well finally took the plunge!!! A64 here i come

[kouch]

ordered from NCIX in Canada,,dunno if its in stock(hl2 coupon),still waiting on the mobo(on backorder)Im guessing they will wait till its all in stock b4 they ship.MSI neo2 + 64-3200 + XP-90 heatsink + thermaltake silentcat + HL2 coupon =$615.04 cdn including tax and shipping

well that is good to hear. NCIX has good reputation as a canadian retailer (hard to find good ones up north). Here in the states, we are so lucky to have the likes of zipzoomfly, egg, monarch etc. Good luck with you mobo. I am hoping to have everything by this weekend

 

[TimoneX]

Hope you get one of the CBBID steps. Someone on xtremesystems just got one from monarch. They seem to hit 2.6+ with relative ease.

 

[kouch]

Hope you get one of the CBBID steps. Someone on xtremesystems just got one from monarch. They seem to hit 2.6+ with relative ease.

god I hope you are right man. BTW, it is already in the mail Monarch rulz, ordered this morning and by tonight fedex e-mailed me with tracking numbers. Everything should be here by this weekend I hope:

Winny 3200+, Neo2 Plat, Cooler Master Stacker, and A64 adapters for my RBX.

Then I will move my water cooling over to the new rig and see how far she will go

 

[TimoneX]

He's stoked. Yeah they're not a bad company to do biz with. Are you considering removal of the IHS? Screws your temp readings but it definately cools better though it can be difficult to get the block to mount flush with only 2 mounting points. Wish they'd have stuck with 4 posts.

 

[kouch]

He's stoked. Yeah they're not a bad company to do biz with. Are you considering removal of the IHS? Screws your temp readings but it definately cools better though it can be difficult to get the block to mount flush with only 2 mounting points. Wish they'd have stuck with 4 posts.

No I think I will keep the spreader on. I don't think it will add more than maybe 50mhz to my OC if even that and I don't really want to void warrenty just incase it's DOA or defective (of course if it's not, warrenty will go bye bye in about 5 mins once i start OCing )

 

[TimoneX]

Yup. Tested mine out on air, removed the heatsink, nearly destroyed the chip because monarch gooped the stuff on pretty good and I forgot to twist the HS before removing and yanked the chip out of the socket stuck to the heatsink. So after an hour or so of carefully bending pins back under a magnifying glasss that was about enough trouble from the icky IHS for me. An hour to remove it very carefully(I use dental floss) and now I have a nice keychain. Plus I never have to worry about remembering my CPUs stepping/week codes, I just grab my keys.

 

[kouch]

Yup. Tested mine out on air, removed the heatsink, nearly destroyed the chip because monarch gooped the stuff on pretty good and I forgot to twist the HS before removing and yanked the chip out of the socket stuck to the heatsink. So after an hour or so of carefully bending pins back under a magnifying glasss that was about enough trouble from the icky IHS for me. An hour to remove it very carefully(I use dental floss) and now I have a nice keychain. Plus I never have to worry about remembering my CPUs stepping/week codes, I just grab my keys.

I bet that must have been scary. Thanks for the tip as I might have done the same thing. I wish they didn't install it but couldn't get all the free stuff withough combo'ing it so whatever. After you removed the heatspreader, is it just like the old style Athlon underneath (with small metal core surrounded by packaging and bridges) BTW how is that RBX working with an A64?

 

[TimoneX]

Yeah it's the same as an XP without any crush pads. I put a little scotch tape over the bridges so the block has no chance to short anything out. I then fabricated some crush pads from a thin sheet of neoprene(4) and stuck those on there on each side. I also made 2 largish crush pads from neoprene for under the block mounting studs to help steady the block. I use alot of force when tightening the block. The RBX works like a dream, though I'm not entirely sure the #4 nozzle that seemed to be best with the [email protected] is the most appropriate here. Perhaps a little experimenting is in order when next I have to take it apart. I'll have to get some temp monitoring equipment though the readings I get from the board are absolutely meaningless gibberish. I think removing the IHS really screws the temp reading up good.

 

[Sentential]

No I think I will keep the spreader on. I don't think it will add more than maybe 50mhz to my OC if even that and I don't really want to void warrenty just incase it's DOA or defective (of course if it's not, warrenty will go bye bye in about 5 mins once i start OCing )

Yes. Wise choice. Without that cap most desktop sinks will not make proper contact and will overheat / kill your CPU. Keep it on.

 

[TimoneX]

Ah don't listen to him...he's just ascared!

J/K it's probably the wisest choice though I hate the temps & OC being limited by anything within my control. ...and yes I am anal.

On a serious note though the core is nearly identical to an XP and we never worried about those much without an IHS though they came with crush pads, that's easily remedied though.

 

[Sentential]

Ah don't listen to him...he's just ascared!

J/K it's probably the wisest choice though I hate the temps & OC being limited by anything within my control. ...and yes I am anal.

You have an RBX with spring / bolts. Im not sure what he is using. Unless it has something that doesnt a sping or isnt capable of not crushing his core he shouldnt try it.

 

[TimoneX]

He's going to be using an RBX...presumably with spring / bolts.

 

[kouch]

He's going to be using an RBX...presumably with spring / bolts.

Indeed I will. Kinda silly story actually, when I first ordered it, it came with a hold down kit even if I didn't order it so I had to manually (and carefully) drill into the lucite top to make the holes bigger so the screws would slide freely through. What pain that was trying to make sure my beastly drill doesn't crack the lucite.