Search found 75 matches

by BigA
Sun Nov 19, 2006 8:32 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: "Stellar Realms" - online gaming, with a twist.
Replies: 396
Views: 395757

Round 15 has ended. I'm looking forward to a break, followed by a much quieter game for Round 16.

Metallikov
by BigA
Thu Sep 21, 2006 9:43 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Wealth Distribution of US
Replies: 152
Views: 109589

Correlation vs. Causality [quote]Have you noticed that the higher the average income is for a country, the lower it's population growth?[/quote] Perhaps this statement should be reworded to state, "the higher the population growth of a country, the lower the average income." Arguably, we see the Tra...
by BigA
Sun Sep 10, 2006 6:33 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: SLK3000B resonance (newbie)
Replies: 5
Views: 3452

Does the resonance stop when you place your hand on the side panels of the case (without touching any other part of the case)? If so, you might try the vinyl floor tile mod which several SPCR users have used: * Find (or buy) some vinyl floor tiles with adhesive backs. * Measure and cut the floor til...
by BigA
Tue Sep 05, 2006 10:05 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: What is the NICEST computer you could build?
Replies: 31
Views: 14994

We're basically saying that this exercise has multiple correct answers, depending on our individual personal preferences. Ok... I'll play. 1. Would you be building this machine yourself? If so, is assembly time an issue? Is maintainability an issue? Building my own machine gives me the satisfaction ...
by BigA
Mon Sep 04, 2006 6:43 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: What is the NICEST computer you could build?
Replies: 31
Views: 14994

Nicest... 1. Would you be building this machine yourself? If so, is assembly time an issue? Is maintainability an issue? 2. Is appearance important, or are you mostly worried about performance, storage, and noise? 3. How will the machine be used? This is very important, as many of us would base our ...
by BigA
Fri May 19, 2006 9:40 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Want a new build but have 1000 questions (sorta long)
Replies: 23
Views: 9129

You might take a look at passively cooled motherboards, as those tiny fans tend to be annoying. If you are going with a fanned motherboard, you should consider removing the fan and installing a passive heatsink such as the ZM-NB47J. Other passive northbridge cooling solutions are described in this l...
by BigA
Fri May 19, 2006 12:32 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Want a new build but have 1000 questions (sorta long)
Replies: 23
Views: 9129

Possibly the lowest cost option for a heatsink would be to try undervolting the fan on the stock heatsink. If the stock heatsink can adequately cool your CPU while undervolted, you might then swap out the fan on this heatsink with a quieter fan. I have asked around SPCR in the past whether anyone ha...
by BigA
Fri May 19, 2006 12:07 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Dorm-compatible Socket A
Replies: 26
Views: 10255

Athlon XP's draw a fair amount of power (yours appears to be rated at 68W), generate lots of heat. Fortunately, these CPU's were designed to run a lot hotter than the current generation of AMD CPU's. According to both of these sites, the rated temperature for your CPU is 85C (as apparently only a Ba...
by BigA
Thu May 18, 2006 10:47 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Want a new build but have 1000 questions (sorta long)
Replies: 23
Views: 9129

[quote]As far as Socket 939 vs 754 goes, I have read conflicting stories. Some say that once AM2 comes out, 939 becomes a dead socket and 754 will continue. You and a number of others have suggested the complete opposite. I do want to go with the option that will provide upgrade options in the futur...
by BigA
Wed May 17, 2006 10:32 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Want a new build but have 1000 questions (sorta long)
Replies: 23
Views: 9129

As you have noticed, any system build is ultimately a series of tradeoffs. The Seasonic S12-330 power supply would almost certainly provide enough power for the system you have described. However, the comments on the recent SPCR review of the S12-330 suggest that the S12-380 includes larger heatsink...
by BigA
Sun May 14, 2006 4:43 pm
Forum: Notebook Systems
Topic: Laptop Carrying bag advise? (OT not quiet related)
Replies: 6
Views: 8355

I agree that you need to carefully consider your needs before purchasing a laptop bag. I'm used to lugging around a heavy case with an 8 pound laptop and another 10 pounds of papers. For my laptop case, I wanted a tough, attractive case which would not attract lots of attention. Given the weight, a ...
by BigA
Thu May 11, 2006 6:50 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Dorm-compatible Socket A
Replies: 26
Views: 10255

Are you positive that the noise is coming from the CPU fan and not from the PSU fan? What PSU are you running?
by BigA
Sun May 07, 2006 7:03 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: antec p180 clarity
Replies: 16
Views: 7577

Krille, From the URL's you provided, it looks like the TNN500AF ships with a 400W power supply, whereas the TNN500A ships with a 350W power supply. The 50-page installation manual suggests that building one of these might be a lengthy process, however, the quality of the documentation is superb (10 ...
by BigA
Sat May 06, 2006 8:12 am
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: antec p180 clarity
Replies: 16
Views: 7577

Krille, I have a 24" LCD at work (I believe it's a Samsung 243T) and I'm not too crazy about it since it runs at a refresh rate of something like 65 Hz (you really want a vertical refresh rate > 80 hz to avoid the impression of flickering). For video quality, it's still hard to beat a 21" CRT and th...
by BigA
Wed May 03, 2006 3:26 pm
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Athlon X2 3800 Idling at 14 C?!?
Replies: 12
Views: 5653

Does your motherboard manufacturer provide a temperature monitoring tool? For example, ASUS provides ASUS Probe. If so, you might try that and see if it reports different temperatures. If your BIOS is reporting a somewhat accurate temperature, that's very good news since the BIOS should trigger any ...
by BigA
Wed May 03, 2006 1:40 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Power Supply Tales of Woe, Advice Needed
Replies: 1
Views: 1582

Are you sure that your problems relate to your inability to press F2? If so, you might try disconnecting the original hard drive. Since the original hard drive will no longer be connected, the SMART message will not be displayed and the machine should boot at that point. However, if the keyboard's r...
by BigA
Wed May 03, 2006 1:31 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: antec p180 clarity
Replies: 16
Views: 7577

Some of the wobbliness in the P180 door relates to the fact that the door is double-hinged and can be folded back 270 degrees to lay flat against the case. As Nici noted, you wouldn't want to drop the case on the floor, but I'm not expecting my case to fail from wear and tear either. As far as porta...
by BigA
Wed May 03, 2006 1:13 pm
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Athlon X2 3800 Idling at 14 C?!?
Replies: 12
Views: 5653

As it is unlikely that your room is below 14 C (57 F), the reading you are reporting is not possible. All CPU's generate heat, so none of them can operate below the ambient temperature of the room. You might look around to see if other people with your motherboard have reported the same problem. In ...
by BigA
Tue May 02, 2006 10:58 am
Forum: CPU Cooling
Topic: Thermalright XP90C vs. Cooler Master Hyper 48
Replies: 25
Views: 11716

I am currently using the XP-90 to cool an overclocked AMD64-3000. For my system, I did precisely what mckennaiii has suggested and used a Zalman Fan Bracket to suspend a fan over the heat sink. In my system, this solution has worked fine. Prior to installing the Zalman fan bracket, I put the fan bra...
by BigA
Tue May 02, 2006 10:40 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Dream build gone bad
Replies: 18
Views: 8810

Ryboto, On my A8R-MVP system the CPU fan is connected to a variable speed Zalman Fanmate. When the Fanmate is connected, the BIOS gives a CPU Fan Fail at the POST screen as well. Despite the error message, the CPU Fan operates just fine. However, if I disconnect the Fanmate and plug the CPU Fan dire...
by BigA
Mon May 01, 2006 11:09 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Dream build gone bad
Replies: 18
Views: 8810

Handle -- I'm glad to hear your problems have subsided. Hopefully the computer will stay "fixed". In the meantime, here's a couple thoughts regarding the problems you have experienced: * When the problem went away, was the room cooler than when the problem first materialized? * Similarly, if the pro...
by BigA
Fri Apr 28, 2006 8:10 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Dream build gone bad
Replies: 18
Views: 8810

Do you know the model number of your RAM?
by BigA
Fri Apr 28, 2006 9:32 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Will the Seasonic s12 380w do me fine?
Replies: 3
Views: 2448

Please note that 287W sounds awfully high for your configuration. You might want to take a look at the review article in which SPCR reviewed power distribution in several different PC's, as this will give you a better feel for your actual power requirements. Having said this, a 330W PSU will probabl...
by BigA
Fri Apr 28, 2006 5:13 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Dream build gone bad
Replies: 18
Views: 8810

Does the BIOS include an option to set memory timings to Auto? If you are manually setting your memory timings, this could cause the problem you are experiencing.
by BigA
Wed Apr 26, 2006 5:42 pm
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Seasonic S-12 430 and SLI?
Replies: 7
Views: 4475

These power estimates are consistent with the power draw which MikeC reported in his "PC for Torrid Thailand" article: http://www.silentpcreview.com/article293-page6.html This PC included: * Asus A8N-SLI Premium motherboard * AMD X2 3800+ * Nexus 120 fan (for CPU heatsink) * 2 Nexus 92mm fans for th...
by BigA
Tue Apr 25, 2006 1:10 pm
Forum: Cases and Damping
Topic: Is Antec P180 best case for silence?
Replies: 26
Views: 10675

Please refer to the SPCR reviews of these cases for details on each. Some of the more significant differences between the P180 and the P150 (besides styling) are: P180: * Composite side panels minimize vibration * Separate airflow for PSU, requires longer power cables than traditional ATX implementa...
by BigA
Mon Apr 24, 2006 6:06 pm
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: AMD A64 TDP Poll
Replies: 71
Views: 84299

3000+, 939, DH8-E3, 55?C, 38.2W
by BigA
Mon Apr 24, 2006 6:44 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: Seasonic - too many wires - what to do?
Replies: 4
Views: 3524

You might check to see if the unused wires can be bundled up and jammed between the PSU and the case. If you do decide to cut the wires, you will want to unplug the PSU before cutting (this is obvious, but perhaps bears repeating). As for cutting, you may wish to cut them at slightly different lengt...
by BigA
Sat Apr 22, 2006 11:13 pm
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: New Rig - What psu?
Replies: 14
Views: 6084

[quote]Hmm not much of a diffrence , the enermax 620w makes some noise over 150w as the fan kicks in. But thats about it :E Hmmm the choices [/quote] Your system will be drawing over 150w. I have had very good luck with my Seasonics, an S12-380 and an S12-330 which was retrofitted onto an older mach...
by BigA
Fri Apr 21, 2006 10:55 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: "Stellar Realms" - online gaming, with a twist.
Replies: 396
Views: 395757

Comrades! I had an exceptionally rough start, but stuck with it and ended up enjoying myself. The learning curve would be a lot easier if the documentation was more thorough and I would greatly appreciate having access to old forums and the wiki. Stellar Realms has a lot of richness and subtlety whi...