Joined on 01/26/07
Awesome...
Pros: This thing ROCKS! I'll admit to having been easily impressed, coming from an 8500GT, but this thing runs any game I've tried to play at the highest settings. I've got it running 765/1775/1000 at stock voltage, and it stays under 55 degrees no matter what I do.
Cons: Like others have said, ram sinks would be a nice addition...
Overall Review: 3DMark06 score of 10,205 with this card and an E2140 @ 2.92GHz with 2 GB of Wintec AmpX at 876MHz... This card definitely carries this system...
Basic but functional
Pros: Supports a wide range of processors. Two IDE channels, in case you have 3 IDE devices... Boots quickly and isn't real picky about the RAM used.
Cons: The overclocking section in the BIOS is a joke. RAM interface is only 64 bit single channel.
Overall Review: It gets the job done for what it is. It's not a gamer's motherboard, but it's fine if you need an upgrade from an OEM motherboard. uATX motherboards are notorious for poor overclocking abilities, and this one fits the stereotype.
Kind of disappointed
Pros: Good looking case, well built, and the functional handle is definitely a plus for lugging this thing around to LAN parties and what-not.
Cons: The wire management options are pretty poor. There isn't enough room between the side panel and the motherboard tray to hide much. Every single screw and standoff that came installed from the factory (except the fan mounting screws) was tightened so tight that they were stripped. The first half hour+ of this build was spent trying to remove stripped thumbscrews and standoffs.
Overall Review: I'm pretty disappointed by the stripped screws. That's the only reason I knocked off an egg. If this was my first Cooler Master case, it would also be my last. However, I've built in a few of them and know they are usually high quality. I've got another CM case coming later this week; if it's got a bunch of stripped screws, that will be my last Cooler Master.
Surprising
Pros: I wasn't expecting a lot from this RAM because it's cheap and it's A-Data. It definitely not RAM for the novice, it requires a lot of tweaking to get it fast and stable. After spending some time with it, I have two stable profiles for it. It'll run 1800MHz @ 7-8-7-22 2T, but I get better throughput at 1160MHz @ 5-5-4-12 1T. Both are solid at a hair over 1.8v.
Cons: It's picky- real picky. It doesn't like too much voltage, and even though A-Data says it'll take up to 2.15v, it doesn't scale well at all above 1.9v.
Overall Review: For the price, I'm fairly impressed. I was able to break the 10K mark across the board at 1160MHz on Everest 5.30's Cache & Memory Benchmark.
What low frame rate?
Pros: This game is an absolute blast to play with a bunch of friends. There's no rules, if you can think it up, you can do it. Getting a group of guys together and just raising havoc thorough the town is a great way to relax after a long day of work.
Cons: My wife won't let me play it in front of the kids...
Overall Review: I've got 3 machines that run this game smooth as silk. One is an E2180 @ 3.3GHz with a 9600GSO, one is an E3200 @ 3.5GHz with an 8800GT, and the third is an E8600 @ 4.2GHz with a GTX-260. Obviously they don't all play with settings maxed out, but the slowest one plays with reasonable settings and benches around 35 FPS. I don't know why some people have such a hard time getting playable framerates out of this game with semi-modern hardware.
Best of the best
Pros: Very good RAM, good looking, runs cool, clocks high, and runs nice tight timings.
Cons: They are a little tough to install with those heat spreaders...
Overall Review: I've been wanting to pick these up for awhile, just been waiting and watching the price fall. Now that I've used them, I'd have paid twice as much for them without complaining!