# Its here...



## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

Well I have been up one side and down the other on deciding what to buy for my new upgrade untill tax season.(coz i cant wait!) I will have a MSI P45 Neo FR soon, but i will use that board for my new build come next spring(tax return!) And im sure all of you have seen a few of my threads and know that my dog got real sick , hence the reason i have to wait for a new build come march. The wife told me that i could go ahead and spend $400 on anything i wanted for my PC. Well if you read my system specs you will see that im running on a old ass agp set-up, the rig is maxxed, i cant make it any better. And that will be the wifes PC come march also. So I decided to buy a CPU, Mobo, GPU, and some ram. Just to have a good upgrade for HER, and so I can have something that can take a dual core cpu with a great OC along with the GPU power to play the newer titles untill march.

I ended up buying 2 open box  products from the egg, and a retail CPU and RAM.

OB Sapphire HD 4850-100$
OB ASUS P5Q PRO-79$
Intel E5200 dual core 45nm-83$ ( just cause it was 99$ and Ive heard it OC's like a mofo)
2 gigs of DDR2 1066 Gskill CL5-36$

Total after shipping-314$

I got the GPU and the board in today, and the CPU and RAM will be here monday.(better be, it says it will and i got that day off!) Well here are 2 pictures of the mobo i got today(before my batteries went on me)












OK guys I know its a Open box product but idk rite now. Its Xmas time and money is low, and i dont need the extras with the board and GPU. But when I get it up and running im sure i will need a few tips on OCing this E5200 on the P5Q Pro. This is my first ASUS board and just from the looks of the board it looks like a solid board.

And PLEASE tell me what you think about my purchase. I really need to know what i bought wasnt a waste of money, I need all the feedback i can get. I have 15 days to return the open box items and if i made a mistake i want to know ASAP, so i can return it for the better. Thanks guys!


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 22, 2008)

Nice! No possible way to test the board for post is there? I think you did VERY VERY GOOD! Why trade off to an MSI P45 Neo tho? The P5Q Pro is a better board IMO.


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## mlee49 (Nov 22, 2008)

The Asus boards are, imo, some of the best OC'ing boards around.  Do you have a cpu to get a post out of it?  Did you get lucky and get any accessories?  Some OB's come with a few light accessories and some dont.  Either way I'm sure you can find extra cabling for you new baby.

Good choice, the P5Q PRO is a nice board with lots of options.  Get it to post asap and then dig into the bios.  Enjoy your new build, sounds like a decent budget system


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

JrRacinFan said:


> Nice! No possible way to test the board for post is there? I think you did VERY VERY GOOD! Why trade off to an MSI P45 Neo tho? The P5Q Pro is a better board IMO.



Well Im going to get the MSI for free from a friend who is switching over to a i7 build in like a week or so. I was going to buy it , but  he is jsut going to give it to me. If the ASUS is better then i will use that for my main ring and set the wife up with the msi. I wish i could test it now. I have a spare psu but no CPU or RAM for it to test.:shadedshu

Atleast not untill monday..

Also. shoul i go ahead and remove the heatsinks from the board now and pust som AS5 on them. I was thinking of going ahead and jsut getting that out of the way. It should help rite?


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 22, 2008)

I highly advise you test it for post AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, do a bare minimum boot. Yah the MSI is a good board too.


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

mlee49 said:


> The Asus boards are, imo, some of the best OC'ing boards around.  Do you have a cpu to get a post out of it?  Did you get lucky and get any accessories?  Some OB's come with a few light accessories and some dont.  Either way I'm sure you can find extra cabling for you new baby.
> 
> Good choice, the P5Q PRO is a nice board with lots of options.  Get it to post asap and then dig into the bios.  Enjoy your new build, sounds like a decent budget system




No I wasnt so lucky to get any extras. The only thing it comes with is the back IO shield, softwares, cables i dont need, and the little connectors for the front panel connections(wish they sent those if there was any to have with this OB) But like i said i dont really need that crap anyways, just the board. Ive already DL the latest drivers, BIOS, the manual, and all the other software from ASUS and burnt them to a disk when i do my fresh install of XP.


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

JrRacinFan said:


> I highly advise you test it for post AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, do a bare minimum boot. Yah the MSI is a good board too.



So you think i should just put power to the board and use the GPU to see if it does anything. Coz thats all i really have to use untill monday.

I could take out this P4? You think this board will take it?


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 22, 2008)

_jM said:


> So you think i should just put power to the board and use the GPU to see if it does anything. Coz thats all i really have to use untill monday.



Won't post without a compatible cpu.



_jM said:


> I could take out this P4? You think this board will take it?



Not compatible, you will have to wait til Monday bro.


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

JrRacinFan said:


> Won't post without a compatible cpu.
> 
> 
> 
> Not compatible, you will have to wait til Monday bro.



yea thats what i thought..


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## mlee49 (Nov 22, 2008)

Is your P4 a 775?  Go to Microcenter and pick up a cheap 775 processor and return it Monday. This is the single most important thing with an OB.


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

*Found some batteries....*

Here is the Sapphire 4850...


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

mlee49 said:


> Is your P4 a 775?  Go to Microcenter and pick up a cheap 775 processor and return it Monday. This is the single most important thing with an OB.



Yea this is a 775 P4. And I dont get paid till monday anyways, that would be usless for me coz the new CPU and RAM will be here monday.And if there is something wrong with the mobo or the GPU monday, i will still have 9 days on the open box return policy from the egg. So i should be in the clear. I just wish they had sent ALL of it to me today instead of 2 different packages. Just for that main purpose.


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

If this helps here is a pic of CPUZ on my CPU i could use?


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 22, 2008)

Oooh ahhh , but without compatible ram most you could do is check the board for ram beeps.


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## cdawall (Nov 22, 2008)

i got the same open box deal go back onto newegg and get the rebate you can get anotherr $15 off that

mine right now is running 24/7 440x8 on a celeron e1200

pm me if you want the fan that goes on top of the mosfets ill send you one for the cost of shipping


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

cdawall said:


> i got the same open box deal go back onto newegg and get the rebate you can get anotherr $15 off that
> 
> mine right now is running 24/7 440x8 on a celeron e1200
> 
> pm me if you want the fan that goes on top of the mosfets ill send you one for the cost of shipping



How did you get that rebate. I cant seem to find out how to get it.You are talkn about the instant rebate from the non-OB board right? I see what you mean, but how the hell do i get newegg to give me the rebate?

Thanks for the offer on the fan. Im not sure if i really need it yet, if i do i will pm you on your offer.

EDIT: This rebate? >> http://images10.newegg.com/uploadfilesfornewegg/rebate/SH/ASUS3MIRNOV03Nov3008USSL75.pdf


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## cdawall (Nov 22, 2008)

_jM said:


> How did you get that rebate. I cant seem to find out how to get it.You are talkn about the instant rebate from the non-OB board right? I see what you mean, but how the hell do i get newegg to give me the rebate?
> 
> Thanks for the offer on the fan. Im not sure if i really need it yet, if i do i will pm you on your offer.
> 
> EDIT: This rebate? >> http://images10.newegg.com/uploadfilesfornewegg/rebate/SH/ASUS3MIRNOV03Nov3008USSL75.pdf



that would be it

as for the fan just give me a heads up i have a box of them


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 22, 2008)

cdawall said:


> that would be it
> 
> as for the fan just give me a heads up i have a box of them



You think one would work on my Abit's NB?






Only reason I ask cause that sucker's NB gets quite toasty.

@jM

Sorry to go off topic and jack your thread.


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## cdawall (Nov 22, 2008)

JrRacinFan said:


> You think one would work on my Abit's NB?
> 
> http://resources.vr-zone.com/John/aw9dmax/aw9dm_f.jpg
> 
> ...




nope wrong design asus is tall and skinny you could try just shoving it inbetween the fins thats what i did on my NB


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## philbrown23 (Nov 22, 2008)

I would put your cpu in it and gpu just to see if it does the ram beeps then you'll have it ready for when your stuff comes in, also if you need a modded bios KET has a huge thread about it, without them my pq5 acted all crazy with ram.


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## cdawall (Nov 22, 2008)

philbrown23 said:


> I would put your cpu in it and gpu just to see if it does the ram beeps then you'll have it ready for when your stuff comes in, also if you need a modded bios KET has a huge thread about it, without them my pq5 acted all crazy with ram.



mines very happy with my corsair ram


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## newtekie1 (Nov 22, 2008)

JrRacinFan said:


> I highly advise you test it for post AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, do a bare minimum boot. Yah the MSI is a good board too.



It isn't drastically important that he make sure it works before the 15 days run out.  If it turns out that it doesn't work, he can just RMA it to ASUS.  I bought an open box board from newegg, and it ended up dying after 4 weeks, ASUS RMA'd it without a problem, they sent me an entirely new board in retail package(so I got all the accessories I was missing).


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 22, 2008)

newtekie1 said:


> It isn't drastically important that he make sure it works before the 15 days run out.  If it turns out that it doesn't work, he can just RMA it to ASUS.  I bought an open box board from newegg, and it ended up dying after 4 weeks, ASUS RMA'd it without a problem, they sent me an entirely new board in retail package(so I got all the accessories I was missing).



Understood but I have heard of a few horror stories to where an "Open Box" board was already registered and won't allow to be RMA'd through the manufacturer. Unsure though about Asus. Only reason why I said ASAP.


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## newtekie1 (Nov 22, 2008)

ASUS shouldn't have a problem, they don't care about registration, as far as I know they don't actually have a registration system.


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## _jM (Nov 22, 2008)

newtekie1 said:


> It isn't drastically important that he make sure it works before the 15 days run out.  If it turns out that it doesn't work, he can just RMA it to ASUS.  I bought an open box board from newegg, and it ended up dying after 4 weeks, ASUS RMA'd it without a problem, they sent me an entirely new board in retail package(so I got all the accessories I was missing).



Well I know what both of you mean. I planned on testing the board outside the case first, just so i dont go through the hassle of having to take it back out if it turns out to be a DOA or its not working properly.When i come home tonite im going to go ahead and put some Artic Silver 5 on the boards heatsinks, just for a piece of mind But thank you for telling me about the RMAing to ASUS, im sure that would be the better option instead of going through newegg, or if its after the 15day policy.


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## cdawall (Nov 22, 2008)

i just registered my open item P5Q-pro on asus's site no issues at all


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## _jM (Nov 23, 2008)

Just got back in from work.. i hate weekends. I have to work tomorrow, the CPU and RAM should be here by the time i get home. Im going to test the board then. So lets keep our fingers crossed! I wonder if the new BIO works with the E5200?



cdawall said:


> i just registered my open item P5Q-pro on asus's site no issues at all



Hell yea  If my board is A-Ok... I might do the same. But Im thinkn I shouldn't just in case I end up selling the board at a later date..


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## _jM (Nov 24, 2008)

*Lapping*

For this new upgrade I want to lap the CPU and the Tuniq Tower 120 that Im going to use. But I have never done it.. is there a thread here i can read inorder to help me or can some of you help me out with that when my new stuff gets here tomorrow? PLEASE REPLY thanks


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## JrRacinFan (Nov 24, 2008)

Check this out _jM!
http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=41080

Personally don't see the need if you get some decent TIM tho.


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## _jM (Nov 24, 2008)

well Ive used Artic silver 5 for as long as ive been building pc's, works great. But I really want to take the extra steps to make sure I can hold down some good temps while reaching the highest possible OC on AIR with that E5200.


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## _jM (Nov 25, 2008)

Whoo hoo! Got everything up and running  just great! Not one single problem with either OB components! Man i musta got lucky huh? Rite now everything is a wiry mess! So Ill prolly post the pics tomorrow after i get everything cleaned up. Im just doing the final touches on all my re installs on this fresh OS install of XP, and you know how those updates can be! I got this CPU up to 3.8ghz @1.38v and a FSB of 1200 with a 12.5x300 multi. Will post the screenies of CPUZ and what not when i finally get some good benches in, and know if its completely stable. Im not too sure bout my ram ATM.. i still need to dig around in the BIOS a bit , im not used to ASUS boards.


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