Post build questions

[bdwain]

I just built my first computer, and i had a few questions. for reference, its an asus p6t mobo, i7 920, scythe mugen 2 cooler, radeon 4870 1gb (made by asus), cm 690 case, antec tp-750 psu, 6 gb corsair xms memory, 1 dvd drive, and 1 640gb caviar black sata drive.

iwas wondering if theres anything i need to do before i install win7. Or if there's anything i need to do after i install it (other than get all my programs and stuff). I've seen people say they ran memcheck or prime95, but idk anything about those. and is there anything i can do to look at the temp and make sure the thermal paste and all the fans are working correctly.

also, my cooler (scythe mugen 2) from newegg came with this little fan for free, but idk if i need it or not. it's small one. mini-kaze. 40 mm. 3500 rpm. 4.11 cfm. i didn't see anywhere to put it in the case.

also, the case had a few fans built in, and i wasnt sure where i needed to plug them in. they all had converters from that little fan plug size to the big 4 pin plugs, so i just plugged them directly into my psu. should i have taken off the 4 pin converters and plugged them into the fan slots on the mobo? i saw something in the instructions about putting a fan on cha_fan2, but it was a lot harder to reach and i wasn't really sure about that.

thanks.

 

[aford10]

I wouldn't worry about memtest or prime95 at the moment, unless you are having issues.

Once the PC is up and running, check the temps in the BIOS. Then download a program like speedfan to check your temps.

The cha_fan connectors allow the BIOS to monitor those fans plugged into it. It's up to you if you want to use them or the molex connectors.

 

[Transmaniacon]

You can view the temperatures in the BIOS, look for CPU temperatures around the 30-40 degree C mark, above 50 may indicate you need to reapply the thermal paste better.

Those tests can be run off of some OS CDs, or after you install Windows 7. Memtest is good to run before anything else to make sure your RAM is sound. Prime95 is used moreso with overclocks to test system stability.

That little fan you got might be intended for the northbridge. The heatsink itself uses the 120mm fan, and they might have giving you an extra option fan to attach to the motherboard heatsink for added cooling. This is not required, and often times has to be jury-rigged, someone else here can probably provide more insight.

If you plug in the fans to the motherboard, you can adjust their speed in either a motherboard utility that ships with the motherboard, or in the BIOS. Its fine to just plug them into the 4-pin PSU connections, and plugging them into the motherboard is optional. Some fans have adjustable speed switches, for example my antec fans do, and so I just change the speeds manually, and haven't bothered to attach them to the motherboard.

 

[aford10]

^ agreed...the little fan likely goes on the northbridge.

 

[bdwain]

the cpu is at 48 and the mb is at 49. is that bad? the cpu fan is at 1430 rpm. and the cpu voltage is 1.192v. im not positive but i might have installed the cpu fan backwards. i have a scythe mugen, and you can clip the fan onto any side of the big metal piece. and you can clip it in either direction. i have the fan on the left side of the heatsink, so that it is closest to the back of the case and right next to the case fan in the top of the back. i have the black label of the on the outside, but icant tell which direction it is blwong.

i can put the fan on the bottom or on the right side (and maybe even the top, idk if itll fit), but on the right it makes it hard to reach some memory slots and on the bottom its in the way of my video card.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Ideally you would want the CPU fan to pull cool air through the heatsink and then have it expelled somewhere out the top/back. Generally, front fans are used for intake, and pull in cool air, that you can circulate through your heatsink, and expel the heated air out. That does seem high though for the CPU, with a good cooler like the Scythe Mugen. You did apply thermal paste right?

 

[aford10]

The fan should say scythe in the center if you have it on the HSF correctly. I would have it closest to the back as you do. It should be blowing the air out the back.

 

[bdwain]

i did apply thermal paste. but i dont know how to tell if i did a good job or not. i warched a youtube video and tried to copy it. i put on a little bit and then spread itr around evenly with a plastic bag over my finger. it's thin, and probably see through at some parts.

one problem is that the fans were backwards. when i fixed that, the temp dropped to 45, but it's still warmer than i'd like.

the onyl other thing that i can think of is the large jumble of wires in the bottom right is somehow blocking airflow. but i dont know where to put them instead. they are to the right of the psu now.

also, my room is really hot and humid because it is inssanely hot out here right now.

any thoughts?

 

[bdwain]

oh and if i have the side off (which takes out one of the chassis fans), the temp is like 43 ish.

 

[aford10]

The temperature in the room will play a role in the temp inside the case. Download speedfan and keep an eye on your temps as you use the PC. Your temps right now are fine. If they don't get into the 70's as your working the CPU, you'll be fine. Ideally, you'd like the temps to stay below 65.

 

[dndhatcher]

Do you have the side fan pulling air in or pushing air out? Should be pulling air in to keep the graphics card cool.

Do those case fans have any speed controls? If so try pushing the "out the back" fan to its highest and the side/front at lower speeds to see if that helps. Right now you have 2 fans in and one out which means you are pressurizing the case if the graphics card and PSU are not blowing enough air out. Normally you want negative pressure so cool air seeps in all the vents.

You did put the power supply in so that its fan is up and pulling air from the middle of the computer and blowing it out the back?

It looks like that case lets you take the top plastic off and install one or two fans pushing air up and out. It might be worth taking that piece off and at least letting the warm air go up & out on its own to see if that helps. If it does then it might be worth getting a fan or two for the top.

 

[bdwain]

the side fan is pulling air in, and the psu fan is facing up. i can control 2 of the fans, since i can only control the ones that plug into the 3 pin sockets on the mobo, and there are 2 of those. if i don't do that, i have to plug them in to a 4 pin molex connector, but then i can't control the speed. right now i have the side fan controllable and the front and back not controllable. i'll try and make the back one controllable too and set it to turbo, with the side set lower and see if that helps. thanks.

 

[dndhatcher]

Did you make sure you have the mugen set so its fan is pushing air over the fins and then the back case fan is pulling that hot air out of the case?