A Bit of a Detour...

[clocker]

...from my usual abuse of Sprocket.

Two weeks ago I got a call from my sister in Chicago asking when I might be coming up to visit.
Oh, Thanksgiving or Christmas says I, little realizing there was a hidden agenda unfolding.
Can you come sooner, I need help with my computer, says she.

The PC she's talking about was one I had built over three years ago- Barton core Athlon 2500, NF7-s board, 120GB HDD...pretty nice at the time but definitely getting long in the tooth today.
Unlike me, P. (my sister) actually uses her computer...she and her husband own/manage a volleyball league and she does all the design/maintenance of the website, reservations, league postings/notifications, etc, from home.

I realized that I had almost enough stuff sitting on the shelf to completely move her into a s939 system, an upgrade that would make a real difference to her (and a platform I'll be abandoning in the next few months).

So she thinks I'm flying up next weekend to massage her current machine when in fact, I decided to build her a whole new one (well, new to her at least).

The only major part I was missing was a case- an odd situation for me to be in, but none of my behemoth waterlooped monsters would be suitable for her- so I started cruising Newegg and was oddly attracted to this Lian-li G50B.
This is weird since I really hated the v2000 that I had last spring, but I decided to give them another try.
The case arrived last Wednesday.

Parts I had laying around-
_DFI LP SLI-DR mobo (I moved up to an Expert version)
_Hiper 580w PSU (currently powering Sprocket but soon to be replaced with either the Seasonic S12 from the old Stacker or another PSU, yet to be determined)
_250GB WD KS HDD (a nice enough drive but not as nice as my other Seagates)
_4x1GB gskill PC3200 RAM (late of the iRam setup...not sure what's going to happen to that)
_NEC 3500A DVD-RW or Plextor SATA DVD-RW.

P. will probably make better use of the x64 4400 dual core CPU than I, so that chip come out of Sprocket and I'll go back to the Opteron 148 (oh, poor me!).
Naturally, I have all the bits and bobs to assemble the whole thing- upgraded NB HSF's and several CPU heatsinks to choose from.

Today I assemble it.
Shall keep you posted.

[threelions00]

the saga continues... i made a house out of lego once but i spose that doesn't compare really but i do admire people that can build a pc

[Virtualbody1234]

I find it interesting that you think the Opteron 148 insufficiant for "design/maintenance of the website, reservations, league postings/notifications, etc" and that the x64 4400 dual core is a better choice.

I also wonder about the need for 4GBs of RAM.

[Seedler]

I find it interesting that you think the Opteron 148 insufficiant for "design/maintenance of the website, reservations, league postings/notifications, etc" and that the x64 4400 dual core is a better choice.

I also wonder about the need for 4GBs of RAM.

exactly my sentiments.

Unless you want that rig to last her another 3 years?

[clocker]

I find it interesting that you think the Opteron 148 insufficiant for "design/maintenance of the website, reservations, league postings/notifications, etc" and that the x64 4400 dual core is a better choice.

I also wonder about the need for 4GBs of RAM.

I never said the Opty would be "insufficient", merely that she would be more likely to exploit the multi-tasking capabilities of the dual-core than I.

As for the RAM...no doubt about it, four gigs is way overkill.
It's just that the gskill I used for the i-RAM is much looser (3,4,4,8) than the system RAM I use, so if I'm going to use it I might as well use it all cause I really have no place for it in Sprocket.
Somewhat of a moot point anyway...can only get the OS to see 3 GB, even with the memory remapped in BIOS.
She won't even post till the command rate is set to 2T either, so the extra amount of memory is offset by the crappy memory timing I'm forced to employ to use it.

I'm posting from her new PC right now...it's quite interesting.

More to come- still a bunch of stuff to try....

[Snee]

I find it interesting that you think the Opteron 148 insufficiant for "design/maintenance of the website, reservations, league postings/notifications, etc" and that the x64 4400 dual core is a better choice.

I also wonder about the need for 4GBs of RAM.

I never said the Opty would be "insufficient", merely that she would be more likely to exploit the multi-tasking capabilities of the dual-core than I.

As for the RAM...no doubt about it, four gigs is way overkill.
It's just that the gskill I used for the i-RAM is much looser (3,4,4,8) than the system RAM I use, so if I'm going to use it I might as well use it all cause I really have no place for it in Sprocket.
Somewhat of a moot point anyway...can only get the OS to see 3 GB, even with the memory remapped in BIOS.

Think of it as ready for Vista...

Vista has to be able to do more RAM, right?

...or Linux, but nah.

[clocker]

Think of it as ready for Vista...

Vista has to be able to do more RAM, right?

I'm using Vista (RC1 32-bit) right now and no, it isn't seeing the full four gigs.

With the memory hole remapped in BIOS, Vista sees 3 GB...with it unmapped, Vista sees 3.3 GB. In both cases, command rate is 2T.

In the Vista Windows Experience Index, 3GB (@2T) of RAM scores a 4.9.
With two gigs at 1T, the score improves to 5.2.

Two GB FTW, methinks.

Now to get some cooling performance data.
Here's where I started...
The motherboard with the Zalman 7700 and Evercool NB coolers installed...


First install into the case...


This pic is a few hours old- the NEC burner has been replaced with the Plextor and the Seagate 120GB is now mounted in the stock HDD carriage (on the case floor).
The WD 250 is in the Nexus drive caddy up in the optical bay.

This project is all about silence and ease of use.
The WD250 HDD is going to be the primary OS drive (XP Pro) and is very quiet in the Nexus caddy.
The Seagate currently holds Vista (which I figure P. will be interested in toying with) and when that expires next June, can be formatted and used as storage.

Both motherboard fans are regulated in BIOS and Cool n Quiet is also enabled.
The system is surprisingly silent...not dead silent but by far the least obtrusive PC I've built in a long while.
I'm rather chuffed actually.

Early cooling numbers look OK...


It's going to take me some adjusting to get used to such high numbers.
If I saw these figures from Sprocket I'd be frantic but I know that I'm well within spec and silence exacts it's price in higher temps.

Now to fool around some more...

[lynx]

We all know it won't make any difference, but I'll bet she want's to know why there's no floppy drive.

[clocker]

We all know it won't make any difference, but I'll bet she want's to know why there's no floppy drive.

We'll see.

This case makes no provision for one anyway so it's hello! thumbdrive and buh-buy! diskette.

Some thoughts on the Lian-li case....

_The front bezel pops on/off with a satisfying positivity (is that even a word?). The nicest removable bezel I've used in a long time.

_The two included 120mm fans are very noisy and weirdly set up.
The front fan (lower casefront, blowing over the HDD rack) has a sweet mesh cover that looks great and completely strangles the fan. Fortunately, this cover is not part of the case and removes with the fan itself so that's easily remedied.

The side fan, mounted on a rack from the backplane and adjustable over a 4" range, is completely proprietary (it has capure nuts pressed into the mount holes) and can only be installed as an exhaust.

I've replaced both fans with Yate Loons running on thermistor controlled leads- I can hear the whoosh of air but no motor noise or prop wash.
So far the fans have not spun up much- I'd guess they're running about 7v- but holding the sensor between my fingers causes them to ramp up nicely so I know they're ready if needed.

_The caseroof is already set up for a blowhole, unfortunately it's 80mm.
Not sure what to do here...an 80mm fan would be excessively noisy and inefficient but the empty holes in the panel make it appear as though I forgot to mount something.

_The stock HDD rack is oddly attached.
One side's flange is screwed to the floorpanel but the other side is riveted.
You'd think it would be all one or the other- preferrably all screws- but it's not.

_The cables from the roof mounted USB/Firewire ports are absurdly long, extending over a foot out the back of the case.
I can't imagine what the rationale was behind this since connecting to any normal mobo is going to leave a lot of thick bulky cable to hide away.

Overall I'd rate this case about a 5 out of 10.
It looks nice enough (in a minimalist sort of way) and everything fits OK but it doesn't feel especially sturdy and it's louder than need be (there's no provision for soft mounting the drives for instance).

She's gonna love it.

[Snee]

If she really wants a floppy drive, I say she can buy a usb one

TBH, I think it's a pretty sweet machine.



As for the blowhole...just put some really slow fan in, undervolt one or something.

Won't do much difference, but it'll be moving. She'll think it makes things colder...