Forward accessory panels (memory card, USB, etc.) question

[Oceanb0rn]

I'm going to be building a system, and I'd like to get an accessory panel. I've been looking at them on Newegg, and I have a few simple ones bookmarked, but this one really looks awesome.

Click here

I'm pretty sure the motherboard - the MSI Neo2 Platinum - I'm looking at has forward USB support, but what about the others? Do all fans support those dials? What about video out? How does that work? Does my video card have to support it? Can any mobo run that awesome accessory panel, or only a certain kind?

Thanks!

 

[HoLoCroN]

Congrats on building your system!! That front panel will be a nice addition. Usually, what you have to do is pluc the fans into the panel and the panel will power the fans, thus regulating the RPM's as needed. The same applies to the Vid. Out, there should be some cable your vid. card to the panel so you can use the available features.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[IceyDeath23]

wow that is really nice front panel plus it looks flat so you can use it with a case that has a front door...thanks for the find Oceanb0rn i might just pick that up myself

 

[potatohead]

http://www.directron.com/dt6000.html

^Differant style, but still cool.

 

[Oceanb0rn]

potato, that's a very sexy fan controller with USB... If I was going for the bling bling, I'd get that plus a basic memory card reader.

ICey - Wow, I didn't even think of the front panel. The cases I am looking at [Newegg Link], [Newegg Link], have front panels. I didn't even think about how much the accessory panel protrudes, but my computer-before-last was a Compaq (dutifully hangs head in shame) with a front panel, and I took that thing off, I was tired of opening and closing it. But, now that I have a Firewire hard drive, I might keep said panel closed more often, making it useful.

HoLoCroN, thanks for the well wishes. I've never built a system before, so I'm crossing my fingers. I know a little about hardware, have installed hard drives, optical drives, RAM, PCI and AGP cards... But never built one. I've been reading Maximum PC and surfind Newegg, and I've learned a lot about hardware. The only challenge I'm seeing is lining up all the hardware, such as not getting a Socket 940 chip and a Socket 939 mobo, the same kind of RAM, video card for what the mobo has, and so on.

In short, I'm planning on using one of those cases, but more likely the green one at this point, an AMD Athlon64 3500+, the MSI mobo I said above, 2GB of some generic PC3200 RAM, a 74GB WD Raptor, a 256MB/256bit GeForce 6800GT, and a 16X DVD burner. It'll be my first system with only one optical drive, but that one drive will do it all, and at current DVD burner prices, I may add a second 16X DVD burner. They're not that much more than your basic CD burner/DVD combo. Also I may later add another 74GB Raptor and RAID them, as the mobo supports it.