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Paul P.

Paul P.

Joined on 04/17/12

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Product Reviews
product reviews
  • 5
Most Favorable Review

Best so far

Rosewill RNX-N600UBE Wireless N600 Dual Band USB 2.0 Adapter
Rosewill RNX-N600UBE Wireless N600 Dual Band USB 2.0 Adapter

Pros: The signal is strong with this one.

Cons: None

Most Critical Review

Fails at switching

LINKSKEY LDV-DM202AUSK 2-port Dual Monitor DVI Audio & Mic KVM Switch w/ Cables
LINKSKEY LDV-DM202AUSK 2-port Dual Monitor DVI Audio & Mic KVM Switch w/ Cables

Pros: Solid case, professional look. Lots of features including switching audio independently of the video and input. Came with high quality cables

Cons: It came with DVI-I cables, which are not compatible with any of my devices, so I had to purchase another $40 worth of adapters. If your computer is not on when you switch to it, or is booting up or even just waking up, it will very frequently not pick up the monitors, keyboard or mouse. The only fix is to disconnect the cables from the PC or hard rebooting the system. Every time I switch to my PC and the PC is in sleep mode, it takes 30 seconds for the mouse and keyboard are detected. The input is being sent to the PC because I can wake it up with the keyboard or mouse. This isn't an issue with the system because it worked on my old KVM. Less than a month after I got it, the second monitor on the second channel has stopped working consistently. It will either not display at all or turn off the video signal to the monitor for a few seconds with intervals that could be 20 or 30 minutes or 2 to 3 seconds. At this point, it is effectively a single-monitor switch, which is what I had before purchasing this one.

Overall Review: This had the potential to be a really great product, but it has given me one disappointment after another from day 1. Very sad.

10/10/2013

Powerful and Loud

AMD FX-8320 - FX-8000 Series Vishera 8-Core 3.5 GHz (4.0 GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 125W Desktop Processor - FD8320FRHKBOX
AMD FX-8320 - FX-8000 Series Vishera 8-Core 3.5 GHz (4.0 GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 125W Desktop Processor - FD8320FRHKBOX

Pros: This thing is incredibly fast for the price point. I'm going to be buying another soon.

Cons: The stock fan is loud. It sounds like I have an unbalanced disk in the optical drive. This is especially disappointing because it is attached to an otherwise beautiful heat sink.

Overall Review: Buy a nice quiet heat sink and you'll love this processor!

Great case

Corsair Graphite Series 230T CC-9011036-WW Black ATX Mid Tower Computer Case Solid Black Side Panel
Corsair Graphite Series 230T CC-9011036-WW Black ATX Mid Tower Computer Case Solid Black Side Panel

Pros: Aside from the great styling and external usability of this case, it is just a pleasure to work with. There is plenty of room for cable routing under the motherboard and the cut-outs are rounded so you don't gouge the cables or your hands. There is also a cut out under the CPU so you can swap coolers without having to unmount the board. Installing the optical drive was really simple and took less time than getting the drive out of its packaging. As noted below, figuring out the SSD slots took a bit of time, but once I learned how to use them, it is very simple to install and remove a drive. The motherboard standoffs are built into the case along with a plastic nub for one of the center holes. This was VERY useful in getting everything lined up as the back port plate tries to push the board forward. It was a bit tough to get some of the screws in, but my driver is fat, so it's probably just a tool issue. The slot covers are held in with thumb screws and are not sharp. I would have liked to have had a place in the case to store the extras since I'm always needing to replace them after a few years of swapping components, but you can't have everything. There is TONS of ventilation. There are two LED illuminated fans on the front grill and 1 on the back, room for another on the bottom in front of the PSU and almost the entire top of the case is a grill that you can mount a radiator to. The slot covers are also ventilated. Only the sides of the case are solid.

Cons: It doesn't come with a manual and the SSD slots aren't extremely intuitive. Once you know to start the drive in, they are easy to install/remove, but it would have been nice to have some instructions. The HDD LED plug doesn't have + or - on it, so I had to flip it around after I got everything put together because I got the wrong polarity. The side panel screw hole (that's used to hold the panel on) doesn't line up well on the case. It is minor, but considering how well the rest of the case was built, it's a bit disappointing

Overall Review: I've been building PCs for 20 years and this is my favorite case by far. I will be buying another when it comes time to upgrade my other PC. Considering the price point, I would only recommend another case if you have little kids who might want to see what happens if they drop stuff into the holes or decide to dispose of their juice into the top of the tower.

Big and Bright

ASUS VS Series VS238H-P Black 23" HDMI LED Backlight Widescreen LCD Monitor 250 cd/m2 50,000,000:1
ASUS VS Series VS238H-P Black 23" HDMI LED Backlight Widescreen LCD Monitor 250 cd/m2 50,000,000:1

Pros: The monitor is extremely bright and the picture is crisp.

Cons: Wobbles. The stand isn't in any danger of breaking. In fact, it looks to be aluminum under the plastic, but the monitor jiggles after being bumped for a lot longer than it aught to. I have a pretty sturdy desk, so it doesn't affect me much, but on a less stable surface, the monitor could end up looking like it's made of jello.

Overall Review: Can't beat the price. I'd buy another if I had room for another.