Assembling a dice rig

ghost_recon88 · Mar 25, 2008

I just setup my first water rig last month, and now after browsing XS, dice looks pretty interesting and intriguing. I plan on running it on the following setup (CPU only though).

Asus Commando
2x1GB Ballistix 8500
9800GTX
Seagate 120GB SATA
DVD-ROM

So I had a few questions.

First off, I've seen the 45nm Wolfdales hitting some insane FSB, and I don't want my RAM to be the limiting factor here so do you think the Ballistix can keep up?

Also is the IP35-E board gonna hold up under dice? Is it capable of a monster FSB? The CPU vcore options are definitely there.

Also can anyone recommend a good temp measuring probe?

I have a HX620 PSU in my main rig, but I need to pick up a 2nd PSU for this one. Considering its only gonna be powering the board, video, RAM, CPU, and a single HDD, could I sneak by with say a 500 watt?

And last but not least, a good beginners dice pot? I checked the classifieds and didn't see any

Diddyu · Mar 25, 2008

The board 'should' be fine, but I'd wait for someone with one of those to say so. As for the memory, it all depends on what ratios youre looking for, But if you already have the memory, I say try them, and then you could always get a new pair later if you need to.

apintojr · Mar 25, 2008

i've seen alot of threads bashing the crucial ram. alot of DOA, unstable stories.

ghost_recon88 · Mar 25, 2008

I'm looking to run the RAM 1:1, so preferably I want something that can do 1200MHz. Right now I have the G-Skill 8500 2x1GB kit. And as far as the board goes, its a budget board so if it dies, no big loss.

El<(')>Maxi · Mar 25, 2008

For your first try with extreme cooling I'd focus more on getting the DI mix correct, keeping temperatures consistent, protecting your hardware (cheap or not) and going as far as you can with what you have. The ram may or may not cooperate, you won't know until you try it out. Good luck, it's addictive

ghost_recon88 · Mar 25, 2008

Well, I decided to keep the IP35-E in my main rig, and just snagged an Asus Commando for the dice bed. The P965 chipset seems to be doing a lot better with 45nm pieces of sillicon than any other chipset. I take it I'm gonna need aftermarket coolers on the NB and SB? Any suggestions on those? Any other points on the mobo that need aftermarket cooling?

prime81 · Mar 25, 2008

I have a Maximus Formula, I've gotten it to post 533fsb once... cannot replicate, I'm 90% sure it could do it. Most likely a setting I haven't tweaked yet keeping me from having a 1:1 with my pc8500 ram.

I had a Commando previously, and I know for a fact it will do 500fsb, beyond that I never tried.

ghost_recon88 · Mar 25, 2008

A lot of people are breaking 600MHz FSB with the Commando, which is why I chose it.

cabose1227 · Mar 25, 2008

How do you have 2 9800gtx's if they arent out yet?

sno.lcn · Mar 25, 2008

ghost_recon88 said:
Well, I decided to keep the IP35-E in my main rig, and just snagged an Asus Commando for the dice bed. The P965 chipset seems to be doing a lot better with 45nm pieces of sillicon than any other chipset. I take it I'm gonna need aftermarket coolers on the NB and SB? Any suggestions on those? Any other points on the mobo that need aftermarket cooling?

I don't think you need an aftermarket nb or sb cooler, I just use a fan on mine. If you do get one, I like the swiftec ones. Make sure you have a fan on your ram. Every time my ballistix have died I have not had a fan on them and, odly enough, had the voltage set too LOW :shrug:

Make sure you insulate well. There's a great guide at XS for insulating, but I'm sure you've already seen it. Smaller pieces of dice work best, I crush mine into snow

Also turn it on before you bring the pot temperature down. Let it hang out in BIOS while you make it cold (that's just how I do it) because if it's too cold it probably won't turn on. And I'm assuming you remember where to post your benchmark scores right?

inkfx · Mar 25, 2008

cabose1227 said:
How do you have 2 9800gtx's if they arent out yet?

I think there were 3 for sale over at XS. He may have picked up 2 of them.

Like Maxi said, your first run is a pure learning experience. Get a hang of what you need to do before you jump into any serious benching.

ghost_recon88 · Mar 25, 2008

cabose1227 said:
How do you have 2 9800gtx's if they arent out yet?

They're not "in-hand" yet

inkfx said:
I think there were 3 for sale over at XS. He may have picked up 2 of them.

Like Maxi said, your first run is a pure learning experience. Get a hang of what you need to do before you jump into any serious benching.

I just bought a E2180 for $60 to go in my IP35-E to replace my E8400 (which I had to sell to gather funds for the dice rig) so I plan on using that as my guinea pig in the Asus Commando with dice. Any suggestion on RAM? I just found out my G-Skills won't do 1000 @ 4-4-4-12, and the Ballistix have a high death rate. Not sure if I want to use my Kingston KHX-9600 sticks in this or not...

Sam__ · Mar 25, 2008

ooo... iv always been tempted by DI... a little to scared to tho. please post pics n stuff when u do it.

ghost_recon88 · Mar 25, 2008

Sam__ said:
ooo... iv always been tempted by DI... a little to scared to tho. please post pics n stuff when u do it.

Will do. Debating about whether to build a custom benching station this weekend, or just pick up a cheap plastic one from Home Depot and drill holes in it

inkfx · Mar 25, 2008

I'd go straight for the Kingston. IIRC, that's D9 GKX. Should clock like a dream.

HDCHOPPER · Mar 26, 2008

a lot if diceing goes on at vr-zone ya the rams should make it but never scrimp on PWR your gonna need sum good pwr to start pushing high volts ( which is safe with dice)

sounds like your gonna have lots of fun !!
night raven & aussi team dice a lot and post at vr-zone ever a few vidios

and ya the seceret seems to be getting your pots cool down habit down pat .

eyem waiting for the foxconn black op's x 48 board now to start playing with dice but my pot is a getto copper plumbing tube woih a cap brazed on the bottom so nothing fancy

may not even work

ghost_recon88 · Mar 27, 2008

Thing about the X38 and X48 boards if they're very FSB crippled due to having 2x PCI-Express 16x lanes which puts a load of stress on the NB, same goes for the 780i and 790i board which is a shame

No 6GHz X-fire or SLI 3DMark06 runs except on Skulltrail boards

Dawgdoc · Mar 27, 2008

Maxi and Sno are EXPERIENCED subzero benchers. I would listen to their advice.

For cheap pots Duniek over at XS makes and sells aluminum ones for less than $100 shipped I think.

Ive only ever used k|ngp|ns (also XS)pots for both CPU and GPU, and unless something else comes around that is supposedly better I wont use anything else. The pots are top notch quality and work very very well in my hands. Plus he is just a super super cool guy so I support him 100%

They are more expensive than Dunieks though......but hey...you get what you pay for

Good lucK! Insulate WELL. All of your stuff should be fine, and IMHO I think once you get the hang of subzero that ram will indeed most likely limit your OC. PC8500 DDR2 is SOOOOO cheap right now you can pick up 2 X 1 gb of good stuff for less than $50. I see Corsair XMS2 PC8500 2 X 1 gb all the time for like $30-$35, and Corsair PC8500 Dominator 2 x 1 gb for like $60ish.

First run is a learning experience yes, but I think I got some of my best clocks on my Q6600/P5K combo my very first night so it can be a positive bench experience. Dont get discouraged if it isnt though.....When I started LN2 it took me like a week before I could even run a single bench

ghost_recon88 · Mar 27, 2008

Dawgdoc said:
Maxi and Sno are EXPERIENCED subzero benchers. I would listen to their advice.

For cheap pots Duniek over at XS makes and sells aluminum ones for less than $100 shipped I think.

Ive only ever used k|ngp|ns (also XS)pots for both CPU and GPU, and unless something else comes around that is supposedly better I wont use anything else. The pots are top notch quality and work very very well in my hands. Plus he is just a super super cool guy so I support him 100%

They are more expensive than Dunieks though......but hey...you get what you pay for

Good lucK! Insulate WELL. All of your stuff should be fine, and IMHO I think once you get the hang of subzero that ram will indeed most likely limit your OC. PC8500 DDR2 is SOOOOO cheap right now you can pick up 2 X 1 gb of good stuff for less than $50. I see Corsair XMS2 PC8500 2 X 1 gb all the time for like $30-$35, and Corsair PC8500 Dominator 2 x 1 gb for like $60ish.

First run is a learning experience yes, but I think I got some of my best clocks on my Q6600/P5K combo my very first night so it can be a positive bench experience. Dont get discouraged if it isnt though.....When I started LN2 it took me like a week before I could even run a single bench

I actually swapped that 6400 for some Ballistix 8500 last night

And I actually have Duniek's $160 pot on order now

Should have the complete thing running in about 2 weeks due to waiting on the pot.

rdrash · Apr 1, 2008

El<(')>Maxi said:
Good luck, it's addictive

to say the least.....I NEED MORE!!!!! :beer:

Assembling a dice rig

Senior Jedi Master

Member

Member

Senior Jedi Master

Blank Senior Member

Senior Jedi Master

Member

Senior Jedi Master

Member

Senior2 Member

Member

Senior Jedi Master

Member

Senior Jedi Master

Member

Member

Senior Jedi Master

Member

Senior Jedi Master

Senior Member, Benching Team Member

Similar threads