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- Custom modded, liquid-cooled Alienware(R) Lian-Li PC-73SL Silent Case
- The latest Intel(R) processor and motherboard
- The latest gaming LCD monitor
- 2GB of the latest Crucial(R) Ballistix(TM) DDR2 high-performance memory
- Crucial(R) RADEON(TM) X800 PCI Express video card (not yet released)
- 1TB (that’s right, TERABYTE) Western Digital(R) Serial ATA 7,200
Caviar(R) SE drives (4x 250GB)
- 148GB Western Digital(R) Serial ATA 10,000 RPM WD Raptor(TM) hard drives (2x 74GB)
- Memorex(R) Dual Layer DVD Burner 8.5GB backup and storage
- Memorex(R) 52x32x52x16 Combo drive
- Creative Labs Sound Blaster(R) Audigy(R) 2 ZS Platinum Pro sound card
- The latest surround sound speaker system from Logitech
- Logitech(R) MX(TM) 510 Performance Optical Mouse
- Logitech(R) Elite(TM) Keyboard USB PS/2 104 keys
- Crucial(R) Ballistix(TM) custom gaming mouse pad
- 1GB Crucial(R) Gizmo!(TM) Hi-Speed USB flash drive
- Crucial(R) Hi-Speed 7-in-1 USB Card Reader
- Microsoft(R) Windows XP(TM) and Office
- Full versions of Far Cry, UT2004 - DVD Version, Half Life 2, Doom 3
- And more!

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The DDR Booster is an incredible device. Even at stock voltage of 2.9V, what I realized was when the DDR Booster was in the slot and running the DDR would overclock 2 FSB more than when it is not on the slot. This maybe OCZs patented PowerClean Technology at work. The PowerClean Technology gives the memory a cleaner and more stable power supply, resulting in more stable DDRs. Highest stable overclock speed on the Mushkin Level II was 252FSB (504MHz) with a 1:1 divider.

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As you can imagine, the choices can be confusing with new technologies, and that is why today we are going to be testing out a pair of Crucial PC4200 DDR-2 DIMM's which have just rolled off the production line. Each module is 256MB in size, and the FBGA DRAM (the small back memory chips) are rated to run with 4-4-4 memory timings, at 200 MHz, while drawing just 1.8V.

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AOpen has achieved a low price by running with a completely reference card in every way, shape and form. The associated bundle, however, is non-reference. AOpen manages to bundle in a couple of reasonable retail games. That's more than can be said for a number of NVIDIA's other partners. Benchmark performance, by dint of the card's default 350MHz core and 1000MHz memory clocks, was also strictly reference, although reference equates to a massive step up from the previous generation's cards. Purchasing the second-highest card in the range often leads to decent overclocking results, as it often uses the same technology and setup as the premier card but runs at slightly slower speeds. That was the case here. 411MHz core and 1100MHz memory put the Aeolus GT above a default Ultra's clocks.

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If you consider yourself a tweaker and like to muck around overclocking, you'll appreciate the Port 80 diagnostics card. Using numbered codes, it displays information about memory errors, problems with the CPU, or even faults relating to the videocard. In fact, after using a board with the Port 80 card, it's often difficult to move back to a motherboard without it!

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The first thing I did was set it up for 400MHz at CAS2 to ensure there was no problem with that, there wasn't. I compared my Sandra Memory test results at 400MHz against a GB of PMI RAM at the same settings and the results were within 3 points, so I knew the speeds of the Ultra RAM were valid.

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The card on the review bench this time is the Sapphire Toxic X800 Pro VIVO, and it is an entirely different kind of beast. Under the hood, it's still a X800 Pro of course, but Sapphire has tweaked more than just a couple things that will undoubtedly make you raise an eye-brow or two. For those of you keeping track at home, the Sapphire Ultimate series is out, and the Toxic series is in.

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The Gigabyte GV-NX57128D video card is a PCI Express x16 solution that is based on the GeForcePCX 5750 GPU. The blue-PCB card is backed up by 128MB of TSOP-II 3.6ns Samsung DRAM, and it supports S-Video out, DVI and analog connections. The card doesn't require any extra power connectors incidently.

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I always admire companies that try to do something special with their products. HIS is one of those companies. With their IceQ line of ATI cards, they have gained a very good reputation. Today, I am looking at the king of their cards, the HIS Excalibur X800 XT IceQ II VIVO LIMITED EDITION. Yes, a long and complicated name, but somehow it does fit with this card since it is anything but simple.

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Intel's 900-series of chipsets attempt to modernise motherboard design from almost every angle. The cost of such modernisation is mediocre speed and, perhaps, limited overclockability. ASUS has done a good job in releasing a couple of boards that are packed to the rafters with useful features, from dual Gigabit LAN to integrated WiFi. Given the P5GD2 Premium's P5AD2 Alderwood-matching performance, it has to be the pick of the two. So if you absolutely want to run the latest cutting-edge kit, it's a good a choice as any. My reservations, however, lie more with Intel's chipset than with ASUS' efforts.

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Built upon the 9500 VPU, this card should also be quite able to handle those late night jaunts into the gaming world. If you’re tight on money or just can’t justify spending a months car payment on the latest and greatest for a little extra eye candy then you’re reading the right review. At just over one hundred dollars this little DX9 capable beauty just may be what you’re looking for.

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One thing that the site or the packaging neglects to explain is the timings on the Nitro series RAM. I received an e-mail during the review, listing the timings as 2.5, 3, 3, 7. Since this is performance RAM, I would like to see the timings added to the site at least so that people could research what they are buying.

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How do the old but not forgotten Winbond BH-6 chips stand up against the competition? Thanks to the Mushkin PC3200 Special Series we were able to find out. Want to know how it feels to put all the memory options in your BIOS to the most aggressive setting?

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I'd imagine not a whole lot of you are ready to drop $1200 for a CPU, motherboard and video card combo. For the price of the Socket-939, you can pick up an A64 3000+, K8T800 based motherboard, and a decent mid-ranged video card. For gamers on a budget, I think the choice is obvious.

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At $94 a stick from NewEgg, I was able to get an easy 300MHz overclock resulting in a noticeable performance gain. For those who don't OC, I had no problems running the RAM at more aggressive timings. The Premiere line is a welcomed step up from most Value RAM while keeping an affordable price-tag.

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In this review, we have some new and exciting technology to cover as PCstats.com reviews the PCI-Express x16 Gigabyte GV-RX60X128V videocard. Built around the solid Radeon X600XT core, the Gigabyte GV-RX60X128V offers quick performance figures for a mainstream card, and takes over right where the Radeon 9600XT left off. The Gigabyte GV-RX60X128V is equipped with 128MB of Hynix 2.5ns DDR DRAM, a nice little heatsink, and Video in / Video out. Gigabyte has bundled in a few extra's, such as a DVI-to-analog converter (for dual monitors), a full version of PowerDVD 5 and Rainbow Six 3: Raven Shield. The VIVO cable is about 120cm in length, so its easy to hook up the PC to a TV. It's a much better option than having those small VIVO boxes that stick out only a few cm from the computer.

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OCZ didn't give up though. They spent some time researching various timings which would give the best results. The resulting product is their new "Enhanced Bandwidth" line, to replace the "Enhanced Latency" line. We take the newest PC3500 EB DDR kit, and put it up against the PC3500 EL kit. You might be amazed at the results of some of the timings used!

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The maximum core speed we were able to achieve was 536MHz and the maximum memory speed was 1.202GHz. This was an increase in core clock speed of 66MHz and an increase in memory speed of 302MHz. These are by far the highest clock speeds we've achieved with a Radeon X800 Pro card, and we'll be using these overclocked speeds in our performance tests.

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What you will be seeing today is the next edition of HIS's IceQ line called the IceQII. Utilizing ATI's next generation X800 video processors, HIS intends to pick where the initial 9x00pro based videocards left off and continue dominating the market with a videocard which is matched by none and envied by many.

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Corsair is a well trusted name in the enthusiast community. Corsair's products are almost always one step ahead of its competitors. From the enthusiast tested memory to technical support, Corsair almost always leads the way. A recent discovery of Samsung's low latency chips has caused excitement in the PC3200 memory arena. The PC3200 market was once thought to be dull when considering the same latencies and speeds that were being achieved by enthusiast rated memory modules.

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AMD recently launched its socket 939 processor, which incorporates a dual channel memory controller and a host of other features. The 939 is targeted at high-end gaming and intensive workstation applications. TechwareLabs tests the 3800+ and answers the question everyone will ask: does the Socket 939 deliver the high end performance it promises?

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While we have looked at many of Corsair's XMS modules over the past couple years we have yet to review any of their value memory. Seeing how many consumers cannot afford or are not in need of the Corsair XMS line they often opt for Corsair's Value Select memory due to brand loyalty and price point. To help give our budget & mainstream builders some prime time press coverage we recently ordered...

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Earlier in the spring, Nvidia and ATI updated their product line with their X800 and 6800 product lines showing a massive leap in performance from the pervious generation of cards. With some time since then, most vendors have had their cards based off those reference designs out, but that for the most part it is simply a bunch of look alike video cards that all perform the same. However, as time has moved on since the initial launch, it has given the vendors the opportunity to adjust ATI’s reference designs and tweak the cards out to the maximum to get every bit of performance and distance themselves from their competitors. Today we look at a card that attempts just that, Sapphire’s Toxic X800 Pro, with an amazing game bundle with full versions of Prince of Persia and Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow on DVD, VIVO, silent cooling, temperature monitoring, and performance enhancement software all for an MSRP of $469 to see if they can pull off making one of the best X800 Pro cards on the market.

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As the Intel computing world becomes more familiar with PCI-Express, expect more high end, and native PCI-E solutions to crop up. Before we get to far ahead ourselves, let's focus in on the card PCstats.com is testing in this review; the MSI PCX5750-TD128 videocard. The MSI PCX5750-TD128 is a PCI-Express x16 solution based on the venerable nVidia GeForcePCX 5750 core, and comes with 128MB of standard DDR memory running at 500MHz. The bright red card supports S-Video output, and of course comes with all the necessary cables in the box. An additional DVI-to-analog converter is included so users can configure dual monitors if they prefer as well.

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AMD has just released its latest processor line, the AMD Sempron. The Sempron is designed to replace the Duron line of lower-performance, inexpensive processors aimed at home and business desktop users. Available in both Socket A and Socket 754, the Sempron offers good performance for its price, and has good potential for overclocking.

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Overall this motherboard is fantastic, it's much better than my IC7 and im looking forward to see motherboards exceeding the qualities this motherboard had, and im sure those are there already but if you want to check out some of those reviews on the latest motherboards, check out toms hardware or hexus, or any other site out there on the planet. This is a motherboard packed with stability, it's highly overclockable with the right cooling and it's still good enough to play around with the new sockets. Overall a very nice product for a nice price.

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Coming into this review I had high hopes for the AV8's overclockability, primarily because of the success I've had with the KV8-MAX3 and the NF7-S Rev 2.0. Luckily, I did not leave dissapointed. With our Athlon 64 3800+ processor, we were able to achieve a stable overclock of 265MHz, an overclock that was 74MHz higher than what we were able to achieve with our MSI K8T Neo2-FIR board. We ran our Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness tests to see how the board performs when it overclocks.

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What strikes me most is the performance difference the entire range of product from both IHVs has over the outgoing generation of parts. They all make 9800XT and 5950 Ultra look very very silly indeed. Something for everyone from £200 upwards.

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If you\'re looking for a card that will allow you to capture video from anything with an S-video or composite video connection and do a little gaming on the side, then you should consider the Excalibur 9550 VIVO Edition. With its 256MB of DDR RAM you get smoooth playback of DVD movies and video clips, plus very few dropped frames during video capture.

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If the best of the best is what you're looking for, the Aeolus's no-nonsense approach translated into a keen price, makes the performance, features, image quality and noise seem very very attractive.

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The Mushkin PC3200 222 Level II Ver.2 (L2V2) 1Gb Dual Pack is another example of fine DDR modules coming out of tested and proven memory manufacturers. Expect this new entry from Mushkin to deliver the maximum performance for your system at DDR400. If its ultra low latency you want, then the L2V2 won’t disappoint.

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Hi guys, our turn to look at NV40 technology and feed it through our testing grinder. DOOM III results, lots of waffle, lots of naked board pictures. You know the routine.