QUESTIONS: Newbie using ECS K7S5A Pro

[Wiley Q. Hacker]

Just bought an ECS K7S5A Pro board and AMD Athlon XP 2GHz CPU. I'm
planning to build a barebones Linux box. I'd appreciate answers to the
following questions:

1. The board has 3 internal USB connectors for front panel USB ports,
and 4 rear panel USB ports. According to the documentation, the rear
ports are USB 2.0, and the 3 internal connectors are for 6 extra USB
1.1 ports. Is there a way to get USB 2.0 on the front panel with this?

1a. If there is a way, is there a difference between cases that claim
just USB ports up front versus those that claim USB 2.0? Is there a
difference in the wiring of the case?

2. Are the CD connectors on the motherboard supposed to be hooked up
to the digital audio connectors on the CD or the analog audio?

3. For an Athlon XP 2GHz CPU, what kind of cooling do I need? Will a
heatsink do, or do I need a CPU fan? In either case, do I use thermal
adhesive or just mount the heatsink/fan bare? Is a system fan
necessary?

Thanks in advance.
-Wiley

 

[zalzon]

3. For an Athlon XP 2GHz CPU, what kind of cooling do I need? Will a
heatsink do, or do I need a CPU fan?

yes and yes.

by the way, b careful what videokart you get. check to see if they
offer linux drivers first.

 

[Conor Turton]

Just bought an ECS K7S5A Pro board and AMD Athlon XP 2GHz CPU. I'm
planning to build a barebones Linux box. I'd appreciate answers to the
following questions:

1. The board has 3 internal USB connectors for front panel USB ports,
and 4 rear panel USB ports. According to the documentation, the rear
ports are USB 2.0, and the 3 internal connectors are for 6 extra USB
1.1 ports. Is there a way to get USB 2.0 on the front panel with this?

Yes. Connect the front panel connectors to the USB2.0 connectors on the
board.

1a. If there is a way, is there a difference between cases that claim
just USB ports up front versus those that claim USB 2.0? Is there a
difference in the wiring of the case?

Non at all. It's all bullshit to part you with money.

2. Are the CD connectors on the motherboard supposed to be hooked up
to the digital audio connectors on the CD or the analog audio?
Analogue.

3. For an Athlon XP 2GHz CPU, what kind of cooling do I need? Will a
heatsink do, or do I need a CPU fan? In either case, do I use thermal
adhesive or just mount the heatsink/fan bare? Is a system fan
necessary?

You need both a heatsink and a fan and you must use either the thermal
pad on the bottom of the heatsink if fitted or thermal paste.

 

[JT]

Just bought an ECS K7S5A Pro board and AMD Athlon XP 2GHz CPU. I'm
planning to build a barebones Linux box. I'd appreciate answers to the
following questions:

1. The board has 3 internal USB connectors for front panel USB ports,
and 4 rear panel USB ports. According to the documentation, the rear
ports are USB 2.0, and the 3 internal connectors are for 6 extra USB
1.1 ports. Is there a way to get USB 2.0 on the front panel with this?

Run a cable from the front panel connectors to the USB 2.0 on the back.
There are only 4 USB 2.0 available. No way to modify the extra connectors
for USB 2.0

1a. If there is a way, is there a difference between cases that claim
just USB ports up front versus those that claim USB 2.0? Is there a
difference in the wiring of the case?

No difference in the case wiring.

2. Are the CD connectors on the motherboard supposed to be hooked up
to the digital audio connectors on the CD or the analog audio?

Analog. Digital extraction is available for all current CD or DVD drives
through the IDE cable.

3. For an Athlon XP 2GHz CPU, what kind of cooling do I need? Will a
heatsink do, or do I need a CPU fan? In either case, do I use thermal
adhesive or just mount the heatsink/fan bare? Is a system fan
necessary?

You will need a fan. All Athlons (except for some of the mobiles used in
laptops maybe) need fans. Check the AMD website for more information on
cooling.

 

[Wiley Q. Hacker]

Thanks a bunch to all who answered. Certainly helped a lot.

Since my last post, a friend of mine volunteered to donate a video
card. Caveat - it's an AGP 2x card, whereas the documentation for the
K7S5A says it handles AGP 4x cards. Will an AGP 2x card work in the
slot?

Thanks in advance.
-Wiley

 

[drumguy1384]

Thanks a bunch to all who answered. Certainly helped a lot.

Since my last post, a friend of mine volunteered to donate a video
card. Caveat - it's an AGP 2x card, whereas the documentation for the
K7S5A says it handles AGP 4x cards. Will an AGP 2x card work in the
slot?

Thanks in advance.
-Wiley

In a word ... yes.

It may, in fact, also handle an 8x card (assuming the card is not 1.5v)
though it would run at a max of 4x.


Drumguy