General PC Help Thread - OP updated with useful links - READ

[Donk]

Yes, if you're overclocking stuff, but it's not really worthwhile for a normal gaming PC.

And gaming ram? Look, what matters is the DDR version, the clock rate, the size and if the motherboard will take it. Anything else is just sales blurb.

Stick to the science, not the marketing.

[False]

Liquid cooling will not be a problem if you buy from a reputable builder. Its also cooler than air (most of the time) and quieter. More maintenance is required though, and you have to be a bit more careful.

Gaming RAM is a waste of money. The important thing is speed and timing, ignore the jazz. If you want fast RAM then go for 1600MHz CL7. Though the difference between that and CL7/9 1333MHz is negligble from what Ive seen.

AMD boards are better if you want an AMD chip. Wait a month or two and the Intel boards should be sorted though.

[Fargo]

The build I'm making for my mate is casusing me all sorts of problems, It doesn't seem to be getting any power. The psu is ok as I tried it in my own PC so I think it may either be the motherboard or perhaps the power switch is broken on the case. Any advice on how I can easily identify which of the two it's more likely to be ?

[Mommy Christmas]

The power switch may have two cables from it. Trace them to the mobo and take the connector off, then short the pins.

[False]

If you dont fancy doing that, have you used your own PSU with his motherboard?

[Fargo]

If you dont fancy doing that, have you used your own PSU with his motherboard?

Yeah that didn't work. I thought it was the his psu so tried mine but that didn't work either so it must be the switch or the motherboard.

[False]

There you go then. If you have a voltmeter and the board has some points to check the voltage then you can do that. Otherwise just RMA the board and case.

[TheTurnipKing]

http://www.maplin.co.uk/motherboard-testing-switch-set-98842?c=so&u=strat15
Might come in handy in future, assuming you don't have an old PC case to rip the wiring loom out of for testing, though in any case, the odds of it being the case switches are exceptionally low.

[Mommy Christmas]

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/173124

Will this stuff work with AMD processors?

[Tineash]

Yes.

[rikkit]

I guess this place is as good a place to ask as any...

Does anyone know where I can find a replacement battery for my laptop? It's a relatively trivial problem usually, but:
- its a custom, rebadged laptop from 2008
- the manufacturer went bankrupt in 2009

Since I know the laptop was originally made by someone, I'm hoping I can find a battery that fits. I'm having trouble with this though. The laptop is a Zepto Nexus A15, and the battery is labelled Dynapack ID6 (here is a photo). Sent an email to a couple of websites, to no avail.

Anyone know where to go next?

[Earfolds]

I guess this place is as good a place to ask as any...

Does anyone know where I can find a replacement battery for my laptop? It's a relatively trivial problem usually, but:
- its a custom, rebadged laptop from 2008
- the manufacturer went bankrupt in 2009

Since I know the laptop was originally made by someone, I'm hoping I can find a battery that fits. I'm having trouble with this though. The laptop is a Zepto Nexus A15, and the battery is labelled Dynapack ID6 (here is a photo). Sent an email to a couple of websites, to no avail.

Anyone know where to go next?

Try buying an ID6-size battery.

[False]

Ebay would be your best bet.

[Mommy Christmas]

1 x Asus CROSSHAIR IV FORMULA 890FX Socket AM3 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard
1 x Corsair CWCH50-1 Cooling Hydro Series H50 High-performance CPU Cooler supports LGA1156 LGA 1155 LGA775 LGA1366 AM2 and AM3 processors
1 x Antec 300 Three Hundred Case
1 x Corsair 650W TX Series PSU - 120mm Fan, 80+% Efficiency, Single +12V Rail
1 x Corsair 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600MHz CL9 (9-9-9-24) 1.65V
1 x AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition 3.4GHz Socket AM3 8MB L3 Cache 125W Retail Box Processor


Right, I've ordered this gubbins. Am I going to need a fuckton of fans also?

[False]

Only if you want them.

One intake and one exhaust will do the job just fine. You'll have to mount the exhaust on the top if you are using the H50 though.

[Mommy Christmas]

Only if you want them.

One intake and one exhaust will do the job just fine. You'll have to mount the exhaust on the top if you are using the H50 though.

Top of what?


I normally just leave the side off

[False]

Top of the case.

[Fargo]

Ruled out the case switch so I had to order a new motherboard. I swear I'll never build another PC after this. Just by chance, if I did fry the cpu the motherboard would still kick in right ? It's an AMD Phenon II.

[False]

It'd give you a fat error beep and wouldnt be too happy.

[Igor]

Why does my computer now sound like a jet engine? I re-downloaded WoW last night, I thought I'd give it a bash after a few years out of it. When I start it up, gooseberry fool goes crazy and the fans get three times as loud as normal, to the point where it sounds like a quiet hair-drier. It didn't used to do this. I opened up the side and removed the mountains of dust that had collected in the CPU heatsink and the fans, as well as the grills at the front. The case is a... Antec P182, I think.

Despite me removing some substantial grime from the inside, the fans are still going ape. I'm sat here with Firefox open with WoW in the background I could here the PC from about 12 feet away through a closed door.