New PC Arrived

[A L-pc]

My PC arrived today after only 9 days so I shouldn't moan.........but!

I opened the case to remove the transit packaging a noticed the Gen 4 NVMe had been put in the 2nd PCI3 M2 slot, not the 1st PCI4 slot. Is there any logical reason for this? Would I really notice any difference if I left it there? Would be happy to move slots myself but would be a nause as have to remove GPU for access. Would I need to contact PCS for the ok?

Also, there is already a fine layer of dust across the base, PSU and ssd. It was only 2 days between "pre-build" and "in testing". I wasn't expecting a clean sterile room, but that was a surprise.



Case
Send In Your Own Case
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Six Core CPU (3.6GHz-4.2GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B550-PLUS (DDR4, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - ARGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
4GB AMD RADEON™ RX 550 - HDMI, DVI - DX® 12
1st Storage Drive
512GB PCS 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 520 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 5000MB/R, 2500MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00002]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 14 to 16 working days
Welcome Book
PCSpecialist Welcome Book - United Kingdom & Republic of Ireland
Logo Branding
PCSpecialist Logo
Price: £0.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/SnmQvduQQx/

 

[Resistance100]

PCS have an open case policy so feel free to move the drive.

Did you send the case in yourself or did you order it off another site and have to delivered to PCS. The only thing that would make sense to me is if the case arrived to PCS with dust already in it. Or a part they installed had some dust on it (such as the GPU) and it settled on the base during transit.

I would report the dust issue to PCS however. Does seem strange for such a short turnaround.

 

[Martinr36]

I seem to remember dust on a GPU mentioned in a thread a couple of months back, but yes I'd drop PCS an email with photos to see what they have to say

 

[A L-pc]

It was only a fine layer, got it out.

PCS have an open case policy so feel free to move the drive.

Did you send the case in yourself or did you order it off another site and have to delivered to PCS. The only thing that would make sense to me is if the case arrived to PCS with dust already in it. Or a part they installed had some dust on it (such as the GPU) and it settled on the base during transit.

I would report the dust issue to PCS however. Does seem strange for such a short turnaround.

I sent my own case in but there wasn't any dust when I sent it. Didn't realise could send direct to PCS from supplier. Good job in the end because the first one I got I didn't like so sent back. Happy with the second, Cooler Master Silencio 452.

Only gripe, they use weird, non standard screws on the front case fan mounts. They appear harder to get than the GPUs.

 

[A L-pc]

I seem to remember dust on a GPU mentioned in a thread a couple of months back, but yes I'd drop PCS an email with photos to see what they have to say

Thanks, Sorted the dust.

More concerned about moving the M2. Will get all the updates out the way before looking to move it.

 

[A L-pc]

The PC is going back .

Tried to move the M2 this morning but the way it has been installed I didn't want to risk damaging it. Especially when advised by PCS any damage wouldn't be covered.

From what I can see from the ASUS manual and unscrewing the heat sink, the m2 module is secured to the board, then the heat sink is stuck to the module with thermal tape and then secured to the MB itself. The advice was to use something to prise the heatsink off the module, but don't damage it!

At least going to take the opportunity to upgrade the PSU to a 750 TXm.

 

[mdtahmid]

Hi,

Thought I'd chime in here. I also bought a PC from PCS delivered approx 3 weeks ago, I'm yet to post a proper experience/review thread.

Like you, my 1tb NVMe SSD was put into the M.2_2 slot instead of the M.2_1 (1st) slot.

Now, from the motherboard manual it turns out the M.2_2 slot uses the chipset lanes whereas M.2_1 is directly connected to the CPU and uses the CPU's lanes. Furthermore, if an NVMe SSD is plugged into M.2_2 then you lose all some of your SATA ports because they share bandwidth. I also took note of the chipset temperature being significantly higher (by about 15 degrees) if the NVMe SSD was in M.2_2 instead of M.2_1.

Why the builder would use M.2_2 is beyond me, but thankfully, the double sided adhesive backing on the SSD heatsink was not that strong so I was able to remove the heatsink and SSD and relocate it to the first M.2 slot (M.2_1).

For reference, the motherboard was an ASUS B550 TUF GAMING.

EDIT: See Noddy's post for SATA port correction.

 

[NoddyPirate]

Hi,

Thought I'd chime in here. I also bought a PC from PCS delivered approx 3 weeks ago, I'm yet to post a proper experience/review thread.

Like you, my 1tb NVMe SSD was put into the M.2_2 slot instead of the M.2_1 (1st) slot.

Now, from the motherboard manual it turns out the M.2_2 slot uses the chipset lanes whereas M.2_1 is directly connected to the CPU and uses the CPU's lanes. Furthermore, if an NVMe SSD is plugged into M.2_2 then you lose all of your SATA ports (they don't work because of how the whole PCIe lanes works) - this means you cannot plug in any SATA SSDs or HDDs if the M.2_2 slot is occupied. I also took note of the chipset temperature being significantly higher (by about 15 degrees) if the NVMe SSD was in M.2_2 instead of M.2_1.

Why the builder would use M.2_2 is beyond me, but thankfully, the double sided adhesive backing on the SSD heatsink was not that strong so I was able to remove the heatsink and SSD and relocate it to the first M.2 slot (M.2_1).

For reference, the motherboard was an ASUS B550 TUF GAMING.

That shouldn't be the case - you should lose only two of 6 SATA ports with the M.2_2 in use - not the whole lot.

Which Motherboard have you got?

(EDIT - I see the motherboard now in your post. I've checked your motherboard spec and you lose only SATA ports 5 & 6, 1 thru 4 are still available with M.2_2 in use.)

 

[Scott]

I would contact PCS to let them know. An opportunity for a highlight to the build team so that they realise going forward.

 

[A L-pc]

That shouldn't be the case - you should lose only two of 6 SATA ports with the M.2_2 in use - not the whole lot.

Which Motherboard have you got?

(EDIT - I see the motherboard now in your post. I've checked your motherboard spec and you lose only SATA ports 5 & 6, 1 thru 4 are still available with M.2_2 in use.)

The problem is the m2 drive is a PCIe 4 but the slot it is in is only PCIe 3. Not getting full potential read/write speeds where it currently is. Could have got cheaper PCIe 3 card

 

[A L-pc]

Hi,

Thought I'd chime in here. I also bought a PC from PCS delivered approx 3 weeks ago, I'm yet to post a proper experience/review thread.

Like you, my 1tb NVMe SSD was put into the M.2_2 slot instead of the M.2_1 (1st) slot.

Now, from the motherboard manual it turns out the M.2_2 slot uses the chipset lanes whereas M.2_1 is directly connected to the CPU and uses the CPU's lanes. Furthermore, if an NVMe SSD is plugged into M.2_2 then you lose all some of your SATA ports because they share bandwidth. I also took note of the chipset temperature being significantly higher (by about 15 degrees) if the NVMe SSD was in M.2_2 instead of M.2_1.

Why the builder would use M.2_2 is beyond me, but thankfully, the double sided adhesive backing on the SSD heatsink was not that strong so I was able to remove the heatsink and SSD and relocate it to the first M.2 slot (M.2_1).

For reference, the motherboard was an ASUS B550 TUF GAMING.

EDIT: See Noddy's post for SATA port correction.

I tried to move it , but was little concerned about the resistance from the heatsink tape. More concerned after spoke to tech support and told any damage wouldnt be covered.

I guess was put in that slot for distance from cpu and gpu heat. Wouldnt have been too much of a problem staying there but for the fact it a PCIe 4 module and that slot only PCIe 3. Not able to run at full speed potential.

 

[NoddyPirate]

The problem is the m2 drive is a PCIe 4 but the slot it is in is only PCIe 3. Not getting full potential read/write speeds where it currently is. Could have got cheaper PCIe 3 card

Yes I agree. PCIe 3 is limited to about 3,500 MB/s so you’re losing 30% or so of the read speed - write speed shouldn’t be affected.

My assumption is that the builder simply found that slot easier to reach or something. Or assumed they were both PCIe 4 like other motherboards or something. But even in that case they would be running data through the chipset and disabling other motherboard functions unnecessarily.

it’s a weird one....

 

[Scott]

I tried to move it , but was little concerned about the resistance from the heatsink tape. More concerned after spoke to tech support and told any damage wouldnt be covered.

I guess was put in that slot for distance from cpu and gpu heat. Wouldnt have been too much of a problem staying there but for the fact it a PCIe 4 module and that slot only PCIe 3. Not able to run at full speed potential.

I wouldn't think you would need to remove the tape?

 

[A L-pc]

I wouldn't think you would need to remove the tape?

The module is secured to the motherboard, the heatsink then stuck onto the module and secured with its own screws. Need to remove heatsink from module to access screw to release module.

There was more resistance than I was happy to deal with. Especially with tech support saying damage wouldn't be covered.

If my recent history of DIY is anything to go by, I'd mess it up!

Taking the opportunity to upgrade the PSU in case of future upgrades.