What's your latest tech purchase?

[iBruceypoo]

Even Telus' newly adopted AC router sucks balls; originally planned on picking up an AX58U but it turned out to be open box (yikes). I think networking snobs everywhere would better approve of the AC86U instead

It's a shame I won't be able to stretch the AX legs on both my desktops.

Same wired performance (940Mbps, maxed out) and close 5GHz performance (~500Mbps), but much improved 5GHz performance upstairs without extenders (200-300Mbps, compared to barely 100Mbps before). Guess they weren't lying about the AC86U's range.

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How about unboxing that gorgeous ASUS router and giving us a nice desktop closeup photo? Open that darn box up. It's not a show off your new box thread.

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So I got this external PWR switch recently made by AlphaCool in Germany, to position right in front of my keyboard.

Why did I buy this? It's beyond lazy not to mention redundant - but I LOVE IT!

...the included like 6foot long braided cable splits into a Y-pattern so your current front case panel PWR switch still functions normally and lights up just as before.

In my case using a test bench that's a Vandal blue dot, wired up meticulously lol (pic below)

 

[HQi88]

It looks like a motherboard but that socket, box says intel/amd cpu support but that socket just looks wrong. I don't know whether to worship it for being magic or set it on fire and run.

Some sort of Socket G1 or G2? Some decent PGA Sandy and Ivy quads you could put in there if it's the latter.

Box seems kind of sketchy, only Socket 5 and Socket 7 supported both Intel and AMD, and this is neither of those things.

Indeed its is a very sketchy motherboard I got off of AliExpress! It is a PGA 988 or G2 socket.

Desktop board for a mobile CPU. My guess is Socket 988, which is not bad. What are you putting in it?

Indeed it is! I managed to use my old laptop CPU in there for a while (i7-3632QM). Unfortunately, it died while I was playing some 4k video off of YouTube .

Long story short, motherboard works just fine, but my CPU no longer does

 

[khemist]

Show it to us without the shroud!

 

[TheLostSwede]

Even Telus' newly adopted AC router sucks balls; originally planned on picking up an AX58U but it turned out to be open box (yikes). I think networking snobs everywhere would better approve of this AC86U instead

It's a shame I won't be able to stretch the AX legs on both my desktops.

Same wired performance (940Mbps, maxed out) and close 5GHz performance (~500Mbps), but much improved 5GHz performance upstairs without extenders (200-300Mbps, compared to barely 100Mbps before and even with booster). Guess they weren't lying about the AC86U's range.

View attachment 203587

I'd suggest you get this installed on it.

Home | Asuswrt-Merlin

www.asuswrt-merlin.net

 

[lexluthermiester]

Indeed it is! I managed to use my old laptop CPU in there for a while (i7-3632QM). Unfortunately, it died while I was playing some 4k video off of YouTube .

Long story short, motherboard works just fine, but my CPU no longer does

Get a new CPU. They're dead cheap and would still work perfectly for most tasks today. Or are you wanting to sell the board?

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So are you mounting a few fans to it or are you using the stock fans without the shroud? If it were me, I'd mount a pair of steady state 3200rpm 92mm fans to it and call it good.

 

[khemist]

The fans are on the bottom of the case almost touching the heatsink.

 

[lexluthermiester]

The fans are on the bottom of the case almost touching the heatsink.

Ah, so plenty of cooling then! Nice! Dude show us pictures of that too! Very interesting!

 

[Valantar]

View attachment 203710

That's a nice and clean heatsink! Looks like an excellent card for deshrouding. No brackets or fasteners sticking out that need bending or filing. I wish all cooler manufacturers made their stuff mod-friendly like that.

 

[HQi88]

Get a new CPU. They're dead cheap and would still work perfectly for most tasks today. Or are you wanting to sell the board?

A new i7 CPU would run me about $100 CAD. I'm not sure whether I will buy a new cpu or sell the board

 

[iBruceypoo]

The fans are on the bottom of the case almost touching the heatsink.

Semi-passive is so awesome, fans not mounted, yet so close to the heatsink blowing nice airflow over the subassembly.

I used to cool a Noctua NH-D14 like that "way back in 2012" when I was still using cases, believe it was a Corsair 650D chassis, had (2)fans pushing air from the front and (3)fans extremely close to the heatsink yet not touching or mounted to it pulling air nicely thru it, low rpms.

Then I moved into (2) closed loop coolers, then (5) custom water loops oh those darn expensive Bitspower fittings uugh - then full circle right back to Noctua Good Air, lol.

 

[khemist]

This is in my ncase m1 previously, it's the same idea , might move back into it but i also would like to show off the cooler with the display in a bigger case.

 

[iBruceypoo]

This is in my ncase m1 previously, it's the same idea , might move back into it but i also would like to show off the cooler with the display in a bigger case.

Sweet mounting tech brother!

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What have I done?

Just pulled the trigger on that Gskill b-die 4800/17 DDR4 Superkit. Highest speed/lowest latency I've ever seen using b-die.

But DDR4 is almost a dead technology. Well, not for me, I'm skipping Alder Lake so won't be getting into DDR5 until late 2022 with Raptor Lake OR AMD Zen4 Raphael.

Wait, are you 100% certain it's b-die? Umm, well no. Although HWiNFO64 will tell me when the kit arrives.

Don't plan on running at the XMP value of 4800Mhz 17CL 1.600volts, although will test XMP just to see if my 11600K's IMC can do it.

The game plan is to manually tune these sweet (and savage @freeagent) sticks at: 4800Mhz 16 17 17 37 1.500volts and 5066Mhz 18 or 19CL 1.550volts - the target pure satisfaction values.

What if it's NOT B-DIE? Then I made a BIG mistake, and will return to Newegg within the 30day window.

Be here on Wednesday! Woohoo!

 

[Keullo-e]

I got generic 3200 sticks (HyperX Fury) myself, overclocks to 3466 and I'm happy with these.

 

[iBruceypoo]

I got generic 3200 sticks (HyperX Fury) myself, overclocks to 3466 and I'm happy with these.

View attachment 203753

Overclocking memory was so difficult for me in the beginning - then over time (just recently) it's become almost second nature and is PURE FUN! I avoided it for so many years and now I'm loving it! Actually only the last 6weeks did I really begin to enjoy it - spending so much time learning on my own. Previously, I either had some help ie: someone would send me some values to plug in and try OR I'd use a pre-configured bios OC profile provided by the motherboard manufacturer as a template and work from there.

I only removed my training wheels very recently, where now I feel pretty good overclocking ddr4 and fairly comfortable within the bios, and so wish I'd learned this so many years ago, my fault, but now it's absolutely AMAZING!

 

[Keullo-e]

Overclocking memory was so difficult for me in the beginning - then over time (just recently) it's become almost second nature and is PURE FUN! I avoided it for so many years and now I'm loving it! Actually only the last 6weeks did I really begin to enjoy it - spending so much time learning on my own. Previously, I either had some help ie: someone would send me some values to plug in and try OR I'd use a pre-configured bios OC profile provided by the motherboard manufacturer as a template and work from there.

I only removed my training wheels very recently, where now I feel pretty good overclocking ddr4 and fairly comfortable within the bios, and so wish I'd learned this so many years ago, my fault, but now it's absolutely AMAZING!

I just increased the frequency step by step until they got unstable (on 3533), probably a little voltage bump could help, but I'm already running on 1.38V and they have Hynix chips, I've heard that 1.4V is about the safe maximum for these..

 

[iBruceypoo]

I just increased the frequency step by step until they got unstable (on 3533), probably a little voltage bump could help, but I'm already running on 1.38V and they have Hynix chips, I've heard that 1.4V is about the safe maximum for these..

I turn OFF all the CPU overclocking values completely now, and only work the memory. I settle on target ballpark values I want to achieve, then like you I add incremental values both frequency and voltage - then tweak the primary and secondary timings, slowly tightening, then back to incremental frequency and voltage. I still leave the tertiary timings on AUTO, so I'm not anywhere near great at this, but I'm still learning.

Then much later I slowly add back incrementally the CPU overclocking values I've already established and know my processor can achieve, while I previously left the memory at stock settings.

If that makes any sense. lol

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If the new mem kit does not register Samsung in HWiNFO64 when it arrives, It'll break my little heart.

 

[tabascosauz]

How about unboxing that gorgeous ASUS router and giving us a nice desktop closeup photo? Open that darn box up. It's not a show off your new box thread.

Okay okay have a quick one

Not too much a fan of gamery aesthetics, but I mean it's the AC86U lol - it could be shaped like a Aztek and it'd still be a banger of a router.

I'd suggest you get this installed on it.

Home | Asuswrt-Merlin

www.asuswrt-merlin.net

Yep, Merlin's the other reason why I got this router lol. But if I'm not using OpenVPN is there anything related to everyday performance that Merlin does better? I'm not exactly a networking power user, I know how to tweak some Wifi-related settings but that's about it.

Edit: damn, I feel like an idiot for asking. Upstairs HTPC speeds on AX200, with 3 walls and a floor in between:

Telus Arcadyan hub + extender - 65 down/250 up
AC86U Asus firmware - 220 down/180Mbps up
AC86U Merlin 386.2 - 330 down/270 up.

That's equivalent to the download speed I'd get over wired at my old ISP, but on Wifi 5. Seriously impressive. No more OEM or TP-Link garbage for me, ever again.

 

[iBruceypoo]

Okay okay have a quick one

Not too much a fan of gamery aesthetics, but I mean it's the AC86U lol - it could be shaped like a Aztek and it'd still be a banger of a router.



Yep, Merlin's the other reason why I got this router lol. But if I'm not using OpenVPN is there anything related to everyday performance that Merlin does better? I'm not exactly a networking power user, I know how to tweak some Wifi-related settings but that's about it.

It's So Beautiful!

 

[TheLostSwede]

Okay okay have a quick one

Not too much a fan of gamery aesthetics, but I mean it's the AC86U lol - it could be shaped like a Aztek and it'd still be a banger of a router.



Yep, Merlin's the other reason why I got this router lol. But if I'm not using OpenVPN is there anything related to everyday performance that Merlin does better? I'm not exactly a networking power user, I know how to tweak some Wifi-related settings but that's about it.

Edit: damn, I feel like an idiot for asking. Upstairs HTPC speeds on AX200, with 3 walls and a floor in between:

Telus Arcadyan hub + extender - 65 down/250 up
AC86U Asus firmware - 220 down/180Mbps up
AC86U Merlin 386.2 - 330 down/270 up.

That's equivalent to the download speed I'd get over wired at my old ISP, but on Wifi 5. Seriously impressive. No more OEM or TP-Link garbage for me, ever again.

The bigger advantage with Merlin's firmware, that isn't really noticeable are the timely security updates. There are plenty of router security issues, so being able to patch those is a huge bonus imho.

 

[plastiscɧ]

My new PSU and it's cable-manegement


Awsome rog key-caps


ma juicy RAM


rog Headset Stand including a 7.1 soundcard and a wireless charging for your Phone in it's socket

 

[Valantar]

My new PSU and it's cable-manegement


Awsome rog key-caps


ma juicy RAM


rog Headset Stand including a 7.1 soundcard and a wireless charging for your Phone in it's socket




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Wait, you don't have a CMOS battery installed in your system?
Doesn't that mean you risk losing every single BIOS setting if it's disconnected from power even briefly?

 

[Mussels]

Wait, you don't have a CMOS battery installed in your system?
Doesn't that mean you risk losing every single BIOS setting if it's disconnected from power even briefly?

yeah, he's a real man and doesnt believe in having a battery do his work for him

 

[Valantar]

yeah, he's a real man and doesnt believe in having a battery do his work for him

Guess someone should start selling ROG branded CMOS batteries

 

[plastiscɧ]

Wait, you don't have a CMOS battery installed in your system?
Doesn't that mean you risk losing every single BIOS setting if it's disconnected from power even briefly?

yeah, he's a real man and doesnt believe in having a battery do his work for him

Guess someone should start selling ROG branded CMOS batteries

WAIT, You guys mean this one??!

Don't worry! It is where it belongs to...

 

[Valantar]

WAIT, You guys mean this one??!




View attachment 203857


Don't worry! It is where it belongs to...




View attachment 203858

Credit where credit is due: I might not agree with your tastes, but you're thorough and consistent, that's for sure!