Archive for the ‘Hardware’ Category

Gainward GeForce GTX 580 “Phantom” 3072MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card

Posted by: lanpartyx on: April 22, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Gaming | Hardware | Overclocking | Reviews
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The world’s fastest GPU has arrived with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580. Experience blockbuster games like Call of Duty®: Black Ops and Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X® 2 in their full glory with everything cranked to the max. Not only does the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 rip through the latest games, it also runs quieter than the previous generation. And as you have come to expect from the GeForce GTX GPU, the GTX 580 packs support for all the premium GTX gaming technologies such as NVIDIA Surround, 3D Vision, PhysX and SLI. With all these features and more, it is easy to see how the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 obliterates the competition.

Instead of fans on its obverse side blowing air onto the PCB, there are three fans on its reverse side, drawing air from the aluminum fin array, and onto the PCB. The PCB also seems to be a non-reference design.

Features:-
- Core Clock: 783MHz (Fermi GF110)
- 64 TMUs (GTX 480 had 60 TMUs)
- Innovative thermal design: Vapour Chamber (Quieter than previous generation)
- Memory: 3072MB GDDR5
- Memory Clock: 4020MHz (Effective)
- Memory Interface: 384-Bit
- Processing Cores: 512
- Shader Clock: 1566MHz
- Bus Type: PCI-Express 2.0
- Display Connectors: 2x Dual-Link DVI-I & 1x Mini-HDMI 1.4a (Includes HDMI & VGA Adapters)
- SLI Ready (Upto 3-Way SLI Supported)
- HDCP Capable
- DirectX 11 Support
- OpenGL 4.0 Support
- PhysX Enabled
- CUDA Enabled
- 3D Vision Enabled
- NVIDIA Surround Enabled
- Lower power consumption compared to GTX 480, only 244 watts
- Warranty: 2 Years

Tags: 11, 2033, 3D, 3GB, 5760x1080, 580, Afterburner, beast, Benchmark, Benchmarks, Build, Card, Computer, Computers, Gainward, Graphics, GTX, Hardware, Heaven, Mark, Metro, MSI, NVIDIA, Overclocked, Overclocking, Part 1, Part 2, PC, Performance, phantom, Results, Review, rig, Screens, Singularity, SLI, Surround, System, Triple, Unigine, Video, Vision

Asus Xonar D2X 7.1 PCI-E Sound Card

Posted by: lanpartyx on: April 22, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Gaming | Hardware | Reviews
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With the introduction of Windows Vista, the whole audio architecture landscaped has been changed. This has resulted in teething problems for gamers – with the possibility of losing all surround sound or hardware accelerated Direct3D and EAX while gaming in the Windows Vista environment. To circumvent this problem, the Asus Xonar family of audio cards utilizes an Asus exclusive technology – the new DS3D GX extension in the Xonar D2X driver; to provide full support for surround sound and hardware accelerated features by translating DirectX to the DS3D GX. While other solutions like OpenAL requires special installation and game support, DS3D GX doesn’t. Gamers can enjoy DirectX gaming with hardware enhanced surround sound and EAX effects automatically and immediately after installation. Asus Xonar D2X audio card, dedicated to be the best audio card for gaming and home entertainment, provides unprecedented 118dB In/Out SNR audio quality and features for games, music, and movies. Combining 192k/24-bit ultra fidelity input and output with a suite of Dolby and DTS sound technologies and abundant valuable software, the Xonar D2X is well designed to upgrade your PC to a powerful and high-quality Home Entertainment Centre, which you will never have with onboard audio or other sound cards.

- PCI-Express Interface
- Vista Gaming with DirectSound & EAX support
- Hi-Fi class audio quality with SNR up to 118dB
- Dolby HomeTheater Technologies & DTS Connect
- Valuable Cakewalk and Ableton Live music production software bundled
- Unprecedented SSNR NR Up to 118db reaching the limit of PC audio sound quality clarity
- Full duplex High-definition audio processing at 192KHz/24Bit for all Input and outputs and Inputs
- Versatile Dolby/DTS Audio Technologies for Game, Music, and Video
- Accurate 3D sound positioning and hardware acceleration for PC gaming
- Real-time DDL and DTS Connect encoders for amazing gaming and surround sounds over your Home Theater System
- Requires floppy power-connector
- Vista Ready

Tags: Asus, Card, D2x, PCI-E, Sound, Unboxing, Xonar

The ultimate gaming sound system for the demanding gamer

Creative’s Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium – Fatal1ty Champion Series delivers maximum performance, control and connectivity for the Pro Gamer. The new PCI Express chipset, designed for the latest PCs, delivers hardware-accelerated EAX 5.0 and OpenAL with ultra-accurate 3D positional audio over headphones in a premium protective shield with backlit logo. The new X-Fi I/O Drive gives convenient access to headphone and microphone inputs with retractable volume controls, while backlit buttons give you instant access to Game Mode and X-Fi technologies for maximum gaming features. Optical I/O and real-time Dolby Digital encoding give you single cable connectivity to your surround sound decoder and PowerDVD software plays your Dolby Digital or DTS movies in incredible surround sound over headphones or speakers.
PCI Express Sound Blaster with Creative X-Fi chipset, plus front panel X-Fi I/O Drive for extra connectivity and instant selection of Game Mode and X-Fi technologies.
X-Fi I/O Drive adapts to 3.5-inch and 5.25-inch drive bays, giving easy access to dedicated headphone and volume controls.
Hardware-accelerated EAX 5.0 and OpenAL gaming, for ultra-real cinematic in-game audio under Windows XP and Vista. Creative ALchemy software restores EAX performance to games under Vista.
On-board optical I/O with Dolby Digital real-time encoding, for single cable connection to surround sound decoder.
UAA (Universal Audio Architecture) design ensures maximum compatibility in Windows Vista, while the shield with backlit logo protects card components from damage.
PowerDVD software for Dolby Digital or DTS movies in incredible surround sound over headphones or speakers. THX certification assures high-fidelity results, and low-latency ASIO drivers make this card ideal for the music enthusiast.

Technical Specifications

24-bit Analog-to-Digital conversion of analog inputs at 96kHz sample rate 24-bit
Analog-to-Digital conversion of analog inputs at 96kHz sample rate 24-bit
Digital-to-Analog conversion of stereo digital sources at 192kHz to stereo output 16-bit to 24-bit
recording sampling rates: 8,11.025,16, 22.05, 24, 32, 44.1, 48 and 96kHz
ASIO 2.0 support at 16bit/44.1kHz, 16-bit/48kHz, 24-bit/44.
1kHz 24-bit/48kHz and 24-bit/96kHz with direct monitoring
Enhanced SoundFont support at up to 24-bit resolution
64MB of X-RAM
Connectivity (Sound Card)
Mic In/Line In
Headphone/Front Left & Right Speaker
Output Side Left & Right Speaker
Output Center/Sub
Output Rear Left & Right Speaker
Output Optical Digital SPDIF
Output Optical Digital SPDIF Input
Intel HD Front Panel Header
X-Fi I/O Drive connectors Connectivity (X-Fi I/O Drive)
Mic In AUX in
Headphone Output
Warranty
1 year limited hardware warranty

Requirements
Available PCI Express® (x1, x4, x8 or x16) slot
Microsoft® Windows® Vista + Service pack 1 or Windows® XP (x64, Service pack 2 or Media Center Edition 2004)
Intel® Pentium® 4, AMD® Athlon™ or equivalent processor 1.6 GHz or faster
256MB RAM (512MB for Windows® Vista)
600MB of free hard disk space
CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive
Internet connection required for Cyberlink PowerDVD download

Tags: 7.1, Blaster, Card, Champion, Fatal1ty, Hardware, PCIe, Series, Sound, Titanium, X-fi

Core i7 990x + 24GB DDR3 + NVIDIA Quadro 4000 + 2TB SATA3

Posted by: lanpartyx on: February 12, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Hardware
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Dektops Profissionais e Gamers: http://www.firstplace.com.br

Um computador para render, montado pela First Place para a Castro Mello Arquitetos. Rodando SPECViewperf 11.0 para Benchmark de performance.

Link para esse computador e detalhes : http://clube.firstplace.com.br/14-fotos/area-de-montagem/73-maquina-da-castro…

Tags: 4000, 850, 990X, antec, computador, computadores, Core, desktop, fermi, First, I7, NVIDIA, p6x58d, PC, place, premium, quadro

Frank N Stein PC – Final 2011 Iteration

Posted by: lanpartyx on: February 6, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Gaming | Hardware | Overclocking
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This is the final look for Frank this year – I am finally done. As you can tell much changed since the last video – namely the case itself, things that were black became red, and new things showed up. Modified EVGA GTX 580 covers and a custom made XFI PCB cover as well came into play as well as the new red floor mesh.

Tags: 2011, 800D, 990, 990X, Best, Bitspower, block, compression, Computer, connections, cooled, Cooling, Core, core i7, corsair, Custom, ddr3, dominator, external, Extreme, Frank, Gaming, gt, hexa, high, Killer, Koolance, Liquid, machine, mad, Mod, monitors, NVIDIA, OCZ, Performance, ps3, RAID 0, rig, room, screen, setup, Stein, System, three, ultimate, Vertex 2, vertex 3, video game, Water, WaterCooled, widescreen, xbox

Specification Supremacy

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Hardware
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The Beauty Outside,The Beast Within

Tags: beast, EVGA, intel, SLI, WaterCooled

Very Cool Setup

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Hardware
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Designed For Dominance Performance Beyond AMAZING

Tags: EVGA, intel, SLI, WaterCooled

DreamPC 2011

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: DreamPC2011 | enthusiasts | Gallery Pics | Hardware
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Under the Hood

THE ONLY THING MISSING FROM DREAM MACHINE 2011 IS THE SWEET SMELL OF EXHAUST How Sweet =)

Tags: dream machine, EVGA, GTX580, SLI

CoolerMaster Cosmos II Case Review

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Gaming | Hardware | Reviews
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It’s been a long road for the Cosmos II, but it’s finally here. The long-awaited successor to Cooler Master’s blockbuster Cosmos was supposed to ship in September—around the same time as our2011 Dream Machine, which used a prototype version of the Cosmos II as its chassis. Well, after some trips back to the drawing board, the Cosmos II is finally ready for prime time. It’s real. And it’s spectacular.

The Cosmos II, which Cooler Master bills as an “Ultra Tower,” is 20 percent larger than the original Cosmos—it’s more than 27 inches tall, 26 deep, and 13.5 inches at its widest; and it weighs a staggering 47 pounds empty. The chassis frame is steel, while the shell is plastic with aluminum cladding on the panels. The build quality is outstanding, with nary a sharp edge, uneven panel or flimsy component. The sliding doors on the top and front panel slide smoothly, the side hinges are solid and easy to use, and the handles won’t fall off. Our review unit is all black, but Cooler Master also offers a silver model.

Yes, it looks this good in real life.

The Cosmos lineage is strong with this one, from the hinged side panels to the top carrying handles, to the slide-out hard drive trays; but the Cosmos II is a thoroughly modern product, with massive cooling potential, strong cable-management chops, and wide-open spaces.

The Cosmos II has three toolless 5.25-inch drive bays, two front-panel 3.5-inch hot-swap SATA bays, and a whopping 11 internal hard drive trays: five in the main compartment and six in the case’s bottom section, which also contains the PSU and two 12cm fans that blow air directly across the lower hard drive cages. The two lower hard drive cages and the primary hard drive cage are all removable. Take out the lower two, add an included bracket, and you can install a 240mm radiator in their place. Or you can remove the upper hard drive cage to improve airflow to the main compartment.

You’ll never say, “Gosh, I wish the Cosmos II had more room inside.”

The main compartment has ten PCIe expansion slots, plus one on the side, and it supports motherboard form factors as large as XL-ATX. It can accommodate CPU coolers up to seven inches tall, and 12.2-inch GPUs with room to spare. The motherboard tray contains eight rubber-grommeted cable-routing cutouts to the right of the motherboard, two non-grommeted cutouts above it, and two grommeted cutouts in the divider between the PSU and main compartments, for PSU cables or water-cooling tubes. There’s more than an inch of space behind the motherboard tray for cable routing.

The case’s front panel includes two USB 3.0 ports (with an internal header), four USB 2.0 ports, an eSATA port, and two audio jacks. The case’s power and reset switches are above the front-panel connectors, along with a sleek fan controller that can power up to nine fans on four different channels.

The Cosmos II ships with five fans: a 20cm front intake fan, 14cm rear exhaust fan, 12cm top exhaust fan, and the previously mentioned two 12cm hard-drive bay fans in the lower compartment. The front-panel fan can be swapped for a 14cm fan, the rear fan can be swapped for a 12cm, and the top panel can accommodate a 20cm fan, two 14cm fans, three 12cm fans, or a 240mm radiator. All the intake fans have removable dust filters. The hard-drive tray in the main compartment can accommodate a 12cm fan for increased drive cooling, and two 12cm fans can be mounted to the left side panel for GPU cooling. Each fan, save the rear exhaust fan, are controlled by the front-panel fan controller.

The nine 3-pin connectors are color-coded and labeled, with three for the top fans, three for hard-drive fans, two for GPU fans, and one for the front fan. The fan controller also has nine two-pin LED controllers for Cooler Master’s LED fans, although only the 20cm front fan actually has has an LED. This all leads to a terrifying bundle of cables coming from the front panel. Thank goodness Cooler Master includes plenty of cable-routing options and tie-downs behind the motherboard tray.

Aside from the plethora of fan-control wires, building into the Cosmos II is a snap. The cavernous interior leaves plenty of room for all your high-powered components, and with plenty of support for both air- and water-cooling setups, you’ll be able to keep even the hottest rigs chilly. It doesn’t have the water-cooling potential of, say, Silverstone’s TJ11, but its price tag is $250 less.

Our gripes are minimal. First, the sheer size of the beast means you need a very tall desk (if you’re putting the Cosmos II under it) or a very sturdy desk (if you’re putting it on top). Second, we’ve seen cases with better fan-control wire routing. Lastly, we could do without the loud beep the fan controller produces each time you change the fan speed.

These minor quibbles aside, the production version of the Cosmos II is a great case, and we foresee it being very popular with those who need plenty of room for high-performance components, have the space in their office for the Cosmos II’s bulk, and don’t mind forking over $350. It’s an unabashedly prestige case, but sometimes that’s what we need.

Tags: chassis frame, CoolMaster, Cosmos II, Hardware, Mod, wide open spaces

BitMicro plans 5TB SSDs with TALINO-DE controller

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: Hardware | News
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Solid-state storage specialist BitMicro Networks, in partnership with Global Unichip, has announced the taping-out of a third-generation SSD controller which it claims will lead to 5TB SSDs in a single form factor.

Dubbed TALINO-DE (Translation and Linking of Input-Output Nodes - Device Edition,) the next-generation controller uses multiple processors, a proprietary data moving technology and high-speed serial on-chip buses to enable hundreds of individual flash chips to be accessed in parallel. The result: SSDs that are both significantly faster and a lot more capacious than anything that has come before.

The controller’s design includes in-built support for the most common input-output standards including SATA, SAS and PCI Express, meaning those opting to use TALINO-DE in their designs don’t need an additional bridge chip or third-party IO controller as part of their design.

While full performance characteristics have yet to be released, BitMicro claims that the design scales to over 400,000 random 4KB block write transactions per second – IOPS – while providing support for up to 5TB of flash storage in a single device.

‘The combination of Global Unichip’s PCIe, SATA, SAS PHY IP products and the broad scope of their flexible SoC design services, manufacturing capabilities and strong relationship with TSMC gave us no reason to hold back in our designs,‘ claimed BitMicro chief executive Rey Bruce at the launch announcement. ‘From the start, we are confident the TALINO-DE controller will create a huge impact in the storage industry. Backed by GUC’s world-class testing facilities, we know they are the most viable option for us.‘

Promising support for ONFi, Toggle Mode DDR SLC, MLC, eMLC and NAND SLC flash chips, BitMicro’s TALINO-DE controller is expected to hit the market in small-scale product launches in the second quarter of this year as part of the company’s E-Disk product line.Sadly, there is a slight catch: with BitMicro aiming its products firmly at enterprise-level customers, it’s likely to be quite some time before you’ll be putting a TALINO-DE-powered 5TB SSD in your next gaming PC.

Are you pleased to see companies working on expanding the capacity of solid-state storage devices, or will it take a commercially available product – at an affordable price – before you start jumping for joy? Share your thoughts over in the forums

Tags: 5tb, BitMicro, News, solid state storage, SSD, storage specialist

i7 980X EVGA X58 E770 GTX590 Quad SLI Water Cooled

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Gaming | Hardware
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i7 980X EVGA X58 E770 GTX590 Quad SLI Water Cooled

Tags: 980X, E770, EVGA, GTX590, I7, Quad, SLI, WaterCooled, X58

Sneak Peek at the new Asus Rampage IV Extreme

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Hardware | Reviews
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Asus’ ROG (Republic of Gamers) is set to release Rampage IV Extreme, its flagship motherboard for the upcoming release of Intel’s LGA2011 (Sandy Bridge E) processors. The Rampage IV Extreme has the standard red/black color scheme and comes packed with OC features and goodies.

The motherboard supports both the LGA-2011 and LGA 1366 CPU coolers by switching out the standard LGA-2011 bracket with a custom Asus bracket, which provides support for LGA-1366 coolers. As you look at the CPU socket, you’ll quickly notice the four DDR3 DIMM slots (two per channel) on either side of the socket for a total of eight DDR3 DIMM slots (DDR3-2400 OC). The CPU and memory VRM areas are located along three sides of the socket, all cooled by heatsinks that are connected by heat pipes. These VRM heatsinks share heat with the one over the X79 PCH, which is actively cooled by a fan.

Tags: Asus, ddr3, Motherboards, Rampage

8.429 GHz with an AMD FX Bulldozer

Posted by: lanpartyx on: January 29, 2012

In: enthusiasts | Hardware | Overclocking
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A talented team broke a new frequency record with an AMD FX processor : 8.429 GHz. In order to reach that frequency, the CPU was cooled with liquid helium. Congratulations !