Partnership
-
MSI is the official motherboard sponsor for Overdrive, providing
Nehalem and P45 platforms for the Championship. -
HyperX DDR3 modules are specifically engineered and designed to meet the rigorous
requirements of PC enthusiasts.HyperX modules rated at DDR3-2000+are used in the
Overdrive Championship -
Samsung Hard Drives and Optical Drives - The Center of Innovation
-
1,000 W modular 80plus high-efficiency EVEREST 1010 power supplies used for
the Overdrive Championship. -
Logitech's G11 gaming keyboard offers illuminated keys and 18 configurable
multi-purpose keys plus a USB hub. The G5 Laser Mouse allows adjustable
weight and up to 2000 dpi sensitivity for maximum precision.
Shop for All
|
Eee Box Desktop |
Compare the top 5 lowest prices by hovering your mouse over the product names on the left |
$349.99 |
|
Edge Z15 Desktop - Customizable | $1499.00 | |
|
iMac Intel Core 2 Duo 24" Desktop | $1748.99 | |
|
Mac Pro Dual Xeon 2.8GHz Quad... | $2679.01 | |
|
iMac 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo 20"... | $1249.99 |
The Build Your Own Articles
- Do-It-Yourself Solar-Powered PC: Hardware
- The $500 Gaming Machine, 2007 Edition
- Do-It-Yourself Solar-Powered PC: Technical Foundations
- Is Your PC Ready for a System Update?
- Energy-Efficient Computing Options
- UPSes To The Rescue
- Overclocking Marathon Day 1 - A Screamin' Dell
- Robotics: New Ideas for the iRobot Create
- The Power Saving Guide, Part 2
- The Power Saving Guide
Reviews
12:02 PM - September 17, 2007 by
Don Woligroski
Source: Tom's Hardware US – Keywords: sbm, low, cost, system
Topics: Overclocking
Syndication:
Source: Tom's Hardware US – Keywords: sbm, low, cost, system
Topics: Overclocking
Syndication:
Table of Contents:
Test System & Benchmarks
| System Builder Marathon: New Low-Cost PC Component Costs | ||
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core 2 Duo e6750 | $212 |
| CPU Cooler | Cooler Master HyperTX 2 | $27 |
| Motherboard | Asus P5K | $137 |
| RAM | Wintec Ampo DDR2 PC2-6400 - 2 GB | $81 |
| Graphics | GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB | $280 |
| Hard Drive | Seagate Barracuda 320 GB SATAII | $80 |
| Sound | Onboard | $0 |
| Case | Raidmax Smilodon | $80 |
| Power | Fortron AX-450PN | $58 |
| DVD-RW | Sony NEC Optiarc 7170 SATA | $35 |
| Total Price | $990 | |
| System Builder Marathon: Old Budget Overclocker PC Component Costs | ||
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core 2 Duo e4300 | $120 |
| CPU Cooler | Thermalright XP-90 & 120mm fan | $55 |
| Motherboard | Asus P5B | $115 |
| RAM | Wintec Ampo DDR2 PC2-6400 - 2 GB | $81 |
| Graphics | GeForce 8800GTX | $500 |
| Hard Drive | Western Digital Caviar 250 GB | $63 |
| Sound | Onboard | $0 |
| Case | Raidmax Smilodon | $80 |
| Power | Aerocool Zerodba 620w | $125 |
| DVD-RW | Sony NEC Optiarc 7170 SATA | $35 |
| Total Price | $1,174 | |
We're going to compare our new low-cost system with the budget overclocker's system we created for our overclocking marathon. Our budget overclocking system is similarly priced to our new low-cost system: it cost $1,174, compared to the new low-cost system's $990 price tag.
The single item that raised the budget overclocker's system price above $1000 was the inclusion of a Geforce 8800 GTX. Had the old budget overclocker's build sported an 8800 GTS 320mb instead of the GTX, its price would have been almost identical to the new low-cost system: about $950. It's going to be interesting to see how the old e4300 CPU/8800 GTX combo will fare against the new e6750/8800 GTS 320 MB combo in the gaming arena.
We won't be comparing the new system to the original budget system in the first system builder marathon. The original budget system was put together for $500 and is completely outclassed by our new $1000 budget champion.
| System Hardware | |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Core Duo e6750, 2.67 GHz, 1333 FSB, 4 MB Cache |
| Motherboard | ASUS P5K, BIOS: 0507 |
| RAM | Wintec Ampo PC2-6400, 2x 1024 MB, CAS 5.0-5-5-16 |
| Hard Drive | Seagate Barracuda ST3320620AS
320 GB, 7200 RPM, 16 MB Cache, SATA 300 |
| Networking | PCIe Gb LAN controller featuring AI NET2 |
| Graphics Cards | EVGA GeForce 8800 GTS, 320 MB RAM |
| Power Supply | Fortron AX-450PN |
| System Software & Drivers | |
| OS | Microsoft Windows XP Pro 5.1.2600 |
| DirectX Version | 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904) |
| Graphics Driver | nVIDIA ForceWare 162.18 |
| Benchmarks and Settings | |
|---|---|
| 3D-Games | |
| F.E.A.R | Version: 1.0 Retail
Video Mode: 1024x768 Computer: Maximum Graphics: Maximum-Custom-No Softshadows Test Path: Options/Performance/Test Settings |
| Doom 3 | Version: 1.3
Video Mode: 1024x768 Graphics: High Test: Time Demo 1 |
| Oblivion | Version: 1.0 Retail
Video Mode: 1024x768 Graphics: High, 4xAA Test: Inside & Outside save files |
| Audio | |
| Lame MP3 | Version 3.97 Beta 2 (12-22-2005)
Audio CD "Terminator II SE", 53 min wave to mp3 160 kbps |
| OGG | Version 1.1.2 (Intel P4 MOD)
Version 1.1.2 (Intel AMD MOD) Audio CD "Terminator II SE", 53 min wave to ogg Quality: 5 |
| Video | |
| TMPEG 3.0 Express | Version: 3.0.4.24 (no Audio)
fist 5 Minutes DVD Terminator 2 SE (704x576) 16:9 Multithreading by rendering |
| DivX 6.1 | Version: 6.1
Profile: High Definition Profile 1-pass, 3000 kbit/s Encoding mode: Insane Quality Enhanced multithreading no Audio |
| XviD 1.1.0 | Version: 1.1.0 Beta 2
Target qantizer: 1.00 |
| Applications | |
| Autodesk 3D Studio Max | Version: 8.0
Characters "Dragon_Charater_rig" rendering HTDV 1920x1080 & 1280x720 |
| Synthetics | |
| SPECviewperf 9 | Version: 9.0.3 |
| PCMark05 Pro | Version: 1.1.0
System, CPU and Memory Tests Windows Media Player 10.00.00.3646 Windows Media Encoder 9.00.00.2980 |
| 3DMark05 | Version: 1.2
System Test Only |
| SiSoftware Sandra 2005 | Version 2005.7.10.60
CPU Test = Arithmetic, Multimedia Benchmarks Memory Test = Bandwidth Benchmark |
- Previous page Optical Drive: Sony NEC Optiarc 7170...
- Next page 3D Games
