Sound card doesn't fit on MOBO, new MOBO

[UnseenK]

So I have a Xonar Essence STX sound card, and a ASRock motherboard as seen below, and a 7950 GPU. I JUST built this PC, and for some reason I neglected to tell the people in my build thread that I had a sound card. Basically, the GPU and sound card are pretty much touching, which is no good, so I need a bigger motherboard. Here are my specs so you know what's compatible:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...&SID=u00000687

i5
2x4 gbs of DDR3 ram
7950

Here's a picture (and spaghetti): http://i.imgur.com/OS5YRVo.jpg

I don't need a pricey motherboard and don't really plan on overclocking, it just needs to be bigger so the pci slots aren't ridiculously close.

 

[richaron]

You could probably get a 1x PCI Express flexible riser and move the sound card to one of those empty brackets below the motherboard.

Kinda ghetto fix tho..

 

[UnseenK]

Yeah, that does seem like a ghetto fix, I have a pretty high end sound card and I'd be afraid of it being bogged down by a cheap cable...am I just being paranoid?

 

[richaron]

I don't like the idea of internal sound cards in the first place, considering the complex power system & crazy EM radiation inside a case. So yes, it is feasable a riser would be (a tiny bit) worse.

But that's a kick ass card and would have kick ass power regulation, plus all the analog components are sheilded. So no, it probly wouldn't be (a tiny bit) worse.

Edit: That being said if you can still return the motherboard & get a new one, I'd just do that.

 

[daveybrat]

I just noticed something after looking at that pic.

Your cpu's heatsink/fan is not on properly. The 4 locking arms arrows are turned the wrong way. They are positioned for taking off the heatsink, not in the locking one.

Might wanna fix that first before your cpu overheats or the heatsink pops right off.

 

[bononos]

.....
Here's a picture (and spaghetti): http://i.imgur.com/OS5YRVo.jpg

I don't need a pricey motherboard and don't really plan on overclocking, it just needs to be bigger so the pci slots aren't ridiculously close.

Get a fullsize atx board or an matx with a pcie slot 3 spaces away from the main x16 pcie slot like this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128649

 

[UnseenK]

Oh wow, thanks for noticing that davey <_<. I did do some tugs to make sure it was secure after putting it in, but it may be only semi secure so I'll fix it . It's idling at 30 degrees celcius so at least it isn't in the dannnnger zone.

That mobo looks more suitable, will it fit inside of my Antec 300?

 

[lehtv]

How are you graphics card's temperatures in that setup? Idle & load

 

[UnseenK]

Idling at 34 celsius right now (27 celcius in my house), I'm sure I could get better temps if I put my side panel fan back in but I haven't done that yet, just played Dirt 3 for about 30 minutes, GPU temp is 61 celsius.

 

[lehtv]

Well as far as the graphics card is concerned, it doesn't seem like an issue at all to have the sound card so nearby. I doubt the sound card really minds either - the hot air is being pushed out through the back or drawn up towards the exhaust fan(s).

 

[UnseenK]

The problem with the soundcard being that close is the fact that its SO close that my gpu fans were actually hitting the card when I turned my PC on :/.

 

[Ken g6]

What's your video card, specifically? Is it a regular two-slotter? if it's a 2.5-slotter, ignore my next suggestion.

Can you just get one or two popsicle sticks and stick them between the two cards? If you put them in the right place(s) (i.e. not on the fans and not near the back of the case) and don't stack them too high, you should be able to separate the card from the fans without putting too much stress anywhere.

 

[UnseenK]

It's a 7950. I'm not going to lie, that fix sounds super ghetto, could having the cards not stand perfectly straight damage the cards or pci slots? I'm so glad I don't have a glass panel, I wouldn't be able to stand looking at that everyday (assuming I did it) lol.

And even then, how badly would the cooling suffer?

 

[Techhog]

It's a 7950. I'm not going to lie, that fix sounds super ghetto, could having the cards not stand perfectly straight damage the cards or pci slots? I'm so glad I don't have a glass panel, I wouldn't be able to stand looking at that everyday (assuming I did it) lol.

And even then, how badly would the cooling suffer?

No, he means what's the exact name of the card. There are tons of 7950s out there, so that doesn't say much. If you don't know, look at or link to the page you bought it on, or just look on your box.

Just looking at it though, I'm gonna guess Gigabyte Windforce?

 

[UnseenK]

Oh sorry, this is my card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125414

 

[Techhog]

Oh sorry, this is my card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125414

As I thought.

 

[nsafreak]

I'd go with the mATX board suggested and yes it'll fit inside of your Antec 300. I have a full sized Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD3H ATX motherboard that fits inside of my Antec 300 just fine.

 

[mfenn]

I like the riser idea. PCIe x1 is not that stressful, so I doubt you'll have a problem with getting the link to come up. It's digital, so as long as card appears, it will work exactly as if it were in the slot.

Grab this $4 riser cable and move the sound card down a slot or two.

 

[UnseenK]

I do like that idea more than popsicle stick mods, I suppose I can try that out. Thanks guys.

 

[richaron]

Yeah that looks good. Just make sure it's not too tall on the female end, it's gotta fit under your card but not bumb into the tray.

You might need a 90º/right angle thing

 

[UnseenK]

I already ordered it. If worst comes to worst I could weld a popsicle stick between the riser and the GPU, I'd be pretty mad if I had to do that though.

 

[richaron]

If it's too long there are right angle risers too, tho it'd be more ghetto to just hack out a window in the motherboard tray

 

[UnseenK]

Yeahhh, if the soundcard is facing the wrong way, how will I get to the audio ports from outside the case ?

 

[UnseenK]

I just purchased the PCI cord, and my sound card still doesn't fit, see here:

http://i.imgur.com/Fx2xw4y.jpg

Imagine the sound card mounted on top of that, the only problem is that's about 2-3x times higher than the motherboards PCI slot, so the sound card won't properly mount into my case, it needs to be perfectly level (or at least lower than the mobo) or else there's no way to secure it to the back brackets.

Because of this, I reinstalled my sound card, however I lodged three popsicle sticks between the sound card and gpu (see my op, that's how close they were). So I have two problems here:

1. I want a cleaner fix, this is too makeshift and I feel it will fail eventually, are their perhaps PCI cords that don't have as high connectors, or will I need a new mobo? I can still return the one I have if I HAVE to, it's just inconvenient obviously.

2. My mic isn't working properly, there seems to be some weird interference type sound droning in the background, could this be because the sound card isn't mounted up perfectly straight and there's popsicle sticks rubbing again it? Or did my mic just coincidentally break after not using it for about a week. My headphones and speakers are working perfectly fine.

As always, the help is appreciated.

 

[richaron]

If it's too long there are right angle risers too, tho it'd be more ghetto to just hack out a window in the motherboard tray

...

Also, try searching for:

right angle riser

+ "pcie" to see what I was talking about :sneaky: