Page 1
Article Type: Hardware
Article Date: November 02, 2001
Go Back To Part I
It used to be easy to choose a sound board. In the last few years choices have multiplied, even as general quality has increased.
Modern sound hardware must provide multiple sound sources at specific points in 3D space. Doing this, plus adding environmental effects and voice, requires powerful signal processors. Recent boards like the Creative Labs Audigy provide six channel digital output, up to 1024 voices and 64 hardware accelerated channels. They also allow real-time audio input (voice command) if you add the proper software.
When I first began testing IL-2 Sturmovik I was running the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz, a fast and efficient board with good overall performance. In IL-2, however, it gave me trouble, dropping sound channels and even losing voice on occasion. I finally switched to Creative’s SB Live and eliminated my trouble.
For my new system I chose Creative’s Audigy, the latest and fastest audio board on the market. Its onboard processor is more than twice as powerful as that of the SB Live, and CPU usage with 16 channels is one third that of the SB Live. That translates into more CPU power applied to my game, and that’s exactly what I want.
The only other sound board that comes close to the Audigy for CPU usage is the Philips Acoustic Edge. The Audigy is faster yet, supports EAX 2, provides excellent quality and compatibility and even comes with a firewire port for those video prodigies in the audience.
Heat being an issue with high powered systems (see System Cooling), I shopped for a case that would provide exceptional airflow. The Coolerguys WindTunnel II Gamer provides 173 CFM of airflow, and places an intake fan directly over the CPU. The case sports two 92mm intake fans and three 60mm exhaust fans. Furthermore, the case places USB, sound, mouse and joystick ports on the front of the case for easy access.
Finally, I tossed in a generic CD writer from Lite On. My 16x10x40x unit is standard in most COMPAQ systems and does an admirable job.
I also chose the USER DEFINE setting for the CPU. This allowed me to bypass the AUTO detection and select 150 x 11 for my CPU, giving me the blazing speed of 1650 MHz. I had to boost CPU voltage to 1.85 in order to pass the 1550 mark. I carefully secured the half-inch steel cable around the case to ensure my V12 would not jump off the desk. Time to pop the clutch and take it around the block!
Let’s consider the benchmarks, beginning with Mad Onion's well known 3DMark2001 synthetic benchmark. We’ll use a 1 GHz AMD system as our test bed, then consider this system at its default settings, at overclocked settings with default bus (266), then at overclocked settings with 300 MHz bus. We’ll also compare to similar systems via the 3DMark Online browser. Finally, we’ll consider some in-game benchmarks using MicroProse's Falcon 4, EA's Jane's F/A-18, Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulator 2, and iENT's WarBirds III.
3DMark2001 is a synthetic test suite that mimics real world gaming applications. While not biased toward NVIDIA hardware it is somewhat biased toward hardware T&L. NVIDIA’s GeForce series and ATI’s new Radeon series perform very well under these test conditions.
3DMark2001 assigns a wide range of test scores when the full benchmark is run, and in fact it’s a very entertaining benchmark to run! It runs a car chase scenario, a Dragothic scenario, and a synthetic scenario from the cult movie, The Matrix, where Neo and Trinity enter the hotel lobby and shoot up everything in sight.
It runs these and other tests at two levels of detail, then presents the score in frames per second. It combines these and the other scores to render a 3DMark so that users can tweak their systems for maximum performance. The registered version also allows online comparison to other systems.
I have three test systems to compare, and then an online comparison.
The first test system is an ABIT KT-7 mainboard with an Athlon Thunderbird at 928 MHz, 512 MB of PCI 133 SDRAM was set at 145 MHz. The video board was OCZ’s Titan 3 GeForce3.
The second test system is the one we are concerned with here. An ABIT KG-7 mainboard with an Athlon Thunderbird at 1500 MHz, 512 MB of PCI 2400 was set at 300MHz. The video board was OCZ’s Titan 3 GeForce3.
The third system is the same as the latter, except with the CPU at 1650 MHz.
The 3DMark scores are as follows.
System 1
System 2
System 3
Equally impressive are the simulations which don’t allow frame rate counters. IL-2, for example, was smooth in most cases on my 1 GHz system even with all settings running at maximum at 1024x768 and 32 bit color. The exception was when playing online or with a lot of action. With fifteen aircraft in the air and a lot of anti-aircraft artillery, the frame rate was sometimes dropping below 10.
On the new system I have not yet seen the frame rate dip so low, in spite of my building missions where there is plenty of action. I have always had smooth flight with the new hardware, even with all my settings to the max.
Where simulations do allow actual testing, I have used FRAPS to record scores. I tested SSI's Flanker 2.5, Jane’s F/A-18, Combat Flight Simulator 2, Falcon 4, and Rage Software's Eurofighter Typhoon.
All tests were run with the Titan 3 at 240 MHz clock and memory at 550 MHz.
Users on a budget should consider the AMD Duron 1 GHz option. Most of these CPU’s can be reliably clocked to 1.2 GHz, and since they now contain the same SSE instruction set as the Athlon XP, they are a powerful processor that will give excellent performance for around $80 US.
DDRAM prices vary almost as much as quality. I highly recommend that users look to OCZ, Mushkin or Corsair. While not all high performance memory can be run at CAS 2-2-2, the difference in moving to a CAS 2-3-3 setting is minimal.
While I have always preferred ABIT mainboards, it is worth considering the new Shuttle 266A mainboard if you are on a budget. This board is almost as flexible for overclockers as the ABIT KG-7.
Do it yourself and have fun!
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Power Gaming System Build - Part II
by Len "Viking1" HjalmarsonArticle Type: Hardware
Article Date: November 02, 2001
Go Back To Part IThe Sounds of Violence
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| Creative's Latest Hardware |
It used to be easy to choose a sound board. In the last few years choices have multiplied, even as general quality has increased.
Modern sound hardware must provide multiple sound sources at specific points in 3D space. Doing this, plus adding environmental effects and voice, requires powerful signal processors. Recent boards like the Creative Labs Audigy provide six channel digital output, up to 1024 voices and 64 hardware accelerated channels. They also allow real-time audio input (voice command) if you add the proper software.
When I first began testing IL-2 Sturmovik I was running the Turtle Beach Santa Cruz, a fast and efficient board with good overall performance. In IL-2, however, it gave me trouble, dropping sound channels and even losing voice on occasion. I finally switched to Creative’s SB Live and eliminated my trouble.
For my new system I chose Creative’s Audigy, the latest and fastest audio board on the market. Its onboard processor is more than twice as powerful as that of the SB Live, and CPU usage with 16 channels is one third that of the SB Live. That translates into more CPU power applied to my game, and that’s exactly what I want.
The only other sound board that comes close to the Audigy for CPU usage is the Philips Acoustic Edge. The Audigy is faster yet, supports EAX 2, provides excellent quality and compatibility and even comes with a firewire port for those video prodigies in the audience.
I Canna Give You More Power, Captain!
If you imagine that your old 250 watt power supply will drive this system, think again. AMD recommend a minimum 350 watt power supply for the 1333 MHz CPU, and prefer a 400. I chose the Fortron-Source 350 from Coolerguys.com to meet my needs.  |
| Windtunnel II Gamer ATX |
Heat being an issue with high powered systems (see System Cooling), I shopped for a case that would provide exceptional airflow. The Coolerguys WindTunnel II Gamer provides 173 CFM of airflow, and places an intake fan directly over the CPU. The case sports two 92mm intake fans and three 60mm exhaust fans. Furthermore, the case places USB, sound, mouse and joystick ports on the front of the case for easy access.
Finally, I tossed in a generic CD writer from Lite On. My 16x10x40x unit is standard in most COMPAQ systems and does an admirable job.
Easy Assembly, No Glue Required
While the assembly is easy, the tweaking and benchmarking can consume many hours. If you don’t enjoy this kind of thing, no matter. ABIT has tossed in some default configurations that are quickly selectable. These “presets” include TURBO for high quality memory, and ULTRA for CAS 2 capable DDRAM. I selected ULTRA and set my memory speed at 150 MHz (x2 = 300MHz bus).  |
| Abit's Softmenu III |
I also chose the USER DEFINE setting for the CPU. This allowed me to bypass the AUTO detection and select 150 x 11 for my CPU, giving me the blazing speed of 1650 MHz. I had to boost CPU voltage to 1.85 in order to pass the 1550 mark. I carefully secured the half-inch steel cable around the case to ensure my V12 would not jump off the desk. Time to pop the clutch and take it around the block!
Your Mother Would Not Approve
When overclocking CPU, memory or video board it is critical to monitor temperatures. The KG-7 comes with a thermistor under the CPU socket which will report CPU temperature when you install the system monitor utility. A loaded (running a flight simulation) temperature of 60 C is the limit, with the low 50s being preferable.Let’s consider the benchmarks, beginning with Mad Onion's well known 3DMark2001 synthetic benchmark. We’ll use a 1 GHz AMD system as our test bed, then consider this system at its default settings, at overclocked settings with default bus (266), then at overclocked settings with 300 MHz bus. We’ll also compare to similar systems via the 3DMark Online browser. Finally, we’ll consider some in-game benchmarks using MicroProse's Falcon 4, EA's Jane's F/A-18, Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulator 2, and iENT's WarBirds III.
Testing
 |
| MadOnion's LOGO |
3DMark2001 is a synthetic test suite that mimics real world gaming applications. While not biased toward NVIDIA hardware it is somewhat biased toward hardware T&L. NVIDIA’s GeForce series and ATI’s new Radeon series perform very well under these test conditions.
3DMark2001 assigns a wide range of test scores when the full benchmark is run, and in fact it’s a very entertaining benchmark to run! It runs a car chase scenario, a Dragothic scenario, and a synthetic scenario from the cult movie, The Matrix, where Neo and Trinity enter the hotel lobby and shoot up everything in sight.
It runs these and other tests at two levels of detail, then presents the score in frames per second. It combines these and the other scores to render a 3DMark so that users can tweak their systems for maximum performance. The registered version also allows online comparison to other systems.
I have three test systems to compare, and then an online comparison.
 |
| A 3DMark Sample |
The first test system is an ABIT KT-7 mainboard with an Athlon Thunderbird at 928 MHz, 512 MB of PCI 133 SDRAM was set at 145 MHz. The video board was OCZ’s Titan 3 GeForce3.
The second test system is the one we are concerned with here. An ABIT KG-7 mainboard with an Athlon Thunderbird at 1500 MHz, 512 MB of PCI 2400 was set at 300MHz. The video board was OCZ’s Titan 3 GeForce3.
The third system is the same as the latter, except with the CPU at 1650 MHz.
 |
| 3DMark Scores Charted |
The 3DMark scores are as follows.
System 1
- Car Chase High Detail: 25.2 fps
- Dragothic High Detail: 41.1 fps
- Lobby High Detail: 36.3 fps
- Nature Demo: 20.5 fps
- Fill Rate: 1241 MegaTexels per second
- 3DMark Score: 4681
System 2
- Car Chase High Detail: 45.2 fps
- Dragothic High Detail: 57.7 fps
- Lobby High Detail: 56.6 fps
- Nature Demo: 36.4 fps
- Fill Rate: 1483 MegaTexels per second
- 3DMark Score: 7325
System 3
- Car Chase High Detail: 51.1 fps
- Dragothic High Detail: 62.6 fps
- Lobby High Detail: 61.5 fps
- Nature Demo: 40.1 fps
- Fill Rate: 1518 MegaTexels per second
- 3DMark Score: 8055
 |
| Synthetic FPS Charted |
In-Game Tests
When moving from a 1 GHz system to a 1.65 GHz system, one can expect significant improvement in frame rate in existing simulations. This is certainly the case, and my average 15 fps in Jane’s F/A-18 went to an astonishing 33 fps.Equally impressive are the simulations which don’t allow frame rate counters. IL-2, for example, was smooth in most cases on my 1 GHz system even with all settings running at maximum at 1024x768 and 32 bit color. The exception was when playing online or with a lot of action. With fifteen aircraft in the air and a lot of anti-aircraft artillery, the frame rate was sometimes dropping below 10.
On the new system I have not yet seen the frame rate dip so low, in spite of my building missions where there is plenty of action. I have always had smooth flight with the new hardware, even with all my settings to the max.
Where simulations do allow actual testing, I have used FRAPS to record scores. I tested SSI's Flanker 2.5, Jane’s F/A-18, Combat Flight Simulator 2, Falcon 4, and Rage Software's Eurofighter Typhoon.
 |
| Extra GHz |
All tests were run with the Titan 3 at 240 MHz clock and memory at 550 MHz.
Conclusion
With RAM prices lower than ever and the new Athlon CPUs available, there has never been a better time to build a powerful gaming system. With NVIDIA’s introduction of their GeForce3 Titanium and ATI’s release of the RADEON 8500, GeForce3 prices are as low as $170 US.Users on a budget should consider the AMD Duron 1 GHz option. Most of these CPU’s can be reliably clocked to 1.2 GHz, and since they now contain the same SSE instruction set as the Athlon XP, they are a powerful processor that will give excellent performance for around $80 US.
DDRAM prices vary almost as much as quality. I highly recommend that users look to OCZ, Mushkin or Corsair. While not all high performance memory can be run at CAS 2-2-2, the difference in moving to a CAS 2-3-3 setting is minimal.
While I have always preferred ABIT mainboards, it is worth considering the new Shuttle 266A mainboard if you are on a budget. This board is almost as flexible for overclockers as the ABIT KG-7.
Do it yourself and have fun!
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