New Computer Build

Edit: When considering an Asrock, add $30 for an Intel PCI-NIC because the Realtek NIC is junk. I tried an Intel PCI-express and it is no faster. Something is making my hard wire internet connection slower than my wireless.

Winter hideaway needs a computer just in case my laptop assumes room temperature. Here is what I ordered. It has been awhile so here's hopin'.

Here is current Prime95 8hr+ stable operation:

fsb 223

multi 17.5

MHz 3902

cpuv 1.457

nb 2676

nbv 1.3

ht 2007

ram 743/1486

ram 8-8-7-22

temp idle 35

temp stress 51/53

ambient 75

No reason to drop voltage/cpu MHz becasue the ASRock resists voltage drop on stress and will auto increase .05v. All you give up is speed without significant voltage/temp decrease. RAM will not Memtest pass over 1480. Maybe outside slots or some other settings could improve the RAM speeds. Even with looser clocks the ram would not pass over 1480. I do have several RAM settings off auto but should have done it earlier on stock settings. ASRock bios shows current settings so easy to do. Otherwise would have to read settings in AMD Overclocker.

ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard $89.99
SAPPHIRE 100296HDMI Radeon HD 4670 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express $64.99 - $15 rebate
AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Callisto 3.2GHz Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Desktop Processor - C3 Revision HDZ555WFGMBOX 0.875-1.40V $89.99
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) 1.5v Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL $49.99
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire $109 - $20 rebate
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" $54.95
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $59.95 - $15 rebate
ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM $18.99
LITE-ON SK-1788/BS 2-Tone PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard $14 w/shipping
Logitech S-220 17 Watts 2.1 Multimedia Speaker System - OEM $27.99
LCD Acer X203W 20" bought last year on some local deal.
Mouse - I must have one around here somewhere.
Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm $93 - $13.5 promo = $79.5
$609.34 Total

With monitor I will have $700+ in this thing, about the same price as an I5 Dell without a monitor. I have state of the art Heat Sink Cooler that is reusable, can overclock and tweak BIOS, have great air flow case, have USB3 and I did it myself (priceless). Most people should just buy a Dell and avoid the pains (and joys) of building a custom machine.

Still may need:

Extra 120 case fans for the Antec 300 $19 (great buy)

Molex to 4 - 3 pin adapter http://www.svc.com/zm-mc1.html

A few 3 pin fan wire extensions http://www.svc.com/fan-power-adapters.html

Maybe a fan controller $22

Shin-Etsu Silicone Thermal Grease $3.99 http://www.svc.com/g-751.html

Or Arctic Silver 5 $9 Or IC Diamond 7 $6

Y cable for the 2 - 3 pin fans $2 http://www.svc.com/3pinyadapter.html

Y cable for 2 - 4 pin fans $2.49 http://www.svc.com/fc444pwm-12.html

Wow, another $100 in cooling - bummer.

Or Corsair H70 $100

Or I could do Hyper 12 for $39

Or XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 for $29 after rebate

with XIGMATEK Crossbow Ack Ati775 Mounting Kit but I have top fan and cool video so meh.

Dark Knight version is $25 after rebate

(here is an interesting suggestion for TIM application on HDT's)

Or Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm $93 - $13.5 promo = $79.5 (has their own Y cable)

The Noctua is a tough call because of the high cost. It probably does perform well but some say it is very quiet as well. That quiet performance is very tempting.

I will just have to see how blazing hot it runs on stock HSF.

I never thought I would use AMD again (although I love AMD) but I just couldn't pass up the price and a chance to unlock the dual core into a quad and over clock. The ASRock motherboard has a ton of features for $89 and may possibly handle future chips if something sensational develops on the AMD CPU front. The video card is on the sad side but good enough for current use. We shall see how this all works before I buy an after market cooler. Crap, I didn't buy thermal paste. Maybe the stock heat sink has paste or pad on it. I can't remember the last time I even pulled a stock heat sink out of the box. If the 555 Callisto can over clock this could be the fastest computer I own but let's not count our chickens yet. And why such a big power supply? I quit chintzing on PSU's a long time ago. Over clocking will do that to you. I would have used a Cooler Master HAF 912 but the Antec 300 was a better deal. I would like to order the Corsair H70 cooler but I don't like pumps. I think a Noctua is calling me.

OC Posts (a little refresher):

1, 2, 3, 4, 5

A post on Ripjaw RAM

Specs for 555 BE Calisto Max temp is 70C so my 50C limit is safe. I have read Vcore of 1.5 to 1.55 is acceptable but I hate it that high. I hear true cpu temp on this ASRock is +4 or 5. For testing is I stay under 60C all should be good.

Update: I built it outside the case first of course. All 4 cores unlocked and overclocked to 4000 so far but I can't test very long with rising temps. The Ripjaws will not pass memtest dual channel at 1600. I'm not sure where their limit is because I'm still trying to figure out how to operate the magic wand for setting ram speed. Anyway, the combination appears to be a winner so now I need to decide on which HSF to buy.

Programs for OC testing: Link

At stock settings all four cores pass OCCT but toasty with that stock HSF. If I'm going to OC this animal I need BigHuge air.

My choice for a video card for my new build may have been on the light side. Not that it is a bad card but I should have done a little more brushing up. After reading Tom's Hardware's most recent discussion I could have picked the Radeon 5670 and Direct X 11 for what it's worth. But hey, the 4670 will be a nice backup card if I choose to upgrade. Or maybe I will buy another and Crossfire. I will probably be satisfied with my choice. It is quiet and cool.

Here is what I gather from Tom's article here.

Radeon HD 4670 good through 1680x1050 and cheap

Radeon HD 5670 can do 1920x1200 for a little more (not quite twice as expensive)

After that things get price-ugly quickly.

A 4 Gig Quad for $89? That's crazy talk!

Ambient is around 76F. (AC needs freon)

4000 MHz failed OCCT @ 1.5 Max Vcore (my personal limit for this CPU) But 1.55 is acceptable.

Dropped multiple to 17.5 and bumped FSB to 228 for 3990 MHz (took some R&D)

I reduced HT to 1800 so FSB at 228 made HT 2052

NB was 2000 and 228 made it 2280 MHz

Memory then increased from 1333 to 1520

Passed one pass of Memtest86. (I may do more later, or not)

(I read that using the far slots for RAM is better but I am not removing the fan on Mr. Noctua so close enough for government work. Maybe some day I will just to pass 4000+.)

I never had to do one single CMOS clear during the OC process.

Is this stable enough? Not for heart transplants but probably for what I do, although I have had OC's pass tests and crash and burn on the first game. This behavior is unusual but can happen. The moral is, if it works in the real world, it works. If I pass a Memtest86 run and survive an hour of OCCT without burning the house down, I declare victory.

I gave in and want it Prime95 stable. One core errors at the above settings at 45 minutes but the others go 8 hours+. I dropped FSB 2 MHz each time and Prime tested. I gain stable time with each setting reduction. I am now at 22 FSB x 17.5=3902 I bumped vcore up one notch. Stress temps are 51-53. All 4 cores pass 14:40+ hours with the higher voltage. NB to 2676.

I may eventually try getting the CPU MHz at or under 3800 while maintaining RAM speed to see how low I can get the voltage. I hear tell of a 3800 wall that requires disproportionate voltage to break (true or not). NB increase worked and stable. This would be a great "set it and forget it" position for 24/7. This baby already has some bragging rights.

RAM reads bump up slightly at 8-8-7-22.

NB 2664 Then I increase NB

Memory performance increases and Prime stable 9:30 hrs.

What about that Intel Burn Test?

I had some blue screen problems on reboots and narrowed it down to Logitech USB desk microphone. It could be the one core that Prime95 made fail at 45 min. but we will see. The mic is not plugged into a front USB port and is working but I have not rebooted yet. Could be the rear ports???

Oh, and that Noctua? Yes it is a monster. I have had Zalman, True, et. al. and this is the biggest. It is easy to install but the edge where I have to clip the two fans is so close to the top of the case it took some craftiness. The clipping system is the best I have seen. The packaging of every part is beautiful, "spared no expense". The fans are smooth and fairly quiet. I would buy it again. When I attach the cover to the Antec 300, temps dropped 2C. The air flow through this case with the Noctua blowing out the back is impressive.

Here is the somewhat ugly but useful for reading settings, ASRock OC Tuner:

Things I to do:

Raise only CPU multi. and leave FSB @ 200 to not raise RAM speed.

Keep CPU voltage (Vcore or VID) low as possible because it rises when stressed.

Keep HT and NB as close to 2000MHz as possible. Raise NB eventually?

When reach max try drop multi and raise FSB (FID) to get higher ram speed.

Maybe try running at 1T and/or tighten clocks.

Ganged vs Unganged is dual vs single channel? But BIOS and CPUZ still report dual channel so unganged must not mean traditional "dual channel". (some say unganged is better on quad) (or here) .

Asynchronous allows memory divider (I think).

This voltage gain may be good thing if predictable. It is better than v-droop.

Features I like on ASRock 870 Extreme3:
CMOS Clear button accessible on I/O panel.

On/off switch on motherboard.

USB3 (even though I have nothing usb3 yet)

Instant Boot is crazy fast. (don't know how long it will be trouble free but awesome now)

ASRock OC Tuner is ugly but great for reading settings. (I OC through BIOS)

Sound gives no pops or crackling yet.

Things to watch:

BIOS default is IDE so if you want AHCI set it before Windows install. You can change after but it requires a small regedit and two reboots.

Ram settings:




I need an SSD

Then there is this sad little number

Obama-care anyone? Notice only 223 hours of use!


After running ATI Overdrive the clocks went
from GPU 750 / MEM 800 to GPU 790 / Mem 910
Idle temp was 34C went to 35/36C and both were 53C during the test max.

Notes I need to read.
LLC: Disabled or 25% (disabled gives vRaise, 100% gives most vDroop)
Voltage: going to require MORE than normal if using 25% LLC, use disabled LLC.
RAM profile: standard, keep timings on auto, set voltage manually, select bus speed, boot, test stability, then tweak timings manually.
HT volts: 1.3+ if running higher fsb(240+)
CPU NB volts: raise to 1.3+ for 1600Mhz ram+, keep under CPU volts by a few menu selections, stop at 1.4x.
CPU VDDA/PCI-E VDDA: auto, only two selections(low/high)cpu vdda is multiplier core logic, pci-e vdda is pci-e (gfx card) slot supply voltage.

Disable spread spectrum, cnq, ec1, hpet.

Update to 1.47(or newer) bios (extremesystem forum)