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rocinante2003 · 08-05-2003, 08:44 AM

Great post...

Assuming your not building any complex setup with raid arrays etc, these notes may be useful.

It sure does look complicated, but its actually relatively easy. I suggest reading the motherboard manual first and find out the following.

IDE Interface connection.. Where they are and which one is Primary and secondary. The hard drive connects to the Master and the CD rom to the secondary. You will use 2 seperate cables, and you need to check your Hard drive/CD rom are both set to Master Device. You will find a little plastic block (jumper) near the 40 pin connecter that will usually be set to master. If not, pull it off and position it accordingly.

Floppy Drive Interface. No master or slave factors here.

FSB (Front Side Bus) jumper on motherboard... Without knowing what motherboard you purchased, most are jumperless with only a few options. Make sure you set your FSB jumper if your motherboard has one.

Install your motherboard into your case. Make sure you get the correct case/PS for your motherboard (ATX usually). Be careful to instal the correct motherboard supports in your case, or buy a case that has pre molded motherboard supports. This will take a few minutes or patience depending on the case you purchase.

I usually instal the CPU/memory before placing the motherboard into the case. I install the CPU fan also, because the presure needed to clip the heatsink on is very high, and i like to keep the motherboard on the anti static foam pad that protects it during shipment to even the presure across the board. This is also a good time to make any Jumper adjustments on the motherboard.

Once the motherboard is connected to the case, plug the ATX power connector to the white socket on the motherboard. Make sure you dont have any power going to the Power supply/case.

I usually conect the STUPID!!!! case light connectors at this time. This part is a pain in the butt, I wish someone would just standardise this to become a plug. (rant over) You will need to have the motherboard manual open on the diagram that has the pin outputs for the case connection. The case will have markings on the plugs for these cables, such as SPKR, or P-LED. If when your ready to power your PC up, and you dont get a light illuminate as expected, check you have it in the correct way + -

Instal your hard drive, floppy and CDrom drive to the case, and Instal the IDE (flat) cables into the motherboard, then connect them to your drives. As mentioned, the Red (not always, sometimes black etc) is Pin 1, and must align to pin one on the device.

You will need to connect a white power (molex) connector to your hard drive and CD rom, and then a smaller white power connector to the Floppy.

*****VERY IMPORTANT****
Connect the CPU Heatsink Fan to the motherboard's CPU-Fan power output. Check the location in the manual.

Instal your case fans, and if you have the option, connect them to the motherboards case fan power outlets, do so.

Remember to check the fans blowing direction. I usually pull air in from the front, and blow out the back.

Instal your VGA card only at this time to make sure your system will power on. If sucessfull, instal your Modem, network cards, or what ever your system requires.

Check List..

Motherboard has Power from Power Supply.
Motherboard has Memory, CPU and heatsink.
Heatsink is connected to a power source on motherboard
Hard Drive, CD rom and Floppy have an IDE cable and Power
Case is connected to motherboard via cables (reset, Power etc)
Motherboard Jumpers (FSB etc) are correct
Fans powered and pointing the correct way
Power supply has correct voltage (110 USA) - caught me out many times.

Power on and stand back. You should access your system Bios and make sure you can see your Hard Drives, and CD rom.
Make changes such as first boot device etc. I usually watch the status page with the fan speeds, temps and voltages for a minute or two.

IF you dont see the CPU fan spinning, pull the plug.

I hope this helps a little

08-05-2003, 08:44 AM	#13 (permalink)
rocinante2003 Insane Location: Dallas	Great post... Assuming your not building any complex setup with raid arrays etc, these notes may be useful. It sure does look complicated, but its actually relatively easy. I suggest reading the motherboard manual first and find out the following. IDE Interface connection.. Where they are and which one is Primary and secondary. The hard drive connects to the Master and the CD rom to the secondary. You will use 2 seperate cables, and you need to check your Hard drive/CD rom are both set to Master Device. You will find a little plastic block (jumper) near the 40 pin connecter that will usually be set to master. If not, pull it off and position it accordingly. Floppy Drive Interface. No master or slave factors here. FSB (Front Side Bus) jumper on motherboard... Without knowing what motherboard you purchased, most are jumperless with only a few options. Make sure you set your FSB jumper if your motherboard has one. Install your motherboard into your case. Make sure you get the correct case/PS for your motherboard (ATX usually). Be careful to instal the correct motherboard supports in your case, or buy a case that has pre molded motherboard supports. This will take a few minutes or patience depending on the case you purchase. I usually instal the CPU/memory before placing the motherboard into the case. I install the CPU fan also, because the presure needed to clip the heatsink on is very high, and i like to keep the motherboard on the anti static foam pad that protects it during shipment to even the presure across the board. This is also a good time to make any Jumper adjustments on the motherboard. Once the motherboard is connected to the case, plug the ATX power connector to the white socket on the motherboard. Make sure you dont have any power going to the Power supply/case. I usually conect the STUPID!!!! case light connectors at this time. This part is a pain in the butt, I wish someone would just standardise this to become a plug. (rant over) You will need to have the motherboard manual open on the diagram that has the pin outputs for the case connection. The case will have markings on the plugs for these cables, such as SPKR, or P-LED. If when your ready to power your PC up, and you dont get a light illuminate as expected, check you have it in the correct way + - Instal your hard drive, floppy and CDrom drive to the case, and Instal the IDE (flat) cables into the motherboard, then connect them to your drives. As mentioned, the Red (not always, sometimes black etc) is Pin 1, and must align to pin one on the device. You will need to connect a white power (molex) connector to your hard drive and CD rom, and then a smaller white power connector to the Floppy. ***VERY IMPORTANT** Connect the CPU Heatsink Fan to the motherboard's CPU-Fan power output. Check the location in the manual. Instal your case fans, and if you have the option, connect them to the motherboards case fan power outlets, do so. Remember to check the fans blowing direction. I usually pull air in from the front, and blow out the back. Instal your VGA card only at this time to make sure your system will power on. If sucessfull, instal your Modem, network cards, or what ever your system requires. Check List.. Motherboard has Power from Power Supply. Motherboard has Memory, CPU and heatsink. Heatsink is connected to a power source on motherboard Hard Drive, CD rom and Floppy have an IDE cable and Power Case is connected to motherboard via cables (reset, Power etc) Motherboard Jumpers (FSB etc) are correct Fans powered and pointing the correct way Power supply has correct voltage (110 USA) - caught me out many times. Power on and stand back. You should access your system Bios and make sure you can see your Hard Drives, and CD rom. Make changes such as first boot device etc. I usually watch the status page with the fan speeds, temps and voltages for a minute or two. IF you dont see the CPU fan spinning, pull the plug. I hope this helps a little Last edited by rocinante2003; 08-05-2003 at 08:47 AM..