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Scythe Musashi...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Recently Scythe released their first ever VGA cooler designed to replace reference coolers found on many ATI and Nvidia graphics cards. By developing what Scythe call the Musashi, they have created one of the biggest VGA coolers to date, featuring dual 100mm fans...
Performance wise the Scythe Musashi was excellent, as it was able to massively decrease the load temperatures of the GeForce 8800 GT, while also competing very well with other high-end VGA coolers. The Musashi appears to be on par with the Thermalright HR-03 which was the benchmark for VGA coolers for quite some time. This meant that the Musashi was able to beat the Arctic-Cooling Accelero Twin Turbo and Thermaltake DuOrb coolers for example.
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Wednesday, December 31, 2008
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Scythe Kama Angle...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are checking out another new CPU cooler designed for enthusiasts, though this one is a little different. The Scythe Kama Angle is designed to deliver impressive results while generating almost no noise, thanks to a low-speed fan...
The Scythe Kama Angle is not a particularly exciting looking product, especially when compared to some of the newer Thermaltake and Cooler Master products for example. However it is both practical and functional, and that probably counts for a lot more. Although the design is not all that flashy, it does seem to work very well, allowing a relatively low speed fan to deliver tremendous results.
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Tuesday, December 23, 2008
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ThermoLab Baram...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are checking out another high-end CPU cooler, this time from a company called ThermoLab. They claim that their new Baram heatsink is able to outperform the industry’s best products such as the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme, so we decided to find out if it can...
When ThermoLab first e-mailed us telling of how their new Baram cooler was better than existing high-end products, it is fair to say that we were very skeptical about this. After all, it would not have been the first time a new company had surfaced making similar claims, only to have the reference cooler shame them. However this was not the case with the Baram, as it is a genuinely good performer based on our findings.
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Wednesday, December 17, 2008
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Thermaltake v14Pro...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are looking at yet another Thermaltake product that is designed to cool the latest AMD and Intel processors. Based on the original V1 design, the new v14Pro features a massive 14cm fan and a fan speed controller that allows users to determine their own acceptable operating volume...
Thermaltake has not just made the V14Pro revision of the original V1 bigger. They have also made it better, giving users the option to adjust the speed of that huge 14cm fan. Still, having the option to mount the fan controller externally would have been better, as the internal controller pretty much just lets users find a setting that they like and once the door is on it is to remain there.
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Thursday, December 11, 2008
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G.Skill DDR3 PC3-12800 CL9 (6GB)...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are looking at a new DDR3 triple-channel memory kit from G.Skill which is of course designed to work with Intel’s latest Core i7 processors. This memory is designed to work at a frequency of 1600MHz, allowing it to deliver extreme bandwidths...
Still the G.Skill DDR3 PC3-12800 CL9 (6GB) memory kit proved to be quite flexible managing CAS8 at 1333MHz and CAS7 at 1066MHz. Also keep in mind that G.Skill is asking just $220 US for this triple-channel memory kit which helps them to undercut the competition. Furthermore at this price you will find quite a few DDR3-1333 memory kits anyway so it is probably worth investing in this memory for the extra headroom.
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Tuesday, December 9, 2008
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GeForce GTX 260 (216SP) vs. Radeon HD 48...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Nvidia has been turning up the heat and with the holiday season almost here they are pushing their GeForce GTX 260 (216SP) graphics card harder than ever. Of course AMD/ATI is able to answer with the Radeon HD 4870 (1GB), but how does it compare in the latest and greatest games? We decided to find out...
The GeForce GTX 260 (216SP) is now matching the price of the Radeon HD 4870 (1GB), and we have even found examples online that are much cheaper, so price is no longer a concern. There is also no longer any concern with the performance of the GeForce GTX 260 (216SP), particularly when focusing on the more recently released titles.
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Tuesday, December 2, 2008
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Thermaltake MD9...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are taking a break from the ultra high-end cases to bring you something a little more affordable. The new Thermaltake MD9 standard ATX case does a good job of looking special, particularly for a sub-$100 US case...
It would be very easy to call this case standard and throw it into the pile out back, but on closer inspection the M9D is a little more than that. A little. It deals with aesthetics quite well, with an impressive front face and conservative solid side panel. This case is professional enough to not look out of place in an office, yet it looks exciting enough to take around to your mate’s for a LAN party. That said, Thermaltake could have gone the extra mile and coated all faces black.
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Corsair Flash Voyager 64GB...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are checking out a new flash drive from Corsair featuring a massive 64GB storage capacity. This latest Flash Voyager still features the same durable design which is also backed by a 10 year Corsair warranty. Despite being somewhat pricey we found it hard to go by the huge storage capacity which was just so convenient in a thumb size drive...
There you have it, 64GB of storage no bigger than a packet of Hubba-Bubba, simply amazing. However, often the trouble with larger flash drives is the performance, which is usually quite average. Not so long ago a friend purchased a 16GB flash drive and although this is only a quarter of the size of the Corsair Flash Voyager 64GB, filling it would have easily taken four times longer.
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Thursday, November 27, 2008
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Thermalright TRUE Copper...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are checking out the most insane air-cooled CPU cooler ever created, the Thermalright TRUE Copper. This incredible heatsink weighs more and costs more than anything we have seen before. Thankfully it performs pretty bloody well, which should peak the interests of more than a few overclockers...
The new Thermalright TRUE Copper truly is the most impractical and most ridiculous heatsink we have ever reviewed here at Legion Hardware. However despite this, it really is one of our all time favorites, and we do not expect anything to top this effort any time soon. While the $100 US price tag is not ideal for an air-cooled solution, we really do not have a problem with it given the 100% copper design.
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Wednesday, November 26, 2008
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Forceware 180: Just more of the same...
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[Posted by: Steven Walton]
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Today we are doing a simple kind of article that compares the performance of Nvidia’s latest driver, using the increasingly popular GeForce GTX 260 (216SP) graphics card, against a much older driver. The new Forceware 180.70 driver is creating a bit of commotion due to various claims that insist it delivers much more performance, so we want to find out if it really does...
Last week when the Forceware 180.43 drivers trickled onto the scene quite a few people made a really big deal out of them, we suspect with a little prodding from Nvidia. Still it interested us enough to investigate, but as it turns out there is nothing all that interesting to be seen. When comparing the Forceware 180.43 driver to the four month old 177.79 version we found almost no difference in performance.
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Tuesday, November 25, 2008
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