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Today we are using one of our Core i7 970 Intel systems, which is liquid cooled and overclocked to 4.33ghz.
Processor: Core i7 970 @ 4.3ghz
Cooling: Coolit Vantage
Motherboard: MSI X58A-GD65 (MS-7522)
Chassis: Thermaltake Level 10
Power Supply: Corsair Ax1200
Memory: 6GB GSkill Performance Gaming ram @ 902.9 MHz (2:10) @ 7-8-7-24
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V+ 512GB Gen 2 SSD (Storage) / Crucial RealSSD C300 256GB (OS boot)
Monitors: Dell U2410 UltraSharp x2, LaCie 730, Iiyama Prolite E2472HDD x2
Other graphics cards for comparisons:
MSI N560GTX TI Twin Frozr II
MSI R6870 HAWK
nVidia GTX460 OC (740 core)
AMD HD6950
AMD HD5870
AMD HD6870
AMD HD6850
AMD HD5850
Software:
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit
Unigine Heaven Benchmark
3DMark Vantage
3DMark 11
Catalyst 11.2
Forceware 266.58 WHQL
PowerDVD 10 Ultra
Fraps Professional
Steam Client
FurMark
TessMark
ShaderToy
HQV 2.0 Software
Technical Monitoring and Test Equipment:
Keithley Integra unit
Thermal Diodes
Raytek Laser Temp Gun 3i LSRC/MT4 Mini Temp
Extech digital sound level meter & SkyTronic DSL 2 Digital Sound Level Meter
Games:
Alien V Predator
Far Cry 2
Resident Evil 5
Tom Clancy HAWX 2
Mafia 2
Lost Planet 2
Call Of Duty Modern Warfare
Colin McRae Dirt 2
F1 2010
Dead Space 2
Just Cause 2
Assassins Creed 2
All the latest BIOS updates and drivers are used during testing. We perform under real world conditions, meaning KitGuru tests all games across five closely matched runs and average out the results to get an accurate median figure.
WOw that cooler melts my eye balls.
Thank god you dont have to look at it all the time once its installed !
Hey, anyway we can petition them to make the cooler a different colour? that really is dire looking.
but hey it works I ‘pose ! nice one.
Why have they a y shaped plate over the memory? whats that about?
Bit of a contradiction that card. one of the best AMD 6870s and easily the ugliest.
Those temperatures are great, especially for the new version of Furmark, which melts some cards. I am not sure I value furmark anymoer for temps, but I like the fact you include gaming results.
@ Dave. the metal plate is obviously for cooling, there are probably thermal pads under it. and then the fan above keeps it cooler and it takes the heat from teh chips.
Nice card design and great performance. as the review says though the 560 is a tough card to beat at this price point.
Weird choice of colours for the cooler design. its very bright. looks like cheap plastic.
I still have concerns about HIS warranty in UK, ive read horror stories.
Wow, 975mhz core, thats insane for an out of the box setting. They must have a good batch for this release.
Very good card from HIS. Its a make I never look at when buying a card, but this one looks like one of the best.
the color isn’t for everyone, apparently. It’s a good match though for Gigabyte Mobo’s. Not that anyone should be buying a VC because of the color. Excluding case modders, possibly.
Where can I buy this exact card? I recently read a review in PC Gamer magazine noting it at £149, but can’t find this model online anywhere!