Mr. Fox

Well, not a bad kit. Quality is fine. The advertisement (even on the box) of a "one piece design" on the heatsink is just straight-up false. It is two pieces. The seam is not obvious at a glance and it looks like one piece. Not sure I am going to keep it because it is not remarkably better than the RAM I took out of the Dark. It runs the same memory overclock as the G.SKILL kit on the Apex. I will think about it for a day or two. Not really gaining anything for the money spent. The 16GB*2 generic green A-die sticks are basically just as good. The only measurable benefit, which may not even matter in the grand scheme of things, is the extra 16GB of memory capacity. The extra capacity is worth something, but I am not sure that is a good enough basis for keeping versus RMA/refund. Here is the XMP default. Here is the memory overclock matching the Apex. If I keep it then, of course, it will have the heating blankets removed and the water-cooling kit on the generic A-die sticks will be installed on them. Just a matter of whether or not I decide it is worth the extra money and associated hassle. I'm kind of leaning toward "no" but we will see if I change my mind in a few days. I gained nothing on overclocking capacity, but also didn't lose anything except the slightly tighter timings possible with the 16GB first-generation A-die modules.

I hope the latter is true. If they want to be taken as seriously as EVGA was by enthusisasts, they'll need to not waste a lot of time and energy with mainstream consumer garbage, at least in the enthusiast space products if they plan to dominate there. And, they'll need to provide a warranty as good as EVGA provided for those products. The three to 6+ weeks turn-around time on warranty service, with outbound shipping paid by the victim, as we have come to expect from ASUS, is totally unacceptable. Taking a wait-and-see approach and only building/selling what is popular and sells well, as smart as it might be, is not very likely. It would be difficult to find fault with it, though.

Man, dude is really ripping on AMD here, but if it's true, it's true. I don't know and don't intend to find out.

I would expect they are very good, hence the name of them and the absence of RGB. Only way to know is to buy a kit and see. RMA if they are trash. Mr. Potty-Mouth Jufus the Dufus swears by them. Mine are supposed to be here on Sunday. I will know within 15 minutes if I am keeping them or sending them back for a refund. I have several saved memory profiles to apply that will tell me almost instantly if they are gems or junk. Removing the heatsinks by soaking them in lacquer thinner is very easy if they are good enough to keep.

The Z690 Apex had, and my Z790 Apex has coil whine when severely stressing the memory. The Z690 Unify-X never did and the Dark does not. I can no longer hear it as well with the Supercool water cooling parts so I am assuming it is either the G.SKILL modules, the lower temperature of water-cooled memory, or the added mass of the liquid cooling parts is helping to suppress or dampen the sound on the Apex. If I had it to do over again, I would get the non-RGB 48GB TeamGroup T-Create Expert A-die kits in 7200 or higher. G.SKILL stuff is hit or miss, like ASUS. Random examples of the exact same part number that are either really good or just crap. TeamGroup QC has always seemed very consistent to me, and the absence of RGB on memory modules makes it even better. I really hate RGB memory. It's so stupid. I believe you are right. RGB is the most important thing to some people. Unfortunately, the PC component manufacturers know this and cater to that group. Probably because they know the bar is set much lower and it is easier for them to avoid failure if they pretend that RGB is the most important thing. If those people like how it looks, they'll most likely never know that what they bought can just barely run the XMP profile with stability (if even that much is possible).

And, we see the opposite on the spectrum of dispicability in the land of fruits and nuts. There is no bottom for the filthiness of humanity, yet they always somehow find a way to remain bottom-feeders. Theft is the new normal for the world's lowest common denominators and it goes both ways, depending on where you live. I wonder how many 4090's have been stolen in California? Off the store shelves and the entire truckloads of 4090's that never made it that far? Yay blue team... not. Sorry, but sometimes" engage at will and shoot to kill" is the only solution to an otherwise unsolvable problem.

All set up and ready for work tomorrow. I like it. https://www.3dmark.com/compare/fs/30861870/fs/28566515/fs/28913495/fs/30923735 It fixed the following issues I had with 6900 XT: Windows and Linux always rebooting versus shut down (had to hold power button to power off PC) Micro$lop Office text rendering (disappearing text) while typing DWM transparency not functional when sharing desktop (RocketDock icons and desktop icons would have white background where transparent edges should be) Excessive GPU driver CPU and RAM resource consumption when no work is being done

Dang it, that's really messed up. Such a nicely-binned CPU should function much better. It goes to show what a critical role the motherboard plays and the degree to which ASUS botched it up. Their slogan should be "For those who are dumb" instead of " For those who dare" LOL. Was it equally horrid on the original 901 firmware? I have not found any real benefits and generally a reduction in performance in newer ASUS firmware versions, especially in CPU benchmarks like Cinebench and wPrime. I have rarely identified any benefit to their firmware updates and the release notes that say things like "improves memory performance" are generally untrue. It is unfortunate, even diabolical, that we find examples of interference with end-user autonomy to roll back to any firmware version they choose to flash, and disgusting that they block all ME version rollbacks and provide no option to disable that worthless trash. It seems like m-ATX and ITX mirror the trend of paying more and getting less, just like turdbooks. Unless there is a legitimate need for size reduction, it seems kind of like a misguided build option due to the generally inferior and grossly overpriced selection. Do you still have the MSI Z790i? If it works correctly, spending money on anything from ASUS is probably like flushing money down the toilet.

💯 exactly that. If you do you can expect more of the same. As a side benefit, I also saved enough going the A770 route that it will cover a big chunk of the cost of a second-hand AK-47 I am going to try to snag.

I will need to have one custom made. EK made one for the Intel "reference" but discontinued it. I did not buy one of those, and I am not sure if the PCB is the same. I think it's not. https://www.newegg.com/asrock-arc-a770-a770-pg-16go/p/N82E16814930102?Item=N82E16814930102 Here is the place in France that makes waterblocks. https://hybridcooling-modding.fr/waterblock-custom# https://hybridcooling-modding.fr/waterblock-custom#/93-top-acrylique_transparent/131-usinage_prioritaire-non/279-cold_plate-enhanced_coldplate_80_microcannaux/280-plaque_inter-plaquage_noir/138-passage_ldr-4_x_g1_4

LOL, Brother @Papusanyou need two of these for your Galax 4090. Maybe they will not catch on fire. Too stupid.

My system started feeling laggy with the last Adrenaline update and it looks like the AMD Control Panel thing has a memory leak now. It was consuming around 30% of my memory and about 5% CPU utilization with the system otherwise idle. It was a challenging decision because 4060/4070 Ti are more enticing, but I knew I did not want to spend double the price of the A770 for less than double the performance. The chintzy cut-down memory bus on the Green Goblin's baby-girl wuss GPU offerings really pisses me off. That was a deliberate ploy to nudge people away from the cheaper options and put more distance between the 4090 and everything else. Even though the weaker siblings perform quite well in spite of the castrated memory bus, it still pisses me off pretty bad because I know the unnecessary and nefarious intentions behind it. So, common sense prevailed and I spent half as much on what should get the job done without any more basic functionality issues. If I don't like it, then I will RMA it and buy something better. I am hoping to love it and I am approaching the idea with a belief that I will. Seems promising. If all goes well it will make the idea of embracing Battlemage feel more natural and alluring. I am looking forward to seeing how it performs on Linux, too. Something different to play with. I found a place in France that fabricates custom GPU blocks for reasonable prices. I may look into that option as well.

It will be interesting to play with, but it is going in my work PC. More than anything else, I need it to be reliable and not have the issues with text rendering in M$ Office and DWM being spastic when I screen share.

The only thing more surprising, alarming and disappointing is the sad fact that 30% of the idiots on the planet prefer crApple's trash. The Redmond Reprobates are their own worst enemy. Their failures are a direct result of their inability to know, or the desire to care, what most users of their products want.

That is not representative of how they compare overall. In many, if not most things, the 7900 XTX trails the 4090 by more than a small margin and trades blows with the 4070 Ti and 4080. If ray tracing is involved, the gap widens further. AMD resolution scaling is less effective and image quality is comparatively poor overall. Nothing comes close to comparing with the 4090 in terms of performance, or being absurdly overpriced. Everything desirable (high end) that is offered by AMD and NVIDIA is grossly overpriced and, to some degree, similarly overrated. That is why I ordered an Arc A770 to replace the 6900 XT. The superior alternatives are a poor value and too expensive for what you get in return for the money spent.

It is tragic and criminal that so many turdbooks are reliant on feces like Armory Crate, Dragon Center, Clevo Control Center, Alienware Command Center and similar dung to have functionality. Armory Crate is probably the worst example of digital rubbish that I have ever seen. A picture says 1,000 words. Head on a swivel, boys... head on a swivel. Removal means removal... as in gone without a trace. Uninstalling is never enough to perfect the exorcism.

The Encore offers less by all measurements. The only benefit it provides is the superior black aesthetic. Everything else about it and the parts it comes with (or perhaps we should say DOES NOT come with) is a downgrade. You pay the same price to get your posterior orifice molested. I was immediately suspicious and smelling a rat when they released it and availability was good. Another mass production piece of crud from their slop bucket, but this time designed from the bottom up to deceive all who buy it. This is par for the course with Asus though. They're a despicable company and stand out as the evil prince in an industry ruled by thieves and pirates.

Armory Crate a horrible program that sucks the life out of your system, but avoiding it may be nearly impossible on a laptop to have full functionality. I allow it to install itself on my disposable crash dummy cancer OS, but it is banned on the OSes I use for benching and gaming. Armory Crate has pieces of itself baked into the BIOS. It will prompt you to install on a clean OS install with no internet connection and no network adapter drivers installed. If you do not allow it to install itself on a clean operating system install It is more likely to have issues with stability and/or not even functioning at all. The only place to download it that is hypothetically safe is directly from the Driver Suppprt page for your laptop on the Asus website. I say hypothetically because Asus is not a trustworthy company. Anything that comes from China should be viewed as suspicious and potentially dangerous. Caution and skepticism are advised.

I came very close to buying an MSI 4080 today for under $800 brand new. I decided not to, but I think that is a very good deal. NewEgg offers trade-ins now and that was after applying a $400 trade-in value for the 6900 XT. I also came very close to grabbing a Sparkle A770 for under $300, but changed my mind on that, too. I looked for a waterblock for the A770 and could not find one. I'm not interested in operating an air-cooled GPU even if it runs as cool as the Sparkle A770 is reported to (~60°C under full load). I am really interested in seeing how Battlemage fares against the 4080 and 7900 XTX.

They have Windows users (private and business) over a barrel and some literally cannot switch to another platform. And, they use force and manipulation to coerce the adoption of their newer data-harvesting OS and Office "as a service" cancer. They shamelessly exploit the users of their operating system and I hope it eventually bites them in the butt. I would love to see them decimated by legal battles and their finances nuked by enormous legal/defense costs. That's what they deserve. So does crApple. Any degree of misfortune or harm that comes to either of them will have been earned and should be deemed fitting for their abuses, high crimes and misdemeanors.

Yes that is correct. A thermal pad on the underside of a M.2 drive that has no components serves no purpose. Likewise, having it there causes no harm. You only need the thermal pad on the side(s) with memory chips and the controller, between those components and the heat sink. Depending on the latching mechanism design, the M.2 might still be somewhat loose after the retaining screw is tightened. Placing a thermal pad under the M.2 drive may keep it from being loose or sloppy. Sometimes the standoff that the retaining screw threads into does not have a ridge that fits snugly into the notch on the end of the M.2, so it not clamp or pinch the M.2 drive in place securely. This will allow it to have some wiggle room after the screw is tightened.

Yeah, that would be a devastating loss for anyone that works hard for their money like most of us do. That kind of risk-taking is only smart for the wealthy people that have tons of disposable income.

I did not notice that info about no warranty. In that case I would not purchase it unless the price was about half what he wants for it. With no warranty, might as well buy a new cheap 4090 and do the Elmor voltage mods. The attraction to the Galax HOF is you don't need to do those warranty-voiding mods. You get to have the cake and eat it, too. Absent that attraction there is no incentive to purchase it.

$2800 for the GPU and PSU is a fair deal and it is clearly a good sample. I don't think paying a lot more for a good sample is intelligent or wise, but it does avoid the tragedy of getting screwed with trash silicon quality. I wouldn't want to pay much more than new retail price for a used part even if it is an excellent silicon sample. It's a used part and that makes it worth substantially less. At $2800 it is like getting the PSU for free if you are measuring based on new retail prices rather than used part prices. I would be interested in buy it from him if I can come up with the cash before it is gone, but I would also first want to check the Galax warranty policy. If it only extends to the original purchaser then I would likely pass and buy a new GPU direct from Galax instead. If memory serves me correctly, Galax is one of the dirty rotten stinkers when it comes to warranty support.