Tech News

• Building a Home Theater PC @ Voided Warranty

  Published: Wednesday, April 7, 2004 | By: Dennis

  I wouldn't say this is really "building" a HTPC but rather installing HTPC software on a computer that will eventually become a HTPC.
  "Installing and setting up myHTPC is relatively simple and straight forward. That includes most of the plugins also. myHTPC is compatible with a lot of hardware, but there are instances where you may run into a problem. That is where the myHTPC forum comes into play. There are excellent guides and help functions."
  The software appears to be built around the .NET framework so needless to say the HTPC will be running Windows.

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• Antec Super Lanboy Review @ DataFuse

  Published: Wednesday, April 7, 2004 | By: Dennis

  So what is so super about this case? The case kind of looks like a larger version of the Lanboy with a huge blue fan in front just waiting for your cats tail to get stuck in.
  "Looks quite good in my opinion."
  I would have to disagree.

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• GeForce FX 59x Ultra Bios Mod Guide @ 3Dchip

  Published: Monday, April 5, 2004 | By: Dennis

  Looking to get a little more from your FX5900 Ultra?, Well you can try modding the bios. In many cases you can gain a little GPU voltage and 3D clock frequency.
  
  The review is in German but by clicking on the little American flag you can magically convert the text to English.

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• Corsair XMS PC3500 Review @ TheTechLounge

  Published: Monday, April 5, 2004 | By: Dennis

  "As you saw from the benchmarks, PC3500 has a definite advantage over PC3200. While Corsair's PC3500, especially when utilizing dual channels, gives an impressive performance, I was quite disappointed that I couldn't overclock any further than 448 MHz over the rated 433 MHz. However, with the perfect ratio of timings and MHz, I am sure a little more raw speed could be squeezed out."
  System memory has never had a ton of headroom for overclocking but every once in awhile you can find some modules that do better than others. When deciding what memory to buy look for modules with the lowest timings numbers rated at the speed you plan to be running your system at. (i.e. 250Mhz FSB get DDR500 etc..)

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• Mod: Glowing LED Molex Connectors @ Modfathers

  Published: Monday, April 5, 2004 | By: Dennis

  Just about every aspect of a computer has been modded in some form or another and because of this it becomes increasingly more difficult to do anything original.
  "First off, it allows you to locate your molex plugs in a heartbeat. No more fishing around inside your case to try and find a free molex connector. The second reason, and probably the most justifiable, is the "cool factor". Yes, that's right, it just plain looks cool."

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• AMD introduces Inexpensive Athlon 64 Processors

  Published: Thursday, April 1, 2004 | By: Dennis

  "Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) kept up the pressure on Intel by adding the Athlon 64 2800+ processor to its 64-bit lineup on March 30. The new chip, available at US$178 in quantities of 1,000 units, will help boost demand for K8 motherboards built to support AMD’s Athlon 64 processors, said sources at Taiwanese motherboard makers."

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• Intel to Buy AMD: Report at DataFuse

  Published: Thursday, April 1, 2004 | By: Dennis

  "Well, I'm sure you've all put it together and came to the conclusion yourself. But let me sum it all up: The reason why Intel has introduced these, let's call them less good, cpu's (Either they are too slow (Celeron), too hot(Prescott), too expensive (EE)) is simply because they want everybody to shift to AMD's 64-bit."

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• MSI VT2DR256 Dual DVI Review @ The Tech Report

  Published: Thursday, April 1, 2004 | By: Dennis

  XFX has released a card similar to this except with overall performance in mind so you'll find it coming with 128megs of DDR and a slightly higher clock speed.
  "The MSI FX5700-VT2DR256 graphics card brings dual DVI outputs to NVIDIA's mid-range GeForce FX 5700. And there's more to the VT2DR256 than its digital output ports; the card also sports VIVO capabilities, a remote control unit, and 11-CD software bundle."

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• Overclock Labs CPU Waterblock Review @ Hard-h20

  Published: Thursday, April 1, 2004 | By: Dennis

  Hard water is a serious problem for any water-cooling system, as it tends to leave these nasty mineral deposits on anything it comes in contact with.
  
  Fortunately hard water isn't the subject of this review, just the name of the website.
  "For the exterior finish, it has been progressively galvanized, achieving a polishing uniformity on all the sides of the block, not only on its base."

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• Kingston HyperX PC4300 Review @ Ohls-Place

  Published: Thursday, April 1, 2004 | By: Dennis

  For as long as I can remember Kingston has always been a well-known name in system memory. I haven’t been a huge fan based on past experience but I hear the HyperX is pretty good.
  
  It’s just too bad they never return my emails.
  "The thing that everyone wants to know immediately is the memory capable of running at it's advertised speed. So I won't keep you waiting for the answer very long but I expect you to read the entire article since I was nice to you."
  Ummm...

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