Project: Firefox

[Ta10n]

Well I've finally started my first mod! I'm creating a PC for use in the Bit-tech overclocking competition. The computer will consist of:

P3 800 Mhz
Abit BE6-II RAID
384mb of RAM
Asus Nvidia FX 5700 256mb
A CRAZY, old, noisy, superfast Hitachi SCSI HDD I know nothing about
Old $20 steel case

Here are some of the mods I will be performing with the assistance of my good friend M2K3:

Chop HDD rack to fit only the floppy: Done
Cut out fan grills: Done
Sleeve visible cables: Done
Mount old AMD CPU heatsink on VGA: Done
Mod CPU heatsink with extra HS area: Done
Replace all stock thermal compound with ASC: Done
Paint Case and other items flat black: In progress
Flip the case BTX style: In progress
Mount HDD in a pair of 5.25 inch drive bays Done

And some things I MIGHT do:

Integrate a 4-port LAN switch
Add a case window
create ducting to improve airflow

Well thats it for now, I will update with pictures soon

[simon275]

Heh you can find more powerful computers at your local tip than that.

Ive always wanted to put networking gear in a case. Never worked out how I would achieve it though.

[Ta10n]

Probably :redface: But its a pretty quick system and the motherboard has some crazy overclocking options so I have my fingers crossed.

[Ta10n]

Okay guys M2K3 and I just finished mounting the CPU heatsink on the VGA card and thank god it still works. I had to do more work on it than I would have liked though. I ended up making a custom frosted plexi backplate and even frosted plexi spacers :eek: . But it looks good and in a few hours I should have some pictures up :)

[simon275]

Heh a cpu heatsink on a Nvidia FX 5700 bit of overkill.

What are the plexi spacers for?

Can you post some benchmarks of it and how hot the card is when you are done? It will be interesting to see if the thermal contacts will work well.

[M2k3]

Heh a cpu heatsink on a Nvidia FX 5700 bit of overkill.

What are the plexi spacers for?

Can you post some benchmarks of it and how hot the card is when you are done? It will be interesting to see if the thermal contacts will work well.
For the amount of overclocking we want to do on the card a CPU heatsink is perfect, it's big but fits very nicely on the card.

As for the plexi spacers those are used as washers so the backplate isn't pressed up against the card since there are small resistors on the back of the card, making the surface uneven. We wanted the backplate even and we didn't want the backplate crushing any of those resistors ;).

[Ta10n]

Finally pictures!

Video card from the top

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/Videocard1.jpg

Video card from the side, thats the old VGA heatsink on top, and we are actually using it!

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/Videocard2.jpg

Backside of the card with the custom plexi backplate

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/Videocard3.jpg

Front of expanded CPU heatsink, notice the piece of Ramsink on the chipset and the nicely sleeved fan cables.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/CPU1.jpg

[simon275]

My gosh. That must be overclocked to the BS. :eek: It was hard to grasp before what it looked like but dam. I just want to see how well it runs under load with your rather custom cooling solution

What where the stock frequencies and what are they now?

[Aero]

good setup. I'm going to assume the multipliers are unlocked on that old P3. Good luck with the mod and competition.

[Ta10n]

good setup. I'm going to assume the multipliers are unlocked on that old P3. Good luck with the mod and competition.

Well according to the BIOS it is, but the BIOS on my A7N8X says my Athlon XP is unlocked but it isn't, so I'm not really willing to trust it :D . But IF the chip IS unlocked we have enough settings to get it to 2.2 Ghz :eek: . Of course I seriously doubt we'll have enough voltage or cooling for that but its nice to know that won't be a limiting factor ;) .

[Ta10n]

Okay another update on the project, we have started building the hard drive mount and it looks pretty good so far. It just needs to be drilled and frost sanded. Have a look.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010604.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010605.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010606.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010607.jpg

And this is the hole we cut in the back of the motherboard tray for extra ventilation

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010608.jpg

And the sleeved ATX power connector. And yes I did try using real sleeving first, but the damn connector wouldn't come off :(.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010609.jpg

Oh look another sacrifice! Freshly discarded from my brothers AM2 build :).

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010610.jpg

Oh and if you have any comments, concerns, questions, or ideas please mention them!

[Airbozo]

The sleeving issue triggered a memory of having to bundle cables (while the system was on!) on a mainframe _many_ years ago. Back in the day, we did not have access to heat shrink tubing since it was mainly in industrial use only or tie wraps (not invented yet?). so we used flat cloth tape (about 1/8" thick) to wrap cables. Normally we would just use a simple hitch knot (http://www.realknots.com/knots/hitches.htm) about every half inch along the cable. It would tighten up the cable and was fairly easy to do and looked pretty good too. Just a thought...

Also I know there is an "open" heat shrink sleeve for just the issue you had. You just wrap it around the cable, tuck in the folds and the heat gun activates some adhesive and then shrinks the cable.

Man you guys trigger some of the strangest memories...

[simon275]

Oh look another sacrifice! Freshly discarded from my brothers AM2 build :).

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010610.jpg



Can't wait to see what happens to this poor unsuscpecting heatsink looking back at what happened to the last one. =D Nice work man. Whats the point of cutting the hole in the back of you mobo tray?

[xpc]

Project Blackout?? hmmm.. If you know tribaloverkill his project named also "Blackout" check it on Featured Worklog

:)

[M2k3]

Whats the point of cutting the hole in the back of you mobo tray?
One reason is for extra venting, and the other is so we can route wires back there and make the case look nice and clean.


Project Blackout?? hmmm.. If you know tribaloverkill his project named also "Blackout" check it on Featured Worklog
Uh oh. Ta10n and I will definitly have to check into that, Ta10n chose the name becuase we were going to paint the case black. I don't think he knew another project existed with the same name.

[GT40_GearHead]

dude what HDD is tharhttp://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010607.jpg

[M2k3]

dude what HDD is that
We don't know much about the HDD. What we do know is that it is a Hitachi, it's a SCSI, it's noisy and it's as thick as two floppy drives stacked together. That's about it. I think Ta10n knows the exact size in GB it is but I don't think we even figured out what speed it is. Ta10n was thinking it might be a 10K RPM drive.

[GT40_GearHead]

i think you should use that, i'm shure i've heard of scsi to SATA or pATA

[M2k3]

i think you should use that, i'm shure i've heard of scsi to SATA or pATA
We are using that and we also have a PCI SCSI card. No adapters needed. :D

[GT40_GearHead]

the only thing about that hdd that could be aded to this conversation is this:
that sh!t is big

[Ta10n]

Project Blackout?? hmmm.. If you know tribaloverkill his project named also "Blackout" check it on Featured Worklog

:)

Awww crap! I liked that name! oh well I guess it will have to go! Any suggestions for a new name?


dude what HDD is that

Its a Hitachi 16gb SCSI probably a 10,000 RPM, maybe a 15,000 RPM. My guess is a 15,000 because it is the loudest HDD ever! But I did ask my dad (who originally assembled the system) what it was. His first answer was "15,000 RPM" then "oh wait it might be 7200" :(

[GT40_GearHead]

15,000 !!!

eek eek

[Ta10n]

15,000 !!!

eek eek

Yeah!

[Ta10n]

After much deliberation and new name ideas Project: Blackout will now become Project: Blackjack. I am really satisfied with the new name decision and I hope you guys (and M2K3) like it! Although most of you will think of the card game Blackjack, that is not the Blackjack I am refering to. The Blackjack I'm refering to is the Russian Tu-160 Blackjack supersonic bomber, heres a couple of pics for ya

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/Blackjack3.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/Blackjack2.jpg


Although the name has changed the theme will remain almost exactly the same. The few changes that will occur are still in the works, but I think Silhouettes of the Blackjack on most of the case pieces would look awesome.

[M2k3]

I really like that name, it opens up quite a few intresting possibilities for case logo's/designs. (Any kind of military aircraft is just plain elite)

[Maz]

i have never even heard of that plane before. you know what that means...

im mother russia you dont leak government secrets, government secrets leak you!

dont ask me what that is supposed to mean....

reminds me of a cross between a f-15 tomcat and the u2 bomber

looks ubAr sveet!!

[Ta10n]

i have never even heard of that plane before. you know what that means...

im mother russia you dont leak government secrets, government secrets leak you!

dont ask me what that is supposed to mean....

reminds me of a cross between a f-15 tomcat and the u2 bomber

looks ubAr sveet!!

Nah just a scaled up B1B Lancer (BTW the F-15 is the Eagle and the U2 is the Dragonlady spyplane :) )

[Maz]

srry meant F-14

[Ta10n]

You still forgot the U2 :)

[Ta10n]

Okay time for another update. Last night M2K3 and I pondered painting the CD drive, PSU, and Floppy. The CD drive has its covers off, the floppy is still in one piece, and the PSU has most of its holes masked up for painting. Also I started frost sanding the HDD mount and it looks pretty good so far. Now for some pics.

Okay, for those of you who are wondering why we don't take the PSU cover off to paint this is why. The power connector can't be removed from the PSU casing. M2K3 was absolutey in AWE at this situation as he has disassembled many a PSU and not seen this before. As he put it the PSU was built BACKWARDS, he can explain what it means as I have forgotten :)

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010621.jpg

Here is the floppy mounted to the cut down 3.5" rack, the rack is kind of warped but in good shape overall.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010617.jpg

This is the inside of this VERY well designed CD drive. This is the simplest drive either of us have ever seen.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010618.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010619.jpg

This the drive cover that will be used to stealth the drive

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010627.jpg

And a few shots to the HDD bracket

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010623.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010626.jpg

And a shot of our workspace :)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010620.jpg

Hopefully I will have the HDD rack completed today, but M2K3 has just gone on holiday to some cabin in Quebec for two weeks so progress will be a bit slower. Luckily he has a computer and internet access up there so he will be able to check up on the log. (Whats the point of going to a cabin if it has a computer and internet access :) )

[M2k3]

Hello everyone. I just arrived in Quebec yesterday. The place I am staying is very nice but I wish the timing was diffrent, I'm gone for two weeks the contest deadline is coming up and we still need to figure out how to vold mod the damn card. I'm sure we'll figure something out.

About the PSU. I thought is was constructed a little bit wierd. Most of the PSU's I've worked with are easy to take apart (they are slightly older however). But this one appears to have the components put in then soldered in. Therefore things like the plugs were impossible to remove from the metal casing. This makes painting slightly more difficult but not impossible.

Anyway I hope all goes well, I'll be checking up on this as much as I can. Also Ta1on, you should PM a mod to see if you can get the thread title changed.

[Maz]

ive had to cut the wires before.

cut the wires, take plug(s) out, paint, then add bullet connectors or crimp connectors and your done!

[Aero]

dude, your sig is WAY too big. Please change that, I need to scroll over to see it.

[Ta10n]

ive had to cut the wires before.

cut the wires, take plug(s) out, paint, then add bullet connectors or crimp connectors and your done!

Hmmm... I was thinking we could just mask the holes from the inside, it should work fine.

And M2K3, I hate to sound like a noob and all but how exactly do I PM a moderator?

And Aero I will definately reduce the size of the sig, sorry :)

[M2k3]

Usually there is a list on some forums of the moderators but I cannot find it on this one. Perhaps another member knows?

Also Ta1on, I was looking through my CD booklet to see if I had brought my copy of Photoshop but I can't find it I could make you a nice signature when I get back. I don't know if Photoshop would even run, the computer I'm using is so ancient it's a miracle this guy we're renting from got XP installed on it. Takes forever to boot up too.

I'll keep looking to see if I can find a moderator but right now I'm going out so maybe someone else can help you with that. To PM someone just click on their name and select "send private message", now all you need to do is find a moderator.

Good luck with the project.

[Ta10n]

Usually there is a list on some forums of the moderators but I cannot find it on this one. Perhaps another member knows?

Also Ta1on, I was looking through my CD booklet to see if I had brought my copy of Photoshop but I can't find it I could make you a nice signature when I get back. I don't know if Photoshop would even run, the computer I'm using is so ancient it's a miracle this guy we're renting from got XP installed on it. Takes forever to boot up too.

I'll keep looking to see if I can find a moderator but right now I'm going out so maybe someone else can help you with that. To PM someone just click on their name and select "send private message", now all you need to do is find a moderator.

Good luck with the project.

Aha, thanks!

[Aero]

Thanks mate ;).

The mods lookin good. Keep up the good work.

[Ta10n]

Okay a progress update. The CD-drive is painted black and clearcoated, we'll see what it looks like tommorrow. Also I created a mesh grill for the back 80mm fan. I will put pics up tommorrow.

[Ta10n]

Okay I finally have another picture update for ya.

The finished HDD bracket
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010628.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010629.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010630.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010631.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010632.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010633.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010634.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010636.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010638.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010639.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010640.jpg
Here is the mesh that will be used to create fan hole guards, grills, etc. Thanks to Fozzy for pointing me in the right direction. Too bad his cost $.99 and mine cost $4.50! Oh well at least its chrome plated :)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010642.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010643.jpg
Here is the rear fan grill I made out of said mesh
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010644.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010646.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010647.jpg

[Ta10n]

And the painted and steathed CD-drive
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010648.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010651.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010653.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010657.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010659.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010660.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010661.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010662.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010663.jpg
Of course now I have even more done than that :). Those were just yesterday's, and the day before's shots. I have also cut out and painted the extra drive bay covers to allow for airflow to the HDD, and cut a huge blowhole in the front case panel and also started the process of painting it.

And M2K3, would you be willing to match the money I put into the mod and get us some red LED fans for that "Afterburner" look?

Anyway I am going camping for five days starting tommorrow so the mod will be on hold until I get back. Hopefully I'll get some shots of the above mentioned modifications before I leave :)

[M2k3]

That looks very cool. The CD ROM drive looks very slick. Does the panal cover in front of the CD tray work ok? The only thing that looks a bit rought is the hole for the 80mm. Are you going to sand it or did you have something else in mind?


And M2K3, would you be willing to match the money I put into the mod and get us some red LED fans for that "Afterburner" look?

Yeah, that will be no problem. Some red LED fans should look pretty nice. 8)

Awesome work! The CD drive looks very nice.

[Ta10n]

That looks very cool. The CD ROM drive looks very slick. Does the panal cover in front of the CD tray work ok? The only thing that looks a bit rought is the hole for the 80mm. Are you going to sand it or did you have something else in mind?


Yeah, that will be no problem. Some red LED fans should look pretty nice. 8)

Awesome work! The CD drive looks very nice.

Yep the front panel works great, and I am going to clean up the 80mm hole and the one behind the mobo.

And another update the first coat of clear it on the front panel, I will be putting on a second coat in about 45 minutes.

[Ta10n]

Okay another update. The front panel is complete and I've started cutting up the chassis for wire routing and extra airflow. I also did a concept sketch of what the final product would be.

To start a few shots of the front with the cut drive faces in
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010664.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010665.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010666.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010667.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010668.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010669.jpg

The nicely rounded rear fan hole as per M2K3's request
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010672.jpg

The rear motherboard hole with its edges grinded smooth. It doesn't look it but the grinding has made that hole nearly cut-proof.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010673.jpg

A shot of the whole case from that side. The cutout between the two holes to the left is for routing the floppy cable and the top masked hole is for hiding cables coming from the PSU behind the mobo.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010674.jpg

A shot of the front fan hole that is being enlarged
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010675.jpg

And the whole front of the case
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010676.jpg

And finally the concept sketch
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/BlackjackSketch.jpg

Well after drawing up the concept I realized the case is looking less and less like this...
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/ProjectBlackjack.jpg
and more and more like this...
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/Production-painting1.jpg
or this...
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/D2.jpg

Thats right! we might be changing the name again! Project: Firefox is sounding pretty nice :)

And maybe if we rename it people will actually start responding to the project, instead of just looking at it :(.
K mon guys we need the moral support :p .

[M2k3]

The painting on the front cover looks really good. The name change is ok, that Firefox aircraft looks kinda futuristic which is good. That last picture of the Firefox reminded me of the dropship from the movie Aliens.8)
Looks like the progress is going good, I can't wait to get back to help you with it. Lets hope people don't mistake the name with the popular internet browser by Mozilla. :rolleyes:

[Ta10n]

The painting on the front cover looks really good. The name change is ok, that Firefox aircraft looks kinda futuristic which is good. That last picture of the Firefox reminded me of the dropship from the movie Aliens.8)
Looks like the progress is going good, I can't wait to get back to help you with it. Lets hope people don't mistake the name with the popular internet browser by Mozilla. :rolleyes:

Yeah, I can see that the front at least looks kind of similar. The film grain also helps with that :). It wouldn't be good if people thought we were talking about the Mozilla Firefox, but I think Firefox was a pretty popular movie (Clint Eastwood biatch!). I mean I thought it was good....

SO should I ask one of the moderators to change the name (again)?

[xpc]

project firefox was nice. :)

[Ta10n]

project firefox was nice. :)

WAS!?!? Please don't tell me there is another Project: Firefox.

[Ta10n]

Well I'm off to go camping! See you all in five or six days!

[DaveW]

I sent you a PM about chaning the name.

-Dave

[Ta10n]

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I just got back from camping a few days ago and have been a bit busy with other things :). Anyway the front hole is completely cut and has gotten a bit of evening out with a grinding bit. Also I have started on the LAST remaining case hole. It should be cut a grinded by tomorrow, and I might even throw some paint on it :). But :)'s etc. aside I'm am heading out east in three days and I am coming back on August 31st at 8:00am. So at this point the overclocking is starting to take priority. But I will get as far as I can on the mod and then update with the overclocking!

[M2k3]

Uh oh. I'm coming back on Sunday. Ta10n, will you be gone by then? Doesn't the contest end at the end of the month? Will we have to forget about vmodding the card?

[Ta10n]

I'm leaving early sunday morning, so yeah that will be too late. And yes the contest does end at the end of the month. Unless we could do the Vmod on the 31st, but that would be cutting it a little close.

[M2k3]

Maybe I can pick up the computer and try to vmod it when you're gone. Do you want to leave it at Kyle Strong's house or Erik Dranch's house or something and I can pick it up when I get back?

[Ta10n]

Maybe, but we'll see how far I get. I actually read somewhere that you CAN change voltages in the videocard BIOS so I will try that!

[M2k3]

You might need a modded BIOS, I remember seeing a site with a huge list of modded BIOS's for video cards but I can't remember it. I have it bookmarked at home though.

I also bought a 120mm 3 blade fan from a flea market today. It comes with some weird vent and a metal grill all for $14.99. It says it uses .49 amps :eek:. I hope my PSU can handel it. :eek:

[Ta10n]

You might need a modded BIOS, I remember seeing a site with a huge list of modded BIOS's for video cards but I can't remember it. I have it bookmarked at home though.

I also bought a 120mm 3 blade fan from a flea market today. It comes with some weird vent and a metal grill all for $14.99. It says it uses .49 amps :eek:. I hope my PSU can handel it. :eek:

Does it have a molex?

[M2k3]

Does it have a molex?
No, it has a flat 5 pin connector (EDIT: only 3 pins are used, black, red and a blue. Red is 12v, black is ground but I dont know what blue is) that I've never seen before. It says it uses 12volts so I was just going to attach the red and black wires to a molex. Uh oh, I know there's a reason why you asked that. Is it going to work in my computer? Or is there something you know about it that I don't?

[Ta10n]

No, it has a flat 5 pin connector (EDIT: only 3 pins are used, black, red and a blue. Red is 12v, black is ground but I dont know what blue is) that I've never seen before. It says it uses 12volts so I was just going to attach the red and black wires to a molex. Uh oh, I know there's a reason why you asked that. Is it going to work in my computer? Or is there something you know about it that I don't?

A flat 5-pin? That probably won't work without some hardcore wiring skillz ;)

[M2k3]

I'm not too worried about the wiring part, I just hope my PSU can take the strain. It's not exactly top of the line. :rolleyes:

Anyway, do you want to leave to computer at Erik D's or Kyle S house so I can pick it up and work on it while you're gone? I could see if I can get the modded BIOS on the card instead of vmodding it. I just think waiting until the 31'st is cutting it too close.

[Ta10n]

I'm not too worried about the wiring part, I just hope my PSU can take the strain. It's not exactly top of the line. :rolleyes:

Anyway, do you want to leave to computer at Erik D's or Kyle S house so I can pick it up and work on it while you're gone? I could see if I can get the modded BIOS on the card instead of vmodding it. I just think waiting until the 31'st is cutting it too close.

I think I may have found a way to Vmod through the BIOS :). Anyway I'm going to sleep, I will update tomorrow.

[Ta10n]

Okay I just hosed down the case and floppy rack in preparation for painting. They're air drying on my deck, in the sun, and its like a 100 degrees outside so they should be dry FAST. After that the case, floppy rack, and PSU will be painted flat black and the whole comp will get reassembled.

[M2k3]

Sounds pretty good, but have you figured out if you can up the voltage through the BIOS?

[Ta10n]

Sounds pretty good, but have you figured out if you can up the voltage through the BIOS?

According to what I have been reading it is a definate posibility!

[M2k3]

Do you need to flash a modded BIOS on the card or can you use the origional BIOS? You should also test it out just to make sure it is possible to up the voltage through the BIOS.

[Ta10n]

Do you need to flash a modded BIOS on the card or can you use the origional BIOS? You should also test it out just to make sure it is possible to up the voltage through the BIOS.

It is a BIOS modifier i'm talking about, so no flashing involved (I hope). It is compatible with the FX 5xxx series so I think we're good to go!

[M2k3]

A BIOS modifier? Sounds good. What kinds of things can it do? Does it say it can change voltage?

[Ta10n]

A BIOS modifier? Sounds good. What kinds of things can it do? Does it say it can change voltage?

Clocks, voltages, memory timings, the works!

[M2k3]

Clocks, voltages, memory timings, the works!
Cool! Lets just hope we can pull it all off on the 31'st. Does the contest close at 12:00AM? What is the exact Eastern time the contest ends?

[dgrmkrp]

dudes.. can u pls post a link :)
i need a bios modifier too :) for nvidia.. (a good one for ati would be nice too)

got a card that refuses to tell me what it's good for.. (maybe i need more research or a utility that can tell me.. tried stuff before.. maybe i can use this.. if not, it will still be very valuable :) )

[Ta10n]

dudes.. can u pls post a link :)
i need a bios modifier too :) for nvidia.. (a good one for ati would be nice too)

got a card that refuses to tell me what it's good for.. (maybe i need more research or a utility that can tell me.. tried stuff before.. maybe i can use this.. if not, it will still be very valuable :) )

Sure dude, you can check around this site: http://www.mvktech.net/

Look around the site, they have lots of BIOS files and at least 1 BIOS editor.

[dgrmkrp]

10ks.. i'll do that right now :)

[Ta10n]

Cool! Lets just hope we can pull it all off on the 31'st. Does the contest close at 12:00AM? What is the exact Eastern time the contest ends?

It ends at 23:59:59 military time, so if thats 12:00AM then yes!

[M2k3]

It ends at 23:59:59 military time, so if thats 12:00AM then yes!
It doesn't say if it's eastern or pacific time? I'll PM the guy at bit-tech who made the thread about it and confirm what time zone it is.

[Ta10n]

Well I just threw the first few coats of paint on the case, PSU, and floppy rack. I will update with pics as soon as they're done. I looks like it's now officially Project: Firefox so i'd better make a new sig :)

[M2k3]

I just recived a PM from the guy at bit-tech. He says the timezone is GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). So that's bad news for us in Ontario. It will end at 8:00 PM our time! :eek: :eek: :eek:

I sure hope you can make it home early on the 31'st Ta10n. How far away will you be anyway?

[Ta10n]

I just recived a PM from the guy at bit-tech. He says the timezone is GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). So that's bad news for us in Ontario. It will end at 8:00 PM our time! :eek: :eek: :eek:

I sure hope you can make it home early on the 31'st Ta10n. How far away will you be anyway?

Yeah I'll be home about 10 hours before it closes, I'm headed out east to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, etc.

[M2k3]

Yeah I'll be home about 10 hours before it closes, I'm headed out east to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, etc.
Ok, sounds like enough time. As long as the computer doesn't implode at the last second (or any other unforseen problem) we should be in the clear. Have fun on your trip!

[Ta10n]

Yep I will! Also an update, the painting is done, I just have to wait 10 more minutes for it to dry completely.

[d_stilgar]

Firefox. I was looking to see a PC mod based off my favorite web browser. I like the firefox though. That is one cool plane.

[Ta10n]

Firefox. I was looking to see a PC mod based off my favorite web browser. I like the firefox though. That is one cool plane.

One cool plane? Mach 6, invisible to radar, thought guided weapons. That is THE cool plane.

Anyway finally a picturesque update!

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010001.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010002.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010003.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010004.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010005.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010006.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010007.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010008.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010009.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010010.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010011.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010012.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010013.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010014.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010015.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010016.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010017.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010018.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010019.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010020.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/P1010021.jpg

I will leave the photos comment-less for now (and excuse the bluryness). I'm off to bed, got to get up at 5:00 tommorrow :(

[Ta10n]

Okay I'm back from vacation and we have less than ten hours to get this thing together, overclocked, and tested. Wish us luck!

[.Maleficus.]

Good luck!

[Ta10n]

Well we didn't manage to get into the competition, mainly because we ran out of time, but we were also having issues with transfering results and the harddrive was less than willing to install benchmarking programs :(. I think we might mod the card BIOS today and see if we can get more voltage. I will update on how it turns out!

[Ta10n]

Well after not entering the overclocking comp I figured I would let everyone in on the temps we got. The core temp on the card refused to break 32c at max load. I think we might perform a BIOS flash on the card to get the voltages up then resume overclocking.

[Ta10n]

Okay were getting XP on this thing! This means we can overclock, BIOS mod, port files over etc. more easily. Shweet! I'm also working on a sketchup model of the rig for those of you who like that sort of thing :)

[Ta10n]

Okay guys a bit of an update for you. The sketchup model is coming along and I figured I would upload some images of its progress for your viewing pleasure.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/FirefoxSket2.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/Ta10n/FirefoxSket1.jpg

Yes I realize they are VERY incomplete, but M2K3 and I have been busy with other things. Anyway until next time!

[gaz_the_chav]

tht looking good man keep up the work!