Our Most Recent Reviews
Asus Z77 Roundup
When doing all of our Ivy Bridge launch prep we spent a LOT of time benchmarking and testing a whole collection of boards. You guys have seen our reviews of the Intel and Gigabyte boards. When it came time to write about the four different Asus Z77 boards I realized that most of you are not going to want to read through a lot of information that we would cover over and over on each review. We decided to roundup all four of the boards and cover them together. This way we can get to the point a little quicker, saving you time, as well as giving us a chance to talk more about the differences between the variety of boards that we tested.
ASUS P8 Z68-V/GEN3
Perhaps one of the most daunting tasks after making the decision that you do not wish to purchase an off-the-shelf computer is attempting to figure out which components go in the machine. There are fun aspects, like the graphics card and processor, and then there are the not-so-fun aspects, like the motherboard (at least in my opinion). Why do I think it is a whole lot of not fun? There are so many out there to choose from, with all sorts of features. When shopping you will likely come across the ASUS board that I am going to review today. Arguably, it is one of the better all-around boards out there, with features like good integrated graphics and killer sound. But to a gamer that generally does not mean squat. Does the ASUS P8 Z68-V/GEN3 board have what it takes to function as a serious gaming component? Read on to find out!
XFX R7750 Black Edition DD
Not everyone is looking to spend $500 on their video card, in some cases that is the total budget for a build. When you are up against a wall trying to pack the best performance you can get into a budget build you still want to get the most performance you can out of your video card. That’s where cards like the XFX R7750 Black Edition Double Dissipation come into play. XFX has taken the styling and cooling from their high end cards and combined it with the price of budget cards like the HD 7750. Today we are going to take a look at how those two things do combined in XFX’s R7750 Black Edition Double Dissipation.
Sapphire HD 7770 Vapor-X
Earlier this year when AMD introduced the HD 7770 we took a look at cards from both Sapphire and XFX. Although we were impressed with the cards performance it was a little ill-timed due to AMD still clearing out discounted back stock. Three months later we are able to revisit the situation with today’s release of Sapphires new HD 7770 Vapor-X. With Sapphires Vapor chamber cooling technology along with a nice overclock over the reference design, the Sapphire HD 7770 Vapor-X could be a great option for a gamer on a limited budget. Let’s take a look.
Motherboard Sizing
When we got in a few oddly sized dual CPU motherboards from EVGA and Asus I posted up a few pictures on our forums and on Facebook. The problem was that even though they looked large there wasn’t any prospective. So we tossed in a couple other boards to give everyone a little perspective. This lead us to digging out even more motherboards to put together all of the standard motherboard sizes all together for everyone to be able to see the differences. Along with the picture we also have a breakdown on the dimensions of each size standard; I hope this helps everyone as some point. Sometimes it can be hard to understand all of the different motherboard sizes and how they all relate.
Android to the Maxx, DROID Razr Maxx
The list of different Android based phones available at any time is both overwhelming and frustrating. It’s almost impossible to get good feedback from friends who have the same phone because of this. So it’s rare than you have any one phone that manages to stand out. Doing something different is the only way to do this normally, but most times this ends off coming off as gimmicky or just lame. When Motorola introduced the Droid Razr Maxx it caught my attention right away. This was just before our trip out to San Francisco for the GTX 680 Editors day, what a better way to put the Maxx’s proposed batter life to the test!
Lian Li PC 100 “The Hammer”
We have had a few different Lian Li chassis come through the LanOC Offices and there hasn’t been a time that we haven’t been impressed with the new and interesting features Lian Li always seems to slip in. When they wanted to ship over their new case “The Hammer” PC 100, we signed up right away. We had seen the case previewed from a few shows prior and this time around Lian Li took a new perspective with its design, I was very interested to see how their changes worked out. Let’s jump in and see what it’s all about!
Nvidia GTX 670
When Nvidia launched Kepler with the GTX 680 I was impressed with the launch price of the card but even at such a great value it is still out of reach for some people. Just because you can’t afford the top card doesn’t mean you don’t want to experience Kepler’s performance. Of course it was only a matter of time before we saw Nvidia filling in the gaps in their product line, starting first with the GTX 690 then going to the next step down from the GTX 680, the GTX 670. Today we get to have a look to see how the performance compares to both the GTX 680 as well as AMD’s offerings. We are also very curious how it compares to the GTX 580, a card that has found its way into most of our office PC’s.
ioSafe Rugged Portable
So you do the smart thing, you backup your data from your laptop and your home PC to an external or network drive and go on with life feeling confident that you have gone well and above what most people do. For the most part, you did. What about when you’re traveling, have you seen how much abuse a device can take when on the go? For some people, and I know I’m one of them, some of the data you carry with you while traveling is more important than the laptop or device that you actually carry it on. In that situation you need a way to not have to worry about your data, no matter the situation, and to have a guarantee to back it up as well. The folks over at ioSafe focus specifically on this crowd. Not only do they offer products that are according to them build to handle almost anything, but they back it up with data recovery if something does happen. Today we are going to take a look at that Rugged Portable hard drive to see what all of the fuss is about, without any more buildup, let’s dig in.
Cooler Master Storm Trigger
Just two years ago the only mechanical keyboards you would find were from companies like DAS keyboard trying to create a nitch market. Over the past two years things have really exploded with every manufacture you can think of introducing their own mechanical keyboards. Cooler Master has been especially aggressive with multiple unique designs like their Quickfire series. What they did lack was a full featured mechanical keyboard with full backlighting, until now. Today they officially introduce their Storm Trigger, although it you look around the board was available Globally before now. With full backlighting it falls into a small category of Mechanical Keyboards with very little competition. I am excited to see how it performs.
Cooler Master HAF XM
The topic of cleaning your computer out came up last week on our forums and it got me thinking about how often I really need to clean out my computer. As it turns out it’s not very often anymore. All because of improvements in case design like fan filters. You don’t really see them on low end cases yet but they have been slowly trickling down. At CES this year we had a chance to get our hands on one of Cooler Master’s upcoming chassis, the HAF XM. A mid-range case packed with the features we have come to love from their high end HAF line. Today we are going to dig into the final product and see how it came out.
Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H
Z77 boards come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and prices. Just about every manufacture has a whole lineup of boards covering the whole range to make sure you can find what you are looking for. Gigabyte is no different; they have a whole selection of boards that will fit your needs. Today we are taking a look at their Z77X-UD3H, one of their budget boards. It may not be a high end board but it is still packed with features. I am curious how it will perform now that the cat is out of the bag with Ivy Bridge. Let’s jump in and see what it’s all about.
BestBuy.com, Amazon.com, Headphones.com, Buy.com and Brookstone among the nationwide retailers carrying the ‘big dogs’ in the new five-model premium headphone family
Lake Mary, Fla., August 8, 2011 – Soul Electronics, a global leader in pro and consumer audio manufacturing, has announced its premium, top-of-the-line, over-ear, noise cancelling headphones are now shipping nationwide – available in a trendy gold and black color combination or classic black and white.
Retailers carrying the noise cancelling SL300 model include: BestBuy.com, Amazon.com, Buy.com, Brookstone.com, AAFES.com, Microsoft, Huppins, Vann’s, Target.com, RadioShack, Bobbizzo.com, MacMall.com and Headphones.com.
Made in collaboration with Grammy award winning artist and newly released Fast Five star, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, the SL300s complete the five-model round-up in this elite series of high-performance over-ear, on-ear and in-ear headphones.
“Our retail partners have embraced the SOUL® brand with open arms, and ears. We are thrilled to deliver the high-performance sound caliber they, and their customers, expect with stylish, trend-setting aesthetics to match,” said Bob Bonefant, Founder of Soul Electronics. “We have no doubt in our minds that the SOUL® brand and the SL300 model, in particular, will be popular with professionals, tasteful travelers, and music lovers everywhere.”
“Soul did an exceptional job marrying form and function with their SL300s.” commented Brian Gluck, Manager of Headphones.com “With punchy yet controlled bass, a midrange which allows the vocals to shine and slightly subdued highs for a mellow tonality, the SL300s deliver great sound and impressive style. They have quickly become a new favorite around the office as well as in my personal collection. The noise cancellation is highly effective, and can be turned off to save battery life while still outputting good sound, which is unlike most other noise cancelling headphones.”
The SL300 model offers superior noise cancellation technology combined with sleek style and professional sound. The comfortable over-ear design seals in sound and blocks out ambient noise, for a truly private listening experience. It boasts powerful sound amplification for studio quality balance of deep bass and crystal clear mids and highs. The convenient foldable design and hard protective case makes these the ideal headphones for the on-the-go music professional or elite traveler. Plus, it comes with a 3.5 mm to ¼ inch adaptor for easy transitioning from MP3 players to amps. The premium Gold or Black/White color combinations add distinctive style and unique flair.
MORE ON THE FIVE-MODEL LINE-UP:
The SOUL by Ludacris line features the elite High Definition SL300 Powered Noise Cancelling headphone, High Definition On-Ear models SL150 and SL100, and the SL99 and SL49 High Definition In-Ear headphones.
The SL150 model features an on-ear design for professional sound and distinct personal style. Engineered for powerful deep bass with mid and high clarity, these foldable headphones feature a Chrome-on-Black color combination as a well as a White-on-Black option.
The SL100 model is a more compact on-ear headphone option. But don’t let the smaller size fool you. These high-definition headphones deliver big sound with stylish urban aesthetics, engineered with the perfect balance of bass, mids and highs. Plus, the Red-on-Black and Blue-on-Black combinations bring a splash of color to the line.
For in-ear music enthusiasts, the SL99 and SL49 models offer high-definition sound in a tangle-free design. Both in-ear headphone models feature high-precision audio balance for the perfect blend of sound characteristics. They also include small, medium and large replacement ear tips for the ideal fit. The SL99 offer supreme sound isolating qualities for extra privacy.
The entire SOUL by Ludacris line contains professionally voiced sound technology with advanced circuitry and drivers designed by a team of engineers who have developed some of the most notable acoustic breakthroughs in the audio industry. All models feature gold-plated connectors for seamless signal transfer and come iPhone® Ready, which means they work with iPhones, iPads and iPods.
SOUL by Ludacris® products are now available nationwide at Apple.com, Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, Headphones.com, Brookstone, Buy.com, Bobizzo.com, AAFES, InMotion, MacMall, Microsoft Store, Huppin’s OneCall, Ovation and Vann’s.
Pricing is as follows: SL300 - $299; SL150 - $199; SL100 - $149; SL99 - $99; SL49 - $69, and product assortments and availability varies with each retail partner.
For More Information, please visit www.SoulElectronics.com
About SOUL by Ludacris®
Expression, Passion and Superior Sound are at the core of the SOUL by Ludacris ®experience. Here to prove that style and sound quality can coexist, the SOUL line offers an array of personal audio products that masterfully balance elements such as world-class noise cancellation technology with superior sound quality, allowing you experience the full range of your music. Pair that with an award winning design team and the expressive vision of world renowned artist Ludacris, and you get the first headphone that effectively merges style with professional acoustics.
About Chris “Ludacris” Bridges
Boasting a collection of hits that spans over a decade, Ludacris has sold more than 12 million albums domestically thanks to the blockbuster success of such singles as "Stand Up," "Get Back," "Number One Spot" and "Money Maker.” 2010’s acclaimed “Battle of the Sexes” album release brought more chart topping hits, including “How Low" and "My Chick Bad.” With an unrivaled match of lyrical acumen, wit and imagery, Ludacris has solidified himself as one of music’s premier entertainers. Although he’s best known for his infectious tunes, Ludacris has shown that he’s equally adept at writing powerful songs with serious subject matter, including runaways on "Runaway Love." This versatility and artistic complexity enabled Ludacris to make a seamless transition to acting. His global popularity soared with his work on the Fast & the Furious motion picture series, and his acclaimed performances in films such as Crash and Hustle & Flow plus noteworthy television roles (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit) have Hollywood and critics alike buzzing about his increasingly impressive screen resume. The SOUL by Ludacris audio line joins Ludacris’ Straits Restaurant and Disturbing Tha Peace Records as yet another successful venture of the business mogul.
Be sure to add/follow us on your favorite social networks
