On 11/23/24 01:38, mo wrote: > I am setting up a gaming PC for my friend's son. I bought/acquired > everything, mostly from PDX Hackerspace. I have an ASUS Republic of Gamers > (ROG) Rampage II Gene mb. I bought a 500GB SSD M.2 for it b/c > https://www.google.com/search?q=does+asus+republic+of+gamers+rampage+ii+gene+have+m.2+ssd > says it has an M.2 slot, but I cannot find the slot! > > I have hunted online for the location, removed the CPU+heatsink, removed > some other heatsink, etc; I still cannot find the slot. Can any of you > confirm this mb has an m.2 slot? & if so, where is it located? I'm baffled > (which rarely takes long). ;) > > Also is 18GB DDR3 ram enough for a gaming PC? I am not a gamer; I am > configuring this beast as a favor. I appreciate any tips on making this a > good gaming PC for her son. > > thanks.
Mo, Having built and used gaming computers for 35+ yrs, I consider myself a bit of an expert. I do wish our friends on this list would STFU on technical posts if they do not have anything relevant and useful to offer. For your query, STEP 1: What is the EXACT ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) Rampage II Gene mb model name. It is written on the box as well as the motherboard. From the name, this is a 2009 motherboard. This motherboard predates M.2. STEP 2: Once you have the full motherboard information, you can go to asus.com and download the manual and specifications. ALWAYS go to the OEM for specifications. NEVER ask anywhere else unless you are well versed in the gamer build culture and know which web sites are legit. STEP 3: Read the manual and specifications. https://www.asus.com/supportonly/rampage_ii_gene/helpdesk_manual/ Based on the information I found, the Asus Rampage II Gene supports: Intel I7 LGA1366 24GB max DDR3 1333/1066 DRAM PCI-express 2.0 USB 1.1/2.0 Creative Labs X-fi 8-channel audio IEEE 1394a (firewire) Realtyek Gigabit LAN (RJ45) IDE pots SATA ports (standard) ** No M.2 SATA or PCI-e ports ** You will need a regular old mechanical SATA or SSD SATA drives, or (as mentioned) one of those M.2 adapters to plug in to the PCI-e expansion slot. Assuming you can find one for PCI-express 2.0 compatibility. OPINION ======= This was a excellent gaming hardware 15 yrs ago. You will find it considerably out of date, slow and clunky, for most modern games. Of course, it depends on the type of games and the age of the boy. If a teenager, he will never speak to you again after receiving this antique museum hardware. As a reference, here is ASUS latest ROG Rampage motherboard, and it is already "obsolete" since it only supports PCI-express 3.0. https://rog.asus.com/us/motherboards/rog-rampage/rog-rampage-v-edition-10-model/ DDR4 memory and PCI-e 4.0 came out years ago and the new "hotness" is DDR5 and PCI-e 5.0. -Ed
