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Review: My Xmas preset to myself

Post Date: 2008-12-25
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zieglerj14 View Drop Down
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Joined: 18 Jul 2008
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Posts: 11 		  Quote zieglerj14 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Topic: Review: My Xmas preset to myself
    Posted: 25 Dec 2008 at 1:22pm

So, my new machine arrived about and I have been lucky enough to spend some time playing on it.  Below are the specs:

System Configuration:
Chassis Model: Digital Storm 950Si
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Interior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 940 2.93GHz (Quad Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Rampage II Extreme (Intel X58 Chipset) (Supports Triple SLI or CrossFire)
System Memory: 6GB DDR3 1600MHz Corsair DHX (High-Performance)
Power Supply: 1000W Corsair HX (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible)
Card Reader: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 2x Two (150GB Western Digital VelociRaptor (10K RPM) (16MB Cache) (SATA) (Extreme Speed)
Set 1 Raid Options: Configure Hard Drive Set 1 in a Raid 0 Stripe (Requires Two Hard Drives)
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray Player & DVD Writer (Play Blu-Ray/HD-DVD Media & Write DVDs)
Optical Drive 2: DVD±R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x)
Internet Access: Bigfoot Killer Network Card (Features MaxFPS and UltimatePing Technology)
Video Card(s): 2x SLI Dual (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 1GB) (Includes PhysX Technology)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Asus Xonar D2X (PCI-Express Slot Based) (Recommended)
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 3: High-Performance Liquid Chilled FrostBite System For CPU
Liquid Color: Blue: Non-conductive High-Performance Fluid (Requires H20: Stage 3 Cooling Package)
Chassis Airflow: Upgrade Chassis With LED Performance Fans (Blue)
Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue)
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: 950Si Case Only: Processor & Video Card Area: Drill and Mount Two Side Window 120mm Fan Blow-Holes
CPU Boost: Yes, Overclock the processor as much as possible with complete stability
Graphics Boost: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Memory Boost: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Windows Boost: Yes, Disable and tweak all of the non-crucial services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (64-Bit Edition) (For Enthusiasts)
Restore Kit: Digital Storm Specialized Recovery System (DVD Image Based)
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Benchmarking: - No Thanks
Pre-Install Game: - No Thanks
LCD Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard: - No Thanks
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: - No Thanks
Priority Build: Please Prioritize: Ship Within Four Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: 3 Year Platinum Care Extended Parts & Labor Warranty

They notified me that the Killer NIC wouldn't fit, so it got pulled from the config, but everything else was included.

Overall, the system works flawlessly and looks beautiful, to me at least!  I have definitely recommended DS to a couple friends, so be on the lookout for some new North Carolina area builds DS!
 
My only gripe is that the fan/housing that holds the radiator up was stripped/broken on two sets of screws, while the other side was simply not screwed in at all.  Thus, when I opened up the box the radiator/fan housing tumbled out.  Luckily the cabling was strong and held it off the ground.  It appears that when it was screwed in, only 2 of the four screws were tightened, resulting in some stripping/plastic breaking during shipping - See the picture.  I fixed it, albeit not perfectly so that it is screwed in and nothing will drop or fall off, but it is far from 'show quality'.  I sent a note to DS, but have yet to hear back.  As long as I'm not shipping the PC anywhere, that radiator isn't going anywhere.  So I can't really complain too much.  Especially when it runs so darn well!
 
Enough of the gripes though, this machine is absolutely wonderful!  As for the overclock, as I know we all love the see the numbers on this, with liquid cooling on a core i7 940, DS has me at 3.52ghz and the CPU temps rarely exceed the low 40's celsius.  The highest I saw was 46 degrees during a pretty long winded late night zombie slaughter-fest in L4D.
 
And lastly, here are the pictures!
 
And here is a shot of the stripped up radiator.  Again, not a huge deal as I was able to fix it, but something that can happen in shipping if all the screws aren't tightened down sufficiently or come loose.  Plus, I'm sure DS will take care of it, as they always seem to do!
 
P.S. Go buy one if you are on the fence!  It is a joy to play both old and new games alike on a system that can handle them and still have power to spare!
 
Jason
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XpubuX View Drop Down
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Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 16 Oct 2008
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Posts: 726 		  Quote XpubuX Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Dec 2008 at 1:52pm
sweet rig man. lets see some vantage scores? Im shure you can push that oc past 4ghz easily too. what kind of monitor you got going with that setup?
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DST4ME View Drop Down
DS ELITE
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Email address used to purchase matched with forums account email.

Joined: 14 Apr 2008
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Posts: 36758 		  Quote DST4ME Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Dec 2008 at 6:15pm
very nice

great temps, you can push that oc higher then

Edited by DST4ME - 25 Dec 2008 at 6:16pm

Nvidia Drivers----AMD Drivers
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scaner View Drop Down
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Posts: 285 		  Quote scaner Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Dec 2008 at 6:31pm
nice ...
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Alex View Drop Down
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Digital Storm Supervisor


Joined: 04 Jun 2012
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Posts: 16314 		  Quote Alex Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Dec 2008 at 7:59pm
Awesome system,
 
I am more interested in the screw/radiator situation. I am very sorry to hear about that. I am going to dig into it myself here and see how we can prevent this in the future.
 
If you would like us to have the unit sent back for service so we can fix this for you on our cost let me know.
 
Warmest Regards, and Happy Holidays!
Alex
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Dsnewb210 View Drop Down
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Posts: 972 		  Quote Dsnewb210 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Dec 2008 at 9:55pm
Originally posted by Alex

Awesome system,
 
I am more interested in the screw/radiator situation. I am very sorry to hear about that. I am going to dig into it myself here and see how we can prevent this in the future.
 
If you would like us to have the unit sent back for service so we can fix this for you on our cost let me know.
 
Warmest Regards, and Happy Holidays!
Alex
 
God i love ds, they always go the extra mile to make sure the customer is 100% satisfied. Ermm
 
Awesome rig btw!
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