Installing my new Mobo/CPU

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Tue Jan 11, 2005 9:41 pm

Ok received my order from tigerdirect and everything seems ok.

I'm planning on putting it together tomorrow night after work.

Any tips? I've never built a computer before. I've replaced a power supply, and can install the hardware, it's just the Mobo and and CPU I'm shaky on.

I have the Asus A8V Deluxe and a AMD 64 3400+ I also have a heat sink as well

I could use all the help I can get

Thanks in advance

SirReal · Post by **SirReal** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 6:48 am

Be careful and don't rush. Don't touch the pins on the CPU.
Make sure the CPU is properly seated before fastening the cooler.

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 9:48 am

Any problems if you don't have that anti static device? I plan on working on the kitchen which is a wood floor.

Freezer-TPF- · Post by **Freezer-TPF-** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:19 am

I'd play it safe and get an anti-static wrist strap for a few bucks. Otherwise, you can ground yourself by touching metal on the case and staying in contact with it, but it gets a little difficult to work like that.

Also, following the very good "be careful and don't rush" advice, I'd suggest doing it on a Saturday morning (assuming you work M-F) instead of tackling your first build on a weeknight after work. If you run into any glitches or questions, you are less likely to get frustrated if you have plenty of time to work with. It will also probably take a little longer than you think to get everything together the first time, not to mention installing the O/S and all that jazz.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:57 am

naednek wrote:Any problems if you don't have that anti static device? I plan on working on the kitchen which is a wood floor.

Just make sure you discharge a few times before starting work. I've never used a wrist strap.

The Meal · Post by **The Meal** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:59 am

Freezer-TPF- wrote:I'd play it safe and get an anti-static wrist strap for a few bucks. Otherwise, you can ground yourself by touching metal on the case and staying in contact with it, but it gets a little difficult to work like that.

This only keeps you grounded if the PC is plugged into an outlet with a ground post. If the PC isn't plugged in, the case is not grounded.

~Neal

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 12:18 pm

The Meal wrote:
Freezer-TPF- wrote:I'd play it safe and get an anti-static wrist strap for a few bucks. Otherwise, you can ground yourself by touching metal on the case and staying in contact with it, but it gets a little difficult to work like that.
This only keeps you grounded if the PC is plugged into an outlet with a ground post. If the PC isn't plugged in, the case is not grounded.

~Neal

And you do not want to install a mainboard with the PSU plugged in. In fact, I usually unplug the PSU cable and then power cycle to "dry" out the PSU when opening up the case.

Freezer-TPF- · Post by **Freezer-TPF-** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 2:39 pm

The Meal wrote:
Freezer-TPF- wrote:I'd play it safe and get an anti-static wrist strap for a few bucks. Otherwise, you can ground yourself by touching metal on the case and staying in contact with it, but it gets a little difficult to work like that.
This only keeps you grounded if the PC is plugged into an outlet with a ground post. If the PC isn't plugged in, the case is not grounded.

~Neal

Oops, my bad, that was old skool knowledge there. You don't want to work on a modern PC with it plugged in since there is always some juice going to the mobo, even when the power is off.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 2:58 pm

Don't forget to put a thin layer of thermal grease between the CPU and the heatsink. Arctic Silver is the best. Follow the instructions on the Arctic Silver website.

Scraper · Post by **Scraper** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 5:57 pm

I always install the Ram and CPU onto the Mobo prior to putting it into the case, it makes it much easier. Then put it into the case. Make sure to plug in your cooling fan to the mobo.

It also helps out if all of the IDE and power cables are out of the way when you are putting the mobo in.

The hardest part may be plugging in all of the start panel cords, (i.e. the start button, reset button, harddrive light, etc.) Just make sure to follow the instructions in the mobo manual and you should be ok here. Trial and error may be necessary if the board is not marked very well.

If you don't have an anti-static bracelet you could try using rubber gloves, I use medical gloves. Your other option is to not worry too much about it. I have never had static be a problem and I have worked on many comps without static protection.

Caine · Post by **Caine** » Wed Jan 12, 2005 9:07 pm

you have a good board there naednek. of all the boards i have used through the years, asus is the one brand i can recommend without reservation. i would only recommend having another person around who knows about this stuff. i know that might not be possible though. again, don't rush, start when you are fully rested, read the manual beforehand, and lastly, don't overdue the heat paste. you want enough to contact both heatsink and cpu, but not layered like cake frosting.

installing mobo's and such isn't half as hard as it used to be. it was almost a science back then.

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 8:48 pm

Alright, I have the cpu/heatsink installed onto the mobo, and the mobo is now in the case with everything (I think) is plugged in. However, I'm not getting any power after plugging in. Powersupply is turned on, plug is plugged into the outlet. I stopped working on it at 9pm, and won't be able to work on it tomorrow. I had some help from my dad, and he suggested I might have the powerswitch cable plugged into the wrong pin. Or with all the moving around, I might have the other end loose. I'm hoping it's not a short, and I know it's not the powersupply since it worked last night before replacing the mobo.

Tomorrow night, I'll restart the process and maybe I might see what went wrong.

Any suggestions why I'm not getting any power?

RM9 suggested it could be 2 reasons, Power Supply gone bad, or short on the Mobo.

Jeff Jones · Post by **Jeff Jones** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 9:07 pm

naednek wrote: Tomorrow night, I'll restart the process and maybe I might see what went wrong.

Any suggestions why I'm not getting any power?

RM9 suggested it could be 2 reasons, Power Supply gone bad, or short on the Mobo.

I hope not. Most likely it's just the power pin connector. Make sure it's on the exact right pins, and if it is, turn it around and make it face the other way. Sometimes those things have positive and negative sides.

This is fairly common problem for a newb builder.

Is the case new? I've had a case or two shipped where the power pin connector on the front panel side was loose.

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Thu Jan 13, 2005 9:25 pm

dude get online, I've been trying to get ahold of you

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 12:07 am

Make sure your CPU fan is plugged in the right spot. Many boards won't start at all if it can't detect a fan.

Also, many motherboards have a small LED that lights up when power is applied. Also check the back of your power supply - many have switches on them that have to be on in addition to the main machine switch.

naednek · Post by **naednek** » Fri Jan 14, 2005 12:49 am

Got it to work. Well my dad did, but I would have figured it out. I'm staying at a friends house tonight and was planning on working on it tomorrow.

Anyways, looks like I plugged it in wrong as expected, the power switch is 3 pins, and I missed one of them (one pin hole was overlapping)

That fixed the problem, but when he turned in on, it wasn't posting. I have 3 sticks of 512 mb. My dad took out 1 and it started to work. Why wouldn't it let me use all 3? I had it configured with 2 sticks on the Dual channel slots, and one on the normal slots.

I'm just going to buy 1 more stick of ram tomorrow and it all should work anyways.

I can't wait till I get home.

Thanks for the help and advice. Installing the mobo and cpu was pretty easy overall. I just screwed up on 1 part. Not bad for a first time