Introduction

I have four PCs running in my computer room right now, three of which are by themselves in a corner. One is a desktop system that I have sitting on a wireframe shelf that performs my dialup access routing. A second sits under my desk and has three hard disks and a CD-R in it. Guess what that one's for! The third is my main work system, which, as I have lamented before, is but a mere Pentium II 266MHz in an ATX desktop chassis.

Running my own private network and having three servers in one room takes a lot of effort, as well as a lot of cable. For months, I had all three systems hooked up with keyboards atop each and a monitor extension cord plugged in where the monitor should go. When I needed to switch systems, I'd just unplug the monitor and plug it into a different cable. This is a hassle I would have preferred to endure, but rather than having three computers stacked on my desk, this was the only way it could be.

Needless to say, this was a mess I was eager to clean up. That's why I was thankful to be offered the opportunity to try out the FrontX CPX (Computer Ports eXtension) Multimedia Ports kit. The FrontX system is designed to allow you to plug devices in to the front of your computer case, as opposed to the back. It also carries some extra features that make it extend beyond the typical 5.25" drive panel mod I've seen on some cases.

Features/Installation

The FrontX kit seats itself in a full-size drive bay, and also takes a single slot-panel cover from the back. The way it works is very simple - Cables running from the ports in the FrontX are routed through your system case and out a hole in the back, where they plug into the appropriate jacks. This basically takes the mess from the back of your computer and splits it up a bit, giving you less cable to deal with in the back and a bit more slack on your cables in the front. The ports on the FrontX even have little markers on them to differentiate microphone, line-in, and headphone jacks. This was a nice touch.

Installation of the FrontX casing is a snap. Simply insert the FrontX into an open drive bay and screw it into place. Route your cables through the PC and out an empty slot panel in the back (ISA preferably!) and then install the slot panel cover. The slot panel cover has a thin indentation on the side that will allow the cables to exit the case while still keeping very little of the chassis open. In my case, the slot panel cover gently crimped the cables when installed, insuring they'd stay snug in place.

So, now you can plug your joystick and headphones into the front of the computer. But what if you use speakers? Would you really want your speaker cable coming out of the front of the case? Of course not! FrontX thoughtfully accounted for this. The slot-panel cover has a jack for your speakers to plug into. Furthermore, the FrontX detects the presence of headphones plugged into the speaker jack, so that as soon as you plug in headphones, the audio signal to the speakers is cut off.

This is a very convenient feature, and in my opinion, a stroke of genius that could've easily been overlooked. I believe that most manufacturers would either have failed to think of this, or would've disregarded it, thinking, "The user can just mute the speakers himself." Quite a few OEM speakers in particular don't have an audio control on them, forcing users to adjust the volume from the PC. While this may seem to be trifle, this keeps me from having to constantly slide the volume control up and down in Windows, meaning that I don't have to precisely search for a comfortable audio level.

Upgradeability

The FrontX kit comes standard with three 1/8" jack inserts and a game port. The FrontX panel is designed to be modular, and comes with some blanks that can be replaced later with newer FrontX components. FrontX has already released add-ons for USB and serial ports. Even better, you can choose between external connectors and motherboard connectors, further reducing the amount of clutter behind your computer. Future upgrades are planned to allow for monitors, Firewire, parallel ports, and USB 2. Perhaps I'm not up on the spec enough, but I was under the idea that USB 2 was base-hardware compatible with USB, meaning that some equipment, like USB connector cables, would not need to be replaced.

The modularity of the ports also allows you to arrange the connectors as you see fit, or remove them altogether. If, for some reason, you had the need for three serial ports, you could remove the audio jacks and replace them with just serial ports. FrontX even facilitates users who require such a configuration by offering the kit in a bare-bones configuration, and allowing you to order your ports a la carte!

While these new ports are a great start, I can see a much bigger need for others. With the proliferation of 3D accelerators with TV out, RCA and S-VHS ports would be most helpful. Of much greater importance to gamers and technicians alike, however, is PS/2. PS/2, in fact, would make this device ideal for system integrators and server operators like myself, as they'd allow you to run a headless PC with just the Ethernet cable and power in the back. If you needed to diagnose a problem with the system that couldn't be done over the network, just plug in a keyboard, mouse, and monitor. Voila…This would make servicing systems incredibly easy, as they wouldn't have to be disconnected or pulled out to be worked on. Perhaps this can be considered for a future upgrade, I hope!

Also of consideration is the use of a 5.25" bay for this device. The 5.25" drive allows for more connectors in one place, but for some people, a 3.5" bay would be more useful. At my university, for instance, our lab systems have the headphone jack moved to the front of the computer system so that students can use headphones on the computer without pulling the systems away from the wall. The computers were assembled with the headphone jack drilled into the center of a 5.25" bay. This means that a drive bay was totally wasted just for the use of one cable. Since my school's needs were small, they should've gone with a 3.5" bay instead. Similarly, some OEMs may want a feature like this, but only in a 3.5" bay. This could probably be good for FrontX too.

Conclusion

This kit was extremely useful. It's installed in my desktop system right now and allows me much greater mobility with my Sidewinder and headphones. I used to need extension cables for my headphones, but the FrontX shortens the length my cables need to go by more than two feet. Furthermore, they don't get tangled in my keyboard and mouse cables anymore, so this makes things all the more convenient. As soon as FrontX introduces a PS/2 port add-on for the FrontX, however, I'll be getting one for my server, as this little miracle would make things SO much easier to work on.

Another boon of this product is that it's cheap, but well made. The panel is sleek with a small tab that allows you to easily open it when you need it, and tuck away the ports when you don't. The ports are sturdy too, so you don't have to worry about pushing in the panel when you're plugging something in.

At a price of only $25, and customizable to fit your needs, the FrontX CPX is a great boon to both gamers and everyday users everywhere. It's an idea that's not ahead of its time, but one that has been long in coming. FrontX may be the first company to produce such a creation, but they don't disappoint.

Rating: 10/10 SystemLogistics

Re-Printed From SLCentral

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