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Moira W.

Moira W.

Joined on 03/28/12

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 34
Most Favorable Review

Works out of the box with Linux Mint

IOCrest SI-PEX40064 PCI-Express 2.0 Low Profile Ready SATA III (6.0 Gb/s) Controller Card
IOCrest SI-PEX40064 PCI-Express 2.0 Low Profile Ready SATA III (6.0 Gb/s) Controller Card

Pros: Reasonable cost, works right away without needing to find and activate it under a hardware list, and i didn't have to look for drivers. Linux Mint 18, Sylvia, recognized it right away and mounted the first drive i plugged in to test it.

Cons: None.

Overall Review: I recommend this if you like Linux and are making a server, as I am. I got this device for a RAID and chose it because it offers me 4 ports.

Most Critical Review

Good price, but not thoughtfully designed

DIYPC Solo-T2-R Black USB 3.0 ATX Mid Tower Gaming Computer Case with 2 x Red Fans (1x 120mm LED fan x front, 1x 120mm fan x rear) Pre-installed
DIYPC Solo-T2-R Black USB 3.0 ATX Mid Tower Gaming Computer Case with 2 x Red Fans (1x 120mm LED fan x front, 1x 120mm fan x rear) Pre-installed

Pros: You can't beat the price for a nice looking case that doesn't weigh a lot and has fairly good airflow.

Cons: The design isn't thoughtful. The internal hard drive bay should face sideways or the case needs to be a half inch wider, because even with the drives put in as far as they can go, the data and power cables stick out far enough that closing the case is challenging, and there's concern about squashing and damaging the cables. Also, the front fan, which blows over this drive bay, could be a bit higher, because then air flow would be over the motherboard as well and not blocked by a full internal drive bay. My system has several drives., so this bay is full. The external drive bay isn't usable because there's a piece of structural metal that may be meant as a shelf for the optical drive, stops me from getting the drive in at all. Last, the openings on the back for expansion drive ports are separated by strips of metal that are too wide. They block the ports.

Overall Review: I'm keeping the case because it's not undoable, but mods were needed for the afore mentioned reasons.

The perfect gift for my husband

EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 P2 220-P2-1000-XR 80+ PLATINUM 1000W Fully Modular EVGA ECO Mode Includes FREE Power On Self Tester Power Supply
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 P2 220-P2-1000-XR 80+ PLATINUM 1000W Fully Modular EVGA ECO Mode Includes FREE Power On Self Tester Power Supply

Pros: It delivers the power that it states that it does. It has cables that can provide many connections for those of us who like a ton of drives and fans. The seller is also quite polite and interested in knowing that the item arrived safely. He also provided a power cord compatible with USA standards. It came with one that was meant for overseas wall connections.

Cons: I can't think of any.

Overall Review: I chose this unit originally to be a backup which could run any computer in the house from the low demand to the mightiest gaming rig, and since power supplies are the most common iotem needing replacement, I got this one. It's very sad when your computer won't power up. This happened to my husband. He likes to run a very demanding flight simulator, and he built a monster rig able to handle this. if anyone's curious, the CPU is an i7 of the Coffee Lake line, which needs really good cooling. There is also 32 gigs of RAM, 4 drives, a half dozen colorful fans as well as a CPU cooler with dual fans and a GPU supporting at least 3 monitors. If you want the specs, I can ask him exactly which components he chose. But to make a long story short, the PSU he originally got couldn't handle the load, but this one does so flawlessly. Happy husband!

10/29/2020

A welcome boost

Rosewill RNX-N180UBEv3 - Wireless High Gain N300 Wi-Fi Adapter - IEEE 802.11b/g/n, (2T2R), Up to 300 Mbps Data Rates, USB 2.0 Cradle, 5 dBi High Power Antenna
Rosewill RNX-N180UBEv3 - Wireless High Gain N300 Wi-Fi Adapter - IEEE 802.11b/g/n, (2T2R), Up to 300 Mbps Data Rates, USB 2.0 Cradle, 5 dBi High Power Antenna

Pros: It's not bulky and can go in a variety of places thanks to an extension cord provided. The computer is in a corner in the bedroom and the wifi signal to it wasn't strong enough to be consistent until I plugged this device in. I didn't have to install any software because with both Linux Mint and Windows 10 on this computer, it shows up right away recognizing networks.

Cons: I can't think of any.

Overall Review: This was just what I needed for a remote computer far from the router needing a signal boost.

My best caase of all

CORSAIR Crystal 570X RGB Tempered Glass, Premium ATX Mid Tower Case, White, CC-9011110-WW
CORSAIR Crystal 570X RGB Tempered Glass, Premium ATX Mid Tower Case, White, CC-9011110-WW

Pros: It's very elegant and beautiful. I love RGB fans, too. But what strikes me most is the choices of places to rout cables through and from. That is, I don't have to have a jungle of cables blocking airflow and looking untidy. Neatness has been a problem for me, but not with this case. I found this out when the motherboard didn't have enough fan controllers for the final array of 5 fans, so I got a fan controller hub, and the lines could neatly be threaded through one of the rubber valves and be inconspicuous. Also, there is ample room for large components, such as a tall CPU cooler with a 120mm fan on its side, and my GPU is pretty long, being a model with 3 fans, but it fits.

Cons: I confess to buying it while partly asleep. I don't regret this, mind you, but I didn't notice that I had missed a digit in the price. Nevertheless, I have no regrets and I find that you get what you pay for, and this is worth it when what you want is a sweet-looking computer to adorn your desk. A cheap case is all right for most rigs, but when you want something special, this is the case for you.

Overall Review: I definitely recommend this case for builders of the special machine you feel proud of and want to show off.

Very good for the price

DEEPCOOL MATREXX 70 Mid-Tower Case Modular Design Full-size Tempered Glass GPU Vertical Installation Quick Open Panels
DEEPCOOL MATREXX 70 Mid-Tower Case Modular Design Full-size Tempered Glass GPU Vertical Installation Quick Open Panels

Pros: If you have an EATX board and want room for extras like colorful fans, plus have a window to admire the colors, this is a very good case. I made a server with this case. One thing that stands out nicely for me is the space behind the motherboard that allows me to string power supply and case cables to keep them from looking messy up front. Neatness has often been my toughest challenge!

Cons: None that I can think of.

Overall Review: I recommend this case, especially because most cases that support EATX cost twice as much.