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With sales of around 150,000 PSUs a month, Corsair is one of the largest vendors for retail power supplies. Corsair got in earlier than most other lateral entrants like GeIL or A-DATA, and their time in the market has enabled them to gather a lot of experience even if they don't have their own factory. In recent times they've used CWT, Seasonic and Flextronics as their PSU ODMs.
A few weeks ago Corsair presented their newest PSUs, the AX series. The goal is to provide performance, quality and high efficiency, this is apparently the best power supply Corsair can offer at the moment. Today we'll look at the AX750; is the 80Plus Gold certificate justified? And what other useful features does it provide?
The AX750 and 850W models are based on a Seasonic design (X-400FL and/or X-760) with some modifications in the details. For example Corsair uses flat peripheral cables and offers a 7-year warranty. They don't have the PWM fan from the original (it's an Antec patent), but they use the same kind of fan regulation; we will see that later in our test. Interesting features include the fully modular cable management and a silent, semi-passive fan control.
Today we open with what is hopefully the first in a fresh series of case reviews, and we kick it off with a bang with Corsair's Graphite Series 600T. The 600T is the least expensive in Corsair's lineup, but that doesn't say much when the MSRP is still $159. That pricing puts it right in line with crowd favorites like Antec's P182 and many of Lian Li's enclosures: no small competition. That said, a good case is the kind of investment that can last you a long time.
I've had my system installed in an Antec P182 for a long time, and there's a reason that case (and its successor, the P183) has garnered so many favorable reviews: it has a smart internal design and cools extremely well while being very quiet. That said, the P180, P182 and P183 aren't the easiest cases to work in, and when Corsair announced the 600T I was eager to see if it could bring all the benefits Antec's cases brought to the table while adding more conveniences. Cases have matured in the intervening period, and I can tell you right now, Corsair's 600T is a remarkable bit of progress. Here's the rundown of the case specs.
We are going to talk about two first and, actually, the only 3D monitors with 1920x1080 resolution that are currently available to general public. Please welcome Acer GD245HQ and LG Flatron W2363D.
<p><span style="font-size: small">When Antec decided they wanted to introduce sound products to their portfolio with their new Soundscience brand, they weren't kidding around. They sent representatives to demo the Rockus 3D 2.1 speaker system to the press and take questions in person. I was sat down in front of a Toshiba notebook connected via analog minijack to the Rockus 3D and allowed to play with the speakers, play different music, try some tracks off of YouTube, listen to a movie demonstration. And when it was all over, they sent me home with a set of the speakers that I have rigorously put through their paces during the past 10 days.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.anandtech.com/show/4013/antec-soundscience-rockus-3d-21-speakers">Read more...</a></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small"> </span><span style="font-size: small">Over the past few years, Corsair has gradually leveraged a strong brand identity in the memory market to introduce new product lines elsewhere. Corsair RAM begat flash drives, begat solid state drives, and over time they've also added power supplies and cases to their lineup. Each introduction has gone swimmingly, with Corsair power supplies generally regarded as among the best quality you can put in your machine and Corsair cases commanding high price tags and mostly earning them, going toe-to-toe with entrenched competitors like Antec and Cooler Master. I'm not sure what the most logical next step would have been, but a set of gaming headphones? That was a little unexpected.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small">Yet here we are, with the Corsair HS1 gaming headset in hand. The fundamentals aren't too remarkable: the ear cups are circumaural, fully enclosing the ear to block out ambient noise, and there's heavy padding on the cups and bridge. An adjustable microphone stems out from the top of the left piece and can be raised or lowered on a single axis. The HS1 is a wired affair, using a single cable with an in-line volume control and microphone toggle that ends with a USB connector.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small">Where the Corsair branding and attention to quality come in is the overall build. The ear cups are surrounded in soft felt and extremely well-padded, and the bridge is also soft enough that it doesn't feel like it's driving an indentation into your head. Inside the phones Corsair has installed 50mm drivers, which they claim substantially improve the quality and range of sound the headset can produce. Finally, the audio cable is braided, and naturally there are blue lights on the volume controls that will flash at you incessantly until you install the included sound driver.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small"> </span><span style="font-size: small"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.anandtech.com/show/3989/corsair-hs1-gaming-headset"><span style="font-size: small">Read more...</span></a></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small">In our today’s article we are going to discuss three system cases from Xigmatek – the company, which case products haven’t yet been featured on our site. We will talk about Xigmatek Asgard, Midgard and Utgard cases.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cases/display/xigmatek-cases.html">Read more...</a></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small;">Today we are going to talk about a new graphics card cooler with a strange name and a very large fan. Please meet the new solution from Thermalright in our new review!</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/thermalright-shaman.html" target="_blank">Read more...</a><br />
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The following review is another look at seeing if you really get what you pay for—or if you can get high quality without breaking the bank. For this roundup we have three power supplies rated at 550W, but with different prices. Will the most expensive unit deliver the best results? Can a cheaper product deliver the quality you need, and make up the difference by trimming the packaging and contents?
Many people are happy with a decent computer that will handle their everyday tasks—nothing fancy, not too expensive, but just a good all-around build. Then there are the enthusiasts that we often hear from in our comments, looking for not just good but great components. Whether we're talking HTPCs, CPUs, GPUs, laptops, SSDs, etc. there are people out there that want the "best". If you just happen to be a users with a passion for silent computing, then today's review of Seasonic's fanless X-460FL is going to be right up your alley.
Two months ago I looked at the world’s first 3TB desktop hard drive. It was a 5 platter, 3TB Seagate Barracuda XT inside an external GoFlex Desk chassis. The performance of the drive wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, but the poorly ventilated chassis seemed ill equipped to deal with the thermal load a 5-platter, 7200RPM 3TB drive would throw at it. I wasn’t terribly pleased and I wondered if Western Digital’s external enclosure might be better suited for heat dissipation. WD’s 3.5” external drives fall under the My Book brand and they have visibly more ventilation than the GoFlex Desk I reviewed.
As luck would have it, last week Western Digital announced its own 3TB external drive: the My Book Essential. The Essential suffix somehow implies USB 3.0 support.
Today, Western Digital takes it one step further and announces availability of the internal drive as well. The Caviar Green line is now home to a 2.5TB and a 3.0TB model, priced at $189 and $239 respectively.