Joined on 11/03/09
One hot piece of hardware
Pros: *AM3+ / AM3 Capable *Overclocks RAM like a champ *Sleek look *Competitive price *Thunderbolt Lan/Audio card *Triple SLI/Crossfire *Awesome Utilities included on the disk *Easy overclocking *BIOS can be operated with the mouse instead of just your keyboard! *Includes Kaspersky (I like Zone Alarm, but its still a nice perk) *Includes Daemon Tools *Auto-detected my G.Skill DDR3 1600 1.25v RAM and set the timings & voltage automatically *Comes with a crossfire bridge & a 3-way SLI bridge *Overall just an awesome awesome board!
Cons: *If you use a modern video card without a water block cooler - or use a very large aftermarket fan, you will need to mount the video card in the 2nd PCI-E 2.0 slot if you decide to use the Thunderbolt Lan/Audio card. (Leaving the first one blank) *BIOS default sets your RAID to AHCI - I had to set mine to IDE to get my HDD to boot. *Sata III cables have a very ugly black & white decorated connectors, I ended up using the red&black I had from my previous mobo. *Only comes with two pin extensions - one for power & LEDS' the other for USB 3.0 so make sure your chasis has the connectors included for your front I/O ports or you may need to purchase some. *Only includes 3 SATA III cables, if you have more ODD's / HDD's / SSD's then make sure to get extra cables to compensate for it.
Overall Review: *Make sure to install all the drivers immediately after a successful boot - it will reduce the probability you will run to problems down the road. *Seems like if you don't use the Thunderbolt card your default audio driver is RealTek - its not bad, but it works. *If you are only using one GPU - you will only need to plug in the 8-PIN & 24-PIN connectors to power the system. The other 4-PIN is only if you are running SLI/Crossfire. So one VGA = use the 8-PIN and leave the 4-PIN disconnected. *If you don't care for the Thunderbolt - then get the cheaper version instead, it's basically the same hardware.
Not Amazing, Not Terrible.
Pros: - The hardware is exactly identical to other Netgear/Asus/Linksys AC3200 offerings, which are all based on Broadcom chips, same RAM and FLASH size, 2 USB ports. I quickly installed it, set up the router, and it was running within 5 min. - Make sure to update the firmware (1.0.4.0) - 5ghz Channel works splendidly. 2.4ghz is mediocre. - Able to setup multiple SSID's & unique security for each one is a really nice feature. - You can stream movies from a NAS (if you have one that is) and the speed is actually quite great.
Cons: - Price tag is very off putting to the average user. - The LED's are very bright. - It can run hot, make sure its in a place that gets plenty of airflow. - It's approximately the size of a dvd player. - Streamboost sucks. - Parental controls don't work (firmware is bugged it seems :/ ) - Wifi Range is kinda hit and miss depending on the material(s) of the building you are in. I tested it at a friends house, my house and at work. It was inconsistent, I know that's the nature of wireless but I've had better results with different routers honestly.
Overall Review: In terms of 'bang for your buck' I would say that there are better choices out there that will give the average end user what they are looking for (performance, working features, decent wireless range, etc.)
WOW
Pros: - Color(s) are vibrant & crisp - Graphics on AAA games look absolutely amazing. - It's big! - 144 Hz :) - DP / HDMI capable - Came with tons of cables! (HDMI, Displayport, DVI, etc.) - Mountable! (You'll need to remove the back plate or have longer screws if you want to keep in it)
Cons: - It's not 'ASUS ROG' branded, but it's good enough that it could've been.
Overall Review: - This is a TN panel, which is excellent for gaming. Although some prefer IPS & some prefer VA (though you'll pay a pretty penny for the latter in many cases) - I didn't really pay much attention to the built-in speakers, as I have my own surround sound setup already. It does add a little bit of thickness to the monitor, so if you like monitors with a slim profile... this might be a deal breaker.
Pros: - SO quiet! I was really surprised. - LED Colors are VERY Vibrant, did not expect the quality to be so high. - PWM Control is a really, really nice feature for those who need it. Most may just install, set & forget it - but it'll still do the job well.
Cons: - Need CorsairLink to configure the LED's (but it kinda says that on the box / product description so take that with a grain of salt) - Price point definitely seems a little high, some may see the quality of construction as a justification for it however.
Overall Review: - It does not come with the CorsairLink node, you will need to purchase that separately.
Love it. Fantastic PSU
Pros: - Cables are easy to route, not too thick! - Semi-Modular is great for cable management if that matters at all to you. - Fan doesn't turn on unless it heats up to a certain point. - 24 Pin was easy to connect.
Cons: - Not fully modular, minor complaint though.
Overall Review: - This should be sufficient for the average gaming rig that doesn't run 2+ video cards with everything overclocked. - I have the 1000w version as well, and these perform beautifully.
Aww Yisss
Pros: - Base is solid, doesn't slip or move around on smooth surfaces like wood or glass. - RGB Lighting is brilliant & pleasing to the eye. - The weave fabric feels smooth-ish to the touch, more so than other mouse pads I have had.
Cons: - USB Pass-Through isn't USB 3.0 - There is only 1 USB Pass-Through port
Overall Review: - You will need Corsair Utility Engine (CUE) to get the RGB effects to work, NOT Corsair Link! :) - Packaging was solid, unboxing was simple.