Just an update and a quick review - all the parts have finally arrived and been hastily assembled. My final line-up: * Lian Li PC-A04 * Seasonic G360 * ASUS P8H77-M mATX * 8GiB Corsair Vengeance LP White DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800) XMP CAS 9-9-9-24 1.35V * Intel i3 3225 Ivy Bridge * Noctua NH-9U, one 92mm...

The other post was my initial reaction to having no grounding on external metal panels. Here I'm just trying to understand why my reaction was wrong. I can assume from replies, or the lack thereof, that this is not an issue. I guess advances in clock speeds have seen improvement in signal handling o...

This has been bugging me so I thought I'd solicit other views... My previous build, about 4 years ago, was an Antec Solo. Not perfect but good enough. Now I want to build a home/media server and decided on the Fractal Design Define Mini. It arrived quickly but the motherboard etc. would be a few mor...

I think we're getting in to the realms of re-manufacture here. It's a new case and I don't want to have to chip the paint off. I have not used the case in "anger" yet, but my expectations and confidence in it have collapsed. The impression I get is that the Fractal Design Define Mini is a good desig...

Thinking about this practically, it would need a few things to go wrong in order for the case to become live and dangerous. But simply grounding all the metal panels (and the PSU) would make it unconditionally safe. With only the motherboard mounting plate grounded through the PSU cables there is a ...

Things can and do go wrong. The point of chassis grounding is to make sure the fuse blows before anyone has the chance to kill themself. That requires every external conducting panel and connector to be grounded. Then there is the less frequent issue of an external live conductor contacting the case...

Yes, analogue multimeter. One probe in motherboard mounting hole (bare metal) and check continuity to another hole. That's OK, 0.0 Ohms. Removed paint from inside a PSU mounting hole to bare metal. No continuity. Tried probing every piece of bare metal I can find - pop rivet cores, card slot screws,...

Just unpacked a new Fractal Design Define Mini and noticed that everything appears to be painted before assembly. Panels, rivets screws, the lot. The result is that none of the panels have electrical continuity to any other. The only bare metal I can find is where the motherboard stand-off holes hav...

Hi, EMV or EMC (British) is down to (half) wavelength of the holes or gaps in the case. The digital signals are now in the GHz range and the rise/fall times are fast so the harmonics are significant at 3, 5, 7... times the clock frequencies. Fortunamtely those higher freqencies are very directional ...

Thanks for the comments! CA_Steve: The i3 3225 looks interesting. Less cash, more GPU and TDP is 55W vs. the 77W for the i5. Should still be faster than my current Core2 Duo for MPEG processing. Reduces cooler requirements too. I'll look in to the Coolmaster... I just love the Prolima mounting syste...

It's been a while since I built a box, so, before I do something expensive and daft... I'm building a headless 24/7 server box for the home. It will run Fedora Linux and provide a secure Internet gateway, home network services and a MythTV master back-end. My shopping list so far: Fractal Design Def...

Still no luck tracking one down. I think Thermalright have moved to bolt-thru for all of their new models and now offer a push-pin (downgrade) kit! Maybe they noticed that they were selling more bolt-thru kits than heatsinks. Looks like I'm stuck with push-pins for now, but as soon as my MOBO and Ni...

Thanks for the advice everyone .

I have used the SFF damping kit before and it made some difference, mainly to the tone of the noise; easier to live with. Think I'll treat myself and fit the damping first this time, doubled up on the original damping.

Thanks again,

Dave G.

Before I buy a Scythe Ninja, does anyone know where I can get a Thermalright bolt-thru-kit in the UK? I have searched all the usual suspects and a few EU shops but there are none "in stock" anywhare. Alternate suggestions welcome. Can't stand the thought of that much metal landing on the back of my ...

Hi, I'm about to build a quiet Linux workhorse PC - an update of the SPCR Model 1. Before I buy the bits and start construction I thought I'd ask... 1. Is the stock panel damping in the Antec SOLO (P150, Designer etc.) good enough on it's own? 2. How easy is it to replace (or cover) with AcoustiPack...

Back from my web trawl. Thanks bonestonne, that’s been worrying me. Four tiny pieces of nylon may be more than enough to secure some from embarrassment :wink: , but I’d rather rely on a good solid screw for that much metal. Saw some references in other posts - the LGA775 kit for older Thermalrig...

Thanks again for some valuable suggestions and warnings. Looking and the motherboard again, you are right. A P35 board looks a better match. No way I need 2 PCI-E 16x slots. I’m leaning towards a Gigabyte GA-P35-S3 (more PCI slots and 6 SATA), or the GA-P35-DS3P (2+3+2 PCI, 8 SATA). Looks like all...

Thanks for the fast replies, Guys! I was leaning towards the X38 M/B for the cooler operation, fancy heat-pipes etc. and not to fall too far behind the "bleading edge". The X38 boards have pushed DDR2 hard. I doubt they will be investing as much on the P35 models now. The price premium on the fastes...

Hi, I am putting together a new Linux PC for my home office. It needs to be quiet and a good all-rounder, no serious games, reliable, with plenty of horse power on a tight budget. My shopping list so far: Case: Antec SOLO PSU: Seasonic S12II-430 Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-X38-DS5 (X38, DDR2) Processor...