Tag: motherboard

Heatsink Upgrade to Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus on AM3+ Review

Posted onAuthorTruXterLeave a comment

The Girlfriend does a lot of video recording and editing internet companies. She runs an i7 processor and an Nvidia 970 video card with 16 gigs ram. She uses Camtasia software for a lot of her work. During the phase of compiling, we noticed sometimes her pc would crash, or lock up. After we installed speedfan we realized that she was hitting 180+ degrees so her intel was peaking high.
Until we could find her a new heatsink for her work horse, we tried to get by with my Athlon II X3 445 (Tri-core cpu) and my AM2 6 core which I bought for $5 at Epic A resell store.

This was a hard fact to face. The i7 is flat out a beast, and my AMD machines were completely useless for her. Except maybe recording. Rendering a video that she just compiled normally would have taken 10-17 minutes on her machine (when working right) ended up saying it would take 45 minutes on the AM2 and approximately 3 hours on the tri core.

So we took a trip to the computer store and bought the best heatsink they could advise, and what has the best/most reviews on line. We bought her computer a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO. Her temperature now stays in the 110s while compiling. Oddly there is no noticeable damage to the cpu or motherboard.

PcCooler Heatsink

PcCooler Heatsink

IMG_1218 My AMDs that I was proud to have had running for so little investment, were crushed in the dirt and now useless for every function in the house. Between her video work and my autoCAD work, it was time for an upgrade. So I (being the true AMD Fan I am) took a trip to the local computer store and brought home an AM3+ 8320 processor, 16 gigs of pny Anarchy 1866 ram, and an MSI 970A-G46 motherboard. of course a new case. Dropped my Geforce GTX460 Video card in and slapped on the factory heatsink, installed a spare power supply we had. Installed windows 7 and pushed the computer to her and said “well, try it out”.

We head back up to the computer parts store and buy a $21 heatsink.  Give it one test and find that it was time to take another trip to the computer store to buy the exact same heatsink we bought for her intel cpu. Within 1-2 minutes of rendering, the temperature of the processor jumped from the cool 98 degrees up  near 140 degrees and was climbing faster every second. The PCcooler heatsink is great for dissipating heat, at idle. but it was as if there was a threshold of like 115 degrees before it’s method of absorbing and dissipating heat become utterly useless. I will not throw it away. I will be installing it on another pc, but I’ll have to add an extra fan or something experimental.

Since I remember the instructions for the girlfriend’s computer came with instructions and spare parts for an AM3+ processor, I decided to search for the same heatsink.

I found the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus sounded like and looked like the same heatsink. Chased down the reviews and found everyone complaining about the install instructions but praising the cooling. Bought it for $35 and got free shipping.

DSC_0002It took all of about 10 minutes to install the new heatsink. I admit I cheated and watch this guy’s video though. I had to remove one side case fan for clearance, the processor heatsink was just too tall for my ENERMAX case.
Right away I went to rendering a video I compiled last night . When I tried to render the video last night, though the new computer made light work of the task, my cpu temperatures got to 145 degrees.
but now with the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus heatsink, re-rendering the same video took less than half the time it did last night and temperatures never exceeded 116 degrees.

The build is finally a success. and total cost under $600. and so far nothing runs slow, nothing hangs so far and it seems my autocad is flying. even using the knock off brands of cad design like bricsCAD, nanoCAD or ProgeCAD. They all run smooth with no pausing, no “thinking”.

Temperatures while in autocad never exceed 113 degrees.

I even ran a windows benchmark.
tempsidle
Sorry about the screenshot with in a screenshot. Only way I could think to get both scores up at once.

Review score for the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
Ease of installation: 10/10
visible appeal: 10/10
effectiveness: 10/10
noise factor: 9/10

Final score: 10/10

Extra score = Instructions booklet usefulness: 1/10

Low Cost Barebone from Compusa

Posted onAuthorTruXter

ECS IC780M-A DiabloTek Barebones Kit – ECS IC780M-A Mobo, AMD Phenom X4 9750 CPU, Zalman CPU Fan, Centon 2GB DDR2 RAM, Seagate 320GB HDD, LG 24x DVDRW, DiabloTek ATX Mid-Tower Case, 400W Power Supply

 

To see images of this barbone budget computer build click here for images.

$199 for the beefy budget computer.

Specifications
ECS IC780M-A Motherboard

Processor Socket: AMD
Processor Interface: Socket AM2+
Form Factor: ATX
Processors Supported: AMD Athlon 64
AMD Phenom
AMD Phenom II
AMD Athlon II
HyperTransport Bus: 2600MHz (5200 MT/s)
Northbridge: AMD 770
Memory Supported: 400MHz DDR2
533MHz DDR2
667MHz DDR2
800MHz DDR2
1066MHz DDR2
Memory Type: DDR2
Number of Pins: 240-Pin
Maximum Memory Supported: 4GB – 32bit
32GB – 64bit
Number of Slots: 4
Max. Memory Supported Per Slot: 8GB
Channels: 6 Channels
LAN Type: 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit
PS/2 Keyboard Connectors: 1
PS/2 Mouse Connectors: 1
USB Ports (Total): 8
USB Rear Panel Ports: 4
USB Onboard Headers: 2 – (expandable to 4 USB ports)
LAN Ports: 1
IDE Headers: 1
Serial ATA 3.0Gb/s Headers: 4
ATX Power Connectors: 1 24-Pin Connector
PC Power Connectors: 1 – 4 Pin
PCI Slots: 3
PCI Express X1 Slots: 2
PCI Express X16 Slots: 1
RAID Support: Yes
RAID Modes: 0
1
10
AMD Phenom X4 9750 Quad Core Processor

Manufacturer: AMD
CPU Type: Desktop
Processor Interface: Socket AM2+
Processor Class: Phenom X4
Processor Speed: X4 9750 / 2.40GHz
Cores: Quad
Cache Size: 4MB L2 + L3
Fan: Not Included
Wattage: 125W
Additional Technologies: HyperTransport
MMX
Enhanced Virus Protection
AMD64
Cool’n’Quiet
Unlocked Multiplier: No
Instruction Set: SSE
SSE2
SSE3
Zalman Hydraulic Bearing CPU Cooler

Fan Type: CPU Cooler
Socket Type: 775
AM2
AM2+
AM3
1156
1155
Bearing Type: Hydraulic
RPM: 1400 ~ 2700 RPM
Connector(s): 4 Pin (PWM)
LG GH24NS50R 24x Internal CD/DVD Drive

Cache Size: 2 MB
DVD+R Write Speed: 24X
DVD+RW Rewrite Speed: 8X
DVD-R Write Speed: 24X
DVD-RW Rewrite Speed: 6X
DVD Read Speed: 16X
DVD-RAM Write Speed: 12X
DVD-RAM Read Speed: 12X
CD Write Speed: 48X
CD Rewrite Speed: 32x
CD Read Speed: 48X
Color: Black
Length: 6.5″
Width: 5.7″
Height: 1.6″
Weight: 1.5 lbs.
Load Type: Tray
Interface Type: SATA
Enclosure Type: Internal
Type: CD/DVD Drives
Centon 2048MB PC6400 DDR2

Memory Category: Desktop
Memory Type: DDR2
Memory Speed: PC6400
Memory Speed MHz: 800MHz
Memory Size: 2048MB
Total Memory Size: 2GB
Memory Modules: 1
Memory Channels: Dual
Memory Socket: DIMM
Pins: 240
Seagate ST3320418AS Barracuda Hard Drive

Drive Type: Internal
Capacity: 320 GB
Interface: SATA 3.0Gb/s
Interface Type: SATA
Spindle Speed (RPM): 7200
Buffer Memory: 16 MB
Average Latency (msec): 4.17
Temperature, Operating (°C): 0 to 60
Temperature, Nonoperating (°C): -40 to 70
Shock, Operating: 2 msec (Gs): 70
Shock, Nonoperating: 2 msec (Gs): 350
Diablotek CPA-9611B ATX Mid-Tower Case

80mm Fan Ports: 3
80mm Fans Included: None
Form Factor: ATX Mid-Tower
Compatible Motherboards: ATX
µATX
Side Panel Type: Vented
Power Supply: Not Included
External 5.25″ Drive Bays: 4
External 3.5″ Drive Bays: 1
Internal 3.5″ Drive Bays: 6
Expansion Slots: 7
Front USB Ports: 2
Front Audio Ports: 2
Depth: 17.5″
Width: 7.5″
Height: 17″
DiabloTek PSDA400 Power Supply

Form Factor: ATX
Wattage: 400W
Modular Cabling: No
Fan: 80 mm
Input Voltage: 8A@115 / 5A@230 V
+3.3V: 26 A
+5V: 35 A
+12V 1: 15 A
-12V: 0.5 A
-5V: 0.5 A
+5VSB: 2.0 A
Motherboard Connector: 20+4 Pin
4-Pin P4: 1
4-Pin Floppy Connector: 1
4-Pin Peripheral Connector: 4
SATA Power Connector: 4

All of that for $199 before tax.
Computer case, motherboard memory and processor with AMD quad core cpu, dvd burner. Everything a barebone system needs. Now all you need is an operating system. If you check my previous build your own budget computers, you will see that I have listed many inexpensive operating systems.
FY Tiger Direct and Compusa are the same company.

Computer Parts Shopping

Posted onAuthorComputer Tweaker1 Comment

At a local electronics store in America. I am sure many have one in mind when I say that. I decided to go to the video card section and check out some of the video cards when a ( I am uncertain if they are sales associates or stocking clerks with a strange desire to sell you something slightly more expensive) walked up to me and offered to help me. I told him I was looking for an Nvidia GTS250 1gb, this card was right behind us about mid back. The guy reached up and grabbed an Nvidia 275 card.$70 difference. He began to suggest I needed a card that was more expensive, before asking me if my computer can even handle it. Like do I have a strong power supply, Do I have pci express? Do I at least have windows xp. So I chuckle and said ” Why you gotta call me out??? I don’t have that much money”. We both chuckled at how I did that. I then broke out with specifics. I told him ” I am looking for a match to my card so I can run SLI” He started to butt in with ” this will run SLI” I laughed and continued with ” I need specs like  ‘Shader Clock 1836MHz,Memory Data Rate 2240MHz,GDDR3,RAMDAC 800 total to match exactly what I have” He looked at me with his eyes glossed over and then muttered ” well if you need me my name is” blah blah blah I got glossed eyed. He walked away

While I was walking around in the video cards section, I noticed that one of the video card’s box had the shrink wrap open. The price was kind of ok, and the box was super heavy. This usually means a large card or a really heavy heatsink. I actually had that exact same video card. It was a BFG 250. It broke on me. I was trying to see if it was the same exact model as what mine is Or if it was going to be a low profile with no sli. Mine isn’t completely broke I wanted to see what I could do with mine in SLI. An employee of the store walked over to me an said that I needed to take that video card over to the manager’s station . I told him that I just wanted to confirm that the video card was what I was looking for. He said that he was (I’m paraphrasing) certain that was what i was doing then he assured me that company policy was the way it was. So I waddled up to the counter/command center (lol), and when I get up there I explain what the request was of the employee. By that time I saw all I needed to see. So I asked a question. I said ” I notice there are a whole lot of items on the shelf that had the “returned item” price marked down sticker, Why is that?”. The guy at the stand looked up and had a look in his face that I can’t explain and said “well a lot of people do not know much about what they are buying and what they have. They get home and that parts do not match so they bring it back to us certain that it is broken”. I tried to have no expression as I replied ” Wow that’s a whole lot of people”. I then walked back to the video cards section.

 

I then walk over to the motherboard section and start looking at the motherboards, I mean since I do have an extra Athlon II processor and brand new, non functioning motherboard.

I noticed it was the same thing going on in the motherboard section as the video card section. Tons of stickers (well not as many but quite a few) of returned items with prices being marked down.

while standing there , my favorite motherboard associate was there telling some story about a video game. So I started to tell my story of how games for windows live some add in code to my GTAIV told me that I installed the game to many times and the whole uproar it caused for a week. The dude looked at me odd and walked away. So I finished my video.

Now my big question is : Why are there so many products on the shelves like that? Is it normal for that many products to be returned? could that many people not know much about what they are buying ? Could it be an occasional bad item gets returned then reshelved, and no one wants to buy the returns, so they build up in time? Is it because they have been burned so many time they just figure it’s easier to let the customers test it, if it comes back they finally send it back to manufacturer? Is it cheaper that way instead of sending a truck back once a month like all other companies do ?

I asked Greg from “Greg’s Snippets” and he had a great answer. He suggested that you have to consider the foul customers and the not very knowledgeable, the random dysfunctional parts, display items and items just like the one I stumbled across that was on the shelf and already open. Each of those items have to weighed in as some factors as to why these products are back on the shelf like that. This is a guy who always sees the deep seedy truth about everything he hears and sees, so him giving that response was a bit out of character. but hey it made sense.

You tell me what you think it could be.

XFX 750a SLI Motherboard

Posted onAuthorComputer Tweaker2 Comments

Since my last motherboard died three days ago, I had to trade it in, just days after I upgraded to it. So now I am using the black edition of the XFX 750a SLI nFORCE Motherboard.

Here are the stats for the machine I am using:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+
Windows 7 (6.1) Ultimate Edition (Build 7100)
CPU Arch : 1 CPU – 2 Cores – 2 Threads
CPU PSN : AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 5600+
CPU EXT : MMX(+), 3DNow!(+), SSE (1, 2, 3), x86-64, AMD-V
CPUID : F.B.2 / Extended : F.6B
CPU Cache : L1 : 2 x 64 / 2 x 64 KB – L2 : 2 x 512 KB
Core : Brisbane (65 nm) / Stepping : BH-G2

Freq : 2900.22 MHz (200.02 * 14.5)
MB Brand : XFX
MB Model : MD-A72P-7509
NB : NVIDIA nForce 740a SLI rev A2
SB : NVIDIA nForce 740a SLI MCP rev A2
GPU1 Type : NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT
GPU1 Clocks : Core 550 MHz / RAM 500 MHz
GPU2 Type : NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT
GPU2 Clocks : Core 550 MHz / RAM 500 MHz
DirectX Version : 11.0

RAM : 2048 MB DDR2 Dual Channel
RAM Speed : 362.5 MHz (Unknown) @ 5-5-5-18
Slot 1 : 1024MB (6400)
Slot 1 Manufacturer : Corsair
Slot 2 : 1024MB (6400)
Slot 2 Manufacturer : Corsair

This motherboard is probably the most complicated install I have done since my old old EPOX motherboard back in 98. Actual jumper usage for overclocking. If configured incorrectly, you will not be able to boot to any operating system. On day one, I fell asleep in a pile of computer parts at 3 Oclock in the morning, sitting on my floor at the foot of my bed. So determined to finish the job. The next day I woke up to my alarm clock at 6 am and left for work, hurting from sleeping sitting up. The instruction book that came with the motherboard, was a lame accordion fold thing that just listed content and identified parts. All the use I had of a search engine was through my G1 phone. Glad I had it though. I was going to give up, but I found people leaving reviews at some sites (for buying computer parts) and the reviews they left said really bad stuff (not looking good) then there were follow ups saying ” ok last review was right in the sense it expressed how I felt, but after learning how to work this better, This is an awesome motherboard. Clearly not for the novice, oh and the full instruction manual is a pdf on the driver install disk”. That is sooo owrong. I was wanting to give up and take it back but I see that other people had a rough start and they figured it out. So now i was determined.

There is a huge set of jumpers between the PCI-E slots, move the jumpers to position 3-4 for all of them, you will be fine.. That is if you want to use the pci-e slots. If you intend to use SLI mode, you will lose the option of pci-e1. So take out all pci-e 1 cards.

There is a jumper next to the  onboard power/reset/cmos buttons. No matter what the book says, leave it at  1-2 pins. That is of course, if you just want the machine to boot up. Mess with the whole overclocking feature later when you confirm the machine works.

There is another jumper at the foot of the green PCI-E slot. That slot is labeled as being PCI-E4 . Really it is not what you think. that is actually the primary display slot. I know, it’s not the ideal typical location. Just do it, use that slot you will understand later. If you need to know now, it’s the closest spot to the north bridge (there you happy?).

Boot to bios and set everything back to default. Go to “JusTWoot” (lol)

XFX 750a Bios

Just Woot in my Bios

and set everything to auto. go to pc health and check to make sure that your processor is reading at the default speed. Mine kept overclocking to 4940 MHZ, That’s  2 gigs over default. Explains why it would crash most of the way through boot up.

After setting everything up and getting my machine running at default, it took me 15 hours of hard brain scratching work to get it going, I have to say, this is clearly by far the best motherboard I have ever purchased. I am far beyond satisfied. I can not thank the one person on the review system who retracted his negitive review by saying  that the people who reviewed it negitivly , clearly where counting on just plug and play. I love this motherboard.

At default I out benchmark any previous motherboard my components have been plugged into. Now I shall focus on geting new components.


MSI K9A2 CF Motherboard Review

Posted onAuthorTruXter1 Comment

So far this has been a nice upgrade for me. I moved from an ECS GeForce7050M-M

Here are the specs of what I upgraded from and why

Dual-channel DDR2 memory architecture ( I never saw the DC, I always ran at 400mhz)

2 x 240-pin DDR2 DIMM socket support up to 16 GB (will never happen only 2 slots)

Support DDR2 800/667/533/400 DDR2 SDRAM (I always saw it at lowest speeds even after max upgrade)

Well after a bit of less than one week, the PCI express slot, dies on me, I had to return the motherboard. it was the last of that kind they had at the fry’s by home. So i moved on to an xfx motherboard.

but the benchmarks I received on that motherboard where higher than I ever had, all I upgraded was the motherboard. that’s crazy. I used the same processor and sticks of ram, and my scores doubled over my past motherboard with the exact same components.

Well here is the review of the new motherboard XFX 750a Black Edition

I upgraded pc for gtaiv

Posted onAuthorTruXter

I yanked out the old single core  mother board and processor

with Amd754 64bit 3400 mb cpu

and the nvidia 7600 gs 512 mb ram

and two gig pc 3200 ddr  ram

this computer was maxed out, the processor size was the max, the ram was the two gig max and the video card, well they don’t put out much for an agp  slot, for less than about 300 bucks, and still make it worth having.

to install

Athlon  5600+ dual 64bit am2 (2900mghz)

2 gigs pc 6400 ddr2 corsair mem

EVGA nvidia 9500 gt with 512 ddr2

Crazy thing is, the memory will not max out till it gets seated with 16 gigs.  Untill they sell  8 gig mem cards for cheap, and microslop allows you to install that much ( I believe 64 vista allows a large number , unsure what that is.) I will be fine with two gigs.

I of course had an issue installing xp. I kept seeing a lock up while trying to install Vista. So I tried the un-thinkable. I installed Xp 64 bit. Crazy, it fired right up and installed everything smoothly. I whent to all manufacture’s websites and bam…. the drivers  ready and available.

I decided to go onthe regular benchmarking I do.

I started with gtaiii . The game that always lags when ou go through the underpasses, when branches pass over the car, or china town where the banners flap as you pass through. not one hitch,hiccup,fsb burp.

Windows xp 64, the operating system that was such a problem to everyone, now is the best I have ever seen. I can not believe what is going on,.

Next I jumped on vice city, walked out of the safe house jumped in a banshee and headed with teh shoreline to my right. I made it to the malibu club and about a block later… wait … wtf.. what did I see?.. I turned around.. right in front of the parking lot behind the club is a sign. !!! a sign!!! I get out of the banshee to read the sign and it says “no standing, no parking,m2” a bunch of other stuff and something that looked like the back of a bus.

Why have I never seen this before?… Well while I was standing there.  people started walking up .. and they just stood there. Like they where waiting for a bus..  ok.. so the new card, ddr2  and the 64 bit combo just turned something on I have never seen before..   WHAT ?

So I drive around and test my typical lag areas. all was smooth.

I am about to jump into vice city and see what goes on there.

I like my machine now.

Custom built computer (Jewel box Project)

Posted onAuthorTruXter

Today I was Clicking around in the G4 forums. You know , Looking for game news.

Well I stumbled upon a thread that caught my eye . They guy seems to have built a

Complete custom pc case with the idea of it looking like a Jewel Box.  Look at the way he navigates the air through that thing. and the heatsinks he has all over everything. I mean the video card has the same heatsink as the processor. Amazing.

He has this thing designed to a T. Except two things. The second platform has no front support, and the build just looks kind of retro ugly. But the way it looks does not mean squat. I am 100% for the cooling it has.

here is the complete project

I have to say.

very good job man.

My son’s computer specs

Posted onAuthorTruXter1 Comment

We are building him a computer right now.

Well he is , I am just telling him how to do it easier. He spent his Christmas and birthday money  on this build.

We had to go to fry’s and to wal~mart . Wal~mart for the monitor because he had like $200 in Wal~mart gift cards.

He got dual 2.2 x2 Pentium processor , two gigs of of kingston pc2-5300 memory , nvidia 8500 gt pci-e with 512 memory.

He is right now in the middle of snapping the motherbaord in and cussing up a storm .. lol  that’s my midget!!!!

Should go good with the tower I bought him for Christmas  with the 500wt power supply and 3 ( I think it was 3) case fans. with the dvd/cdrw combo .

Right now the only thing on this machine that is old, is the 80 Maxtor hard drive.

Not bad for a 14 year old kid, but guess who his daddy is? :-P

Precautions For Building Computers

Posted onAuthorTruXter1 Comment

Use lots of overhead light. Once you have all the parts together, find a flat, smooth, clean, static-free surface. Make sure your clothes are not polyester or you stand a chance of building up buttloads of static and having a merciless discharge turning your junk into… well… junk.

I like using Gatorade lids to hold my screws and small parts in. Yeah Trailer Park Boys-ish, I know, but it works. Working above tile is good, also, so you can hear the small parts when they drop and kinda locate them easier by where the sound comes from. With the tower open and all parts scattered on the table, lower the motherboard in. Take small pin nails and set them through the mounting holes to mark your spot — should take like 6-9 of them depending on board size and tower abilities. Pull motherboard back out and try to not disturb the pin nails. Replace each nail with mounting studs, lower board in, and screw it down. Follow instructions in the manuals for motherboard and instructions from tower to set up power switches and USB connectors. you may sometimes need to split the end connector for the tower speaker so it fits the prongs. Tie back wires so they stay low and out of view.

Insert RAM, CPU, and heat sink. Simply put: Be gentle, be slow, bend no prongs, and scratch no boards

Set in all drives: CD-ROM / DVD / hard drive / floppy drive. Place the power supply in, and take the board connecting the wire strand and try and map the cleanest, least visible route. Then plug it in. Do not crack the motherboard (yes, it can happen)! Do the same with the drives. I tie them to the rack as I go down the line. Keep hard drives away from all magnets — even the case speaker magnet!

The Video card is done pretty much the same way as the RAM. The slit(s) in the card tells you which way it should face.

Get a good look at the inner case. All air paths need to be clear of anything — even wires. Now plan the path your air will flow and then look at your fans to see which direction the blades should face to achieve the airflow you planned.

Close the case, cross toes, plug in all devices for first boot, and press power button. Pray for BIOS/CMOS boot. Press delete and watch temperatures for about ten minutes or until you see that it is getting really hot.

More stuff to keep in mind.