WaveBlue Technologies - Your Boutique Custom Computer Company

A computer is mostly dependent on the sum of its parts. Briefly put, AC Power is pulled from the wall, converted to DC and cleaned by the Power Supply, which then splits the power into different voltages and distributes the required power to all connected devices. Due to the extreme sensitivity and complexity of the system's components, it can be said that the power supply is the most critical component for determining a system's performance, reliability, and longevity.

At WaveBlue, we are constantly looking for the perfect components to include in our systems, especially power supplies. Through our research, testing, and experience, we have chosen to use only Corsair and PC Power and Cooling power supplies. Both of these companies make the best power supplies in the industry, and we are proud to supply them exclusively throughout our entire desktop line.

The motherboard is the central circuit board that is more than simply a backplane for connecting all of the components. Most of the features we enjoy on any computer are built in to the motherboard. Other critical system functions such as voltage regulation, speed designations and much more. When we choose motherboard offerings, we choose them for their performance, stability, features, and value. We generally choose ASUS-brand motherboards, known for their legendary combination of the above-mentioned features.

A system's RAM is its main memory, as all of its software runs directly from it. We carry Corsair-brand memory exclusively, except in rare cases where Corsair doesn't offer a certain type of memory. Corsair memory is well-known as the top memory brand, and most if not all of their memory modules are specially picked top-bin parts. In addition to our choice of memory, we thoroughly test every module bit by bit before a system ships.

Most "off-the-shelf" computer companies pay absolutely no attention to internal wiring, which can be seen by opening the computer. A sloppy internal wiring job can cause a lot of problems: accumulation of dust that can stop fans and short electrical connections, blockage of air flow that can cause components to overheat, and difficulty for the customer if a part needs to be repaired, replaced, or upgraded. Many custom-computer companies work hard at their internal wiring when sending their systems to websites and magazines for reviews, but either fail to do so for their paying customers or charge extra for "good wiring". We want our computers to stand out in their complete perfection - so we put just as much effort into wiring a $1000 home computer as we would an $8000 workstation. Just open it up and find out.

In the beginning of microprocessor-based computer history, CPUs drew so little power and gave off so little heat they were simply installed in the motherboard bare - without any cooling system. As the power of the processors grew, passive heatsinks had to be installed to keep their temperature in check. Today, all CPUs must be cooled by either an active (fan-based) heatsink, a highly complex passive heatsink or even liquid cooling. Not only do today's main processors require cooling, but the northbridge and southbridge chips - the two main chips of the motherboard - generally require cooling to function as well. Cooling the power-hungry components of today's computer system is just as critical to its performance, reliability and longetivity as its power supply. At WaveBlue, great effort is spent focusing on the cooling of all our products (desktops and laptops) to further ensure our systems' perfection.

There are two critical ways through which we achieve superior cooling. First, we make sure that the heatsinks and fans we use are very high quality, efficient devices. Second, we use the highest quality TIM, or Thermal Interface Material. This is the material that transfers heat from the chip to the heatsink device.

The heatsinks we use vary by the model and specific configuration of the system. In our MiniM and MiniB series, we use the stock heatsinks from Intel and AMD because they are efficient for chips that do not produce large amounts of heat, such as those used in those models. For the same reason, we offer these stock heatsinks as the standard option in our M and B series desktops. Despite this, we always replace the stock TIM with our own superior material. In addition, if there are irregularities on the surface of the heatsink that may degrade cooling, we polish the surface so the component passes our heat tests within our demanding specifications. The custom heatsinks used as options for the mainstream models and standard for our higher-end models are chosen based on three factors: Performance, Durability, and Silence.

Throughout the tests we perform to a customer's system before it ships, we log all of the components' temperatures and report the "before and after" readings in the Custom User Portfolio included with every system. In addition, special utilities are included with our computers so that at any time a customer or one of our technicians can check the system's temperatures and make sure everything continues to run smoothly.

One widely overlooked but important aspect of the personal computer is its silence. A computer's noise is generated by its moving parts: Case fans, heatsink fans, hard drives, and optical drives. Our selection of hard drives and optical drives includes the quietest devices available for their respective speeds or types. We almost exclusively use Scythe S-Flex and Minebea Fans - both known for extraordinary performance and silence, as well as enterprise-class longetivity. For our PRO-Series customers seeking even greater silence, two of our PRO-Series Chassis includes sound-dampening foam installed along their interior.