Review with pictures

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Ordered           11/28/07
  Received          12/24/07

  Originally
I received a rig from DSO back in October after ordering it in
September but I had to return it due to personal reasons, and after my
experience with the company and the short time I spent with that rig I
knew I’d be coming back. After I managed to get my funds in order and
after a few new parts came out as well I decided it was time to go
ahead and get my new rig. The thing I should mention before I delve
into the review is I live on the east coast
and I work nights, as in midnight is my afternoon. So calling and
speaking to any reps was quite the hassle but necessary sometimes.

  Initially
things started out just fine. My order was basic and probably one of
the most common builds except for the request of an extra fan to be
added in the front of the case. I received a Stage 1 email but that
would be my only update throughout the entire rest of the process,
which even after pointing out a few times it was never corrected. My
build time was extended longer than usual because of the 8800GT
shortage at the time and also because DSO was preparing to make their
move into the new offices. Both of those reasons are understandable for
the slow turn around rate but what upset me was the lack of
communication. After 2-3 weeks I called to find out the situation as I
had been still sitting in stage 1 and I was told that their were no
shortages and no issues with my order and that DSO was just overwhelmed
at that moment in time. But then a few days later I called again
because I was getting concerned about my investment I was told that the
GT’s were in fact on backorder and that was what was keeping my order
from moving forward. 

  Now
I know that usually DSO is straightforward about those types of
situations as its not their fault and the customer should be the first
to know when parts are keeping their computers from getting built but
they weren’t with me. It’s frustrating to be charged a large amount of
money and not be kept in the loop about what’s going on with your
product. At about the same time of my order date Alex posted 

  http://www.digitalstormonline.com/forums/forum_posts.asp?TID=1109&PN=1

   a
new sticky on the forums about a new email that would be sent to those
who have orders with parts on backorder for more than 10 days, I never
received one of those or any sort of update when the GT’s did come in.
I PM’d Alex to help me figure things out and it’s from there things
started to get moving. Although I never received any notification about
being moved into Stage 2 or Stage 3 or that my order had been shipped,
and I had to PM I believe Alex again just to get a tracking number. 

  Although
the situation left a sour taste in my mouth once I got the rig checked
it all out and got things up and running all the negatives melted into
not so important since it was here and well worth the wait. The only
issues with the rig so far have been sound wise, initially the black
hawk sound drivers that were installed kept reversing all sounds in any
of the games I would be playing so I had to remove those and just use
the Asus drivers as hearing an enemy in front of me would actually mean
they were behind me. But then before I removed that sound program and
after it I started to get a Windows isolation( http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a121/killedbysanity/soundcrash.jpg
)popup and then I would have no sound unless I completely shut down for
a few minutes or I got lucky if I got and a restart fixed it. This
problem is still plaguing me even after using the Asus motherboard
disc to install the sound drivers. Also I guess lately I’ve been
concerned with the OC, as I’ve had the Vcore pointed out to me as rather
high and could be possibly straining my CPU more than helping it.

  I
feel I should point something out that helped me truly get over the
update issue. I paid $10 for an extra fan to be placed in the front of
the case because I couldn’t afford another $200 for the Extreme. DSO
went the extra mile with my request, they removed the 2^nd/3^rd optical drive and placed a mesh cage/3^rd
fan in place. Now most companies would charge far more than $10 for
this considering it’s a rather time consuming customization. Because
DSO did this my OC was considerably higher than average since I didn’t
go with liquid cooling. 

  Besides
the few slight issues I can play all the games I enjoy maxed out or
tailored to my preference for adequate FPS’s, run multiple “heavy”
programs, and edit photos/video. Essentially It does everything that
I’d hope for. This review probably seems rather negative but it’s more
in the middle and closer to the positive side, I think I would give DSO
an 80% rating of 100 considering how the shortages aren’t their fault
and the great final product.

  All
in all even though the beginning was rough, the end was smooth. I want
to thank everyone who works at DSO for doing what they do, and to those
who post on the forums who help out those who are less tech savvy.

Edited by sundowner - 10 Feb 2008 at 7:47am

Review with pictures

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