Velox review

Velox case
i7-5930K CPU
2x ASUS GTX 980 Strix ( 1279 Mhz boost clocks)
32 GB Dominator 2666 Mhz
Corsair HX 1050
Samsung Pro 850 SLI, 512 GB
Corsair H110 Cooler
2x WD Black 2 TB drives ( RAID 1 mirror)
Blu-ray/DVD drive
Case lighting
Blue LED fan upgrade

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This is my review of the Velox PC I ordered from Digital Storm. It was ordered in Jan, but due to the case being backordered, it did not arrive until now. Digital Storm initially told me first week of Feb, so there was more like a 3 week delay from what they told me, but I can't blame them much for a supplier issue.

0) Initial sales support; grade B - When I had questions, they were answered fairly promptly, though not always accurately. They allowed me to make a lot of changes due to the case being backordered. They offered me a case switch to avoid the wait. I would give them an A, but I think they could have explained some things things better. Fans were not quite what I expected. And I did not realized the CPU radiator would be front mounted. Having been testing it, I don't think the front mounted CPU radiator is causing any issues with GPU temps.

1) Initial impression; grade C - In spite of having informed Digital Storm of the possibility the hard drives were incorrect ( due to a youtube video) they still sent PC with incorrect hard drives. This is nearly a fail, because their QA step should double check such things so IMO, problem happened in multiple stages, at least build and QA. Not a good first impression. I paid for WD Black HDs, I got Seagate. If they ship me new drives I will have to set up the RAID which I paid them for.

LED lighting strip has to be run past fans, making it look a bit awkward. It's not stuck down well in some areas. I question the long term reliability of it staying in place.

The wiring for the side fans catches on other fans, a bit of a pain to avoid when putting side panel into place. I had trouble reconnecting the fans, it helped to actually pull them through the back of the case, then connect them. I am not dextrous, so I will probably try to avoid removing side panel ( I had to remove it, as you will learn in the next part.)

On the plus side, the case is a tank, and looks amazing. The wiring job is very good. I would have given them an A on initial impressions, if the HDs had been correct.

2) Boot up. grade F; Sadly, the PC would boot, but not display. This took a few hours out of my life. I paid a premium to NOT have these hassles. Built plenty of PCs myself, I can deal with issues. But I did not want to this time. Long story short, I had to properly seat both video cards, neither was locked into place. Could shipping cause both cards to unseat? Maybe. I want to hope their techs seat the cards properly - as you can see, if they are not properly seated, you get problems.

3) Cooling setup; Grade B+; 3 intake fans, with front CPU radiator; 2 side cooling fans near GPUs set to intake; 2 top exhaust fans; PSU blowning down, I think; one rear exhaust; Seems reasonable. Fans are strong in the front, easily hold a piece of paper in place; So far happy with cooling, maybe I would have made some different decisions, but I may have made bad decisions too, as I am not a "cooler master" ;)

4) CPU overclock; grade B; Digital Storm clocked it to 4.2 Ghz; I was able to get 4.3 Ghz with 1.35, and 4.4 Ghz with 1.39 ( Stability still being checked at this OC)

5) Wifi; grade C; Work in progress, having some speed issues, but I am not blaming Velox yet. Initial issue connecting with one of my two networks, but that is fixed. More testing needed.

6) Initial GPU test; Grade A; Totally stable. Furmark doesn't seem to push the GPUs to their full clock, but it's a useful tool.

7) 3D Mark test; Firestrike Extreme; Grade A - 12456 on last test; GPUs clocked to 1460 Ghz; Very impressive!

8) Misc;

Fan Color - One fan is red. I asked for blue fans. I don't think it's multi-color. I asked for blue fans, I want blue fans. This will need to be resolved.

Fan noise - One top fan has some periodic noise. I think it needs to be replaced, because in my experience new fans have only noise from the air. It's not clicking, sounds more like a rattle, no clue what the issue is, but I did isolate it to the fan.

Case lighting controller - down is up, and up is down for green level - not DS's fault, but they could have tested it, and let me know of the issue, as it was confusing at first. I suppose that's asking a bit much for them to test all the scenarios with the lighting control.

9) Overall grade ( from first 24 hours of experience) -

The overall grade has to downplay some of the initial issues, because they turned out to be resolvable with a bit of work. But they do count for something, because otherwise why do I pay someone to do what I could do myself?

I would love to give this a B+ at least, but feel I have to knock down grade to C+ due to what seem to have been preventable issues - GPUs not properly seated, fan with wrong color, wrong drives.

10) Overall grade ( From second 48 hours)- B; See how 24 hours helps? :) As expected I am of course more positive as the PC is up and running, and overclocks like a champ. I presume DS will work through the remaining issues with me, and the PC will be all it can be in a reasonable time frame.

11) Performance vs. cost - C+; Yes, I could have build this thing cheaper. Quite a bit cheaper, in fact. But, I could not have built it with this case. I could have lowered costs quite a bit, by ordering a 5920. Cheaper RAM. Cheaper SSD ( say the 840.) Only one HD. You get the idea. I don't feel like I spent too much, as long as I get the remaining fan and case issues resolved.

12) Final words-

Case is great, note that it's heavy. Once I resolved initial issues, it's running like a champ.

A potential buyer should take into account the fact you can't get a Velox anywhere else. And I have optimistic confidence all my remaining issues will be resolved.

I wanted to note I did change the hard drives from the original order, which could have led to the confusion. The red fan vs blue seems to be partly due to the fact DS's fan upgrade to colored fans doesn't seem to be well thought out for the Velox. I will presume they will improve that situation.

Thanks for reading!












Edited by michaeljhuman - 08 Mar 2015 at 10:30pm

public link to photos, please tell if it works. Did not know how to inline, I can do that if someone tells this idiot how, thanks :)

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10153140579883256.1073741833.833453255&type=1&l=3e2ed476b6

Quality limited by server, see FB link for better photos :)

Hi michaeljhuman,

Congratulations that you finally got your Velox. It was a long wait.

I see that front RAD is set in the two top fan positions. I wonder if they could have turned it so the two lower fan positions could be used. This would eliminate the hot air from the RAD top fan blowing on the GPUs. It would place the tubes to the pump at the top of the RAD instead of the bottom like DS has it. Is there room on the bottom for the CPU RAD? I know there are no cut outs but a possible solution for that type of CPU cooler.

I am sure with all of the input air around the GPUs that the hot air temperature from the RAD is well mixed with cooler air. To bad that DS can't special order some 110 Coolers with longer tubes.

Frank

Edited by FrankW - 07 Mar 2015 at 3:42pm

I think it looks awesome!!!!! So yours was system of the month then? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xuja8EnIV9I&list=PLSVIXrvi7Et8JA67JU7gTBCPA8ZcUM5k4&index=2
Hmmmm. Yup you should have the WD Blacks.
I liked your honest review.

Having to reset video cards or memory cards is not an uncommon occurrence after shipping. Instructions from DS that came in my box recommended reseating the cards after unpacking and before powering up. The video cards are heavy and if the box is dropped on the wrong side, the cards can come unseated.

Frank

11479 in Firestrike Extreme. Not sure what the limit is - I might not be able to get too much more, but I have yet to hit an unstable clock this morning. Last try was at 1339 Mhz. I need to find out how to log info when working with only one monitor, so I can see what's limiting me.

Yep, we've seen the video cards and ram sticks loosen because of shipping.  You wouldn't think so, with the clip holding it in, and the rear screw, but it does happen.   In some cases, the clip actually broke off. 

But, it's up and running, you fixed it so all is well, except the drives.

I received a package one time form UPS that was in a big square box and was heavy. I heard the truck pull up and I looked out a window to see what the driver was doing. The driver had moved the box to the edge of the bed and then got out of the truck with his hand truck. The driver pulled the box out of the bed and let it fall to the ground. A drop of about 4'. He put the box on the truck and brought it to the door. Transportation can be very hard on any shipment.

Frank

Edited by FrankW - 08 Mar 2015 at 6:47am

Hi michaeljhuman,

First off, thank you for taking the time to write your review. Feedback such as yours allows us to always constantly improve our business for our valued customers.

The Velox is actually a brand new system so there are a few learning lessons for our team as we ship units to customers. I will be sharing your feedback with the rest of the team to ensure we can provide a perfect experience for our customers.

Moving forward, there are a few things I would like to clarify and take care of:

It would have been nice to know that the CPU radiator had to be front mounted, as this could effect GPU temps

This is actually done on purpose so that your CPU radiator gets the best cold air. The heat coming from the radiator is very minor as the volume of air being pushed is very strong. In addition, your graphics cards are getting fresh air from the side intake fans, so the air coming from the front should not matter. You should have decent temps with this bad boy.

I paid for WD Black HDs, I got Seagate... I would have given them an A on initial impressions, if the HDs had been correct.

You're right, we made a mistake on this. I was looking back and it might have occurred when our team was working with you to make changes to the configuration. Previously you had the standard drives (the non-Black Edition) which you ended up receiving unfortunately. We can either give you a credit for the difference, or send the right drives to you and help you with the change, or we can have the unit come in for service and we can do it all for you.

LED lighting strip has to be run past fans, making it look a bit awkward. It's not stuck down well in some areas.

It's a tough balance for us to create, if we like to fully illuminate the system, that means we have to snake the LED strip in as many areas as possible. If we don't, then you won't get as much of a impact with illuminating the internals. If you would like, we can help you with reducing the LED cable or sending you some additional double sided tape if they don't stick.

I had to properly seat both video cards, neither was locked into place. Could shipping cause both cards to unseat? Maybe.

The unit definitely left our facility with the video cards locked into place. Shipping can sometimes cause this to happen, it's usually a fairly easy fix and I'm glad you were able to take care of that on your own.

Not sure why CPU is frequency overclocked, and not multiplier overclocked.

Both are good ways to do it, if you overclock the frequency when you have fast memory, it actually helps boost the memory controller and processor at the same time. If you need additional help with the overclock, please let us know.

I need to figure out how to make Furmark max out the card.

Furmark is actually a power virus to NVIDIA drivers so you won't really be able to max out the cards with it. I suggest using a benchmark utility like 3D Mark.

One fan is red. I asked for blue fans. I don't think it's multi-color.

We'll be more than happy to take care of this, please reach out to me directly via email "[email protected]"

Case lighting controller - down is up, and up is down for green level - not DS's fault, but they could have tested it, and let me know of the issue, as it was confusing at first. I suppose that's asking a bit much for them to test all the scenarios with the lighting control.

It could be the way the manufacture has done it, but we're more than happy to send you a replacement remote if you would like.

In conclusion, feel free to contact me via email so I can help take care of you "[email protected]"

Nice update.
I read some of the "opinions" that people put on your youtube video that DS put out.
**** them!!! It's your money and it's your choice how you spend it. I think your rig is fabulous!

One point I would like to add. It seems the Velox builds won't fully utilize your fan connections on the motherboard.

It would be nice if they could offer the option to better utilize motherboards like the ASUS X99 which can probably support most or all of the fans in the Velox.

The only fans I know I can control are the CPU radiator fans ( independent control) and rear fan.

I can't control top fans, side fans, three intake fans or the motherboard tray fan with the way it's wired.

There are probably options for this sort of thing, but it would be nice to have known about them because I have a strong preference for having control over my system fans. Fan expert seems pretty nice, but it can only control those fans hooked to the motherboard. Or some other way to control the fans would have been preferable to no control at all.

I would say many buyers will not care about this, but I wanted to explain the situation for those who may care.

Yes, I can spend time doing that. Which involves clipping zip ties and re-wiring. There is an external fan header as you say. I have not looked to see if it's blocked by anything.

My point was that a potential buyer may want to discuss different options than how it's done by default.

Not trying to be snippy, but I could build the whole thing myself, if I have to make a lot of changes, it sort of defeats the point of having someone else do it, if you see what I mean :)




Edited by michaeljhuman - 09 Mar 2015 at 8:24pm

I can...try. I have the dexterity of a pregnant yak though :)

Originally posted by michaeljhuman Yes, I can spend time doing that. Which involves clipping zip ties and re-wiring. There is an external fan header as you say. I have not looked to see if it's blocked by anything. My point was that a potential buyer may want to discuss different options than how it's done by default. Not trying to be snippy, but I could build the whole thing myself, if I have to make a lot of changes, it sort of defeats the point of having someone else do it, if you see what I mean :)

Hi michaeljhuman,

If you don't tell DS what you want how can they give it to you. We all have the opportunity to talk directly to DS and specify what we want or find out how things are done. Did you specify how you wanted the fans controlled? Did you order a FAN Controller?

Frank

Understand, you did get a great computer with loads of power.

Frank

Yeah, it's more like - I wish I understood the options better vs. what I was going to get, Alex. I understand I am probably not the typical customer in that I am willing to tune fan curves and such because I enjoy that sort of thing.

It's not that it's too loud, or not cool enough. It's just not what I expected, which was my point.

I appreciate your feedback


Edited by michaeljhuman - 10 Mar 2015 at 4:03pm