Tweakipedia - Page 5

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Our latest test bed goes X99, DDR4 and will be used for 12K testing

Anthony Garreffa | Computer Systems | Dec 20, 2014 10:52 PM CST

We've been using our LGA 2011 build for the better part of 2014, but with the X99 platform now replacing it as the HEDT (High End Desktop), we simply had to update our most used Tweakipedia test bed. Well, here we are and thanks to our usual partners, we're back again with a brand new test bed that will see us well into 2015.

Our latest test bed goes X99, DDR4 and will be used for 12K testing 14

We teamed up with GIGABYTE this time around for the motherboard side of things, using their impressive X99 Gaming G1 Wi-Fi motherboard. This motherboard has eight DDR4 slots, on-board Wi-Fi (that is incredibly good), a Creative Sound Blaster Core3D sound card, and so much more.

We've got two CPUs to use on this board, where for now we're using Intel's Core i7 5820K, but we have an i7 5830K on its way. Corsair helped out once again providing 16GB of its DDR4 memory, as well as providing a Hydro Series H110 cooler and AX1200i power supply. SanDisk SSDs are something I've been using for over a year now, so they make the cut with this new system. We're using Extreme II SSDs, with a 240GB drive for our OS and a 480GB drive for all of our games and benchmark installations.

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AMD Catalyst Omega Performance Analysis with Radeon R9 290X at 4K

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Dec 11, 2014 5:43 PM CST

Introduction & Test Setup

We've already seen how the new Catalyst Omega drivers perform at 1080p on our Radeon R9 290X Crossfire setup, so why not test them out at 4K? 4K provides us with a much harsher test environment, pushing four times as many pixels down onto the cards.

AMD Catalyst Omega Performance Analysis with Radeon R9 290X at 4K 60

Let's see how the new Catalyst Omega drivers handle that type of pressure, and whether we see a redemption from the Omega drivers, as we didn't see much in the way of increased performance at 1920x1080, so let's see how 3840x2160 goes.

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AMD Catalyst Omega Performance Analysis with Radeon R9 290X at 1080p

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Dec 9, 2014 12:23 AM CST

Introduction & Test Setup

You might be wondering why I'm writing this article, but our GPU Editor, Shawn Baker, is currently quite ill and in hospital. Some of you may know this, but for those of you that don't, he's currently unable to write a performance analysis of the new Catalyst Omega drivers.

AMD Catalyst Omega Performance Analysis with Radeon R9 290X at 1080p 60

I'm stepping in to test these drivers, but this is my first time with a set of drivers under NDA that I only had less than 48 hours to work with. So, this isn't a full run with all resolutions, with all of the bells and whistles enabled. I'll explain some more about that below, but first let's get you acquainted with the new Catalyst Omega driver suite.

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AMD Catalyst Omega Driver Suite Overview

Anthony Garreffa | Software & Apps | Dec 9, 2014 12:17 AM CST

Introduction

The rumors from last week were true, AMD had a powerhouse new set of drivers to show off to the world in the form of the Catalyst Omega drivers. These new drivers pack quite the punch in terms of performance, but it's not only performance being delivered. You can download those drivers directly from AMD's website.

AMD Catalyst Omega Driver Suite Overview 13

There's a slew of new features that the new Omega drivers have to offer, which is a great thing to see. AMD is already on the cutting edge of features with its Eyefinity technology, just to name one, but there are a few surprises - even to Eyefinity - which you'll find satisfying.

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Backing your Google Drive folder to a QNAP NAS

Anthony Garreffa | Networking | Dec 7, 2014 5:48 PM CST

Introduction & Our Setup

We've all been there, something has happened to our HDD, or our NAS, or you've accidentally wiped a folder from your cloud storage account. Well, for those who have multiple forms of backup, having your cloud storage backed up onto your local network attached storage (NAS) device, is definitely the best, and most secure way of having your precious data stored.

Backing your Google Drive folder to a QNAP NAS 15

Google Drive is a great point to start with, and while there are plenty of other cloud storage services available, I choose to use Google Drive for its robust set of features, ease of access across virtually every desktop and mobile operating system, and much more. I own a QNAP TS-639PRO NAS, which is getting really quite old now, but it still does the job. I'm going to replace it in the new year, but for now, I thought I would backup my precious data from my Google Drive account, back down to my NAS.

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The first hour playing Alien: Isolation

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Oct 29, 2014 7:12 AM CDT

I've been waiting patiently for Alien: Isolation to be released, holding back on reading reviews on it, or watching too much gameplay footage of it. After the absolute train wreck that was Aliens: Colonial Marines, I didn't have hesitations per se, but it looked so good from that first video, that I knew this wasn't going to be another mess.

The first hour playing Alien: Isolation 01

Holding off until just last night, I gave it my first play. I decided to record my gameplay using NVIDIA's ShadowPlay, something I looked at not too long ago. I'm playing the game on my gaming rig, which consists of:

The first hour playing Alien: Isolation 40

The first hour playing Alien: Isolation 41

CPU: Intel Core i7 4930K processor w/Corsair H110 cooler
Motherboard: ASUS Rampage IV Black Edition
RAM: 16GB of Corsair Vengeance 2400MHz DDR3
Storage: 240GB SanDisk Extreme II and 480GB SanDisk Extreme II
Chassis: InWin X-Frame Limited Edition
PSU: Corsair AX1200i digital PSU
Software: Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Drivers: GeForce 344.07 (early release)

The first hour playing Alien: Isolation 42

The first hour playing Alien: Isolation 43

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Core i7 4770K vs AMD FX-8350 with GTX 980 vs GTX 780 SLI at 4K

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Oct 10, 2014 6:49 AM CDT

In the last week or so, I've written two popular articles that have involved AMD's cheap FX-8350 processor, running at 2560x1440 and 3840x2160 (4K). Both of these tests have involved the use of NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 780s in SLI, as well as the new Maxwell-based GeForce GTX 980s in SLI.

Core i7 4770K vs AMD FX-8350 with GTX 980 vs GTX 780 SLI at 4K 96

The first test, at 2560x1440, was interesting, as it showed that the $319 setup that consisted of the AMD FX-8350 CPU and a GIGABYTE 990FXA-UD3 motherboard, could somewhat keep up with the Intel Core i7-4930K and ASUS Rampage IV Black Edition, which costs $1052.

At 1440p, the Intel system beat the AMD system in virtually every test, and in some of those tests, by a large margin. But, for 300% more cost, so it should have. Moving up to 4K though, presented an entire new world of possibilities for AMD, with the underdog actually taking swings, and beating Intel at the higher resolution.

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AMD FX-8350 powering GTX 780 SLI vs GTX 980 SLI at 4K

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Oct 7, 2014 3:04 AM CDT

Earlier on in the week, we pitted our AMD and Intel systems against each other, in a battle at 2560x1440. The GPUs in question were NVIDIA's reference GeForce GTX 780s in SLI, and the new GTX 980s in SLI. For $300, the AMD represents super value, and what most would think, the loser out of the two setups.

AMD FX-8350 powering GTX 780 SLI vs GTX 980 SLI at 4K 100

Especially when we're talking about Intel's still-powerful Core i7-4930K, which features 12 threads (6 physical cores and 6 Hyper-Threaded cores) in total. It is the company's LGA 2011 socket, and meant for enthusiasts. Mix this with a high-end ASUS motherboard, we're talking $1052 worth of goods compared to the $319 cost on the AMD gear.

These CPUs and motherboards aren't meant to be compared, and that's not what we're showing you here with these articles. What these articles are showing, is that a $300-ish CPU and

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AMD FX-8350 powering GTX 780 SLI vs GTX 980 SLI at 2560x1440

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Sep 30, 2014 12:48 AM CDT

Shawn has been cranking out reviews of the new GeForce GTX 900 series GPUs since their launch, and on the day of launch I took a look of something a little different: GeForce GTX 780 SLI versus GTX 980 SLI on Intel's LGA2011-based Core i7-4930K CPU.

AMD FX-8350 powering GTX 780 SLI vs GTX 980 SLI at 2560x1440 96

Well, we're back again with a new benchmark, testing the GTX 780 SLI vs GTX 980 SLI cards on AMD's more budget-friendly FX-8350 eight-core CPU. We did a similar test a few months ago which was quite popular, so now we're going to continue flicking between AMD and Intel on our flagship GPUs, to see the differences between performance, and whether the CPU is holding us back.

First up, let's introduce you to what systems we'll be comparing today - where we have most of the hardware identical thanks to our partners. The only thing that has changed between the two PCs is the CPU and motherboard, with every other part that matters (RAM, SSD, OS, drivers) identical to the other.

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GeForce GTX 980 SLI vs GTX 780 SLI at 2560x1440

Anthony Garreffa | Video Cards & GPUs | Sep 18, 2014 9:35 PM CDT

NVIDIA has just launched its new, 10th generation GeForce architecture, Maxwell. There have been two new Maxwell-based cards launched for the moment on desktop, the GeForce GTX 980 and GTX 970. NVIDIA were kind enough to send me two of their new GTX 980s, which I promptly threw into SLI and began partying with.

GeForce GTX 980 SLI vs GTX 780 SLI at 2560x1440 99

GeForce GTX 980 SLI vs GTX 780 SLI at 2560x1440 98

GeForce GTX 980 SLI vs GTX 780 SLI at 2560x1440 97

I have two GTX 780s here in SLI, so I decided to run some tests at 2560x1440 to begin with, with some more tests coming in the coming days and weeks. First off, we're going to run a bunch of benchmarks at 2560x1440, then we'll move onto 4K, and then we'll see how these bad boys overclock, since there is a heck of a lot of headroom left in the GTX 980s for some serious overclocking.

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