Joined on 07/15/05
Excellent support makes all the difference
Pros: Do you know how agonizing it can be to get to technical support for a mobo? Most RMA'd motherboards are not really bad, but users just can't get them to work for some tiny reason. All they really needed was just a little support. EVGA provides that support; as in a 24/7 hotline populated by techs who speak clear English. The user community is very active, and most solutions can be found on their message boards. The motherboard itself is quality. I have put it through intense torture while overclocking and the board is still solid at 3.8Ghz overclock running prime95 for 8 hours, and LinX for 2 hours. Using only air cooling. - BIOS reset button on the back. - pwr buttons on the board itself. - RAM slots are placed farther away from CPU socket than is the case with other i7 boards. Compare photos. This means that there is plenty of room for a huge Noctua heatsink with two fans and you can still fill all 6 RAM slots with tall RAM. - frequent BIOS updates - quiet
Cons: - Takes 10-20 seconds to POST. This is only because it runs extensive tests on poweron. You can follow the POST tests with the LED screen on the motherboard. - Need a couple more fan ports. - only 1 PS2 port. If you have an old PS2 KVM like me, you will need a PS2-USB adapter.
Overall Review: What really differentiates motherboards now is the support. You may not need it much but when you need it, you REALLY need it. EVGA has the rest beat in this category. Overclocked i7 920 to 4.1ghz on air, but I backed down a little to keep my temps below 70c. Runs well with OCZ Platinum, but I would have gotten the taller heatpipe memory had I known they would fit.
Clips well, but loud
Pros: The actual mechanism for clipping it to your RAM seems to work better than other memory coolers I bought from newegg.
Cons: Loud. One fan rattles, the other makes a high pitched whine. So distracting that I had to remove it.
Overall Review: This was the loudest thing in my computer. Louder than my two hard drives, case fans, cpu fans and video card fans combined.
Met expectations. Fantastic value for 1080p gaming. Bought 3.
Pros: Packaged very well. All PCs were exceptionally clean inside. CPU compares with i7-10750H on UserBenchmark 1060 card performed well and didn't overheat on tests. Cyberpunk 2077 benched between 32-58 fps My photos include some cheap lighting strips attached to an HD lead, which look pretty cool. Key on Windows sticker worked for setup, so no need to buy Windows, even if you get it without drives. Lots of room for expansion of cards, drives, and RAM. Will make a good file server someday.
Cons: Each case was missing a rubber foot. The driveless version I got came without a CDROM or removable cages for SSDs. (wasn't easy to secure an SSD) ECC Ram may be hard to get. 600w PSU, but some of them come with only one 6-pin GPU power lead. No NVME slot on the motherboard. Doesn't meet requirements for Windows 11 out of the box.
Overall Review: Its a solid 3D workstation repurposed for gaming.
Almost Perfect
Pros: Works with my Logitech G15 automatically! I can control the KVM from the keyboard and use all the special keys at the same time. Works with my Logitech G5 mouse as well, right out of the box. Quite a few programmable features- configuring relatively easy. EDID emulation helps prevent windows from getting confused about screen resolution. After switching, keyboard and mouse start working with the selected computer immediately.
Cons: Video is rather slow to display after switching. When I switch to another computer, I have to wait 4-6 seconds before the video will display. This happens even when the computers are running the same resolution. (your keyboard and mouse will start working almost instantly though)
Overall Review: I've been working with several different brands of multiport KVMs for many years. NONE are perfect; most are pretty bad actually. All the best KVMs I have worked with are made by IOGear. KVMs still have a long way to go as far as compatibility and functionality, but the GCS1104 is the best example of how far they have come.
Excellent Office PC
Pros: Quiet. Runs Windows 7 very well. Good speed in most apps. Bloatware is minimal and easily removed. Simple, off-the-shelf form factor; not overengineered. Components are good quality. Easy to open and upgrade.
Cons: No modem. Keyboard and mouse are rather cheap.
Overall Review: Near perfect combination of performance and value. Fast processor, plenty of memory, plenty of space. This PC is great for any purpose except the latest 3D games and video editing.
It works
Pros: - The included fans are relatively quiet and move an adequate amount of air. - fairly sturdy overall - plenty of ventilation on the front and side - Fits a 5x hot swap bay. - Front mounting plate and grips are sturdy.
Cons: - THE TEMP READOUT REQUIRES A SEPARATE KIT that you cannot get on newegg. Had I known this, I wouldn't have bought it. - Heavy! - Front doors are cheap plastic. - No rack rails.
Overall Review: Don't buy it for the temp readout because it is NOT included.
Pro shop
Bought 3 used PCs which met or exceeded expectations.
Works as intended, but skimpy instructions
I had to cut the threaded knobs off the tubes in my fridge with a razor blade to get them to fit the "snap-in" system. Nothing in the instructions about it. Took about 20 minutes to install. Happy with purchase.