[Denisejm]

I forgot . . . I do need 2 more things. I want to temporarily place my USB 2.0 drives inside the case until I can replace them with SATA drives. Is there a controller card or something else that I can buy so I can do this?

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Are you stuck with your USB enclosures? The reason is, the drives inside of the enclosures are usually IDE (or mobile IDE if 2.5") or SATA. This would mean you SHOULD be able to hook them right up to the motherboard.

The reason I say this is that most of the PCI USB cards are either all external or at most 1 internal (I saw one with 1 internal USB port and 1 header like you would find on a motherboard. Therefore, even if the drives are IDE, it would be easier to find an IDE PCI adapter card that can connect to 4 drives than to find a PCI USB card with four internal ports. A 2-port IDE PCI or PCIe card tends to be very common (2-ports = 4 drives).

Edited by PedroDaGR8, 25 January 2009 - 03:28 PM.

[PedroDaGR8]

Are you stuck with your USB enclosures? The reason is, the drives inside of the enclosures are usually IDE (or mobile IDE if 2.5") or SATA. This would mean you SHOULD be able to hook them right up to the motherboard.

The reason I say this is that most of the PCI USB cards are either all external or at most 1 internal (I saw one with 1 internal USB port and 1 header like you would find on a motherboard. Therefore, even if the drives are IDE, it would be easier to find an IDE PCI adapter card that can connect to 4 drives than to find a PCI USB card with four internal ports. A 2-port IDE PCI or PCIe card tends to be very common (2-ports = 4 drives).

Edited by PedroDaGR8, 25 January 2009 - 03:28 PM.

[Denisejm]

Pedro . . .

Are you stuck with your USB enclosures? The reason is, the drives inside of the enclosures are usually IDE (or mobile IDE if 2.5") or SATA. This would mean you SHOULD be able to hook them right up to the motherboard.

The motherboard has only 1 IDE port for the floppy drive.

it would be easier to find an IDE PCI adapter card that can connect to 4 drives

This is what I want. I'll be buying 2 SYBA SD-SATA2-4IR PCI SATA II CONTROLLER CARD RAID 0/1/5/10 JBOD http://www.newegg.co...N82E16816124008 for all the SATA drives I'll eventually have. Do I have enough ports on the motherboard to fit an IDE PCI adapter card? The motherboard is a GIGABYTE GA-EP45-DQ6 LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813128343

If I have enough ports, what data cable would I need to connect them?

Edited by Denisejm, 25 January 2009 - 04:30 PM.

[PedroDaGR8]

Floppy drive use their OWN ports not IDE, but it does have only ONE IDE port.

If you look at the image of the motherboard, (Click on the image on newegg and select the third image in the new window that opens). The floppy port is the black port at the top near the left, while the IDE port is the green one on the right side.

Yeah you will be lacking PCI ports.

http://www.newegg.co...TECH-_-15158084

This should be an option though. It will use your PCIe x1 port.

So if you have FOUR IDE drives and one floppy, the floppy will go to the floppy port, 2 IDE drives will go to the motherboards IDE port and 2 can go to this card.

[Denisejm]

Thanks again, Pedro. The card is also cheap enough that, when I have all SATA drives sometime in the future, I'll have gotten a lot of use out of it and I won't mind putting the adapter in the box with the rest of my spare parts.

Since I bought 36" SATA data cables, I picked out 36" IDE cables. Do you think I'll need 36"? http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812200109 . One review said "This is the only round 80-conductor cable I found that has some decent distance between the 2 drive connectors, it looks like: MB <-- 16" --> Slave <-- 20" --> Master" Is this distance thing good?

This is another one I found, but cheaper. I'm not sure if it's a good cable. http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812104040

[PedroDaGR8]

While usually I would like to save you some money. Monoprice doesn't have any 36" cables and you may need that length. The reason is that your motherboard is oriendted UPSIDE down compared to normal cases (for heat management reasons) meaning the IDE port will be at the top of your case.


Also, if you have a floppy drive. Don't forget you will need a floppy cable.

[james_8970]

Sorry I'm getting bombarded with school work lately. Monoprice is a great place to buy stuff, I get my networking gear from them all the time. I must have overlooked them carrying the IDE/SATA cables.

This is what I want. I'll be buying 2 SYBA SD-SATA2-4IR PCI SATA II CONTROLLER CARD RAID 0/1/5/10 JBOD http://www.newegg.co...N82E16816124008 for all the SATA drives I'll eventually have. Do I have enough ports on the motherboard to fit an IDE PCI adapter card? The motherboard is a GIGABYTE GA-EP45-DQ6 LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813128343

When I left we were talking about the option of looking at expander cards that don't use PCI due to it's limit bandwidth. You're cheapest option will be the highpoint card below. You can save money and use IDE, but remember, you can only transfer 133mb/s over the PCI bus. Meaning, if you have 10 drives on 3 different PCI cards, those 10 drives can only transfer 133mb/s worth of data. A single modern hard drive could nearly saturate the bus alone. I highly recommend you look into some PCIe cards instead.
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16816115029
I cannot stress this enough, while it does has RAID capabilities, don't use them. These cards are not good for RAID purposes.

James

Edited by james_8970, 25 January 2009 - 10:40 PM.

[PedroDaGR8]

Yeah james, they are stuck in the middle of all of the rest of the audio video etc. cables, labeled Hard drive -IDE or Hard Drive - Serial ATA. THat site to me is like walking through a freaking candy store, with all of the nifty connectors, fancy cables etc.

Edited by PedroDaGR8, 25 January 2009 - 10:28 PM.

[Denisejm]

Hi James . . . welcome back again. No sweat . . . studying comes first.

Originally, we were considering a number of ways to go and your last recommendation was what you said in your last post, but I didn't know that the hardware changed over what you originally recommended, back on page 3 (a lot of similar technical words not your prob). So I will not be buying the SYBA SD-SATA2-4IR PCI SATA II Controller Card.

When I left we were talking about the option of looking at expander cards that don't use PCI due to it's limit bandwidth. You're cheapest option will be the highpoint card below. You can save money and use IDE, but remember, you can only transfer 133mb/s over the PCI bus. Meaning, if you have 10 drives on 3 different PCI cards, those 10 drives can only transfer 133mb/s worth of data. A single modern hard drive could nearly saturate the bus alone. I highly recommend you look into some PCIe cards instead.
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16816115029
I cannot stress this enough, while it does has RAID capabilities, don't use them. These cards are not good for RAID purposes.

I remember you saying this and it sounded very good.

Will the HighPoint card handle both SATA and USB 2.0, or do I need a different card for the USB 2.0? If I need a different card for USB 2.0, please let me know which card and cables I should buy.

I'm not looking to save money, just want to get it working really good, where I don't feel like throwing my monitor out the window (I'm serious, lol).

Thanks . . . I appreciate your help.

I already have the daisy-chain power cables on my list. I really like these too.

Edited by Denisejm, 26 January 2009 - 12:46 AM.

[Denisejm]

The "Silverstone CFP51-B Aluminum 5.25" to 3.5" bay converter with 120mm fan - Retail" at NewEgg is out of stock. http://www.newegg.co...N82E16811999164

The only other one that I could find that was similar is "Silverstone CFP52B 5.25in to 3.5in Bay Converter w/ Hot-Swapping" http://www.aerocoole...d_id=CASSCFP52B Is this a good substitute?

[Denisejm]

I just ordered the RAM that was originally chosen for the ASUS motherboard. I didn't think of it until after I purchased it, but will it be compatible with the GIGABYTE mobo?

mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820146726


EDIT: I cancelled the order for this RAM because it's specs are DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) and the GIGABYTE mobo specs for RAM are DDR2 1200. Would you suggest another RAM for me, 4GB (2 x 2GB) if possible?

Edited by Denisejm, 26 January 2009 - 12:44 PM.

[Denisejm]

James, when you made the list of things that I need to buy with the ASUS mobo, you listed "D&S Cable 8" 4pin Internal Power Connector to 2 SATA Power Adaptor Cable (Model 2SAC-02498) - Retail" http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812608228

Do I still need to buy this?

[james_8970]

Will the HighPoint card handle both SATA and USB 2.0, or do I need a different card for the USB 2.0? If I need a different card for USB 2.0, please let me know which card and cables I should buy.

No hard drive is USB. Open up the enclosures and look to see if they are IDE or SATA. Please tell me the exact number of each.

I'm not looking to save money, just want to get it working really good, where I don't feel like throwing my monitor out the window (I'm serious, lol).

Not to worry, I don't plan on getting you to spend anything more then what you have to. That being said, if you put 8 hard drives on the PCI interface, I can guarantee you that you'll regret making that decision.

The only other one that I could find that was similar is "Silverstone CFP52B 5.25in to 3.5in Bay Converter w/ Hot-Swapping

I wouldn't recommend it, that drive bay was made for a particular Silverstone case called the Kublai and because of this, the fan will not fit infront of the hard drive and you may have issue installing the converter into your drives. With hard drives as close as they are inside these bays, I wouldn't recommend a setup without active cooling (a fan).

I just ordered the RAM that was originally chosen for the ASUS motherboard. I didn't think of it until after I purchased it, but will it be compatible with the GIGABYTE mobo?

Yes, it's compatible.

James, when you made the list of things that I need to buy with the ASUS mobo, you listed "D&S Cable 8" 4pin Internal Power Connector to 2 SATA Power Adaptor Cable (Model 2SAC-02498) - Retail" http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812608228

Do I still need to buy this?

To be honest, I cannot give you a definitive answer till you tell me the exact amount of IDE and SATA drives that you're going to have installed inside this case.

Lastly, in order to save on shipping and avoid ordering something you don't need, I highly recommend you delay you're purchase till you know about all the hardware you plan on installing/purchasing.
James

Edited by james_8970, 26 January 2009 - 02:30 PM.

[Denisejm]

James . . . I took pictures of both sides of the case. If you need some close-ups, just let me know.

if you put 8 hard drives on the PCI interface, I can guarantee you that you'll regret making that decision.

I Googled PCI interface and couldn't understand what it is, so I don't know what this sentence means. I don't plan on doing anything other than what you recommend. Just tell me what to buy and when the parts come in, I can connect them. If I run into a problem, I'll ask here. I'm won't have much problem installing the parts, I just don't understand the technical terms. I can't see them in my mind's eye but I can see the parts and the ports and the printed instructions, and your instructions. This is the second computer that I'll be building but the first one was nothing on this magnitude. Since I built one already, I have a pretty good understanding of what needs to be done. The hardest part was getting the fan attached to the heatsink, and I had to put a rubber doorstop on top of the backplate and hit it hard with the butt of a screwdriver in order to get it out. I read later that the case I had was known for this issue. I just want to set your mind to ease and let you know that I won't be buying anything that isn't recommended. I don't know what to buy. I'll ask first. I won't be buying that converter. I put my name on the backorder list at NewEgg for the one that you recommended. Hopefully, they'll get some more in. I went to the site of the company that makes them and they didn't have any for sale. Not a good sign.

I just ordered the RAM that was originally chosen for the ASUS motherboard. I didn't think of it until after I purchased it, but will it be compatible with the GIGABYTE mobo?

Yes, it's compatible.

I already cancelled the order for the RAM. Is the mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory the best RAM for the mobo? The mushkin RAM is DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) and the GIGABYTE mobo specs for RAM are DDR2 1200. Would 1200 be faster/better/more compatible?



I've already purchased:

• Motherboard
• PSU
• CPU
• 4 Daisy-chain power cables

I cancelled the orders for the

• RAM
• SATA cables

I can tell you right now that I have 9 SATA drives. Today's my daughter's birthday and we're going out to dinner soon so I'll take the cases apart tomorrow. I'm pretty sure that the ones that are connected via a USB 2.0 connection are IDE, but I'll open them tomorrow to make sure. The ones that are firewire will probably remain external firewire drives.

[james_8970]

I Googled PCI interface and couldn't understand what it is, so I don't know what this sentence means.

Simply put, it's the PCI slots on your motherboard. One of the many disadvantages of PCI is that its peak transfer rate is 133mb/s over all the slots. PCIe on the other hand has a higher peak transfer rate on a per slot basis, meaning, if one slot is fully saturated (sending it's peak transfer rate), a PCIe slot will not be a affected, but if the peak transfer rate of 133mb/s is being sent over one PCI slot, the other PCI slots will effectively be able to send 0mb/s (nothing).
http://en.wikipedia....nt_Interconnect

Is the mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory the best RAM for the mobo?

Yes.

The mushkin RAM is DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) and the GIGABYTE mobo specs for RAM are DDR2 1200. Would 1200 be faster/better/more compatible?

No. Faster RAM will result in a negligible difference in performance for 99.9% of real world scenarios.

I'm pretty sure that the ones that are connected via a USB 2.0 connection are IDE, but I'll open them tomorrow to make sure.

If this is the case, additional expansion cards will be required and a few will likely have to remain as external devices.

Today's my daughter's birthday and we're going out to dinner soon so I'll take the cases apart tomorrow.

Wish her a happy birthday from the staff and community of geektogo
James