New computer

Mac Daddy · Jan 4, 2009, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kris23

and when were we talking about dual cores? thats pretty much comparing oranges to orange slices...

were talking about the Q8200 not the E8200. of course dual-cores OC better than Quads, why else do we see so many of them over 3GHz stock and for low prices

if you want, you can ask ChaosMinionX to see his 4.0GHz Q6600 scores

Oops sorry I misread the post blibbax made as the E8200 duo which is so common. As far as overclocking and performance they are two different things so don't get me wrong ... for most people a Q6600 @ 3G has more than enough power.

Depends what the application is I guess but for pure overclocking the duo's are hard to beat. In fact last time I was on Orb the number one 3DMark6 score was an O/Ced Wolfdale running XP ... but I haven't checked since before the holidays ...

Zardon · Jan 4, 2009, 01:39 PM

I get your point MD, but 3dmark06 is rubbish for any kind of cpu rating. you need to use something like cinebench which actually uses all the cores in a CPU to get a better real world/real life indication of CPU power (it uses a real world pro rendering engine). I know a quad core at 3.5ghz would wipe the floor with a dual, even if it was at 5ghz.

More games are going to use the extra cores in processors in the future for enhanced AI, even farming out specialised routines to enhance performance.

Mac Daddy · Jan 4, 2009, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zardon

I get your point MD, but 3dmark06 is rubbish for any kind of cpu rating. you need to use something like cinebench which actually uses all the cores in a CPU to get a better real world/real life indication of CPU power (it uses a real world pro rendering engine). I know a quad core at 3.5ghz would wipe the floor with a dual, even if it was at 5ghz.

More games are going to use the extra cores in processors in the future for enhanced AI, even farming out specialised routines to enhance performance.

Yep on Futuremark benchmarks I agree Z and as software becomes more advanced it will utilize the quad cores more efficiently. In fact from what I have seen with the LGA1366 i7 platform so far looking very positive.

Sorry for going off topic on you there OmegaRED

Liqourice · Jan 4, 2009, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judas

agree old buzzard... the CM690 with the usb/audio ports where they are mean for a bit of messy cabling and it's just not easily accessible... if they were to move them down near the bottom just below where the main front fan is..... it would be pretty much perfect

And I completely disagree. For me the placement of those ports are perfect since I have the case standing on the floor next to my desk. I don't need to bend down to connect anything.

OmegaRED · Jan 14, 2009, 10:04 AM

UPS guy came on monday and I built it Monday night. That was tge first time I ever fully built a PC!

Quote:

Originally Posted by kris23

l

as for case, i can recommend no other than the CM 690 chassis, i have recently built a system with that case and that thing is just amazing...

the fan under the motherboard tray on the 690 case has shown me how hot a motherboard can really get, its hot, very hot.

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldBuzzard

QFT!

I have the CM 690, and I doubt that there is any other mid-tower that can compare to it in regards to cooling/silence/space.

As for the fan behind the MB, if you decide to install one, you do need to be careful, as there isn't enough room for a standard 80mm fan. If you decide to put one there, it WILL need to be one of the 15mm low profile ones. Since you specified QUIET, this one would seem to fill the bill.
Newegg.com - SilenX IXP-52-11 80mm Case Fan - Case Fans

You will be happy to know Sirs that I went with the Coolermaster CM-690 instead of the Antec P-182.

Why?

The nearest comp stores were out of stock of the Antec model, it is $70 cheaper than the Antec and they had the optional Nvidia style case (green with black). However, I went with the stock model because it looks better. My only major gripe with this case is the power buttons, they are terrible and take such effort to reset or turn the PC on you can't do it with just a light press like most cases allow. One of the major features of the case, the perforated top flow venting, is also an annoyance since my kitten has taken to sitting on the case with the fans blowing up her butt. I think she's using it for getting rid of cat litter on her paws...eww and doh! That's all I need is a case full of cat litter in 6 months

Buzzard, I also went with your suggestion for a Readyboost drive and it didn't work with my old computer but with this one it works perfectly! I get about 30-32mb write speed on it; Patriot Xporter XT 8gig (got for 20 bucks).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vikingod

I've currently got my Q6600 G0 up to 3.0ghz, but have had it up to 3.2ghz. And this in on an $80 P35 motherboard with a cooler you can buy for $14 right now.

I tried 3ghz with the stock cooler but my temps were high, hitting almost 70 with load in games. I brought it down to 2.8ghz and the temps are great (38-46idle, under 60 in load).

When my new cooler arrives (OCZ Vendetta 2 or nearly identical model) I will take it beyond 3ghz.

My case has 6 fans at the moment. 2 up top venting out the case, 2 on the side door venting out, 1 on the back venting out, and the blue LED case fan in the front pulling air in. I might add another fan at the bottom by the PSU but I don't know what it's supposed to do (pull in or out for best results?). See pics for better look.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobertBruce

I'll be curious to know how your RAID setup works. I have the same board and it wont even boot when I tried RAID 0 with the same drives as you got.

RAID works perfectly. All I did was press F10 at boot, add both drives to a STRIPE Array and it auto sets it to 64kb size. I installed with Vista 64 so there's no hastle trying to get the drives to show in during install.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zardon

Im not really sure there is much more worth in dual core even at higher clocks. Games like GTA4 are already showing the additional power of a Quad. Im sure many will argue GTA4 isn't the best coding job, but im confident this will happen more in 2009 and onwards. Even older games like supreme commander showed huge gains with a Quad. This isn't even taking into consideration the benefits in a windows multitasking environment.

GTAIV finally owns! I would definitely recommend going quad core for this game.

Here's a pic of the case with the side door open, I added one more 120mm fan to the door since taking that pic. 2nd pic is with the lights off showing the LED fan. I hate LED fans because I sleep in the room with my pc but this isn't too bright.

I haven't done much cable management but I'll to clean it up once I get the new CPU cooler in.

comp_ali · Jan 14, 2009, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaRED

One of the major features of the case, the perforated top flow venting, is also an annoyance since my kitten has taken to sitting on the case with the fans blowing up her butt. I think she's using it for getting rid of cat litter on her paws...eww and doh! That's all I need is a case full of cat litter in 6 months

Too funny

Judas · Jan 14, 2009, 04:51 PM

i'd highly recommend from experience... .setting the top fans as venting out (which you say you have)... back fan venting out .... side fans pulling IN and the bottom fan pulling IN....

so flip those side fans around.

and it's definitely worthwhile for the bottom fan.

Now i've got the same case with the similare psu..... they are long bastards arn't they...

either way, your likely going to HAVE to remove the "filter" on the bottom to mount the fan, there will likely be a little bit of pressure on the psu cabling but not all that much....

all to consolidate as much cabling to neaten up the case, run the cables through behind and under the hardrive bay trays... it'll sure make the system far cleaner looking...

Judas · Jan 14, 2009, 04:57 PM

heres what my case looks like atm

OmegaRED · Jan 14, 2009, 06:30 PM

I suppose I could give it a shot...at least those side fans would blow some air towards the cpu and vid card.

OldBuzzard · Jan 14, 2009, 07:38 PM

Judas is right on the fans. You will see a difference in internal case temps, even without adding the one on the bottom.

As for the kitten...you can always trust a cat to find the warmest place in the house when it's cold

You are right about the power/reset buttons. They are a bit harder to push. They are't really 'push buttons', and are hinged. Pushing on them near the front edge and rotating them towards the case makes them a lot easier to use.

Good to see that you have the new system up and running. Looks like you will be able to run Fakefactory's mod for HL2 now

Judas · Jan 14, 2009, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OldBuzzard

You are right about the power/reset buttons. They are a bit harder to push. They are't really 'push buttons', and are hinged. Pushing on them near the front edge and rotating them towards the case makes them a lot easier to use.

the case buttons could be pushed easily with the pinky.. just don't try and push them from front to back.. reach around and push it into the side of the case.... it's extremely easy to do.

i actually like it as it's not easy to accidently power down or reset the machine.. where as other machines don't even seem like they need to be touched cause they are so sensitive.

either way, the button "are" different.. but once you grasp the direction that you have to push them at, they are easy.

Cow_160483 · Jan 15, 2009, 06:02 AM

Not to stray too foo topic good luck with the new PC OmegaRed may it be all that you hoped for

OmegaRED · Jan 15, 2009, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cow_160483

Not to stray too foo topic good luck with the new PC OmegaRed may it be all that you hoped for

Thanks, I'm still having a few second thoughts about the case because it's pretty loud (I can hear it in the next room) considering I planned on building a silent overclocker. I'm hoping that most of the noise is from the stock Intel Cooler. The noise level really went up when I reversed the side door fans to suck air in, it got so loud I had to remove both fans and install a quieter Antec Tri-Cool on the door just to make it tolerable.

Zardon · Jan 15, 2009, 10:22 AM

Always a good option to upgrade the fans to something like the vantec steaths or noiseblockers. Means you still get airflow but they are silent.

If you want some pointers with regards to fans just let me know. Ive been through almost every fan out there when I was doing my "almost silent" skulltrail" overclocked system build.

OmegaRED · Jan 15, 2009, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zardon

Always a good option to upgrade the fans to something like the vantec steaths or noiseblockers. Means you still get airflow but they are silent.

If you want some pointers with regards to fans just let me know. Ive been through almost every fan out there when I was doing my "almost silent" skulltrail" overclocked system build.

All the fans I put in are Vantec Stealths and the noise level was pretty good until I reversed them to suck air in, suddenly they became much noiser (case temps did drop 2-3degrees). I guess I could replace the 3 case fans which were pre-installed but they don't appear to be very noisy.

Judas · Jan 15, 2009, 04:36 PM

yeah the coolermaster fans that come with the machine are very low DB fairly silent fans.. i've been quite impressed... the front fan is definitely queiter then the others.. which makes sense.

OmegaRED · Jan 15, 2009, 04:44 PM

Question, when I remove the stock Intel fan will I need to clean up the cpu before attaching a new cooler?

Judas · Jan 15, 2009, 04:54 PM

it's usually a good idea...

trust me.. it's "worth" the invested time.

OmegaRED · Jan 15, 2009, 05:29 PM

Any special products to clean it with? I'm probably gonna go pick up a Vendetta2 today and try and mount it. Any supplies I need it would be best to know now so I can grab them there

From what I recall, people clean cpus with rubbing alcohol? Not sure if I need thermal paste for that particular cooler either.

Judas · Jan 15, 2009, 05:32 PM

i still find the best thing for cleaning it all up us a bottle of 99% alochol and Q-Tips (cotton swabs)

nicnik · Jan 15, 2009, 06:52 PM

Isopropyl alcohol is the name

Judas · Jan 15, 2009, 06:55 PM

indeed it is.....

a 500ml bottle costs me roughly 2 bucks

OmegaRED · Jan 15, 2009, 11:24 PM

Bought the OCZ Vendetta 2 Cooler today.

Removed the Intel one, cleaned the cpu off with a paper towel (forgot to get alcohol), used the silicon included with new cooler, tried to mount...failed. Repeatedly and frustratedly attempted to do so for 30 minutes all the while cursing and wishing death upon EVGA and Intel employees for designing such simple installation techniques.

During this time I scraped my knuckle on the case and blood was pouring out. Did my best to clean that mess up and then after an hour or so managed to get the cooler installed and everything else plugged back in.

Spent a few more minutes doing cable management and adding some more fans I bought. The new fans I bought (Thermaltake LED's on sale 9.99 each) were way too loud. Tossed them aside and just put one of the Coolermaster fans on the bottom of the case. Turns out, the cooler is so big that only one fan can go on the case door anyway so that worked out.

Booted up, went to Bios, set FSB to 3ghz and tweaked the ram timings (via Mushkin Greg's postings on ncix). Idle temps are about 45C, not sure of load...60ish.

Case is still too loud. I'm going to find the main source of noise.

Fuck it...I need a break.

Here's what my case looks like now

OldBuzzard · Jan 16, 2009, 01:33 AM

My case/system is very quiet, because I''m water cooling, and the only fans, other than the 3 'stock' case fans that run are the ones in my EXOS2, and the PSU.

Now, there was a short period when I was running the 3870 X2 with the stock cooling, and I could tell the difference in noise level when I replaced it with a waterblock.

I'd suggest that you disconnect all of the addon fans you have first. If it's still too loud, then that narrows it down to the PSU, CPU, or GPU fans, since the stock fans are very quiet. If the sound level is acceptable, then start connecting one add on fan at a time until you find the culprit(s). I'd pay particular attention to the 80mm one behind the MB.

mike2h · Jan 16, 2009, 02:11 AM

the type of fans make a huge diff to. while my cpu is h2o cooled my 830 has a total of 8 scythe 120mm fans. this case sits on my desktop less than 2 feet from me & is very quiet. in fact i can hear my wifes comp wich is about 4ft to my rt & underneath her desk over mine. it is running 4 80mm fans.
the loudest thing in my case is the gtx 280, but with all the air flow it rarely gets very loud.

OmegaRED · Jan 16, 2009, 05:23 AM

Oddly, my GTX260 is one of the quietest fans in the case. I've got it at 40% fanspeed which is very quiet. I'm wondering if the culprit is the Nforce MB fan but it's so small it's hard to believe it's the source of the noise.

Damn, my online order just got sent now I'm gonna have an extra Vendetta 2

nicnik · Jan 16, 2009, 01:39 PM

the small fan can be very loud, especially once it collects a bit of dust or any obstacle in its way.

OmegaRED · Jan 16, 2009, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nicnik

the small fan can be very loud, especially once it collects a bit of dust or any obstacle in its way.

Aha! It was the Northbridge fan on the 750i FTW. I unplugged it then turned on the PC and it's near silent...

Oops, nearly fell asleep listening to the beautiful hum from the fans

The NB has a heatsink which gets very hot so I will probably have to buy one of those "spot fans" that you can direct anywhere in the case just so I can keep the motherboard cool; that and the slim 80mm fan that goes behind the motherboard.

Currently running at 3.2ghz, running Prime95 I'm hitting 60load which is pretty good I think.

I still have 2 120mm LED fans just lying around wish I could find a spot for them in the case.

Zardon · Jan 16, 2009, 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaRED

Oddly, my GTX260 is one of the quietest fans in the case. I've got it at 40% fanspeed which is very quiet.

This might be something you already know, but just be careful if you are manually setting fan speeds in something like rivatuner for a 260 or 280. If you force it to 40%, when you game it wont speed up and it can overheat (auto is diode temperature controlled, offering variable fan speeds). If you know how to, best setting up temperature variables for the cards via rivatuner (to fine tune temps to noise ratios).

Again, im not trying to insult you by saying this, but just in case you have it manually set to 40% 24/7......

OmegaRED · Jan 16, 2009, 04:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zardon

This might be something you already know, but just be careful if you are manually setting fan speeds in something like rivatuner for a 260 or 280. If you force it to 40%, when you game it wont speed up and it can overheat (auto is diode temperature controlled, offering variable fan speeds). If you know how to, best setting up temperature variables for the cards via rivatuner (to fine tune temps to noise ratios).

Hehe no worries, I've been using EVGA's Precision tool since switching to Vista 64 and always keep an eye on the gpu temp with the in-game OSD. For those long gaming sessions I manually set it to 50% which keeps it cool but otherwise the auto setting handles occasional gaming.

In my old case I had to always force 55% or the temps would climb to nearly 80C in Far Cry 2; thankfully this case has tons of cooling.

Quote:

Again, im not trying to insult you by saying this

Less than 24 hours ago I was bleeding all over the inside of my case...that about qualifies me for "special" status.

Jan 4, 2009, 01:39 PM	#32
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 177	Re: New computer I get your point MD, but 3dmark06 is rubbish for any kind of cpu rating. you need to use something like cinebench which actually uses all the cores in a CPU to get a better real world/real life indication of CPU power (it uses a real world pro rendering engine). I know a quad core at 3.5ghz would wipe the floor with a dual, even if it was at 5ghz. More games are going to use the extra cores in processors in the future for enhanced AI, even farming out specialised routines to enhance performance.

Jan 14, 2009, 06:30 PM	Thread Starter #39
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,625 Rep Power: 171 System Specs	Re: New computer I suppose I could give it a shot...at least those side fans would blow some air towards the cpu and vid card. __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Jan 14, 2009, 07:38 PM	#40
OldBuzzard DH's oldest Geek Join Date: May 2003 Location: Oberlin, OH Posts: 2,781 Rep Power: 141 System Specs	Re: New computer Judas is right on the fans. You will see a difference in internal case temps, even without adding the one on the bottom. As for the kitten...you can always trust a cat to find the warmest place in the house when it's cold You are right about the power/reset buttons. They are a bit harder to push. They are't really 'push buttons', and are hinged. Pushing on them near the front edge and rotating them towards the case makes them a lot easier to use. Good to see that you have the new system up and running. Looks like you will be able to run Fakefactory's mod for HL2 now __________________ When looking for a reason as to why things go wrong, never rule out sheer STUPIDITY

Jan 15, 2009, 06:02 AM	#42
Cow_160483 HH's only cow moooooo... Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: BOTSWANA Posts: 6,687 Rep Power: 280 System Specs	Re: New computer Not to stray too foo topic good luck with the new PC OmegaRed may it be all that you hoped for __________________ Decode! Muhahahahah!

Jan 15, 2009, 10:22 AM	#44
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 177	Re: New computer Always a good option to upgrade the fans to something like the vantec steaths or noiseblockers. Means you still get airflow but they are silent. If you want some pointers with regards to fans just let me know. Ive been through almost every fan out there when I was doing my "almost silent" skulltrail" overclocked system build.

Jan 15, 2009, 04:44 PM	Thread Starter #47
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,625 Rep Power: 171 System Specs	Re: New computer Question, when I remove the stock Intel fan will I need to clean up the cpu before attaching a new cooler? __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Jan 15, 2009, 05:29 PM	Thread Starter #49
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,625 Rep Power: 171 System Specs	Re: New computer Any special products to clean it with? I'm probably gonna go pick up a Vendetta2 today and try and mount it. Any supplies I need it would be best to know now so I can grab them there From what I recall, people clean cpus with rubbing alcohol? Not sure if I need thermal paste for that particular cooler either. __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Jan 15, 2009, 06:52 PM	#51
nicnik In the Land of Snow Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: London, UK Posts: 567 Rep Power: 44 System Specs	Re: New computer Isopropyl alcohol is the name __________________ >>Steam<< Currently Playing: BF3 (nic9394), Rift (devilryuji)

Jan 15, 2009, 11:24 PM	Thread Starter #53
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,625 Rep Power: 171 System Specs	Re: New computer Bought the OCZ Vendetta 2 Cooler today. Removed the Intel one, cleaned the cpu off with a paper towel (forgot to get alcohol), used the silicon included with new cooler, tried to mount...failed. Repeatedly and frustratedly attempted to do so for 30 minutes all the while cursing and wishing death upon EVGA and Intel employees for designing such simple installation techniques. During this time I scraped my knuckle on the case and blood was pouring out. Did my best to clean that mess up and then after an hour or so managed to get the cooler installed and everything else plugged back in. Spent a few more minutes doing cable management and adding some more fans I bought. The new fans I bought (Thermaltake LED's on sale 9.99 each) were way too loud. Tossed them aside and just put one of the Coolermaster fans on the bottom of the case. Turns out, the cooler is so big that only one fan can go on the case door anyway so that worked out. Booted up, went to Bios, set FSB to 3ghz and tweaked the ram timings (via Mushkin Greg's postings on ncix). Idle temps are about 45C, not sure of load...60ish. Case is still too loud. I'm going to find the main source of noise. Fuck it...I need a break. Here's what my case looks like now __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs Last edited by OmegaRED; Jan 15, 2009 at 11:36 PM.

Jan 16, 2009, 01:33 AM	#54
OldBuzzard DH's oldest Geek Join Date: May 2003 Location: Oberlin, OH Posts: 2,781 Rep Power: 141 System Specs	Re: New computer My case/system is very quiet, because I''m water cooling, and the only fans, other than the 3 'stock' case fans that run are the ones in my EXOS2, and the PSU. Now, there was a short period when I was running the 3870 X2 with the stock cooling, and I could tell the difference in noise level when I replaced it with a waterblock. I'd suggest that you disconnect all of the addon fans you have first. If it's still too loud, then that narrows it down to the PSU, CPU, or GPU fans, since the stock fans are very quiet. If the sound level is acceptable, then start connecting one add on fan at a time until you find the culprit(s). I'd pay particular attention to the 80mm one behind the MB. __________________ When looking for a reason as to why things go wrong, never rule out sheer STUPIDITY

Jan 16, 2009, 02:11 AM	#55
mike2h DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: norcal Posts: 6,483 Rep Power: 89 System Specs	Re: New computer the type of fans make a huge diff to. while my cpu is h2o cooled my 830 has a total of 8 scythe 120mm fans. this case sits on my desktop less than 2 feet from me & is very quiet. in fact i can hear my wifes comp wich is about 4ft to my rt & underneath her desk over mine. it is running 4 80mm fans. the loudest thing in my case is the gtx 280, but with all the air flow it rarely gets very loud. __________________

Jan 16, 2009, 05:23 AM	Thread Starter #56
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,625 Rep Power: 171 System Specs	Re: New computer Oddly, my GTX260 is one of the quietest fans in the case. I've got it at 40% fanspeed which is very quiet. I'm wondering if the culprit is the Nforce MB fan but it's so small it's hard to believe it's the source of the noise. Damn, my online order just got sent now I'm gonna have an extra Vendetta 2 __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Jan 16, 2009, 01:39 PM	#57
nicnik In the Land of Snow Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: London, UK Posts: 567 Rep Power: 44 System Specs	Re: New computer the small fan can be very loud, especially once it collects a bit of dust or any obstacle in its way. __________________ >>Steam<< Currently Playing: BF3 (nic9394), Rift (devilryuji)