So I?m surfing the web going through my extensive list of PC hardware/overclocker/geek bookmarks. I run across a few reviews for the Vantec Nexus ?Multi-Function Panel?. I said to myself ?sweet!" The Nexus looks really slick and has temp monitors for CPU, Case and Hard drive. It also has a fan-speed control dial for the CPU fan. Another great feature is the two USB and one Firewire ports on the panel. I watched another one of Mr. Reynold?s video reviews on www.3dgameman.com, and decided to place an order.
Price was about $39 without shipping. The packaging was very nice. The contents consisted of the Nexus Panel, three clear-ish tinted faceplates(smoke blue, green and a blue-ish/purple-ish), screws, an allen wrench (for changing the faceplates), and cables.
Installation was fairly simple. The manual has diagrams and brief instructions. One thing they left out was which way the cables should be plugged in. You know, like a USB pin connector?should the little arrow on one side of the plug be on the top or bottom side. Anyone can find this out with trial and error, but it would have been a nice addition to the manual.
You need a free 5.25 bay to put the Nexus. The unit is only about two inches deep, so it should fit fine in any PC. Use the included screws and it?s installed in seconds. One tip ? Plug in all the cables to the back of the Nexus before you firmly attach the screws. If you plugged something in backwards, or need to change anything, it may be difficult when it?s all screwed in.
The USB and Firewire connectors attach to the Nexus, they are long enough to run down your case and out of a free PCI slot. They have to be plugged into two USB and one Firewire port on the back of your PC. Technically, these are just extension cords. The cables do look nice though, clear and silver.
Installation of the temperature monitors is the most difficult. The cables plug into the Nexus, and are long enough to reach wherever you want to put them. There are three, labeled CPU, Case, and HD. The cable end has a U-shaped wire/diode type thing. They can be attached by using the three pieces of clear adhesive tape included in the package. Setting up the Hard Drive and Case monitors were simple. The CPU is a bit more tricky. The instructions say to tape the diode to the bottom of the heatsink, close to the CPU, and not touching the CPU. If you have any Thermal Compound/gunk on your heatsink, you need to clean off the spot where you want to tape the diode, or the tape will fall right off. With only three small pieces of this precious tape, you better be careful!
Next is the CPU Fan connector. The Nexus acts as a pass-through device between your CPU fan and your motherboard?s CPU fan connector. This is great if your CPU fan gets its power from your motherboard?s CPU fan connector. CPU fans powered by a standard Molex connector are crap out of luck. I suppose a cable-mod could be done, but I don?t know if wiring a Molex connector to the Nexus would harm it.
After it?s all installed, power up the machine and play with the Nexus. On the front is a small green LCD panel, which displays Temps and fan speed. The temp displayed on the LCD can be changed between CPU/HD/Case with the press of a button. The Fan speed can be controlled by moving the dial between the ?Low? and ?High? settings. The USB and Firewire ports work as they should.
The main reason why I bought the Vantec Nexus was to have a Firewire port on the front of my case. The CPU temp, Fan speed control and USB ports sounded pretty nice also. However I have complaints about the unit.
1) If you use a high-powered CPU fan that uses a Molex power connector, the Fan Speed control is useless.
2) The best way I can explain the LCD display is looking at an old Projection TV from across a room. You can kind of make it out, but unless you?re looking at it dead-straight-on, it?s totally pointless.
3) The temp diodes don?t give as good of a reading as the built-in temp readings which are built into most motherboards. You?re better of using MBM5, which is free and more accurate. There is a 3C to 6C difference between the CPU temp display of the Nexus and the actual temp.
4) There are three small pieces of clear adhesive tape included in the box. Of course, you can always use Scotch tape, gum, or whatever you want to attach the cables, but more tape in the box would be nice.
5) More detailed manual with more words to go along with the diagrams.
Overall, the Nexus is a cool product, but not one that you need. There is freeware available to change fan speed and monitor system temps. The Nexus does look cool, but again, it?s useless unless you have your PC at eye-level. If I want to check the temp readouts on the Nexus, I have to get down on the floor on my knees (which some of you may enjoy doing). The only cool thing that I use are the Firewire and USB ports on the front. A few people have commented on it, and said it looked cool, but also complained that they couldn?t see the display.
So if you?ve got the money to spend, and if you keep your PC on your desktop, this would be a real cool product for you. Big ups to anyone that took the time to read through this super-amateur review.
Cheers
Price was about $39 without shipping. The packaging was very nice. The contents consisted of the Nexus Panel, three clear-ish tinted faceplates(smoke blue, green and a blue-ish/purple-ish), screws, an allen wrench (for changing the faceplates), and cables.
Installation was fairly simple. The manual has diagrams and brief instructions. One thing they left out was which way the cables should be plugged in. You know, like a USB pin connector?should the little arrow on one side of the plug be on the top or bottom side. Anyone can find this out with trial and error, but it would have been a nice addition to the manual.
You need a free 5.25 bay to put the Nexus. The unit is only about two inches deep, so it should fit fine in any PC. Use the included screws and it?s installed in seconds. One tip ? Plug in all the cables to the back of the Nexus before you firmly attach the screws. If you plugged something in backwards, or need to change anything, it may be difficult when it?s all screwed in.
The USB and Firewire connectors attach to the Nexus, they are long enough to run down your case and out of a free PCI slot. They have to be plugged into two USB and one Firewire port on the back of your PC. Technically, these are just extension cords. The cables do look nice though, clear and silver.
Installation of the temperature monitors is the most difficult. The cables plug into the Nexus, and are long enough to reach wherever you want to put them. There are three, labeled CPU, Case, and HD. The cable end has a U-shaped wire/diode type thing. They can be attached by using the three pieces of clear adhesive tape included in the package. Setting up the Hard Drive and Case monitors were simple. The CPU is a bit more tricky. The instructions say to tape the diode to the bottom of the heatsink, close to the CPU, and not touching the CPU. If you have any Thermal Compound/gunk on your heatsink, you need to clean off the spot where you want to tape the diode, or the tape will fall right off. With only three small pieces of this precious tape, you better be careful!
Next is the CPU Fan connector. The Nexus acts as a pass-through device between your CPU fan and your motherboard?s CPU fan connector. This is great if your CPU fan gets its power from your motherboard?s CPU fan connector. CPU fans powered by a standard Molex connector are crap out of luck. I suppose a cable-mod could be done, but I don?t know if wiring a Molex connector to the Nexus would harm it.
After it?s all installed, power up the machine and play with the Nexus. On the front is a small green LCD panel, which displays Temps and fan speed. The temp displayed on the LCD can be changed between CPU/HD/Case with the press of a button. The Fan speed can be controlled by moving the dial between the ?Low? and ?High? settings. The USB and Firewire ports work as they should.
The main reason why I bought the Vantec Nexus was to have a Firewire port on the front of my case. The CPU temp, Fan speed control and USB ports sounded pretty nice also. However I have complaints about the unit.
1) If you use a high-powered CPU fan that uses a Molex power connector, the Fan Speed control is useless.
2) The best way I can explain the LCD display is looking at an old Projection TV from across a room. You can kind of make it out, but unless you?re looking at it dead-straight-on, it?s totally pointless.
3) The temp diodes don?t give as good of a reading as the built-in temp readings which are built into most motherboards. You?re better of using MBM5, which is free and more accurate. There is a 3C to 6C difference between the CPU temp display of the Nexus and the actual temp.
4) There are three small pieces of clear adhesive tape included in the box. Of course, you can always use Scotch tape, gum, or whatever you want to attach the cables, but more tape in the box would be nice.
5) More detailed manual with more words to go along with the diagrams.
Overall, the Nexus is a cool product, but not one that you need. There is freeware available to change fan speed and monitor system temps. The Nexus does look cool, but again, it?s useless unless you have your PC at eye-level. If I want to check the temp readouts on the Nexus, I have to get down on the floor on my knees (which some of you may enjoy doing). The only cool thing that I use are the Firewire and USB ports on the front. A few people have commented on it, and said it looked cool, but also complained that they couldn?t see the display.
So if you?ve got the money to spend, and if you keep your PC on your desktop, this would be a real cool product for you. Big ups to anyone that took the time to read through this super-amateur review.
Cheers