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Jason B.

Jason B.

Joined on 12/25/05

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Most Favorable Review

Works like it should

PLEXTOR Internal DVD Super Multi 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model PX-L890SA LightScribe Support
PLEXTOR Internal DVD Super Multi 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model PX-L890SA LightScribe Support

Pros: It burns all formats up to DVD+/-R DL reliably and quickly. I've had no issues at all with the drive and it has performed perfectly. I've written several CDs, single layer DVDs, and dual layer DVDs with it and all of them worked perfectly, even on discs that I thought might be questionable in quality.

Cons: None that I have noted.

Most Critical Review

Not without its issues

MSI A75A-G55 FM1 AMD A75 (Hudson D3) USB 3.0 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
MSI A75A-G55 FM1 AMD A75 (Hudson D3) USB 3.0 HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard

Pros: The component quality that MSI has been showing lately comes out in this board. It is a solid performer and works well.

Cons: The DVD that ships with it has a chipset driver included that makes Windows 7 blue screen and never recover. I had to download the newer version of the driver to make it work after reinstalling Windows completely. This board is full size ATX with NINE screw holes. Most newer MSI boards are 6-hole and still maintain full ATX size on the Intel side. Not sure why that little bit of extra board was necessary, since they didn't seem to put much in that space. It wouldn't be such a big deal if Antec didn't start shipping the 900 with only SEVEN screws and stand-offs. They only include two system fan connectors on this board in addition to the CPU fan connector. I was short spots to plug in two fans. Nitpick: All of their other boards come with case stickers, why doesn't this one?

Works well, Power On Self Test is SLOW

MSI MAG X870 TOMAHAWK WIFI AM5 ATX Gaming Motherboard, 4x SATA 6Gb/s, AMD Wi-Fi 7,USB 4.0
MSI MAG X870 TOMAHAWK WIFI AM5 ATX Gaming Motherboard, 4x SATA 6Gb/s, AMD Wi-Fi 7,USB 4.0

Pros: It has lots of USB connectivity, it accepts DDR5 and works well with 128GB installed, and it runs well overall. The four M.2 slots are a great feature as well.

Cons: This thing's POST (Power On Self Test) is entirely too slow. The POST takes bloody ages! I have to power on my computer a good 5 minutes before I want to use it because of the POST alone. The rest of the system is fairly speedy, but that POST is PAINFULLY SLOW. I have NEVER had anything that wasn't a server take nearly as long to POST.

Overall Review: It's a great board. It would be even better if the POST didn't make you sit there forever waiting for the boot screen to come up.

Stable Even At XMP Speed

G.SKILL Sniper X Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model F4-3200C16D-32GSXKB
G.SKILL Sniper X Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) Desktop Memory Model F4-3200C16D-32GSXKB

Pros: This RAM is stable and works well even at the Intel XMP profile speed. I've seen no stability issues at all.

Overall Review: If you want good DDR4 3200 to use with a 10th Gen Intel CPU, while using the XMP profile to get the full clock out of it, this RAM does the job.

Easy to Use and Works Great

MSI MAG Series CORELIQUID 360R, ARGB CPU Liquid Cooler (AIO): Rotatable Blockhead Design, 360mm Radiator, Triple 120mm ARGB PWM Fans LGA 1700 / AM5 Compatible
MSI MAG Series CORELIQUID 360R, ARGB CPU Liquid Cooler (AIO): Rotatable Blockhead Design, 360mm Radiator, Triple 120mm ARGB PWM Fans LGA 1700 / AM5 Compatible

Pros: This water cooler is perfect for the Intel Core i9 10th Gen CPU. I get temps between 32-40C and it keeps up well under load. I was able to bolt it to the fan mounting holes just fine and it fits in the 3-fan space at the top of my case well. The mounting bracket for the CPU side has screws which lock into place, making it easier to mount the cooling head. The RGB lights look nice and work with the Rainbow connectors without issue.

Cons: The two tubes can be a bit tricky to maneuver into place when mounting the cooling head on the CPU. I had to reverse the direction I mounted mine in because they were in the way of the DVD/BD writer. Make sure to pay attention to any potential pitfalls like that to avoid frustration.

Overall Review: I'd definitely get this again if I needed a new water cooler for a CPU. Despite a bit of tricky mounting, it wasn't all that hard to install compared to some air based heat sinks I've used. The smaller profile of the cooling head leaves more room around for RAM installation and such. It's a great value, too, because it's not as expensive as some other water coolers out there, but it performs quite well.

A Great Step Up Router

Ubiquiti Networks 10-Port Gigabit Router with PoE Passthrough and 2 x SFP Ports (ER-12)
Ubiquiti Networks 10-Port Gigabit Router with PoE Passthrough and 2 x SFP Ports (ER-12)

Pros: This router keeps up with gigabit Internet without a problem. Running iBGP, vlans, DHCPv6-PD, and a VPN tunnel, it still processes packets without issue.

Cons: I had a bit of a minor issue with configuring it. One of the VLAN interfaces on switch0 was configured in the OS, but the Vyatta config kept kicking it back. I had to manually delete the subinterface to get that corrected. Also, there's no way to specify a prefix hint for dhcpv6-pd, so a consistent /59 prefix on Comcast Business service isn't guaranteed.

Overall Review: I highly recommend this as a step up from the Edgerouter X. It works well and uses less electricity than a comparable Cisco solution.