Upgrading Sooner than Anticipated - Build Thoughts

Maelwys · Post by **Maelwys** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 6:46 pm

After reading SPCR for ages, I finally decided to do something about my extremely loud PC recently and replaced my case and power supply with an Antec Solo and Corsair 620HX. Even with the same guts, the noise level dropped amazingly. This of course made me want to replace everything else to achieve as much silence as possible, even though I really can't afford it. But, what the hell....

Here's what I'm thinking of getting - feedback would be greatly appreciated!
Asus P5B Deluxe (non WiFi version - is there a good reason to get the WiFi version instead?)
Intel Core2Duo E6600
Crucial Ballistix 2GB DDR2-800 (Cas4)
Scythe Ninja Rev. B

And here's what I have that I'll be keeping:
Antec Solo w/ Crucial 620HX
250 GB Maxtor Sata
3 Optical Drives (all Plextor IDE)
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS

I'm not sure which video card to get yet, but I'm leaning towards an X1950 Pro or X1950 XT. I am a moderate gamer, and would like to play games at a decent widescreen resolution without sacrificing too much quality.

One thing I noticed as well: the P5B has 1 IDE port, so I'll need to get an ATA133 card to allow me to use all my optical drives.

Anyone using the Cas4 DDR2-800 Ballistix with this board? I'm reading lots of horror stories about incompatible RAM. It's on the Asus QVL though.

I'm not planning to overclock, and want to run the Scythe passive. Good idea?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Nick Geraedts · Post by **Nick Geraedts** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 7:25 pm

There was a silent version of the X1950 recently released... not sure if it's Pro or XT. Something to look into in that department.

Everything else looks good, but may I ask why you need three optical drives? I've got one, and it's doing me very well.

sjoukew · Post by **sjoukew** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 3:31 am

In my case I bought a motherboard with wifi, it did only cost a couple of euro's more. Given the price of the rest of the components it didn't matter anymore, so I thought why not.

h2o · Post by **h2o** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:47 am

If you're looking for a GFX that is good while still not emptying your wallet I'd take a good look at the X1950XT which is atm probably the best priced card out there. I'm personally thinking of an 8800GTS now, but the X1950XT was my first choice since it is such good value for money, but I've always made those choices. This time I'm going to pay up for that extra and invest in the future, 8800GTS is a DX10 card after all

Maelwys · Post by **Maelwys** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:50 am

Nick: A good point. I have a DVD-ROM, CD-RW, and DVD-RW because I slowly added them over time, but I don't really need all three of them. I suppose I could pull the DVD-ROM or the CD-RW and be just fine.

I'll also look into that silent X1950. I'm assuming it's a Pro as the R570 chip draws a lot less power than the R580+. But the XTs are almost the same price as the Pros these days, so I'd like to get the best I can. Can anyone comment on the volume of their XT?

h2o · Post by **h2o** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 5:57 am

Maelwys, I think this may be the thing you are looking for http://www.hisdigital.com/html/product_ ... 8&view=yes. The X1950XT ICE-Q is supposed to be a lot cooler and more quiet then your average X1950

Nick Geraedts · Post by **Nick Geraedts** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:42 am

@h2o - That wasn't the one I was thinking of, although you've given a link to an XT.

Here's a recent article about an X1950 Pro with a huge passive heatsink.

http://www.hardwarezone.com/news/view.p ... =6&src=rss

OmegaZero · Post by **OmegaZero** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 9:45 am

This is really just a personal preference thing, but I would recommend Corsair or OCZ RAM over Crucial. Three years ago I wouldn't buy anything but Crucial RAM. Since then I have had so many issues that I have just stopped buying things from them outright. Lately I have been using mostly Corsair (with a little OCZ sprinkled in) and have had much better results both in performance and stability. Add to that the fact that they tend to be less expensive than Crucial and you have a sure winner...

[EDIT: It's 2007. Doh! Time sure goes fast...]

Maelwys · Post by **Maelwys** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 11:39 am

Omega: I was initially going to get Corsair ram, but I read a lot about how the Asus P5B can be hit or miss when it comes to Corsair memory, especially when trying to run them at cas4. The Crucial seems to pretty solid though with the P5B, at least according to the forums I've read through. I'd be happy to save the money by getting Corsair though if anyone has a P5B working well with it and would like to give it a thumbs up!

OmegaZero · Post by **OmegaZero** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 12:15 pm

I have a P5W64 WS Pro running TWIN2X2048-8500C5D (see my signature). I know that isn't the same as a P5B, but for what it's worth I haven't had any issues...

What about OCZ?

Maelwys · Post by **Maelwys** » Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:01 pm

I was actually just taking the time to read about OCZ and it seems to work fine with the Asus P5B according to the OCZ forums. And it's quite a lot cheaper than Crucial. The only thing I'm concerned about is that OCZ isn't listed on the Asus QVL, not that the list is conclusive in any way.

So unless I find out otherwise, I will probably try the OCZ with this build and save some cash. Thanks O-0!

Maelwys · Post by **Maelwys** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 5:46 am

Just to resurrect my old thread, I've finally ordered all the parts and should have a new computer shortly. Of course, I spent way more money than I at first intended to, but that always seems to happen with me and computers:

Final Build Specs:
Antec Solo w/ Crucial 620HX
Asus P5B Deluxe WiFi Version
Intel Core2Duo E6600
Scythe Ninja Rev. B
OCZ Platinum Rev2 2GB DDR2-800
Asus EAX1950 Pro 256MB Video Card
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
Samsung Spinpoint T 500GB Hard Drive (new - main)
Maxtor 250GB Hard Drive (old - media storage)
Plextor DVD-ROM / Plextor DVD-RW

Any thoughts / tips for future happiness would be very welcome. I replaced the Antec Tri-Cool with a Nexus and I couldn't be happier with sound qualities of the case. I'm planning to run the E6600 in passive with the Scythe, but may end up needing the fan depending on how hot it gets. And I've read good things about the heatsink on the Asus X1950 Pro being pretty quiet at under 50% speed.

I'll post temps and subjective noise levels when I have them.

grambo · Post by **grambo** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 8:24 am

I would think you will be fine in passive mode with the Scythe as long as you are not overclocking and have decent airflow.

I'm assuming you will only use your single optical drive? Having 3 IDE cables cluttering up your case will impede airflow and consume more power and thus generate more heat. Glad you like the Corsair HX620, I am going with either the 520 or 620 in my build (see the thread I posted in here), not sure if I will spring the extra for the 620.

thejamppa · Post by **thejamppa** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 1:35 pm

@ Maelwys: Rev B has frequently reported poor performancue especially on LGA-775 socket due ineffective pressure the Scythe's pushpins produce. You need to modify somehow Rev B if that doesn't work as expected.

Or you can get Thermalright Ultra-120 instead Ninja.

Maelwys · Post by **Maelwys** » Fri Mar 16, 2007 9:29 am

Just a few temps as promised. Passively cooled with a Scythe Ninja Rev.B, one Nexus 120mm exhaust fan, and a Corsair 620HX in an Antec Solo.

Also, a few notes about the install: OCZ DRAM @ 4-4-4-12 timings works flawlessly. Asus 1004 Bios. Noise levels are extremely good, with the loudest fan in the system being the Nexus 120mm. The Asus X1950 Pro also has a very smooth noise signature that is only audible at load. It ramps up as the temps increase and peaks at about 50% speed.

Ambient Temp: 21C

E6600 CPU @ Idle: 33C
E6600 CPU @ 30 minute load: 45C

500GB Samsung HDD: 35C
250GB Maxtor HDD: 38C

Asus X1950 Pro @ Idle: 53C
Asus X1950 Pro @ 30 minute load: 88C

Overall, I'm very pleased with the results, especially my CPU temps. The only thing that I'm considering is a 92mm fan in the front not so much to cool my hard drives, but to get some air into the hot spot underneath the video card. I'm worried that after a few hours of gaming I'll have a small pocket of super-heated air under there.