EkosDeux

Welcome back, it’s been a while. I have been on the move a lot here lately, but have no fear… There were plenty of sleepless nights where I was attempting to accomplish something, but could not get my equipment to comply… So more blogs are to come…

On to the topic at hand… The evil case. Beware of what you wish for!!!

Whenever I setup a new rig it has to be exactly what I want, or what’s the point. I always like to have a powerful, yet smaller system running as it saves space. This seemed like a great idea at the time of planning, but assembly went on it backfired. The case is a Antec Mini P180 Black Computer Case and is a great looking case. The problem came when I decided to slap it together…

As you can see, the motherboards power cable was going to be in the way of the harddrive rails just slghtly. This did not deter me though, as I simply modified it a little bit. All I required was a pair of sheet metal cutters, and the job was complete.

The cuts were small, about (1/2)” and then folded back and flattened. The end result is not pretty, but its the insights that really count and once the cover is on… Only you and the case will know what really did happen that evil day.

The before and after show the small mod, but I am currently running three 250GB drives for my operating systems, and have a DVD Burner in one of the bays as well. There are no problems at all, and the system is just like I wanted. Do not be afraid to modify it, or customize it… Its just metal after all.

Howdy Folks!!!
Welcome back to another session of the perfect machine. This time around we will discuss the limitations I encountered when building this beast. The first thing I learned was to check EFI-X and review their approved parts list. This was crucial as the module was only proven on a growing list of hardware. Second, develop an idea of what kind of machine you want to build. This is important as certain parts are limited in where they can be used. For example, take my motherboard, I wanted a smaller tower and this led me to choose the only MicroATX on the list. The
DFI LP JR P45-T2RS is a good bang for your buck. The board can handle a variety of quad core processors. It can take up to a 16GB of memory, and comes with overclocking software. This is a gaming board built specifically for lan parties, and for my purpose it was more than enough.

Second, the processor was an Intel Core 2 Quad Q8300 2.5GHz. This part almost ended up being wrong, but luckily I checked DFI’s website and was able to select the correct processor for my board. I wanted the quad core in order to be able to run a virtual machine and give it 2 cores and 4GB of memory. The VM runs as if it was a stand alone PC. Awesome!!!

Memory was not hard too choose, and I basically knew I wanted 8GB. I chose to get 2 G.SKILL PI Black 4GB (2 x 2GB) as they were affordable and had a good reputation. After this, it gets ridiculously expensive. ***Don’t forget that you need a 64bit operating system to run all 8GB.***

The video card was last, and it had to be decent. I am not a gamer by any means, but do play the occasional shooter. I also knew I wanted a dual monitor set up in order to facilitate working and researching. The candidate came down to XFX GeForce 9800 GT
. The card has 512Mb of memory and can handle 2 DVI monitors.

The setup seemed perfect so far, until I ordered the case… Stay tuned.

Have you built an EFI-X system? What was your experience? Leave a comment, and we’ll share notes.

Welcome back!!!

Anyways, its been about two and half years since my last computer upgrade. I know what you are thinking, so? Well, I like to think I’m a techie of sorts and like having a machine that can keep up. Also, last semester (my first here at LSU) I broke up with windows… More of a still friends thing though. I still require its use for AutoCAD, Solid Works and other software that is still somehow windows only.
I wanted to assemble a machine that would be capable of handling anything I could throw at it, and boot multiple operating systems. Yes, we all know what that means… I wanted it to be able to run Vista 64, ubuntu 9.04 64 and the golden child of them all CENSORED

First, I did research looking to the two options I could find. The first was OSx86 Project, but unfortunately I did not feel I had the technical expertise to tackle this… Yet (Planning on tackling this later). Second, was the perfect solution, the EFI-X module. This USB module allows the user to install different operating systems directly from the DVD. Perfect!!!
The EFI-X module attaches to an USB port in your computer and simulates an EFI environment for operating systems to run unaltered.

Visiting their site and following their recommended components list, I ordered my parts from NewEgg because they offer great service, and fast shipping. The components were as followed:

Case: Antec Mini P180

Mother Board: DFI LP JR P45-T2RS Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

Procesor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8300 2.5GHz

Memory: 2 G.SKILL PI Black 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin (PC2 6400) for 8 GB Total


Video Card: XFX GeForce 9800 GT


Main HDD: 3 Seagate Barracuda 250GB(750GB Total)

DVD Drive: SONY DVD+RW

I am still thinking about the backup drives, as there are a couple of options I am researching.

This is it for now folks, but don’t fret more is to come. Leave a comment and let me know what you think, or if you have an experiences to share.