatibility issues or better quality?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Kingston Value ram isn't the performance leader.

It may help you'll have look at that when installing the card.

What fans do have in the case now, that case has the side ducting? as I remember and a front fan?


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

There is only 1 120mm fan at the back, I'm not sure what "side ducting" is.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ShowImage.aspx?Image=11-129-155-14.jpg%2c11-129-155-15.jpg%2c11-129-155-03.jpg%2c11-129-155-16.jpg%2c11-129-155-05.jpg%2c11-129-155-06.jpg%2c11-129-155-07.jpg%2c11-129-155-13.jpg%2c11-129-155-12.jpg%2c11-129-155-08.jpg%2c11-129-155-09.jpg%2c11-129-155-10.jpg&S7ImageFlag=0&WaterMark=1&Item=N82E16811129155&Depa=0&Description=Antec%20LifeStyle%20SONATA%20II%20Piano%20Black%20Computer%20Case


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yea no room for a front fan, the side duct was originally designed when PSU sucked air into the case to vent it out the back now that PSU exhaust air it draws cool air into the PSU.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok so this case is cool enough, even without another (front) fan installed?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Close but it should be the video card will also exhaust out the back so that helps a lot.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I may get this instead:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
To be sure that cooling is ok.. it has 2 fans, 1 fan inside and 1 fan on the back. Is this significantly better than the Sonata II? Would it fit all the hardware?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes that's a nice case, I would give the Sonata a try however I feel it'll workout ok.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

About hard disks, how are they installed in the case? I checked in this case:http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129155
and all the hard disks were set in the holders. It seems that they were installed with 4 screws into the holder, but I'm not sure how it's done, because a screwdriver can't reach it due to the angle, especially the screws at the back. And for the hard disk at the lowest holder, not even a very small screwdriver could reach that.


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## grimx133 (Jan 15, 2008)

The "holders" are individual drive bays, you squeeze the two clips on the outside together a bit and slide it out. Mount a drive in it and slide it back it. 
It's in the manual here. http://www.antec.com/pdf/manuals/SonataII_En.pdf


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I'm thinking about ordering all the parts at a webshop and assemble the pc myself, to cut some costs. But I'm at beginners level, I have little knowledge about this, so is it advisable? I'd like to read a (very beginner) complete guide (if possible accompanied by some video's) about assembling pc's.

What I'm worried about is that a product may not be in good order, so how do you test which product it is?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Here's one with decent images to get you started> http://techreport.com/articles.x/13671


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

In that guide they mention the front-side bus. What is it actually? This is the CPU: intel core 2 duo e8400


> check to make sure that the BIOS has set the correct clock speeds for the front-side bus and memory.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The FSB is the lane or Data Path the CPU communicates with the Northbridge memory controller on. 1333 for the E8400 and 800 for the memory with the setup above it will automatically be at these settings.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

-Any settings that I may have to change in BIOS for first start-up?
-for SATA II hard disks, do they still work as 'primary' and 'slave' hard disks, on this motherboard, which means I have to configure the jumpers?
-Any other jumpers I need to configure, on motherboard for example?
-The intel core 2 duo e8400 cpu already seems to have thermal paste on it, from the factory, is this sufficient or would I better put some additional thermal paste on the CPU?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The stock heat sink will come with a thermal it works well at stock cpu speeds.
Sata drives do not have jumpers that need to be configured master/slave.
There should be no jumpers to configure on the board other then to clear the CMOS before powering up.
Boot into the Bios and load optimized defaults on start up and that's it.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok, I may order all of the hardware at a webshop. What I am afraid of is, that 1 of the products may not work properly. It's seems to be only possible to test this once the assembly is done, but is it then possible to figure out which of the products is not ok, or do I have to send all components back to the webshop?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Usually you/we can figure out which component is bad from the symptoms.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I noticed that webshops here only give 1 week for returning products. Would 1 week be enough for a very novice person to build a pc, with possibly encountering some problems?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Usually 2-4 hours will get it up and running.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

when using:
2x Sata II hard disks
2x IDE hard disks

-do you need to configure the jumpers for the IDE hard disks? 
-what is the best way to position hard disks, with the power cable to the side of the opening side panel or the closed side panel?

case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ShowImage.aspx?Image=11-129-155-14.jpg%2c11-129-155-15.jpg%2c11-129-155-03.jpg%2c11-129-155-16.jpg%2c11-129-155-05.jpg%2c11-129-155-06.jpg%2c11-129-155-07.jpg%2c11-129-155-13.jpg%2c11-129-155-12.jpg%2c11-129-155-08.jpg%2c11-129-155-09.jpg%2c11-129-155-10.jpg&S7ImageFlag=0&WaterMark=1&Item=N82E16811129155&Depa=0&Description=Antec%20LifeStyle%20SONATA%20II%20Piano%20Black%20Computer%20Case


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Cables to the open side will be easier to install and remove.
The IDE drives will have to be configured as 1 master and 1 slave with the master being on the end of the ribbon cable.
Set it up and load the OS using only 1 hard drive(saves a lot of confusion about which is which).


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

In some guides, I read that you need to "plug in the 24 or 20-pin main ATX power connector" and "Plug the 4-pin 12V auxiliary power, and 6-pin power connectors in also" 

about these parts: 
PSU: Corsair 650 tx
motherboard: pe45-ud3l
CPU: intel e8400

So do I need to plug the 24 or 20-pin connector, and 4 pin and 6- pin connectors as well?

Also, which of these 2 is a better quality motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3L http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128372&Tpk=ep45-ud3l 
or 
ASUS P5Q-E http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131296


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Both are good but the P5Q E is more on par with the GA EP45 UD3P 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358
Both add a second PCIe slot for xfire support.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Both are good but the P5Q E is more on par with the GA EP45 UD3P 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358
Both add a second PCIe slot for xfire support.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Thats the only difference between GA-EP45-UD3L and GA EP45 UD3P, a second pci-e slot? I won't be using SLI so I wouldnt need it. I couldn't see much other differences.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

That and 6 vs 8 sata ports and raid on the UD3P and UD3R, also the audio but both are good AC888 vs AC889a

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2E16813128372,N82E16813128358,N82E16813128359


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Sata port is to connect sata hard disk only? I'll use 2 sata II hard disk (and 2 IDE hard disk) so it should be sufficient. RAID is used only when you want to install windows on 2 different hard disks, right?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

SATA is for HDDs and DVD drives. RAID is a backup/mirroring system so that if one of your hard drives goes kaput you won't lose everything.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

What exactly are SATA devices and IDE devices, I thought SATA and IDE devices were only hard disks.

p5q-e motherboard:


> Storage Devices
> PATA 1 x ATA100 2 Dev. Max


 Does this mean, "only up to 2x IDE devices" can be placed?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes the board has 1 IDE controller which will run 2 IDE drives, and 6 Sata ports which will run 6 Sata drives for a total of 8 drives. I think soon we will see boards without IDE controllers Sata has been pretty much the standard for about 5 years now, Of course I said that about Floppy controllers too.

Raid is a storage configuration scheme which depending on how you configure it can give you a redundant drive(Mirroring) so that if one fails you have an exact copy as a back up or Data stripping where the data is striped across 2 or more drives at the same time in order to speed up write and read times how ever if you lose 1 drive in a 4 drive array you lose all the data. There are a couple of variations of each but those are the basic 2.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

What exactly are SATA devices and IDE devices, I thought SATA and IDE devices were only hard disks, but someone mentioned sata optical devices, which means a sata dvd-recorder?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes Sata is the standard interface for optical drives now also, Sata is a faster connection then IDE, well theoretically at least.

To answer the question a Sata and IDE device is a drive the biggest advantage to Sata is that they can be configured Hot swappable mainly used on servers meaning you can swap drives in and out without shutting the server down.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok, there is 1 old dvd-player and 1 old floppy drive that I still would like to use. How do I know if they are IDE or SATA devices?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Floppies are neither they go on the FDD controller.
The Data cables are different.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I wanted to use these devices:
1x floppy drive
1x IDE dvd-player
2x IDE hard disk
1x SATA dvd-recorder (all new dvd-recorders are sata?)
2x SATA hard disk

for both of these motherboards:
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3L http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128372&Tpk=ep45-ud3l 
and
ASUS P5Q-E http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131296
it seems that not all IDE devices can be connected? There is 1 IDE port short, so I can only connect 2 of the 3 IDE devices. I suppose the 2 IDE devices need to be connected on 1 IDE port on the motherboard. Is it possible to connect 1 IDE dvd-player and 1 hard disk at the IDE port?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The Floppy drive goes to the FDD port, there is 1 IDE controller that supports 2 drives(devices) use the hard drives and pick up a Sata DVD drive. I don't know of any new motherboards that have dual IDE controllers any longer.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok, so although it is and IDE port, the IDE dvd-player has another cable to connect to the IDE port than the IDE hard disk? If you use 2 x SATA hard disk and 2 x IDE hard disk, do I still need to set the master/ slave configuration for the IDE hard disks? And what hard disk will windows recognize as the main hard disk, the C:\ drive?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Your present board most likely has 2 IDE controllers for 4 drives, the new board will only have 1 controller for 2 drives they go on the same cable one should be set to master the second to slave, doesn't matter if they are both hard drives or 1 is a dvd and 1 a hard drive, the drive on the end of the cable is the master the drive on the center plug is the slave.
The drive you set to boot first in the Bios will be the Windows drive, when installing windows only hook up the drive you want windows on and the CD/DVD drive to avoid confusion.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

If it's possible, then I'd rather use 1 x IDE hard disk and 1 x IDE dvd-player on the IDE port. Which should I set as master and as slave, what are the consequences? I won't be using either very often (win xp will be installed on another hard disk). About the jumper settings for master/ slave configuration, do I find this in the motherboard manual?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The drive has the jumper and usually the settings are on a tag on the drive, it would be better to run hard drives on the IDE controller and optical drives on the sata controller.
I haven't run it across it be have read reports of optical drive issues on the IDE controller of newer boards.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

About the case, does it come with many components to install (such as fans) and how difficult is it to install all of these components?

These are the case I'm I'm interested because they have 2 fans, so good airflow it seems and they're quite cheap:
COOLER MASTER Centurion 5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
or 
COOLER MASTER Centurion 590
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119152&Tpk=cooler%20master%20centurion%20590


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

Usually the fans are preinstalled, and if they aren't or if you have aftermarket fans they just screw in, nothing fancy. There's not too much involved in getting the case ready. Put in all (and ONLY) the mobo standoffs you need, and after the mobo is installed you need to attach the little tiny cables that say things like "pwr" and "HDD-LED" and such, and any USB cables. Your mobo manual will show you where.

For the record, I would pick an Antec Three Hundred over the Centurion any day:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

why exactly do you consider Antec to be better, I was only looking for a case with 2 fans for good airflow.


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

I like the Antec X00 series' layout better and I've never had a problem with one. The Centurion 590 looks like a good case as well, but I'd pick the Antec Three Hundred. Hell, call it brand preference if you'd like. I'm just laying the option on the table.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

There is a rear fan and a top fan, is this sufficient for good airflow (heavy gaming) or are more fans needed?
And the case should fit this videocard: engtx260


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

I like a front fan to blow across the hard drives.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

For the fan,
-silent
-good quality
-cheap
Could you recommend some brands? I do not need any colored led fans. Also, what brands to avoid?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The Antec Tricools on low are quiet and move a good amount of air. The Thermaltakes move air if you like Jet engines that's your fan

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...mpareItemList=N82E16835129032,N82E16835209004


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## grimx133 (Jan 15, 2008)

Noctua NF-S12 are very quiet with 48 cfm of airflow. The Scythe slipstream fans are good too. 
For silent fannage, here's a good article at SPCR, includes the noctua and scythe s-flex and antec tri-cools, along with a few others. http://www.silentpcreview.com/article695-page1.html 

btw, cheap and silent don't really go together.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

these 2 cases:

1: 1x fan at rear (120mm), 1x fan at top (140mm), 1x fan at front (120mm)
2: 1x fan at rear (120mm), 1x fan at front (120mm)

The first case is more expensive.. how important is the 140mm fan at the top?
(heavy gaming, other components: intel e8400, engtx260)


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## grimx133 (Jan 15, 2008)

I find the top fan sucks a lot of air out of the case, though I've never tried unplugging it to see if it makes much of a difference. As long as you have an exhaust and an intake it should be fine. The dual slot video card helps too, by exhausting it's warm air out the back.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

-I checked again for the PSU wiring, and it seems that the black cables are from the PSU and the white cables from the devices that connect to the black cables. So black cables always connect to white cables?
All the 4-pin cables from the PCU were black, when do I need to connect to "grounds" cables and when to "12v & 5v" cables? 

-The 5 little power cables from the case, such as "power", "reset" and "speaker" that have to be connected to the motherboard, when plugging the cables, do the description labels have to point up or downwards?

-I checked the CPU fan and there was only 1 cable (3pin), that connects to the motherboard. Is this corrrect, is this the power cable?

-The SATA harddisk, which cable do you use to connect to the power supply? The 4-pin cable (similar to the ones used for IDE harddisk) or the smaller, black cable?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The Sata power are the smaller ones, the fan 3 wire is the power for the fan goes to the motherboard, not sure what you mean by white cables the come from devices?
Grounds cables?
black wires are grounds, yellow 12v + they will all be in connectors.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Those white cables, most of them, could connect to the black cables from the PSU..but not all of them, some had the same plug as the black cables. 

I have been using another case for a while, and now and then there was this loud rattling noise. I'm not sure where the noise came from, but when I put something heavy on top of the case, the rattling noise would be much less. So where does it come from and how do I stop it properly?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

For the rattle, it sounds like a loose part you'll have to find out what's making the noise.

For the connectors lets ID them by name so I'm sure exactly with ones you mean.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok I saw several white 4pin molex connectors to black 4pin molex connectors. And sata harddisk should be connected with the sata cable? because it was connected with a 4pin molex connector. 

Yes I was interested in Antec300 but then I read that it had NO pc speaker, and that it was loud. I still need the pc speaker for dos games and for booting. 

I'm looking for a silent pc case, which ones could you recommend? I'm not looking for expensive cases, just a decent silent case.

-silent, used for heavy gaming
-large enough to fit in videocards such as engtx260
-NO flashy lights, windows or other extras
-no PSU
-at least 1x 120 mm fan at rear panel, and optional fan at front panel 
-pc-speaker included


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The case speaker should not be a big issue> http://www.bestbyteinc.com/CAS-CHW-SP1.html

If you use a fan controller to control fan speed when not gaming it will quiet down.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811998065

The noise comes from the fans the quieter the case the less air flow for the most part.
This is one of the quietest case but as you'll see from the reviews there are complaints about low fan speeds and temps > http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119192


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I have used another case, antec and it often had a loud, zooming sound. I coudnt tell what it was from, but it did not come from any of the fans. That's why i'm cautious about antec.

The pc speaker, what is it used for except post beeps and old games?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Post beeps and old games, but the games should play on the normal speakers, other then some early Dos games.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Some motherboards have a build in speaker, this is for both post beep and old games? Does asus p5q-e have this speaker?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No it as most newer boards use the case speaker that plugs into the front panel connector.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I've checked some cases, how about this case?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112154
It has 3 fans it seems, good enough for gaming?
I'm not sure if additional fans can be installed.
videocard: engtx 260


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Lian Li makes a great case usually they are quite a bit more expensive, the card will fit in there with the sideways hard drive bays.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Antec300 has PSU on the bottom, which means the cables have to go over the videocard, some cables may not reach the motherboard and also the case cables seem to be somewhat short, that's what I'm worried about. 

I'm not sure if additional fans can be installed. If I want to put an extra fan in, does it mean i have to make holes in the panel? Or what is the best way to put in some additional fans and what position (top, sidepanel, rear)?

Is there any way to find out (before ordering the items) if all cables from case to motherboard, and PSU and such, are long enough? I've read that some cases had really short audio cables for example.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The cables on the corsair PSU will go around the video card there is a chase behind the hard drive bay to run the cables through and stash excess wiring see the image below. 
As for the cooling 1 front fan, 1 top fan, the video card and PSU all blowing out is all you'll need it will draw all that air in from the front across the hard drives and motherboard.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

2x 120mm front fans and 1x 120mm rear fans, all 1000rpm, is this enough for a gaming pc?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes because the power supply will also exhaust air out the rear.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

-I checked the sata hard disk, and it was connected with a 4pin molex connector to the PSU. Shouldnt it be connected with the sata cable instead?

-Is it possible to check if the CPU fan works before turning the pc on? Because CPU needs to be cooled immediately.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No that drive does use the 4 pin molex, not all Sata drives use the Sata power connector.
Just hook the fan up to the MB the heat sink will absorb the heat from the CPU, it's only after the heat sink gets hot that you need the fan to cool it.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

What is the fastest yet safest way to shut down a computer, if you need to do it immediately, would that be to press the power switch for a few seconds or shut down the PSU switch immediately?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Press the power button unless it's dire like smoke or sparks then pull the plug.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok after lot of checking, I selected these parts for a gaming pc:

- Motherboard: Asus P5Q-E 
- Processor: Intel E8400 boxed
- RAM: Corsair XMS2 - memory- 4 GB ( 2 x 2 GB ) - DIMM 240-pins - DDR2 - 1066 MHz / PC2-8500 - CL5 - 2.1 V
- Power Supply: Corsair 650TX 
- Videocard: EVGA 896-P3-1260-AR GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3
- Case: LIAN LI Lancool PC-K7B Black Aluminum

other parts:
- 1x WD sata II hard disk
- 2x ide hard disk
- 1x ide dvd recorder
- 1x floppy drive
- win xp

The important thing is that I want to use all hardware as long as possible, so that's why I chose this case, with 3x 120 mm fans and this hardware, and I wont overclock any hardware. Also it's important that the hardware is as quiet as possible. If you see anything that wouldn't fit, incompatible or needs more cooling or something , please let me know.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The IDE controller on all newer boards will only handle 2 drives, I would pickup a Sata Dvd burner, it will be faster then the IDE DVD drive.

Other then that all looks good.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

About the IDE devices, I know about, I'll check which ones I'll install. But if I really need all 3 of them, are there any extension cables or additional devices I can use to connect all 3 IDE devices?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes but you would be far better off replacing the IDE DVD drive with a Sata> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815104214


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

When assembly of parts is done, is it better to immediately update bios as well? ASUS P5Q-Ehttp://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16813131296

Or is it better to install windows to see if everything is already working ok?
If i need to update bios, when is the best time to do it, right after assembly of parts, even before installing windows?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

I'm using the original BIOS, no trouble. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

^^ if it supports your components leave it be.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Should I check with Asus for compatibility? I've send them emails before, but no answer.

About inserting the CPU into the motherboard, for AMD CPU there is a marker that indicates how it should be placed. How is this done with Intel CPU?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

CPU support list here> http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/cpusupport.aspx?SLanguage=en-us&model=P5Q-E&product=1&os=25
You won't know what Bios version the board has until you get it.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

What would actually happen if you would turn on the computer, and the bios version is lower than needed for the CPU?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Sometimes you would need an older CPU to flash it to the newer bios, in most cases with the C2D's they are close enough to run and flash the bios to the latest.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I checked here for RAM compatibility with motherboard p5q-e:
http://www.corsair.com/configurator/product_results.aspx?id=589503
RAM I selected: Corsair XMS2 - Memory - 4 GB ( 2 x 2 GB ) - DIMM 240- pins - DDR2 - 1066 MHz / PC2-8500 - CL5 - 2.1 V
The only memory that resembles it is under "Memory Type":
DDR2-1066 (XMS2-8500C5*4GB*SLI
But I don't have SLI. And the corresponding Part Number is "TWIN2X4096-8500C5"

So DDR2-1066 (XMS2-8500C5*4GB*SLI and TWIN2X4096-8500C5 are the same? Because the shop I checked listed these as different memory.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

It will work but it is optimized for a Nvidia Chipset which are far more memory picky then the Intel boards.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I read that the heatsink and fan of intel were very difficult to install, so I thought I try to install it first without the CPU. Is this ok? Or will the thermal compount strip stick to the CPU socket then?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

What? You mean mount the heatsink without the CPU? What's the point of that? It won't even turn on. Do you mean put in the CPU without the heatsink? Your processor will hit 70C in about five seconds and shut itself down.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

I think he wants to do a dry run to see how the H/S mounts not have a working system.

Mount the CPU in the socket with the board out of the case on the bench then install the heat sink also on the bench that way you can look at the bottom side of the motherboard to see if the pins/legs are fully inserted, they are difficult the first time but looking at the bottom will allow you to better understand how they are supposed to go.

You can even install the video card and ram hook up the PSU and start it up on top of the Motherboard box before installing in the case.> http://www.techsupportforum.com/f255/how-to-bench-test-your-system-171424.html


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Indeed, just to make sure that heatsink and fan fit and it would be safer I thougt. 

If you put the CPU in the socket, and install the heatsink (which has the thermal compound strip already applied on it, for cpu boxed version?)
can you remove the heatsink and reinstall it again or do you need to reapply new thermal compound first?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

That's right anytime you place the heat sink in place and remove it either with a thermal pad or thermal paste you need to reapply.

If you set it up outside of the case simply leave the CPU and heat sink installed when installing the motherboard in the case.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

With this motherboard: p5q-e 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131296&Tpk=p5q-e

and this RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-8500C5C G - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145247

you need to adjust some settings in bios. I read that in order to make any changes in bios, you need to set "AI Overclock Tuner" to "Manual", even if you don't overclock any hardware. Is this correct?

except set:
- DRAM Frequency to 1066 
- DRAM Voltage to 2.1V
- timing to 5-6-6-18

Do I need to adjust the northbridge voltage as well?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No just the ram voltage. But do this last after the OS is installed and the system is 100% stable.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

-After all hardware is assembled, what is REALLY important to check before you turn on the pc? 
For example, 
check that CPU fan is connected and running.
check that no wires are touching the cpu heatsink and fan.
check the number of motherboard holders.

-Should I check all the hardware for errors and check if the system runs stable? What program could I use, preferably for free and checking all hardware (or at least the most important components).

-For all of the hardware that needs to be screwed in, how thight should this be? As thight as possible, or still easy to remove?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Snug is the best way to describe it not 2 handed tight not loose enough to move around.

I see no reason to test all the hardware only test if there is na issue.

The CPU fan will not run before turning on but the other checks are good.

motherboard fasteners > a Screw and a Stand Off for every hole no more, no less if you put in 6 stand offs make sure you have 6 screws(if not you have a standoff in the wrong place, there is a diagram in the motherboard manual of where and how many.

Clear the CMOS, Start it up enter the Bios> Check the Temps and voltages on the PC health page 12v, 5v, 3.3v should be +/- 5%, CPU temp below 40c.

Put the Windows DVD in the Drive> Reboot and Windows will start installing.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

clear cmos, you mean that the battery should be removed for several hours before the pc is turned on?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No use the jumper before installing the board. See page 2-20 in the manual.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I ordered all parts at a webshop. I asked to send hardware in unopened boxes only, just to be safe. But when I received the hardware, some of them seem to have been opened already. I haven't build or test the hardware yet, but I like to know if it is supposed to be like this.

-LG DVD-recorder. Without box, DVD-recorder was just covered in plastic bag.

-Asus P5Q-E motherboard. No seal on the box, box, could immediately be opened.I'm not sure if the guide is used, but all accesoires are sealed in the bags.

-EVGA en260gtx. The box was wrapped in plastic, and there are seals "inspection quality check". One of these seals was broken.

-Corsair XMS2 - 4 GB ( 2 x 2 GB ) DDR2 - 1066 MHz / PC2-8500 - CL5 - 2.1 V
Box could immediately be opened, no seal.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The DVD is most likely a bulk package item.
Most of the time the boxes are plastic wrapped, the retailer may have opened to ensure all the components are in the package?
The Ram could also be bulk packaging it the box a Corsair box or a hard plastic blister pack?


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

The RAM was in a hard plastic blister pack.

I'm mostly worried about the videocard, why would any of the seals be broken, but the box wrapped in plastic? It's possible to open the box with the wrapped plastic still covering the box, if shoved aside carefully. But all papers seem to be unused. 
I'll check videocard. If it looks used, or the bag has no seal, should I immediately return it?
I'll also check the static bag of the motherboard, if it has no seal, should I return it?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Is the retailer you got the items from reliable?
If so I would think they are ok, perhaps a call to the retailer to see why the boxes arrived opened would shed some light.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok I started to assemble some parts. A few questions:

-The IO-shield from the motherboard (Asus p5q-e) has some foam on it. Do you have to remove this? It seems glued on the IO-shield, but it can be removed easily. The motherboard does not fit well in the case (Antec Three Hundred), probably due to the thickness of the IO-shield. 

-There are 4 memory slots: dimm_a1, dimm_a2 (channel a) and dimm_b1, dimm_b2 (channel b). dimm_a1 and dimm_b1 have better overclocking performance, but I won't overclock any hardware. I have 2x2gb memory modules, in what slots could I best position them? CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Have you removed the Antec shield? If the foam is holding the motherboard out of place remove it.

Use A1 and B1 for the faster dual channel mode.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Yes, the antec shield doesnt fit with the motherboard components, it's the asus shield that has the foam. I'm not sure if it is supposed to be used, or that it is just a protection package. the guide mentions about the IO-shield, "special anti-static measurements" but it's not very clear.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

you take the foam off, the padded bit on the io shield you leave on. Well I did anyway.

The io shields can be hard to get into place properly on the case just take your time with it.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

There is no padded part, just the foam glued to the metal IO-shield. The IO-shield does fit ok in the case. there were no instructions, but I inserted the IO-shield from the inside of the case. 

the foam on it seems to be too thick so that the motherboard does not fit well on the stand offs. I'm not sure if I should force the motherboard components against the foam.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

Does this foam have pictures on it or is it just white foam?


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

It's gray foam, no pictures. It seems designed as if it supposed to be used with the foam attached but then all the ports have about 5 mm foam between the IO-shield and the ports from the motherboard. If you push the motherboard components hard into the foam, there is still about 2,5 mm foam.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

mine had grey foam on the inside of the i/o shiled and went around all of the ports if it is what I am thinking off it will come about 2mm of the i/o shile and look as if all the connections wont be made but trust me they will.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok the motherboard does not fit well on the standoffs. should I force the ports against the foam? I'm afraid some might get damaged.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

the motherboard should fit perfect on the standoffs make sure they are all in tightly. As for pushing the ports against the io shield don't be afraid use a little bit of force to do it, I have nevr built a system yet where the ports just slide into the i/o shield.

Face the io shield as if you are looking at the ports on an alread built computer and hold it with one hand whilst sliding the mobo into place with the other. But make sure the stand offs are ok first.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

The IO-shield and foam seems to be designed that way, but the problem is that the motherboard is hard to fit in the case due to the foam. 
I managed to install the motherboard, using some force by pushing the ports against the foam of the IO-shield. It fits ok now, but could it damage the ports due to the pressure of the foam against the ports? 

About the videocard with the opened seal box, I checked the videocard and it does not seem to have been used and there was no dust on the fan. So can I conclude that the videocard is new, or what else can I check?

Also on the back (bottom) of the videocard itself is a sticker "guaranty void if removed". But won't this sticker melt due to the temperatures of the videocard?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No the sticker won't melt.

As long as the ports are through the I/O shield it will be ok.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I'll install them and see if they work. There are some 3-pin connections that are not used: PWR_FAN, CHA_FAN1, CHA_FAN2 and CHA_FAN3. I can't find any cables that could be connected to either one of them. The guide only says that they should be connected. What are they used for? 
The fans from the case all have a 4 pin molex connector, so they are only connected to the PSU. 

Also there is a HD audio connection and a AC 97 connection in the case. The motherboard supports either of them. 1 of them has to be connected, which should I choose, what is the difference?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The PWR_Fan header is used if the PSU has a connector yours like 90% of the supplies doesn't use it. the chassis fan headers(CHA_FAN) would be used if the case supplied fans had a 3 pin to control fan speed, lacking that you don't need to hook them up.

For the front audio if you plan the use standard head phones use the AC97 plug(most times that what is used).

If you have Hi Deff headphones and mic then use the HD.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I try to manage the cables properly but it is quite hard. I'm worried that there is not sufficient airflow due to the cables. Most of them are over the videocard and then scattered around the motherboard. Should I try to put some cables into the hard drive cases instead, out of the center of the case, but in front of the fans? Could you give an example of handling cables properly and not properly?

Also the cables from the PSU are bend in 1 direction. Would it damage the cables if I'd bend them in the exact other direction? Sometimes the sata connection just doesn't fit in the other direction. And how much can I bend them? The motherboard connection seems rather stressful if I bend the cables near the connector to smaller than 90 degrees.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Run them behind the motherboard tray see this image>


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

How did they get the fan wires (red/black) through those tiny holes? It has a molex connector so it couldn't fit through that hole. I see the motherboard connector at the back as well, in order to get it there the cable near the connector has to be severely bend, to much smaller than 90 degrees. Could this damage the cable?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

It won't damage the cable, it should be sleeved for farther protection.
The fans may be the hardest to do, most likely they took the wires out of the connectors and put them through the hole then reinserted into the connector, I would just make those connections on the motherboard side of the case.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok most cables are properly hidden in the backpanel. Except for win xp, what do I need to install? only motherboard drivers, network drivers and videocard drivers?

- Motherboard: Asus P5Q-E 
- Processor: Intel E8400 boxed
- RAM: Corsair XMS2 - memory- 4 GB ( 2 x 2 GB ) - DIMM 240-pins - DDR2 - 1066 MHz / PC2-8500 - CL5 - 2.1 V
- Power Supply: Corsair 650TX 
- Videocard: EVGA 896-P3-1260-AR GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3
- Case: Antec Three Hundred


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

Yup, that should be all. The network drivers should be bundled with the motherboard drivers, as well as the sound drivers. Don't bother with Asus Expressgate or that EPU thing.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I read that it is also very important to install the intel chipset utility. What is this, do I need it? What is "chipset" actually?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

That's included with the motherboard utilities. Also: 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipset
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northbridge_(computing)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southbridge_(computing)


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Are the drivers from the asus motherboard disc sufficient, or do I need to get the latest version from internet?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

They should be sufficient, haven't updated mine since install, might want to later on, definitely if I ever need to flash the BIOS, but they should be fairly recent when you get it, no more than a few weeks out of date.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

What site should I look for if I need the latest version, I'm not even sure what kind of driver type to look for.


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

http://asus.com
http://google.com


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

can you update the motherboard drivers whenever you want to, with the drivers from the disc already installed? I've read that it is not needed to update them, once windows has been installed. I'm not sure why.


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

Motherboard drivers are just like any other drivers. You can update them whenever you want. The ones that came on the disc should be just fine. Occasionally Asus will release new driver versions that maybe contain minor bug fixes and such, but that's it. When you want new drivers, you go to the site, download them, uninstall the old drivers, use DriverSweeper, reboot into safe mode, install the new drivers, reboot.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Another thing, about the videocard I received with the broken seal, I tried some games and most were ok. But with some of the games (from around 2002) I heard a soft but whiny noise. It is not loud, but you can hear it. It sound a bit like a saw machine that is being used, and it is a kind of irregular noise. 
I'm not really sure that the noise comes from the videocard, but it's coming from that direction. It only happens when I play those games, and as soon as I stop playing those games, the noise immediately stops. 

Should I return the card or is this normal? I don't have any new, heavy games to test on, but could the noise be even worse when I would play those?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Could it be the fan on the card working to cool it?


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

It's not really a continuous high pinch beep, it's a high scratching tone. I'm not sure if it's from the fan but it probably is. Any way to find out? It is coming from the videocard area. The sidepanel was open, but it is still pretty hard to detect where it comes from. PSU fan is the closest near the videocard, but then I'm not sure why the sound immediately stops as soon as the game is stopped.

The strange thing is that more heavy games run without any noise. I tried running the game that causes the noise for about 12 hours, but after 12 hours the noise is still exactly the same (not louder). I don't have any heavy games to test on, but could the noise get louder with more heavier games? 


I was looking for the videocard temperature, in display options and the advances options of nvidia itself, but it is not displayed it seems?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Use GPUz for video temps, lets see what the temp is when you hear the noise and in other games that you don't hear it.
http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/1207/TechPowerUp_GPU-Z_v0.2.8.html


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok, checked with pc wizard 2008, I noticed that for games that cause the noises, the temperature of the videocard quickly jumps to 70c (GPU temperature, GPU ambient: 60c). While for games that do not cause the noise the temperature stays around 47c (GPU temperature, GPU ambient: 41c).


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

In CCC check to see what the fan speed is when the card is at that temp.
Then you should be able to set the fan speed to that setting, if it makes the same noise it's from the fan if not we need to look elsewhere.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I'm not sure what CCC is, but when I checked with pc wizard, the fan speed did not change, it stayed at 40%, for 47c as well as 71c.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Woops brain freeze, I meant "EVGA Precision" to check the video card fan speed.
http://www.evga.com/PRecision/

Or Rivatuner will give the same info.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I checked evga precision, but what values should I look at? I see core clock, shader clock, but fan speed is only in % (which stays at 40%).


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Does it stay at 40% when the you hear the noise?
Move the slider to 60% and press apply as a test to see if the speed changes and the noise level.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Yes it does stay at 40% (at about 71c). I moved the slider to 60%, but there was no noise, just a blowing fan.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

That's good it tells us it's not the video card fan.
Your going to have to try and isolate the noise a little more play the game where you hear it with the side cover off and see if you can get a better idea of where it is coming from.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Yes it does seem to come from the videocard, could it be one of the components of it? And is 70c too hot for a videocard?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No that's normal, you could set the fan up to get it a couple of degrees cooler, I would contact EVGA they may know of an issue and their support team is quite good.
By the way have you registered the card on their web site yet?


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok, but the whiny noise that comes as soon as temperature increases, that is not normal, right? I havent registered, but is it useful for european purchasers?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes it's useful, you'll get notification of any updates and special deals.

It's not a noise that should be there.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I'll check with them.
But I noticed a few strange things: 

-the noise is worst at game menus and ingame menus like maps. It sounds like water cooking (not that loud). During the games the noise less loud and different (all kinds of screams). 

-I had to reinstall windows xp. games are on another partition, i did not reinstall them. The noises of some of the games disappeared after I properly reinstalled them. But this is for some of the games only, other still have the noise after reinstall.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

See what EVGA has to say, I can't say I've run across it.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

I'd like to update the drivers of the videocard: evga engtx260. Should I get the drivers from nvidia or from evga? And if there are many versions, which one is the best?

I also noticed this update from windows updates: "nVidia - Display - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260". Is this another driver a have to install?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

No that's the video driver, get the latest driver from Nvidia with their "Driver Robot"
http://www.nvidiadriver.org/drivers.php?mk=g&tk=kidrs#geforce.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok I found another driver at nvidia for engtx260: http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_190.62_whql.html
I wonder which one is better?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Usually the newest is the best to use.


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## grimx133 (Jan 15, 2008)

For running folding, I've found the 190.62's have been very good. The previous 190.38 would cause errors after folding for less than a day.


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

What exactly is "running folding" ?


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## grimx133 (Jan 15, 2008)

Folding At Home, aka FAH is a distributed computing effort from Stanford University in California. There are cpu and gpu clients, which run them at 100%. The gpu client crunches numbers much faster than the cpu, for either they do make components heat up, kind of like running an endless stress test. With the new drivers, I can run it for days without issues, the previous set were a real pain, so don't get those.
We have a folding team here at TSF, not that there are many of us that are actively running it. http://www.techsupportforum.com/rel...1-help-beat-cancer-other-serious-illness.html


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## okeee (May 14, 2006)

Ok I installed the new drivers, unfortunately the noise did not disappear.
I'd like to check on the memory with memtest86+, I still haven't done that. There is a .iso that you're supposed to burn, could it be done with a virtual dvd-drive as well?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

It has to run from boot. I usually run it from my GPartedLive CD so I have HDD and RAM utilities on one disk.


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