Silverstone TJ04-E : First Ever Build

[AdmiralAdama]

This is my first attempt at building a computer myself. Must say it was a lot of fun and will do it again next time. Just a simple build that didn't break the bank.

Most of the components. Still waiting for my Crucial M4 128GB SSD
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0305.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0315.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0317.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0318.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0321.jpg

Some fans to replace the stock ones
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0307.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0331.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0332.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0335.jpg

Motherboard
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0311.jpg

AMD A8 3870K APU
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0312.jpg

APU in Motherboard
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0328.jpg

Cooler
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0314.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0329.jpg

G.Skill Ares 8GB 1866 Ram
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0306.jpg

Tight Fit
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0342.jpg

Power Supply
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0309.jpg

Out of Case Test
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0341.jpg

Boot Screen
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0340.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0343.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0344.jpg

Zalman MFC3 Fan Controller
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0346.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0348.jpg

Running wires for the Zalman was a bit of a pain
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0351.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0349.jpg

http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0353.jpg

Sapphire 6670 to run dual graphics with the APU
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0361.jpg

Storage Drive
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0308.jpg

First attempt at cable management
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0363.jpg

The Zalman at work
http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n597/HighPitchEric/DSCF0366.jpg

[EvilJoker]

Nice build.. but that red sound card you got installed.. looks like a cheapo from eBay.. Everythings looks nice.. and yea,,, building a PC can be fun. But it can **** you off something crazy... Can **** you off faster than ya ol'lady :-D

[AdmiralAdama]

Nice build.. but that red sound card you got installed.. looks like a cheapo from eBay.. Everythings looks nice.. and yea,,, building a PC can be fun. But it can **** you off something crazy... Can **** you off faster than ya ol'lady :-D

Not a sound card. I'm using the onboard sound, it's a PCI USB card so I have extra USB ports for all my external hard drives.:D

[RollingThunder]

Not a sound card. I'm using the onboard sound, it's a PCI USB card so I have extra USB ports for all my external hard drives.:D

Nice, clean job Admiral. :thup:

:welcome:

[mjw21a]

Dude, I almost got off on that build. Love your choice of components, and better cable management than I've ever done, period. Not a big fan of the tiny video card, or lack of add in sound card, though every component you've used is a top notch premium component. Amazing first build, congratulations mate! :thup:

I'm curious though. Why'd you go with an APU? Were you looking to use Hybrid crossfire to save on power or is this a HTPC build?

I'm just waiting for my TJ04-E to arrive now.... If only it would arrive before the weekend :(

[MattNo5ss]

Wow, that CPU heatsink is a low rider, the Ares RAM doesn't even have extended heatsinks. Can you turn the heatsink 90 degrees and mount it so the fan pushes air through the heatsink and the exhaust fan pulls it straight out the back of the case?

Very nice case selection, Silverstone makes some top notch cases, in my opinion.

[mjw21a]

Wow, that CPU heatsink is a low rider, the Ares RAM doesn't even have extended heatsinks. Can you turn the heatsink 90 degrees and mount it so the fan pushes air through the heatsink and the exhaust fan pulls it straight out the back of the case?

Very nice case selection, Silverstone makes some top notch cases, in my opinion.

But why? He's got 2x Scyth fans exhausting air out the top of his case..... :confused:

From the pictures above the heatsink uses AMD's stock retention mechanism so it doens't look like it couldn't be rotated anyway.

[MattNo5ss]

Actually those Scythe fans are setup as intakes...they should be flipped. Right now, the heatsink fan and top fans are pushing against each other...

Turning the heatsink could keep it from interfering with RAM slots.

[mjw21a]

Actually those Scythe fans are setup as intakes...they should be flipped. Right now, the heatsink fan and top fans are pushing against each other...

Turning the heatsink could keep it from interfering with RAM slots.
Wow, I didn't notice that..... He's got every fan set up as an intake with the exception of the rear fan...... Definitely swap those fans around so that the suck air out of the case dude...... Also, move that rear fan to the second fan intake in behind the hard drive cages. This should give you better airflow overall. I still think a bottom fan would be a good idea though to maintain possitive pressure.

I'd probably either remove the rear fan OR add a fan to the bottom of the case as well so you don't have negative air pressure. Negative pressure tend to be noiser and sucks in more dust.

Very nice build though :salute:

[AdmiralAdama]

Not a big fan of the tiny video card, or lack of add in sound card, though every component you've used is a top notch premium component. Amazing first build, congratulations mate! :thup:

I'm curious though. Why'd you go with an APU? Were you looking to use Hybrid crossfire to save on power or is this a HTPC build?

Video card was VERY cheap. Might pick up a 7950 or 7970 this summer. I'm hoping when kepler comes out the prices might drop a bit.

This is mostly for HD movies and TV with some mild gaming. Always had Intel/Nvidia in the past and wanted to try AMD for a change. Glad I did It's actually a cracking little chip seems faster with better graphics then my Q9300 and GTX260. Might upgrade to Piledriver whenever it comes out.

[AdmiralAdama]

Wow, I didn't notice that..... He's got every fan set up as an intake with the exception of the rear fan...... Definitely swap those fans around so that the suck air out of the case dude...... Also, move that rear fan to the second fan intake in behind the hard drive cages. This should give you better airflow overall. I still think a bottom fan would be a good idea though to maintain possitive pressure.

I'd probably either remove the rear fan OR add a fan to the bottom of the case as well so you don't have negative air pressure. Negative pressure tend to be noiser and sucks in more dust.

Very nice build though :salute:

Motherboard won't let me mount it at a 90' angle. Runs very cool 28c idle and 37c under Prime95.

Might turn fans around and move rear fan to the bottom. Definitely want to maintain positive pressure to keep as much dust out as possible. Thanks for the suggestions :thup:

[mjw21a]

If you get a chance, grab a 3rd fan to place in the additional fan space behind your HDD's. I don't know which fans push more air, the Silverstone case fans or the Scythes, as such even after moving the rear fan to the bottom you may be using negative air pressure if the Scyth fans push more air.....

Hmmmm, you may be able to get a Trinity APU to fit the board. They're based on Piledriver so should go pretty well.

[AdmiralAdama]

If you get a chance, grab a 3rd fan to place in the additional fan space behind your HDD's. I don't know which fans push more air, the Silverstone case fans or the Scythes, as such even after moving the rear fan to the bottom you may be using negative air pressure if the Scyth fans push more air.....

Hmmmm, you may be able to get a Trinity APU to fit the board. They're based on Piledriver so should go pretty well.

Have the Silverstone fans I took out of the case, can use one of those for behind the HDD's. With the Zalman hooked up to them they're dead silent so will save me from buying new fans.
Now if only my Crucial M4 128GB SSD would show up tomorrow I'll be able to finish it all at once. :thup:

[mjw21a]

Have the Silverstone fans I took out of the case, can use one of those for behind the HDD's. With the Zalman hooked up to them they're dead silent so will save me from buying new fans.
Now if only my Crucial M4 128GB SSD would show up tomorrow I'll be able to finish it all at once. :thup:

Cool, that'll work well. 3 intake fans and 2 top exhaust fans. ;)

Hmmmm, I know what you mean. I wish my new Silverstone TJ04-E would arrive before the weekend, though I think it'll show up Monday or Tuesday :cry:

How did you find the case to work on? Half of the reviewers complained it was difficult, while the other half said it was great to work on.... :shrug:

[AdmiralAdama]

Cool, that'll work well. 3 intake fans and 2 top exhaust fans. ;)

Hmmmm, I know what you mean. I wish my new Silverstone TJ04-E would arrive before the weekend, though I think it'll show up Monday or Tuesday :cry:

How did you find the case to work on? Half of the reviewers complained it was difficult, while the other half said it was great to work on.... :shrug:

Wonderful case to work on. Definitely worth the extra money. Very easy for cable management, you can almost fit a Volkswagen behind the motherboard tray so LOTS of room for wires. LOVE THIS CASE!

[mjw21a]

Yeah, I've wanted a Silverstone case for nearly 10 years now. With shipping and insurance I ended up paying $220 Australian for mine.

Thats $35 more than my previously most costly case, an Antec Performance Plus 660AMG from back in the Pentium 3 era. I'd usually never spend so much, especially when I have a caes that already does the job. Thing is, I saw this case, read the reviews and then had to have it.

How are you finding the case noise wise?

[AdmiralAdama]

How are you finding the case noise wise?

Seems very quiet. Have the fans set to 600 rpm and can't hear them at all. Not sure what they sound like wide open haven't turned them up yet.

[mjw21a]

I'd not worry about it. You're never likely to need them running faster.

[AdmiralAdama]

Switched my fans around today and temps drop close to 4c at idle. Went from 28.9c to 25.1c at idle room temp is 23c. So I guess that increased the air flow. Thanks for the suggestions.

[mjw21a]

No worries, very happy to help. Also, your confirmation of temp drops confirms that the fan configuration I'll be using will work when I get mine ;)

Can you take an angled photo so we can see all the fans in their current config? How many fans are you now running? 4 or 5?

[AdmiralAdama]

No worries, very happy to help. Also, your confirmation of temp drops confirms that the fan configuration I'll be using will work when I get mine ;)

Can you take an angled photo so we can see all the fans in their current config? How many fans are you now running? 4 or 5?

Using 5 fans. 2 exhaust and 3 intake. Moved one of the top fans behind HDD's and added a fan on bottom. Rear and top are exhaust. 2 fans behind HDD's and bottom fan are intake.

[mjw21a]

Using 5 fans. 2 exhaust and 3 intake. Moved one of the top fans behind HDD's and added a fan on bottom. Rear and top are exhaust. 2 fans behind HDD's and bottom fan are intake.

Cool, I set mine up like that today. Recieved it delivered at work. Downside is the top filter is missing, though the supplier is following up with Silverstone. Hopefully will recieve that in the next month or so.

The 2x HDD fans inn,bottom fan in, and 2x fans on my H100 blowing out the top. Well they would be but my cooling isn't powering up..... The molex cable is a bit dodgy so I might have to resolder it on a new molex connector.

Getting 2x re sumbean CFL's.... Not sure whether I'll like them or not so they may not actually say in there.

[AdmiralAdama]

Too bad about the top filter. Should look sweet with the lights. :thup:

[mjw21a]

My Corsair H100 died in the change. Turned the computer on, got a burning smell..... It was the Corsair H100. Now totally dead..... Anyway, picked up a Noctua NF-P14 so it'll be up and running again soon

[mjw21a]

Well, got mine up and going. Doesn't look anywhere near as clean as yours. I did route the cables where possible, though I just stuffed everything out of the way around the back.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/427060_10150592214201666_706451665_9256374_1215879 258_n.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/425367_10150592214526666_706451665_9256375_6852978 51_n.jpg

https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/430760_10150592214751666_706451665_9256376_2039406 629_n.jpg

I've got to say though that with the Noctua instead of the H100 my temps have risen about 8C which is a bit of a downer, the upside is that I now can't hear my computer at all. Got to love the silence, it was a worthwhile tradeoff.

You may have noticed the top fan grille is missing. Silverstone left it out of the case, my supplier is getting one in and will send it to me once recieved.

[AdmiralAdama]

Looks great. :thup: WOW that's one beast of a cooler. The silence is great isn't it. My last computer sounded like a jet plane sitting beside me which is why I built this one.

[mjw21a]

Yeah, my computer was insanely noisy when I had my Delta's in it.... I think you have to go through that every 10 years or so to learn to appreciate silence all over again.