cover
DAVID C.

DAVID C.

Joined on 08/26/04

0
0

Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 11
Most Favorable Review

Boot drive on my ASRock x370 Taichi and it's working flawlessly!!

SAMSUNG 960 EVO M.2 250GB NVMe PCI-Express 3.0 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-V6E250BW
SAMSUNG 960 EVO M.2 250GB NVMe PCI-Express 3.0 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-V6E250BW

Pros: -Working as Boot Drive on my RYZEN BOARD (x370 Taichi) with zero issues! -M.2 with potential read/write speeds of 3.2GB/s / 1.5GB/s. -Software solution to keep drive's performance up to date.

Cons: -$/GB

Overall Review: New build. When I installed Windows 10, the 960 EVO M.2 drive immediately showed up as available. I didn't have to go into the BIOS boot drive menu at all. I've had no issues with this SSD and I like the fact that I can keep the drive running optimally via Samsung Magician software. The only wish I had with using this M.2 SSD with my AMD RYZEN motherboard is that I wanted to use two of these at Gen3x4 in RAID 0 for my boot drive and critical programs. As far as I know, only the Intel motherboards would allow you to do this. The ASRock x370 Taichi has two m.2's but one is Gen3 x4 (32Gb/s) and the other is Gen2 x4 (20Gb/s). I would think with future revisions and new motherboards that this issue will be addressed and we could set up RAID 0 with M.2 at Gen3x4.

Most Critical Review

Loud when starting disk

LITE-ON 24X DVD Writer 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model iHAS424-98 LightScribe Support
LITE-ON 24X DVD Writer 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model iHAS424-98 LightScribe Support

Pros: Basic DVD drive w/ black face plate, looks good in my drive bay, reasonably priced, does the job

Cons: I thought I had a helicopter taking off in my case when I put the OS disk in to run for the first time. It's loud and a little disappointing.

Overall Review: Probably upgrade to a Blue-Ray disk player and use this drive sparingly.

Great memory choice for AMD Ryzen 7 1700 build w/ ASRock x370 Taichi with room to grow but pricey $$.

G.SKILL Flare X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) AMD X370 / B350 Memory (Desktop Memory) Model F4-3200C14D-16GFX
G.SKILL Flare X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600) AMD X370 / B350 Memory (Desktop Memory) Model F4-3200C14D-16GFX

Pros: -Designed for AMD Ryzen processors -it's G.Skill -Model F4-3200C14D-16GFX should get me to the high end the memory for my ASRock x370 Taichi

Cons: -Haven't been able to get 3200 yet but stable at 2933. -Doesn't say anywhere (that I can find) in the x370 Taichi manual, or G. Skill QVL list that the Ryzen 7 1700 cpu may not "be natively capable of DDR4-3200." That is worth taking one egg away. -Price (since unable to reach 3200)

Overall Review: Overall, I'm very pleased with these memory sticks and 2933. On my motherboard, I'm running BIOS 2.0 and have the cpu manually set at 3.7GHz. I got to 2933 by going into OC Tweaker, clicking the XMP 2.0 profile and dialing back from 3200 to 2933. I hope this helps anyone stuck at 2400. Best of luck. EDIT: Since posting this review, I've found a couple videos on youtube concerning, "Does Ryzen Really Need Fast Memory?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4k_ErEg-FU "Does RAM speed REALLY matter" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_Yt4vSZKVk&t=318s. You can come to your own conclusions. ___________________________________________________________ UserBenchmarks: Game 77%, Desk 113%, Work 112% CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 1700 - 92.9% GPU: AMD RX 480 - 73% SSD: Crucial MX300 525GB - 71.4% SSD: Samsung 960 Evo NVMe PCIe M.2 250GB - 239.6% RAM: G.SKILL F4 DDR4 3200 C14 2x8GB - 101.2% MBD: Asrock X370 Taichi

-14 degree difference from stock cooler

Thermaltake WATER2.0 Performer Closed-Loop All In One Liquid CPU Cooler Dual 120mm PWM Fans 120x25mm CLW0215
Thermaltake WATER2.0 Performer Closed-Loop All In One Liquid CPU Cooler Dual 120mm PWM Fans 120x25mm CLW0215

Pros: Easy installation, quiet, self contained, looks great in my case, directions are better than most, very pleased with product.

Cons: You got to make sure you push gromets in the back of the bracket that attaches to the rear of the MB all the way down and make sure they seat properly.

Overall Review: Using this on a Sabertooth 990FX MB with an FX-8150 CPU. Stock cooler under no load had temps. 45-47 degrees. After attaching this cooler, my CPU is currently at 30 degrees while I type this review. I'll probably pick up a second one of these coolers and attach it to my old ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 paired with an AMD Phenom II X4 955 Deneb 3.2GHz. It's a solid product!

Great Case, Easy Case Management, LED's not bright

NZXT Guardian 921 RB 921RB-001-RD Black SECC steel chassis Computer Case
NZXT Guardian 921 RB 921RB-001-RD Black SECC steel chassis Computer Case

Pros: Sharp looking, roomy, black interior, good cable management, easy access to back of MB to change heat sink/cooler, LED's are reasonable not distracting but shows off case well, easy install drive bays, shipping box kept case safe, no bloody knuckles!!

Cons: Directions with case horrible, wasn't really sure how to properly place/secure thermal sensors from front display, doesn't have USB 3.0 at front of case (resolved this buying card reader with USB 3.0 and attached it to 20 pin connector on MB).

Overall Review: This is my second NZXT case, the first being the Lexa S (which is another sharp looking case). Roomy, no issues with my 560 Graphics Card. I also added the 140mm red led fan for the top of the case and it worked out because I took off the rear 120mm fan (no led) and replaced it with the dual fan radiator for my Thermaltake Water 2.0 Performer Liquid Cooler. I took my time putting it together and I'm truly happy with the end result.

Does not connect to USB 3.0 connector (20-1 pin USB3_34)

Koutech IO-RCM630 SuperSpeed USB 3.0  Support SD/ CF/ xD/ MS/ MMC. Multi-in-1 Front Panel Internal Card Reader with USB 3.0 Port (3.5")
Koutech IO-RCM630 SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Support SD/ CF/ xD/ MS/ MMC. Multi-in-1 Front Panel Internal Card Reader with USB 3.0 Port (3.5")

Pros: I'm sure it's a good reader but I'm returning it because it doesn't meet my needs.

Cons: Takes up 2 USB 3.0 ports on back of motherboard. Doesn't connect to USB 3.0 connector (20-1 pin USB3_34) on motherboard.

Overall Review: This is not product or neweggs fault. I thought this would connect to the internal USB 3.0 connector (20-1 pin USB3_34) on MB. I have two external HD's for backup connected to the two USB 3.0 ports in rear of MB.