Installation
Test Rig:
AMD Phenom II X3 720
Asus M4A89GTD Pro/USB3
Kingston HyperX DDR3-1600 2GB Kit
Spire TherMax Pro CPU Cooler
Thermaltake 800 Watt PSU
NZXT Tempest Extended Midtower
Windows Vista Premium 64-bit
Installation is very straightforward. Install the CPU into the CPU socket. Prep the CPU with isopropyl alcohol and a lint free cloth. Apply thermal compound as per the manufacturer’s instructions. Be aware if you are using a cooler with exposed heatpipes you will have to manually spread the compound on the CPU surface with a credit card or other thin flexible item as the cooler base will not properly spread the compound. Prep the CPU Cooler base with isopropyl alcohol and a lint free cloth.
Install the CPU cooler. Install the memory modules. When running two modules, install them into a pair of like-color slots, it doesn’t matter which pair.
Install the motherboard into the case.
Wire up the board and drives for power. It was nice not to have to plug in the ATX12v prior to placing the motherboard into the case, something that I have had to do with most boards lately. Plug in the case header wires. Since we aren’t running a discrete video card, that’s it.
