I decided on this case for a similar reason, but I also like the 6 hard drive bays and the fans right there for keeping them cool, as I was thinking about doing that RAID 10 in this machine.
I can only assume the "poo-poo pile" still exists in the inner bowels of the NOC?
I haven't seen it recently, I think they tossed a few and put a few back into circulation because they tested good on the power supply tester. I haven't seen a PSU failure very recently.
Very very nice. By the way, as the CPU is an unlocked i7, will you be overclocking?
I decided on this case for a similar reason, but I also like the 6 hard drive bays and the fans right there for keeping them cool, as I was thinking about doing that RAID 10 in this machine.
I used to use that case for my desktop. It's ok for small systems (in fact, I'm using it for my HTPC now), but for a modern gaming system, I wouldn't recommend it. The cable management is not very good compared to other cases and you may find the graphics card is a bit of a tight squeeze.
At this point, I have everything built and ready to go! I have already done several OS installs, I'm giving Windows 8.1 a spin at the recommendation of a colleague who really likes it for gaming.
The main factor that persuaded me to try it is the Storage Spaces feature, which is sort of software RAID. I wanted to RAID my 1TB drives and wasn't sure whether I wanted to do it using one of the older RAID cards I had laying around, so I am giving the feature a try.
Here's my setup so far, I am downloading games now!
I ended up buying two 256GB SSD's because the speed is amazing. I plan on installing some smaller games on the second SSD for performance, or mirroring the first drive, haven't decided yet. I'll be installing the larger games on my "RAID".
I'd second the recommendation for 8.1. People with a bitter taste in their mouth from 8 are still bitching about it, but it's really not bad. 8 was not so good, but they fixed a lot of things with 8.1 and more with 8.1 update 1.
8.1 vs 7 on the same hardware, 8.1 is definitely going to run faster and feel snappier.
As for storage spaces, I've had mixed results. It worked amazingly until I wanted to expand storage, then I ran into issues. Plus, if you over provision, once you get to the point where you run out of physical storage space, it will dismount the volume which can lead to some data corruption. So just something to watch out for.
the only complaint about Windows 8.1 I have at this point is, you can't get rid of the nagware watermark. It really is even more annoying if your computer doesn't have restrict-boot.
the only complaint about Windows 8.1 I have at this point is, you can't get rid of the nagware watermark. It really is even more annoying if your computer doesn't have restrict-boot.
nagware watermark? Are you referring to that notice on the desktop in the bottom right corner? If so, you get rid of it by activating Windows...
the only complaint about Windows 8.1 I have at this point is, you can't get rid of the nagware watermark. It really is even more annoying if your computer doesn't have restrict-boot.
nagware watermark? Are you referring to that notice on the desktop in the bottom right corner? If so, you get rid of it by activating Windows...
No. I am talking about the restrict-boot watermark. It is there if you have restrict-boot turned off. If you have restrict-boot and it is on, you won't see a watermark nagging you to turn it on.
I haven't come across this on any machines myself, and the error is probably something that would be remedied by a firmware update to properly support secureboot.
I am not planning on upgrading to windows 8 or 8.1 anytime soon. I'll just wait until 10. Like I said some computers don't support restrict-boot and my motherboard is from 2006, so there obviously wouldn't be a firmware update adding support for restrict-boot.
Very nice! Do you have an SSD? It doesn't seem so. Also, by the way, funnily enough, according to tests on Tom's Hardware, Win8.1 'eats' more VRAM than Win7 does. That really, really, puzzled me.
I ended up buying two 256GB SSD's because the speed is amazing. I plan on installing some smaller games on the second SSD for performance, or mirroring the first drive, haven't decided yet. I'll be installing the larger games on my "RAID".
I am not planning on upgrading to windows 8 or 8.1 anytime soon. I'll just wait until 10. Like I said some computers don't support restrict-boot and my motherboard is from 2006, so there obviously wouldn't be a firmware update adding support for restrict-boot.
My mobo is 2011-ish and it doesn't support secureboot. I also don't get the nagging message.
Me neither, on a ThinkPad X201 and some P|D system I had running it. Both are BIOS systems though.
Interesting. Maybe Microsoft silently listened and removed it? All I know is that was an issue around the release of 8.1 or 8.1 update 1 or something. My memory of it is foggy.
Me neither, on a ThinkPad X201 and some P|D system I had running it. Both are BIOS systems though.
Interesting. Maybe Microsoft silently listened and removed it? All I know is that was an issue around the release of 8.1 or 8.1 update 1 or something. My memory of it is foggy.
I didn't set up Secure Boot, and I have never seen such a watermark.
Comments
Very very nice. By the way, as the CPU is an unlocked i7, will you be overclocking?
Unfortunately, the EVGA unit is a Tier 3. These really aren't designed for overclocking, at all.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-18 ... -list.html
I used to use that case for my desktop. It's ok for small systems (in fact, I'm using it for my HTPC now), but for a modern gaming system, I wouldn't recommend it. The cable management is not very good compared to other cases and you may find the graphics card is a bit of a tight squeeze.
The main factor that persuaded me to try it is the Storage Spaces feature, which is sort of software RAID. I wanted to RAID my 1TB drives and wasn't sure whether I wanted to do it using one of the older RAID cards I had laying around, so I am giving the feature a try.
Here's my setup so far, I am downloading games now!
I ended up buying two 256GB SSD's because the speed is amazing. I plan on installing some smaller games on the second SSD for performance, or mirroring the first drive, haven't decided yet. I'll be installing the larger games on my "RAID".
I'd second the recommendation for 8.1. People with a bitter taste in their mouth from 8 are still bitching about it, but it's really not bad. 8 was not so good, but they fixed a lot of things with 8.1 and more with 8.1 update 1.
8.1 vs 7 on the same hardware, 8.1 is definitely going to run faster and feel snappier.
As for storage spaces, I've had mixed results. It worked amazingly until I wanted to expand storage, then I ran into issues. Plus, if you over provision, once you get to the point where you run out of physical storage space, it will dismount the volume which can lead to some data corruption. So just something to watch out for.
nagware watermark? Are you referring to that notice on the desktop in the bottom right corner? If so, you get rid of it by activating Windows...
No. I am talking about the restrict-boot watermark. It is there if you have restrict-boot turned off. If you have restrict-boot and it is on, you won't see a watermark nagging you to turn it on.
EDIT: Relevant link, http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/wind ... -watermark
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2902864
I haven't come across this on any machines myself, and the error is probably something that would be remedied by a firmware update to properly support secureboot.
Interesting. Maybe Microsoft silently listened and removed it? All I know is that was an issue around the release of 8.1 or 8.1 update 1 or something. My memory of it is foggy.