So.

I removed the fan, shmeared the heat paste on the cpu, attached the heat sync thingie, got pissed off at the ikea like directions that came with the cooling system and quit.
Then I started again, figured out that the 3 prong receivers go into the 4 pin fan connections, then the fans go into the heat sync thingie, and hooked it to power.

Then I hooked up the 24 pin main power, and got stumped on the secondary cpu power connection. the mb instructions show a 4 pin 12v, but there is no complimentary connector coming out of the power supply. Got pissed again and quit again.

Then I noticed step 4 at the bottom of the page in the ps book. Split the 8 pin connector. Oh sure...

Hook up the video card, monitor,(oh, I got an acer 23" monitor for $170) the little beep speaker, and the on off button..... Connect power, and hit the button..... It comes on, but no beep. Wtf.

Then I realized, I only have half of the power hooked up to the video card.... Fix that, and it boots! Yay.

That was right at midnight. So then spencer got re interested, and wanted to keep going.

So we took that all apart, installed the mother board in the case, mounted the video card, put the fan back in, installed the dvd drive, ssd and hdd, connected data and power cables.
I think all thats left is the front panel wires, the wireless adapter (which yells that you must install the software prior to physically connecting it...pain in the ass, that)... And the OS.

any set up tips? do I need to do anything fancy in the bios before I install w7?

Ok, its running!

The only fail is that there is a usb3 bracket the front of the case, but no where to plug it in to the mother board..

They end in a 19 pin rectangle female plug. Nothing even close on the mb. I have one remaining usb 3 port on the board. Do they make an adapter?

Omg. Skyrim is awesome.

this is the thing that is in the front of the case:

Attachment 38519

here's where they need to go:

there does not seem to be any such animal.

Other options would be to run the cable out the back and use a 19 pin to usb adapter to plug that front bracket up to one of the rear usb3 ports... which i don't like ... esthetically, and practically....

or get one of these:
Attachment 38523

and hook it right into one of the PCI express ports (which was one of the reasons the guy recommended this board over another I was considering)

Hey Jim.

I think you are mistaken about the diagram you posted above regarding your usb header.

The thing you circled and labeled USB 3.0, that's not a set of USB 3.0 headers, they're USB 2.0/1.1 headers. The blue one in the center "just happens to be" number three, in a series of four headers from right to left, usb1 (white) usb2 usb3 usb4 (blue blue blue). I don't know where you got that nineteen pin cable, but it doesn't connect to those usb headers. I know, "duh", right. Anyhow, I looked up your motherboard and the specs on gigabyte's websited *and* the motherboard manual pdf both say that your usb 3.0/2.0 ports are just the two pre-built pre-installed ports on the back of the motherboard (they're blue, surprise).

Links.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/pro...px?pid=3856#sp

look for info on usb resources.

manual for your mobo

http://download.gigabyte.us/FileList...a-d3h-b3_e.pdf

***

Good luck man!

Ah. I assumed they they were 3 capable because of their color.

Still, the cure is the pci card. Then I will have 4 usb3 ports.

Zoom.

Zoom on bro!

hmm... looking back at my initial post, the picture of that board is NOT the one I got. I'm intimately familiar with mine by now, and it's quite different. The one in the picture looks like it might have the port I need for my 19 pin.

Oh well.. that pci card is only $29. And it's not like there's any rush. I still have 6 regular usb and 2 usb3 ports.

I was using this picture as my reference. and the picture of the mobo in post #49 as my reference. Is that not your mobo?

YMMV

Looks more like mine, but the sata ports are different.

I'm just gonna order that card and maybe a memory stick reader thingy while I'm at it.

So, this is my first post from the new beast. I named it Magnus.


Magnus Vaughn Helm.



I know.



ghey


EAD

congrats!

you should smash a can of red bull across the bow or something!

Excellent!

hurrr.... shortly after that post, I installed avg, did windows updates, and restarted.

now it won't boot, and It doesn't see the SSD when I boot from the Windows7 disc. sigh.

what the fuck.