Categories
Water Cooling

Corsair 600T Water Cooled – i5 2500k – 2×6950 reference – 16GB DDR3

This is my second water cooling build, ever. I think it turned out really well. My temps are rock solid at full load, the GPU’s barely move up 5C when 100% in games. Idle around 27-30C on them. The CPU hits 35C on full load, but I have not overclocked it yet. best of all, I met all of my goals I set out to do with this build.

This is more of an ‘after’ build log, as the system is up and running now :).

Now to the parts :

CPU : i5 2500k
Motherboard : Asus P8P67 PRO
Case : Corsair 600T
PSU : Corsair HX1000
Memory : 4x4GB G.Skill DDR3 1600
GPU : 2x Reference 2GB XFX 6950’s shader unlocked and oc’d
Optical : 2x Asus DVD-RW/CD/R drive
Hdd : OCZ Solid 2 120GB
Hdd : 1TB WD Black

WC Parts :

Pumps : 2x Swiftech MCP-655-B
Res : Koolance RP-452×2
Hose : PrimoChill UV Blue (1/2 ID, 3/4 OD)
CPU : EK Supreme HF
GPU Block : 2x XSPC 6970 Reference coolers
Rad – Top : Swiftech MCR220-QP
Rad – Front : Phobya 200MM
Fans : 2x Scythe S-FLEX SFF21E 1x Antec COOLER MASTER Megaflow 200mm
Water : Distilled + pt nuke
Barbs : 1 x 90 bitspower, 8+ XSPC short barbs (1/2 ID, 3/4 OD)
QDC : 2 sets of Koolance QDC’s for easy GPU removal (6 month upgrades won’t require a major overhaul on the loop with these.

Specific links for the GPU setup :

This is the connector between the two cards :
Koolance VID connector

I got 2 male QDC’s – Koolance QDC – Male
2 female QDCs – Koolance QDC – Female
1 90degree barb – 90 degree rotary bitspower barb

I had 4 goals in this build

1) Reduce GPU temps
2) No cuts/drilling/100% stock
3) All internal , serial loop
4) quiet, low-no noise
5) Get my feet wet, and progress my PC hobby skills 🙂

Issues I ran into :

1) Bleeding the RP-452×2 with inserts/serial kit was almost impossible. What I did was pulled, all acrylic inserts out, and put hte connector up top. I slowly overfilled the right side of my res with a barb-hose(roughly 14 inches), and just stop/start/stop/start as it filled the rads/pushed air out. It took about 2 hours to get it done, but now it’s silent.

This was my set up to bleed it, you really don’t need this long of a hose either :

[zp src=”P1000084.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

2) The top rad was in the way of my 8 pin CPU connector, so I purchased an extender, and snipped the top off, so I could make room, you can see it in this picture :

This is where I snipped (in red) so it could fit :

[zp src=”chopchop.jpg” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000079.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000078.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

3) My second issue was mounting the front 200MM rad, without having to drilled/cut anything. I managed to actually use the 200mm fan clip/mounting system that the 600T comes with … relatively ingenious if I do say so myself. I only have one fan in pull, but it works perfectly fine for me, no need for a second fan to push.

[zp src=”P1000103.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000104.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

Here’s the little contraption mounted :

[zp src=”P1000082.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

This was very helpful, I was able to take the rad out, and pound on it a bit, to get ALL of the air out, I could remove it entirely from the case, without having to take off any bolts. The only thing you have to do, is be very precise with the location of the stock clips, because they seem to be finicky if they are off by even a centimeter or two.

4) This was my first time ripping a part GPU’s, so I took some screens of what they looked like after I pulled the stock coolers off. Apparently taking the stock coolers off voids the warranty (says the little stickers on the screws for the mount) :D.

[zp src=”P1000081.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000080.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

For reference, this was the original build, before water :

[zp src=”P1000014.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

Here were my pre loop thoughts :

[zp src=”proposedWC.jpg” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”proposed2.jpg” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

Here is a little pre-tubing shot :

[zp src=”P1000083.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

Some leak testing :

[zp src=”P1000085.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

The complete/final build :

[zp src=”P1000118.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000115.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000116.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000117.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

**Updated and added full acrylic side :

[zp src=”P1000125.JPG” album=”vivi/600T/acrylic” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000121.JPG” album=”vivi/600T/acrylic” width=”500″]

[zp src=”P1000123.JPG” album=”vivi/600T/acrylic” width=”500″]

Categories
Cases Water Cooling

Water Cooling an Antec 300 – Q9550

So, I have decided to water cool my Antec 300 case….which acts as my 24/7 HTPC workhorse.

Specs :

Antec 300
Q9550
2GBx4 DDR2
3 x 2TB Samsung HDD
2 x 2TB WD Drives (backups)
Asus P5N-D

I started with an RS240 XSPC kit, but found the pump to be far too loud and not adequate for my set up, so I am moving to the following build :

Water Cooling specs :

Reservoir : RS240 pump/res comboKoolance RP-402X2 Dual 5.25 Reservoir for 1-2 DDC Pumps + Swiftech MCP 350’s
Radiator : RS240 from the RS240 Kit/Combo
Tubing : rimoFlex Pro LRT UV Red Tubing – 1/2in. ID X 3/4in. OD
Barbs : What came with the kit
Fans : 4 x SCythe SFF21G
90 Degree Fitting : 4 x Koolance G1/4 Swivel 90° Angled Barb
45 Degree Fitting : 2 x Koolance Swiveling G1/4 Threaded 45 Degree Low Profile Angle Fitting
CPU Block : Came with the kit – XSPC CPU block
Northbridge block : Custom fabbed block from a guy on overclock.net
PCI Tube G1/4 Slot : Koolance L-Bracket with Dual G 1/4 Socket Fittings (BKT-PCI-G)
Radblock Mount : Swiftech MCB-120™ “Radbox”

I have changed a few things from when I started,so I will post new pictures once completed again. The pumps will run serial, with that little koolance res kit.

Categories
Software

Enabling “Unofficial Overclocking” in MSI Afterburner 2.1

I was looking for the proper way to enable overclocking in MSI Afterburner 2.1, and found a guide for an old version, but figured out how to do it in 2.1.

go to where your MSI Afterburner is installed, for me/default it’s :

C:\Program Files (x86)\MSI Afterburner
open MSIAfterburner.cfg with wordpad or notepad
There are 2 lines we need to add to :

under the line [ATIADLHAL]
We need to replace UnofficialOverclockingEULA = and UnofficialOverclockingMode = 0 with :

UnofficialOverclockingEULA = I confirm that I am aware of unofficial overclocking limitations and fully understand that MSI will not provide me any support on it
UnofficialOverclockingMode = 1

Save it, and you are good to go!

This is what it looks like afterwards … OC options open right up.

[zp src=”msi.jpg” album=”blog/etc” width=”500″]

Categories
Linux

Installing ImageMagick/Imagick on a cPanel Server

I was having issues with my Zen install not being able to handle large images, so I read around and decided to move image cache’ing over to ImageMagick, instead of the GD library. This is what you need to do to install/enble ImageMagick on your cPanel server :

You’ll need to be logged in as root on your VPS/Server :

1. Log into your server as root
2. Create a new directory as below :
mkdir /home/cpimins
3. cd /home/cpimins
4. wget http://layer1.cpanel.net/magick.tar.gz
5. tar zxvf magick.tar.gz
6. cd magick
7. /scripts/installrpm ImageMagick
8. /scripts/installrpm ImageMagick-devel
9. sh ./install

Now we need to get the module for PHP installed :

Log into WHM >> Software >> Module Installers >> PHP Pecl and install imagick to get it binding to PHP properly.

After you do that, restart HTTPD/Apache service and you’re golden!

known issue with transferred domains :

If you do not see this in your php.ini file, or it not functioning properly, then you should go to the directory of the issue’d domain example : /home/domainuser/ and rename php.ini to php.ini.bak

Enjoy!

Categories
Operating Systems Printers

0x00000006 error (cannot connect to server) when trying to add printers

Scenario :

Dell E6410 with windows 7 PRO trying to add printer(s) – HP, from server xyz, returns error : Cannot Connect To Printer, when you expand you receive this code : 0x00000006

[zp src=”printerror.jpg” album=”blog/etc” width=”500″]

What I tried :

Removing everything related to the printer in registry (F3 is your friend)
Adding other printers from other print server (this worked)
Re-adding computer to domain (was listed, but thought i’d try)

Rebooted after each attempt as well.

What finally worked :

Going to :
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Print\Providers\Client Side Rendering Print Provider\Servers
and removing anything related to the xyz server, and it worked, did not even have to reboot. Connected, and started downloading drivers as it is supposed to.

Hopefully this helps!

Categories
Computer Hardware General Computing

Dell D630 – 8 beeps after post

I had this issue come across my desk, after pulling everything out, found out it was the keyboard.

symptom :

laptop beeped 8 times after post

troubleshooting :

pulled optical drive
swapped memory – tested memtest
pulled PCMIA card
swapped keyboard – winner!

hopefully this can help someone :).

Categories
Computer Hardware Gaming

How to unlock shaders on 6950

I recently purchased 2 XFX 6950’s. They are great cards, and doing some research, I found this forum post :

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=137136

It talks on how to unlock the shaders on the reference 6950 cards. I have an XFX so I used this modified bios :

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showpost.php?p=2137536&postcount=343

These are my personal numbers :

before :

[zp src=”xfx-stock.gif” album=”vivi/6950″ width=”500″]
[zp src=”xfx-stock2.gif” album=”vivi/6950″ width=”500″]

after (unlocked shaders, NO OC):

[zp src=”xfx-flashed6950-1.gif” album=”vivi/6950″ width=”500″]
[zp src=”xfx-flashed6950-2.gif” album=”vivi/6950″ width=”500″]

Now for fun, this is the spec of my new computer :

i5 2500k
Asus P8P67 Pro
Corsair 600T
Corsair 1000HX
2 x XFX 6950 2GB in xfire
2 x Asus DVD/CD/RW/R
Corsair H70
OCZ Solid 2 120GB SSD

[zp src=”P1000014.JPG” album=”vivi/600T” width=”500″]

Specific How To for XFX 6950 Shader unlock :

What you’ll need to download before we start :

GPU-Z : http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/1921/TechPowerUp_GPU-Z_v0.5.0.html
ATI WinFlash : http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/1919/ATI_Winflash_2.0.1.13.html
VGA BiOS to unlock : http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/index.php?page=1&architecture=&manufacturer=&model=HD+6950&interface=&memSize=0

This is the one I used for my XFX : http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/89673/XFX.HD6950.2048.101206.html

They have other BIOS’s listed, for other manufacturers, but i’ve read that they should all work with the HIS BIOS.

1 – Grab ATI Winflash (32 & 64-bit).
2 – Download HD 6950 BIOS (we’ll be using the specific XFX bios). It should work with other vendor’s, but this one is specifically for XFX 6950 REFERENCE cards.
3 – Make sure the BIOS switch on the card is set to the 1 position (pictured further down if you don’t know where it is).
4 – Run ATI Winflash, click Save to save your BIOS, so you have a backup in case something goes wrong.
5 – Load the HD 6970 BIOS into Winflash by clicking Load Image, followed by Program.
6 – Let the flashing process complete and reboot your system.
7 – Check the shader count using GPU-Z, it should show 1536. Make sure you use version 0.5.0 or newer, the official 0.4.9 version does not support HD 6900 Series properly. If you see a shader count of 1600, your GPU-Z version is outdated.
8 – To ensure maximized performance open Catalyst Control Center, go to the Overdrive tab and set the PowerTune slider to the +20% setting. The “Testing” section of this article has more data on that.
9 – Check stability in Windows desktop applications and games, with an application like OCCT/Prime95

I modified the how-to a bit, but this is the article that helped me get started : http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/vidcard/159

Categories
Gaming

Fallout 3, and New Vegas mouse lag?

I played Fallout 3 for hours, and noticed a lot of mouse lag. Recently did a quick search, and found a VERY quick fix. In New Vegas, and Fallout 3, Vertical Sync being disabled is not saved, you have to go in and manually do it.

Config file name/location for FO3: C:\Users\username\Documents\My Games\Fallout3\FALLOUT.INI
Config file name/location for FO3/NV : C:\Users\username\Documents\My Games\FalloutNV\FALLOUT.INI
Change iPresentInterval=1 to iPresentInterval=0

Hopefully this helps someone out.

Categories
Comcast

Comcast HDTV Lineup for Minneapolis – 2011

I was looking for this list now that I have my new Ceton 4 Tuner card. This is the link : http://www.comcast.com/customers/clu/ChannelLineup.ashx

otherwise this is the list as of 1-12-2011 :

181 NFL Network HD High-Definition TV
256 Big Ten Network HD High-Definition TV
400 Spike HD High-Definition TV
401 Golf Channel HD High-Definition TV
402 FSN North HD High-Definition TV
403 ESPN HD High-Definition TV HD ON
404 ESPN2 HD High-Definition TV
405 Big Ten Network HD High-Definition TV
406 NFL Red Zone HD High-Definition TV
407 TNT HD High-Definition TV
408 Versus HD High-Definition TV HD ON
409 Universal HD High-Definition TV
410 A&E HD High-Definition TV
411 Palladia HD High-Definition TV
412 HD Theater High-Definition TV HD ON
413 National Geographic HD High-Definition TV
414 Food Network HD High-Definition TV
415 HGTV HD High-Definition TV
420 HD Net High-Definition TV
421 Lifetime HD High-Definition TV
422 The History Channel HD High-Definition TV
423 CNN HD High-Definition TV
424 Discovery HD High-Definition TV
425 TLC HD High-Definition TV
426 Animal Planet HD High-Definition TV
427 Syfy HD High-Definition TV
428 AMC HD High-Definition TV
429 Science Channel HD High-Definition TV
431 KSTP – ABC (HDTV) High-Definition TV
432 KARE – NBC (HDTV) High-Definition TV
433 WCCO – CBS (HDTV) High-Definition TV HD ON
434 KMSP – FOX (HDTV) High-Definition TV
435 WUCW – CW (HDTV) High-Definition TV
436 WFTC – HD High-Definition TV
437 KPXM HD – ION High-Definition TV
439 KSTC – IND (HDTV) High-Definition TV
440 TPT – PBS (HDTV) High-Definition TV
441 USA HD High-Definition TV
442 TBS HD High-Definition TV
443 Nickelodeon HD High-Definition TV
444 ABC Family HD High-Definition TV
445 Disney HD High-Definition TV
504 iNDemand PPV Events HD High-Definition TV
761 NBA League Pass HD High-Definition TV
762 MLB Extra Innings/NHL Center Ice HD High-Definition TV
810 WGN HD High-Definition TV
814 HSN HD High-Definition TV
815 QVC HD High-Definition TV
816 Discovery HD High-Definition TV
817 TLC HD High-Definition TV
818 Animal Planet HD High-Definition TV
819 National Geograpic HD High-Definition TV
820 Travel HD High-Definition TV
821 Planet Green HD High-Definition TV
822 Science Channel HD High-Definition TV
823 History HD High-Definition TV
824 Syfy HD High-Definition TV
825 USA HD High-Definition TV
826 TBS HD High-Definition TV
827 Food Network HD High-Definition TV
828 HGTV HD High-Definition TV
829 A&E HD High-Definition TV
830 FX HD High-Definition TV
831 AMC HD High-Definition TV
832 TCM HD High-Definition TV
833 Hallmark HD High-Definition TV
834 Hallmark Movie Channel HD High-Definition TV
835 Lifetime Movie Network HD High-Definition TV
836 Lifetime HD High-Definition TV
837 Disney XD HD High-Definition TV
838 ABC Family HD High-Definition TV
839 Disney HD High-Definition TV
840 Nickelodeon HD High-Definition TV
841 TWC HD High-Definition TV
842 CNN HD High-Definition TV
843 HLN HD High-Definition TV
844 Fox News Channel High-Definition TV
845 MSNBC HD High-Definition TV
846 CNBC HD High-Definition TV
847 Fox Business HD High-Definition TV
848 truTV HD High-Definition TV
849 Biography HD High-Definition TV
850 Style HD High-Definition TV
851 GMC HD High-Definition TV
852 E! HD High-Definition TV
853 MTV HD High-Definition TV
854 VH1 HD High-Definition TV
855 CMT HD High-Definition TV
856 BET HD High-Definition TV
857 TV One HD High-Definition TV
858 Fuse HD High-Definition TV
859 G4 HD High-Definition TV
860 Comedy HD High-Definition TV
861 Cartoon HD High-Definition TV
862 Golf Channel HD High-Definition TV
863 FSN North HD High-Definition TV
864 ESPN HD High-Definition TV
865 ESPN2 HD High-Definition TV
866 Spike HD High-Definition TV
867 Big Ten Network High-Definition TV
868 ESPNews HD High-Definition TV
869 ESPNU HD High-Definition TV
870 Outdoor Channel HD High-Definition TV
871 CBS Sports HD High-Definition TV
872 NHL HD High-Definition TV
873 MLB HD High-Definition TV
874 NBA TV HD High-Definition TV
875 NFL RedZone HD High-Definition TV
876 NFL Network HD High-Definition TV
877 Versus HD High-Definition TV
878 Speed HD High-Definition TV
879 TNT HD High-Definition TV
880 Bravo HD High-Definition TV
881 WE HD High-Definition TV
882 History International HD High-Definition TV
883 HD Theater High-Definition TV
884 Investigation Discovery HD High-Definition TV
885 Palladia HD High-Definition TV
897 3D Events Channel High-Definition TV
898 ESPN3D Sports
900 HBO HD High-Definition TV
901 HBO 2 HD High-Definition TV
902 HBO Zone HD High-Definition TV
903 HBO Latino HD High-Definition TV
906 IFC HD High-Definition TV
907 Universal HD High-Definition TV
908 Encore HD High-Definition TV
909 MGM HD High-Definition TV
910 Starz HD High-Definition TV
911 Starz Edge HD High-Definition TV
912 Starz Kids & Family HD High-Definition TV
913 Starz Comedy HD High-Definition TV
920 Showtime HD High-Definition TV
921 Showtime 2 HD High-Definition TV
930 Cinemax HD High-Definition TV
940 TMC HD High-Definition TV

Categories
video

John Lennon and Bob Dylan in a cab talking about Johnny Cash