ASUS A8N32 SLI Deluxe Mobo - SYSTEM PANEL CONNNECTORS

[Big Beere]

Hi all... I am going to be purchasing the new ASUS A8N32 SLI Deluxe Mobo soon, but I am not to sure about the System panel connectors.. (Well i know what goes where, but i was just wondering what it means by the term 'GROUND'.

For example, the RESET button, the little 2pin connector that goes onto the motherboard .. The motherboard manual says RESET and GROUND ... so how would i know by looking at the 2pin connector which side is the RESET and which side it the GROUND ?

Thanking you in advance,

Big B 8)

[Taxation]

There should be a little arrow, or something like that, and in the manual it will say which way round it goes

[Thael]

you can identify which is which by the colour of the wires and possibly the text on them if your eyesight is that good (also depends on if the wires have any labels). the red wire is usually reset, and the white is usually ground.

as for what ground means, its a term used in electronics and electrics. as fas as i can remember, its an additional wire / cable that is used to prevent you from getting shocked if there is a fault in the device. it was derived during the early days of electrics, when there would be copper plates buried in the ground, with a wire connecting to any nearby electrical systems. basically, it is or should be a safety measure.

[Chewie]

Beere

The GROUND is the return path for your supply that goes around the circuit.

Also known as EARTH and 0V rail/line.

Funny, i just finished remaking some connections for a case im using (an old Packard bell Platinum. Had items going back via a central ground line.
so i had coming off to 2 connectors (premade for a certain mobo, stupid PB) all wired into 1 panel as thus:

sw/led panel connector
red (+VE for pwr sw)
black (common ground line for power led, power sw, and sleep led)
green (sleep sw)
white (sleep sw)
blue (HDD led)
orange (HDD led)
yellow (sleep led)
black (sleep led)

now as the average mobo will used 4 x 2 pin connectors, that is now reset to:
Red/Black (pwr sw)
Blue/Orange (HDD LED)
Brown/Black (pwr LED)
Green/WHite (Reset sw)
Yellow/Black (sleep LED, no longer required)

you need the ground connection or nothing will work.
Common belief is that electiricty flows from + to -
In fact , electron flow goes from - to +, so without your common/ground you get no circuit.

[Big Beere]

Wow, thanks for the speedy replies people!!

I have a bettter understanding now, so I basically look out for the white wire (which is the ground).. But, I have come across a little problem. If the white wire is usually the ground, how do I go about connecting 1 black and 1 red wire (reset button) to the mobo, and determine which is the ground?

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-1/1129813/Photo-0080.jpg


Cheers,

Big B 8)

[Thael]

in that case, the red will be live/reset and the black will be ground.

[Big Beere]

Arrr thanks for all your help guys!

Hey Thael

Just had a quick look at your current rig, and the one I am building soon is pretty close to yours:

AMD Athlon 64bit X2 3800+ Dual Core
ASUS A8N32 SLI Deluxe Mobo
Geforce NVIDIA 7900GTX 512mb
Hiper 580W PSU
2GB OCZ DDR400 Ram
250GB S-ata HDD
Creative X-FI Sound Card
Win XP Pro

[Thael]

yeah... your motherboard is more advanced than mine ( it has full 16x SLI, as apposed to the 8x standard)

nice that you can get a 7900gtx... i ordered my stuff the day before the 7900s came out and because i got it all on finance, they won't let me exchange my stuff. gutted.

i've been having a few problems with my rig... i keep on getting the same **** BSOD every so often, and i have my suspicions as to whats causing it, but i haven't been able to pin point or confirm the cause yet.

are you getting your memory as 2x 1gb dimms or 4x 512mb?
cuz if you're using 4 dimms at DDR 400, your processor might have a trouble with it (i've not been able to find many details regarding the double sided memory issues that the X2 cores seem to have.

[Big Beere]

:o a day before the 7900s where released.. now i would be more than gutted !!

Never mind, the 7800GTX is one **** of a beast though !! :lol:

I was thinking of x2 1gb sticks - just incase i decide to upgrade it further, and buy another set of Ram (x2 1gb sticks) - As im sure that board goes upto 4gb Max.

:shock: BSOD :shock: ..... What do you think is causing the problem?

Big Beere 8)

[Thael]

well, after racking my brains for a solution to the bsod errors i was recieving, i contacted the novatech technical support and explained the situation and stuff. the guy on the novatech live chat (thats how i got hold of them. i got sick of waiting on the phone) suggested several things to try, including replacing my IDE cable, which seems to have worked quite well. i haven't got the BSOD since i did that, but there are still some residual problems with my system that i'm sure are disk related.

ok, advice about your memory, before you upgrade. apparently the athlon x2 has problems running 4 double sided 16 chip memory modules. i've been told that it can cause total havoc with the system as the x2 doesn't seem to be able to cope well with memory timings when you're running your memory at DDR400. the solution is to use memory modules with only 8 chips on them, such as the Corsair XMS3200. I'd suggest getting the TwinX2048-3200 model if you intend to run in dual channel mode... and if you've got the money (AND if you can find it), maybe go for the TwinX2048-3200C2 which has a much better CL timing (its CL2, instead of the standard version's CL2.5 or CL3.) If you need to get the modules one at a time, look for the Corsair CMX1024-3200 (the TwinX2048-3200 is basically two of those that are verified as a matched pair, which is recommended for running in dual channel mode.) These modules are listed in my motherboard's manual under the DDR 400 Qualified Vendors List (there are quite a few other makes and models listed, but i've heard good things about Corsair from friends). If you do get 4x double sided 16 chip DDR400 memory modules, you may have to configure the bios so that they run at DDR333 instead. Also, remember that a modules CL rating is only the recommended or verified value, and you can adjust the timings in the BIOS. Most components can be pushed beyond the recommended level (overclocking), but if you do it, be careful that you don't push it too far or hard because you can seriously damage your hardware if you do. In some cases, overclocking can void the hardware's warranty so you might want to check with the manufacturer and / or supplier before you try anything.

EDIT: just to let you know, i got the OCZ memory as you can see, and all the memory i've ever had off them has been 16 chip double sided, and i've used them in about 4 machines so far, with a different series (gold, platinum, value etc.) in each one.

[Big Beere]

Thael, have you sorted out the BSOD issue yet?

I have now received my ASUS A8N32 + X2 3800+ +RAM + PSU and have fitted them together...

I have another question about the PINS again lol (sorry, i just want to make 100% sure!)

example: on the mobo it will say restart (so obviously i get the restart wire). On the mobo it will show a red square for one pin and a red square with a white cross (+) though it... does the cross mean EARTH/GROUND ?

|pin1| |pin2| <<those represent each pin

Also, i have attached the SPEAKER wire.. that was a RED and BLACK wire (but it was a big connecter.. with 4 little holes in, but only 2 (one at each end) had a wire going into it - if that makes sence). In the manual it said |+5v| |Ground| |Ground| |Speaker| - I am guessing the SPEAKER is where the RED wire would go.. and the +5v is the Earth/Ground -black wire !!!??!

Another thing.. (sorry).. IDE_LED and PLED, the manual says |IDE_LED+| |IDE_LED-| I am guessing the '+' means LIVE and the '-' means EARTH/GROUND ?


Thanks - I dont want to turn it on and see black smoke :P

Cheerz,

Big B 8)

[Taxation]

It wont smoke if wires dont go in the wrong way, look at the manual, and ive put it so the writing on the connectors face downwards towards the bottom of the board. and it works fine, and if it is wrong, then just turn it off and try again, it DOESNT smoke :lol:

[Big Beere]

LOL . . . i hope not :D

Tax, im asking a BIG fav! is there any chance you could take a few snaps of your PIN CONNECTORS.. so i can see how yours look ? :oops: :lol:

Cheerz,

Big B 8)

[Taxation]

U know i would, seeing that ive done everything else you have asked, but i have run out of juice for my camera.And no one will give me money for / any batteries, so im kinda stuck there.

so sry mate

[Thael]

Thael, have you sorted out the BSOD issue yet?

Cheerz,

Big B 8)

i thought that i had sorted out my bsod issue, but it looks like i haven't. i fitted a SATA drive and started using that as my boot drive. unfortunately every time i try to boot into 32 bit windows which is on my IDE hdds, i get the bsod error before it even reaches the operating system. i think those HDDs are on their way out, tbh. i haven't gotten the BSOD yet when i've been using Xp X64 which is on the SATA drive. so its either the IDE HDDs or the actual motherboard IDE channel itself.

as for your pin connectors, fitting them incorrectly isn't going to damage your system. all that will happen is that the switches and LEDs won't function as they're supposed to, maybe not at all even. so fit it the way you think, try turning it on and see what works and what doesn't. if it works, its done fine, and if it doesn't just change it so that it does. trial and error.

[Big Beere]

OOoooooooooohhhh I seee ! - Least you have figured out the problem :lol:

Thanks for the info about the pins, i thought that if they where in the wrong place..... Boom.. black smoke.. melting wires :P - obviously not :D


Cheerz,

Big B 8)