Ramping up to next-gen

Takaharu · Jul 17, 2010, 12:20 PM

Somehow I've managed to get together parts for an upgrade to my current PC without breaking the bank.

The motherboard I got is an ASUS P6X58D Premium from Novatech (just over £100).
I got Triple-channel OCZ DDR3 1333MHz 9-9-9-24 (£100).
I'm getting a Core i7 930 for my birthday on Tuesday.

And, for those of you that want to scream abuse, I also got a Jeantech Absolute 1000W. Now, I know that everyone that supports high-quality power supplies say "for the love of all that is holy, don't do it!" and suggest going for Corsair but, interestingly enough, all of the reviews and user experiences that I've read of people that have used said power supply have said it's great, spanning several years and multiple upgrades.
Naive? Maybe, but I bought it before I read the reviews

BlueMak · Jul 17, 2010, 12:48 PM

You are funny.

Takaharu · Jul 17, 2010, 02:55 PM

Thanks

While I'm on the topic, could anyone tell me if it would make a blind bit of difference if I plugged a SATA-2 drive into a SATA-3 port?

Matth · Jul 17, 2010, 05:43 PM

Very few SATA-3 drives around, and those that are at silly prices.

Sure I've seen reviews that SATA-2 drives perform as normal, sometimes a little better, on motherboard SATA-3, while add-on card SATA-3 is often worse than motherboard based SATA-2.

Sihastru · Jul 17, 2010, 07:51 PM

On these "transition" motherboards is best to use the "native" SATA ports. Meaning the six SATA2 that are integrated in the Intel chipset. They have better drivers, better latencies, support for NCQ, TRIM etc. Also newer operating systems, like Vista/7 will not need drivers for OS installation.

There was a review that concluded current SATA3 implementations on the Intel motherboards will degrade overall performance. While they will give you better sequencial speeds (like when you test with hdtach, hdtune etc.), they will suffer when it comes to access times and random access.

If you'd use a SATA3 SSD, then it makes sense to take advantage of the bulk SATA3 interface speed, but using a SATA2 device in a SATA2 port can have adverse effects, even in the case of SATA2 SSD.

Takaharu · Jul 20, 2010, 10:10 PM

I finished the upgrade this morning - all went smoothly. The only problem that I had was that the SATA power cables can't wrap round the back of my case and plug into the hard drives. The PCI-Express power cables, expectedly, couldn't be hidden at all.
I'll post pics if anyone wants to see.

For the record, the WEI is:
CPU - 7.5
RAM - 7.5
Graphics - 7.5
Gaming - 7.5
HDD - 7.6
Everything's running at stock speeds. I might overclock at some point but I'm not brave enough yet. Also, I'll be investing in a replacement HSF for the processor as I'm used to seeing an idle, overclocked processor at 30 degrees Celsius, whereas this one was 35 degrees while I was setting up the BIOS initially. I'm thinking about buying an adapter for my Hyper 212 (costs about £7) and getting a smaller fan for the Q9550 (which is currently just sitting around, waiting for me to decide what to do with it as it's not currently selling).

Jul 17, 2010, 12:20 PM	#1
Takaharu I can fart in 7 languages Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: England, UK Posts: 1,847 Rep Power: 110 System Specs	Ramping up to next-gen Somehow I've managed to get together parts for an upgrade to my current PC without breaking the bank. The motherboard I got is an ASUS P6X58D Premium from Novatech (just over £100). I got Triple-channel OCZ DDR3 1333MHz 9-9-9-24 (£100). I'm getting a Core i7 930 for my birthday on Tuesday. And, for those of you that want to scream abuse, I also got a Jeantech Absolute 1000W. Now, I know that everyone that supports high-quality power supplies say "for the love of all that is holy, don't do it!" and suggest going for Corsair but, interestingly enough, all of the reviews and user experiences that I've read of people that have used said power supply have said it's great, spanning several years and multiple upgrades. Naive? Maybe, but I bought it before I read the reviews __________________ I don't get paid to know the answer, therefore I'm far more likely to give you a straight and honest answer. Mods Rig, Box Mods Rig, Folding details

Jul 17, 2010, 12:48 PM	#2
BlueMak HH's Asteroids' Dominator Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Hellas->Macedonia->Thessaloniki Posts: 13,465 Rep Power: 349 System Specs	Re: Ramping up to next-gen You are funny. __________________ The people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forego ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with the pleasures of others(Bertrand Russell)"You go into Afghanistan, you got guys who slap women around for five years because they didn't wear a veil,You know, guys like that ain't got no manhood left anyway. So it's a hell of a lot of fun to shoot them." - Lt. Gen. James N. Mattis This is slavery, not to speak one's thought. [Euripides-The Phoenician Women (c.411-409 B.C.)] http://www.macedonia.info/FALLACIESANDFACTS.htm *Sic semper tyrannis.*

Jul 17, 2010, 02:55 PM	Thread Starter #3
Takaharu I can fart in 7 languages Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: England, UK Posts: 1,847 Rep Power: 110 System Specs	Re: Ramping up to next-gen Thanks While I'm on the topic, could anyone tell me if it would make a blind bit of difference if I plugged a SATA-2 drive into a SATA-3 port? __________________ I don't get paid to know the answer, therefore I'm far more likely to give you a straight and honest answer. Mods Rig, Box Mods Rig, Folding details

Jul 17, 2010, 05:43 PM	#4
Matth Flash Banner Hater Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: UK Posts: 3,426 Rep Power: 93 System Specs	Re: Ramping up to next-gen Very few SATA-3 drives around, and those that are at silly prices. Sure I've seen reviews that SATA-2 drives perform as normal, sometimes a little better, on motherboard SATA-3, while add-on card SATA-3 is often worse than motherboard based SATA-2. __________________ Mary had a little lamb, Her father shot it dead Now Mary takes her lamb to school, Between two crusts of bread

Jul 17, 2010, 07:51 PM	#5
Sihastru Never been clicked Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 433 Rep Power: 45 System Specs	Re: Ramping up to next-gen On these "transition" motherboards is best to use the "native" SATA ports. Meaning the six SATA2 that are integrated in the Intel chipset. They have better drivers, better latencies, support for NCQ, TRIM etc. Also newer operating systems, like Vista/7 will not need drivers for OS installation. There was a review that concluded current SATA3 implementations on the Intel motherboards will degrade overall performance. While they will give you better sequencial speeds (like when you test with hdtach, hdtune etc.), they will suffer when it comes to access times and random access. If you'd use a SATA3 SSD, then it makes sense to take advantage of the bulk SATA3 interface speed, but using a SATA2 device in a SATA2 port can have adverse effects, even in the case of SATA2 SSD. __________________ There are more things in heaven and earth then are dreamt of in your philosophy. Intel Core i7 3820 \| Corsair H80 \| Asus P9X79 \| Kingston HyperX T1 Black 32GB DDR3 \| Gigabyte 8800 GTS 512 \| 2xIntel X25-M 160GB RAID0 + 2xWD 1TB Green RAID1 \| Asus Xonar DX \| Asus ES2-750 \| Sony OptiArc DVD+/-RW \| Corsair AX850 Gold \| Fractal Design Define R3 Titanium \| Dell 3007WFP-HC2 30" 2560x1600 \| Corsair SP2500 \| Logitech UltraX Premium \| CM Storm Advance \| Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64bit

Jul 20, 2010, 10:10 PM	Thread Starter #6
Takaharu I can fart in 7 languages Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: England, UK Posts: 1,847 Rep Power: 110 System Specs	Re: Ramping up to next-gen I finished the upgrade this morning - all went smoothly. The only problem that I had was that the SATA power cables can't wrap round the back of my case and plug into the hard drives. The PCI-Express power cables, expectedly, couldn't be hidden at all. I'll post pics if anyone wants to see. For the record, the WEI is: CPU - 7.5 RAM - 7.5 Graphics - 7.5 Gaming - 7.5 HDD - 7.6 Everything's running at stock speeds. I might overclock at some point but I'm not brave enough yet. Also, I'll be investing in a replacement HSF for the processor as I'm used to seeing an idle, overclocked processor at 30 degrees Celsius, whereas this one was 35 degrees while I was setting up the BIOS initially. I'm thinking about buying an adapter for my Hyper 212 (costs about £7) and getting a smaller fan for the Q9550 (which is currently just sitting around, waiting for me to decide what to do with it as it's not currently selling). __________________ I don't get paid to know the answer, therefore I'm far more likely to give you a straight and honest answer. Mods Rig, Box Mods Rig, Folding details