BFWGaming

Congratulations to the people involved in the ASUS Ultimate Overclocking Show 2009!

We all know ASUS has got to be the most reputable Mobo+VC maker in there world. They stay true to their motto which is “Rock Solid, Heart Touching”. But then does this cooler respect the motto? For example, Gigabyte has plenty of good stuff ranging from Mobos, VCs, PSUs, Casings and Water Cooling Solutions. That are their good products, their bad products are their coolers. Some of their coolers don’t work better than a stock HSF which is going to be a bad example on their company. But does ASUS tap this Gigabyte problem? Let’s find out!

Actually, this is the first cooler I have ever owned. I have touched or installed several coolers but then I don’t have a chance to own them. I have managed to find some temperature differences of those coolers and I hope I can apply most of it for comparison in here(Seriously, I won’t compare this cooler to another because I might trash its reputation). I just really hope I do good in this first ever review of a cooler

Today’s Product is the ASUS Triton 81 Cooler. Price range is around 2900 Pesos(2900/47=$61). I have looked around google for the real price yet that is the only price I have found. There’s newegg? I’m too dumb to find the cooler in newegg? Think again. The article of this cooler is a deactivated item already in there. So you won’t find the price in there. You’ll just find the pictures and some comments in there. Those comments are positive yet I do not have an idea why the product is deactivated

The eye catching part of the box of this cooler is the 1366 Socket Support. So if you’re low on budget and you are going on i7 but doesn’t want the Stock HSF, this is a good temporary Cooler since it supports 1366. In my theory, this cooler seems to be ASUS’ solution to the LGA 1366 processors. So thank ASUS for cooler so you won’t have problems anymore on looking Coolers that have 1366 support

Here’s another view of the box of the Cooler. Another great feature of the Cooler is that it has PWM Control. I don’t really know what’s the function of this thing but I’ll find out soon. So far the only thing I know about the PWM Control is that you will be able to control the Fan Speeds. Or if you don’t want to tinker around with the BIOS, there’s SMART fan where the computer automatically adjusts the Fan Speeds if the Processor gets too hot(AKA. #prochot). The fans do a great part in terms of controlling Fan Speeds which I will cover later.

Here is the cooler taken out with the extra stuff inside. It includes the fastening kits for AMD, Intel LGA 775, LGA 1366, A printed manual and a Thermal Paste. The Manual is not hard to understand, its straight forward that everything just fits like lego blocks. The fastening kits are just like the stock HSF’s method of fastening. So you won’t have problems taking it off unlike other cooler out there which requires you to take off the entire motherboard just to take off the cooler.

The Cooler has 2 92mm fans which is placed strategically to solve airflow problems. 1 of the coolers is intake while the other one is a exhaust. The box says it has a Optimal 4-way airflow design in which if it truly works, it’s cool. 2 of the 4 way airflow design is a side exhaust(not a exhaust fan) from the cooler itself. 1 is an intake and 1 is a exhaust. Speaking of the exhausts of the cooler, my intake fan is conflicting with the side exhaust of the cooler which is not good(cold air from the intake meeting hot air from the side exhaust of the cooler). So make sure you position your cooler and your fans to the correct aerodynamic flow.

As you can see, the heatpipes are not exposed instead there’s that metal plate that is the only that that will have contact with the processor. I don’t know if that metal plate is bad or not since the processor won’t have direct contact with the heatpipe. However, thermalright has the same concept of having that metal plate as the only contact between the processor and the cooler. Thermalright is known for good cooling solutions though.

Here’s the thermal paste that is included in the box. It’s just around 3-4cm long and you have to pour everything in it to make sure the paste is surely spread

By the way, Im not sure what kind of thermal paste ASUS uses here. I’ve tried searching around yet ASUS may have kept their Trade Secrets away from the public about the thermal paste. If you want to make sure that the thermal paste is reliable, better buy a aftermarket thermal paste.

Here’s the cooler installed. I never had problems installing it. As ive said ago about the manual, Everything fits just like lego blocks. I didn’t have any problems with obstacles and stuff, so installing the cooler will be a walk in the park in all human difficulty ranges. Just make sure you have more than 2 neurons in your brain.

If anyone noticed the dust in the sleeving, I apologize for such dirty thing in my rig. I haven’t done my general cleaning for 2 months already.

More pics up there after installing the cooler. Looks cool man.

Here’s the cooler and the rig with the job done. Just incase anyone doesn’t know, the fans in the cooler has blue leds. So any enthusiasts out there who are spectrumphiles(light addicts), this could be good for you. But then my computer is in a red theme, the fan leds just contradicts the color scheme. Oh well…

Finally, I have here the benchmarks and the temperatures. The test I used is the System Stability Test from Everest Ultimate Edition v5.00 with everything turned off except for the CPU stress testing. I have the graph below from Everest that compares my old stock HSF cooler temps into the ASUS Triton 81 Cooler. I did the stress testing for 5 minutes and monitored the temps in idle for 3 minutes. A timestamp is included just incase room environment is taken into consideration

As you can see, both coolers in idle perform the same. They more likely have the same temperatures. However, with the Fan control capabilities of the ASUS Triton 81 Cooler, the lesser the temperature, the slower the fan turns and the cooler performs just like a stock HSF. But when the temps get hotter, the fan control rings the bell, the faster the fan turns to cool the cooler. The faster it gets, the noisier it goes.

I don’t really notice the noise since I use headphones but then I can hardly hear the noise even if I don’t wear the headphones. So, sure thing dude.

The ASUS Triton 81 performs just like the stock HSF in idle temps. The cooler just starts to rev up if the temps go high which is good. As shown on the graphs above, you can really see the difference between the two coolers in stress test mode. The idle temps? The temperature difference is just really small. ASUS Triton 81 cools just 1 centigrade lower than the stock HSF which is disappointing. As a conclusion, The ASUS Triton 81 cools better than the normal Stock HSF.

PS: I just noticed this a while ago, when the stress test started in the stock HSF, the temps increase GRADUALLY. You will notice the small curve of the temperature increasing at the start of the test. Another example you can see is when the stress test ends, it takes few seconds to actually cool down the Stock HSF. However with the Asus Triton 81 Cooler, you can see that in any of the ends, at the start of the test the temps increase instantly but then when the test ends, the temps decrease instantly. This is a job well done for the Asus Triton 81 Cooler.

If you’re not much of a gamer guy(more like office work), I don’t recommend this cooler. Stick with the Stock HSF instead. But then if you’re a gamer guy, you can get this but I don’t recommend it. There are better coolers out there than this one for the same price. For overclockers, I don’t suggest it. I haven’t tested the cooler in overclocking environments yet I highly doubt ASUS Triton 81 can withstand the OCing environments.

As the conclusion, The cooler is big, average in performance, easy to install and average in price. But this cooler does not top the mid-range coolers. If you are interested with the cooler and wants one, good luck on finding a seller. Because newegg even had the product deactivated, or probably ASUS cancelled the product. I suggest you find a better cooler than this where you can find it easier(there are plenty lying around waiting for your money)

Thank You Fine Upgrades and ASUS for the cooler! I hope you guys get me another product to review

History was made yesterday, May 23, 2009 at the SM City CEBU as our very own local Cebuano enthusiasts locked up head to head in the first BIGGEST overclocking show done in the Philippines.

I was not able to take pictures but I shall give you a link to a fellow tech blogger who has and wrote about the event as well:

Mango Chico’s Blog about the the ASUS OVERCLOCKING SHOW

This momentous event will definitely be one for the history books of CEBU and the Philippines. A Stepping stone to many more similar events, I hope..

Rock on!

Go to Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Mytechisland/~3/rg_sEZxceeM/asus-overclocking-show-one-for-books.html

Held at Sm City, Cebu last May 23, 2009. The show was sponsored by Asus and hosted by Ryan Yu of Tech Island.

Check out the pictures

Here is my long overdue review of the ASUS GTX295. I was suppose to review the GTX285 but instead, they replaced it with the GTX295. Right now, this card is the King of the HILL, top of the heap, NUMERO UNO VGA card beating the previous video champ, ATI’s 4870×2. Actually, this was NVIDIA’s answer to the 4870×2 because it also has two cores, well not really exactly the same, as the GTX295 is running two cards in SLI on a single card whilst the 4870×2 is running two cores on a single PCB. Sounds familiar? Yes, this is sorta like the Big brother of the 9800GX2 that a lot of fans came to love. Now you maybe thinking, “This card has $$$ written all over it” Well, you would be surprise to see hardcore gamers buying this baby even when most people are on Crisis Mode (and I don’t mean the game.) This card roughly sells at around P25,000.00, at that price most you could already buy a basic PC package or even a portable laptop but let me tell you this, YOU DO GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. So without further adue, let’s get it on!

The BOX
Did I mention they sent us two? Later on you will see of course, BENCHMARK RESULTS of the GTX295 in SLI. But before that, lets move on.

Just like the RAMPAGE II it also has the ASUS Flip cover. On the front of the box you will see a very cool image of a knight on a horse. This clearly shows this card is targeted, OF COURSE, towards gamers. What I have notices though is ASUS seems to like the KNIGHT theme as they have been having a similar theme for most of their new Gaming video cards similar also on the previously reviewed MATRIX EAH 4870. That being mentioned, for those of you who don’t know, the cool thing about ASUS is they don’t just deal with ATI or NVIDIA, they have both, and they make these cool products even COOLER with a touch of ASUS.

The FLIP

When you flip open the box you will see very imporant information about applications that came with this card.

The TOP Flip

With Smart Doctor, you will be able to monitor essentials like Power, Temperature, Fan Speed and it even gives you shader clock overclocking controls. This software mite not even be installed by ordinary gamers but is a definite must have for enthusiasts who plan on seeing this card do more that what it says on the box!

The Bottom Flip

Now here you can see a well deserved highlight of a well deserved addition to this ASUS Video Card. The Unique GAMER OSD(On screen Display). It give the owner of this card very useful functions.

1.) Overclocking on the FLY. This allows the owner to overclock the card through preset keys even while in the MIDDLE of the game. This way, on slower level scenes he can make his card rest while on faster and heavier scenes he can easily switch to HARDCORE mode. This feature also allows the user to track is overclocks and adjust some basic functions like brightness & Contrast also while playing the game.

2.) Video Capturing option allows you to record your game and then share it with friends after you play. The great thing is, you can even setup your PC to become a video server allowing your friends to see what you are actually playing realtime. This is an awesome feature and I am sure team practice games will never be the same.

3.) Screen capture, of course you can capture your favorite screen shot midgame and share it with friends or show it as proof for competitions. For others, the best Kill scene would be the best wallpaper to have.

The BACK

Now here on the back you will see a lot of user information about the card that will help almost any techy understand what this card can do. The minimum requirements that this card can run on and the type of connectors it needs. One of the most important information I found on the back was that a SINGLE GTX295 would at least need 680 watts PSU to run it. That is heavy, the heaviest power requirement I have ever seen in a video card. Getting a 1200 watt power supply wouldn’t be a problem for those who can afford a card like this. It is important to really get more than the required because you will for sure have a lot of hardrives and other peripherals to run as well and who knows, maybe a second GTX295

The Box within

When we got this card, I was surprised at its weight. Now I can see why. When ASUS wants to package in style, they definitely know how to do it right. When you open the box, you will see a very elegant second box. Sort of like, the outer box was your wrapper, and after tearing through the wrapper, you now your present. You are greeted with a minimalist black box with the ASUS gold logo at the center.

It does not end there, when you open the box, you will two separate boxes still with the same elegant ASUS packaging. They really know how to tease you. At this point I was so excited to see what goodies I would get aside from the VC.

The Contents.
Inside these boxes you will find the setup & manual CD, DVI to VGA adapter, dual Molex to 6 pin connector, An Audio Cable, a two 6 pin PCI-E to one 8 pin PCI-E power adapter, A Coupon for 10% off for 5 games, Speed setup guide, and like on my old EAH 3870×2, a disk folder to keep and protect all your Asus disks and games that you will buy.

The CARD.
Well as most hard core gamers know, cards are getting bigger and bigger. Why? Well, they need more room for cooling but this card also has more reasons. You see, deep within the realms of this behemoth are actually TWO CARDS on SLI packed into one. Like I said at the start of this review, this was also done on the old 9800GX2. The funny thing is, I got into an argument with this guy from a local forum. I told him that if I ran this Card on SLI, it would be better than two 285s together. And he corrected me thhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifat I should not say SLI, it should be QUAD SLI. Well frankly, we were both right. You see, this card maybe two actual cards in one, it is still being sold as one single card in the sense that it does connect to your motherboard via a single PCIExpress Slot. And nowhere in the box does it say QUAD SLI, although, Technically it is, I wouldn’t go running around telling people I would “QUAD SLI a GTX295” because non techies would definitely take is as putting 4 295’s in one board, hence, Saying I want to put two GTX295’s in SLI is still the correct and appropriate term for to use, its just that technical end result would be QUAD. And if you happen to really put GTX295’s in Quad SLI, you would be actually using 8 cores already.

Asus has made its way to improving cooling on the GTX295. Unlike the 4870×2 cards, the sticker only covers a portion of the card making room for more breathing holes on the card. The card is thick and will most likely eat up two PCI slots but no fret, we have tested putting these on the ASUS Rampage II and we managed to put them together fine on the first and second PCIe slots. Now how does the airflow work on this card: It will take cool air from the rear vents and front back part of the fan holes.


It will then push the cool air to both sides of the card forcing the heat out from the fins that you can clearly see here:

And direct it out to the front end of the card outside the case.

I have to say, ASUS and NVIDIA did an amazing job on the cooling design allowing one FAN to cool two PCB’s and getting it to work well.
At the bottom of the card you will see the Single SLI connector to be able to run this card on SLI to give you a QUAD solution.

THE Connectors:
This card sports an HDMI port and two DVI ports as well another advantage of having two PCB boards.

Watch out for the Second part of this review where we will be testing these cards on two systems, one running on Phenom2 x 4 and the other running Intel’s Core i-7. And we will also be comparing it with some 4870×2 CF results on both Systems. :

Special Thanks to ASUS Philippines for providing us with these cards and Motherboards. Special thanks also to Silverstone, Sunbeam, Tuniq, OCZ and www.fineupgrades.com.

Go to Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Mytechisland/~3/RJCiQPQR3jQ/asus-gtx295-techisland-review.html

Watch out for a review soon here on mytechisland.

Special thanks to ASUS Philippines

Go to Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Mytechisland/~3/rKkDwTBn5oQ/look-what-cat-dragged-in-asus-engtx295.html