Test System And Benchmarks
We're skipping the relatively unsuccessful Core i3 build we put together in December 2010 when it comes to comparing synthetic and application benchmark results. Instead, we’re using our build from September 2010's SBM. The new Core i5-2500K/Radeon HD 6950 combo is an interesting competitor for September’s Core i5-750/GeForce GTX 470 system, and the results below show how much the new Sandy bridge CPU changes versus that Core i5-700- series-based build.
For gaming, we include December's Core i3 system and its dual GeForce GTX 460 graphics muscle. We’re in the middle of upgrading our SBM gaming suite, so two of the new game titles we’re using don’t include the Core i5-750/GeForce GTX 470 system we built back in September.
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| Current $1000 Enthusiast PC Test Settings | ||
|---|---|---|
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Standard Speed | Overclocked |
| Motherboard | ASRock P67 Extreme4 LGA 1155, Intel P67 chipset | Unchanged |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-2500K3.3 GHz (3.7 GHz Turbo), Quad-Core, 6 MB L3 Cache | 4400 MHz at 1.3 V |
| Memory | G.Skill Ripjaws 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) DDR3-1333 Dual-Channel Desktop Memory Kit, CAS 7-7-7-20-1T | Unchanged |
| Graphics | Gigabyte Radeon HD 6950 2 GB GDDR5 @ 1250 MHz1408-shader Cayman GPU @ 800 MHz | GDDR5 @ 1300 MHz GPU modded to 1536 shaders @ 880 MHz |
| Hard Drives | Samsung Spinpoint 1 TB 1 TB, 7200 RPM, 32 MB cache SATA 3Gb/s | Unchanged |
| Optical | Asus DRW-24B1ST24x DVD Burner | Unchanged |
| Case | In-Win Android | Unchanged |
| Power | Corsair CMPSU-650TX 650 W ATX12V, EPS12V, 80 PLUS-Certified | Unchanged |
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| $1000 Enthusiast PC Test Settings (December 2010) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Standard Speed | Overclocked |
| Motherboard | Asus Sabertooth 55i Chipset: Intel P55 | Unchanged |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-5503.2 GHz, Dual-Core, 4 MB L3 Cache | 4019 MHz at 1.35 V,167.5 MHz BCLK |
| Memory | GeIL Black Dragon 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) DDR3-1333 Dual-Channel Desktop Memory Kit, CAS 7-7-7-24-1T | DDR3-1004, CAS 7-7-7-24-1T |
| Graphics | 2 x ECS NBGTX460 (SLI) 1 GB GDDR5-3700 Per CardGeForce GTX 460 GPU at 765/1530 MHz core/shaders | GDDR5-3800 825/1650 MHz core/shaders |
| Hard Drives | Western Digital Caviar Black 750 GB 7200 RPM, 32 MB Cache, SATA 3Gb/s | Unchanged |
| Optical | LG 22x DVD-GH22LS50 OEM22x DVD+R, 8x DVD+RW, 48x CD ROM | Unchanged |
| Case | NZXT Gamma | Unchanged |
| Power | Corsair CMPSU-650TX 650 W ATX12V, EPS12V, 80 PLUS-Certified | Unchanged |
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| $1000 Enthusiast PC (September 2010) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | Standard Speed | Overclocked |
| Motherboard | Asus P7P55D-E LX LGA 1156, Intel P55 chipset, BIOS 1003 | Unchanged |
| Processor | Intel Core i5-750 2.66 GHz, Four Cores, 8 MB L3 Cache | 3.75 GHz, 178 MHz Reference Clock |
| Memory | Crucial 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) DDR3-1333 Dual-Channel Desktop Memory Kit, CAS 9-9-9-24-1T | DDR3-1070, CAS 8-8-8-22-1T |
| Graphics | MSI GeForce GTX 470 1280 MB GDDR5-3348 Per Card 607/1215 MHz GPU/Shaders, 837 MHz Mem | GDDR5-4500 690/1380 MHz GPU/Shaders, 845 MHz Mem |
| Hard Drives | Western Digital Caviar Black 640 GB 7200 RPM, 32 MB Cache, SATA 3Gb/s | Unchanged |
| Optical | Lite-On iHAS12424x DVD+R, 8x DVD+RW, 48x CD ROM | Unchanged |
| Case | Antec Three Hundred | Unchanged |
| Power | Corsair CMPSU-650HX 650 W ATX12V, EPS12V , 80 PLUS-Certified | Unchanged |
And here's a list of the benchmarks:
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| Benchmark Configuration | |
|---|---|
| 3D Games | |
| Crysis | Patch 1.2.1, DirectX 10, 64-bit executable, benchmark tool Test Set 1: High Quality, No AA Test Set 2: Very High Quality, No AA |
| DiRT 2 | In-game benchmarkTest Set 1: High Quality Preset, No AATest Set 2: Ultra Quality Preset, 8x AA |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | Campaign, Act III, Second Sun (45 sec. FRAPS)Test Set 1: Highest Settings, No AATest Set 2: Highest Settings, 4x AA |
| S.T.A.L.K.E.R.:Call of Pripyat | S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call Of Pripyat benchmark versionTest Set 1: High Preset, DX11 EFDL, No AATest Set 2: Ultra Preset, DX11 EFDL, 4x MSAA |
| World in Conflict | Patch 1009, DirectX 10, timedemo Test 1: Very High Details, No AA / No AF Test 2: Very High Details 4x AA / 16x AF |
| Just Cause 2 | In-game benchmark: Concrete JungleTest Set 1: Medium Details, No AA, 8x AFTest Set 2: Highest Details, 8x AA, 16x AF |
| F1 2010 | In-game benchmarkTest Set 1: High Quality Preset, No AATest Set 2: Ultra Quality Preset, 8x AA |
| Audio/Video Encoding | |
| iTunes | Version: 9.0.2.25 x64Audio CD ("Terminator II" SE), 53 minDefault format AAC |
| HandBrake 0.9.4 | Version 0.9.4, convert first .vob filefrom "The Last Samurai" (1 GB) to .mp4 High Profile |
| TMPGEnc 4.0 Express | Version: 4.7.3.292Import File: "Terminator 2" SE DVD (5 Minutes)Resolution: 720x576 (PAL) 16:9 |
| DivX 6.9.1 | Encoding mode: Insane QualityEnhanced multithreading enabled using SSE4Quarter-pixel search |
| Xvid 1.2.2 | Display encoding status = off |
| MainConcept Reference 1.6.1 | MPEG-2 to MPEG-4 (H.264), MainConcept H.264/AVC Codec28 sec HDTV 1920x1080 (MPEG-2) Audio: MPEG-2 (44.1 KHz, 2 Channel, 16-Bit, 224 Kb/s) Mode: PAL (25 FPS) |
| Productivity | |
| Adobe Photoshop CS4 (64-bit) | Version: 11.0 x64, Filter 15.7 MB TIF ImageRadial Blur, Shape Blur, Median, Polar Coordinates |
| Autodesk 3ds Max 2010 | Version: 11.0 x64, Rendering Dragon Image at 1920x1080 (HDTV) |
| Grisoft AVG Anti-Virus 9.0 | Version: 9.0.663, Virus base: 270.14.1/2407Benchmark: Scan 334 MB Folder of ZIP/RAR compressed files |
| WinRAR 3.90 | Version x64 3.90, Dictionary = 4,096 KB, Benchmark: THG-Workload (334 MB) |
| 7-Zip | Version 4.65: Format=Zip, Compression=Ultra, Method=Deflate, Dictionary Size=32 KB, Word Size=128, Threads=8Benchmark: THG-Workload (334 MB) |
| Synthetic Benchmarks | |
| 3DMark Vantage | Version: 1.01, GPU and CPU scores |
| PCMark Vantage | Version: 1.0.1.0 x64, System, Productivity, Hard Disk Drive benchmarks |
| SiSoftware Sandra 2010 | Version 2010.1.16.11, CPU Test = CPU Arithmetic / MultiMedia, Memory Test = Bandwidth Benchmark |
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