http://www.cekora.com/ Cekora.com Global Review Directory en-us http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14386 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14386 TweakTown -- We have had more than a few ASRock board in the lab. We have even had the folks from ASRock stop by to talk to us about their products. So it comes as no surprise that ASRock has been one of the ones to send out their IGP carrying AM3 boards that are claiming full support for the Phenom II X6. As we have found out, though, not all boards that support the X6 can do so with style. ASRock claims that their 890GM Pro3 can do so and lists some other nice features to boot. Features like core unlocking, Turbo Core, Turbo overclock setting (Turbo30, 50 and 60) and more. You get all of this for only $117 from Newegg.com. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14385 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14385 Legit Reviews -- The ASUS GeForce GTX 460 768MB ENGTX460 TOP video card was found to be about 4% faster than the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 768MB reference card. The video card features a mild 25MHz boost on the GPU core clock and the 20MHz memory overclock, so we knew it wouldn't run laps around the original design. This card has plenty of overclocking headroom left in it though and to be honest we were shocked to see that ASUS didn't launch this card with a higher pre-set factory overclock... http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14384 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14384 TweakTown -- There is no doubt that the ASUS Republic of Games line-up is one of the best on the market. Sure, you can get a good board from this company or that, but as far as a single line goes, you would be hard pressed to find better than the Republic of Gamers. We have had the pleasure of testing out most of the current crop and are now able to take a look at another one. This time on the bench is the Rampage III Gene. The RIIIG (as we will call it moving forward) is the little brother to the Rampage III Extreme. It is an X58 based Micro ATX board with some of the same features of the much larger RIIIE. You also get a few extras that are not found on the RIIIE; these extras seem geared exactly towards the LAN party crowd. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14383 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14383 Hardware Secrets -- We tested the Cogage Arrow, a CPU cooler with a twin tower heatsink, four heatpipes, and a 120 mm fan or an optional 140 mm fans. Check it out! http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14382 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14382 TweakTown -- The GTX 460 models are coming in thick and fast with the next one to go on the chopping block that is the TweakTown testbed being a version from Palit. This seems to be a new series from Palit. While we're familiar with the Sonic series which tend to revolve around the card being overclocked and the Super series letting us know the card would be carrying more memory, we're not too sure about the Sonic Platinum one that we're looking at today. The GTX 460 is off to a great start here at TweakTown; we're extremely happy with the model. The price is super aggressive and performance on a whole is just great. The big question is, how does Palit stand out against the GIGABYTE 1GB version we've already looked at and the MSI 768MB one? http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14381 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14381 Techware Labs -- Looking for a less flash case that is still stylish, functional, and fits in your desk? Need a sensible sized case to contain that power thirsty gaming rig? Then NZXT's VULCAN mid-size tower case is designed for you! From NZXT's crafted series comes the VULCAN, a micro-ATX motherboard case featuring enough space for 2 ATI 5970 graphics cards, 2 CD/DVD drives, up to 4 Hard drives, and up to 5 cooling fans. These features in a mid-tower case will please any computer builder looking for a small case to contain a big system. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14380 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14380 Legit Reviews -- What we have here is a notebook that comes in at $961 (we’ve seen it in the low $800’s), 8 hour battery life while web surfing and working in documents, the power to easily to edit videos and photos, the flexibility to game in a pinch, 4+ hours of DVD playback with the capability of hardware assisted Blu-ray playback, all in a thin and light package. With all of that in mind, I would have no problem recommending the ASUS U30Jc to anyone in the market for a new laptop under $1000... http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14379 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14379 Think Computers -- Though well equipped, including Asus’ TurboV, Asus Express gate, and Asus EPU6, among many other features, that first Asus X58 motherboard I had, the P6T, has become a little dated, especially compared to Asus’ newer motherboards. The P6T had 8+2 phase voltage regulating, Asus has since improved on that with other boards. And both USB3 and SATA 6Gb/s has been released since the P6T was released. So to bring the venerable X58 up to date, Asus has released a couple of new X58 boards. Today I will be looking at the Asus P6X58D-E motherboard, a new Asus board sporting 16+2 phase power, true USB3 and SATA 6Gb/s, and support for the Intel Bloomfield processor and Microsoft Windows 7. Read on to check out the Asus P6X58D-E motherboard! http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14378 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14378 3D Game Man -- http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14377 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14377 Hardware Secrets -- The forthcoming N68C-S UCC from ASRock is an low-end micro ATX socket AM2+ motherboard based on the NVIDIA GeForce 7025 chipset, featuring both DDR2 and DDR3 memory sockets and a CPU core unlocking tool, a feature usually not found on entry-level motherboards. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14376 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14376 TweakTown -- Corsair was the first to send us a retail SF-1200 controlled SSD, the Corsair F100 100GB. That was quite an exciting moment for us since we had already tested two early pre-production SF-1500 enterprise drives. We knew that SandForce’s consumer controller was very similar to the enterprise controller and that for desktop tasks performance would be about the same. Little did we know that SandForce had improved the firmware from January to March so much that the performance of the final retail products improved considerably. The F100 and other SandForce SF-1200 controlled drives showed us that the only thing holding back performance was the SATA II interface. The Corsair Force F100 review was published three months to the day of me writing this review of the F120. So much has changed in that short amount of time. We were the first to bring you a detailed review of new extended capacity SandForce SF-1200 controller. In that article we determined that the new 7% over provisioned drives were able to retain the same high level of performance while giving users more usable capacity. Going from 100 to 120GB might seem like a small step on paper, but when in real world use 20GB makes a real difference. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14375 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14375 Motherboards.org -- The cool thing about BIOSTAR motherboards is that they are generally less well known than some of the other motherboard manufacturers on the market, allowing them to try to differentiate themselves by bundle, features and performance… The TPower X58 is a decent version of the X58 chipset with good performance and an ok featureset. Where this board shines is in the overclocking department with high overclocking achieved. The performance of the board is excellent with high marks throughout. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14374 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14374 TweakTown -- Although not usually covered by the enthusiast media, ASUS has a great line up of Workstation boards that have just as many features (including overclocking) as their non-professional line up. We have taken a look at one of these before; the P7P55 WS SuperComputer and it was a fast board. Today we have the chance to look at the follow on to that board, the P7F7-E WS SuperComputer. This board is built around the 3450 Express chipset (ibex peak). This has many of the same features as the H57 with a few improvements for the professional crowd. ASUS has also dropped a NF200 chip on this board to allow for some serious multi-GPU work. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14373 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14373 Hardware Secrets -- We also like to review low-end products from time to time so people with a serious budget restriction can have an idea whether it is worthwhile to buy cheap products or not. Today we are going to take an in-depth look on the eXtreme Power Plus 600 W (RS-600-PCAR-E3) from Cooler Master. Can it really deliver its rated power? Let's see. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14372 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14372 Dragon Steel Mods -- Up on the review block today I've got a beautiful looking game pad controller from Thrustmaster. I normally wouldn't associate the word beautiful with the controller but this one deserves it. It's a Limited Edition Ferrari 430 Scuderia themed controller that is so limited that it's actually numbered. The controller is wireless and it works with both PS3 and PC games. It resembles most other controller out there but Thustmaster added an optical wheel to the pad specifically for driving or racing style games so you can get an edge over your competition. So read on to check it out... http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14371 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14371 Motherboards.org -- The Armor A90 case from Thermaltake retails for under $100. For that price you get some advanced features including water-cooling compatible holes, bottom mounted PSU, tool-less drive installation and more. Aesthetically, the case with its all black interior and exterior screams excellent design and craftsmanship. The inclusion of four USB 2.0 ports and external SATA on the FP I/O are more indications of an excellent design. Thermaltake has done a great job with their Armor A90 case and it is worthy of purchase for those looking in this price range for a new case. Cooling on the case is sufficient for most users with a Front, a Rear and a Top fan installed and the options for two more fans if you want. For those wanting good features, nice aesthetics and an under a $100.00 price, the new Thermaltake A90 is a solid Hot Product. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14370 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14370 Legit Reviews -- SilverStone has a nice case on their hands with the Grandia GD05 HPTC PC case. It is very well built and has a nice finish all the way around. With the shallow depth of the case it will fit in any place you can put a standard set top DVD player. Not having an LCD or an LED display on the front might be a turn off for some users, but those that have had an HTPC before either find themselves using it all the time or never. If you are one of those that don't like to have any illumination coming from the front of your PC the SilverStone GD05B is right up your alley... http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14369 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14369 Motherboards.org -- EVGA has taken all of the best features of the P55 chipset and improved it for the ultimate tweaker. The P55 Classified 200 motherboard has six PCIE slots, which supports 3-way SLI with PhysX or CrossfireX and the addition of the NF200 bridge chip splits the bandwidth effectively among video cards. The overclocker will love all of the attention to detail EVGA brings to the table in the form of voltage control points and an onboard CPU temperature reader. The P55 chipset+NF200 combination is an awesome one for the person wanting a 875K+ Dual channel combination without paying the premium that a X58 motherboard+930 CPU would bring. EVGA has so many features on the board it definitely gets a Hot Product award from me. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14368 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14368 Hardware Secrets -- EVGA Classified SR-2 (the "SR" on the name stands for "Super Record") is an enormous dual socket 1366 motherboard based on Intel 5520 chipset with seven PCI Express x16 for you to build the fastest gaming PC in the world. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14367 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14367 Benchmark Reviews -- ASUS has already earned our praise for their ASUS P6X58D-Premium motherboard. As the name implies, this exceptional X58-Express motherboard comes loaded with everything that could fit the circuit board... and a premium price to match. The ASUS P6X58D-E motherboard is exactly what enthusiasts want: more for less. It's nearly identical to the ASUS P6X58D-Premium version, but makes minor sacrifices to help drive down the price. In this article, Benchmark Reviews tests the affordable ASUS P6X58D-E motherboard against a collection of other Intel X58-Express enthusiast solutions to measure graphics, processor, memory, and SSD storage performance. This article will concentrate on the differences that exist between X58-Express products, since the added features are all that differentiate these motherboards. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14366 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14366 Legit Reviews -- The Mushkin Callisto 60GB SSD proved to be a great drive and it is the first Sandforce SF-1200 drive with mass production firmware with 13% over-provisioning that I have had the pleasure to benchmark and use. I found the performance of the Mushkin Callisto with firmware version 3.0.9 was not the same same as OCZ’s exclusive SF-1200 firmware used on the Vertex 2 series. This is because the Sandforce Mass Production (MP) firmware limits small file random write performance on all SF-1200 drives except for the Vertex 2 in accordance with SandForce’s agreement with OCZ. This is why reading reviews is critical before buying an SSD... http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14365 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14365 TweakTown -- The HyperX name is getting stronger and stronger as the months go on. We see the company hit us with more aggressive modules on a constant basis these days. The best thing, though, is that when we hit that clock speed, we've been able to get even more out of the kit. Today we're dealing with a PC3-19200 (2400MHz) kit. That's some serious juice and you have to wonder once we hit that number, are we going to be able to get much further? - There's ultimately only one way to find out. Before we go looking at the overclocking potential and its performance, we'll first have a closer look at the package and the modules themselves. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14364 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14364 Legit Reviews -- Danger Den’s DD-GTX480 all copper water block is one very nice addition to my EVGA GeForce GTX480 video card. Not only did it help cool the card better, but it also managed to eliminate the noise from the horridly loud stock fan. That in and of itself warrants the $135 price tag the all copper version we tested today carries. When it came to performance by water cooling the GeForce GTX 480 we were able to drop stock load temps from 92C to 49C, which is a drop of 47%. Reducing your temperatures by nearly half is amazing and anyone that is thinking about getting a GeForce GTX 480 should consider water cooling as an option as it really is nice. You get lower noise levels, possibly increase the longevity of the video card and are able to overclock it farther than you could on air for even better performance. Danger Den has done a great job on these blocks and you can tell from the second you pick the water block up that it you made a solid investment... http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14363 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14363 techPowerUp -- After a long period of scaling down its processors both in price and performance, AMD finally got some fresh reinforcements to continue the fight with Intel. The new Phenom II X6 1090T and its 3.20 GHz clocked six cores, aim to take AMD to new heights, where Intel's Core i7 processors were untouchable until now. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14362 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14362 Madshrimps -- Does it, just like the Deneb, scale with voltage? Does it scale with temperature? Can we reach unseen heights in raw frequency? These are just a few of the questions we want to tackle in this article. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14361 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14361 Techware Labs -- The Crosshair IV Formula includes the AMD 890FX chipset which includes some features which provide up to 4 ATI Radeon HD graphics cards with ATI CrossfireX and other features like SATA 6Gb/s and not to forget the over clocker’s play ground with AMD Overdrive software. The compilation of all the features packed into this board in one platform is brought to you by the Republic of Gamers (ROG). http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14360 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14360 Overclock 3D -- Put the children to bed. This is an x-rated motherboard. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14359 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14359 Rage3D -- Sapphire's newest customized Radeon card is the Sapphire Radeon HD 5550 Ultimate 1GB, featuring a dual heatpipe heatsink and 1GB of RAM. Is it the Ultimate HTPC Gamer card, offering the best balance of media features, gaming performance, and power conservation? Read on to find out! http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14358 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14358 Pro-Clockers -- In the past week months we have taken a look at some pretty nice power supplies. Many of which are still hanging around to the lab serving various task. Our next power supply looks to join the ranks of this units still staying around. The Strider Plus ST750F-P is Silverstone's first 80Plus Silver power supply. The unit is fully modular something the previous Strider Element was not. These two features along will make the new Strider Plus appealing to the masses. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14357 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14357 techPowerUp -- The LM200 is the middle child of Thermaltake's Luxa2 series of high-end HTPC enclosures. While the LM100 Mini offers a compact size along with a PSU and hefty price tag and the LM300 goes all out with space for a full size ATX board, the LM200 can hold a mATX unit and seems to hit the sweet spot on price / performance as well. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14356 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14356 TweakTown -- Throughout the reviewing and testing, there wasn't really a whole lot I could pick as a problem with this cooler. It's cheap, quiet, cost effective, built well and best of all, it performs just like any other premier coolers I have tested on the market. http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14355 http://www.cekora.com/index.php?k=entry&u=14355 Motherboards.org -- A-DATA has an interesting drive on their hands with the S592 32GB drive. On the one hand it is one of the more mainstream drives with a price of under $100 on Directron. It also outperforms the Intel X25-V mainstream drive nearly across the board, making the choice clear. The main problem with this drive is the limited storage capacity of 32GB. Performance and storage will improve with the addition of a second drive in RAID and performance with two drives is nearly the same as many of the more expensive SSD drives on the market today.