Requesting opinions on a GentechPC MSI GT60-0ne configuration

Description Price [+/-] from
base price
Availability
In Stock and ready to ship/build 0.00
Shipping
Free UPS Ground Shipping to Domestic US (Not Available to Alaska and Hawaii) 0.00
Screen
15.6" 16:9 1920X1080 Full HD LED backlight (Matte-Type) 0.00
USB VGA Adapter for External Monitor (External Monitors not included)
None, Laptop Display + VGA or HDMI output (1 External Monitor) 0.00

Standard Bright White MSI Logo 0.00
HDMI
HDMI 1.4, 60Hz/120Hz output 1080P, 3D Ready 0.00
Dead Pixel Warranty
Standard Manufacturer Dead Pixel Warranty 0.00
Graphics Controller
nVidia GeForce GTX 680M 4GB GDDR5 DX11 w/Optimus Technology 0.00
Processor
3rd Gen Intel Ivy Bridge Core i7-3610QM, 2.3-3.3GHz, 22nm, 6MB, 45W 0.00
Thermal Compound
IC Diamond 24 Carat Thermal Compound on both CPU/GPU 35.00
RAM (Note: Windows 7 Home Premium only support up to 16GB of RAM)
16GB DDR3 1600 Dual-Channel (4GB x 4) Special Promotion: Free 0.01
Primary Hard Drive
750GB 7200rpm 2.5-inch 9.5mm 16MB SATA II 3Gb/s (Standard) 0.00
Secondary Hard Drive
240GB Intel Solid-State Drive 520 Series SATA III 6Gb/s 265.00
RAID Configuration
Hard Drives RAID setting is disable 0.00
Optical Drive
8X DVDRW DL Super Multi (Standard) 0.00
Options for HDD in Optical Drive Bay
None: for HDD in Hard Drive Bay not selected 0.00
Hard Drive Caddy
None 0.00
External Storage for backup/data transfer
None 0.00
Ethernet Controller
Killer Gaming Ethernet Controller 0.00
WiFi
Bigfoot networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1103 with three antenna 89.00
Networking
None 0.00
Bluetooth
None or Choose Wireless-N + Bluetooth Combo Card 0.00
USB 3.0
Two USB 3.0 Ports 4.8 Gb/s 0.00
eSATA
Built-In External SATA Port 0.00
Webcam
Built-in 720P HD Webcam with microphone 0.00
Audio
Dynaudio Premium Sound Technology 0.00
Headset
None 0.00
Primary Battery
One 9 Cell Primary Battery included 0.00
AC Adapter
One AC Adapter included 0.00
Car Adapter
None 0.00
Mouse
None 0.00
Carring Case
None 0.00
Backlit Keyboard
Software-changeable LED color Backlit Keyboard 0.00
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit Pre-installed 0.00
OS Clean Installation Option (For factory installed OS only, not required if upgrade OS is selected)
Clean Windows Installation, we install drivers only no bloatwares 15.00
Microsoft Office Software
Retail Microsoft Office HomeandStudent 2010, w/Product Key and DVD 135.00
Windows Recovery DVD
Help me burn the Recovery DVD 15.00
Drivers Disk
Drivers Disk Included 0.00
Warranty
MSI 2 Year North America Limited Warranty / 1 Year Global Warranty 0.00
Accidental Damage Warranty
One Year Accidental Damage Protection (Product must be Registered within 30 days with MSI) 0.00
Packaging
Shipping with Double Box 0.00

Total: $2453.01 before discounts
====================================================
Concerns:

I would prefer the Sager np9150 and np9170, but complaints about the touchpads, speakers, and user friendliness of those models have made me uncertain.

1. What makes the audio ports on the MSI so much better than those on Sager models? (Using Asus Xonar U3 will probably make the actual quality of the speakers irrelevant.)
2. Is the MSI "bad keyboard" issue widespread?
3. How loud are the fans on the MSI GT60?
4. Is the interface at the top of the laptop's surface (Turbo Boost and the like) distracting?

Of course, I don't expect exact answers to these questions.

 

Hi, I have owned the GT60 with the 670m in it since it was first released so I can answer your questions to the best of my ability.
1. The only thing that I know of that makes the audio ports better is that they are gold plated, which makes it better somehow(I forget why, but i think it has to do with gold being a great conductor)
2. I don't really have a problem with my keyboard except for the space bar sometimes not registering when I press the edges. If you read http://forum.notebookreview.com/msi/667741-gt60-gt70-bad-keyboards-thread.html you will get some answers on how widespread it is. I don't think you should be to concerned with it because if it is really noticeable you can just get it RMA'd
3. The fan on the GT60 is not even noticeable when just browsing the internet and doing low stress things. When playing games (I like to play BF3 which is a pretty intensive game), the fan noise does become noticeable, but not overpowering. If you are using headphones to game, you should not notice the sound of the fan. If you just use the built-in speakers which actually sound pretty good, you might still hear the sound of the fan, but the game sounds should overpower the sound of the fan.
4. The interface on the top of the laptop is not distracting at all to me. The only lights that are constantly lit are the wifi one and the power button light, unless you always have num lock, caps lock, turbo fan(unneeded) or turbo boost(better to use MSI afterburner). Here are a couple of pictures to show you what I mean.


I hope this post helps you. So far after a few months with this computer, I have had no problems that I can recall. Good luck with purchasing a new computer.

 

Thanks for responding. Any other opinions before I take the plunge?

 

You still have to use the Turbo Boost with MSi Afterburner you know..

I've also owned the GT60 since it launched in Singapore in May. None of the lights are distracting and as Invaderscs said, while gaming with the volume up you barely notice the sound of the fan (And when I game I always use both the Turbo button and the fan boost button) using headphones you won't even head the fan at all (I use Steelseries Siberia V2's)

 

The gold plated connectors aren't better because of better conductivity (aluminum or copper are much better at that), but instead due to being less conductive it serves as a filter for clearer sound, which leads to higher sound quality. All that is just in theory and lab research. In practice - whole knows how much the difference is. It's another way of showing that the stuff you bought is of a higher quality over it's competitors.