Sunday News

You know that case modding has grabbed the populace and become the norm when even something as simple as a fan is no longer just a fan, or fan grilles are no longer just fan grilles.

First thing I decided to do was install some sound dampening material. I looked for the best deal, and came up with some Sonex sound foam from 2CoolTek. $9 for a panel of the material. After receiving the it a few days later, I had to cut each piece to fit the side panels. It's easy to cut with scissors or a simple serrated knife. I used some 3M spray adhesive (really cool stuff if you've never used it before) to attach one section of Sonex to the panel opposite the motherboard, and the other panel was able to sit in place in-between the panel and the rest of the case.. if you catch my drift. I used the remaining piece that was cut off from the panel section for the top of the case, which was also able to rest in place without any adhesive. With the remaining material I was able to fill my empty drive bay covers

Being able to have seen other heatsinks in the past, this heatsink was by far the easiest heatsink I have ever installed. All you do is place the heatsink on top of the processor after you have put thermal paste on your processor. Then, you take a clip, and you just secure it easily by snapping it into place. It's very hard to describe how the clips are installed, but it is very easy. After that, you're all ready to go!

The fans are howling and your head is thumping. The answer may be a Rheobus from Sunbeam Tech. A Rheobus gives control over the PC case fan RPM and when you don't need a windstorm in your PC...dial down those fans. Sunbeam Tech has improved upon their rheobus design and it could be the one for you.

The review sample sent by Sunbeam Technology is the chrome plastic bodied, green LED version of the Lazer LED Kit. The product is pre-wired to a 4-pin pass-through cable, where one lead plugs directly into a power supply and the second lead plugs directly into an optional secondary EL Lightstrip. For those who have power consumption concerns, the Lazer LED Kit draws less than 26mA, substantially less than various cold cathodes, which can draw 300mA or more. The Lazer LED body measures a mere 43mm x 16mm x 10mm and is small enough to fit almost anywhere.

The Black Hawk, as you can see, features a Side window, something I'm growing very fond of. I spent years with my case open due to my paranoia that something might catch fire the very next minute, and lately I've been sticking my right foot into the case, sometimes hitting the hamster wheel inside. The hamsters have filed a grievance with the COHU (Computer Operating Hamsters Union) but I have an excellent lawyer.