The "New Toys" Thread

Well, time to catch up here I guess :rolleyes::D

I started a few month ago, yet again running out of space on my plethora of small harddrives, clogging up all available SATA ports.. and then one of my 500GB drives got a SMART warning but remained functional.. But at that point I figured I should do something eventually... at which point I accidentally an external 8TB drive for a mere 139€. I originally wanted to take it apart and install it interally, but currently it being external is super helpful, since I keep bringing it along to the GFs place after downloading shit to watch at home. I'd still like to make it an internal one some day, but only when I get Plex working with my ISPs IPv6, so I can just stream from home (20mbit up should do the trick just fine for 720p-1080p content).




A bit later I decided I want to keep my ancient case but I should definitely clean it up and kick out all the tiny drives now that I have the big one. So I removed a total of 4 drives, cleaned the inside of that filthy thing a little bit, and installed a full set of new Noctua Redux fans. All PWM using an active PWM splitter (XSPC) that was also added, 3x92mm (side) and 2x 120mm (rear and CPU). Of course I fucked up the first order and wrongly ordered the 120s in non-PWM.. but hey.. what's another 2 fans, right? I used the second order to also get some fresh CPU paste (Kryonaut) which was applied in the process. I also intend to see if I can't clock my i7 a little higher. And yes, there is still literally zero cable management!





















Done with this, it was time to install the latest proper upgrade. With the launch of the GTX 1660Ti being mostly exactly what I expected, an ok option at the base MSRP of 279€, not worth it at more than that, or if you can get a 2060 below its MSRP of 349€. So I did the only thing I could to - ignoring that thing and jumping on a deal for a RTX 2060 for 299€.. It is not a high end model or the most reputable brand ever, it also has a sub-optimal output selection, but it is a factory OC model and has decent reviews. And it was cheap. So 8€ for a locally sourced 2x6 to 1x8 pin adapter later, that was installed.










With that my buying spree was done. Briefly.

Wanting to print something again, my 2002 bought HP PSC2110 decided to be annoying again and refuse to work, like it occasionally does - always when I am in a rush. So after some brief research, I grabbed a Samsung M2070W monochrome laserprinter. Key features being a) it works all the time, b) wireless. Got it locally for 129€ while I happened to have a job near a store, since didn't feel like waiting just to save 10€ from the first onlineshop I'd order from.




And then I was done.

Ok. Practicallky. I only replaced my ChromeCast v2 with a v3 in order to migrate the former to my GFs place permanently, so I don't have to take it back and forth all the time and set it up over and over...




Now I am really done though!

Oh, wait, DHL just rang..


Yeah for a little fiddling project (getting USB3 into my old cases front panel) I might have ordered some soldering bits and bobs from AliExpress.. I hated working with my work-issues 230V-straight-plug-unregulated soldering iron.. So I got that chinese clone station thing that BigClive reviewed a while ago. Yihua 8786D! Hot-air and soldering station! In fact because aliexpress is aliexpress, I'm pretty sure I have a second one coming right now, after the first seller cancelled my order and I ordered a different one, and then they cancelled the cancellation and shipped it the same day with DHL Express.. :D. Eithr way, this thing arrived literally an hour ago. The other one I ordered afterwards and seem to be unable to cancel is the version with two displays for the two systems. I also got like 10 little envelopes with related shit coming, that will likely take a few more weeks to make their way here.. ;). For this specific station here I ended up paying $62 shipped and sadly also 32€ customs, but that was expected.




OK, I AM DONE!

Like, seriously!


No, really,.. move on.. I didn't buy anything else.












Ok.. I did but it hasn't arrived yet, shut up!
 
A new GTX 1080Ti turbo graphics card from Gigabyte

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and a Logitech G920 racing wheel
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You might run into problems keeping the card cool with that style of cooler. Either that, or it'll get vacuum cleaner levels of loud.
 
Hm...probably, @t3h r0x0rs , what sort of case are you using?
 
It's pre-built Lenovo Idea Centre. Hopefully, I won't have any issues with the noise. Just need to find the time to install it and find out.
Edit: Graphics card has been installed, and so far so good on noise. I do appreciate your suggestions, hopefully there's no issue on noise.
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You should be fine, especially if you have replaced the fans and don't overclock it. though usually anything bigger than SFF does better with an open-air cooler.
 
My old R9 270 shit the bed so here’s the replacement.
 

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For roadtrip purposes I picked up a couple more 128GB MicroSD cards for my GoPro as Amazon had them on sale at £20 (usually £29), along with a tiny USB card reader as my laptop has no SD card slot.

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These are Sandisk Extreme cards and certainly perform better than my old ones, with speeds of 160/100MB/s (read/write) vs 52/97MB/s for the old card. It also shows that my existing 'big' card reader tops out at 97MB/s itself where the new one keeps on trucking. I don't necessarily need the speed over the old card as that seemed to handle UHD video just fine in the GoPro 5 but when it's this price I'll take the speed bonus when transferring files, thank you very much.

That card reader is nice and fast but, as the picture above may show, the card goes right in and it's a bastard to get out. If you have short fingernails then you might need to keep a small screwdriver with you. Surely the bog-standard spring loaded push to lock and release fitting wouldn't have cost much more?

I also grabbed a ShuttlePro v2 on eBay, new old stock being sold £30 cheaper than RRP.

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I've used the ShuttleXpress for a couple of years when editing video (which isn't that regularly) and found it to be brilliant, with a few critical flaws. It didn't have enough buttons for everything I wanted it to do and the thing is round, therefore if it moves on the table it's easy to get the button positions mixed up. Of the five buttons, the centre three have indents, which is no help if the thing skids around a bit... which it does.

This is much better, it stays put and you always know you're pressing the right button, it also has plastic nibs to help and the shape is more comfortable for your wrist. Obviously it has more buttons too. Here's mine shown with the ShuttleXpress wheel fitted, highlighting the only issue I have with the ShuttlePro so far - the lovely aluminium jog wheel is just too heavy. The nice, positive notches between frames goes all mushy with the extra inertia of the 29 gram wheel versus the 8g original. I've already designed a hollow replacement for 3D printing in my resin printer which should be lighter, the three dimples are vastly superior to the single one that you have to go hunting for with your finger. If that doesn't work out, I'll be looking for a lathe...

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I didn't realise this before buying but the top buttons have clear plastic caps on and you are provided with a pre-printed set of thin card labels to go inside. These cover the basic functions but they don't quite match what functions I use so I need to print some of my own when I get a chance. The back and forward in this case select the previous and next clips, where the blank button to the left of split is ripple delete (Adobe Premiere Pro CC).
 
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It's the kids' birthday season again (both were born exactly 6 weeks apart (plus two years)), and this year, after consulting with them, we decided to pool the budget and get them a Nintendo Switch. And since I do care about protecting it a bit (and because I was curious to see if they live up to the hype), I got some dbrand skins for it:
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And, of course, a second set of Joy Cons:
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And, since games eat space, a Nintendo-themed Sandisk SD card:
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i've never even seen a nintendo switch irl...
i had no idea those were actually being bought!
 
Had a quick browse through some Click Frenzy deals last week, and found Bose QC25 headphones for half price and free shipping.
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Given that most flights from AU to anywhere interesting are long haul, the noise cancelling is much appreciated. I had an el cheapo Sony NC set, which were good, but as on-ear headphones they didn't always do the job, and got a little uncomfortable after a few hours of wear, and especially with glasses on. they'll stay home now for PC use, and I'll take the Bose on my travels.

I know there are newer models, but the QC35, have an internal battery that only lasts 20 hours, and then progressively loses capacity, and takes a couple of hours to recharge. These take a AAA battery, so when it dies it can be swapped out, no need to wait.

Now I just need a long-haul flight or two to test them out thoroughly...
 
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Not a very new toy but got it for free so... A xeon developer workstation from work, going to be my new Plex server (current is an old Mac Mini)
 
Had a quick browse through some Click Frenzy deals last week, and found Bose QC25 headphones for half price and free shipping.
2014-09-23-product-1.jpg

Given that most flights from AU to anywhere interesting are long haul, the noise cancelling is much appreciated. I had an el cheapo Sony NC set, which were good, but as on-ear headphones they didn't always do the job, and got a little uncomfortable after a few hours of wear, and especially with glasses on. they'll stay home now for PC use, and I'll take the Bose on my travels.

I know there are newer models, but the QC35, have an internal battery that only lasts 20 hours, and then progressively loses capacity, and takes a couple of hours to recharge. These take a AAA battery, so when it dies it can be swapped out, no need to wait.

Now I just need a long-haul flight or two to test them out thoroughly...

I have the QC35 (and had the QC3 before), I just love them. That active noise cancellation is amazing on a plane.
 
More new toys for me, my phone plan was at its end, and there was a nice discount on the unlimited plan I wanted as a replacement, so I jumped on it and got a Nokia 8.1 in steel/copper colour combo with it.
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And a new USB PD charger to go with it.
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This Huawei AF15 selfie stick/tripod to complement my Huawei phone. It came in the mail a few days ago, but I ordered it before the US banned Huawei. (I've had the phone for a year now.) It does luckily work with other makes of phone, although I'm not sure the Bluetooth shutter button function works with all the other phones, which is the main point of this exact model of tripod.

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Also luckily, I didn't pay much for it. About 7 USD. It was 17 USD and I had 10 USD discount coupon from eBay. In stores around here the same thing costs about 30 USD. Granted, being an eBay buy, mine could easily be a knock-off product, but for 7 USD, I couldn't care less.
 
A Xiaomi Yi Lite action cam for 55 Euros new, picked it up from a private seller nearby. Now I'll need some mounts for the two bicycles I mainly use...
 
It's here now so I can post this, I've gone and done me a crazy and bought a CNC machine. Well, a small one anyway.

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It was from Banggood, an online shop that I didn't really want to use and don't intend to again any time soon. Their tracking didn't work and the label on the box suggests that it should've been delivered a month ago. I've started the assembly using a combination of the crap instructions and this video:


I've stopped for now though though and will be dismantling the machine to re-assemble when my new T-nuts arrive from Amazon, the ones supplied are nasty and don't fit in the 2020 extrusion properly.

First thing I want to do is cut out some shifter paddles for the Smart to replace the 3D printed ones that flex too much, looking at using some 3mm ACM (basically acrylic with a thin aluminium sheet on either side).
 
i want something like that where you can swap the active bit for a 3D print, a CNC or a lasercutter
i don't want 3 different devices...how hard can it be?
 
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