3D PRINTING REVIEW – CCTREE CARBON FIBRE PLA FILAMENT AND 3D PRINTER UPGRADES

July 27, 2019 KillerRobotics3D Print, 3D Printing, 3D printing filament, CCTree, Duplicator i3 Mini, Filament, WanhaoLeave a comment

The CCTREE Carbon Fibre PLA filament is a 1.75mm PLA filament infused with Carbon Fibre, resulting in a filament that can produce prints that are much stronger than standard PLA. This filament is thus ideal for high-wear and load-bearing prints.

This higher durability does come at two significant tradeoffs. Firstly CCTREE Carbon Fibre filament costs approximately double what CCTREE standard PLA filament costs. Secondly and probably the largest problem with this filament is that it experiences significant bowing as it cools compared to standard PLA filament.

This bowing can result in prints separating from the print bed, which occurred more than once during my testing, and below is a picture of the consequences of one of these bed adhesion failures.

I found that the Carbon Fibre filament worked best when printing smaller items as the bowing occurred much less on a small surface area.

Here is a picture of some items I printed using the Carbon Fibre filament to upgrade my Wanhao Duplicator i3 Mini.

On the left in the image is a filament guide that prevents the filament from grazing against the printer body and ensures smooth filament movement. On the right are bed stabilizers that prevent unwanted bed movements that result from slight shifts in the bed leveling springs.

I also printed a tool caddy using the Carbon Fibre filament, and this was the largest item I printed successfully using the filament. Here are some photos of the tool caddy.

As can be seen in the Wanhao logo on the tool caddy a good level of detail is possible using the CTREE Carbon Fibre filament. Also note that all prints required minimal cleanup, with little to no stringing occurring.

Here are a few pictures of the upgrades installed.

The CCTREE Carbon Fibre PLA filament is a very useful filament for printing functional parts that require a level of robustness not offered by PLA, but it does require more care and tweaking to print successfully. It is an excellent filament, just not one for beginners.

On a side note, I recently installed a silicon sock on my printer’s hot end. This is a simple and inexpensive upgrade that offer numerous benefits such as helping to keep the hot end temperature constant and keeping the hot end clean. It also a safety measure and prevents burns from accidentally touching the hot end. It is definitely a worthwhile upgrade considering the minimal investment required.

REVIEW – CORSAIR IRONCLAW RGB WIRELESS GAMING MOUSE

July 20, 2019 KillerRoboticsCorsair, Gaming Mouse, MouseLeave a comment

The Corsair IronClaw RGB Wireless Gaming Mouse is the first wireless gaming mouse I have used in over seven years, and the main reason for this is that the input delay traditionally associated with wireless mice have been a deal-breaker for myself, overshadowing any of the benefits associated with wireless mice. However, various manufacturers have now developed technologies to overcome this latency, with Corsair’s solution being their 2.4GHz wireless slipstream technology (implemented using their included USB receiver), which promises sub-1-millisecond latency on par with wired gaming mice. I cannot verify the exact accuracy of this latency promise, but I can say that comparing it to the Razer Mamba Tournament Edition wired gaming mouse that there is absolutely no noticeable difference.

Here is a technical specification breakdown of the Corsair IronClaw RGB wireless:

	IronClaw Wireless
Year Released	2019
DPI	Adjustable up to 18000dpi
Buttons	10
Connectivity	2.4GHz Slipstream, Bluetooth, Wired USB
Weight	130g
Sensor	Optical PMW3391
Additional Features	RGB (iCue configurable) Omron Mechanical Switches
Battery	Rechargeable Lithium-Polymer

Given all the features above it is surprising that the IronClaw wireless is priced at a very reasonable $80 (USD).

The RGB lighting on the mouse has 3 independent zones with clear and crisps colors, with various predefined as well as completely customizable lighting options available.

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The promised battery life using slipstream and RGB lighting enabled is 16 hours, which is very close to accurate based on my experience and 24 hours with RGB turned off. Using Bluetooth a battery life of up to 50 hours is possible.

The Corsair IronClaw Wireless Mouse overcomes the latency issues traditionally associated with wireless mice while offering good battery life, great mechanical switches and freeing the user of the annoyances of a mouse cable. The IronClaw is a joy to use, and of all the RGB control software applications offered by the different manufacturers, I find iCue by far the least annoying.

The IronClaw Wiress is a great mouse and I highly recommend it, I use it every day and it is one of the most comfortable gaming mice on the market for anyone who prefers a palm grip.

3D PRINTING REVIEW – CCTREE METALIFIED COPPER FILAMENT

July 6, 2019 KillerRobotics3D Print, 3D Printing, 3D printing filamentLeave a comment

CCTREE Metalfied filaments are PLA based filaments blended with high-sheen particles in various metallic colors that result in 3d prints that have a polished metal finish. It is important to note that this is not a metal-infused filament, such as Bronzefil, which contains the actual metal in question, but rather a PLA filament with a metallic appearance, resulting in a filament that is much easier to print compared to the metal-infused filaments.

The Metalfied filament we will be looking at is the Copper variation.

I have previously reviewed the normal PLA and Wood CCTree filaments and found them to be of exceptional quality at a very reasonable price, and with the Metalfied Copper filament once again I was not disappointed. The filament prints exactly like normal PLA filaments, and a great level of detail is possible as shown in the photos below:

For reference here are the Cura settings utilized for the prints above:

cura_settings

As can be seen in the photos of the 3d prints a shiny metallic finish is achieved that looks remarkably similar to polished copper. The filament is an absolute breeze to print with and the end results are beautiful.

I would highly recommend this filament to anyone who is looking for a metallic finish and is not quite ready or willing to undertake the more difficult task of printing with a metal-infused filament.

REVIEW – LUXCOMS RGB SOFT GAMING MOUSE PAD

June 30, 2019 KillerRoboticsMouse Mat, PC, PC Gaming, PC Master Race, RGB, RGB Gaming Mouse Mat, Technology1 Comment

The Luxcoms RGB soft gaming mouse pad is an inexpensive, yet surprisingly good RGB extended mouse mat. The mouse mat measures in at 80cm x 30cm, and has a smooth and soft surface which allows for effortless and low friction mouse movement and also has minimal visible branding, with the Luxcoms logo only appearing on the control box. Additionally, the mouse mat has a rubberized back to prevent it from slipping while in use. The mat surface quality is amazing and is easily comparable to the Razer Goliathus I previously used.

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The RGB comes by way of a thin RGB LED tubing sewn around the perimeter of the mat, which offers bright and vivid colors with no visible dim spots. The RGB lighting is controlled via a button on the control box on the upper left corner of the mouse mat, which cycles through the nine available lighting modes, seven of which are different static colors and the remaining two being variations of a rainbow effect (breathing and wave). The mouse mat does remember the RGB setting selected if it is powered off.

The mouse mat utilized no software whatsoever and simply requires power via a micro-USB port located on the control box.

The Luxcoms RGB soft gaming mouse pad is available on Amazon for $22 (USD) which is extremely reasonable for a mouse mat of this quality.

This mouse mat is a very easy recommendation for the price and should be a serious consideration for anyone interested in an RGB extended mouse mat.

DESK TOUR

May 4, 2019May 21, 2020 KillerRoboticsDesk Tour, Geek, Hardware, Technology1 Comment

After a few posts with photos of my desk, I have received a few questions and requests to do a post regarding my desk setup, so here is a quick desk tour.

As can be seen in the photos above I run two 27-inch monitors, for a secondary monitor I use the Dell SE2717H, a 75Hz 1080P FreeSync monitor, and for a primary display, I use the Dell S2716DG, a 144Hz 1440p G-Sync monitor.

The full specs of the PC can be found in a previous post here, with only a few minor changes since then that I will cover now.

The first change made was replacing the standard plastic backplate of the Corsair H150i Pro with an all metal one, as can be seen in the image below:

metal backplate

The plastic backplate that came with the H150i never felt completely stable, and with the new metal backplate, the whole mounting feels much more robust. This backplate is available from Amazon. While replacing the backplate, I also replaced the thermal paste that came pre-applied with the AIO cooler with Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut. This process resulted in the CPU temperatures dropping by approximately 2-3°C.

The next thing that changed was the addition of a Corsair Lighting Node Pro and RGB Strips, as well as a storage upgrade with an additional 4TB Western Digital Blue drive, total storage is now 17.5 TB consisting of 500GB NVMe storage, 1TB SSD storage and 16 TB spinning disk storage of which 4 TB is accelerated with 32GB Intel Optane Memory.

As the case front panel, Corsair AIO and the Corsair Lighting Node Pro requires USB 2 headers and my motherboard only has two, this resulted in a problem which was solved by installing an NXZT Internal USB Hub.

I also added Phanteks Halos to my AIO fans, that was covered in a previous post here.

The final change was the switching out of the MSI Gaming X GTX 1080 with the Zotac RTX 2080 Amp Extreme.

The only additional change that might happen in the short term is the addition of a PSU shroud.

Now that we have covered the PC let us get back to the rest of the desk.

The photo above shows that on each side of the primary monitor there is a speaker, they are Samson studio monitors, the MediaOne BT3. The microphone I use can be seen on top of one of the speakers, the Samson Meteor USB Studio Microphone. And the webcam used is the Razer Kiyo, which is set up on top of the primary monitor.

On the back of both the monitors and desk, RGB strips have been mounted and the remote to control them is stored in a custom 3D printed housing under the desk.

Various figures decorate my desk, most of them made by Funko, but some were 3D printed.

From a peripheral perspective, I use the Corsair K70 MK2 mechanical keyboard and Razer Mamba Tournament Edition mouse (although I am considering replacing the Razer Mamba TE with the new Corsair IronClaw Wireless RGB mouse). Both the keyboard and mouse are on top of the Razer Goliathus Extended Speed Edition Mouse Pad. For a controller, I use an Xbox One controller, the Volcano Shadow Special Edition, which is kept out of the way when not in use by Vault Boy.

I use two headphones, one Wireless Gaming Headset, the Corsair HS70, and one wired professional studio headphones, the Samson Z55. I have a Silicon Headphone Anker under the desk to store these headphones when they are not in use.

I store a precision screwdriver set under the primary monitor for easy access, the Xiaomi Wiha Precision Aluminum Screwdriver set.

My VR Headset and controller are stored on top of the pc case, it is the Lenovo Explorer Windows Mixed Reality Headset. This was covered in a post here.

I have 3D printed a cable box, for easier access when plugging in the VR Headset.

Lastly, behind the second monitor is where my 3D Printer is located, the Wanhao i3 Mini.

BOOK REVIEW – EFFECTIVE PROGRAMMING MORE THAN WRITING CODE BY JEFF ATWOOD

April 27, 2019 KillerRoboticsBook, Book review, Programming1 Comment

coverofJeffAtwood

Jeff Atwood is somewhat of a celebrity in software development and programming circles, he along with Joel Spolsky are the founders of StackOverflow.com, a question and answer website all programmers and software engineers must be familiar with.

The book, initially published in 2012, is constructed from posts on Jeff Atwood’s blog, CodingHorror.com. The posts are sorted into different sections based on an overall theme, for example, hiring programmers, workspace setup, code testing, etc. Thus, making for a coherent and flowing reading experience. This is where the value of this book opposed to reading all these posts on his blog for free comes in, a more convenient reading experience.

Effective Programming More than Writing Code is one of the best and one of my favorite books on the topic of software development, it is a must-read for anyone who is a professional software developer, and personally, I have read through it numerous times over the years. The book is an easy, quick read and a vast amount of great ideas and concepts are communicated that will keep you thinking long after you have stopped reading.

There are however a few problems with this book, firstly in the print version there are quite a few printing errors where the top line of the page is cut off, this is present on 2 pages in my copy. This is not a problem in the electronic version available on the Kindle store.

Secondly, as this book was constructed from blog posts, numerous hyperlinks and embedded videos are present, which obviously do not work in a printed format. This is, however, more of an annoyance than a problem as this does not hinder the concept being communicated.

Even given these problems, I would still highly recommend this book. So, if you work in or are interested in software development, pick it up.

REVIEW – Phanteks Halos Digital RGB Frame

April 20, 2019 KillerRoboticsComputer, Gaming Computer, Phanteks, RGB2 Comments

The Phanteks Halos Digital RGB Frame is an ingenious solution for adding RGB to any non-RGB fans. This is especially useful if you have existing high-performance fans and do not want to pay a very expensive fee just to replace them with an RGB equivalent.

The Halos is available for 120mm and 140mm fans and we will be looking at the 120mm model here.

It is worth noting that the Halos can be used with fans of any colour, the colours do however show best on lighter colour fans.

The Halos frames have the required connections to be daisy chained and multiple Halos frames can thus be powered and controlled with a single controller connection. The Halos Digital requires a 3-pin digital RGB connection to be connected to your system and it is worth noting that certain motherboards do have onboard digital RGB controllers, as is the case with my motherboard the MSI MEG Z390 Godlike which has two digital RGB connectors JRGBRAINBOW1 and JRGBRAINBOW2, the HALOS does however not come with the required cable to use this kind of connections and this must be ordered separately. Alternatively, a Phanteks Digital RGB controller can be used in the event your motherboard lacks digital RGB functionality.

The Halos is compatible with both Asus Aura and MSI Mystic Light for RGB Synchronization across your entire system. In my case, I use MSI Mystic Light and it works perfectly.

I used the Halos Frames on the Corsair ML120 fans on my Corsair H150i All-in-One Watercooler and the end result looked great, the fans blend in very nicely with the Corsair LL140 RGB fans I use for case cooling.

Here is a before photo:

And here is a photo with the Halos installed:

Phanteks Halos Digital RGB Frame is a relatively inexpensive way of adding great looking RGB effect to non-RGB fans, it is a great product and comes recommended if you are looking to add a bit of colour to your system without breaking the bank.

3D PRINTING REVIEW – CCTREE PLA AND WOOD FILAMENT

April 13, 2019 KillerRobotics3D Print, 3D Printing, 3D printing filament, CCTree, Filament, Review2 Comments

CCTREE PLA Filament

The CCTree PLA filament we will be looking at today is the 1.75mm diameter variety, but it is also available in 3mm. The filament is available in a wide variety of colors, around 25 colors, and is sold in 1kg spools.

The experience with this filament has been great, producing very good quality prints with a great level of detail and only minimal 3D printed object cleanup required after printing.

During printing the filament has minimal stringing, if any at all, and I have never had a print fail because of a filament issue using CCTREE PLA filament.

CCTREE PLA filament is a very easy filament to print with and offers great value being one of the less expensive filaments available. I would highly recommend this filament for novices and experienced 3D print enthusiasts alike.

CCTREE Wood Filament

CCTREE Wood filament is a 1.75mm diameter filament consisting of a mixture of PLA plastic and wood fibers that produces prints with a slightly rough wood-like finish, similar to Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF), that can be sanded and stained in a similar way to wood.

This filament is slightly more challenging to print with and is more prone to stringing (due to the wood fibers) and larger flat surfaces are prone to slight bowing as the print cools down.

It is still however possible to produce prints with a great level of detail, it just requires an extra bit of cleanup and finishing.

During printing, this filament gives off a subtle wood-like odor.

The CCTREE Wood filament is more expensive than their PLA filament, costing approximately double the price.

This filament is great for prints that benefit from a more natural wood-like finish (for example a baby Groot) and the end result looks fantastic. This is a great filament but is probably not the best choice for a 3D printing newbie to get started with.

CCTree filaments offer great quality and value for money, the filaments are available in a wide variety of colors and options and they come highly recommended.

REVIEW – CORSAIR K70 MK2 MECHANICAL GAMING KEYBOARD

April 6, 2019 KillerRoboticsCherryMX, Computer, Corsair, Gaming, Hardware, Keyboard, PCLeave a comment

The K70 MK2 is a mechanical gaming keyboard available with Cherry MX speed, brown, red, blue and silent switches. The one reviewed here is the blue switch configuration as I prefer a clicky tactile keyboard.

The keyboard comes with a detachable wrist rest which is very comfortable.

Some additional features of the K70 MK2 is an aluminium frame, fully configurable RGB, dedicated media and volume controls, additional key caps for FPS and MOBA games (which are colored and textured differently from the normal key caps), USB pass-through and 100% anti-ghosting full key roll-over.

Due to the aluminium frame the keyboard is very rigid and volume roller is one of the most useful features I have ever used on a keyboard.

The Corsair K70 has a reputation as one of the best keyboards available and it is well deserved, it is the best keyboard I have ever used.

REVIEW – RAZER KIYO WEBCAM

March 30, 2019 KillerRoboticsComputer, Razer, Streaming, Technology, WebCamLeave a comment

The Razer Kiyo is a USB webcam that retails for around $100. It is capable of 720p video at 60fps and 1080p at 30fps.

The main differentiating feature of the Razer Kiyo compared to other webcams is that the Kiyo has an integrated LED light ring (with adjustable brightness) and this makes a huge difference to the image quality captured by the webcam.

As with most Razer products it is configured and controlled with Razer Synapse, where things like brightness, contrast, saturation, white balance and auto\manual focus can be configured.

The Razer Kiyo has a strong streaming focus and is fully compatible with Open Broadcast Software (OBS) and Xsplit.

The Kiyo does however have two shortcomings, firstly the auto focus is not well implemented, and continuously refocuses for even the slightest movement, resulting in the auto focus being pretty much unusable. The second shortcoming is that the built-in microphone is not great, this is however a very common problem with webcams.

Even with these shortfalls the Razer Kiyo is a compact and convenient solution compared to alternative camera\lighting solutions. It is a good all in one solution as long as you use manual focus and an external microphone.

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