Aftermarket Cooler

Along with my new MSI 460 graphics card, I ordered a Zalman CNPS 9900 MAX. This is the first aftermarket cooler I had ever had to install, so I didn't realize what a task it would be. Before I started, I had to remove my entire motherboard from my computer. Always make sure that when you do this you are in a static free area, that you are grounded (no I don't mean by your parents), and that you have disconnected the power supply from the computer. The coller comes with different nuts and bolts which fit into it. It looked simple at first, but then I found that the directions were not so straight forward.

When I went to install it, the first thing I had to do was attach two brackets on either side of the cooler so that I would be able to mount it. This proved probably to be the easiest part of the operation. All they needed to do was to snap into place. Next, I had to setup the mounting bracket. This was possible the most difficult part of the entire setup. The directions were not clear at all on how you are suppose to setup one of the pieces. I had to go online and watch a flash video from Zalman's website on how to setup this part of the cooler. It was only a little bit helpful. Confusion aside, I manage to get the bracket setup the correctly. Finally, all I had to do was apply the thermal paste. I decided to use Arctic Silver instead of what came with the cooler since I know Arctic Silver works very well. I used the "line method" when applying. By "line method" I mean I pulled the Arctic Silver in a straight line about 3/4" long. I may have made a mistake here because when I started to use the Arctic Silver, excess liquid came out first before the paste did. I don't think it did damage to my CPU, but I definitely know for next time to wipe a little onto a paper towel first to get it started. After applying the paste, I put the cooler on top and pressed down slightly so as to spread the paste. I followed that by aligning it with the bracket and attaching the screws.

After all that work, I put my motherboard back into the computer, reattached everything, and booted up. I had made sure to test my temperatures prior to removing the stock cooler, and those temperatures ranged between 39-42 degrees Celsius. After the new cooler was installed, the temperatures ranged between 28-32 degrees Celsius on idle. A significant drop. However, one of my Cores seems to still be at 39 constantly and I can't figure out why. Hopefully there is nothing wrong.

~Dave

MSI Hawk GTX 460 1GB GDDR5

My brand new graphics card!

After three days of waiting, a weeks of researching, my new graphics card has finally arrived. Installing it was a pain in my thumb because I shredded some skin while getting the PCI-E wires in and out. However, once it was in there was very little issues afterward. I booted into Windows without a hitch. After Windows installed the drivers, and I made sure I had the latest ones, I restarted the computer so Windows could apply the changes. Finally I got into Steam and ran Just Cause 2, a game which has its own benchmarking program in it. First, since I didn't have a lot of time, I set the display setting to "optimal" which is suppose to choose the best for my rig. I thought it was wrong at first because it set everything to "very high" and some optional items to "On". Here are my results:

AMAZING!

This was by far an amazing investment, and will most likely last me the next two years or so. This, of course, is only one benchmark, if I had done others I would probably see slight differences. As for my old 9800 GT, I am putting it away in storage. I have some future plans for it that where I might put it to use. If my current motherboard support the PhysX feature though, I would have put my 9800 GT in PhysX with my MSI Hawk.

~Dave

By End of Day

We have all been there, waiting for a package to be delivered by UPS. While waiting, you constantly refresh the page with the tracking number to see if anythings changed. This was me yesterday as I waited for my package from Newegg to be delivered. While constantly refreshing, I noticed the site said delivery "By End of Day" in both the early delivery section, and original delivery section. I had sense of what this meant, but I wanted to be sure.

The first way in which I attempted to find the answer was by using Google. Most sites said the day ended at 5'ish, but I knew that couldn't be right because I had gotten packages after 5 o'clock before. I kept searching, but still nothing. When I gave up on Google, I closed the tab and returned back to the UPS page. it was then I noticed that the words "In Transit" were underlined, usually meaning there is a link of some sort. I hovered my mouse over it and to my surprise it brought up a little box with delivery hours listed. "9 to 7, possibly later" is what it said. Who knew that what I was looking for was right under my nose the entire time!

~Dave

Over the Weekend I Learned

Over the weekend I was looking through different software for Mac, just browsing to see what was available. While browsing, I came across Final Cut Pro. I decided to read the specs and specifications, and while browsing I learned something interesting. Final Cut Pro is Mac only software. I was a little surprised at first because Microsoft goes out of its way to make programs like Microsoft Office available for Mac, and so does Adobe when it comes to the CS5 suite. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. This was how Apple worked, they need control. They don't have control if their "exclusive" products run on other systems. Look at all the applications which Apple has made for their system, almost none of currently work on both Windows and Mac. For example, iWork and Things are a batch of programs which don't work with Windows. The only exception to this is iTunes, which works on both platforms. However, the Mac version gets Quicktime 10 to work with, while the Windows version gets Quicktime 8. It really comes down to which system can one up the other more.

~Dave

Purchasing a New Graphics Card

The process to pick out a new graphics card is not always an easy one, especially when you are working with a hackintosh. The trick is, I have to get one that is compatible with the hackintosh, as well as one that will provide the best gaming experience when running windows. In addition, I must have the money for one. My options were either the Nvidia 4XX series, or the Nvidia 5XX series. My price range was no more then $200. I had to read up on the new fermi cards so I could get a sense of what the performance differences were between the 4XX and the 5XX sereis. When it came down to it, the difference in performance was maybe 10-15 FPS (frames per second). However, the 5XX series is a bit pricier because it just came out two months ago. After looking at the differences, it would seem I was confined to buying a 4XX series card. Next things to do? Well I had to choose between the 460, 470, or the 480. From what I already knew, the 480 ran way too hot, and the 470 was very noisy. Bassed on this, I decided to look into buying a 460. Many different companies make variations of the 460, so I had to decide on a company. This is where I had no idea what I was looking for, they all seemed the same. It was at this point that I went to reddit for help. I posted a thread asking what card would be good for me in the 460 series. Within a couple responses it was narrowed down to either an EVGA 460, AR Version, with 1 GB of GDDR5 RAM, or the MSI Hawk 460 with 1 GB GDDR5. The difference between the two cards was the EVGA model came with a lifetime warranty, were as the MSI model was very good for overclocking. That means the MSI card can be set to run at levels higher then it is manufactured to.

There is a price difference between the two cards of about $10. Originally I thought I might need the lifetime warranty, however the more I thought about it, the more it seemed a card with more performance capability would be better. After searching, price matching, and more thinking, I decided on the MSI Hawk. The current price of the card is $199.00 with a $20 mail in rebate. I have decided I will be buying from Newegg because they have the lowest price overall. I was debating whether to go to Amazon or not, but I believe Amazon would be hard to deal with if there were any issue with the card. Thanks to reddit, and a lot of searching, I am getting a new MSI Hawk. My next challenge: Getting it to work with my hackintosh.

~Dave