Postill's New Rig

[ChristopherP]

Have got an RMA number with eBuyer (they replied before EVGA and i dont want to send the board to germany and have to foot the bill)

eBuyer are actually sending City Link round to collect it tomorrow - which seems like great service to me, as long as all goes to plan. Got an RMA number within minutes of applying for it and communication has been good.

 

[psd99]

damn postill sounds long

I sent back a motherboard once to ebuyer
it was pretty quick to get my money back.

 

[V_R]

I got a faulty set of the Speedlink Medusa 5.1 headphones from Ebuyer, and to be fair they were very good about it. Like you Chris, they sent out a courier to collect them the next day. The cash was back with me after they apparently tested them.

Good luck with it Chris, So are you looking for an after market CPU cooler now too?

Do you have any idea what went on the board? No obvious bits blown or anything?

 

[ChristopherP]

Yeah i am after an aftermarket CPU

Wondering if the Thermaltake Blue Orb II would fit in my Tsunami dream... it looks big.

Need something that can handle a 1GHz + overclock - my core was running at 75+ which i'm not so happy about.

No obvious defects with the board, it might have bent a bit when i was pushing the retention clips down on the CPU cooler but in my experience thats never been a problem - maybe this board is a tad more suceptable to being damaged through stress.

I dont know - i can only speculate. I'll be a LOT more careful with the new one though, incase that was the problem.

At the end of the day, it might be coincidence - have read many cases of this, boards just showing -- for no reason.

Hopefully fixed with next BIOS update?

Also looking at the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 or whatever it is, reccomended by loads of people, Ady included.

Got about £20 to blow on a new cooler (actually i dont, but i'm going to spend that much anyway) any suggestions?

 

[V_R]

That TT Orb does look rather large.....The main thing will be the clearance of the socket to the psu i reckon, if the cpu is nearer the top of the MB then you may have probs.....Yep, just looked at the mb on OCUK. The socket is right up near the top edge of the board. At a guess i don't think it will fit. I got a Tsunami too and i know for sure there isn't much room below the psu...

I know the Tuniq Tower is the oc'ers favorite on XS, but its tall and damn heavy!
The Scythe Ninja is also a good 'un.

I know they are both more than you want to spend but they perform very well by all accounts, and if you wanna oc like you did before you killed it last time i would say its well worth it!

Have a look round the XS forums, those guys really know their stuff. A good few of them hold various World Records for Ocing.

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=69

 

[ChristopherP]

I'm unsure if either of those would fit?

Remember that the HS has to be fitted with the motherboard out, and the Tsunami dream has that cross bar that you cannot remove...

 

[V_R]

I did wonder that, but i managed it with my Gigabyte 3D Rocket Pro and thats quite a tall cooler, but again i s'pose it depends on the position of the socket.....

Just for reference, where in relation to the side fan is the cpu socket? Mine is almost right under the fan. Looking at the pic of the EVGA board yours is higher up in the case as you look at it? (Just to give me an idea of placement)


Another option could be this?

 

[ChristopherP]

I think the CPU is right at the top of the motherboard, as i remember having to squeeze hand by PSU to get the clips down. So probably above the fan on the window.

Cant really give a more specific answer as the motherboard is packed up ready to be shipped.

What about the Thermalright 90 or 120 they seem to be quite good... Have measured the case and there should be enough height clearance as its 16cm tall, with more than that availiable. Dosent look like it goes out too much to either side.

 

[V_R]

Yeah, maybe. I think they are all good.

Just had a quick look on the EVGA forums, seems that you need to mod a lot of the HSF's and or the mounts to get them on the board, I suggest you have a good read before you comit to anything though.

Whats the cooler Adys got? I guess his fitted without any probs.

It looks like the Chipset is a big prob for a lot of people due to it blowing right at the CPU! Dont get that myself....

 

[ChristopherP]

Yeah thats what i was confused about... the fan blows *directly* onto the CPU area, it gets bloody hot aswell!!

Ady has the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro or something along those lines... seems like a sound little cooler, might get it myself but was wondering what would be better for a little extra cash (and i mean a little)

 

[mudfrog]

What about a Zalman? Heard there very good and also they seem to have a good website.
They let you know what boards are compatable which each fan.

 

[Adywebb]

Chris - I've got the Arctic Cooling Freezer Pro 7 on my E6600 rig and it is sweet and easy to fit - another good feature is it that you can direct cooling fins that exhaust air from the fan onto the Chipset as well

For the Quad, I have a Tuniq Tower 120, and as V_R says it is a big heavy beast, so you need to be careful if the PSU is close by - fortunately I am using an Antec P180 which has the PSU at the bottom.

 

[V_R]

That Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro sounds the best bet if it will fit Chris.

Becareful of the Zalman coolers, You will need to mod the backplate to fit it. Although its no a big problem to fix.

http://www.evga.com/community/messageboard/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=24179

 

[ChristopherP]

I ordered the Arctic Cooling one...

Hope its good

Am expecting my replacement motherboard tomorrow - seems like an alright turn around time for the company that so many people used to hate! They only recieved the board on Friday, tested and should ship it today. Bargain. Didnt even cost me a penny in postage, lets just hope it turns up!!

Also ordered some Isopropyl Ethanol. If that turns up tomorrow then i will clean the surface of the CPU with it before installing the new heatsink. We'll see how it goes.

Edit: Just ordered a copy of Vista Ultimate 64 bit

 

[mudfrog]

Can I please have a cutting of your money tree?
I could do with having one in my back garden

Out of interest where did you get the Isopropyl Ethanol?

I'm gonna wait a while before I jump into Vista. It will take a few months/years to iron out any issues. Cuz there will be issues

Anywayz it all sonds like its coming on nicely. Keep us posted.

 

[ChristopherP]

Money tree?

Sure! you can apply for a money tree here

Ordered the ethanol from eBay - 250ml was like £4 or something...

I bought this rig with the full intention of having Vista on it from the start. I have a Laptop with XP on it so i have the option of both. Might even dual boot XP and Vista if i can be bothered!

I'm sure Vista is as secure as the current version of XP is... or nearly, at least. Cant be TOO bad, surely. Aparently it runs really nicely.

I'll let you all know

 

[mudfrog]

Ah yes the good old student loan

Yeah I'm sure it will be up to the level of security as XP but it's just all the other compatibility issues theres gonna be with it. It will take time for all the other companys to catch up with software/hardware updates and the like.

Will be interested to hear your opinions on it though.

 

[WinkingPig]

I've used Vista Business, got it a month or so ago, i dislike it, it's still unstable, so thus why i'm back on XP Pro.

Driver issues are the main problem, a lot of manufacturer's haven't released new drivers yet.

 

[Anon_F]

I've used Vista Business, got it a month or so ago, i dislike it, it's still unstable, so thus why i'm back on XP Pro.

Driver issues are the main problem, a lot of manufacturer's haven't released new drivers yet.

Interesting, my new laptop comes with the upgrade version for Vista Business, may now not install it after all!

 

[V_R]

Out of interest where did you get the Isopropyl Ethanol?

I used this stuff, got great reviews everywhere.

http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/acatalog/info_3715.html