Raid+PSU=?

[Guest]

Greetings,

First post in this forum, would like to say "Hi" to everyone. Ok, my question is: I would like to setup a Raid 0 array, and I'm wondering if my PSU will be able to handle the jump, as I have a good deal in my case already. I not only want to add the HD, but also put both of them in 5.25 HD cooler's in my 2 spare bays, so it will also mean some more fans.

1.4 T-bird
Swiftech MCX 370 with Papst fan
GA-7DXR
Micron 256 DDR 2100
Lite-on 16x DVD
TDK 24/10/40 CD-writer
Audigy sound
IBM 40gig 60GXP
D-Link NIC
Gainward GF3 Ti 200
ATI TV Wonder
3 case fans
Enermax 350watt (365) PSU

Iv'e done the math as close as possible to figure what all the deveice's will draw power wise, and I feel I will be ok, but would like to know what you guy's think. I know that the bigger the better is the order for PSU's, but don't really want to drop another 80 bucks for a 430watter if I don't have to. That's almost the cost of another 60GXP HD! Thanks for the help.

 

[Crashman]

"Hi" back atcha. I would try it.

What's the frequency, Kenneth?

 

[camieabz]

Well options are:

1. Don't try it, never know.
2. Try it, it works.
3. Try it, it doesn't, buy a new PSU.
4. Buy a new PSU.

Decisions, decisions.

<b><font color=blue>~scribble~</font color=blue></b> <A HREF="http://www.ud.com/home.htm" target="_new">Help cure cancer.</A>

 

[svol]

Try it.
My Enermax 350W runs 4 HDs, 3 CDROMs, 2 FDs, an Abit KG7-RAID with 2 PCI and one video card and 512MB of RAM, only my fans are connected to another PSU (I have a 120mm fan which drains 3 amp.).

My case has so many fans that it hovers above the ground .

 

[Freeway]

Hey wotan i know this question is off topic but had to ask; How do you like the 7DXR ? just bought one that comes in tomorrow or wed. Any suggestions as far as settings ? Have you run into any problems and/or imcompatabilities ? Thx in advance for any help with this .

 

[Guest]

I really like it, although I havn't OC'ed it very much. It is so stable it's not even funny, and that was the main reason I bought the board. Looking back I may have made a different choice, but overall I am very pleased with this board. The downside is if you want to OC, you have to mess with dip switch's for the muiltiplier and overvoltage for the ram and AGP pro slot. The settings I would just start out with changing the fsb by jumper (default is 100), and disabling the promise raid controller if your not going to use it right away. Also, I have seen some issue with my IRQ's and had to set the vid card and network controller manually. You also may want to disable your serial and comm ports if you are not going to use them, but it should not present a problem upfront, just a fun way to solve the problem of havning 4 or 5 PCI deviecs, and worked for me. You can change the fsb and cpu voltage by bios on mine, and you can to it by dip switch also, but these boards vary slighty from my experince. I have had the fsb at 140 stable, but don't I wouldn't start OCing this thing till you get familiar. Hope you like it, and sorry it took so long to post back!

It is easier to do it right the first time, than to explain why it wasn't.

 

[Freeway]

Thx for the info! I allready set the fsb dips up to 133 before i read this, but i havent recieved my memory yet so havent had the chance to fire it up. I probably won't be OCing it till ive learned a bit more. Stability was more what i was shooting for in my choice of boards. I won't be using quite as many pci's as you, but i will disable comm and serial anyway. And once again thanks much for the help!

PS. let me know how the raid works once you've tried it. I'm thinking of taking it to raid 0 as well so...

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by freeway on 01/09/02 10:11 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Guest]

Freeway,

The Raid worked out really well, except for the minor mods I had to do to the HD coolers so they would fit right in my spare bays. I used 2 IBM 60 GXP 40Gig drives, with identical Teflon coated ATA 100 cables.

My SiSoftSandra HD score is 49,000 (don't remember the exact #)and that is almost twice what I was getting before which is amazing. It dosen't work out that well for a lot of people, and I know someone that has the Epox 8KHA+ with a PCI High Point controller and is running 13,000 below me. If you do a lot on your puter, or just have the money to burn, set it up, it's very easy with the Promise Fast Build utility.

I chose Desktop for the performance setting, which is a mix of small and big files. All the programs that don't have a splash screen load up so damn fast it's not even funny. BTW, there are 2 jumpers you have to enable for the Raid on the board (on mine anyway), so read your manual carefully before you proceed. Hope you like the board, and if it's running like mine, you will be very happy.

It is easier to do it right the first time, than to explain why it wasn't.

 

[Freeway]

Hey great to hear and thx again for all the info!

 

[Freeway]

uh wotan you may want to check out the Faulty Products section here at thg ! Seems the ga-7dxr has problems with geforce when running raid 0.

 

[Guest]

Have run 3Dmark and several different games like AVP2 and RTCW and have not encountered any trouble yet.

The GA-7DXR also has the VIA 686B southbridge, which according to most people WILL result in problems with a Creative sound card.

Well, I had a SB Live 5.1 X-Gamer in here for three month's, and now I have a Audigy, and guess what? No problems at all ever, and I listen to all kinds of music in all types of format's.

So, if 1 percent have problems, and if Giga-byte made 500,000 (guessing) of these boards, that is an excellent percentage, and doesn't mean that I will have that problem. But it means that there is a lot of pissed off Giga-byte owners.

I'm not a Giga-byte fan boy at all, but I'm not jumping on the bandwagon just yet. When AMD shows off a processor, take a wild guess at what board it's on. Nuff said.

"It is easier to do it right the first time, than to explain why it wasn't."

 

[Guest]

P.S.

My SiSoftSandra HD scores went from around 23 to 25,000 with one drive, and 46 to 49,000 when I added the other Deskstar, and everything is exactly the same, including the Teflon coated ATA 100 cables.

Yeah, there are better real world benchmarks, but the increase is so noticeable it's crazy. The most bloated programs load in 1 to 3 seconds max, except for stuff with a gay ass splash screen which you have to wait on. And when I download from my DV camcorder or other camera's, it's just sick!

Oh, and my CPU temp idles at 38c to 41c, depending on the room temp. LOL, either some people with Raid have a lemon on there hand's, or just simply can't follow directions.

Also, many people don't like to tell you that there was some ignorance involved, especialy if looking for help. Not saying any one person is ignorant, it's just figurative.

"It is easier to do it right the first time, than to explain why it wasn't."