First computer is built! Now just have a few followup questions.

Balthraka

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Hello TH.

So.
I just finished building my first computer and (amazingly) everything worked perfectly.
No issues in building, posted and booted first time, no issues as of yet. :)

I just have a few questions about checking that everything is running as it should and how it should.

(System is:
i7 930
Gigabyte X58A UD3R)

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1. Temperatures.
Using SpeedFan for temps, this is what I have under minimal load. (Using Prime 95 no temps ever exceeded 55).
Temp 1: 33
Temp 2: 32
Temp 3: 43
Temp : -128
HD 1: 26
HD 0: 23
Core 0: 23
Core 1: 19
Core 2: 26

Firstly. Can anyone help me work out what each of those numbers refers to? :-/
Secondly, are they acceptable?


2. In my BIOS, my CD/DVD drive is being recognised as a slave to one of my harddrives.
Is this OK/normal?
(I have two masters and then the slave).


3. How do I check that my RAM is running at it's advertised speed?
I have read a lot about people saying that RAM resets itself lower by defauly, but I'm not sure where to check this or how to change it.


4. What sort of score should an i7 930 get on 3DMark06 (paired with a 5850)?



Thanks in advance.
-B
 

Balthraka

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Also.
I am having trouble getting all my fan speeds to be recognised.

In SpeedFan I have Fan 1 and Fan 4.
Would fan 1 be the processor one?
If not, then it's all good.
If so, can someone tell me where I should be plugging them in on my MoBo.
I am currently using a couple of the 3-pin fan slots.

Cheers
-B
 

tecmo34

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1) Temps are good!!

2) If everything is working.... I won't worry about it. I'm not sure what mine says. If I remember, I'll check on my next boot.

3) One method is go into your BIOS and set your RAM functions to manual and see what they are listed as. Another method is to download CPUID's CPU-Z and see what it says your RAM is running at.

4) Are you overclocked or at stock speeds (CPU speeds play a big factor with 3DMark06)?

I would say on the safe side around 15,000 or so with a single card... don't quote me on that if you are getting 11,000 or something. Run the test and see what your scores and compare them to others online. Just make sure to check the other's system so they are getting 23,000 and you think it is a single card but is a dual setup. :)
 

Balthraka

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1.
Awesome. Thanks.
Any idea what each one might represent?
I assume HD is the Hard Drives... But otherwise I'm lost...


2.
Any other opinions on this one?
Did you have a look tecmo34?


3.
Ok.
I already have CPU-Z.
What exactly am I looking at?
Haha.

It's the timings isn't it?
Which ones there tell me the required info?
:-/


4.
Stock at the moment.
Well. I got 18354 3DMarks overall.
5437 was my CPU score (that's the one I'm worried about).
SM2 is 7065
SM3 is 8585.

-------------------------------------------------

Also.
I am having trouble getting all my fan speeds to be recognised.

In SpeedFan I have Fan 1 and Fan 4.
Would fan 1 be the processor one?
If not, then it's all good.
If so, can someone tell me where I should be plugging them in on my MoBo.
I am currently using a couple of the 3-pin fan slots.


Also (again).
Do you think it is safe to push the 930 to 3.0GHz on stock cooling?



Cheers
-B
 

tecmo34

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Moderator
1)
Temp 1: 33 CPU Temp most likely
Temp 2: 32 System Temp most likely
Temp 3: 43 Northbride temp most likely
Temp : -128 Unused probe
HD 1: 26 One of your hard drives
HD 0: 23 Another one of your hard drives
Core 0: 23 CPU Core 0 Temp
Core 1: 19 CPU Core 1 Temp
Core 2: 26 CPU Core 2 Temp

2)
I checked my BIOS and I couldn't find anything were it listed my hard drives as slaved or masters. Not every BIOS is the same, so again I go back if everything is working right, don't worry about it.

3)
You want to go to the Memory Tab and check that the following information matches what is listed on your RAM (Manufacturer Specs.)
■DRAM Frequency (What is listed x the first # in the FSB : DRAM section equals your DDR3 Speeds - EX: 800 would be DDR3 1600, if your FSB : DRAM was 2:8)
■CAS# Latency (CL)
■RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD)
■RAS# Precharge (tRP)
■Cycle Time (tRAS)

When your RAM says it is DDR3 1600 7-7-7-24, those are the numbers that should be listed in the above information for example.

4)
Again, your score looks good for 3DMark 06!!

SpeedFan Question
Fan 1 - CPU Fan
Fan 4 - AUX Fan (which is most likely your PSU)


It is safe to push the i7 930 to 3.0GHz on a stock cooling, as long as your temps remain good! If your temps start to go up to high, you'll want to run a stock until you can pick up an aftermarket cooler like the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
 

Balthraka

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Thanks heaps for your responses tecmo34!


1)
Temp 1: Yep. That makes sense.
Temp 2: What exactly is System Temp? Is that just ... Actually... I have no idea. Haha.
Temp 3: Again... Northbridge Temp? :-/
HD 1: Yep.
HD 0: Yep.
Core 0: Yep.
Core 1: Yep.
Core 2: Yep.

So. All those temperatures are quite acceptable?
What would you say is the maximum they should get to?


2)
Cheers.
I'm just a perfectionist with this and want to make sure it's how it should be.
Anyone else have ideas on this?


3)
Alright. CPU-Z says:
DRAM Frequency = 539.8
FSB : DRAM section = 2:8
CAS# Latency (CL) = 8.0 Clocks
RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD) = 8 Clocks
RAS# Precharge (tRP) = 8 Clocks
Cycle Time (tRAS) = 20 Clocks

So. My RAM (according to CPU-Z) is 8-8-8-20?
How did you work out the 1600 part? Sorry. I didn't quite follow your logic up there.

The manufacturer specs for my RAM are.
PC 12800
1600MHz
9-9-9-24
So. That seems to be wrong. And I'm not sure on the PC or the MHz.
(My RAM is model #CMX6GX3M3A1600C9 by the way).


4)
Good good.


5) SpeedFan Question
Ok.
Is there a way to get it to pick up my case fans?
I plugged them into the 3 pin fan connectors on the MoBo but that didn't seem to work...


6) OC question.
Ok.
And what would you say is a safe temperature?



Thanks.
-B
 

tecmo34

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Moderator
1)
Temp 1: Yep. That makes sense.
Temp 2: What exactly is System Temp? Is that just ... This is your overall temperature of your motherboard
Temp 3: Again... Northbridge Temp? :-/ - This is the chipset by the PCIe slots that has the heat sink.
HD 1: Yep.
HD 0: Yep.
Core 0: Yep.
Core 1: Yep.
Core 2: Yep.

So. All those temperatures are quite acceptable? Those temps look to be on the safe side
What would you say is the maximum they should get to? The only ones to be truly concerned with are the Core temps and you want them under 60C for the most part under full load

3)
Alright. CPU-Z says:
DRAM Frequency = 539.8
FSB : DRAM section = 2:8
CAS# Latency (CL) = 8.0 Clocks
RAS# to CAS# Delay (tRCD) = 8 Clocks
RAS# Precharge (tRP) = 8 Clocks
Cycle Time (tRAS) = 20 Clocks

So. My RAM (according to CPU-Z) is 8-8-8-20? Correct!!
How did you work out the 1600 part? Sorry. I didn't quite follow your logic up there. You take teh 539.8 x 2 (the 2 of 2:8), which gives you DDR3 1066. You are not running at DDR3 1600. You'll need to manualy adjust your specifications in your BIOS to DRAM Frequency = 800 and the rest of the timings to 9-9-9-24 and your voltage to specifications. Or you can leave it alone since Cas8 is better than Cas9.

The manufacturer specs for my RAM are.
PC 12800
1600MHz
9-9-9-24
So. That seems to be wrong. And I'm not sure on the PC or the MHz.
(My RAM is model #CMX6GX3M3A1600C9 by the way).


5) SpeedFan Question
Ok.
Is there a way to get it to pick up my case fans? SpeedFan will not detect the fans with only 3pins. You need a 4pin connector to control the speed of the fans through SpeedFan.
I plugged them into the 3 pin fan connectors on the MoBo but that didn't seem to work...


6) OC question.
Ok.
And what would you say is a safe temperature? You'll want to run Prime95 for at least two hours using the Blend test to check your load temps. As I stated above, you want the temps to stay below 60c.

Thanks for the bump.... I meant to get back to you but forgot and lost track of this thread!! :D
 

Balthraka

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1)
Ah. Ok.
What is the maximum reccomended temp for general MoBo and Northbridge?
(On Gigabyte X58A-UD3R if that's relevant).

Thanks for that Core Temp info.


2)
Anybody?
Haha.


3)
Ok.
So... Why is my RAM running at better timings than advertised?
Is that not unusual?

If I change the DRAM to be correct, can I leave the Clocks?
Or will they automatically change?
Or is that bad to have both?

Voltage I assume will be found in the specs somewhere?

Does the PC12800 mean anything in relation to specs that could be running wrong?



5)
Cool cool.
Is it damaging leaving them in the 3 pin?
Coz I really don't want to open the case and take them out if I don't have to...
Haha.


6)
Is that below 60 under the full load test?


Thanks for all your responses!
I really appreciate them!

Cheers.
-B
 

Balthraka

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Also.
I tried to adjust my DRAM frequency to 1600 (and the timings to 9-9-9-24 (just to have them at Stock)) and my voltage to 1.65 and I couldn't do it.

I looked through my BIOS, and while I found the option to set my timings quite easily, I couldn't edit the DRAM or my Voltage.
I am using the GA-X58A-UD3R.
I opened BIOS and went to the MB Intelligent Tweaker.
I selected DRAM timing and set it to Expert. (In here is where I can change the timings).
However the Mem Frequency is faded out and I can't select it to fix it.
Also, the Voltage is set to 1.5v and when I select it to modify, the 1.65v option is not there...

Can anybody who has this MoBo give me a step by step or a link?

And any more answers to the above post?

Cheers.
-B
 

tecmo34

Administrator
Moderator
1)
Ah. Ok.
What is the maximum reccomended temp for general MoBo and Northbridge?
(On Gigabyte X58A-UD3R if that's relevant).

Your MOBO and Northbridge temps should pretty much fall in line with your CPU high temps. You don't want them running really above 70C. If they do don't worry about it as long as you aren't getting system errors. Typically, when you components get too hot, you'll get BSOD, which can point to components running hot (along with other things :) )

2)
Anybody?
Haha.

I'm still no help here.. Sorry :(

3)
Ok.
So... Why is my RAM running at better timings than advertised?
Is that not unusual?

If I change the DRAM to be correct, can I leave the Clocks?
Or will they automatically change?
Or is that bad to have both?

Voltage I assume will be found in the specs somewhere?

Does the PC12800 mean anything in relation to specs that could be running wrong?

I'll see if I can help you on your next post...

5)
Cool cool.
Is it damaging leaving them in the 3 pin?
Coz I really don't want to open the case and take them out if I don't have to...
Haha.

No, it will not damage them!

6)
Is that below 60 under the full load test?

Yes, this is under a full load test using a program like Prime95. If your temps are in the 60's you are still good, as normal heavy usage will not reach full load temps

 

Balthraka

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1)
Check.
Question answered!
:)


2)
Still nobody?
:-(


3)
Thanks.
Any help with what I wrote in my last post about chaning the RAM would be great!


5)
Excellent!
Question answered.
:)


6)
Question answered.
:)





-B