Finishing up first pc build. unsure about a few things

[zero100]

Hey everyone, Im just finishing up my first ever computer build and so far everything has gone pretty well. I assembled all of the primary components and did a test boot outside of the case and it posted fine (after I realized I had missed a power cable ). Now I have everything in the case and as Im finishing up there are a few things I cannot figure out. Hopefully you guys can help!

1. System panel connector. Power switch, reset switch, leds etc. I know where they all plug in. What I dont know (and cannot find in the manual) is if the orientation matters. The power switch connector fits facing two ways. On the back side of the connector there is a small black arrow pointing to one of the slots. But I have no idea what this means.

2. http://www.amazon.com/Internal-Optical-Drive-DRW-24B3ST-BLK/dp/B0056UV96I/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1354683698&sr=8-2&keywords=ASUS+24X+DVD+Burner

That is my optical drive. Am I correct in assuming that I connect this via SATA 3gb/s? Or is it one of the 6gb/s?

3. And this is the biggest point of confusion. I have the Asus sabertooth z77 motherboard. I have a sata 6 gb/s mechanical harddrive. The manual shows two different sets of SATA 6gb/s slots. There is the "Intel z77 serial ATA 6gb/s connectors (7-pin sata6g_1/2)" and then "ASMedia serial ATA 6gb/s connectors (7-pin sata6g_e1/e2)". Both say that they connect to sata 6gb/s hard disk drives. And I cannot figure out the difference.

Many thanks!

 

[lt_dan_zsu]

You are overthinking it. That optical driver can go in any slot. The hdd probably doesn't matter either. No hard drive, ssd, or optical drive has even approached 1gbps. The fastest ssd I have seen is in the range of 550mb/s. Yes the orientation of the power panel wires definitely matters. That is the worst part of the build IMO. Look at the mobo manual and just plug things in accordingly, the manual should have negative and positive labeled.

 

[ebola28]

Put your OS drive in the sata6g_1, and your ODD in any of the sata3g ports

 

[zero100]

Thank you both for the replies. The manual shows negative and positive for the leds and power/ground and reset/ground. Unfortunately, the case connectors are not labeled as to negative and positive. They just say Pwrsw, reset etc. With the little black arrow on one side.

Is there any difference between the Intel z77 serial ATA 6gb/s connectors (7-pin sata6g_1/2) and the ASMedia serial ATA 6gb/s connectors (7-pin sata6g_e1/e2)?

Ebola, just to make sure. You mean put the OS drive in the Intel z77 serial ATA 6gb/s connectors (7-pin sata6g_1/2)? And forgive my ignorance here. ODD?? Optional data drive??

And total between the intel 6gb/s and the asmedia 6gb/s I have 4. So I could plug both the harddrive and optical drive into 6gb/s.

Thanks again guys.

 

[lt_dan_zsu]

The arrow is the positive side I believe, it worked when I did it like that.

 

[ebola28]

sorry, ODD = optical disc drive. the intel ones are better than the asmedia ones. you could plug both sata cables into the intel 6\gb ports, but i prefer to save the second one for a future hard drive. you wont notice any difference in your optical drive.

As far as difference between the different kinds of 6/gb, there are some. suffice it to say the 6/gb are better, but don't worry too much about it