HyTek Computer - News Archive: May 2001

Chenbro Xpider Gaming Bomb Case Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 30, 2003 at 8:26 PM EST

If the computer case is the home where your computer lives them some us are slumlords. Using cheap cases that would be better served as paint lockers than computer enclosures. You know the ones; they have more sharp edges than dull ones. It takes a complete Craftsman tool chest full of tools to do a board change in one of them. Today we are reviewing a case that is heralded as the "Gaming Bomb" from Chenbro. It also goes by the name of the Xpider so we will be checking it out to see where it lands on the rent scale.

SilenX 400 Watt Power Supply Review @ Extreme Overclocking
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 30, 2003 at 8:20 PM EST

Most people do not realize just how important the PSU is to a modern day PC. It is really the heart of the PC, giving power and stability to each of the components in the system. A really good PSU is even more important to today's overclockers. With the ever growing demands placed on power supplies today, overclockers are always on the lookout for a very affordable PSU with really good and reliable power.

Gigabyte GA-7NNXP nForce2 Ultra Motherboard reviewed @ PC Guide
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 8:17 PM EST

The GA-7NNXP is a great board with more features than we've seen on any other board, including 400MHz FSB, AGP 8X, 4xDual Channel DIMMS, Gigabit LAN, 10/100 secondary LAN, SATA and PATA RAID, audio, dual BIOS, and lots of expansivity. The fact that these features also come with great performance bodes very well for this solution.

ATI ALL-IN-WONDER 9600 128MB PRO Video Card Video Review #366 @ 3dGameMan
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 8:13 PM EST

"The ATI ALL-IN-WONDER 9600 128MB PRO Video Card is jam packed with goodies. This card is great for gaming, has a TV and FM Tuner built in, a remote control and much more. One very distinctive feature that this product has over the other All-In-Wonder cards is this one has dual display. Also, this Video Card is very reasonably priced considering its capabilities. Watch the Video to find out more..."

AC Ryan SATA+ATA PCI Combo Card @ Madshrimps
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 8:10 PM EST

"We test a PCI SATA controller from ACRyan. Allowing you to connect 2 SATA hard drives to any system that has a free PCI slot. Does it perform better or worse then an onboard solution? We installed it and let you know."

Bytecc Mobile USB HDD Enclosure Review @ OCIA
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 8:07 PM EST

"Size and mobility, the ultimate goal of most external enclosures, were at one time proportional in relationship. If you chose to increase the size of your external drive capacity you almost always had to increase the size of your enclosure. Multiple drives were used to give external capacity and cost was a key limiting factor. Speed was also a limiting factor if budgets were tight. Capacity has become less of an issue as the new IDE hard drives have increased cache and capacity while the cost has become more reasonable. Firewire was already available but had not been accepted as readily as USB. USB was slow and thus prevented real time computing of any critical processes. With the advent of USB 2.0 another avenue of external high speed connection became possible."

Gigabyte K8NNXP nForce3 150 Motherboard Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 8:06 PM EST

"nVIDIA were the first chipset manufacturer other than AMD to support the 64-bit AMD Opteron processor. Titled the "Crush 8," or nForce3 when it was first released, the chipset also promised to support the then forthcoming 64-bit AMD desktop processors which would later be named the Athlon64 and Athlon64 FX. The K8 chipset of the moment is the VIA K8T800, and there are plenty of examples of how boards based on that core logic perform... In this review, we are going to be evaluating nVidia's nForce 3 150 chipset and specifically, Gigabyte's GA-K8NNXP socket 754 Athlon64 motherboard. Gigabyte's brand new K8NNXP Athlon64 motherboard boasts an impressive list of features, workstation-oriented addons, and performance stats that should make it a crowd favorite among demanding users."

Coolmax - Taurus CX 450B Silent Switching PSU Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 8:01 PM EST

Do you want your computer to operate with a great deal more stability, do you want the voltages on the all of the rails to stay within at least a 5% tolerance? Then you are going to have to invest in a good power supply. With the ever-increasing number of toys we seem to find ourselves placing inside our computers, the need for a high current, well regulated power supply should be a paramount concern. Today we are looking at Coolmax Taurus CX-450B Silent Switching PSU, which should be enough horsepower for most, but only testing it will tell.

GeForce FX 5700 and 5950 Ultra – nVidia’s return to the top? @ TweakTown
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 7:59 PM EST

"nVidia's NV36 (GeForce FX 5700) and NV38 (GeForce FX 5950) cores have arrived. How do they compare to the competition from the 2003 conquering ATI in the 9600 Pro and 9800 Pro. Read on!"

ABIT IC7 MAX3 – Taking Canterwood to the MAX @ TweakTown
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 7:56 PM EST

"AMD Athlon 64 has taken most of the spotlight over the past month but we shouldn't forget about Intel Pentium 4. One such motherboard to support it is ABIT's IC7 MAX3, which takes the Canterwood chipset to the MAX."

Kenwood HTB-506 Home Theater System @ Designtechnica
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 7:54 PM EST

"The Kenwood HTB-506 provides one with an easy to setup and simple to use home-theater-in-a-box system. It has some shortcomings here and there which was especially noticeable only in music applications, but it is quite satisfying in home theater applications. If you need an all-in-one receiver-and-speakers solution and you are on a limited budget, this system is worth checking out. For $500, the HTB-506 represents a very good value. "

Etherlords II Review @ DiscGamer
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 7:51 PM EST

"Harking back to the days of the original Dungeons and Dragons method of battle-play, Strategy First brings back this almost mechanical style of play in Etherlords 2. This game is turn-based mathematical strategy plotting your character ("Hero") with his/her menagerie of weapon-wielding minions against other bad characters with their evil minions."

Albatron's GiGi GeForce FX 5200 Ultra Reviewed @ HotHardware
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 7:50 PM EST

Tom, our man from Maine, just put the finishing touches on his latest review of Albatron's entry-level GiGi GeForce FX 5200 Ultra. This card sports 128MB of RAM, and comes equipped with some high-quality, copper cooling. We put "GiGi" up against ATi's budget contender, the Radeon 9000 Pro - Click the link below and see which card we think came out on top...

Wet and Chilly Chips Water Cooling System Rev2 @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 at 7:48 PM EST

"Definite improvement to be seen here when compared to the old style radiators and a very impressive full load that tops out at only 12C above room temperature with the Evercool fan at full speed. The new design radiators would both seem to handle load temperatures with a low speed fan more efficiently as well, which for those wanting to get a quiet system will be good news."

Gigabyte R9600 Pro 128MB Graphics Card reviewed @ PC Guide
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:45 PM EST

Time and time again we have seen that ATi been able to offer the market the best performance and quality available to date. Now with future gaming and 3D quality pushing the barriers of older graphic cards with detail required, the 9600 Pro offers end-users the ability to get ahead of the time where future software will be able to take full advantage of the technology implement in the R96P128D card and not just the grunt. It provides excellent price/performance ratio, giving those looking for a decent performing 3D card without making a big dint in your back pocket as the 9800 Pro version would.

Vantec ION 400B 400watt power supply review @ OcPrices
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:43 PM EST

"Today we've got a look at a new entry level power supply from Vantec. The ION takes most of the features of their top-shelf Stealth series, and puts them into a more affordable steel chassis. Does the ION measure up to its big brothers?"

Seasonic Super Tornado 400 PSU Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:41 PM EST

The last time we reviewed a Seasonic Super Tornado power supply it was only rated at 300 watt but it was still able to impress us with the tight voltages and the little extras that came with the unit. So when we got news that the new Super Tornado 400 was available to review we jumped at the chance to see if it could hang in there as well as its little brother did.

Mushkin 1GB PC4000 Dual Pack Memory Review Review @ Legit Reviews
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:40 PM EST

"Mushkin has been operating its memory and components e-commerce site since 1994 and it is not hard to see how they have made it this far! We can clearly see that their DDR500 memory modules are some of the best on the market after looking at the majority of 512mb modules sold in North America...."

OCZ DDR PC-4200 Dual Channel @ Madshrimps
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:37 PM EST

"This article will not only be a review, it will discuss the discrepancies found from the label on your DDR, to the chipset claims of bandwidth. As Overclocker's (Enthusiast's), we can be an overly demanding and fickle bunch. We are insatiable when it comes to hardware performance, and whether it be DDR, Graphic's, or CPU's, we plug them in and immediately begin seeking the performance ceiling. Yet when we overclock our memory, we overclock the FSB, ergo the Processor. While we can use memory dividers, any experienced Enthusiast knows, this is simply slowing the system, and even with the best latencies, the divider defeats that purpose. This is especially true so long as were discussing the Canterwood/Springdale chipsets, for which OCZ Technology PC4200 was generally designed. At present the i875 MCH is the best "peak bandwidth" chipset available on the market."

NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 Ultra Preveiw @ Beyond3D
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:34 PM EST

"GeForce FX 5700 is the mainstream refresh of GeForce FX 5600 Ultra. The refresh is the mainstream equivalent of NV30 to NV35 in that the basic configuration stays the same but the main thrust being that the integer shader units have been replace with small floating point units, there have been optimisations for the Intellisample image quality options and the addition of UltraShadow. Although the pixel pipeline configuration remains the same as NV31, albeit with the replacement of the integer units for float ALU's, the entire vertex engine from NV30 / NV35 has been lifted and included in the NV36 chip for GeForce FX 5700."

EPoX 8HDA3+ Socket 754 Motherboard Review @ Extreme Overclocking
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:32 PM EST

The 8HDA3+ is based on the K8T800 chipset, supporting Athlon Socket 754 processors. The new chipset is loaded with features and we will see how well EPoX has incorporated this chipset into their design and of course put the board to the test against our Intel 3.2C on 875/865 motherboards.

High System Memory Density -- Performance Hit? @ lostcircuits
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:28 PM EST

High System memory density has recently fallen from grace, at least according to a report of severe performance penalties caused by filling up all four DIMM slots on the P4 - Intel i875 platform. Even at 2 GB, digital image processing was penalized with approximately 61 % longer processing time according to the timing tool built into Photoshop. Or so the story went.

There are performance issues associated with higher system memory configurations; clock skew caused by higher load on the command and address bus necessitates relaxation of some chipset timing parameters, and potentially the reinsertion of the additional pipeline stages that were disabled as a function of enabling PAT.

The penalties in those cases are, however, in the order of 3-6% and not 40-60% that were shown to incur after adding two extra DIMMs. There is something wrong in the state of Denmark or was that the state of Benchmark here? We have some good ideas where the bugs are and have the data to back it up.

OCZ EL Platinum PC3200 Dual Channel Memory Kit @ Bytesector
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:26 PM EST

"OCZ Technology has been a major player in the RAM overclocking market for a while now. Today we have the privilege to take a look at one of their nicer 1GB PC3200 Platinum dual channel memory kits. The EL (Enhanced Latency) Platinum modules sport nice polished platinum plated heat spreaders bearing the OCZ logo, CL 2 2-3-5 latency timings, rated voltages of up to 2.8v, and optimization for Dual Channel operation. These modules sound great and they look fairly good too, but how will they perform?"

WinAmp Remote Control @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 at 7:24 PM EST

"Currently I have remote control for Winamp, WinDVD, WinDVR, Windows Media Player 9, the Mouse (via the cursor pad), so basically anything you can think of to control, you can. Hell I turn my monitor off with the Tekgems remote now, which for a bedroom PC this is quite a handy prospect before sleep (no more waiting for Windows to shut it off after 10 minutes)."

HighPoint e.SATA RAID Kit v2 Video Review #366 @ 3dGameMan
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:49 PM EST

"The HighPoint e.SATA RAID Kit includes the RocketMate 1200 external HDD enclosure and the RocketRAID 1542 Host Adapter. The RocketMate 1200 allows the installation of standard IDE HDD's and when in a RAID0 configuration it is one of the fastest and most inexpensive external storage devices on the market today. Also, the RocketRAID 1542 Host Adapter not only has two external SATA connections but two internal SATA connections. Watch the Video to find out more..."

Kingston HyperX PC3500 reviewed @ MetkuMods
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:46 PM EST

"...And then there is that problem that overclocking these modules need very high voltages, which void your warranty and can be unhealthy for memory modules. But if you are going to be extreme, you need extreme memory and Kingston HyperX PC3500's filled with Winbond BH-5 chips are just that."

XFX GeForceFX 5600 Ultra review @ OCModShop
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:43 PM EST

"This 5600 Ultra uses a brilliant blue PCB that I like a lot. The card uses a good sized active heatsink to cool the core and has RAMsinks on both the front and back side. From the side of the card you can see that it has a VGA, DVI, and S-Video connection. This card also needs external power from a 4 pin Molex which is why there is a plug on the top right hand corner of the PCB."

Logitech MX 700 Wireless Mouse Review @ ASE Labs
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:40 PM EST

" Optical mice are nothing new, hell, even wireless mice are pretty much standard. The problem is the technology used to operate the wireless optical device and the power that the device needs to operate. If either of these technologies didn't depend on the other, then wireless would be more prevalent than it is. Alas, it is dependant, so we are forced to look to alternative ways to power and drive these devices. The Logitech MX 700 is a great example of the best in wireless optical technology, with no problems with power sources. Let's find out if this mouse is worth the cost."

Gigabyte R9800 Pro 256MB Graphics Card reviewed @ PC Guide
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:23 PM EST

Once again with the R98P256D Gigabyte have proven they can produced high performance cards, the R9800 Pro 256MB really showing why it is given the name as the King flagship of the graphics card industry. Although the R98P256D is the fastest card, I don't think the software has really developed to the stage where it actually takes advantage of the extra grunt that the 9800 Pro 256MB brings to the table.

Altec Lansing AHS-502 Headset Review @ GruntvillE
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:21 PM EST

"If you enjoy playing team based games online, then you've probably come to respect the importance of voice communications with your fellow teammates. A good set of headphones with a microphone is a must for hardcore team gamers. There is nothing quite like laying a good smack down on your opponents while you and your buddies chat and laugh about it. In fact, the appeal of a headset/ mic combo is so great that most team gamers will overlook the better sounding headphones that don't have the convenience of a built in mic. I certainly fall into this category of players. My faithful Plantronics Audio 90's have seen many fun nights of gaming, but I have also been tempted by the cool looking headsets that offer up top quality sounds. I have often wondered how nice it would be if you could merge a high quality headset with a built in mic for gamers. I mean the concept seems simple enough, but up until now it seemed like the audio companies just weren't getting the message. Lucky for us, it looks like all this is about to change for the better."

nVidia Quadro FX3000 Review @ lostcircuits
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:12 PM EST

The high end workstation professional graphics market is undoubtedly dominated by nVidia. The original Quadro4 line of specialized OpenGL cards laid the groundwork for the later revisions based on the GeForce4 and, finally, the Quadro FX family of cards. Starting at a low of US$ 295.- or less street price and extending up to US$ 1,700.- at the high end, nVidia offers a match for anybody's needs.

The question is what are you really getting, and is it worth the extra money for a product that, like all other computer products has obsolescence already built in. As it turns out, obsolescence in the professional graphics market abides by different rules and time scales than the consumer graphics market with its 6 month turnover cycle. How else could it be that a one year old Quadro4 980 XGL can outperform the current top model, that is, the Quadro FX3000?

It's not quite like that, however, the point is that professional graphics cards are blessed with a substantially extended longevity, which arguably favors a more substantial investment for a higher-end solution. In any event, we have a good representation of today's mid and high-end contenders in the professional graphics scene that are up to a death match in the illustrious arena of professional high end OpenGL benchmarks.

Kingston HyperX PC4000 512MB Kit @ envynews
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:09 PM EST

The last time I reviewed memory from Kingston, I had a couple of sticks from their ValueRAM line solution. Although these sticks were 100% reliable, stable, and able to clock in a small increase of performance, they were not the stories made for the over clocking crowd. Since that time, Kingston has realized the increase in performance which enthusiasts sought. With the market moving towards faster bus speeds, Kingston Technology have come up with their new performance line, aptly named HyperX. In this review, we cover their PC4000 512MB Kit and show you how we achieved our Envy News overclocking record!.

Corsair CMX512-3200LLPRO Memory Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:05 PM EST

Corsair's CMX512-3200LLPRO memory may just about be the top of the line in memory for someone looking for DDR400 memory. Yes we know that it designed for purest hardcore gamers and people running dual channel motherboards wanting the best possible performance. But I have one little question; will it help an aging KT-400A climb a bit higher in the search for the grail of speed? Come on along an find out as we take a a look at how an average person might find a use for this memory.

AudioTrak ProDigy 7.1 Review @ ipKonfig
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:00 PM EST

Demands by today's games on sound systems are growing, and technology is growing rapidly to meet them. This year we're seeing a lot of 7.1 sound cards being rushed to market, and game publishers and others are taking advantage of their technology. People love realistic and/or movie theatre sound on demand; there isn't anything else like it. I've always said that if you can't feel the music, then it ain't loud enough! Will a man be severely beaten for coming home with a larger stereo system for his computer or entertainment center? Nowadays I'd have to say not, but that mostly depends on your needs, and how well you can hear, I guess. Quality comes in much smaller packages, with more affordable price tags. For under $500 USD, you can have high quality speakers and high end sound card to drive 'em. But let's be honest here: $500 is still quite a bit to spend.

The Athlon 64 Triple Threat @ Hothardware
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 6:55 PM EST

Tonight at Hothardware.com we have put together an Athlon 64 Triple Threat that lines up 3 new motherboards from MSI, ASUS and Shuttle, each offering its own flavor of 64-Bit computing. The focus of this article is not necessarily to be an Athlon 64 "Shootout" but rather one that covers the spectrum of features and performance. Each package has its own niche, aiming to satisfy the full range of customers from the budget minded to the enthusiast with money to burn. So click the link below for the full story and see which one is best for you!

Antec Minuet Micro-ATX Desktop Review @ Epiacenter
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 6:51 PM EST

"If you are looking for a stylish desktop case or if you want to build a HTPC for your living room, you might take a look at the Antec Minuet Desktop case."

Abit IC7-MAX3 Motherboard Review @ Hardware Extreme
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 9:32 PM EST

"I had been using a few of Abit boards, and they are by no means the easiest motherboards to set up properly. You would immediately recognize on this motherboard is its OTES (Outside Thermal Exhaust System). It's exactly as the name implies, it takes the warm air from the hottest parts of the motherboard and channels it out of the casing. "

Short-Mediaware: Antivirus @ Short-Media
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 9:26 PM EST

"Very few problems can render a great computer useless as quickly as a virus. The best way to avoid this grim scenario is to install and maintain a robust anti-virus program. We asked the members at Short-Media to tell us which program they rely on to defend their computers against a viral catastrophe. We had a clear winner."

Intel Pentium4 3.2GHz C Processor Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 9:22 PM EST

"The last two years has been a roller coaster ride for the Pentium 4 processor. From the relatively weak Williamette 1.5 GHz P4 was released, to the powerhouse Northwood P4 3.2 GHz processor, it has been quite an adventure. With the "Prescott" core just around the corner, with potentially the "Pentium 5" name attached, but not quite ready to be released, there could be no better time to release the new Intel Pentium 4 3.2C - a 3.2GHz microprocessor. This was done for several reasons, but mainly to take over top pricing spot from the 3.0C which has been around since May. Keeping pressure on AMD is always just a side benefit. The P4 3.2C, like the other 'C-class' processors, runs on a 800 MHz FSB Northword core. Architecturally it's identical to the P4 3.0C PCstats reviewed previously, and even the lowly P4 1.6A!"

Enermax EHD-350 USB Enclosure @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 9:07 PM EST

"The test copies, reads, and then deletes a file as many times as it can in one minute. The results are based off of these values using a file sized 512B, 32Kb, 256Kb, and 2MB. Higher values are better in this test as well. The drive once again performed pretty well. You obviously won’t get the same speed from the drive using the USB 2.0 interface as you would using the IDE interface but the drive still is working well."

CrossOver Cable Converter @ Modasylum
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 9:05 PM EST

"This will convert any length of straight Ethernet cable into a crossover cable, in a project that will take you less than an hour, and cost you under $10 in materials.Materials and tools needed: Cat5 crimper, RJ-45 Ethernet end, 6-9 inches of cat5 cable, electrical tape, a wall socket (with supplied tool), and a razor blade (not pictured.)"

Albatron KX18D Pro II (nForce 2 Ultra 400) Motherboard Reviewed @ myWORLD Hardware
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 9:03 PM EST

"To be frank, Albatron has been producing nForce 2 board way back to few months ago where we took a look at KM18G Pro. The only thing that differ these two boards from each other was the form factor, whereby KX18D Pro II came in full ATX size. And talking about full ATX size, full ATX sized board usually offered much better expandability than smaller sized ATX board. KX18D Pro II or should I say the whole line of Albatron products came in blue colored PCB board, whereby it stands for tranquility and trademark of Albatron products."

Abit NF7-S Rev. 2.0 review @ ocmodshop
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 8:39 PM EST

"The 5-bit FID Override technology is great and will save you a lot of time and effort from physically unlocking your CPU. After increasing the FSB slowly I finally maxed out at 215MHz which is amazing. I love how I was able to change the CPU FSB/DRAM ratio and AGP frequency, if these options were not available the overclock would have been a lot lower because my RAM and video card would have maxed out."

Plextor PlexWriter PX-708UF External DVD Writer @ Designtechnica
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 26, 2003 at 8:37 PM EST

"Unfortunately the PX-708UF does not have the polish we have come to expect from Plextor products. We gave the PX-504UF a much better score because it was the first external DVD writer developed by Plextor and overall was a good first attempt. But we expected their updated version the PX-708UF to address some of the issues their predecessor had and this simply was not the case. The PX-708UF is a relatively fast and reliable drive, but it lacks the ability to daisy chain other FireWire devices through it and has a very loud internal fan. Priced at $299.99 we would recommend holding off for Sony's external 8X drive which was just announced while writing this review."

NVIDIA's GeForce FX 5950 Ultra & 5700 Ultra Reviewed @ HotHardware
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:15 PM EST

We've got a double-shot of NVIDIA graphics goodness coming to you today, in the form of the GeForce FX 5950 Ultra & GeForce FX 5700 Ultra. NVIDIA's new flagship GPU and new mainstream card, along with the soon to be released Detonator FX 52.16 drivers, improve upon the previous generation, in more ways than one. After comparing the image quality and performance of these two new products, choosing a winner in this round of the 3D wars becomes much more difficult. Click the links below and take a look...

Samsung Syncmaster 173T LCD Monitor @ envynews
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:12 PM EST

The battle for the best 17-inch LCD is on, and Samsung Electronics is trying to keep at the head of the pack. With its 3rd-generation 'T' display now making the rounds, the SyncMaster 173T has eye-popping specifications and an affordable price tag. Today, we have a review of this fine display, beheld in the eyes of a reviewer who has already used their 2nd-generation 172T LCD display. This in-depth review covers the basics and usability of the screen and should please all.

Tt Purepower 560w PSU Review @ Overclocker Café
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:10 PM EST

Power supply units have really taken on some attention over the past year. Triple fans, quad fans, LED fans, automatic speed control, manual fan speed control and on and on. Lots of attention to the fans if you hadn't guessed already. Some other areas of power supply units have gone without that same attention to their finer details until now. Thermaltake has brought out the latest in their Purepower series. The Purepower 560w PSU looks not only at providing lots of stable juice but at bringing lots of useful extras to the table.

MSI vs. Chaintech: Tier 2 i865PE Head to Head @ TweakTown
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:08 PM EST

"It's time for Tier 2 of our Intel 865PE Springdale Head to Head articles which this time compares two Pentium 4 based motherboards from MSI and Chaintech."

Aspire X-Alien Aluminum Case Review @ envynews
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:06 PM EST

"With many different variations on the standard, and much beloved, Chieftech/Chenming-based cases it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle of the many different manufacturers who use these cases as a basis to build off of. Put some lights here, a window there. Another fan here some front I/O ports, and now you start to give a second look. Aspire International, a relative newcomer to the ‘case race’ is trying to set itself apart; and they’re doing this in a few ways with their X-Alien."

Belkin Home Office 500VA UPS @ PCstats
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:04 PM EST

"As a computer tech, I have seen almost every possible computer problem that's known, and a few that must have come from outer space! I diagnosed everything from bad IDE ribbon cables to memory with bad bits, but the problem I see most often are blown and dead power supplies. Now even if you're not using a generic power supply you should still use an Uninterruptable Power Supply (UPS) whenever possible. It can extend the life of your PC, and save you from countless headaches. For example, about two months ago when the big North American power outage hit, I lost a full days worth of work because I have bad saving habits... it could have been worse because I leave my PC on 24/7 and sometimes do not save my work for days. Today we're going to be testing out Belkin's newest Home Office Series of UPS's, specifically the 500VW/300W model."

Howto Connect your PC to your TV @ Madshrimps
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 8:00 PM EST

"Every now and then I hear questions about the TV-out on people's videocards. "What is it for? Can you connect a TV to it? Can you REALLY connect a TV to it? Sure? Wow, that's great. How do I do that?" Answering these questions once is funny. Anwering them twice is ok. Anwering them three times and it's getting a routine. I was sooooo mad and tired of people asking me how to connect a TV to a PC, I actually conquered my lazyness and wrote this howto. Don't ask that question again. Ever. RTFM. Period."

Samsung SP1203N 120 GB @ Bytesector
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 7:58 PM EST

"Samsung is known for its quality products and SP1203N is no different. This hard drive is a step into the future thus allowing the market to have quieter & more efficient hard drives. Samsung has developed a few new technologies making this hard drive very unique. The SP1203N was very quite and the average seek time was very low. Thanks to the different technologies integrated in the hard drive, Samsung was able to achieve a very quiet and efficient hard drive."

Highpoint Rockethead100 SATA Convertor & AC Ryan EL SATA Cable Review @ Tweaknews
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 24, 2003 at 7:54 PM EST

Several weeks ago, I picked up two 120GB Western Digital HDDs. the 8MB cache specials. My plan was to span them and use them for storage. My wife remarked that there is such a thing as too much storage space. I laughed at her.

Apparently I shouldn't have. Luckily our couch is comfortable."

Xoxide X-Dreamer II Case @ AthlonXP
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 23, 2003 at 10:07 PM EST

" The X-Dreamer II Case from Xoxide.com is a lower priced case geared towards someone who likes a modified case but does not have the skill or the will power to make the mod's themselves. With some simple modifications they turned your average black case into a true head turner. Xoxide carries a wide range of custom computer cases, mod supplies, fans, and custom built systems. They really target the person looking for accessories to make their system stand out from the rest of the crowd. Keep in mind, this case does not empty your wallet either."

Crucial PC3200 DDR400 @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 23, 2003 at 10:02 PM EST

"Everything was running well so we will go up 1 MHZ at a time until we reached our maximum over clock. As we approached the higher speeds, we had freezing issue, and we had to increase the memory voltage to 2.8v to maintain stability. At 3-4-4-10, I managed a maximum over clock of 236MHz (472MHz DDR), but the ram fails the Memtest86 tests."

Crucial PC3200 DDR Memory Review @ BigBruin
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 23, 2003 at 10:00 PM EST

"The Crucial PC3200 DDR has proven itself as a worthy choice for people looking for rock solid performance at default speed and timings, and surprisingly also allows for some impressive overclocking... The maximum speed of 466 MHz DDR achieved during testing translates to a speed rating equivalent to PC3700, which is far higher than I would have imagined."

Albatron K8X800 ProII Motherboard Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 23, 2003 at 9:58 PM EST

"For a company just over a year old, Albatron has staked a name for itself under the leadership of CEO Jack Ko as a pioneer when it comes to adopting new technology. Since its inception, Albatron has produced a good many enthusiast-friendly motherboards, and so many users have been patiently waiting to see what Albatron has to offer before jumping into an Athlon64 motherboard of their own. Based around the very popular VIA K8T800/VT8237 chipsets, the bright blue Albatron K8X800 Pro II supports Socket 754 Athlon64 processors. The three DIMM slots can handle up to 3GB of DDR333 RAM, and 2 GB (or two 1GB sticks) of DDR400 RAM. In either case, both memory types run in a single channel memory configuration. In terms of onboard goodies the K8X800ProII motherboard boasts a 3Com Gigabit NIC, SATA, IEEE 1394, VIA's 7.1 audio and dual BIOS's for extra reliability. Upgrading is easy with the K8X800's lone 8x AGP port and six PCI slots."

RAIDMAX 868WBP Budget Case @ MHW
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 23, 2003 at 9:55 PM EST

"Overall, this pc was very nice for all the Mods at the rock bottom price of $69.99! It has great cooling potential, room for expansion and it looks really good. In most of my reviews, I complain about the length of the cables, this case is no exception, but it is something I am willing to forgive due to all the extras this case provides."

KingMAX SuperRAM PC3500 DDR433 Memory Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Thursday, October 23, 2003 at 9:39 PM EST

"This is KingMAX's new SuperRAM line, and it is aimed at the enthusiasts of the computer world. The bright red stick that we received for review is a retail sample, but I've also seen them with yellow and green PCBs as well. The 512MB PC3500 Kingmax module uses DRAM which is labeled as "KingMAX KDL388P4EA-46." By SPD it's rated to run at 217 MHz with 2.5-4-4-8 timings, with a voltage of just 2.5V. The DRAM have what I assume - many DRAMs are no longer stating their exact speed - are 4.6ns ratings, as that fits just right into the formula for the theoretical maximum speed of the DRAM; 1000MHz/4.6ns x 2(DDR) = 217MHz. "

Antec TrueBlue 480 watt PSU Review @ GruntvillE
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 8:15 PM EST

"If the PSU is weak, your machine is going to be weak. Over the last year I have been thru 3 different PSU's. The first, an Antec 350w was a good PSU but right off I knew I was going to need more power. So in Feb I came across a killer deal on a Thermaltake 420, and while that worked good for awhile it started to show signs of faltering. After I added my Raid array, when my Raid was accessed my CCFL's would flicker. Then the Raidmax came in for review and that didn't go as well as expected. Which leads me to the newest PSU to get a thorough inspection from us here at GruntvillE; the Antec True Blue 480watt. Let's see if this is going to cut it for me, and possibly for you."

Overclocker's Review of the A7N8X Deluxe @ Hightekpc
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 8:12 PM EST

At HighTekPC we try to bring you the quality of review that you deserve. This time we have an overclocker's review of the Asus A7N8X Deluxe motherboard. We have charts ands graphs showing our results and overclocks of the FSB. We were able to get this board at a 200MHZ FSB stable with PC2700 RAM. Read the review and found out more.

Koolcases Silver Fusion PC Case review @ Short-Media
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 8:08 PM EST

The mid tower Koolcases Silver Fusion PC case stands out from the pack. The Silver Fusion boasts drive rails, screwless PCI slot mounts, front intake grills with foam mesh and solid construction. The included 120mm. fan clip makes for easy mounting and a 120mm. fan will provide wicked exhaust flow.

Orange Chenbro Xpider: Screw-less Gaming Case Video Review #362 @ 3dGameMan
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 8:05 PM EST

"The Chenbro Xpider Case is available in a number of different colors and has a very distinctive look. This case has a screw-less design and that makes installing and removing hardware extremely easy. It also has a window in the side panel which is lockable. One feature many people will like is the fact that a 120mm fan can be installed at the back of the case to allow for excellent air circulation. Watch the Video to find out more..."

PC-4000 Memory Roundup 1GB Dual Channel @ OcPrices
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 8:02 PM EST

OcPrices.com have just relased the definitive PC4000 roundup, with contenders from Corsair, Geil, Adata, Mushkin, Kingston and OCZ duking it out for supremecy. We are on the look out for the best performing and the best value kits out there, so who will come out on top ?

Connect3D Radeon 9600 128mb Video Card Review @ Legit Reviews
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 8:00 PM EST

Just wanted to let everyone know that we just posted a review on the Connect3D Radeon 9600 128mb Video Card. We found that the ATI 9600 does really does pack some punch for the budget buying crowd. We aren't all rich!

Speeze EEA31B2 - CopperEagle ™ Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 20, 2003 at 7:53 PM EST

Speeze has started to roll out their new heat sinks for the fourth quarter and we got our hot little hands on a dandy today. We may just be giving some of you a first look at the new Speeze EEA31B2 - CopperEagle ™, it sports a dual channel in-line ducing system and our tests show that this one is a keeper.

Plextor PX-708A DVD Writer Review @ HardwareZoom
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:43 PM EST

"As our test results shown, the PX-708A burned the entire 4.22GB image in less than eight minutes, just by using normal 4X DVD+R media. For the first time we\'ve seen a consumer DVD writer that records disc image of this size at such speeds, it's especially amazing when you consider writing a 650MB CD four years ago probably needed longer. Plextor did not disclose the write strategy used in their 8X DVD+R recording, but our best bet is Z-CLV."

Kingston HyperX PC4000 Memory @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:37 PM EST

"At 1/1 CPU and memory, we settled on a final OC of 270FSB. We did manage 275FSB, but even at 3.0v, the system was not stable. Actually, the system was fairly stable at 271FSB at 3.0v, but occasionally we locked up. 270FSB was rock solid, and we were able to drop our voltage back to a safer 2.8v. Keep in mind that this all voids any warranty, but nothing like living on the edge, eh?"

Raidmax Scorpio 868 Silver Aluminum Case Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:36 PM EST

"Remember back in the mid-80's, an animated show called Voltron? Well, every time I glance at the brilliantly-blue backlit "Z" on the front of the Raidmax Scorpio 868 case that is the first thing that pops into my head... So let's just get this next part out of the way quickly; like it or hate it, the chromed "Z" is what defines the Scorpio 868 case the most, and while it reminds me of a dead-end in case design evolution, let's not be too quick to damn the rest of Raidmax's mid-tower case. The all-aluminum Scorpio 868 Silver has two important design features that should get the gamer in your family salivating; the first is the classic "Z" on the front 5.25" bay cover door, and the second is a pre-installed clear plastic window on the side, complete with an 80mm coloured-LED fan. A fashionable chromed fan grill covers the side intake fan, which also glows nicely in a darkened room."

Buffalo Technology PC4300 DDR533 Memory Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:30 PM EST

"With the release of Intel's 800 MHz FSB processors, and accompanying motherboards, the enthusiast market has boomed as consumers have rushed out to buy newer, faster components. For enthusiasts, the name of the game is change, and if they don't adopt new technology they could be missing out on the full potential of their existing hardware. Buffalo Technology is not as familiar a memory brand as say Corsair, or Crucial, yet the company has been quietly creating a following for itself. That following amongst enthusiasts has largely been driven by Buffalo's high speed memory. Buffalo Technology have produced some very versatile and fast memory DIMMs with the one thing that every consumer is looking for; competitive prices."

SeaSonic 400w Super Silencer PSU Review @ MonkeyReview
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:25 PM EST

Sea Sonic's 400W Super Silencer delivers an impressive slew of features to go along with its good amount of power. A shift in the desire an average user has for his PC has been changing over the last few years. Not only do people want their PC to run well, but also run quietly, and in some cases, look presentable. Sea Sonic has looked at the industries standards, Enthusiast standards, and the average user's standards on Power Supplies and they've come up with the Sea Sonic Super Silencer line, which offers the following models; 300W, 350W, 400W, and a 460W.

ATI All-in-Wonder Radeon 9600PRO Videocard Review @ Tweaknews
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:20 PM EST

"ATI has successfully filled every possible sector with an All-in-Wonder option that is bound to please anyone with any wallet size. With great performance and a very good pricetag, the All-in-Wonder 9600pro is bound to be one of the most sought after stocking stuffers for the 2003 Christmas season."

Actiontec's 802.11g AP & PC Card Reviewed @ HotHardware
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:11 PM EST

Tonight on HotHardware, we've reviewed Actiontec's 802.11g Wireless Access Point and PC Card. These products proved to be very easy to install and configure, and performed fairly well to boot

XFX Mach4 NF2S-AED review @ OCModShop
posted by Babylon5 on Saturday, October 18, 2003 at 8:10 PM EST

"Finally, let's move on to the audio portion of the board. On the left are the standard audio jacks for plain old 2 channel audio. The second pic is my speakers hooked up to the connector. The third picture is the sound header that comes with the motherboard installed and hooked up to the rear channels of my 4.1 system. You can't see the SPDIF connector, but it's there. The sound system supports 6.1 audio and Dolby 5.1 decoding, which is pretty sweet."

Editorial: Dependency on Technology @ Designtechnica
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 10:19 PM EST

This fact came crashing into my consciousness on the afternoon of August 14th when most of the eastern United States suffered a massive blackout. I was among about fifty million people that were without electricity and, therefore, devoid of the usual aspects of life we take for granted: computers, home theater, music and lights. With little more to do, I thought about just how dependant we have become on these little gadgets that surround us. Like so many others I work from home; so without a computer I had a forced day off. My hobby is home theater, but the large screen television was dark and the speakers that are placed around the room so carefully were silent. I was even unable to tell time without the numbers on the VCR and cable boxes."

Aspire X-Alien Case Review @ Overclocker Café
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 10:09 PM EST

The Overclocker Café has posted up their review of the X-Alien case. The X-Alien is the economical version of what else but the X-Super Alien Case also from Aspire. Based around the tried and proven Antec/Chieftec/Chenming design, the X-Alien adds a few extra features in to deliver some panache’ not seen too often. Here’s a snip of the review.

The removable motherboard tray comes out a bit differently than most. Two thumb screws on its right side allow the try to be pulled up and out via the side left side panel rather than its being slid out the rear. This set up is effective but no where near as clean or easily removable as the rear slide out type.

Innovatek Water Cooling Kit @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 10:07 PM EST

"Since I have always been an air cooler, but an avid overclocker, I decided to take a foray into the WC world to see what all the fuss is about. I looked around, and asked many questions to find out what was needed, I settled on a "kit" solution. I say "kit" because I was able to modify the kit on the fly during ordering."

Radeon 9600 XT, much ado about nothing @ hardwareanalysis
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 10:05 PM EST

ATi's Radeon 9600 XT has just started shipping and we take a look at how it compares to the original Radeon 9600 Pro, the 9800 Pro and the flagship 9800 XT. Is it the world's fastest budget videocard?

ATI FireGL X1-128 Review @ lostcircuits
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 10:03 PM EST

Even though the professional graphics market is small compared to the consumer segment, it is extremely prestigious and, moreover, blessed with very high profit margins, at least in comparison to the actual manufacturing cost of the cards. Over the past 5 years, nVidia has established a dominance in this market, of the former big players like Obsidian and others, only 3DLabs has survived under the new umbrella of Creative Labs. Following in the footsteps of their success in the consumer market segment, ATI, after the acquisition of what was left of FireGL, has started their own foray into the professional market, dominated by OpenGL applications used for VPU-based rendering of CAD, as well as cinematic "CGI" effects. The latest family of FireGL cards encompasses the FireGL X1-128, which is a variation of the RADEON 9700 blueprint. Regardless of the capabilities of the R300 core, it was developed with the primary focus on DX9 and visual effects like AntiAliasing and Anisotopic Filtering, neither of which matters in the high end market. The question, therefore is, whether the raw power of the R300 engine is enough to compete in the professional world where it cannot play out its "special features and capabilities".

MSI 865PE Neo2-FIS2R Motherboard Review @ Legit Reviews
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 9:50 PM EST

"Today we are looking at MSI's 865PE Neo2-FIS2R Springdale Motherboard. We will be giving it our typical tourture tests to check for performance and overclockability. One other thing I would like to point out that my interest many of you out there. According to MSI's manual for this motherboard, the Neo2-FIS2R is "Prescott-ready"!"

Gigabyte GA-8S655FX Ultra SiS655FX Motherboard Review @ PCStats
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 9:48 PM EST

" SiS are easily one of the hottest tech companies in the world right now when it comes to core logic. However, while the company has produced some very remarkable chipsets in the last little while, there are still some parties that can't shake the 'low end chipset provider' moniker, even though it is wildly outdated. It would seem as though SIS' past reputation still haunts them, but as long as the company stays true to the current path, there is no doubt they are set to take the chipset world by storm. Today we're going to be checking out Gigabyte's new GA-8S655FX Ultra motherboard which is based on the hot new SiS 655FX chipset. The SiS 655FX's main competitor is Intel's i865PE, however it can even give Intel's higher end i875P Canterwood chipset a good run for its money!"

Saitek Optical Mouse Pro Review @ GruntvillE
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 9:40 PM EST

"The common PC mouse, one of the most relied upon input devices in use today. We all have our own tastes when it comes to the flavor of our mice. Some like three buttons, some five; some prefer a scroll wheel while yet others would rather thumb a ball. It's hard to come up with a device that will appease us all equally. This is why some manufacturers have started to incorporate "gimmicks" or extra features into these little plastic rodents. Saitek is one of these companies. Their two latest attempts to capture our attention are the TouchForce and Optical Mouse Pro. Today we will be pushing their Optical Mouse Pro around our pads to see what it has to offer the average GruntvillE reader."

Radeon 9600 XT Review @ Beyond3D
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 9:23 PM EST

"With the change from RV350 to RV360 an enhanced version of the 130nm LV process became available with a new "Black Diamond" insulating material with a lower capacitance than FSG and hence a lower diametric constant (k). This gives rise to the term low-k 130nm process and this facilitates even faster transistors switching, thus greater speeds. When RV350 was initially taped out in January '03 it had a target clock speed of 350MHZ, however as the 130nm process matured, by the time it reached final silicon in May the yield enabled ATI to ship it at 400MHz. With the low-k process RV360 is able to move up by an extra 100MHz to 500MHz, and with OVERDRIVE enabled further speed will be available to all users of the Radeon 9600 XT."

ATi Radeon 9600 XT Review @ HotHardware
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 9:20 PM EST

Today, ATi officially takes the wraps off of their latest mainstream product, the Radeon 9600 XT. With the 9600 XT, ATi improves upon the already impressive 9600 Pro, buy jacking the core clock speed up a full 100MHz. We've compared the 9600 XT to a 9600 Pro and a GeForce FX 5600. Click the link below and take a look.

Thermaltake Extreme Volcano 12 Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 17, 2003 at 9:17 PM EST

Volcano 7, Volcano 7+, Volcano Xaser 11 and now the Extreme Volcano 12 the changes continue but has the performance progressed with the version number? Only one way to find out, and that's to review it!

What’s up with 802.11G? @ TweakTown
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 10:01 PM EST

"In our first ever weekly column, Cameron "Mr.Tweak" Wilmot talks about the new and exciting unofficial 802.11G wireless standard and if it is all it is cracked up to be."

Gigabyte GA-8KNXP i875P Motherboard Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:57 PM EST

"Today we're going to be testing Gigabyte's flagship Intel motherboard, the GA-8KNXP. The GA-8KNXP is based on the i875P chipset and the board has native support for Serial ATA/Serial ATA RAID, Ultra/133 RAID, IEEE 1394, CSA Intel Gigabit LAN, and 5.1 audio. For extra measure, Gigabyte use dual BIOS' on all their boards, and to improve reliability have even engineered something called DPS2 (Dual Power System) which clips into the board in a special slot adjacent to the IO panel."

Beginners Guides: Encryption and Online Privacy @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:55 PM EST

"As on-line shopping becomes more and more an accepted part of our economy, it seems obvious that their would be a concurrent increase in the frequency of computer related crimes such as fraudulent on-line marketing sites and identity theft, and, to a certain degree there has been. On the other hand, the success of online marketing has the goliath's of the brick and mortar business world fully involved now, most notably the banks. As larger companies get increasingly involved in doing day-to-day business on the web, they bring the same awareness of security concerns that they employ successfully in other enterprises to the Internet. While the comparison of online shopping to regular business works well enough on some levels, the fact is that computers, for all their advantages, add several new security and privacy concerns that everyone who uses them should be aware of. This article aims to cover the basics of online security, including a description of the methods online stores use to protect themselves and their customers. It will also go into detail on protecting personal information and your privacy on your Windows XP computer."

Gigabyte P4 2004 GT Edition (GA-8IPE1000 Pro2 ) mobo Review @ HardwareZoom
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:53 PM EST

"Amazingly, C.I.A. has done a better job than with manual overclocking. Benchmark results have shown that when C.I.A. is activated and accelerated by 7%, the actual performance is about 3% better than manually overclocking the CPU by 7% in BIOS. Seems that C.I.A. not only overclock the FSB but it also optimised other settings to improve the performance further."

Gyration Ultra Cordless Suite Review @ ASE Labs
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:50 PM EST

" It has been a bit over a year since I last reviewed the Ultra Cordless mouse from Gyration, but now they have updated the kit to include a keyboard and revamped everything. Let's see how this new kit performs "

ATI Radeon 9800 Pro Volt modification guide @ Madshrimps
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:48 PM EST

"Today we take the ATI Radeon 9800pro graphic's card under our wing and we give it a few tweaks and modifications to push it far beyond any graphic's card currently on the market to take your PC gaming over the edge.. "

Titan TTC-CU9TB/SC Heat Sink Reviewed @ Ohls-Place
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:44 PM EST

When I saw the finish on the base of Titan TTC-CU9TB/SC heat sink I knew that this one was going to be a contender. This was hands down the best non-lapped surface I had ever seen on any heat sink. But will it perform as good as look?

ThermalTake Silent Boost @ Bytesector
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:43 PM EST

"Seeing as how the Silent Boost is a silent fan operating at about 2500 rpm, I was expecting its operating temperature to be much higher than with the stock AMD heat sink and fan. This however, is not the case as the heat sink is about twice the size of the AMD. Simply put, this thing looks almost heavy enough to break or bend the motherboard under its weight. Don’t get me wrong though, it won’t break anything unless you use too much pressure while installing it. Another highly noticeable characteristic of the Silent Boost is the unique shape of the fan housing. The housing is not a solid column like all others, but has intake slots in it to further reduce noise levels while increasing the throughput of the fan. It’s very different from anything else on the market and ThermalTake claims that it will minimise noise while providing optimal air flow. Either way, it seems to work pretty well."

Everyday Information Security Guide @ ExtensionTech
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:41 PM EST

"A few weeks ago I bought a Hewlett Packard OfficeJet LX for the price of $14.99. The OfficeJet LX is pretty old, but it has a copier, fax, and printer all in one, and I needed an extra printer for my workstation computer. The first thing I did was explore the printer menu on its LCD screen, and among other things, I came across a speed dial list."

Allied AL-B500E 500W Power Supply Review @ BigBruin
posted by Babylon5 on Tuesday, October 14, 2003 at 9:38 PM EST

"Available online for $62.95, its price and performance are quite attractive as compared to some of the other brands that may have a more familiar name. Although I generally look at power supplies for their performance alone, the fact that Apex didn’t comprise the technical specifications in order to make it visually appealing is just the icing on the cake..."

MSI 848P Neo-S: 800MHz FSB on a Budget @ Extreme Overclocking
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:21 PM EST

When the Intel 875/865 chipsets were released, they became an instant success with the incorporation of an 800MHz FSB, dual 64-bit memory controllers, native serial ATA, and official support for DDR400. These features are nice, but do not come cheap. Not everyone can afford to dish out $100-$200+ just for a motherboard. MSI has come up with a solution to this problem by designing the 848P Neo-S. This mainboard sports most of the same features as the higher end 875/865 boards minus a few key things such as dual channel DDR.

Airflow and Heat: A cooling guide @ Short-Media
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:19 PM EST

Low temperatures are what we want. PC cases become like Swiss cheese riddled with fan holes in the quest for cooling. Is there an optimum configuration? Is one cooling fan enough or is it the combination of fans? One PC case was set aside and filled with fans to find out just what combination works best for airflow's effect on heat.

Chronicles of Crummy Computers Vol 2 @ ASE Labs
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:16 PM EST

" After about a month of weekends at my job, I have finally figured it out. I have learned the ways of the elusive customer. Are you ready for another volume of stories? I hope so. I'm sorry to say that I forgot my camera some days, and I missed some good shots of things. Have no fear, I will tell all! "

Sennheiser HD212 Pro Review @ ICEHW
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:15 PM EST

After my last Plantronics Audio.90 headset broke, I set out to find myself another headset or pair of headphones. I mainly used them for gaming and listening to music during the later hours of the evening as using speakers at that time can be a nuisence to others. I decided that sound quality had to...

Serial ATA Versus Parallel ATA Hard Drive Review @ PC Guide
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:13 PM EST

So with Serial ATA making it's presents felt in mainstream solutions for storage devices the decision is being presented on whether to save couple of dollars and stick with PATA a little while longer or go for the extra advantages that SATA clearer offers above PATA besides the extra performance increase as we have seen with the benchmarks.

Stardock WindowBlinds 4.1 Windows GUI Customization Software Review @ Tweaknews
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:11 PM EST

"WindowBlinds is a fantastic little application with a lot of power. For those us who detest the stock look of Windows, this is a gift from the nerd-gods. It can transform your desktop in an instant, and improve your system's performance as well (if you are already using visual styles)."

Asetek ChillControl For Windows - HotHardware Exclusive
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:09 PM EST

We've got a quick very cool "exclusive" for you folks this evening. Asetek sent us a beta copy of their ChillControl Software for Windows. Things are looking sweet and easy, for those of you out there that are Vapochill owners. No more serial cable with the DOS boot disks! Check it....

Chill Vent 1 Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:07 PM EST

We are always looking a means of cooling the inside of our computer case and by doing do so hopefully reducing the temp of our processor as well. The crew over at Cool Solutions Systems Inc. have come up with what I think is a very innovative method of getting those temps down a couple of degrees or so. So today we are checking out their new release the Chill Vent 1. Take cool air directly from the bottom of your case and route it directly to your heat sink with the aid of a 80 x 80 fan and I think you will find out as I did that it does indeed do what they claim it will do.

AOpen A600 Midtower Case Review @ Overclocker Café
posted by Babylon5 on Monday, October 13, 2003 at 7:04 PM EST

I know what you’re thinking; this must be another OEM type case review because it’s made by AOpen. Well, AOpen does make quite a few OEM type products but the A600 is anything but a plain vanilla case. The A600 is AOpen’s stab at breaking into the high end, full featured case market. The guys at the Overclocker Café give the A600 the once over and tell all. Here’s a snip of their review.

Notice the power supply up top. This initially caught my eye because of the mesh screen instead of the normal fan grill that I am used to seeing. The reason for this became apparent on closer inspection as I realized that there is no rear exhaust fan for the PSU. It has a single 120mm intake fan mounted on the bottom pulling air up into it and out the rear. I was a bit concerned about this at first until I powered it up. The oversized fan that the PSU uses is not only effective in pulling air from inside the case, but it's also fairly quiet as well.

Zalman RS6F “Theatre 6” Headphones @ Nexus Hardware
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:26 PM EST

"There are times when running a 5.1 speaker system at full blast is impractical, and even rude. Furthermore, toting a 5.1 speaker system to a LAN is not an easy task, disregarding the fact that speakers are disallowed at most LAN parties. Where does this lead us? Headphones. However, typical headphones lack the 5.1 support and the accompanying immersive effects. Today we have a product that claims to combine 5.1 audio in a headphone design. Enter the Zalman RS6F “Theatre 6” headphones."

Build a PC from parts to software: the right way (guide) @ Short-Media
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:23 PM EST

We enthusiasts often forget our humble beginnings and what it is like to build a PC for the very first time. We forget that sometimes what we see as the simplest of tasks is intimidating territory for others. This is a complete step by step guide on how to assemble a PC from a box of parts to a working computer with WindowsXP fully installed, updated and tweaked. This guide will take you from parts to software the right way.

Mounting a Prometia or Vapochill on AMD A64/FX51 @ Madshrimps
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:16 PM EST

"In due time CPU kits will be offered from both nVentiv and Asetek for the the AMD A64/FX51 motherboards. But for those of us that don't want to wait, we must improvise!"

Chenbro Xpider Chassis Review @ Hightekpc
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:13 PM EST

Many manufacturer's have developed cheaper, better quality cases over time, building in not only good looks, but good features and a quick, easy to use, screwless design. One such case is the Chenbro Xpider. With is low price, good featureset, good quality, and refreshing looks, this case is sure to make quite a name for itself.

Epox 4PDA2+ (Spingdale) Motherboard Reviewed @ myWORLD Hardware
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:11 PM EST

"Choosing a motherboard can sometimes be very hectic. With so many different companies throwing out their products for sale, users alike may find it confusing to get the board which they would really suits them well.

Joining us today in our review, we will take a look at the latest Pentium 4 motherboard by Epox, 4PDA2+. The board was powered by Intel Springdale chipset or better known as i865PE and this board is a must and find out why we say so in the next pages of this review coverage!"

XFX FX5600 Ultra 128MB DDR DVI & VIVO Video Card Video Review #360 @ 3dGameMan
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:07 PM EST

"The XFX FX5600 Ultra 128MB Video Card supports dual display, video in/out and many other advanced features. This enables users to enjoy gaming and work more productively. While this product is not the fastest in the nVIDIA lineup it is very stable, overclocks and performs well. If you are ready for an affordable Video Card upgrade then keep this product at the top of your list. Watch the Video to find out more..."

Xoxide Black PS/2 illuminated keyboard review @ OCModShop
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 8:05 PM EST

"On the top right is an ON/Off button to toggle the El lighting on and off. I really like this, as El products have been known to have a short lifespan, this can greatly increase the useful life of the light feature. For it's small size I was very surprised at the weight of the keyboard, it has a nice solid feel and does not slip and slide when bumped. The over all profile is very low and gives the unit a sleek simple look that's easy on the eyes."

Intel Pentium4 Extreme Edition @ lostcircuits
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:56 PM EST

THE LATEST AND MOST EXTREME EDITION of the desktop Pentium4 more than triples the transistor count to throw in a whopping 178 million transisors, cramped into a 2 MB Level3 cache. With a die size of 237 mm2, the Extreme Edition goes back to the dimensions of the obsolete Willamette but it certainly packs a lot more power to the punch.

How does this Goliath compare to the standard version? Keep in mind that there are no extra processing units, the performance boost comes from the tri-level cache architecture alone - if one does not mind using ancient AMD parlance for the Extreme Edition.

We tried to run every single benchmark in the world to show what happens but in the end, we faltered. Otherwise, we would still be at the beginning of our quest. It is a good sample, though, that we have to show what the P4EE does and what it does not and we can even explain some of it.

Albatron KX18D Pro II @ AthlonXP
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:51 PM EST

" As usual Albatron has chosen to stay away from the plain brown looking motherboards that still to this day some manufactures choose to use; Albatron used a nice blue color motherboard. Nothing ruins a custom case more than anything by looking in your case window and seeing a plain old brown motherboard. But looks are not everything though, you also have to back your looks up with a stable and highly tweakable board these days to get noticed. "

FIC A96P Radeon 9600 Pro @ Viper Lair
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:49 PM EST

"LAN gamers looking for good speed (albeit at lower resolutions), and a card that is cheap enough for you to still be able to buy parts to mod your rig, I would say this is a great choice. With good image quality, texture and performance this card makes this a good choice for the serious gamers without serious cash."

FSP Aurora 350W PSU Review @ GideonTech
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:41 PM EST

GideonTech has a new review up on something we don't normally review. We have the Aurora 350W PSU from FSP today. Most of the time, a good PSU review requires a lengthy process of monitoring voltages over a period of time to show any irregularities. We're basically looking at this unit from a case modders perspective...but we did beat up on it for a few weeks ;)

Dual Channel Memory Roundup - Part 2 @ TweakTown
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:39 PM EST

"It's time for Part 2 of our Dual Channel Memory roundup series where this time we check out new modules from Kingmax, Corsair, Geil, OCZ, Transcend and Crucial - 8 different types of modules all up over a massive 33 pages!"

AMD Athlon64 3200+ 32/64-bit Processor Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:24 PM EST

"It seems as if AMD may again be hampered by the FABs. Low yields, and getting SOI (Silicon on Insulator) technology down pat have put the K8 about a year off schedule. If the Athlon64 were released last year around this time, as many had expected given the vast number of K8 motherboards on display at Comdex 2002, it would have easily destroyed Intel's Pentium 4 in terms of performance. And that would have been entering into the market at 1.4GHz. The Athlon64 3200+ has a real clock speed of 2.0GHz and as you can see from the picture above, looks similar to that of a Pentium 4 processor, though is physically larger and heavier. There are 754 pins on the bottom of the processor and AMD has incorporated an integrated heat spreader to protect the fragile silicon core. The IHS will certainly save us from any more horror stories crushed or chipped cores. Unlike the Pentium 4 however, there is no hole on the top of heat spreader to absorb copious amounts of thermal compound. Weighing in at 105.9 million transistors, the Athlon64/Athlon64 FX is easily the most complicated desktop processor in the world. The AthlonXP Barton core had just 54.3 million transistors, and the Northwood Pentium 4 a paltry 55 million."

MS Tilt-Wheel Wireless Optical Mouse Reviewed @ ohls-place
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:14 PM EST

Microsoft gave us the beloved mouse and who would have thought it could be improved upon? Ok they added the scrolling wheel. But now we have the Tilt-Wheel Technology and personally I love this thing.

SIS Desktop Chipset Road Map for 2004 @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:12 PM EST

"Fresh from testing the capabilities of the SIS 655FX chipset, PCstats takes an in depth look at the next four quarters of chipsets that are scheduled to be released by SIS. Not only do these road maps give us insight into upcoming SIS products and technologies, but they also shed some light as to what we can expect from both AMD and Intel; each typically very secretive when it comes to the details of their unreleased processors. On the rough, while SIS released the 655TX and 655FX already, the chipsets are just starting to make their way into mainboards, such as the Gigabyte GA-8S655FX Ultra. After that we can expect to see the SIS965/966 southbridge which are both PCI-express solutions. Both SIS' Intel and AMD solutions take advantage of 'Hyperstreaming' technology, and that includes both K7 and K8 Athlon's. Interesting things begin to develop for SIS' chipsets as we near mid-2004, and while chipsets are projected to support DDR2-667 and DDR2-800, there is nothing listed for DDR2-533."

Skyhawk IMC-6271 Cube Review @ Epiacenter
posted by Babylon5 on Sunday, October 12, 2003 at 7:07 PM EST

"EPIACENTER.com got another exclusive review. This time we take a look at the Skyhawk IMC-6271 cube. The IMC-6271 is the first full aluminium cube with an LCD-display."

MSI K8T Neo-FIS2R K8T800 Motherboard Review @ pcstats
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 10, 2003 at 8:28 PM EST

"When it comes to motherboards, most manufacturers were ready to go public last year with their Athlon64 products, but due to AMD having manufacturing delays, no one could release their goods. After all how successful are you going to be at selling a motherboard when the processor's are not even available? Today we're going to be testing a K8T800 based motherboard from the minds at MSI, called the K8T Neo-FIS2R. It's one of the first socket 754 Athlon64 motherboards on the market, and believe me, it's one heck of a package! The MSI K8T Neo-FIS2R with an Athlon64 3200+ will cost about $910 CDN. When shipped with a processor, the K8T Neo-FIS2R also includes a nice copper-base socket 754/940 AVC heatsink."

Samsung 173T 17" LCD Flat Panel Display Review @ Extreme Overclocking
posted by Babylon5 on Friday, October 10, 2003 at 8:26 PM EST

LCD monitor technology has come a long way since it was first introduced, gone are the days of only being able to see the screen dead on, and washed out looking colors. Current LCD monitors like Samsung's 173T have a large available viewing angle and rich colors.

October 2003