My Computer Adventures - Part 2

*Make sure you read Part 1!

Now for the good stuff...

Here are the parts I ordered:

(you are correct, the power supply is upside down)

(mission: to get all that stuff inside here)

*EDIT: Intel I7-930

Antec 902 Mid Tower Case

GigaByte ATI Radeon HD5830

Asus P6X58D-E

Corsair HX 850w

G.Skill 2x3gb  (6gb) RAM

WD Caviar Black 640gb HDD

Asus PCIx1 Wireless Card

So now, I just had to put it all together! I recruited Lauren again to help me out and we were both trying to wing it all together. I got her to help me screw in the motherboard and then unscrew it when i realized i missed some of those extra screw hole things you attach to the case. I had some idea of what to do, but it definitely felt like a bit of a struggle. First we decided to install the CPU. Getting the steal support detached was easy enough and placing the cpu in wasn't too bad at all. Installing the cpu heatsink was a bit tougher though. The instructions the I7 came with were a bit hard to understand since there were no words that went along with the pictures. After that was done I put all the remaining hardware in without all the wiring--which was kinda bad thing to do--since when I decided to wire everything, the frigging Video Card was so massive that it made it such a hassle to plug anything in. I actually had to reposition the hard drive cuz the gpu was blocking its connectors. The wiring itself was a complete mess and I was pretty tired by then so I just said screw it and kept going. 

Once all the pieces were together, I plugged the beast in, press the power button and bam! Nothing happened.  I was disappointed that the first attempt of turning it on was a fail. I wasn't sure at that point whether it was my fault or the case's fault because Lauren realized that the motherboard's onboard powerswitch's light was on. So i press that and the beast turned on! The splash screen loaded up then another screen after that and then disaster struck. An error popped up saying the CPU was over temperature and shut down the computer. I was a bit scared but I tried booting it up again. Still, the error popped up. After another attempt I decided to take apart the heatsink and reconnect it and make sure it was all snug. After removing the heatsink i realize how sparse the thermal paste was. I applied additional thermal paste and connected the heatsink again this time, I made sure it was thoroughly secure. I attempted to boot it up again, and voila! My computer finally ran fine!

Dayammm... there it is. The BeanMachine. Look at how frigging ugly the cables and wiring ended up being! I didn't care at that point. I just really wanted my computer to start running!

I thought i wanted to do another post of my struggles cleaning up the cables, but it's not as exciting. Instead here's what my computer looks like after i took some time to tidy up the cables a little bit.

(before)

(during. without the GPU)

(after)

(cables tucked away at the back of the case)

(my home set up)

And there it is... the BeanMachine. I wonder what else i should do to it to make it more awesome. I know i could probably put in 2 more fans. One side panel fan for sure... and maybe a gpu fan that's neatly integrated into the case. Any suggestions to pimp my computer would be appreciated.

My Computer Adventures - Part 1

Stupid Broken HP Laptop (more on this at a late date)

After my HP laptop died due to a stupid design flaw on HP's side, I had to find myself a new computer to use. I narrowed it down to buying a prebuilt system or building my own. I have never really put together my own computer before--though I've seen both my brothers do it--so I thought it would be an awesome challenge or at least a good learning experience. So now, I knew i wanted to build my own but I had a hard time deciding what parts I wanted and on top of that, I have completely lost touch with what any of those parts do or if they are compatible, etc, etc. I researched for a few weeks, learned, and even relearned, computer mumbo jumbo and by that point my brain nearly exploded. However, thanks to a few friends of mine, I finally settled and ordered the parts from NewEgg.ca and DirectCanada.ca. (more on the specs later)

Now the whole ordering parts was an experience on itself. My advisors pointed me towards NewEgg as their prices were apparently much cheaper and its services much better. So as I filled my shopping cart with the things I set out to get, and clicked my way to the checkout, I noticed that their was two different shipping charges. I gasped but I wasn't really surprised since I knew the case itself was a totally different shipment, hence the two shipping costs. Then I remembered how DirectCanada had a deal where if you spend more than $300, the shipping is free (I ordered a sweet monitor from them a few months back). So after a few tweaks and juggling I got the essential parts (cpu, mobo, ram, gpu) from NewEgg and the case and miscellaneous from DirectCanada. So after a few more clicks and last minute review, I checked out and placed my order. Everything was well and good, or so I thought.

After a few minutes of relief, a thought popped into my head that i did not have enough credit on my card to purchase the things i ordered. And then i was like, dammmnnnnnn, and cancelled the newegg order. However, it turns out that newegg places a hold on your card as soon as you check anything out and my limit has already exceeded by that point. So, both orders did not go through.

The whole ordeal did not stop there, as I then requested the help of Lauren to purchase the items for me and I would later pay her back. The idea was brilliant! I ordered the parts, checked out and waited a few days. Turns out, the number on her card was not the same as the number she placed on the order (she never had to put her number on any online order before and she has moved a few times since getting her card). So the orders once again were void.

Now I was a tad fed up and finally the holds on my credit card were fixed (it took a while after for Lauren's to free up). Then I finally ordered the parts mostly from my credit card and the remainder on Lauren's. This time, after changing the numbers on the card, the DirectCanada orders went through. I finally had a shipment. However, the NewEgg ones were still processing. A few days pass and it's still processing. A couple more and I receive an email saying that the shipping address is not the same on the card as it was on the order. I had no idea what it was talking about but soon after I learned that you can actually set up a shipping address onto your account on the card. It was some genius way for NewEgg to prevent false orders or fraud i guess. I appreciate all the security, but I wish it told me somewhere before ordering or something that that was the case as i never heard of it before! So after getting all the shipping address stuff fixed on my card I click on the update button on my order and pray. The next day i get an email saying my order was cancelled because NewEgg has a 5 day limit on processing any orders. Eff my heart!

So then I had to wait a few more days for them to even remove the hold from my card so I can order it again! Such a hassle. Then finally I was able to place the orders one more time. By now, I have already received the first shipment from DirectCanada, sans the case, because there was some mixup with the Toronto Warehouse. I called and it was shipped that same day. So now the NewEgg order is still processing but I did place the order as Express. The processing took about 2 and a half days even after I went to their online support chat and pleaded my case to them and was told that my order processing would be expedited. Not the case.

Finally, my order was shipped out but by then it was the end of the week. I was still hopeful since it was thursday and they would have a whole day to ship my order on friday. Friday came and went and the shipment went only as far as Toronto. It arrived in Toronto at 1 in the morning and i thought that my order would then be shipped at least a few hours later to Charlottetown. Not the case again. The order was awaiting transfer there and the weekend came and went. Monday was Civic Holiday and so they weren't shipping then. Then Tuesday came and there was no activity til about 7pm where it was oddly enough on route to somewhere in northern ontario. I figured i wouldn't have my shipment til the next week by then.

However, somehow the following day, the shipment arrived in Charlottetown and i was ecstatic. Although it was one of the most frustrating orders I've ever placed, NewEgg was courteous enough to refund me a few dollars for my troubles. So Finally... my computer has arrived.

Here's a little teaser: Antec 902 Computer Case

--- Stay tuned for Part 2!