I want a Gaming Rig

[Broomjockey]

http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...tID=10072&SID=

Okay, this is the board I'm looking at now, but all the numbers are throwing me off. Will this run the RAM you were showing me, JustADude? I know it will run the Intel, as I'm convinced to go with that instead, and this board has the SLI I'm hoping for, but I can't tell if it will run the RAM at the optimum speed.

I'm picking up the board, chip, and RAM on Wednesday, hopefully. If anyone wants I can probably manage pics of it being all spiffy. *is excited*
Quick question:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...tID=10659&SID=

http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9637&SID=
Okay, the second one's quad core, but it's 2.4GHz instead of 3.0GHz. But they're the same price. Is the quad core better, worse, or actually the same as? I've got some extra money kicking around which I'm going to put into the processor, and these are pretty much at the limit of what I'm willing to spend, so if there's a difference between them... I dunno.

[JustADude]

Okay, this is the board I'm looking at now, but all the numbers are throwing me off. Will this run the RAM you were showing me, JustADude?

Actually, no, it won't. The board lists its memory compatability as DDR2 533/667/800/1200 Which means you need DDR2 533, DDR2 667, DDR2 800, or DDR2 1200 type memory, while the MoBo and RAM I recommended were DDR2 1066 at the high-end. Since you want a gaming rig, you'll need more than DDR2 800, and the 1200s and over are all having massive problems with burnouts.


As for the processor, It's up to you. The Quad-Core will be more responsive, and you'll have less of a draw from your background apps, but most games these days don't even code for dual-core, let alone quad. One's more speed while the other is more future-proofed.

[symposes]

my system crapped out on me recently, the motherboard went bad, and was eating processors. *that was no fun to troubleshoot, since i had AMD Sempron, and i was not about to jump through hoops to replace this old stuff.*

now im using an AMD x2 3600 (2 2g cores) Considering how little i play computer games, and the fact that i dont mind turning them down alittle if i have too, its not a big deal.
I just hope Hellgate london and Crysis dont require dx10, as my video card doesnt support that.

[lordlundar]

As for the processor, It's up to you. The Quad-Core will be more responsive, and you'll have less of a draw from your background apps, but most games these days don't even code for dual-core, let alone quad. One's more speed while the other is more future-proofed.

True, but the processors can be threaded as well, for a nice speed boost. Overall though, they come out even.

[Broomjockey]

Actually, no, it won't. The board lists its memory compatability as DDR2 533/667/800/1200 Which means you need DDR2 533, DDR2 667, DDR2 800, or DDR2 1200 type memory, while the MoBo and RAM I recommended were DDR2 1066 at the high-end. Since you want a gaming rig, you'll need more than DDR2 800, and the 1200s and over are all having massive problems with burnouts.

Ah, because I saw the front side bus at 1066, which is what you were saying, and thought maybe... but I guess not. *goes to look around some more*

Well, I looked around, and now that I know where to look, nothing's going to give me both the 1066 RAM and the SLI at any speed. There were some with Crossfire but that's for ATI cards. So after all that, looks like I'm back at the board JustADude first suggested. Question though: the board only lists supporting DirectX 9, will it still do 10?

[JustADude]

Question though: the board only lists supporting DirectX 9, will it still do 10?

That's talking about the on-board graphics chipset, which is moot if you're plugging in that beauty of a card you have.

[Broomjockey]

That's talking about the on-board graphics chipset, which is moot if you're plugging in that beauty of a card you have.

Sweet deal!

Okay, so now I've got the parts list set, but it looks like my computer guy is gonna flake on me, so I'm probably going to be flying solo on this. If I read all the manuals carefully, is that even going to be possible? Also, besides a screwdriver, what kind of stuff am I going to need that as a newbie I wouldn't think of to assemble this? I think I remember someone mentioned thermal paste, but anything else I should consider?

Edit: Is this a decent power supply? As the deal I was getting on the other is now shot that I'm on my own.

[JustADude]

Okay, to cover your questions in order, BroomJockey:

1) It'll go just fine as long as you read the manuals and pay attention to what you're plugging in where. As long as you don't try to force something where it's not meant to go, or something else equally hair-brained, you shouldn't be able to do anything that will actually damage the components.

2) Since the Armor series cases are designed with thumb-screws and other such parts all you need for actual tools is a DEMAGNETIZED screwdriver to fasten the motherboard into place.

3) Thermal Paste is essential to a gaming rig, as it makes a huge improvement in the transfer of heat between the CPU and its cooling-block. Beyond that, investing an extra few bucks for round cables instead of flat "ribbon" cables will significantly improve your airflow through the case, letting those nice, big fans do their jobs better.

4) 700w should be plenty of power for you, and OCZ is a good, solid, reliable company. The only flaw is that the cords aren't modular, which means you'll have to make sure they're stowed neatly out of the way, again for airflow reasons. The Modular units at MemoryExpress are significantly more expensive per Watt, though, so that's a trade-off you'll have to think about. The Corsair and SilverStone offerings on that website are my suggestion if you want to go Modular, while the OCZ is just perfect if you want to stay with an Integrated PSU.

[Broomjockey]

Okay, to cover your questions in order, BroomJockey:

1) It'll go just fine as long as you read the manuals and pay attention to what you're plugging in where. As long as you don't try to force something where it's not meant to go, or something else equally hair-brained, you shouldn't be able to do anything that will actually damage the components.

2) Since the Armor series cases are designed with thumb-screws and other such parts all you need for actual tools is a DEMAGNETIZED screwdriver to fasten the motherboard into place.
<snip>
4) 700w should be plenty of power for you, and OCZ is a good, solid, reliable company. The only flaw is that the cords aren't modular, which means you'll have to make sure they're stowed neatly out of the way, again for airflow reasons.

Okay, I had the people at memory express mount the cpu (they do it for free apparently, who knew? ), so that was the big worry out of the way. I went with the OCZ power supply, thinking "How bad could the cords be?" Hah. Note to self: It *CAN* be that bad. Stayed up WAY too late putting everything together possible, but no boot up done yet. Still, got everything plugged in well, and properly. Nothing had to be forced. Some of the chassis to mobo connections were a right pain in the arse to do, and it took more than a few minutes to figure out the spacer bolts and which screws to use, etc. No ribbon cables. Just two SATA cables, and the PSU cables are all round, as well as the chassis cables.

When I went to Memory Express, I picked up 6 parts. They were sold out of three. The monitor, which I placed on order, the mobo, but they had the same make, just the higher model where the only difference is it has crossfire *sigh*, and the processor. They were out of the duo core so I went with the quad, as it's really more an across thing than a downgrade. Bah.

The only two issues once I got all the parts are:
1. My SATA optical drive, does that plug into the slave slot? There's two masters, and two slaves, plus one on the back for raid arrays according to the manual.
2. The fracking GeForce card doesn't fit because of the way the screwless setup is done. It takes up two slots, but there's a thing between the clips blocking the card from seating properly. I can either get it lined up in the slot, or I can line it up with the hole in the tower, but not both. I figure I can either saw the bit between the clamps off so the card can fit, or I can turn the screwhole into a notch on the card's clamping bit. Before trying either of those, I'm going to take another look around the case to see if there's something I can slide out, and a loot at the card if I can finagle it some how. Step after that is trying tech support for the card and the chassis. Then we consider cutting.

[Shabo]

Back to the mobo to chassis connections:

the labels on those little jumpers should all be facing in to the center of the pins, IE the top row should have the label facing down, and the bottom row should have the labels facing up. If it's not done that way, the computer won't turn on.

Also, glad to hear you got your cpu mounted for free. It's not difficult to do, but it's a bit of a pain if you don't know how to spread the thermal paste.

Good luck with the rest of it!

[Broomjockey]

Back to the mobo to chassis connections:

the labels on those little jumpers should all be facing in to the center of the pins, IE the top row should have the label facing down, and the bottom row should have the labels facing up. If it's not done that way, the computer won't turn on.

...
Crap. Well, they're halfway right then. All facing "up." Good thing that a) I have to go back into the case anyway (g/c plus tidying wires), and b) haven't tried to turn it on

[Shabo]

...
Crap. Well, they're halfway right then. All facing "up." Good thing that a) I have to go back into the case anyway (g/c plus tidying wires), and b) haven't tried to turn it on

Even if you had, you wouldn't have hurt anything. You just wouldn't have had anything happen, either. Glad I could help you before you started pulling your hair out trying to figure out what was wrong... (because that was me with my first computer building experience...)

[JustADude]

Those wires being upside down are exactly what I meant by "things that won't damage your components". Thought it'd be more of a learning experience for you to discover it yourself though.

Sorry.

As for the case, the Armor case was designed with high end stuff like this in mind, so there should definitely be some way to remove that obstruction. If you can snap a closeup pic of the area in question I'll try to help figure it out.

[Broomjockey]

Okay, here's a pic of the spot on the tower, and of the card, and I tried to circle where the issue resides.

[lordlundar]

For the case to mobo connectors, check the manual on both the mobo and the case. The case manual will tell you which wires are the ground, and the mobo manual tells you where they go.

If your mobo has a connector bracket (looks like a really large jumper with pins on one end, and a bunch of text on it) use that. It works like a wiring harness for a car stereo. It allows you to make the connections with space to work with, then you just match up the holes (they will only match up one way) and slide it in. I hooked up my case to the board with this, and that has power switch and lights, HDD activity light, and reset.

Hooking them up the wrong way may damage the chassis connections, like the LEDS for lights, as they are designed to allow power through one way only, but it usually requires a lot more power than what those have going through. As such they usually won't complete the circuit if it's the wrong way.

Now for your latest. SATA does not do master and slave, as with Parallel, they connect two to a ribbon, while SATA devices are one per connection. What optical drive are you planning on plugging in? Odds are, you have a Parallel drive, which if you are hooking one up, set it to master right now. A later one you can set to slave. If you're connecting a HDD to the ribbon, set the Optical to slave.

Now the blockage. You might be able to bend it slightly to fit, but that can cause more headaches than is necessary. Turning the screw hole to a slot would be the best bet, as it's the easiest to do and is the safest option.