Project: Whisper - build log

[JCLW]

Well this has been rather slow so far. Because of some unexpected unrelated events last week I havn't been able to pick up anything yet.

However, I did dig out my old Audigy and update my planned purchase list.

[JCLW]

Hmmm....

Anybody seen a USB 2.0 PCI card, with internal headers on it?

I'm looking for something with at least three internal USB headers to use to hook up the card reader, and also the front case USB ports.

[killswitch83]

well, the best I could find was this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16815158008

it only has 2 internal USB ports, but of course you could always run a USB cable inside the case, by way of modding the case to stealth the cable. but some cases that has front USB or the like sometimes have internal connectors too. If all else fails you could always use an external USB card reader.

[fps justin]

hmm cool project and all but i can doubt weather or not all this hard work and 455 dollars is worth it for your end result. I mean, you could buy a new computer for a little bit more and it would be better?

128 mb is pretty good but you might consider buying another 128//256 stick of ram just for a little bit more performance.

[Tyreal]

that point of his mod is more for silence than for performance. the performance of this machine will be enough for what he will be using it for (music, media).

If you look back up at his price list, a large percentage of the money is going towards the case and powersupply and not the components themselves. More money on SILENCE, less on performance.

[gvblake22]

Originally Posted by Tyreal

that point of his mod is more for silence than for performance. the performance of this machine will be enough for what he will be using it for (music, media).

If you look back up at his price list, a large percentage of the money is going towards the case and powersupply and not the components themselves. More money on SILENCE, less on performance.

Exactly. Not everyone needs a powerhouse of a computer all the time.

[JCLW]

Yes, as the others have mentioned I'm willling to pay extra for silence. Half my budget is used up by the case and power supply. Throw in the laptop drive (and adaptor) and that is ~2/3rd of my budget.

But you are right about the memory, which I havn't mentioned yet. I'll probably be using two 256MB sticks, but I'm waiting to see how many memory slots are blocked by the heatsink first.

[fps justin]

i see.

[JCLW]

Well, I did pick up a USB 2.0 PCI board today. It doesn't have any internal headers, but we'll soon fix that... :)

Cost was $15, so if I screw it up I'm not too worried.



The chipset is the NEC D720101: http://www.necel.com/cgi-bin/nesdis/...icle=UPD720101

It's not VIA, so I'm happy.

The internal headers will be used for the card reader, and front case USB ports. The i440BX chipset only supports USB 1.1 ports, which are a little slow for reading pictures off memory cards (my parents take a lot of pictures).

[JCLW]

OK, here we go.

Before:


Soldering tip: When using these $10 Radio Shack soldering irons, put some Artic Silver 5 (or whatever other heatsink goop you keep around) on the threads when you screw in the tip (no pun intended)

After:


The last two ports will remain as external ports.

I was sure I had a strip of header pins kicking around, but I can't find it anywhere. I'll have to pick up some more tomorrow :(.

In the meantime it'll give me a chance to check the wiring, and see if the pinouts will be the same as a standard motherboard header....