Joined on 02/20/10
Beautiful Picture
Pros: This monitor came in perfect condition and had zero dead pixels. The picture is amazing and gets extremely bright. Being IPS, the viewing angle is also great. Aesthetics are nice and it's a great substiture for dual monitors. The built-in speakers are loud, but lack the bass that would be present if using a set of speakers with a sub woofer (duh). Overall the speakers are adequate and I have no complaints. I have this paired up with a GTX770 and can play all of my games at max or near max settings at 2560x1080. I think this monitor really shines in first person games since the extra width allows a better peripheral view.
Cons: Third party support for the 21:9 aspect ratio isn't quite all there yet, so I would recommend checking up on whatever it is that you plan on doing or playing to make sure it supports 21:9 to really get the most out of this monitor.
Overall Review: I don't know if I would purchase this at $650, but for ~$380 it is an awesome deal and I would recommend it to anyone who doesn't need the extra vertical space that going to 2560x1440 would offer.
Near Silent
Pros: I have 5 of these in a white Fractal Define R4 (with window) and they are nearly inaudible running at full speed about 3 feet away from me. They also match the black and white of the Define R4 and look awesome through the window if you care aesthetics.
Cons: Somewhat expensive at $18 a piece, wait until they go on sale for around $12 or so.
Overall Review: I would absolutely recommed these to anyone who wants to improve the airflow in their case without adding noise, especially if the case has a black and white theme.
Amazing Card
Pros: I bought this to upgrade an aging Radeon 5770 and the GTX770 is unsurprisingly a huge improvement. The build quality is excellent and the card feels extremely solid, it just looks and feels like a premium product. So far I've been able to max or near max every game I've thrown at it running at 2560x1080 resolution (21:9). Games I've tried so far include Star Citizen, MechWarrior Online, Diablo 3, Planetside 2, Assassin's Creed 4 (included at the time I bought this card) and Wasteland 2. I haven't run FRAPS or any FPS monitoring software, but that's only because the games all run smooth and I haven't felt the need. I have the card in a Fractal Define R4 with 5 near silent 140mm fans about 3 feet away from me and I can only vaguely hear the GTX770 if I'm filtering out everything else and trying to listen for it. Overall though, I'm usually in a game when the GPU is being taxed and I don't notice it at all. Temperatures are great and usually get maxed out around 68 celsius or so on stock profiles. I haven't overclocked it yet, but there is definitely headroom there based on how it behaves on stock settings. I'll update when I've had a chance to mess with it.
Cons: The only downside I can think of is the size if trying to use this in some mATX cases, although it's to be expected if working with an mATX case. I had a Lian Li PC-V352B that this GPU would not have fit in since the heatpipes come out the top of the card a little bit. On it's own merit though, the card is not very big when considering the performance capability.
Overall Review: Case - Fractal Define R4 (White w/ window) Mobo - ASUS P8Z77-M CPU - Intel i5-3570K @ 4.2 GHz RAM - 8 GB G.Skill Ripjaws @ 1600 MHz GPU - ASUS GTX770 DirectCU II PSU - Rosewill Capstone 450-M (450W) Monitor - 29" LG 29EA73-P (2560 x 1080 resolution)
Near Perfect Mouse
Pros: This is easily the most comfortable mouse I've ever used. The rubberized grip all over, the button placement, actuation force needed for the buttons all feel like they were designed specifically for me. I'm average size (6 ft, 175 lbs) and my hands fit this mouse perfectly.
Cons: The bottom-most button on the right side requires a bit too much force and shouldn't be used for anything requiring precision as you'll probably end up moving the mouse a little as you push it. You also can't change the colors of the DPI setting LED, it's always orange.
Overall Review: I went to this mouse from a Razer Diamondback 3G and the difference is night and day. While the Razer wasn't bad by any means, the MS-3 just blows it out of the water on every level. I use this with an XTRAC PADS RIPPER mouse pad and couldn't be happier.
Awesome PSU
Pros: Rock solid, quiet operation. Got it on sale for $80. Gold certified, super efficient.
Cons: None
Overall Review: Lian-Li PC-V352B Rosewill Capstone 450-M PSU ASUS P8Z77-M Mobo Intel I5-3570K 8 GB DDR3 G.Skill Ripjaws X RAM ATI Sapphire 5770 Vapor-X 150 GB WD Velociraptor HDD 500 GB Seagate Barracuda HDD
Elegant Case w/ Minor Flaws
Pros: Beautiful case. I've had an NZXT Alpha and a Cooler Master HAF 922 and this one just looks SOO much better. I wanted a case with a smaller foot print that looked nice without being obnoxious and this fits the bill perfectly. Great airflow even with less than adequate cable routing options. There is a fan speed switch on the back which can accommodate up to 3 fans, and even on the highest setting you can't hear the fans. The fans come with finger guards, and the two intake fans on the front slide out easily making it simple to clean the included filters. Easily (mostly) fits everything in my build detailed below, while looking great and keeping everything cool & quiet.
Cons: It seems that Lian-Li put very little thought into smart component placement. The 3.5" bay in the back of the case only really gives about 1- 1.5" of space between where the cables go into your HDD and the back of the case. Adding to this, the 3 pin ports for the fan speed switch are directly across from the bottom-most HDD bay, forcing you to be a little creative on how to avoid blocking the single exhaust fan with a mess of wires. A modular PSU is also a must. Even with my modular PSU mentioned below, I had to take my dremel and cut off a flange from the reversible 5.25" bay because it was catching on one of my PSU cables and wouldn't go in the case completely. Also, I didn't have this issue, but I imagine if your video card has 6 or 8 pin ports on the TOP of it, it may not fit in this case as there is very little clearance above the video card. I haven't bought an aftermarket HSF yet, but due to the lack of vertical clearance I don't think there will be too many options. Like many others have said, this isn't a case you can get up and running in 15 minutes, you really need to plan your build out in order to get the most of it and avoid any potential headaches.
Overall Review: All in all, I would highly recommend this case to those who are willing to put in a little more work than would be required for a typical case. Even with the cons mentioned above, I only took off one egg because it is a fantastic case that I'm very pleased with and would gladly use again. Lian-Li PC-V352B Rosewill Capstone 450-M PSU ASUS P8Z77-M Mobo Intel I5-3570K 8 GB DDR3 G.Skill Ripjaws X RAM ATI Sapphire 5770 Vapor-X 150 GB WD Velociraptor HDD 500 GB Seagate Barracuda HDD