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Arthur S.

Arthur S.

Joined on 05/29/09

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 38
Most Favorable Review

Decent Budget Case – Some Annoyances

Fractal Design Focus G Mini Black MicroATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Fractal Design Focus G Mini Black MicroATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Pros: This case has excellent ventilation and ventilation options. The two case fans (3-pin) on the front are adequate, and the mesh front allows them to work well. They don’t move as much air as some fans, but they get the job done. I don’t care for the clear fans, but with the white LEDs and the mesh front, the look acceptable. I would not change them unless one failed. Also, there is easy mounting for a large radiator up top and a rear fan (not included) This case is sturdy before and after all the components are installed. This case is large enough to work inside easily, but still small enough to be more of a classic mid-tower, rather than the current mid-towers that are usually over 17 inches tall. Captive thumbscrews are a nice touch, but have their own problems (see cons). Hard drive bay is completely tool-less and the holsters can be inverted, which may be necessary depending on your hard drives arrangement, since a 3.5-inch hard drive will be nearly flush against the side rail and could block cable connections otherwise. 3.5-inch hard drives can ONLY be installed with the connectors opposite the window-side of the case. Power supply mount is on the bottom and allows for inverted installation, if desired. Cable management is relatively easy; a couple of the cable runs were a tight squeeze, but should be manageable for everyone.

Cons: Cable management for the front fans was non-existent and requires some out-of-the box thinking and routing. The USB connections take up a full USB 3 connector and a USB 2 connector on the motherboard, but only give one of each on the case. I docked an egg for this. The thumbscrews cannot be satisfactorily tightened without the use of a screwdriver; the covers will be loose if you only tighten them by hand. It would have been nice to get a shroud for either the whole power supply or the power supply cables. Because of the price-point, I did not dock an egg but if this case were any more expensive this would be an expectation.

Overall Review: Another reviewer mentioned the bulge on the non-windowed side needs to be larger to account for cable management better. I disagree. It takes a bit of work, but unless your cables are monstrous, this should not be problem. Where it MAY be a problem is if you’re using the 2.5-inch drive mount on the non-windowed side. If you’re doing that, I strongly recommend getting a custom cable that will eliminate this concern (you’ll need it anyway due to the length required). There are no rubber grommets, but at this price-point I don’t expect any. It’s neither a con nor worth docking an egg. Dust screen on the bottom is a nice touch, but they come off at the drop of a hat. ANY hat. I will probably just remove mine since it comes off every time I touch it. Not worth docking an egg. I like having cases with 5.25-inch external bays. Optical drives are less important these days, but some of us still like using them and many people still rely on them. Also these bays are great for memory card readers, which will always be handy.

Most Critical Review

Good Power Supply, Mine Has a Minor Fan Noise

EVGA 430 W1 100-W1-0430-KR 80+ WHITE 430W Power Supply
EVGA 430 W1 100-W1-0430-KR 80+ WHITE 430W Power Supply

Pros: This product is a solid power supply from a reliable manufacturer. It won't win any awards, but it will get the job done for nearly any single-GPU system you might plan to build. It's got enough power connectors, and includes a floppy connector for those who still need one. Even with my system under load, the fan doesn't spin very fast, but the load of my system is only about 250 watts maximum.

Cons: The power supply I received has a minor fan noise. It sounds as though the fan is rubbing against a wire, but I know for certain it's not. Ordinarily I wouldn't notice, but this fan was a very quiet build. It's not a failing fan; I'm familiar with the sounds failing fans make.

Overall Review: I do recommend this power supply, but check other reviews to see whether more people are having similar issues.

Fantastic Cooling, Limited Height, Incredibly Quiet

Noctua NH-D9L, Premium CPU Cooler with NF-A9 92mm Fan (Brown)
Noctua NH-D9L, Premium CPU Cooler with NF-A9 92mm Fan (Brown)

Pros: The cooler I had before this was decent and I thought it was quiet. I bought this Noctua NH-D9L cooler because I wanted more cooling on my rig that used to serve as my HTPC but is getting more work lately. The NH-D9L dropped my CPU temperatures by 20 degrees Fahrenheit and reduced the noise 50% or better. My Core i7 3770 only has a TDP of 77 watts, but at max load the temperature now hovers around 55 degrees Fahrenheit, which is phenomenally good. The instructions for Intel installation were pretty good and include pictures that should be helpful for most users including novices. The package includes installation brackets to add a second 92 mm fan, if desired. When installing on an Intel motherboard, the hold down brackets can be installed in either configuration (fan pointing toward the back of the motherboard or fan pointing toward the top of the motherboard).

Cons: The spacers for Intel boards come in two varieties: one for LGA1200 and LGA115x, and the other for LGA1851 and LGA 1700. The spacers can only be differentiated by their color: LGA 1200 and LGA 115x are black while the LGA 1851 and LGA 1700 are blue (a very dark blue). The problem is anyone with a color vision deficiency might have trouble telling the two apart, and they come in the same packaging. These spacers should have been given a better color differentiation such as light blue, gray, or white. Although it is helpful that the instructions provide torque specifications, my guess is most users don't have a torque screwdriver. Better tightening instructions would be appreciated. Additionally, the instructions for installing the screws and clip-on spacers to the Intel backplate could be improved. I thought I had them right until I tried to install the backplate on the board. Only when I was looking to see why it didn't fit did I understand I had installed the screws to the backplate incorrectly. It was an easy fix, but I nearly broke one of the clip-on spacers trying to fix it.

Overall Review: I recommend this cooler for anyone with a CPU of modest thermal demands, particularly for small cases where larger coolers won't work or where reduced fan noise is a must. It is incredibly quiet while still remarkably effective. Installation is relatively easy. There is no interference with any motherboard components including RAM and heatsinks integrated to the motherboard (they may be close, but there should be room). The dimensions with only the middle fan installed are 95 mm long by 95 mm wide by 110 mm high (that is 110 mm from the surface of the socket to the top of the cooler's towers). Adding a second fan will add 25 mm to that side. I originally planned to purchase a second Noctua NF-A9 PWM fan and install it because I didn't believe a single fan placed between the two towers was sufficient. I was pleasantly surprised after I stress tested and benchmarked the system, so I will not be adding another fan but it is nice to have that option. My use case is for an HTPC (think the traditional flat desktop with the motherboard horizontally mounted). My case is only about 130 mm high, with some room used by the motherboard and spacers. I was concerned that I may not have adequate clearance for this tower cooler, but there is ample room. If you case fits a 120 mm fan on the side, there is room for this cooler to be installed.

Great 3-Pin Splitter

Phanteks PH-CB-Y3P 4.3 in. 3 Pin Y Splitter Fan Cable Female to Male
Phanteks PH-CB-Y3P 4.3 in. 3 Pin Y Splitter Fan Cable Female to Male

Pros: This 3-pin splitter works like a champ and will likely last longer than your shoes. The wiring is shrouded and easy to work with, but also retains the shape you morph it to when you're routing it.

Cons: None. It could be longer, but if you want longer then go look for a longer cable, because they're available.

Overall Review: I recommend using this for identical fans. If you want to know why, read the section below where I critique the other reviewers who left uninformed criticisms of this splitter. This is for all the people who have left reviews with bad information - you don't know what you're talking about. "Instruction booklet was extremely vague..." There is no instruction booklet - you left this review for the wrong component. It's a fan splitter, if you don't know how to use it, don't order it." "Only a 2 wire system, not 4, not even 3!!" Well, that's a confession that you don't know what you're doing and you bought the wrong thing for your needs. ONE of the splitter ends is only two wires, because one of the wires is a speed sensor for the fan to tell the motherboard how fast it is spinning. You can't send information from two fans to one 3-pin header on the motherboard. But the other end DOES have 3 pins, so one fan will report back to the motherboard "I'm spinning at XXX rpm.

Works, Looks Good, Not as Fast as DDR4 2400 It Replaced???

XPG GAMMIX D10 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4 3000 (PC4 24000) Desktop Memory Model AX4U3000W4G16-DBG
XPG GAMMIX D10 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4 3000 (PC4 24000) Desktop Memory Model AX4U3000W4G16-DBG

Pros: Works, Low Profile, Neutral Color Scheme, Works with ASRock AB350M Pro4

Cons: Reduced performance compared to the GeIL EVO Potenza PC4-19200 RAM kit it replaced. After upgrading the RAM to squeeze more performance out of my Ryzen 5 2400G's Vega 11 graphics, I was surprised to see my benchmarks deliver slightly less performance. I double-checked my UEFI settings and confirmed the memory is running with the proper settings. The CAS latency between the two is identical, so I expected a measurable, possibly noticeable improvement in performance but instead I got a measurable (but not noticeable) reduction in performance.

Overall Review: I'm not going to recommend staying away from this memory because it does work as advertised and even works with my Ryzen APU (which is often tricky). I give it four eggs because it does work, and there may be something unique to my setup that is causing this discrepancy in performance. At the time I'm writing this review, there is only one other review from someone who - I suspect - does not know what he is doing. I thought it important to let potential buyers know this RAM will likely work with Ryzen motherboards.

Acceptable Build Quality - Smells Like Cigarettes

PCI Slot to Serial DB9 Pin COM Male + Parallel DB25 Pin LPT Printer Port Female Cable Header Bracket
PCI Slot to Serial DB9 Pin COM Male + Parallel DB25 Pin LPT Printer Port Female Cable Header Bracket

Pros: Appears to be fine build quality, which is nice. Product was very clean and arrived with no damage.

Cons: When I opened the sealed bag inside the package, the unmistakable smell of cigarette smoke wafted out and filled my room. It was as if a smoker took a huge drag, blew it into the package, and rapidly closed the bag. In all the things I've ordered from Newegg, I've never seen anything like it.

Overall Review: Open the package outside and let it air out before you bring it in the house.