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Fred G.

Fred G.

Joined on 11/07/04

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 11
Most Favorable Review

Well Done nVidia

EVGA GeForce GTX 980 04G-P4-2981-KR 4GB GAMING w/ACX 2.0, 26% Cooler and 36% Quieter Cooling For Gaming Graphics Card
EVGA GeForce GTX 980 04G-P4-2981-KR 4GB GAMING w/ACX 2.0, 26% Cooler and 36% Quieter Cooling For Gaming Graphics Card

Pros: Between it's 284W power efficiency during the most demanding times (F@H at FULL), to doing absolutely nothing... this thing pretty much owns anything out there. If you know about F@H you'll know it taxes the GPU at minimum 95% during operation, with that said I keep my temps at approx. 54-59*C @ 60% fan speed, yes you can hear it a bit but then again if you're trying to keep it cool who cares right? Haven't done a proper bench on this but when I do it'll be put with three other 980s to see what they can do together, but I also plan to do it individually... either way the card is something else. Oh, forgot to mention, when it "thinks" that it's not hot enough (I.E. target temperature) it won't run the fans at all, so when you're not folding, mining, or gaming then it just sits there but when you start to game it still "thinks" about turning them on and if it does it runs them way below where they can go - again it's a beast.

Cons: None.

Overall Review: Well like others have said the $550 price tag kinda sucks, but you know what? I've learned from buying cheap-end video cards, not like buying a 760 or something, but those really, really cheap cards... they fail to run anything. At least with this you'll get some bang for your buck, and if you mine it may actually make you some money back on your investment. Although... I own four of these, that'd take a lot of Bitcoin to make up for that investment.

12/27/2014
Most Critical Review

Depends on use

RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WBP Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case With 500W Power Supply
RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WBP Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case With 500W Power Supply

Pros: Great looking case, quick installation/removal of drives; for the most part it's nice. I'd give it a thumbs up. Not bad for a mid-tower.

Cons: Even when changing the ventilation around... it kept my computer at 60*C (AMD Phenom 9850 Down Clocked from 2.5 to 2.0). But I guess that would be with any mid-tower. After a while I noticed a weird spin in the PSU fan... eh no worries I just gave it a little slap and it was good. This is not a good case for AMD's since they tend to run warmer with the higher FSB speeds... so yeah I'd say it's alright but depends on the use.

Overall Review: None really, Pros and Cons explains most of it...

12/14/2008

Tower of Power

EVGA SuperNOVA 1600 G2 120-G2-1600-X1 80+ GOLD 1600W Fully Modular Includes FREE Power On Self Tester Power Supply
EVGA SuperNOVA 1600 G2 120-G2-1600-X1 80+ GOLD 1600W Fully Modular Includes FREE Power On Self Tester Power Supply

Pros: At 1600W of power, continous power that is, you're asking for a lot. This PSU will pretty much power anything and everything you can throw at it, without having to go rackmount/server PSU. Being that it is full modular it'll clean up any computer that either lacks space or just clean up the interior without having "extra" cables lying around due to non use. Although my GTX 980s don't consume stupid amounts of power I'm currrently running 3 of those, 4 Delta AFB1212GHE-CF00 fans (29.4W each), a SSD, 7200 RPM HDD and an 85W CPU.

Cons: It's long, not too long but long enough to extend quite a ways into the case. But then again what do you expect from a high output PSU? But I'd say that's its only flaw really... but it can't be helped.

Overall Review: Today will be it's true test to see if it can handle 13 Delta fans (the other 9 are 17.4W each), two water pumps, and 4x GTX 980. Not to mention my other setup which is similar but only 3x GTX 980, and it has two CPUs rather than one.

Convenient HDD Storage

ICY DOCK MB153SP-B | 3 x 2.5"/3.5" SATA/SAS Hard Drive Backplane Cage in 2X External 5.25" Bay | FatCage
ICY DOCK MB153SP-B | 3 x 2.5"/3.5" SATA/SAS Hard Drive Backplane Cage in 2X External 5.25" Bay | FatCage

Pros: Works as advertised, got this to clear up room for a water cooling setup in the bottom of my Corsair 600T case and it fits well for only taking up two 5.25" slots and store up to 3 3.5" drives. My temps look about average, maybe better, than they did before but that a minor issue. Again it comes down to functionality - which this nails right on the spot.

Cons: None

Lots of "Real Estate"

ASUS VS278Q-P Black 27" 1ms (GTG) Widescreen LCD/LED Monitor, 300 cd/m2 DCR 80,000,000:1, Dual Built-in Speakers, VESA Mountable, Extensive Connectivity, Dual HDMI/D-Sub/DisplayPort
ASUS VS278Q-P Black 27" 1ms (GTG) Widescreen LCD/LED Monitor, 300 cd/m2 DCR 80,000,000:1, Dual Built-in Speakers, VESA Mountable, Extensive Connectivity, Dual HDMI/D-Sub/DisplayPort

Pros: It's a LOT of desktop if you utilize two of these in parallel to each other (obviously), but in all honesty you won't be disappointed. These things look great, and the clarity is spot on. I've got both of mine running at 2560x1440 which is a bit large, meaning everything is small, but the amount of desktop space utilized by programmes that are open is also very small depending if you have them full screen or not.

Cons: None really...

Overall Review: If I were to add one thing, maybe they could have sized the side panels down a bit to not have a gap between the two monitors, but most would be satisfied with just the one monitor, but those who like to have all that "real estate" you may want to consider if having your mouse jump about an inch or so to the other screen would bother you - I can deal with it but it'd be nice to have a thinner boarder.

Durable

Phanteks Enthoo Primo PH-ES813P_WT White Aluminum / Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Phanteks Enthoo Primo PH-ES813P_WT White Aluminum / Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case

Pros: Quite durable, plenty of room, hidden PSU (or dual PSU), and plenty of spots to put a 120mm fan or 140mm. No expense was spared, and of course the price is reasonable.

Cons: It's heavy... not super heavy but heavy.

Overall Review: Nearly all the panels, except the front board is made out of solid aluminium, not the thin stuff either - it's solid. Fairly good build for the price, and so much room for endless possibilities of water cooling. I won't re-review this product as I'm already satisfied with what was shipped to me, love it! Well worth the purchase if you're looking to go water cooled, or just stay air cooled and have fans anywhere and everywhere. Again, solid build and worth the money.

11/17/2014