SUMMARY: Albatron's FX5900XTV AGP8x graphics card is on the test bench today. It is based on nVidia’s GeForce FX 5900 XT GPU. It offers high-end performance (5900 Ultra) at the price of a mainstream part (5700 Ultra).
Before we jump into the card itself, let’s take a quick look at what you get for your money. Designed as a mainstream product, Albatron has packed in some rather interesting additions.
- Software
On the software side, you have more than enough to get you started. First off you get your standard driver disk. As you would expect, the drivers are not the latest, but support your card straight off the bat. The best bet it to download the latest Forceware drivers, as they have been optimised for maximum performance. For the overclocking side, Albatron includes the “Coolbits” registry tweak. Why build your own program that does the exact same as what nVidia designed many moons ago?
Cyberlink PowerDVD XP has been included for all the DVD lovers out there. Simply install and you can watch your own DVD’s on your PC providing you have a DVD-ROM, of course. Along with this you get a full working copy of Cyberlink PowerDirector Pro 2.5 for capturing video.
Game wise you get two CD’s one with Duke Nukem Manhattan Project and one “Game Bundle” CD. This CD contains five demo games including AOW2, Beam Breakers, Max Payne, Rally Trophy and Zax. In all not the most fulfilling game bundle but it will do to start most of us off.
- Hardware
On the hardware extras, the bundle is pretty standard. A 4-in-1 splitter unit is used for S-Video and RCA Video in and out along with a RCA and S-Video cable.
