Topic: New Project!!

[Adept]

:bitch:

[Simon]

[Tony]

I am a little over 40....

:funny: :dream:  

  boy you'll be in for it Simon.

A commision well done mate, hey I picked up a brand new tower build off that one I did for my mate. He took it home Saturday night, got visitors last night, who had a clapped out whatever running Win95. I happend to ring as part of my Customer Care Plan   and bingo.

Just a couple of points, I see the Mobo supports 8xAGP, but you don't say if the 4MX440 is a 8xAGP card, you can get em as 4xAGPS still, it would be a shame to have an 8x Mobo with a 4x card, I'd check it out mate.

Plus if you use Artic Silver compound instead of the conductive pad that comes with the Thermaltake cooler, the AMD warranty will be null and void, read it on here I believe not long since under Tech News I believe.

[Simon]

...if you use Artic Silver compound instead of the conductive pad that comes with the Thermaltake cooler, the AMD warranty will be null and void, read it on here I believe not long since under Tech News I believe.

Thanks Tony.  Glad you mentioned that, I hadn't noticed the pad, but then I hadn't got it out the box until just now.  

I see the Mobo supports 8xAGP, but you don't say if the 4MX440 is a 8xAGP card, you can get em as 4xAGPS still, it would be a shame to have an 8x Mobo with a 4x card, I'd check it out mate.

Yeah, but I had a strict budget of £500, and I still have the mouse and keyboard to get.  Unfortunately an 8x Gfx Card would be stretching things, and he could always upgrade later.

[Simon]

On the front of the new case are two slots for USB ports.  What do I need to utilise these?  I'm assuming it's some sort of adapter with two USB ports on the end of two wires, but I'm not really sure what I'm looking for.

[Adept]

I may be wrong , but I think you normally get the cables & connectors included with the case.

All you have to do then is plug them into the motherboard.

[Simon]

Nope, nothing like that in there Sean, just the usual screws and bits.  Looks like I need something like a wire with 2 USB ports, that plugs into the board somewhere?  Or perhaps a USB Card that you can plug additional ports into?  I don't really know.  I do know, however, that there's something sharp in there - I've just sliced the top of my finger, and it says there's supposed to be "no sharp edges"!

:youch:   :'( :'(

[Adept]

That's the trouble with cheapo cases Simon, you don't get all the bits and then you cut yourself to ribbons  

[Simon]

Well, I've had a look round and can't seem to find anything that would do the job, but there must be something, or surely they wouldn't have put the holes there!  How do front USB ports usually connect to the motherboard?  


Edit: Ah!  USB Extension Cables?  Plug one end into the back and feed it through?  But how do you get the front end to stick in the hole?  Perhaps I'll just pretend they're not there!

[Adept]

It may be worth checking with the people you got it from Simon. All the cases I have seen that have front mounted USB ports have the cables and connectors in-place.

Perhaps you have a case that missed Quality Control?

[Simon]

Well, it's not exactly what you might consider a front mounted USB port,  It's actually just two bits of plastic you can knock out to make holes for them!  See below.  And yes, it is a cheapish case.  

[Adept]

Oh right! It's not what I though it was then

I never seen any like that before

[Tony]

You've been done mate,

Adept is right, if it is sold as a USB case, the case maker installs the ports and the cables which connect to a twin USB header on the motherboard.

Although the MSI KT333 Mobo I bought last year did not have USB ports directly off the Mobo at the back [ they supplied a 2 port adapter that fit in a PCI 'case' opening. And it connected to the board on a header, and another USB header was there for two front ports. The Sunteck case came with ports and cable, but they were 2 inches to short, bugger, had to get the soldering iron out.

Oppppppppppps over taken by events while I was having my supper, giving us duff info Simon. I told you, you should have got that nice little 'Beige' number, it has two USB ports on the front  

bloody flash southerners serves em right ....mutter mutter mutter  

The ASRock boards come with 4 USB ports at the back, and a 2 port header for the case USB's. But I think that is the standared these day's.

[Simon]

Yeah, I got one of those adapters with the Abit board that is in my current PC, so hopefully one will be supplied with the Asus.

The case is not sold as 'a USB case', so I have nothing I could complain about.  It's actually the same as the case for my own PC, but with a different front panel, because mine doesn't have those two useless little holes!

Ho hum, well if they want extra USBs, they'll have to get a USB card and some extension leads.

You're probably right Tony, I should have gone for the beige one, or even that cool black one they had.  Bugger, bugger, bugger!

[Rodders]

Just make sure, if you have headers for two different USB standards on the board (i.e USB 1.1 and USB 2), that you connect the faster of the two USB buses to a location that's more easily accessible than the slower one.

Your mouse, etc., should go into a slower USB port, while any external storage devices and stuff that requires the movement of large amounts of data (such as a scanner), should go into one of the faster (USB 2) ports.