Cases/Cooling/PSUs
Typical CPU coolers do the job for standard heat management but often fall short when it comes to quiet operation and peak cooling effectiveness. This gap pushes enthusiasts and PC builders towards specialized aftermarket solutions designed for their unique demands. The premium aftermarket cooling niche is fiercely competitive, with brands vying to offer top-notch thermal management solutions. Today we're shining a light on DeepCool's AK620 Digital cooler, a notable entry in the high-end CPU cooler arena. At first blush, the AK620 Digital stands out from the crowd mostly for its integrated LCD screen. Yet aesthetics aside, underneath the snappy screen is a tower cooler that was first and foremost engineered to exceed the cooling needs of the most powerful mainstream CPUs. And it's a big...
Fractal Design Define R3: A Fan Favorite Keeps the Noise Down
One of the perks of this job is getting to see some up-and-comers get championed by our readership and then turn around and find out what the fuss is...
84 by Dustin Sklavos on 11/11/2011Corsair Hydro Series: H60, H80 and H100 Reviewed
Closed-loop liquid CPU cooling solutions are gaining popularity as more and more vendors are carrying their own variation. We've even seen both Intel and AMD announce the inclusion of...
91 by Jared Bell on 11/7/2011Lian Li PC-TU200: On the Road With Lian Li
More and more lately, mini-ITX boards are becoming very feature rich and users are needing fewer expansion cards in their desktop systems. Where once upon a time we'd need...
53 by Dustin Sklavos on 10/31/2011Antec HCP-750 80 Plus Gold
We tested the Antec HCP 1200W a while back, and now Antec is following up with their 750W model, which should be equally efficient (80 Plus Gold Certification). In...
35 by Martin Kaffei on 10/26/2011Corsair Carbide 500R: A Corsair in Every Home
Corsair seems to have completed their case lineup with their latest addition, the Carbide 500R. Though currently made available in black, this enthusiast-geared enclosure was originally advertised in its...
26 by Dustin Sklavos on 10/25/2011SilverStone Strider Plus - 500W Modular Power
SilverStone is a well known brand for high-quality (and expensive) cases. Beyond that they offer a large selection of power supplies. They have SFX-PSUs for HTPCs, redundant PSUs for...
24 by Martin Kaffei on 10/10/2011Fractal Design Arc Midi: The Mid Tower You've Been Waiting For?
The more enclosures we get in, the more amazed I am at just how competitive the market is for $99 cases. That market is made only more competitive by...
52 by Dustin Sklavos on 10/7/2011BitFenix Merc Alpha: Just How Much Can $39 Buy?
While we've had a chance to check out a few cases in the $200+ club and the majority of the enclosures we've tested have floated around the $99 price...
35 by Dustin Sklavos on 10/5/2011Lian Li's PC-V353: Lighter Than Air
We've been wanting to get Lian Li enclosures in house for review for a while now, and we're pleased to report we finally have a contender on hand (with...
57 by Dustin Sklavos on 9/28/2011Antec Solo II Review: Sonata Evolved
When we reviewed Antec's Sonata IV recently, we found it left a lot to be desired. Antec had updated their Sonata design, but barely, and the enclosure as a...
59 by Dustin Sklavos on 9/6/2011Corsair Carbide 400R: Succeeding in Reverse
Corsair started their enclosure business from the top of the market and worked their way down. Their first case was an expensive black monolith, the Obsidian 800D, popular for...
21 by Dustin Sklavos on 9/3/2011NZXT Tempest 410 Elite: Jack of All Trades
The last time we checked out an NZXT enclosure, we saw in their H2 a lot of fantastic ideas done in by a single poor design choice. NZXT's engineers...
14 by Dustin Sklavos on 9/1/2011Rosewill Thor v2: The God of Cooling and Silence?
Most enthusiasts are familiar with Rosewill as a brand of inexpensive parts of decent quality. They've had enclosures on the market for ages, but those cases are almost always...
35 by Dustin Sklavos on 8/24/2011SilverStone Fortress FT02: True Classics Never Go Out of Style
Ever since we reviewed the SilverStone Raven RV03, a lot of you have chimed in about their Fortress FT02 enclosure, with more than one even proclaiming it the best...
59 by Dustin Sklavos on 8/15/2011SilverStone Temjin TJ08-E: Fat Case in a Little Coat
While vendors have been all too happy to send us larger enclosures (and we've been all too happy to receive them), our coverage of Mini-ITX and Micro-ATX cases has...
47 by Dustin Sklavos on 8/4/2011PC Power & Cooling Silencer 760W & 910W
PC Power & Cooling, today a part of the OCZ Technology Group, sent us two PSUs from their Silencer series. The 760W as well as the 910W version bet...
19 by Martin Kaffei on 8/2/2011Corsair Obsidian 650D: Transmuting Graphite to Obsidian
Corsair pretty much stormed out of the gate when they entered the enclosure market, starting at the top with the Obsidian 800D and gradually working their way down, and...
36 by Dustin Sklavos on 7/29/2011Thermaltake Level 10 GT: Monument to Excess
This promised to be a good month for big stonking enthusiast-class cases, and we're delivering on the second half of our one-two punch with Thermaltake's monstrous Level 10 GT...
46 by Dustin Sklavos on 7/26/2011Visiting FSP + Aurum CM 750W Preview
3rd June, Taipei. Many editors travelled to Taiwan to see new products at Computex. A stressful week comes to an end. This is a perfect time for sightseeing --...
15 by Martin Kaffei on 7/21/2011SilverStone Raven RV03: Streamlined Bird of Prey
At this point, SilverStone's signature in the enclosure world is the 90-degree rotation of the motherboard. This unique engineering decision makes cases like the FT03 possible, but for a...
26 by Dustin Sklavos on 7/20/2011