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Ahh, my second new topic in 5 minutes, yep, I'm getting back into using my pc again. I'll be pestering people about the web site I'm working on soon if I'm not careful :^)
As a combination of cheapskate and wannabe nerd, a year ago I began to build myself a pc. I bought the case then bust my shoulder, had to leave my job and couldn't afford to continue.
Now I'm starting up again.
I have a reasonable idea of my way around a pc, I know all the internal bits I need (I think) - except cables maybe, but I should be able to figure that out when I try to put everything together...
So then there's putting everything together. I knew a guy who did it by trial and error - is that a good idea? Seemed a bit reckless to me.
Can anyone recommend a good how-to web guide?
And can I expect to have to fiddle around in bios with drivers and stuff for everything, or should the first start-up just be a matter of firing up an OS ?
Cheers
As a combination of cheapskate and wannabe nerd, a year ago I began to build myself a pc. I bought the case then bust my shoulder, had to leave my job and couldn't afford to continue.
Now I'm starting up again.
I have a reasonable idea of my way around a pc, I know all the internal bits I need (I think) - except cables maybe, but I should be able to figure that out when I try to put everything together...
So then there's putting everything together. I knew a guy who did it by trial and error - is that a good idea? Seemed a bit reckless to me.
Can anyone recommend a good how-to web guide?
And can I expect to have to fiddle around in bios with drivers and stuff for everything, or should the first start-up just be a matter of firing up an OS ?
Cheers
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Loquacious Duck wrote:
> Or an adaptor - say if you wanted to run 2 case fans, couldn't you
> get a 2-way adaptor to plug 2 fans into 1 MB fan socket?
> Then I could use the CPU fan's socket for both...
I would strongly advise you not to do that because theres a risk that you could burn the motherboard headers, seeing as they're only designed to provide a certain amount of current.
How about getting a fan controller so you can manually alter the case fan speeds without risking damage to any sensitive components, also you can reduce the noise levels when you are idling the processor whilst doing mundane stuff, then crank the sppeds up for gaming purposes...
> Or an adaptor - say if you wanted to run 2 case fans, couldn't you
> get a 2-way adaptor to plug 2 fans into 1 MB fan socket?
> Then I could use the CPU fan's socket for both...
I would strongly advise you not to do that because theres a risk that you could burn the motherboard headers, seeing as they're only designed to provide a certain amount of current.
How about getting a fan controller so you can manually alter the case fan speeds without risking damage to any sensitive components, also you can reduce the noise levels when you are idling the processor whilst doing mundane stuff, then crank the sppeds up for gaming purposes...
Heh, okay.
The bay didn't need to be connected to its front pannel, so it's still covered by the panel that came with the original case.
I just thought it might be a nice idea to make myself an air vent for the front.
I had another look at the MB, if I turned the CPU heatsink fan through 180o I think it would reach to plug into the case fan socket. Then the case fan would reach to plug into the CPU fan socket.
But it would mean taking the MB out completely to do it.
You must be able to get little extension leads for fans? Right?
Or an adaptor - say if you wanted to run 2 case fans, couldn't you get a 2-way adaptor to plug 2 fans into 1 MB fan socket?
Then I could use the CPU fan's socket for both...
The bay didn't need to be connected to its front pannel, so it's still covered by the panel that came with the original case.
I just thought it might be a nice idea to make myself an air vent for the front.
I had another look at the MB, if I turned the CPU heatsink fan through 180o I think it would reach to plug into the case fan socket. Then the case fan would reach to plug into the CPU fan socket.
But it would mean taking the MB out completely to do it.
You must be able to get little extension leads for fans? Right?
Or an adaptor - say if you wanted to run 2 case fans, couldn't you get a 2-way adaptor to plug 2 fans into 1 MB fan socket?
Then I could use the CPU fan's socket for both...
Nothing wrong with it other than having to fabricate something to cover the gap in the panel at the front!
Notorious Biggles wrote:
> As for the floppy drive caddy... I'd still put the hard drive in a
> normal 3.5 " slot if it was me.
Really? What's wrong with using the larger bay?
> As for the floppy drive caddy... I'd still put the hard drive in a
> normal 3.5 " slot if it was me.
Really? What's wrong with using the larger bay?
Well when I had a case fan that had screws far too big to fit it, I used some wire ties to tie it on to the case. It still works fine.
Most motherboards have more than one fan connector on them, look again, you might have missed one.
If you only have one case fan, you are better having it blow air in, that way it builds up air pressure better. The air temperature outside your case might be 23 or so degrees, the air inside would be closer to 30. It works better to pull in cold air than push out hot air.
As for the floppy drive caddy... I'd still put the hard drive in a normal 3.5 " slot if it was me. If you can't do that, why not put the floppy in the caddy, and put the hard drive where the floppy drive was?
Most motherboards have more than one fan connector on them, look again, you might have missed one.
If you only have one case fan, you are better having it blow air in, that way it builds up air pressure better. The air temperature outside your case might be 23 or so degrees, the air inside would be closer to 30. It works better to pull in cold air than push out hot air.
As for the floppy drive caddy... I'd still put the hard drive in a normal 3.5 " slot if it was me. If you can't do that, why not put the floppy in the caddy, and put the hard drive where the floppy drive was?
Ah, it was the fascia. It wasn't clipped on fully at one spot, but when I put it right there were no problems.
I might have fixed the power led plug problem too now - I demolished the middle bay with a toothpick and a pair of pliers. Made a pretty neat job of it too :^)
The pc's sat on my desk with the side open though, I'll see whether the led works in a little while.
I'm still trying to get hold of an OS disk that I know will work before struggling with more drastic measures, though in BIOS it was already set as gamezfeak suggests.
Latest problem: Case fan :^)
It arrived today with no screws (or whatever), and the fitting holes in both the fan and case are too big for anything I've got.
What should I be using to fit it to the case?
Also, my case fan plug on the MB is in the corner furthest from the fan bay on the back of the case.
Is this bad design, or should I be looking for somewhere else to plug the fan in?
Or could I get an extension cable to reach it?
The fan would reach to a bay on the front of the metal part of the case, but the plastic bit covering it doesn't have any air vents, so I figure this isn't worth bothering with.
Is blowing out of the case better than blowing into the case? I figure that'd cause fewer dust problems...
Also, the tray I bought to fit the HDD into a 5.##" bay was designed to take a floppy drive, and had a front plate with a hole for the FDD to sit in.
I thought I could spray paint it and glue/solder a fairly fine metal mesh over the hole, then stick it into an empty bay and have a nice front air vent.
Any point doing this? Or is it just asking for trouble?
I might have fixed the power led plug problem too now - I demolished the middle bay with a toothpick and a pair of pliers. Made a pretty neat job of it too :^)
The pc's sat on my desk with the side open though, I'll see whether the led works in a little while.
I'm still trying to get hold of an OS disk that I know will work before struggling with more drastic measures, though in BIOS it was already set as gamezfeak suggests.
Latest problem: Case fan :^)
It arrived today with no screws (or whatever), and the fitting holes in both the fan and case are too big for anything I've got.
What should I be using to fit it to the case?
Also, my case fan plug on the MB is in the corner furthest from the fan bay on the back of the case.
Is this bad design, or should I be looking for somewhere else to plug the fan in?
Or could I get an extension cable to reach it?
The fan would reach to a bay on the front of the metal part of the case, but the plastic bit covering it doesn't have any air vents, so I figure this isn't worth bothering with.
Is blowing out of the case better than blowing into the case? I figure that'd cause fewer dust problems...
Also, the tray I bought to fit the HDD into a 5.##" bay was designed to take a floppy drive, and had a front plate with a hole for the FDD to sit in.
I thought I could spray paint it and glue/solder a fairly fine metal mesh over the hole, then stick it into an empty bay and have a nice front air vent.
Any point doing this? Or is it just asking for trouble?
Hmm. How long do you hold the eject button down for? My old Pioneer drive needed around 2 seconds of holding down before it would eject.
It is possible that the black fascia isn't on properly. I can't think of many other things that it could be.
As for the OS, follow gamezfreak. Not an Serial ATA hard drive is it? Mine was and I had to install drivers for it before I could install windows. To check the CD works alright, stick it in another computer and see if you can run setup from it. Be sure to cancel though!
It is possible that the black fascia isn't on properly. I can't think of many other things that it could be.
As for the OS, follow gamezfreak. Not an Serial ATA hard drive is it? Mine was and I had to install drivers for it before I could install windows. To check the CD works alright, stick it in another computer and see if you can run setup from it. Be sure to cancel though!
Loquacious Duck wrote:
> 1. The cd drive's tray won't come out when you press the eject button
> (though it will go back in again).
> It seems to be jamming, although using the emergency eject button, it
> does open.
>
> The drive had changeable front plates (different colours), and I
> switched to a black one, although it seemed to go on okay and I can't
> see how that'd cause this problem.
>
> Any ideas?
The "black fascia" might be causing some sort of friction to prevent it from opening? Try it without it.
> 2. I can't install an OS!
> The thing doesn't like my system disk,
What do you mean by "System disk"?
The best thing to do, is when the computer loads press "Del" a few times to open the BIOS (Basic Input Output System), and go look for an option to change the boot sequence.
Boot 1: CDrom
Boot2: Floppy
Boot3: Hard Drive
Press "f10" to save your settings, then restart the machine with the cd in the drive.
> 1. The cd drive's tray won't come out when you press the eject button
> (though it will go back in again).
> It seems to be jamming, although using the emergency eject button, it
> does open.
>
> The drive had changeable front plates (different colours), and I
> switched to a black one, although it seemed to go on okay and I can't
> see how that'd cause this problem.
>
> Any ideas?
The "black fascia" might be causing some sort of friction to prevent it from opening? Try it without it.
> 2. I can't install an OS!
> The thing doesn't like my system disk,
What do you mean by "System disk"?
The best thing to do, is when the computer loads press "Del" a few times to open the BIOS (Basic Input Output System), and go look for an option to change the boot sequence.
Boot 1: CDrom
Boot2: Floppy
Boot3: Hard Drive
Press "f10" to save your settings, then restart the machine with the cd in the drive.
Calamity!
All the essential bits are now in place and seem to be working (except the power LED!), but I have 2 problems:
1. The cd drive's tray won't come out when you press the eject button (though it will go back in again).
It seems to be jamming, although using the emergency eject button, it does open.
The drive had changeable front plates (different colours), and I switched to a black one, although it seemed to go on okay and I can't see how that'd cause this problem.
Any ideas?
2. I can't install an OS!
The thing doesn't like my system disk, and I don't think my win cd works (or is the right disk!).
I'll see what I can do and maybe come to plead for help here later :^)
All the essential bits are now in place and seem to be working (except the power LED!), but I have 2 problems:
1. The cd drive's tray won't come out when you press the eject button (though it will go back in again).
It seems to be jamming, although using the emergency eject button, it does open.
The drive had changeable front plates (different colours), and I switched to a black one, although it seemed to go on okay and I can't see how that'd cause this problem.
Any ideas?
2. I can't install an OS!
The thing doesn't like my system disk, and I don't think my win cd works (or is the right disk!).
I'll see what I can do and maybe come to plead for help here later :^)
I can't remember, and I screwed the pc back up while I wait for a few more bits to arrive.
I'm sure it was the power led though.
I followed the instructions fairly carefully to get the other 3 plugs in the right place, and the board wanted 4 sets of 2 wires, but the case gave me 3 sets of 2 and a plug for 3 wires (with only 2 attached).
I know it's not *that* important, but I'd like to get everything working...
Maybe I could try to solder one of the wires into the middle bay of the plug, so that both sould attach to the pins, with an empty bay hanging over the side...
But it seemed like it'd take some very accurate soldering
I'm sure it was the power led though.
I followed the instructions fairly carefully to get the other 3 plugs in the right place, and the board wanted 4 sets of 2 wires, but the case gave me 3 sets of 2 and a plug for 3 wires (with only 2 attached).
I know it's not *that* important, but I'd like to get everything working...
Maybe I could try to solder one of the wires into the middle bay of the plug, so that both sould attach to the pins, with an empty bay hanging over the side...
But it seemed like it'd take some very accurate soldering
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