Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Hardware and Software => Topic started by: DREDIOCK on September 25, 2008, 09:49:45 PM
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Ok Here is a list of the finished Build..Well it will be as soon as the memory and DVD drive arrives (Just ordered tonight)
Everything else is installed cept the OS
Parts ordered over the coarse of several months dating back to June as the extra cash arrived.
I was determined not to charge anything I didnt have the cash on hand for.
Case
Rosewill R5605-BK 0.8mm Japanese Cold Rolled Steel Front Mesh Design Dual 120mm Fans ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail (N82E16811147083)
Motherboard
GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail (N82E16813128337)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 - Retail (N82E16819115037)
Hard Drive
Western Digital Caviar Black WD7501AALS 750GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM (N82E16822136283)
Video Card
EVGA 512-P3-N801-AR GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail (N82E16814130318)
Power Supply
PC Power & Cooling Silencer PPCS750QBL 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI NVIDIA SLI Certified (Dual 8800 GTX and below) CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail (N82E16817703019)
Memory
Kingston HyperX 4GB (4 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Quad Kit Desktop Memory Model KHX8500D2K4/4GR - Retail (N82E16820104058)
CD/DVD
LG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model GH22LS30 - OEM (N82E16827136153)
OS
Microsoft Windows XP Professional With SP2C for System Builders - OEM (N82E16832116400)
Went a weee bit over budget.
Was originally supposed to be a Bang for buck build using some of my old parts (PSU, sound Card. Optical Drive,Ethernet card,and my old case.)
But I guess I got Build Fever
Still will probably use the old SB sound card and Linksys Ethernet card.
I know I went a bit overboard on the Hard drive. But that was a barter deal for some work I did. (HD and Vid Card)
I gave them a choice of several. That was the one they picked. ::shrug:: I aint gonna complain LOL
I was going to use my old CD/DVD drive but Tan drives look ugly in a black case LOL
so I used the money Im getting for the Rebates on the Vid card and PSU to get myself, and my daughter (For her birthday) Each the new drives.
As usual when I buy something for MYSELF I agonized over each part..
Funny how it works that way sometimes.
If it were for my kids. or the wife. or the family in general. I'd just have bought the best parts I could find for what they were going to do and be done with it.
Probobly would have said "Damn the expence account too"
But for myself. I damn near drive myself sick over it.
so..
What ya's think?
Will THIS run this damn game? LMAO
Oh. total cost was about $1,000 including the OS
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Hope those rebates are still valid by the time you get them.
Very often companies change their promotions on a near weekly basis.
So if you get a rebate with the card, it may not be honored by the company by the time you get it, fill it out, and send it in.
My computer is pretty much exactly the same as the one you're building and I run the game smooth as butter.
Just so you know, XP does not recognize 4GB of RAM and will only let you have 3.5GB of it.
You'll be fine.
What did the total come to?
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You should have no problem with that thing running the game, but you already knew that. :lol
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Thanks for posting this, Drediock... I'm thinking about trying to build one myself in the coming weeks but since I've never done that before, I figured I'd just try to put together one that someone else has already tried... So please let us know how it works once you have it up and running :aok
(My rig would be pretty much for Aces High and the Total War series, and not much else... Figure your setup would run them both very well?)
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I'm building it with the wallet at hand, to run AH well
And the future in mind.
Hence the EVGA Video card (upgrade program)
750 Gig HD (in 2 years I didnt even cme close to filling the last 250 gig) In some of tests I saw. this particular HD came in second only to the Raptor
I was just hesitant to pull the trigger on it. so I passed that decision onto someone else.
The PSU. I was going to go with the same brand at 610 watts but the 750 watt was too good a deal to pass on.
And the price difference after rebate was only around $10
Memory I went with the 1066 over the 800 Again with the future in mind.
Though I was reading somewhere recently that most 1066 memory is just 800 memory tested and certified to run stable at 1066.
Dont know how true that it. But it would explain why alot of people who buy 1066 memory have to change their BIOS to get it to run at 1066.
Im waiting on the memory to arrive as we speak.
I'll keep you posted as I work things out
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DRED, I'd opt for a 2GB x 2 RAM setup instead.
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DRED, I'd opt for a 2GB x 2 RAM setup instead.
Any particular reason?
Just Curious.
Little late now as its already ordered and charged
And where the hell were you when I posted my Ram question thread LMAO
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Any particular reason?
Just Curious.
Little late now as its already ordered and charged
And where the hell were you when I posted my Ram question thread LMAO
No biggie. I just know sometimes filling all 4 slots can result in some funky stuff. You may be GTG.
I have no idea where I was!
You'll like it regardless.
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Thanks for posting this, Drediock... I'm thinking about trying to build one myself in the coming weeks but since I've never done that before, I figured I'd just try to put together one that someone else has already tried... So please let us know how it works once you have it up and running :aok
(My rig would be pretty much for Aces High and the Total War series, and not much else... Figure your setup would run them both very well?)
Just like legos. Only you get to turn it on when you're done.
Yeah, I like dredlocks too.
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xp won't recognize 4 sticks of ram. But... nice system for $1000
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xp won't recognize 4 sticks of ram. But... nice system for $1000
Xp recognizes 4 sticks of ram. But it limits processes to 2Gb per process and sets aside about 500mb for overhead use.
I have 4Gb of ram in a system, using all 4 slots in dual channel mode and it runs without a hitch.
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I have 4Gb of ram in a system, using all 4 slots in dual channel mode and it runs without a hitch.
Ditto.
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xp won't recognize 4 sticks of ram. But... nice system for $1000
32 bit XP will recognize 4 sticks of RAM as long as they aren't 2 GB sticks. 64 bit XP will recognize 4 (or more) 2 GB sticks (maximum 64 GB IIRC).
32 bit XP will only recognize a maximum of 4 GB of RAM which includes video card RAM. That's why most people only see 3.5 GB when they have 4 GB installed. Four 1 GB sticks will still run in dual channel mode even though only 3.5 GB or less are recognized by the OS and, as stated above, no 32 bit application is allowed by the OS to allocate more than 2 GB of RAM.
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It's not a problem with XP, some motherboards can't handle 4 sticks of ram and some do only if the ram is of a certain type etc.
It's much safer to use only 2 sticks.
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It's not a problem with XP, some motherboards can't handle 4 sticks of ram and some do only if the ram is of a certain type etc.
It's much safer to use only 2 sticks.
2 sticks would also be less likely to develop problems over 4. Since you have less ticks you have less potential for a stick going bad! (theoretically lol)
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It's not a problem with XP, some motherboards can't handle 4 sticks of ram and some do only if the ram is of a certain type etc.
It's much safer to use only 2 sticks.
This is where I was thinking on my statement. I apologize for not being more clear.
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Nhawk it will run fine but 4th stick a waste of money due to xp will not recognize all 4 g. It will recognize 3 of the 4
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xp will only run at i think max 3328 mb on ram. the rest of the ram is a waste due to the way the memory is mapped out.. Windows XP 32bit will not address more then 3GB of RAM. Read up on the topic. It will show 4g of ram but 1 g is essentially a waste.
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Its my understanding that the ram had to be or I should say "is best installed" installed in pairs. Hence the 4th Gig.
In any event. the machine is together (See the "Its!!!" thread LOL).
Windows is installed. Drivers for the Vid card are installed, Nod32 is installed.
All that needs to be done now is some software odds and ends
And going through the settings turning some things off that the install software for various items want to run in the background I dont need.
From a hardware perspective.
3 questions
Ok as I had suspected. It sees the Ram as 800.
How do I set the timing for 1066?
Another question.
It sees the CPU at 2.88 ghz
What are the correct settings for it to run at its advertised (on the box) 3.00 ghz?
Hard drive is 750 gig. What would be the most efficient sizes to set the partitions.?
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Its my understanding that the ram had to be or I should say "is best installed" installed in pairs. Hence the 4th Gig.
In any event. the machine is together (See the "Its!!!" thread LOL).
Windows is installed. Drivers for the Vid card are installed, Nod32 is installed.
All that needs to be done now is some software odds and ends
And going through the settings turning some things off that the install software for various items want to run in the background I dont need.
From a hardware perspective.
3 questions
Ok as I had suspected. It sees the Ram as 800.
How do I set the timing for 1066?
In the BIOS, most likely under Advanced Chipset Features or something close to that you should be able to set the RAM bus to 1066. In another area of the BIOS you will have the ability to manually set RAM timings to manufacturer spec, and under System Voltages, you will be able to set RAM voltage to mfg. spec.
Another question.
It sees the CPU at 2.88 ghz
What are the correct settings for it to run at its advertised (on the box) 3.00 ghz?[/color]
You've got a 1333 FSB/4 = 333.3 CPU bus clock. 2880/333.3 = 8.64 CPU clock multiplyer. That doesn't seem right as I've never seen a fractional multi. Make sure you have the FSB set at 1333 (or 333 CPU bus) in the BIOS and that the CPU multiplyer is set at 9 (333.3*9=3000).
Hard drive is 750 gig. What would be the most efficient sizes to set the partitions.?
Totally up to you. I'd probably go 250 and 500 but that's just me.
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Ok sorry for the misinfo
CPU frequency is at 2.83 ghz (333x8.5)
::Edit:: after clicking on "load optimized defaults. it saw the CPU at 3.00
Still cant change memory frequency though
Memory frequency is at 800
Latency 5
Dram Ras# to Cas# Delay 5
DRam Ras# Precharge 5
Precharge delay (tRas) 18
Thats copied exactly from my Bios screen as Im looking at it
Anyone else have this board that can explain to me how to get the memory at 1066
And the CPU at 3.0?
Ga-EP35-DS3L
Also. Cant seem to partition the hard drive.
Shows as 0 unallocated free space.
Ok what am I doing wrong?
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Dred,
You can overclock your processor thhrough your bios. You need to raise the frequency or the multiplier. As far as ram, same thing through your bios. My ram is rated at 800 but I get 1066 out of it. You sometimes have to raise the power to your ram to get more out of it. It is risky. 800 should be sufficient and your processor is more than adequate at your settings although you will see a bit of improvement by raising the frequency. From 2.8 to 3.0 is less than 10% faster. You can raise frequency through windows(see link) but when i tried(thru amd software) computer locked up so i did it directly through my bios. It can be risky if you have never done it.
http://www.tweaktown.com/guides/19/8
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correct on ram installation dred but no matter how you buy your ram xp will not run the full amount even if you use 4 x 1g ram. It will show 4g but because of the mapping it only uses 3 g. If you use 2 x 2g ram dxdiag and windows will only show 3g available.
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Yes I know I can overclock and change mem in Bios.
The answer I need to know is how?
I paid a few dollars extra to get the 1066 memory. So I'd kinda like to run it at that.
the fact it doesnt initially see it at 1066 isnt surprising as I've read several accounts of that happening and its not all that uncommon.
but upping it from 800 to 1066 isnt as simple as its supposed to be. Or, I should say. I havent been able to figure out how to do it.
where it says "800" it wont let me change it.
Would the dynamic engery saver software interfere with the settings in bios preventing me from making the changes?
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In the BIOS there should be an option for setting clock frequencies between the CPU and RAM. The options will be something like Auto, Manual and Link. Set that to Manual. That will open the CPU/RAM clock ratio option which will have choices like Manual, Sync, 1:1, etc. Set that to manual. Now it should allow you to re-set the greyed out 800 RAM clock to 1066.
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Can I get a total? I want to know how much I need to suck up to the wife to get a new comp.
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Can I get a total? I want to know how much I need to suck up to the wife to get a new comp.
Try this for an idea: http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,244173.0.html
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Can I get a total? I want to know how much I need to suck up to the wife to get a new comp.
for this particular build. the round about cost. give or take a few dollars is the last line of the first post in this thread
(About $1,000 including the OS and shipping)
BaldEagl. thanks. 'vee give that as shot
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Thanks for the info guys.
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ok changed the system memory multiplier from Auto to 3.20.
which seems to have upped the memory to 1066
At which point some red letters were flashing warning that the system voltage wasnt optimised.
I set the system voltage control from "manual" to "auto" and that seems to have corrected it.
this all sounding about right?
Assuming it is.
Next on the list is getting this hard drive partitioned.
I am guessing since I seem to have 0 unallocated space available. Im going ot have to do a reinstall of XP?
When I did the install I dont remember seeing an option to set partitian size
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ok changed the system memory multiplier from Auto to 3.20.
which seems to have upped the memory to 1066
At which point some red letters were flashing warning that the system voltage wasnt optimised.
I set the system voltage control from "manual" to "auto" and that seems to have corrected it.
this all sounding about right?
Assuming it is.
Next on the list is getting this hard drive partitioned.
I am guessing since I seem to have 0 unallocated space available. Im going ot have to do a reinstall of XP?
When I did the install I dont remember seeing an option to set partitian size
I would suggest that you go to newegg or to the memory manufacturer's web-site and set the memory timings to spec (the 4-4-4-12 numbers or whatever they are for your memory) and then set the RAM voltage to spec rather than setting it to auto.
It sounds like you didn't format the hard drive before trying to install XP although it seems somehow it formatted just enough to allow the OS to install. It should allow you to set partition sizes during formatting.
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I would suggest that you go to newegg or to the memory manufacturer's web-site and set the memory timings to spec (the 4-4-4-12 numbers or whatever they are for your memory) and then set the RAM voltage to spec rather than setting it to auto.
It sounds like you didn't format the hard drive before trying to install XP although it seems somehow it formatted just enough to allow the OS to install. It should allow you to set partition sizes during formatting.
No. What I think it did is create one BIG partition almost 750 gigs big LOL
Starting over from scratch with a fresh install.
Allocating 20 Gig to windows and the rest pretty much split in half for everything else
will do on the ram.
Any particular reason why?
Jst trying to understand
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DRED, here is some info for you to easily have. I went to Kingston's site and looked up what you have (if it was from the 1st page).
For Kingston HyperX KHX8500D2K4/4G:
For 1066Mhz:
Latency should be set at 5-5-5-15
Voltage should be set at 2.2V
For 800Mhz:
Latency should be set at 5-5-5-18
Voltage should be set at 1.8V
This is what your RAM runs best at for the given SPD.
Go into BIOS (unfortunately I have ASUS) and adjust both accordingly. You should have NO PROBLEMS after doing so, if you do, revert to 800Mhz (which if I'm understanding the data sheet correctly, is "Default" per se.) But it says it has been tested to 1066Mhz.
My ASUS PK5-E was set at "Auto". I assumed it was at 1066 (I have 2x2GB Mushkins which are PC8500 as well). I was wrong, it was two lines slower on my screen SPD wise. I put it at 1066 and then saved, as the Voltage was already at it's preferred level.
You may already know all of this but, I'm just trying to help. If you need a walk through, PM me your number and I'll be glad to assist you, to the best that I am able.
:salute
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Thanks. And I really appreciate any and all help I get.
Even though this is like my 4th build since I do so so infrequently I still get stuck in some areas.
My knowledge is outdated in some areas. And some things I just outright forget.
Not to mention part and brand differences.
Lack of repetition.
Some things even though I may know I just want to make sure I do know and not only think I know.
Yanno? LOL
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If you overclock anything, I don't think you want to use the Dynamic Energy Saver software. I think it mentions that directly. The DES underclocks the system to save power when the computer isn't doing much. When it sees the demand go up, it automatically sets the system back up to standard clock settings. I don't think it goes back to whatever overclock you chose and I think it says to not use DES if you are overclocking. (Although, "Optimized Defaults" is not overclocking.)
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will do on the ram.
Any particular reason why?
Jst trying to understand
You bought good RAM so you may as well get all the intended performance out of it.
All four of the numbers are latency numbers although they aren't all as critical as the cas latency. But to hit the "sweet spot" for your RAM you also have to provide the correct voltage.
In my machine, the BIOS defaults my RAM to 5-5-5-16 timings at 1.85 volts. It runs fine that way. The recommended settings are 4-4-4-12 at 2.0 volts which is where I have it set. Can I notice the difference? Probably not but since the mfg says this is where it should run then I'm sure I'm gaining at least a small performance edge over the motherboards default settings.
Overclocking RAM is a tricky thing in terms of performance as most often, as you overclock the RAM you have to loosen the timings essentially negating the performance gain from overclocking it.
What I'm saying is each type of RAM has it's own sweet spot so take advantage of it.
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One should remember that playing with ram timings gives negligable returns and can lead to system stability problems or ironically even serious slowdowns.
The most important thing with ram is that you have enough of it. The best return for tweaking generally comes from overclocking the cpu where Intel excels. You can often get 20-30% more performance by a simple bios setting change. With memory your gain will be 1% if you're lucky.
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dred u may have to up the volts a tad to ur ram in bios. I have mine at 1066 with 2.1 v. U use a differnt mb and bios than me im sure but do a google search with your cpu , mb and ram. There should be a forum that gets u volt info and timing info. baldeagle is right though i switched timings volts everything and really found no visual improvment. Everything I read stated the same comclusion as baldeagle gave. I just tried to advance my timings to see if i could get more out of my processor and could not.