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Douglas W.

Douglas W.

Joined on 05/20/07

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 6
Most Favorable Review

Is what it is

ePOWER EP-350 CD 350 W EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Dedicated Graphic Card and CPU Power Supply
ePOWER EP-350 CD 350 W EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Dedicated Graphic Card and CPU Power Supply

Pros: Great design, modular cables, plenty to supplement. For the price you can't beat it. If you are going to run DUAL SLI rather than replacing your current PSU for 3 times the price, this is a great option. Straight forward installation and operation.

Cons: No documentation came with the product (Maybe just for mine?). Can't find a place to buy more/different cables for it.

Overall Review: If your are like me and have a pretty decent power supply (or so you thought, 700W), but are worried about 2 8800GTX Superclocked's like mine sucking your systems power up this is for you.

Most Critical Review

Beware USB

JetWay JNC62K-LF AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 Mini ITX AMD Motherboard
JetWay JNC62K-LF AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 Mini ITX AMD Motherboard

Pros: Small (of course). Fast with a pretty capable bios. Can boot from thumb drives etc.. Plays nice with SSD.

Cons: Awful USB support. A big attraction to me was the amount of USB ports it had on board. Even with 2-3 devices plugged in they act up, cut out, or stop working all together. USB GPS can barely get a lock most of the time. All research and tests related to this problem always point to USB. No bios update or windows driver change/update has fixed this issue. I would not recommend thus board personally. I am stuck with it for now and can only hope they find out what's up with it's disgraceful USB performance.

Overall Review: Other users of this board on a community forum for Car PC's also report these USB issues. If this wasn't such a big issue then I think this board would get a 5 from me and meet anyone's needs. I'm only one person but again, BEWARE!

Feature rich board - Read Here

ZOTAC GF8200-C-E AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 Mini ITX AMD Motherboard
ZOTAC GF8200-C-E AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 8200 Mini ITX AMD Motherboard

Pros: Obviously small form factor. Nvidia Chipset and AMD socket for my old 45W AMD Dual Core. Inlcuded Wifi onboard USB header connection. 2 Ram Dimm. Please read "other thoughts" for more detailed explinations.

Cons: Poor documentation. The manual lists settings etc but fails to explain them including some VERY important ones.

Overall Review: More and more users with NO knowledge are reveiwing items and it is hard to get accuaret accounts of products. Let me correct some comments and false claims made in the other reviews. "The USB is terrible" there is NO setting or jumper to supply USB 5v while in sleep" WRONG-Jumper "JPUSB" is located back I/O corner behind PS/2 ports. I have had no WIFIF issues with the included adapter and no heat issues because i properly cooled my case. I use this board in my car as a car pc. I have all USB ports used and have no issues. I cannot comment on onboard HDMI/DVI because I do not use or have a use for it. I didn't have an issue with "this board ruining my CPU" and it seemed to slide in with the lever up like any board I have ever owned. These baords have to be tested leaving the manufactured and have had a CPU in it before it reaches you. Good luck, take your time, and you'll love this board.

11/27/2010

Perfect

acer Aspire Easystore Tower Intel Atom Processor 230 1.6Ghz 2GB 1TB System OS : Microsoft Windows Home Server  Network Client OS : Windows Vista / Windows XP AH340-UA230N
acer Aspire Easystore Tower Intel Atom Processor 230 1.6Ghz 2GB 1TB System OS : Microsoft Windows Home Server Network Client OS : Windows Vista / Windows XP AH340-UA230N

Pros: For the price and what you get you cannot beat it. This the first pre assembled machine I have bought in years as I usually build all my systems. It is well designed with ample storage. It runs quiet and I have never had issues with heat. To me the software is elementary and even a non techie should be able to use it. Although this is basically a central hub to your home network allowing central storage of media and backups, it certainly can be used for much more. I run a HTPC connected to the server and play all my movies, music, and pictures with no issues. I run music streaming service to my android cell phone. I have an FTP File server running as well. Possibilities are endless with this thing from the novice to the expert depending on needs.

Cons: NONE

Overall Review: People are quick to give 1 "egg" when they are mad. If you follow the setup and do it right you won't brick this machine. Also it is a "headless" unit meaning no video out. It can be managed via RDP easily. I elected to install a PCIE X1 video card which dropped right in.

Awesome!

Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced - High Air Flow Full Tower Computer Case with USB 3.0 and All-Black Interior
Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced - High Air Flow Full Tower Computer Case with USB 3.0 and All-Black Interior

Pros: More intelligent layout than my previous Thermaltake Armor. Plenty of "goods" supplied. New concept for me that I love coming of an older case is the ability to hide and cleanup all your cables. With the HDD's facing sideways you clear up a lot of room to truly use the "High Air Flow" of the case. Solid construction, no manufacturing flaws, and very well priced IMO. Fans are BIG! I haven't gone to water cooling yet but the options are endless. The ability to internally mount a huge tripple radiator on the top of the inside is great. There is even room to run another radiator on the back of the case or inside back...Awesome case!

Cons: PCI/ PCI E retension clips are about as standard as other cases I have owned with them. I spent 3 days ripping my system apart trying to figure out why I was getting a No POST, No BEEP, No VIDEO problem. Turns out the clips were not seating my 8800GTX properly. On the plus side there is a long pin that you can pull out and selectively remove these clips for the old fashioned screws. I removed the 2 clips and used screws and everything is fine!

Overall Review: Thinking about getting an Asus Rampage II Extreme. This board is 1" Wider than the ATX Standard and I am sure it will fit ok, but not positive. Will report back.

Perfect, Well almost

CoolIT SYSTEMS EL-1000 Eliminator Thermoelectric CPU Cooler
CoolIT SYSTEMS EL-1000 Eliminator Thermoelectric CPU Cooler

Pros: Small, compact, fits inside the case, comes pre-assembled. No hoses to attach, no coolant to fill, no clips to lock...Just mount the CPU block hardware (10 minutes) and you're ready. I have used water cooling before and this is by far better in every aspect. The future for this technology will oust water cooling all together IMO. No giant radiator on the back of your case or in a bay. My idle temp on an overclocked AMD FX-62 (@ 3.01ghz) is 28 C as I type..At max load it gets to 43. My idle temp on stock was 42. The instructions were illustrated and in color offering a separate section for each kind of processor.

Cons: No major cons...Amazingly I found it cheaper in a Major Retailer store than on newegg..I imagine this is a fluke because newegg is my lifeline.

Overall Review: Had to widen 4 mounting holes on my Thermaltake Armor case, but it was easy. Fan is loud of course, but no louder than the stock fan at 100%. I choose cool over noise any day.

10/17/2008