Hi all,
I just bought the hardware for my HTPC, among them a SilverStone LC16 case and a Gigabyte MA69GM-S2H motherboard.
I have never before build a computer from scratch, but I must say plugging in the processor and fan went very easy, with good documentation. But now I have more problems with connecting up all the wires to the motherboard! Both the case documentation and the motherboard documentation help far too little in this. I hope some of you can give me advice on the following:
I've got a feeling that many of these questions are really noob questions, but I haven't got a clue what to do...
I just bought the hardware for my HTPC, among them a SilverStone LC16 case and a Gigabyte MA69GM-S2H motherboard.
I have never before build a computer from scratch, but I must say plugging in the processor and fan went very easy, with good documentation. But now I have more problems with connecting up all the wires to the motherboard! Both the case documentation and the motherboard documentation help far too little in this. I hope some of you can give me advice on the following:
- I can see only 1 case fan header on the motherboard, while the case already has 2 fans and even has space for 4! How am I ever going to connect these? Can one use splitter cables for these?
- I see that both the fan cable and the motherboard connector are 3 pins. Does this mean my case fans cannot be temperature controlled? Isn't that what the 4th pin is for? Does this mean my fan(s) will always be running at max speed? (Sorry, this really may be a stupid newbie question.)
- The manual instructs me to connect the female connector labeled "Power sw" from the front panel (I think that means the buttons on the front), to the male connector from the VFD/IR module. But the front panel cable is white/orange, while the VFD cable is red/black! How do I know which way around to connect these two? Or doesn't that make any difference?
- The motherboard has 3 internal USB connectors, but I have 1 USB cable for the front panel buttons, 1 from the VFD, and 4 from the front panel module. How do I solve this, are there any internal USB splitter cables?
- The IEEE1394 cable from the front panel contains both a big connector labeled Front that I can plug into my motherboard, and 7 loose plugs labeled Shield, VP, VG, TPB-, TPB+, TPA- and TPA+. Are these just alternatives for the big Front connector and can I leave them loose, or am I supposed to connect them somewhere also?
- On the motherboard I have both a 3-pin PWR_LED and a 2-pin MSG connector, where the description of MSG is "Message/Power/Sleep LED". What is the difference between these two connectors, and which should I use for my front panel connector?
- The front panel cable for HDD_LED is black/white, and the cable for RESET_SW is green/white. However, the motherboard talks about + and -. How do I know which way to connect the cables? Or doesn't it make any difference?
- The USB connectors from the front panel module have a 4-pin connector and a loose 1-pin Shield connector. Should that one also be connected somewhere?
I've got a feeling that many of these questions are really noob questions, but I haven't got a clue what to do...