Athalon 64, X2 or not

Here we go....

1. Should I install the Fan Mate control for the Zalman CPU fan? If so, how should I set the rotary control (Silent rotates to Normal)?

2. My WD HDD's are OEM so no software (Lifeguard, etc). Should I download them or just let the BIOS handle them?

Matt, thanks for the pointers. It is all going very well so far.

 

Finally - Big Lar gets to roll out his new toys!

Personally, I don't use that fan mate. Zahlmans run quiet enough that I don't see any big advantage in it and its just another set of wires to have to deal with. As to the WD's - again, personal preference but I never use those Mfg utlilities. Windows does a fine job of formatting all by itself. You will find that you'll need to make some SATA floppies and you can do that by inserting your ASUS CD and running that at startup - it will give you menus for creating your driver disks for both controllers.

Guess I'm already a little late but I always install the CPU, heatsink and memory before the board goes into the case. Keep us posted, I'm travelling tomorrow but will try to check in periodically to follow your fun.

Another teaser - that "wind tunnel" just pulled a 2735 at PCPitstop.

 

Oh yeah, I found about installing the fan, et al, before you install the mainboard the (not so) hard way. The Zalman requires that the plate behind the CPU be changed out, so....

On that road again...

1. Does the legacy or any floppy have to be installed? I have a USB one already but not installed yet.

2. What about the audio cables for the optical drives? The Lite-on came with a wire that has a flat, 4 slot connector on each end but there appears to be no place to use it. The Samsung was OEM so had nothing with it.

3. Should I start with 2 HDDs and 2 DVD's or just one each and expand later?

4. Since I am using the SATA2 connectors, does it matter which IDE controller I use for the opticals?

5. Do I install the video card right now, too?

6. Asus has a bad rep for their board fans. Should I plan ahead on replacing the original nForce chip fan? Are after market fans readily available? BTW- not using SLI mode.

Thanks, Lar

 

I always install floppy drives but you should be able to set your BIOS to handle a USB floppy. Personally, I'd plunge for a regular floppy and take no chances - Thats one of those $7 no brainers in my book. I also use audio cables and your Lite on will have a small 4 pin connector just to the left of the IDE connector (its recessed in there) - Samsung should have the same and I'd put both opticals in. It shouldn't make a difference as to which IDE header you use but I always put opticals on the second one and then the first is available for removable IDE HDD's (if and when). That board also has 2 audio headers by the network port. As to your HDD's you can mount both but only hook up one for your installation - keep the second one disconnected for the time being - that way all your files wind up on a single drive instead of finding out when its too late that you had some boot ini or other files on something other than your system drive. I'd hold off on your video card until most everything else is in the case, wired up and almost ready to go. Check also if you need power to your video card and keep a connector available be it molex, PCIe or small floppy molex. As to the chipset fan - you can find great aftermarket stuff at SVC.com but I'd think the ASUS is sufficient for starters. I've got one of those heatpipe coolers on my chipset so didn't have to make that decision on this board.

Good Luck my friend - don't rush anything.

 

Special Hot Tip For Larry
I believe you got that Thermaltake case and I think the structure is almost the same as the Tsunami. Couple of wiring pointers:

If you take out the 4 screws on the PSU and just wiggle it slightly out of the way, you will find a small channel to the left back of the PSU where you can pull your 4 pin 12V connector through to the motherboard and you can also run the fan power wires out through it. Yes, take both sides off the case. Secondly, looking at the rolled edge of the case support (inside back about 7" from the front running top to bottom) you will find a small phillips head ***** about 6" down from the top. Unscre_w that so you have a little flex in that support and you can pull all of your power cords between the bottom panel and that opening and run them down the backside of the case. You can even pull your 24pin power cord through this opening and it will get most all of your wiring out of the way and provide for much better air flow when you button things back up. Lastly, don't forget to tighten that scre_w back up when you are done. Theres a little spacer in there too should you take the thing all the way out.

Just thought I'd mention it so you can avoid the spaghetti look.

 

Hey Rock, I actually ordered the legacy floppy but Newegg is taking its time on that (of all things). I just want to boot up and get the show on the road.

The wires look pretty well contained. I have a Lian-Li case.

OK. So, I am wired without floppy (yet). Do I have a go? If so, .....

1. Set up voltages or anything or should the CMOS be ready to go out of the box for std use.??

2. What drivers do I need to install or just use the Windows ones?

3. I got the weird audio cables to work. I had a backup in my parts drawer for the OEM drive.

4.

eh?? This is something Windows will not handle?

Thanks, Lar

Note: I have a copy of PC Builder and the cool thing is that the mobo they use in the pics is the ASUS A8N-SLI (non-Dlx). Well, THEY said to "power up" and I am now installing XP Pro!

 

Go for it ....... I used the NVidia SATA Drivers and the Sil 3114 SATA drivers from ASUS as I'm using both SATA controllers but if XP's setup let you get away without installing any SATA drivers from a floppy, all the more power to you. XP must have the NVidia SATA drivers on it - thats a first for me and I've done more than a few boxes with NVidia SATA controllers. After your installation, when you load motherboard drivers, you'll get another opportunity if you want to change anything. One choice is using native windows drivers for the IDE controllers or using NVidia's and I think the safer bet is using the native drivers there. The NForce drivers are going to handle everything pretty much automatically regarding everything else.

Good show Dad!

 

It's alive!!!! It's Al-i-i-i-i-i-ve!!! Runnin' smooth as silk, and that Tyris 19" DVi mon is, well, big!!! No bad pixels either.

1. I need to get online and I do have wireless. Do the USB adapters have MAC addresses as regular PCI cards do?? Do they work as well as cards? (I hope so as I don't want to use up a PCI slot unnecessarily). Comp USA has a card with an antenna on a wire (for locating optimum reception). Some USB adapters come with USB wires for the same reason. Tre' cool.

2. Drivers- Once online, update everything?? I see that the Bios is current. I guess I should do the chipset (nVidia). No other cards yet. What else??

3. This is almost like bringing up religion, but.... partitioning. For the purposes of isolating data and other stuff from the main programs, and to make maintenance (defrag, Scandisk, etc) quicker and easier , I have always partitioned with Partition Magic. What has experience told the sages that be??

4. Transferring of data. I have a 25' ethernet 5e cable that is supposed to be for using the LAN jacks for transferring data from my old computer to the new one. The box does not say how to configure the network settings to accomplish that. Any ideas??

5. BTW- I have already aligned the BIOS settings for the memory to its specs: 2-3-3-6 @ 2.75v. Didn't touch the CPU settings yet. Rock, let me know when playtime begins.

Thanks a lot, Lar

 

The ones I am familar with:
1. MAC address or do you mean IP address? Hopefully, all that will be taken care of when you install the wireless system with their installation software.

2. Yes you can see what set of chipset drivers Asus are offering (they may point you to the nVidia website). If Asus have a different version from those offered by nVidia, get the Asus version, they will have been tested on your model.

Check the graphics drivers, again, use those that are recommended by the manufacturer of the card (MSI). The best version of the drivers are released a series or two after your card is released (generally). That's when they have been a little more "tweaked" for your model.

4. XP has a network setup "wizard ". Look in Help and Support and the networking section in Control Panel. You will probably only need to make sure that both computers are using the same workgroup name, but the computer identification name needs to be different (you won't need a Domain unless you are connecting to computers that do have them). I would not try connecting to the internet with the new computer through the cable connection, wait until you set up the wireless system, otherwise you may need to reset the settings.
You may need to turn on "printer and file sharing" this should be covered in the networking wizard.

Matt

 

Congratulations Larry! There's no way that Costco box would have given you the sense of accomplishment you are now feeling - good job! (Guess I forgot about that case change, huh? Another good call on your part.)

Yes, all those network devices have their own proprietary MAC addresses to my knowledge - thats how they work. Wireless is nice and it gives one some placement flexibility but I'm a big advocate of hard wired connections. And, before anybody starts to argue, I also have a wireless access point, a range extender, 2 repeaters and a wireless printer (for wife in bedroom to print from her laptop). We use wireless for our laptops and my PDA. However, I'd encourage you to purchase a wireless Router which gives you the best of both worlds and you can also use this to hook up the old and the new and do your file transfers. If you want to direct cable between two machines to transfer data, you'll need a cat5 crossover cable. The guy who can answer all your questions in this regard is ReggieB - he's very good.

Re: drivers. Install Everest and check via the links there to see if you need any updates or go to PCPitstop and run the tests and then look to the driverguide link on the results page and see what they have to say. Be cautious with whatever you install based upon their recommendations because its a bit of overkill and you won't need to do everything they are going to recommend. Personally, I subscribe to WinDrivers but you won't be able to use that without paying for a subscription.

Partitioning - you do like controversy don't you. I don't partition drives as I see little advantage in doing so. Having made that statement, I'll leave you to your own to make your decisons - some swear by partitioning - I'm not one of them. I am a big believer in imaging and making regular automated backups.

When I get back home (one week) I'll be glad to assist you with tweaking that puppy. As long as you know how to reset your CMOS and are comfortable knowing what your BIOS settings are, whatever trouble you get into, you can get out of. You can go to manual settings and increase your CPU multiplier but go .5 at a time - this is slow process and you want to run a few hours at each incremental increase you make. We will need to change those memory timings at some point in time if you really want to push this and we'll also eventually need to push that core voltage just a touch but for the time being, leave that alone. The thing to remember is "Go Slow ".

Again Lar - congratulations.

 

Hey guys. I am bumping up a couple of things of interest.

1. Transferring of data- I have a 25' ethernet 5e cable that is supposed to be for using the LAN jacks for transferring data from my old computer to the new one. The box does not say how to configure the network settings to accomplish that. Any ideas??

2. Does it matter if I use a legacy floppy drive or one that is integrated into a USB card reader unit? There is a cool black Mitsumi on Newegg but it is USB. Oh, that reminds me. The BIOS does not even give the Floppy as a boot device choice. Is noting that totally indicative of how "out of the loop" I have been??

Thanks, Lar

 

Lar:
I think you'll find it does permit booting from a floppy and will list that as a removable. As to those combo USB port and floppy drive on the same 3.5" device - I think thats still a legacy floppy as you term it. Re: data transfer witha standard ethernet cable strung between two machines - nope, isn't going to work - you'll need a crossover ethernet cable. You could also use a switch, hub or router and forget about the crossover cable.

Enjoy ........

 

That's what I have, a Crossover Cable!!!

 

There are hundreds of different ways to set up a network, that's why there will not be a single set of instructions. As I said, find out about the Network Setup wizard in Win XP:

There are tutorials and troubleshooting here:
www.practicallynetworked.com
www.homenethelp.com
I set up my network manually using those two sites.

BTW, I missed saying congratulations, I think you have done well.

Matt

 

Hi guys!! I am plodding along here. I decided that the easiest way to transfer my data files is to burn them to DVD-r. Regarding the crossover cable, it seems that I need to have 10 BaseT cards to do that, so I dropped it altogether. I may be wrong but it seems out of my league. I got the internet working and I do not want to challenge that status.

Issue 1- My Device Mgr is showing some "?" issues in Other Devices. Specifically...

Other PCI Bridge Device- drivers not installed (code 28)
PCI Memory Controller- same
RAID Controller- same
SM Bus Controller- same

I am not using RAID, and S & M, that is out of the question!

I solved some earlier driver issues like this by installing drivers from the ASUS disc. Not sure if I should install all of the RAID stuff if I do not need it. I have not yet installed the PATA RAID drivers, the SATA RAID drivers, Silicon Image RAID drivers or the AMD Quiet'n'Cool driver. The computer already had the Sil 3114 SATA Raid on it when I first fired it up. Do install anything or should I look at disabling them instead?

Issue 2- Any way to put a direct link on the desktop to open up Device Mgr? Minor, to be sure, but I do love my little conveniences.

Issue 3- I have plugged in my 2nd HDD. It is found in the Device Mgr but the Device Usage window is greyed out. It has not been given a drive (D:/?) and does not show up on My Computer. Where are drive numbers assigned in XP? It is no longer in Device Mgr like it was in W98. I have the working HDD plugged into the SATA1 plug on the mobo and the 2nd HDD into the SATA2 plug (out of 4).

Issue 4- One of my DVD-RWs has changed and is identified in My Computer as a DVD-RAM!

That's it for now. Thanks!!!!

 

Hi, Larry. I just read through this entire thread today with great interest. I even have a bunch of tabs open to place in my bookmarks "Wish List" folder.

Congratulations to you on your efforts!

I don't know how to create a desktop shortcut that goes straight to your Device Manager but you can create one for your "System" properties.

• Go into your Control Panel and right-click on "System ".
• Select "Create Shortcut ".
• A window will pop-up stating "Windows cannot create a shortcut here. Do you want the shortcut to be placed on the desktop instead? "
• Click the "Yes" button.
• Then exit out of your Control Panel.

You'll now see a "Shortcut to System" icon on your desktop screen. When you go into your System Properties via that shortcut, your Device Manager button will be under the "Hardware" tab.

 

Or better use this keyboard shortcut - Windows key + Pause. This would bring up System properties.

 

Hi Larry,
If you don't want, or need to run RAID, just ignore the RAID driver error message.

The other driver error messages I would be concerned about Those (PCI Bridge, PCI Memory and SMbus) sound like some of the major chipset drivers (I still haven't gone to an nVidia chipset ).Try rerunning your Asus drivers CD for the chipset drivers. If they come back the same after a reboot, uninstall them and reboot again.
Win XP was built in 2001, it will not recognize 2006 hardware, but it will install basic drivers that will make the hardware run. You will need to install the drivers that will make the hardware run as the manufacturer intended (in this case the nVidia chipset drivers off the Asus drivers CD).

Issue 3: I would use the HDD manufacturer's utilities to partition and format the second drive. I don't like secondary drives partitioned as an extended (logical, from memory) partition of the first drive. I would remove your "system" HDD and run the manufacturer's utilities to partition and format the second drive on it's own, then see if it is recognized by Windows.

Issue 4: should not be significant, unless you find a problem with the drive. If you do, look up the (exact) model on the drive manufacturer's website and see if they have a firmware update.

.....ALTHOUGH, most of these "dramas" might be solved by getting a good set of chipset drivers installed....

Matt
Edit
...and...if there are any details I have missed from further back in the thread, I am not going back to find them
Edit2: Tbase 10 is the previous/ "old style" of network connection. You should ignore that. Today's systems might be referred to as 10/100 or 10/100/1000 (Gigabit systems).

 

Just go to your control panel in Windows Explorer, click on file and select create shortcut from the drop down menu. Drag it to the desktop if necessary.

As to your other HDD. Right click on my computer, select manage, select disc management. First, I'd re-letter your DVD drives and card readers if your floppy/USB device has any, then you can initialize, partition and format your second hard drive which will end up being D as long as you re-lettered your other drives first. You don't need to disconnect anything and you can make this any kind of partition you want with the built in windows tools. I'd suggest you make it Basic.

So, those RAID drivers that I tried to tell you about left you with some nice question marks - just because they are called RAID drivers doesn't mean you have to run a RAID configuration. You should load them - your system will thank you. As to the NVidia IDE drivers - as mentioned before, they can be considered optional and their absence isn't going to leave you with question marks. When you get your drivers loaded you're going to have a better understanding of just how nice your machine is - right now, one tire might be on the pavement but the others are still spinning in the sand.

Good luck.


Edit: You would be well served to download and install the latest NVidia drivers from their website. Again, NVidia IDE drivers are optional - you'll be prompted during the installation.

 

Wow, the troops formed a circle. Thanks!! I read it all carefully and...

1. nVidia chipset drivers took care of all ? issues "dramas" exc RAID Controller. Thx Matt. It already has the Sil 3114 drivers but I went to install them again and it said that if I do, all non-RAID drives would be invalidated. Well...... that seems a bit excessive so I declined. Not sure what else to do about that remaining "? ".

2. HDD- I got the "ghost drive" set to basic and even re-lettered but I needs to be partitioned and formatted, apparently for it to be come part of our dimension. When asked about the partition type, do I choose logical, extended or primary?? I assume that after that choice is made, formatting will be possible and I will be awarded for this with my very own drive letter!!!?

3. Is the AMD Quiet'n'Cool driver dispensible or valuable? I assume that it is some fan-controlling utility that slows the fan when the chip is not running hot and visa versa??

4. I'll work out the DVD-RW kink a little later. I have already updated the firmware on that Samsung DVD-RW. Hmmmmmm.