Upgrading computer

Art Scott · December 25, 2008

Yesterday I received a large box containing a XFX 8200 MOBO, a 700watt PS, Amd 64 dual core cpu, HUUUGe cpu fan and 4gb ram........

the manual to the mobo doesn't say which ram slots to place only 2 sticks of ram in.......can't hurt if wrong just won't recognize it....Correct?? My instincts say slot 1 & 2 .....

gonna try and stuff all this into my HP vectra 400 case.....but the PS has such large (due to insulation) and so many wires I begining to wonder where it will all fit.......

hoping I can migrate from an IDE drive to my new SATA drive.....as there is only one IDE header on this board and that is needed for the burners I have in the case........

I know compared to the HP Vectra 400 this new hardware should really scream..............

gotta go get my courage worked up to start the remove and replace of hardware.....and to find a staic free work space to put in the cpu.......

Scott_Quier · December 25, 2008

Art Scott wrote:

Yesterday I received a large box containing a XFX 8200 MOBO, a 700watt PS, Amd 64 dual core cpu, HUUUGe cpu fan and 4gb ram........

Congrats - sounds like fun. I've built quite a few computers from parts. It's fun!

Art Scott wrote:

the manual to the mobo doesn't say which ram slots to place only 2 sticks of ram in.......can't hurt if wrong just won't recognize it....Correct?? My instincts say slot 1 & 2 .....

Your first assumption is correct - it will not hurt the mem and, worst case, it won't be recognized by the computer. Stuff it in there, power it up and if it's wrong you won't get far. Then just move the stick that's in 2 to slot 3.

Art Scott wrote:

gonna try and stuff all this into my HP vectra 400 case.....but the PS has such large (due to insulation) and so many wires I begining to wonder where it will all fit.......

hoping I can migrate from an IDE drive to my new SATA drive.....as there is only one IDE header on this board and that is needed for the burners I have in the case........

IDE headers will support two drives - but I guess you already know that. As for the migrationfrom IDE to SATA - you're going to have to install the O/S from scratch anyway so no real issue.

Art Scott wrote:

I know compared to the HP Vectra 400 this new hardware should really scream..............

gotta go get my courage worked up to start the remove and replace of hardware.....and to find a staic free work space to put in the cpu.......

Something that may help a bit - set up in a small(ish) room. Get a ultrasonic humidifier and run that for a while to bring up the humidity in that room - this will cut down the chances for static discharge to almost zero. Remove all man-made fabric clothing with natural fiber. If you can, reduce the amount of heating into that room. This will also help to raise the relative humidity. And, if you really want to go to the extreme, get piece of wire, strip both ends, stick one end in your mouth and attach the other to the electronics you are working on.

What helps a lot is to install the CPU on the M/B before you mount the M/B into the case - it's easier to do it this way anyway. I mount the CPU, the CPU fan, and memory before I install the M/B into the case. Only once has this proven to be a mistake and I had to remove the memory before I could install the board.

Looking forward to hearing how it goes for you.

Art Scott · December 25, 2008

Scott_Quier wrote:

Congrats - As for the migrationfrom IDE to SATA - you're going to have to install the O/S from scratch anyway so no real issue.

Oh no this is not good.....I have no disk....I was just going to migrate all software to the new SATA drive and run with it...........just like I did going from a 80gb hdd to 320hdd and then formatting the older drives for back ups....

I already had figured on upping the humidity and as for cooling ...welll..... I do not use a furnace....haven't in over 13yrs.....home stays a nice cool brisk but never under 36*F in coldest winter......but figured if I need to just wire up to my telephone ground outside window and that should be good enuff or kitchen water faucet....water making the best ground........

Well I will see how it goes...worse case I will have to order an XP disk or a Vista Ultim......but did not want to do that untill I was ready to go 64Bit......dang.................

Thanx Scott for confirming what I thought on all of this......

Scott_Quier · December 26, 2008

Art Scott wrote:

Oh no this is not good.....I have no disk....I was just going to migrate all software to the new SATA drive and run with it...........just like I did going from a 80gb hdd to 320hdd and then formatting the older drives for back ups....

I already had figured on upping the humidity and as for cooling ...welll..... I do not use a furnace....haven't in over 13yrs.....home stays a nice cool brisk but never under 36*F in coldest winter......but figured if I need to just wire up to my telephone ground outside window and that should be good enuff or kitchen water faucet....water making the best ground........

Well I will see how it goes...worse case I will have to order an XP disk or a Vista Ultim......but did not want to do that untill I was ready to go 64Bit......dang.................

Thanx Scott for confirming what I thought on all of this......

You may get away with doing a simple ghost image from one drive to the next and then updating the drivers. But an update of some of the drivers is going to be needed to accommodate the new hardware on the M/B.

My opinion - skip Vista. Microsoft is pushing it hard in TV ads and the like and for a reason. It's not selling.

If you decide you do need to buy another copy of XP, I've had very good luck with VioSoftare. You can get WinXP for $139.

Art Scott · December 26, 2008

Scott_Quier wrote:

You may get away with doing a simple ghost image from one drive to the next and then updating the drivers. But an update of some of the drivers is going to be needed to accommodate the new hardware on the M/B.

My opinion - skip Vista. Microsoft is pushing it hard in TV ads and the like and for a reason. It's not selling.

If you decide you do need to buy another copy of XP, I've had very good luck with VioSoftare. You can get WinXP for $139.

Thanx Scott.......I now understand what you mean.....and thanx for the link to Viosoftware.

Upgrading computer

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