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first build horrors

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There was a time when I tried to install that stupid plastic HS fan on my Prescott. I tried to secure the clips one at a time, but I applied uneven pressure, so the right clip broke in two. Last time I used stock cooling!
 
Originally posted by: P0ldy
Hey guys, about to put together my first build this weekend. I've read the manual(s) in preparation. Motherboard in question is the Lanparty NF3. Three fan connectors, four fans. Short of a fan controller, any way to install all four?

In what order do you all generally put it all together? I've read mech's guide (which is great) a few times already, too.
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I try to use power direct from the psu for the fans, especially the higher power ones. many fans even come with the adapter for it.

building a pc i put in the mobo 1st, hard drive/cd drives, cpu heatsink, power supply, fans, then the video/sound card/ect. but depending on the design of your case it might be easier to change this order a bit...just remember to plan ahead before you do anything silly and have a story for this forum =p good luck dude!
 
My Antec AMG1080 case's Front USB pin-out was apparently NOT the same as my Abit IC7's (even though the 1080 has connectors blocked into a cube for attachment to the mobo with the 8th pin missing in the correct location). After getting everything installed (hardware from scratch and XP built) I plugged in my gamepad and fried my bios.

1 week of waiting for all my parts and being so excited.... to RMA time. =/
 
The Power supply I was using was crap. I got no video and was pretty pissed. Got an Antec power supply and it fixed the problem.
 
That exploding CPU was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. Thanks for the laugh.

You can actually see through the table after the explosion... I guesss they f***ed it up as well... dumbasses...
 
Originally posted by: AnitaPeterson
That exploding CPU was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. Thanks for the laugh.

You can actually see through the table after the explosion... I guesss they f***ed it up as well... dumbasses...
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uhh...you couldn't tell it was fake? its hella funny but it is fake.
 
Originally posted by: Wadded Beef
Originally posted by: AnitaPeterson
That exploding CPU was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. Thanks for the laugh.

You can actually see through the table after the explosion... I guesss they f***ed it up as well... dumbasses...
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uhh...you couldn't tell it was fake? its hella funny but it is fake.
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Yeah... CPUs can't explode unless you physically place some sort of explosive between it and the mobo. As for horror stories... I got a couple. 1) I was working with mobo outside of case cause i'd oc'ed it and it had stopped booting. Unfortunately I placed the mobo on top of the case (touching the metal fram) and turned it on and sparks danced like the 4th of july... i said screw it and bought another mobo. 2) I had just bought a brand spanking new PSU. I was trying to adapt a 3 pin fan connector (from a y cable) to fit my fan. Basically I was using a pair of scissors to bend and break one of the snap in plastic parts. Well I had the computer on and I was seeing if the fan would plug into the connector. I accidentally drop the connector and it scrapes against the scissors on the table.... sparks fly and system shuts OFF. I got scared s**tless. After 5 minutes of trying to turn it on, it finally booted and is running without problems.... god bless you ThermalTake Purepower.
 
Originally posted by: powerMarkymark
The screwdriver slipped while installing the heatsink and I damaged the motherboard, costed me a (2nd) new motherboard.
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Yup. Done that. I put that screwdriver right through the motherboard.
 
Originally posted by: VirtualLarry
Originally posted by: MrControversial
Spending $1500 and finding out that my system is still horribly outdated because I failed to read reviews, messageboards, etc.
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Dude! You should have bought a Dell! No, wait... you would be in the same position. 😛
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LOL!
 
Plugging in the aux 4 pin power connector to the MB when my hand slips and slices my finger on the Zalman CPU Cooler... blood all over the mobo but it ran fine after a bit of cleanup 😉

Almost fell for the extra standoff thing... extra one wouldn't budge and I was too lazy to get a pair of pliers. Logic got the better of me thankfully!
 
Originally posted by: leedog2007
Anyone got some first computer build horrors they'd like to share?
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My worse experience was after spending a hour putting everything together, turned it on and nothing happened. Spent another day( ?) checking and double everything and it still did not run. This was my first motherboard up project.

I decided that the problem was the motherboard which I bought at a show. I called the vendor, who is located on Long Island, and they offered to exchange it.

Being in a hurry to get the system running I decided to drive and exchange motherboard. This was in the summer on a Friday. It took three hours to pick up the mb and another three hours to get home.

I installed the replacement motherboard and the system booted up and ran without a problem.
 
Originally posted by: Connoisseur
2) I had just bought a brand spanking new PSU. I was trying to adapt a 3 pin fan connector (from a y cable) to fit my fan. Basically I was using a pair of scissors to bend and break one of the snap in plastic parts. Well I had the computer on and I was seeing if the fan would plug into the connector. I accidentally drop the connector and it scrapes against the scissors on the table.... sparks fly and system shuts OFF. I got scared s**tless. After 5 minutes of trying to turn it on, it finally booted and is running without problems.... god bless you ThermalTake Purepower.
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Similar thing happened to me. Bought a cheap 120mm fan which didn't have a connector, just bare ends. I didn't have any spare connectors so I has holding the wires in a molex connector just to see if it'd work at 5/7/12 volts. At some point my hand slipped and the wires touched the case while still being connected. Comp shut down after a small spark. Unplugged the fan and turned it back on, all was good again. Yay Antec psu?
 
Originally posted by: VirtualLarry
Originally posted by: MrControversial
Spending $1500 and finding out that my system is still horribly outdated because I failed to read reviews, messageboards, etc.
Click to expand...

Dude! You should have bought a Dell! No, wait... you would be in the same position. 😛
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The same thing happened to me with my P4 system...Shoulda gone AMD 😱
 
waaaay back my first computer job was in general hardware support. the guy showing me the ropes took me when a user's computer froze. it had one of the newer 20gb hard drives installed. he very delicately removed it from the computer explaining i had to be careful with them. he then proceeded to raise it 18 inches over the desk smack it and on the narrow end. twice. popped it back in and ran just fine. apparently he had done that trick a few times to other computers with the same problem.
 
A buddy of mine called me after he swapped a 1.3g Athlon cpu for an XP2600. It wouldn't work. He installed the new cpu with the leaver in the down and locked position. When I told him it had to be released he paused for a moment and then said he understood why he had a hell of a time pulling he old one out.
 
The 4 pin motherboard connector should not go in sideways. I spent about 12 hours trying to figure out wth was wrong. Finally I was going to take it apart and get a refund for the cpu when i realized... hey, you put the 4 pin in sideways dumbass.
 
I installed a very ancient AMD CPU, I don't remember the exact details, but I was able to insert it the wrong way. It could run comfortably for half an hour or so with no heatsink (shows you how old it was) so I hadn't put one on yet as I was just testing.

Powered up the machine and a small puff of smoke came up off the processor! I actually watched smoke appear out of nowhere from the CPU. After I got my courage back I put it the right way, powered up, and that machine went on to serve files on my network for over a year until I replaced it. I guess I'll never know what broke.
 
Well, I ordered a Soltek Purple Ray motherboard...and was defective from start. Got my RMA, sent it in to get it replaced and waited. Then waited some more. E-Mailed them. No reply. Waited. Nothing. Waited. STILL nothing. Going nutz without my system. Tried to call them. Nothing. Waited. AGAIN...NOTHING.

I ended up buying a Gigabyte board and SWEARING I will never get a Soltek board again IN MY LIFE...especially not if I want customer support.


Originally posted by: leedog2007
Anyone got some first computer build horrors they'd like to share?
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