I added some grill covers to add continuity where the one exhaust fan was removed on top of the case to provide clearance for the video card. Now, viewing the case, the absent fan isn't noticeable. Just a little aesthetic tweak:


By jmkays

Damn, i'm driving a ghetto rig. LOL.

I've joined you in the clunker class.

Jeez Lousie Jason, you have done well!! I'm officially putting you into the A class without Merc's permission Guys, hey go easy..What about poor me then if you're all ghetto

According to a recent article in Tom's Hardware, AMD's CrossFireX Details Leak Out, the X2's will never be able to run in Crossfire mode under XP, since XP cannot recognize more than two GPU's:

Sons of B..... Its nice that you can mix and match GPU's though.. A single x2 with a 3870 sounds good... Vista cant be that bad.. Can it? LOL

Yes, the ability to mix and match card types is pretty wild.

I ran into some compatibility issues with the Mtron SSD 6000 series disk not being recognized by the Maximus Extreme motherboard. FedEx will drop off a 7000 series tomorrow. Supposedly their enterprise edition SSD's address many of the RAID controller card and other compatibility issues. Mine wouldn't run from either the controller card or onboard SATA. Ahhhh the bleeding edge.

I'm also working on an aesthetically pleasant way to mount the 2.5" disk while protecting it. Will have more to report tomorrow night.

Looks like I'll be installing VISTA on the bench system. The issue isn't that VISTA's bad as an OS. It's that benchmark results are usually lower in VISTA than XP. Been too busy to bench for the past couple of weeks, but should be able to get to it within the next week.

Steve Ballmer, true of aim, has landed an Aero through the good Professor's virtual heart.

Paulzig, after we sort out Tom Cruise, we need to begin the delicate task of 'deprogramming' our friend, Cool Case. On the other hand, for those that must take the plunge (to run ATI 3870 X2 Crossfire, etc), this may be the time to do so:

Microsoft Cuts Price for Boxed Vista. 20% - 48%

Home Premium is down to $109.99 already at the Egg and is $99.99 with the coupon from their last mailing.

I might persist XP for a little longer as I'm on a single (non-chequebook racing) card.. Anyway, I heard about some issues that a few SSD's were having with the Intel SATA controller not just with compatibility but with poor speeds as well so you're best off with the one that can work with the Areca RAID card of yours.

Tom Cruise? You mean the great visionary philsopher of our age.. Sir, are you telling me you are NOT a scientologist?
Scientology is one of the pillars of my life, as a matter of fact its the reason I havent been benching much as of late, I've been at my local branch helping to update the e-meters. Amazing machines, and even more amazing when they are brought up to date with an Intel Pentium Pro CPU

Which end of the tomato do you stick the Pentium?

Very much appreciate the poop on SSD and Asus, Paul. That makes me feel slightly less developmentally disabled. I could understand the Mtron 6000 not working with the Areca controller card, as the controller card issues with that series were known. What I didn't expect was a problem with the ICH9 SATA controller. I tried every possible BIOS tweak I could think of with no luck. Just wouldn't work. Mtron believed it was simply a bad disk, but the reseller said he's sold hundreds with zero returns (until mine lol).

I paid the difference between the standard SSD and the enterprise edition to upgrade to the 7000 series. This series was specifically designed with RAID in mind and also has a slightly higher transfer rate: 120mb/s read; 90mb/s write

Do you know off the top of your head what the cap is for Asus onboard SATA transfer rates? I have a feeling it's well below 100 mb/s. Another reason to run the SSD from the RAID card, per your suggestion. Any links, per chance, to the SSD/Asus discussion?

http://www.nextlevelhardware.com/storage/mtron16/

"..the Intel ICH Southbridge actually throttles Solid State Drives above 80 MB/s"

Thats just the Intel controller... but you have a Marvell or something on yours dont you??

More:

http://www.nextlevelhardware.com/storage/battleship/

http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=2982

It's not just the appearance that's nice. First, I don't have to pay for it; so, I don't have that gripe. I've been using VISTA as my OS since November 2006 and haven't had many issues. But, it's a little less stable than XP and has conflicts with various programs - even Word, when working with large files open for a long time.

It's got too much overhead for benching. It's like having a 700lbs in the trunk of the stock car you're racing.

Mtron SSD Update

Apparently my trials and tribulations with the Mtron 6000 series SSD spawned some fruitful discussion on the manufacturer's blog. That's always nice to see.

A step ahead of issues, as usual, is AnandTech.com with this article on the Intel ICH9R SATA controller limiting transfer rates to 80mb/s . . . and the workaround by enabling ACHI. Con: the workaround may or may not be limited to Vista.

http://tinyurl.com/2bbzxt