Barebones Building: Asus C90s!

Barebones Building: Asus C90s! UPDATED WITH REVIEW!

REVIEW!!!! Click me!

Well, since I've moved out I had to sell my rig to afford a deductible for a car accident and I was left with an old Athlon XP/512mb RAM/Ti 4200 rig. I haven't been able to game or do much since then - until now.

I decided to go with the Asus C90s barebone setup for a few reasons. It provides a great screen for gaming, 15.4" WSXGA+ (1680x1050), good CPU choice options such as the e6600! (Yes, a desktop CPU), a MXM II Module for future GPU upgradablity - I know a 8800 won't fit in there unless Asus pulls a rabbit out of their hat for this one but I'm banking on the 9600 series in the future, superior cooling compared to other laptops - it has a row of 4x60mm fans in the back that are actually quite quiet, and last but not least, overclocking - It has 2 modes, 10% OC & 20% OC - 2.93Ghz sounds nice.... This is all automatic however BUT! Stablity testing is still possible. Oh...one last thing. Due to the space I've moved into...the size is very delightful. No more big bad desktop chillin on a dresser...plus lanning will be a wonder.

The final specs I have worked out for this laptop are the following:

Barebones: Asus C90s (duh!)
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo e6600
RAM: 2x1gb Super Talent PC5400 DDR2 667
GPU: nVidia 8600m GT 256mb GDDR3 MXM II
HDD: Western Digital 5400rpm 160gb (I plan on using the eSata port or network storage as well)

All in all, all parts but the CPU are currently ordered. I purchased most from eWiz.com, the 8600 from eBay (eWiz stopped carrying the GDDR3 verision when I went to order...) and the CPU from here! This call came out to be less than $1,300. I think that is pretty good for a performance laptop that will kick in gaming.

Something else I just read - in the production version of the notebooks, manual overclocking will be available through the BIOS. I can't wait!


Edit:Here are some reviews and pictures of the laptop incase anyone is interested.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=142447
http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardware/Reviews/asus_c90s_laptop/2.html

kick arse

It's about time these things started to become more desktopy...no reason not to in my opinion.

You should fabricate a portable watercooling setup

eye of the hawk said:

kick arse

It's about time these things started to become more desktopy...no reason not to in my opinion.

You should fabricate a portable watercooling setup

Click to expand...

Haha Yeah! This lappy is more of a desktop replacement anyways! I did WC all my past rigs too...hmmmmmmmm...I could just get one of those mounting pads with fans...get a thin pump...MCP350...see the possibilities?

By the way, as of tonight, all the parts but the CPU are shipped. CPU is shipped out tomorrow, all should arrive in 2 ~ 5 days!

Edit:Here are some reviews and pictures of the laptop incase anyone is interested.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=142447
http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardware/Reviews/asus_c90s_laptop/2.html

nice that lappy is so much better than my desktop... so im going to la porte and finding where the power draw on the power grid and find you!

EmAn said:

nice that lappy is so much better than my desktop... so im going to la porte and finding where the power draw on the power grid and find you!

Click to expand...

Hehe, just use a thermal camera and you will find me quickly

Update
The videocard arrived today, real quickly even though I purchased it from eBay. However, everything is not all good! When I took the card out of the anti static bag, a quick rush of shock ran over me. Those are DDR2 chips on there...quickly googling the Hynix model numbers, as well as the timing pulls up it is infact DDR2. I contacted the seller on eBay and he was rather surprised, he said the previous owner said it was GDDR3 instead of DDR2, proceeded to contact him just to tell me it was DDR2 and was his mistake in the product description. However the seller was very cool about it, I'm getting a full refund minus $7 from the shipping, so I can send his card back.

After some digging I found the GDDR3 version. EVERYWHERE WAS SOLD OUT AND THE CARD WAS OFF THE MARKET. It just vanished! eWiz, a few places that sell lappies, it was just gone! PriceWatch to the rescue! I found it from a quiet little place on the web, ran me $240 where the one from eBay was only $170. So...price difference is rather large, but worth it in time. I got UPS 2nd Day Air AM shipping so it can get here quick.

The Barebones, RAM & HDD should arrive Wednesday from eWiz, and the CPU should arrive same day as well from inkfx (thanks again!). So...I'm hoping they all show up on the same day.

Should be a very fast laptop! Keep us updated

^I will be sure to

Comcast came out Saturday and hooked up my cable. I got my modem today and once I get out of this dentist office and back home I will finally have fast internet again. Been stuck on 56k for way to long! It's funny these Dell computers they let people who are chilling in the lobby use, the internet wasn't working for some reason and you only have a Guest account, safe mode + Administrator with no password can be deadly! Their IS department could learn a few things from me

Oooo...so nice to be back on high speed.

Small update...huge set back. I called InterProShop today to see why my video card hasn't been shipped yet, apparently they didn't have any in stock. They didn't even care to mark it on their site either, which really steams me off. ETA on arrival from Asus is Dec 7 or 8th. Which lands on Friday/Saturday...which there is no business conducted on weekends...plus 2 day shipping, so next NEXT Wedsenday is when my 8600m will arrive. Big sigh on that...

I figure I owe you guys an update

The laptop has arrived. RAM, Hard Drive, CPU & Wifi (Oh, a router too ). Everything went together just perfect. I'd have to admit now, throwing together a barebone takes no effort at all lol. Its beautiful guys...I've never owned a piece of hardware so sexy. The lid on this laptop is a perfect black mirror finish...the keys are crisp and silent, the internals are well organize, everything!!! Sadly though...SADLY...I CANNOT USE IT YET /cry! - I have no video card hahahha. It was in back order like said before...it should be arriving at the place I ordered it from today or tomorrow, hopefully today so they can get it shipped. If not it should ship next Monday, be here Wednesday morning. My gf's sister took her camera back...time to go beg mommie for her's

i saw this on NCIX. The only problem i had with this one, was the fact that it IS a desktop cpu that is being used. A laptop environment is very warm, and i would be quite hesitant in putting a normal desktop cpu inside.

Although there is one advantage. Eventually, i'll be upgrading to a penryn quad, which leaves me with this e2140. LOL Undervolt it and stick it into something like the C90.

This thread is useless without pics!

Does the laptops chipset support 1333MHz FSB CPUs?

I know it's useless without pictures. My gf's sister took her camera back again, maybe I'll be able to get it back tomorrow.

I'm not sure if it does or not, but my e6600 is currently running at 1066. I just got the video card in from UPS, got it all in there, booted up without a hitch. Fully formatting a fresh hard drive takes soooo long!

Are updates available to this story?

yeah, pictures would be nice. I almost built a c90s, they are sweet laptops.

What's that baby get in 3dmark?

Come on!

ziggo0 how's this build working out?

Hey Guys,
I'm real sorry I haven't updated this thread. It's just every chance I get to actually sit down and tend to my laptop something comes up! I promise tonight I will fully update this thread as well as some pictures (going to steal the camera again heeeee). Here are a few things that might seem promising.

It runs a SuperPI 1M in 18 seconds.
Conroe @ 2.4 (266x9) and my 8600m GT @ 550/1200/475 yeilds 4,100 in 3DMark06.
Conroe at 293x9 with the GPU at the same clocks yeilds 4,300 in 06.

I'll have a way more comprehensive update tonight. I promise ! I have to go get a hair cut and such forth, I may have it sooner

Pics buddy !

I wanna see it apart

This C90s really looks sweet BTW thanks for the links.

*Drum roll please!*

FINALLY! The Review!!!

Pictures
<Insert Disappointment Here>

Sadly, I didn't get a hold of the camera. We have 3ft of snow out, the roads are terrible, my car handles like crap and I can't get over there tonight. However, I will use my cell phone to tide you guys over.

Initial Impressions
Sleek. Shiny. The lid reflects every and anything like a glass mirror. I had a Toshiba many years ago, that ruined my perception on laptops. Now a handful of years later I find myself in need of one. The screen is only a 15.4" WSXGA+ which in person, is rather large compared to other laptops.

Components
The C90S supports the Intel e6300 ~ e6700 series and the x6800 desktop series Conroe CPU. This is one HUGE advantage with this laptop. Low cost of a desktop CPU for BIG power. The downside is mobility and heat. I went with a e6600 for a balance between price and power, as well as compatibility with Asus's method of overclocking. I will explain this more in depth later on. The C90S sports a 15.4" WSXGA+ 1680x1050 LCD Screen. I gotta tell you this is one of the most beautiful screens I've ever gazed into. It's response rate is very VERY fluid, zero ghosting noticeable to my eyes. Extremely bright and vibrant when turned all the way up. I choose a Western Digital 5400rpm 160gb SATA Hard Drive and 2x1gb of Super Talent DDR2 667 for storage and memory. Wireless I went with an Intel PRO 3945 A/B/G because the faster 4956 N supported card has issues with the transfer from AC Mode to Battery. Please click HERE for a full list of ports and other components. It's in the Overview section. One other thing I will expand on later is the MXM II port, which is basically the PCIe slot of laptops.

Portablity
Well, lol. Lets just say this laptop is THE DESKTOP REPLACEMENT. It defines it like no other. It's not terribly to heavy, compared to other laptops it weighs quite a bit but I have no issue carrying around 5 ~ 10lbs. Since it only has a 15.4" screen, its relatively small. It comes with a 6 Cell battery which lasts at full screen brightness, under a casual load - 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Just under half screen brightness will net you about 15 more minutes. The CPU down clocks quite a bit to 175x6 to save power, which in the end helps quite a bit on the battery. If I set it to standard mode, which is 266x9, and screen brightness all the way. I get about 40 ~ 50 minutes to the battery under full load.

Build Quality
I'd have to say it's a lot more solid that I imagined. The keyboard is pretty firm, just about zero flexibility in it. The screens supports its own weight quite well. There is no clip or latch to hold the lid down, it's weighs so much that it keeps its self down. The access panel on the bottom is quite thin but very durable.

Gaming
Ahh yes, gaming. Almost the sole purpose I choose the C90S. I play a lot of Source based games such as Counter-Strike. I run 1680x1050, all high settings, no HDR (personal preference), 0xAA // 8xAF and score 125fps in the test. With the same settings except HDR enabled, it lands 73fps in the Lost Coast Stress Test. Call of Duty 4 is EXTREMELY playable at max settings. Usually 25fps min and up to 35 ~ 50fps max pending the scenario. 1680x1050, all high settings, 0xAA and 4xAF. Oblivion as well runs superb. 1680x1050, a tweaked config to manage vaugly high settings with grass and HDR, 20 ~ 30, even higher in doors areas.

Temperatures and Overclocking
Here is one of the key points of the C90S. It can overclock. The BIOS is limited to a maximum frequency of 2.93ghz. That sucks you may think but due to issues with heat dissipation, the limitation of 2.93ghz seems rather high. To overclock you must use a program called Turbo Gear. TUrbo Gear has 4 settings. Low Power, which is automatically turned on when running on the battery. This sets the FSB to 175, with speed step it automatically changes between 6x and 9x. When plugged in, Standard Mode is activated. This results in stock speed, which is 266fsb. Gaming mode, is a 10% increase to the FSB which results in 293fsb. Now, there is no voltage increasement when set to Gaming Mode as of BIOS version 801, but 902 was just released and apparently there is a voltage 'adjustment' or something rather. I'm unsure of this at the moment but I have run 293x9 Orthos stable. The final mode is Overclocking Mode which grants a 15% increase to fsb. This I have not experimented with much just yet. I know there is a huge amount of instability at the current time.

Temperatures are a tricky thing because you have ZERO control over the fans. There is no application out there to take control of the fans either. The fans are more so...influenced. They are Dependant on how hot your CPU is and what Turbo Gear setting your running. In standard mode, the CPU fan only spins up after 55C, and under full load barely keeps it under 75 ~ 80C with how fast it spins. However, in Overclocking mode, the fans will spin up to 100% once the CPU gets loaded. Keeping it around 70 ~ 75C, makes sense right? Well let me riddle you this. The 8600m GT will sit around 60C Idle and 90C Load. It has a fan to its self and according to it's own BIOS is set to 100% as well. Again, you cannot gain control over this fan either. And it is also NOT at 100%. The GPU fan will only spin up as the CPU gets hot. I loaded up Orthos in overclocking mode and rthdribl just to see what the Load temperature would be be for the 8600 and you would never believe this, but the Load temperature was 57C. Thats 3C less than idle. And you know what the best part about this is? The overclocking mode is very unstable...so you can't have the benefits of the fans spinning up to 100%. So no matter what you do until Asus decides to relinquish control of the fans to the user, your screwed! However...I have undervolted my e6600 to 1.050 when using the 6x multi and 1.075 when using the 9x multi. This is 110% Orthos stable and keeps my load temps around 70C. As for my 8600m...thats a different story.



I'm not very good at writing reviews, nor am I good at formatting. Thanks ps2cho for your review on the Asus EEE PC, I used it as an outline . If you guys have anything you would like me to talk about - about the laptop, I'd be more than glad to share. I'm working on getting pictures but I'm having difficulty getting them from my phone to my laptop.

Edit: Oh, some benchmarks.
3DMark06: 4,100 - 550/1200/475 on the 8600m with CPU at stock, near 4,300 with the CPU at 2.637ghz.
Super PI 1M is in the low 18 seconds.

Any benchmarks you guys would like me to run?