AMS gBOX Blue - Installation
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Installation
Getting all your goodies packed into this miniature system initially appeared as it it would be a major hassle. However after pulling off both case sides and getting dirty with the hardware, installation went smoothly and I didn't have any problems whatsoever. I'll admit it is a bit cramped in there but unless you've got goomba hands you shouldn't have any troubles. Heck, it might even be a good time to get the girlfriend or ol' lady involved in building this thing. Ok, maybe not, but it was a thought. Pulling the box apart lets take a look inside.
Above you'll see a few shots of the box with the sides off and also after I pulled out the HD/Floppy tray. I didn't mention earlier but the AMS gBOX Blue P4 employs a nearly tooless design. Pretty much the only thing you'll need a screwdriver for is initial installation of the HD and CD-Rom drives and video card and Floppy should you choose to install them. Since we have the HD tray out, it's time to install that P4 I had laying around here somewhere.
I grabbed some Arctic Alumina thermal goo and spread it on the P4 with a business card. This typically gives me an even spread of the good stuff and should allow for optimal cooling of the CPU. I prefer the Arctic Alumina as it's both cheap and easy to apply and remove.
Notice the 2.4B CPU has been lapped. It's a fairly easy process and will let your CPU run a bit cooler since the heatcap will be flatter and let the HSF sit closer to the CPU thereby cooling it a bit better. Not to mention it looks damn spiffy. Now that we have the CPU all nice and snug under the Akura Blue HSF, we can put in the HD and Video card.
I whipped out a brand spanking new Maxtor ATA/133 Drive I just purchased from Newegg. These drives are sweet and very decently priced.
First I took out the small HD cage as seen previously and then installed the Maxtor HD. Then easily slipped the assembly back into the gBOX and hooked up the power and IDE cables. Room is a bit tight but easily done.
I chose the ABIT Siluro GF4 Ti4200 as it is a great card for the price, should be able to handle most (if not all lan type applications) and it has BLUE PCB to match the gBOX Blue theme.
Before you install the card you'll see a warning sticker on the AGP slot to make sure you don't accidentally install one of the older 3.3v vid cards. Otherwise it might damage the entire system. The only thing that annoyed me about this was the particular adhesive they used for the sticker. You know the kind I'm talking about. Here is the aftermath of trying to peel it off.
I was able to rub almost all of it off but a few bits ended up getting in the AGP slot itself. I broke out a can of air and cleaned it all up pretty good. I didn't think I'd have any problems with the video card because of this and I didn't. However be careful peeling this stuff off should you purchase a gBOX Blue. I'd like to see AMS use a better quality adhesive if they continue to use this form of warning. Preferably an insert would be better suited for this.
Here is a shot of what we get when finishing installation of the HD and Vid card. Pretty sharp looking.
One thing of note with this particular card is that the cards cooling fan has a power connector that comes dangerously close to the motherboards CMOS battery. Neither manufacturer is at fault here but for this particular card it almost made it so I would have had to install something else. Here is a quick shot of that.
I was able to ease it in gently w/out damage to either the CMOS battery or the video card however so all is good. I don't recommend a "standing" CMOS battery for most motherboards today, but for a system of this nature, it is a welcome update and should make it very easy to swap batteries should the need arise. Another small concern was the backside of the system that bowed out just a tiny bit. While not affecting performance or cooling of the system whatsoever it did warrant a mention.
Lets boot this baby up and checkout some BIOS options.
Next: Bios and Temperatures >>
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