Estella - Legen- wait for it- dary! Ultradark build

[Wolf_Lbh]

1 minute ago, CtW said:

I think I can safely assume that you're favorite game is Sonic the hedgehog.

GOTTA GO FASTER FASTER

jk, It's mario

 

[CtW]

37 minutes ago, Wolf_Lbh said:

GOTTA GO FASTER FASTER

jk, It's mario

 

That is a beautiful work of art. 

[Wolf_Lbh]

Welp. The monitor arrived and when turned on it revealed that it is scratched in two places deep enough to cause pixel defects (White always on pixels). I believe I was shipped a regular monitor instead of a pixel perfect one by mistake. I sent them a message on their ebay store to hopefully clear this up quickly and painlessly.

This kind of bullshit is to be expected when Korean bargain hunting with factory defects though. I just wish lg released 40" 60hz 4k monitors so I could buy a perfect one from the manufacturer.

[Wolf_Lbh]

My Composite/Component to hdmi converter arrived! Now I can play my retro consoles on a 40" 4k 60hz monitor that only has displayport and hdmi inputs.



There is the converter in the back. I have it flipped around for cable management. (No "on" or "channel" led in my face telling me that the device is on or which of the 8 inputs it is set to. Also no reflective metal on the ports is visible. And the hdmi cable from the converter to the tv goes out the side so it is faced the direction it needs to go now. Not to mention I can route the Console output cables up the back of the desk to plug in from behind when I manage the console output cables better.)



This is the converter laid down to give you a better view. Aw yea Gamecube in glorious 480p on a 4k screen. Rofl.



Retro console history lesson:

Spoiler

 

Gamecube by default uses composite video 480i which is 480 resolution but it only refreshes every other line each passthrough so it takes two passes to fully refresh your screen which causes a lot of tearing.



Additionally as it only has the 3 plugs (red, white and yellow) it has to run multiple colors on fewer outputs so it can not do as many colors/color as sharp as component video which while also being 480 resolution refreshes the entire screen each passthrough.



To get 480p on Gamecube you need to buy the propitiatory adapter and have an early model Gamecube as the component video port was removed on later models. The Gamecube component cables are typically $200+ as not many were made and the official nintendo component cables are the only way to get 480p on a gamecube.
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=gamecube%20component%20video&_sacat=0

The Wii has a component port as well and typically costs $15+ for the official one but it also has no proprietary lockout so 3rd party cables can be used as well which cost far less. Also far more were made with 480p being seriously outdated at the time the Wii was made, let alone 480i. (Pc master race) But for some reason despite being able to play Gamecube games on the Wii they still look better on the Gamecube and the Gamecube also has the Gameboy Game Player so you can play every Gameboy/Advanced game in 480p on your tv.

https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=wii%20component%20cable

 

Note that the composite/component to hdmi converter upscales the composite connection from 480i to 480p but it still only has the 3 cables (red, white, and yellow) input in to it so I don't see how it could offer the increased color sharpness that comes with component video and I'm betting it only upscales the refresh rate as it can't upscale a signal it is not receiving (unless it has the ability to recognize the color compromises composite video makes and enhances them to component levels but I seriously doubt that). Although doubling the refresh rate is still a huge deal for consoles/devices that only have composite video output like the NES (only later NES models have composite video output, early models are coaxial only), SNES, and N64.

 

 

[Wolf_Lbh]

So the gpu that took 2 months to get back in stock and and another month for the shipping window to expire just ended with me getting a full refund. As it is sold out everywhere I got one new off ebay for $100 cheaper (The pre-selling out inflation price). But from a seller with low feedback so hopefully it is not a scam because that would really piss me off after three months of waiting.

[Wolf_Lbh]

So I got the refund for my Akg k553 pros which I sent back because despite having very clear and clean sound and excellent noise isolation they cheaped out on the ear pads and combined with the strong clamping force (which is a good thing if the pads don't compress like paper) caused my ears to press directly against the drivers in a very uncomfortable way.

After much research I decided to go with the Mad Dog MrSpeakers Modded T50rp Fostex headphones. They are mostly studio clarity headphones but have some warmth added to the sound signature. The noise isolation is total but the sound stage is fairly small being closed back headphones although I'm told the planar magnetic drivers make the imaging incredibly accurate. Most importantly everyone that has tried them agrees that the thick lamb leather ear pads and leather headband strap make them the most comfortable headphones they have ever used.

The only downside is the Mad Dogs need some signal amplification to achieve their maximum performance so for the sake of simplicity I went with the Magni 2 Amp. It has an on/off switch and a hi/low switch on the back and just a simple knob to turn for gain on the front. Simple, clean looking, affordable, uses actual physical switches, and it just works. My only regrets are that it doesn't come in black and it doesn't take stereo input so I had to get a stereo to rca cable.

Lastly I decided to go with wired ethernet because wired is always better than wireless even if you can get your full data rate/near that wirelessly because a lot less can go wrong with a wired signal. As I don't feel like drilling holes, climbing into the walls/under the floors and running cables I decided to try a powerline network adapter and see how that goes. Basically they run your ethernet signal through your electrical outlets. If it works as well as advertised it will be plug&play wired ethernet. Fingers crossed.

Week 14:
Headphones - Mad Dog MrSpeakers Modded T50rp Fostex
Amp - Schiit Magni 2
Powerline Adapter - Netgear Powerline 1200
Cable Management - 3.5mm Stereo to Rca adapter


P.S. I told the ebay seller of the Msi 980ti Sea Hawk I would be benchmarking the gpu and testing it to make sure it was both legit and fully functional when I got it and he found an excuse to refund me. I am now once again looking for somewhere to get this damn gpu and everywhere seems sold out.

[Wolf_Lbh]

Brief update:
The Powerline adapter arrived yesterday and it works perfectly. I'm now running "wired" ethernet without any drilling and cable running!

The Mad Dog headphones arrived today and they are a 10/10 on the comfort scale. It is like wearing a cloud made of lamb leather on my head. The massive pads go entirely around my ears and only rest on the side of my head.

Purchased a factory sealed msi 980ti sea hawk on ebay, should ship in the next few days. The second it arrives the build is on!

[Wolf_Lbh]

Another update:

I contacted two companies with issues and received two amazing responses.

I complained to J-Tech Digital that their receiver/converter+upscaler did not work properly with the Gamecube Component cable. (Because it is proprietary the signal needs reconfirmation from the chip every time it gets reset by loading a new cutscene and the j-tech receiver takes that split second of reconfirmation as a disconnect and immediately starts looking for a new signal from any of the other inputs) So evidently immediately after my complaint was filed J-tech went out and bought a minimum of $200 Gamecube component cable and tested it with their system, discovered the problem, and built a newer version with the option to disable auto-switching channels to stop the blackscreening issue and are sending me one for free!

10/10 customer service and 9/10 product (I just wish it had a s-video port)

Next up my stupid dog ate my lumbar support pillow for my Maxnomic Pro-Chief Total Black Edition and I contacted them asking where I could buy a replacement lumbar support pillow with a backstrap (every time I leaned forward the old one would fall forward and that annoyed me) because I couldn't find any place to buy just the pillows. They responded by just mailing me out a replacement for free, and telling me that I was asking for a different version than what came with my product! So not only are they incredibly generous but they also know their products well enough (and care enough to check) to prevent someone from getting the wrong thing by mistake.

10/10 customer service and 9/10 product (I almost slapped myself in the face with a steel bar when assembling it because the instructions said to pull the release that leans the chair forward without mentioning that it was spring loaded and would shoot forward. Also I purchased an additional pad for the seat area because I have no ass (think Hank Hill) and can't even sit comfortably long enough to enjoy a movie)

Lastly my gpu should arrive by the end of the week! It is shipping soon and is 2 day priority mail. Hopefully that means build video this weekend.

[Wolf_Lbh]

Modded my headphones to include padding on the comfort strap. Not that they were uncomfortable before, but Mayflower makes a version with a padded headband and the padding strip costs $7 on Amazon so I ordered it to find out if it was any better and it was noticeably improved so even though I didn't have any complaints I learned how to sew and attached it myself. #manlyman

I would now once again rate this as the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn (topping the previous version).



Lastly my gpu should be arriving on Monday but I have a funeral to attend so the build itself will be this weekend at the latest.

[Wolf_Lbh]

Build is temporarily on hold. Gpu was doa (leaked all over the table the second I took it out of the box)

It didn't leak on the gpu itself though so I may just replace the loop instead of getting a refund. Talking to msi about it now.

Personally though... this is pretty freaking scary. I'm rethinking having water in my build. Might want to go with some bequiet fans&cpu cooler and an aircooled 980ti.

[Wolf_Lbh]

After the leak I've decided I don't want water in my computer. It was pure luck the damn thing started to leak before I got it in my computer and if it had leaked 30 minutes later it could have caused a lot of damage and I would have had to deal with the gpu company to get them to refund the parts (if they would willingly, if not I would need to fight it and god knows if I would get any damage payment) and I would have probably lost any data not backed up.

 

So with that in mind my air cooling setup will be:
Gpu - Evga 980ti Super Clocked (waiting for refund, ebay seller of previous gpu denied my return so I need to wait until the 13th for ebay to even look at the case and eventually step in and make the scammer pay up.)
Corsair 750d tower upgraded to the airflow version
Cpu Cooler - Be Quiet! Dark Rock 3
Fans - 3x Corsair case fans replaced with 4x Be Quiet! Silent Wings 2 140mm fans

[Wolf_Lbh]

So I waited until the 13th and filed a case, ebay took 4 days to respond and after 2 days of me threatening to take them to court they finally approved the appeal. (They kept saying I needed different things to prove it was damaged and having different agents respond to me each time without any clue what the previous person had said. Eventually I took a screenshot of something they said, and my response giving them exactly what they asked for and said "When I take you to court this is what I'll show the judge and you will lose the case". After that they put me on hold for 2 minutes and then approved my return.)

Then I had to wait for the money to get sent to my paypal and transfer it to my bank account (which also takes a day or two) and at last I could buy my gpu from Amazon (the amazon store and not one of their sub-contractors). Gpu should arrive by the 30th and then the build is on!

[RaunchyTacoBowl]

VERY interesting build. Some odd things have been happening to say the least.

[Wolf_Lbh]

2 hours ago, RaunchyTacoBowl said:

VERY interesting build. Some odd things have been happening to say the least.

I guess interesting is better than boring... not for me but for people that like watching crashes at the racecourse and stuff. Oh well. All I need is the last part to arrive and to put it together without an explosion and everything will be done at last.

[Wolf_Lbh]

So my 980ti sc arrived but the 1080 was just announced for $599 with "irresponsible" performance levels so... you guessed it... returning that. I'm just going to get the reference model when it comes out on the 27th.

[Yeti's Tech Dreams]

Things I've come to realize from ready this entire thread. OP does a lot of bad research and throws tons of money at stuff he doesn't quite understand yet. Anyways good luck. Hopefully you stop shooting yourself in the foot repeatedly though.

[Wolf_Lbh]

8 minutes ago, Yeti's Tech Dreams said:

Things I've come to realize from ready this entire thread. OP does a lot of bad research and throws tons of money at stuff he doesn't quite understand yet. Anyways good luck. Hopefully you stop shooting yourself in the foot repeatedly though.

I don't think getting 2x the gpu performance for $100 cheaper is shooting myself in the foot...

[Wolf_Lbh]

Pre-ordered the Asus rog strix gtx 1080. I went with this model over the evga sc because it comes with 2 hdmi ports. I also paid a bit more to pre-order it so it wouldn't come in stock while I was at work or asleep and sell out immediately. Lastly I went with the higher clock speed because I hope the higher rated gpus will have better binning and be blessed by the silicon gods more than a stock asus rog strix gtx 1080.

[ManOfGold93]

Im sorry for pointing this out but you seem very hostile. I understand this is your first build but there are very experienced people on here, many of us professional IT, and we are just trying to give you feedback and pointers on how to fix some errors. I made mistakes doing my first build as well. It happens to everyone, just dont start cussing at people the moment they point it out. How do you expect to live in a world where any criticism is met by anger. I mean damn, the guy talking about G-Sync was literally trying to stay calm and help you and you threw it in his face. You wonder why so many comments on here are "hateful" its not us man. Just saying.

[Wolf_Lbh]

2 minutes ago, ManOfGold93 said:

Im sorry for pointing this out but you seem very hostile. I understand this is your first build but there are very experienced people on here, many of us professional IT, and we are just trying to give you feedback and pointers on how to fix some errors. I made mistakes doing my first build as well. It happens to everyone, just dont start cussing at people the moment they point it out. How do you expect to live in a world where any criticism is met by anger. I mean damn, the guy talking about G-Sync was literally trying to stay calm and help you and you threw it in his face. You wonder why so many comments on here are "hateful" its not us man. Just saying.

If people say things in a hostile way they tend to get hostile responses. Seems like simple math to me.

[Wolf_Lbh]

All my components arrived and....


IT'S ALIVE@@@@@@@


Here is how I set it up:

2 fans in front of the case blow air over the ssds and hdds (ssds both mounted in top slot with 3mm mounting tape and a temperature sensor between them, and another sensor between the hdds) and in towards the gpu, cpu, and psu. An additional fan blows air in directly onto the cpu (another temperature sensor for the rear fan is above the cpu). This way the cpu, psu, and gpu blow the hot air directly out. I figure the hdds and ssds won't generate much heat, if any; certainly nothing that will make any impact on performance.

The fans in the case are the silent wings 2 from be quiet! but I've since ordered the Corsair Ml140 pros to replace the 3 case fans (the dark rock pro 3 cpu cooler only accepts the silent wings fan unless you want some seriously ghetto mounting which I do not).

This is how my cable management ended up:

I've since ordered a single molex (for the fan hub), and sata power (for the @CableMod rgb led control box) to remove the extra ports on the double sata power and double molex cables I'm currently using. I also ordered 2 12" 3pin fan header extension cables as the cables from the two front fans is just barely visible and that extra length will allow me to tuck it out of the way.

Things I'm proud of are:
1) The led extender cable (white cable, bottom left) working perfectly even though I ordered it not knowing if it would work at all. As a result my widebeam led strips are perfectly lined up on the top and bottom of the case.
2) The creative way I attached the bulky cablemod rgb led control box in the upper left corner of the case.
3) The really awesome looking (in my opinion) way I mounted the fan hub using 3mm mounting tape that required hours of cable management just to get it to barely fit but was worth it because I got everything working properly. (once I have the fan extenders I can move that to a better place and redo some of the less tidy cable management)

Front view:

I really like the way I twist tied the ir receiver for the rgb led control box in the upper right of the case but as I don't plan to change my settings from purple on the led strips and gray on the gpu I can tuck that out of the way now.

My personal preference on the cablemod sleeved cable combs is to have the wires all form one vein flowing out of the psu behind the case and then using multiple combs where they plug in to keep them neat looking. (I only have one 26 pin comb because the other arrived broken)

Here are the idle running temps I ended up with:

I will redo this once I get all the Corsair fans in and then I will benchmark it although I'm only using stock overclocks. One thing that worries me is that the pch temp (the hell is that?) is double that of anything else. Is it supposed to be that high?

[DumbAsshole32]

.

[Wolf_Lbh]

7 minutes ago, Kriss ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) said:

Why did you publicly take a shit on Corsairs PR department?

Why did you quote a picture when your signature says: "Quote pictures and I'll punch you in the throat...".

Well the second you are done with that and can inhale properly again you might notice that I explained earlier. They refused to talk to me about a cosmetic change to a product they had already released and as a result I ended up having to buy a second version which wasted my money on the initial purchase. As I said in the same post you partially quoted (leaving out the answer to your questions ironically):

"Dear God! What if Logitech and Razer found out and released all black versions of the Naga or the G600?!? ...oh wait those are already all black because it is fucking stupid to put accent colors on rgb devices made to match any theme in the 16.8m color spectrum."

So literally the only thing they were doing by not answering my question was taking a shit on me. Everyone else in the business already made use of common sense and color coordination so it wasn't like anyone was going to copy their "idea" if they told me "hey you might want to hold off on that a bit". If you have shit business practices I will point them out. You shit on me, I shit on you, other people might decide not to shop with you as a result. That is how word of mouth works in the business world. Eat that dick Corsair.

[DumbAsshole32]

.

[Wolf_Lbh]

1 minute ago, Kriss ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) said:

Well 9/10 times quoting pictures is a waste of space and data, this is the 1/10 where its acceptable

But you cant as the PR departments to break their own policy. If the company considers the black version "a new product" then theres nothing they can tell you.

Corsair is almost a 500 million usd company. They have a ton of consumers, and you cant expect them to break their policy to answer every question a single consuner has

Yes, I can and did ask them to use common sense with product detail disclosure and they proved they had none so I pointed that out. If they have a problem with looking like jackasses they should try... not being jackasses.

And they did answer my question, they just didn't give me any useful information. As a 500m usd company they have this thing called "staff".