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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sun, 13th Jan 2008 19:22    Post subject: so I got another computer ... (now an SLI question)
ok ... so the computer I have came from a computer gaming cafe (minus memory and vid card, I upgraded CPU), and I just got the computer from the same cafe that functioned as the server (my bro had it). So they are fairly similar, but I need to combine parts from the two to make one for me (better), and with the leftovers I am going to put something together for my sister (as little as possible, all she needs it for is internet and shit).

computer 1:


ASUS A8N-SLI
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+
2x1024 MB PC3200 (1 stick crucial 1 stick kingston value ram)
BFG GeForce 8600 GT 256mb
160 GB SATA drive, 80 GB IDE drive

computer 2:



ASUS A8N-E
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+
2x1024 MB PC3200 OCZ Enhanced Latency Platinum Edition
EVGA e-GeForce 7900 GT (PCI-E)
2x250 GB SATA drives

-----

so I'm going to probably take the server case, the airflow seems to be much better and it runs a lot cooler. also I'm going to throw that 3rd SATA drive in as well and just leave the 80GB IDE one as the primary.

do you think I should I keep the 7900 GT or the 8600 GT? I was also considering trying to sell both and get something else, but tbh that is a bit of a pain in the ass (also keep in mind I am selling/have a spare XFX 6800 XT AGP so I would sell whichever 2 were the most valuable).

also, the OCZ memory is a matched kit, will adding a 3rd stick of 1 GB make a big difference?

asus z170-A || core i5-6600K || geforce gtx 970 4gb || 16gb ddr4 ram || win10 || 1080p led samsung 27"

Last edited by nouseforaname on Mon, 28th Jan 2008 06:09; edited 2 times in total
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Nakitu




Posts: 1144
Location: Croatia
PostPosted: Sun, 13th Jan 2008 19:36    Post subject:
Sell all 3 cards and get 8800 gt. Or keep 7900 gt and sell other two. 8600 is pos. About memory its better to have more ram if you multitask.
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sun, 13th Jan 2008 19:49    Post subject:
I still need one card to put in the left over computer, so basically I need to end up with 1 good card for me and 1 anything card for the other computer...

basically right now in my local classifieds all 3 of these cards can be found ~$75-$100 ... and a new 8800GT is ~$300 after tax ... so really, I'm not sure if I really feel like spending more money if the 7900GT is going to be a lot better than the 8600 anyways ... I can just leave the 8600 in the computer I am giving away ...

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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sun, 13th Jan 2008 20:55    Post subject:
hmmm... well after giving MOH:A, COH, WIC and COD4 a quick go to test the performance, seems a lot better now. before I could really only run 1280x1024@low or 1024x768@med ... now I can do 1280x1024@med-high ... since this computer runs a hell of a lot cooler than my old one (comp 30-40 under load, gpu 50 under load instead of 70-80) I might actually try OCing the video card.

also forgot to mention, I need to stick the sensors from the front of the case on the cpu and gpu ...



should I bother?

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crm




Posts: 101
PostPosted: Sun, 13th Jan 2008 21:25    Post subject:
Sure oc`ing the vid card won't hurt as long as you don't overdue it, try rivatuner, watch your temps with everest I never liked using thermal sensors just adds more wires to the case and they are harder to hide since most aren't as long. I say ditch the sensors and use some software monitoring, rivatuner has a OSD display for when you go into 3D games, displays gpu temps clocks and so on you can even add other modules to it if you like like cpu clock speeds/temps etc..
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sun, 13th Jan 2008 21:44    Post subject:
hmmm ... well it seems the chipset fan isn't working on this mb ... it is apparently a common problem with this model

http://www.motherboardpoint.com/t57020-a8ne-chipset-chip-fan-failure.html
http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies-archive.cfm/500109.html
http://www.techenclave.com/forums/asus-a8ne-chip-fan-dying-54808.html

... although the temps don't look bad ...



perhaps I should use one of these sensors to monitor the chipset temp directly? I guess I just stick it under the fan? if it is hot it should just be radiating heat?

edit: ok, this thing is fucking hot. i called my brother who said that he just ignored the fan not working error message for the last few months ... everything seems to be working ... I wonder if the high temps fucked it up? Neutral

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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 07:30    Post subject:
this fan needs to be replaced ...




... what about this, only $11 ...Zalman ZN-NBF47 Fanless Aluminum Northbridge Chipset Cooler


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suicid4l




Posts: 256
PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 08:39    Post subject:
I've replaced that very fan before Smile Went with the lower model zalman which is a bit more square and traditional, albeit tall.

Seriously flawed fan lol, if it doesn't stop working it'll make too much noise..

You'll be fine, but be careful if you plan to replace the cooler on the gfx card as mine got in the way of my replacement mb heatsink. Was an arctic cooling accelero..
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$en$i
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Posts: 3127
PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 10:59    Post subject:
I put the Thermalright HR-05 heatsink with a low rotation 70mm fan in place of the a8n-sli chipset -same- crappy fan. Smile

 Spoiler:
 
http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_page/product_page/chipset/hr05/product_chitset_cooler_hr05.htm?art=MTQyMywxLCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 18:12    Post subject:
so do you think that computer running without a working chipset fan for a couple months might have fucked it up?

also, besides the little bit of noise, is there any advantage of a heatsink over just replacing the small fan.

oh, and wouldn't you know it, I just sent my old athlon 2000+ system off to the computer recyclers without removing the (cheap) zalman heatsink I bought for that one! FUCK!

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$en$i
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Posts: 3127
PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 18:26    Post subject:
nouseforaname wrote:
so do you think that computer running without a working chipset fan for a couple months might have fucked it up?

also, besides the little bit of noise, is there any advantage of a heatsink over just replacing the small fan.

oh, and wouldn't you know it, I just sent my old athlon 2000+ system off to the computer recyclers without removing the (cheap) zalman heatsink I bought for that one! FUCK!
If it is still working nothing is broken, and nope there is no advantage that i know. You may be able to ask Asus for a replacement fan if your mobo is still under warranty. Smile
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 18:30    Post subject:
$en$i wrote:
nouseforaname wrote:
so do you think that computer running without a working chipset fan for a couple months might have fucked it up?

also, besides the little bit of noise, is there any advantage of a heatsink over just replacing the small fan.

oh, and wouldn't you know it, I just sent my old athlon 2000+ system off to the computer recyclers without removing the (cheap) zalman heatsink I bought for that one! FUCK!
If it is still working nothing is broken, and nope there is no advantage that i know. You may be able to ask Asus for a replacement fan if your mobo is still under warranty. Smile


ah ok, I'm going to poke around in some of the local shops so I might have to settle for just a replacement fan if I can't find a decent selection of heatsinks. good to know it is probably ok ... I don't want to end up giving away the other MB if this one is going to stop working, and I really don't feel like going through all the effort to switch the MBs between the two cases

oh and no warranty on any of this stuff... the cafe that these were from went out of business a while ago ... they were still 'cutting' edge computers when they were in use. still, I'm not exactly complaining since they were free Wink

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swingman




Posts: 3602
PostPosted: Mon, 14th Jan 2008 23:00    Post subject:
I lost a motherboard because of a failed NB cooler. There was the tiniest of whiffs of burnt electronics in the air and it never started again even after replacing the fan. When I took the heatsink off there weren't any major burn marks but it was dead alright.

Get a passive heatsink if you can. And get the antec case. Better airflow plus that other alienware wannabe case looks crap. Even genuine alienware cases are like those car-shaped beds for kids. Razz And get the ocz memory.
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sat, 26th Jan 2008 00:07    Post subject:
well, I finally got around to taking off the NB cooler, and what a mess. the old paste is rock solid, won't come off with rubbing alcohol + q-tip ... also doesn't look so great ...



so I'm not sure if I want to keep this board, probably swap the MBs around so I can keep the better case (since everything is already removed anyways) and give this board to my sister, she can deal with it if it fucks up.

next problem, err ... so I'm not actually sure if I did this or not ... I just noticed this and can't think of how it could have happened.

basically one of the "legs" of one of those resistor-thingies looks like it has come up from the board of the 7900 GT



I know this worked before (I haven't tried it again), so could this card work without this thing soldered on? Should I try to solder it back on? I had a hard time getting a good pic, but the thing is definitely loose ... can take more pics if needed...

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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sat, 26th Jan 2008 19:08    Post subject:
nobody have any experience fixing video cards?

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[sYn]
[Moderator] Elitist



Posts: 8374
PostPosted: Sat, 26th Jan 2008 19:19    Post subject:
Yup I do, fixed a horribly expensive Quadro FX with exactly the same issue.. soldered it back on and its still working fine today! Looks like mine had a bit more room to work but so long as your ok at soldering you should be fine. Be sure to get some good quality solder though Razz!
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sat, 26th Jan 2008 21:58    Post subject:
well I suck at soldering (haven't really done much) ... but shit it was free anyways so I may as well try my luck Razz

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[sYn]
[Moderator] Elitist



Posts: 8374
PostPosted: Sat, 26th Jan 2008 22:28    Post subject:
Just don't hold the iron on for ages as the heat may transfer to other components and blow them.. other than that you should be fine, its pretty easy..
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Sun, 27th Jan 2008 00:40    Post subject:
well ... re soldered that bit (my hands were a bit shakey but it went ok) ... swapped motherboards between cases ... had to re-activate my windows over the phone lol .. but now everything is up and running and seems ok Smile

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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 28th Jan 2008 06:12    Post subject:
ok, so I managed to come across another identical 7900GT but I don't have any of the accessories that came with the motherboard.

so 2 questions,

1) is there any benefit in using SLI without the bridge connector between the two cards
2) do you need the retaining clip thing
3) is it worth it to try and hunt down the accessories...

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Phluxed
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PostPosted: Mon, 28th Jan 2008 07:52    Post subject:
nouseforaname wrote:
ok, so I managed to come across another identical 7900GT but I don't have any of the accessories that came with the motherboard.

so 2 questions,

1) is there any benefit in using SLI without the bridge connector between the two cards
2) do you need the retaining clip thing
3) is it worth it to try and hunt down the accessories...


You need the SLI bridge.
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 28th Jan 2008 17:41    Post subject:
well guess I better ebay the son of a bitch then Wink

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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 28th Jan 2008 19:05    Post subject:
next question, basically if I want to take this card I need to replace it from where I got it with basically the cheapest pci-e card I can find ... maybe looking @ $40 for another card + $15 for the bridge connector ...

so do you think it is worth it for the modest performance improvement from SLI? or should I just keep the one 7800gt and say fuck it to SLI?

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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Mon, 28th Jan 2008 22:48    Post subject:
gah, fuck it. gunna ditch the idea of SLI ... don't need the headache Razz

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Surray




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Location: Europe
PostPosted: Tue, 29th Jan 2008 00:51    Post subject:
fuck SLI. it's only good for enthusiasts looking to spend way too much money to play the latest games on max settings on the native resolution of their 30" displays.

sli with mainstream card accomplishes nothing, might as well just get a next generation single card for the same price when you need it and avoid all the compatibility and driver issues that SLI has.

Likot Mosuskekim, Woodcutter cancels Sleep: Interrupted by Elephant.
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nouseforaname
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PostPosted: Tue, 29th Jan 2008 02:14    Post subject:
Surray wrote:
fuck SLI. it's only good for enthusiasts looking to spend way too much money to play the latest games on max settings on the native resolution of their 30" displays.

sli with mainstream card accomplishes nothing, might as well just get a next generation single card for the same price when you need it and avoid all the compatibility and driver issues that SLI has.


yeah, that's what I've been reading. I don't play on running anything above 1280x1024 either ...

this third computer with another 7900GT my aunt got from the same auction ... all they use it for is internet and shit ... they managed to get it riddled with viruses and spyware within a few months so I'm re-installing windows etc. now for them ... figured I might think about replacing it if it would be worth it. bottom line is I really don't want to spend any additional money, I'm actually ok with the performance of one of these cards.

in anycase, I will swap the 7900gt I had to solder with their perfect one Wink

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SpykeZ




Posts: 23710
PostPosted: Tue, 29th Jan 2008 02:21    Post subject:
I'll buy one of those GT's from ya Razz
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