Factors contributing to unreliable test results that can be controlled by the tester:

• Air temperature and humidity: When doing a comparison, temperature and humidity should be kept the same, or at least as close as possible.
• Location: Testing should be done in an area that has little air movement or an area with a reasonably controllable environment.
• Sunlight: Testing in direct sunlight will skew results.
• Electronic devices: Most electronic devices expel heat. Avoid testing near such devices, if this is unavoidable, make sure that the device is in the same state for all testing; preferably off.
• Other environmental considerations: Consider air movement; as limiting air movement will eliminate many variables.

1. If central air is being used, the testing should be done near the thermostatic control unit as this will limit many of the temperature variances that occur in a structure between on/off cycles.
2. Fans: Box, osculating, ceiling or any other type of fan should be turned off.
3. The testing should not be near an air duct.

Eliminating the biggest contributor to inaccurate results (the computer):

The computer needs to be eliminated from the equation if a heat sink is to be tested accurately.

• Background operations that are controlled through the services settings panel in the administrative control panel need to be completely eliminated, as these may cause random CPU cycles.
• Legacy buses (dumb buses) need to be disabled as they are polled by the CPU.
• Motherboard monitoring hardware and software are not always dependable and accurate.
• CPUs and Chipsets have been known to have temperature monitoring issues.

Building an external test unit is the only way to eliminate the factors that are beyond the tester’s control.

Components and tools used for testing. Only the fan headers are used on the motherboard. Molex to fan header adapters are available.

A water tight pan and standard PSU are used for testing as well.

Transfer blocks need to be lapped and mounted with thermal transfer adhesive.

A hole needs to be drilled for thermocouple insertion. The hole above is 7/8" deep with a 5/8" counter bore to allow the thermocouple ball to fit tightly.

Using non-conductive thermal paste allows the gaps to be filled and better results to be obtained.

A thermocouple can be used if you wish to test specific points on the HSF for variance, which can indicate a poor performing or bad/damaged HSF.

Variance testing

Variance testing

Probing areas

The probes need to be cleaned and thermal paste used for every test.

Insertion of thermocouples should be done before adding water.

Using water as a heat transfer medium allows for more control of environmental factors that are otherwise left unchecked.

1. Humidity is controlled and maximized
2. Temperatures are controlled (as long as air movement is eliminated)
3. Air density is affected but will not be a factor that can be readily measured.

A control thermocouple (black) is used to monitor the base temperature.

1-2mm of water needs to be above the plate.

Using water will allow for repeatability in testing. This allows the temperatures to be easily stabilized and the maximum temperature will usually be in a predictable range; thus allowing for data sets to be formulated. After a point, head to head tests will no longer be necessary.

Keeping the meters on during the heating process can help identify trends in HSF units and also identify potential problems.

If only one unit is to be the focus, then a probe can be affixed to the HSF itself.

Testing temperature scaling and humidity is a necessity as they will work together to give a more controlled testing environment.

Testing room and zone temperatures is helpful if a database is to be made for comparison.

Bring up the temperature and humidity

The air temperatures in the test zone should stabilize and be maintainable and repeatable.

Using a humidity of 90-100% in the testing zone will help better control temperature for dependable and repeatable results.

Though the temperatures should remain uniform, there is no guarantee. ALWAYS CHECK TEMPERATURES AT MORE THAN ONE POINT!

Water temperature variance test point #1.

Water temperature variance test point 2

Video of fan on a cool down run.

Testing:

• Although a passive test, the process of heating up the HSF shows the ability to absorb and dissipate heat with no fan assistance.
• Variance testing will show the HSF’s ability to evenly spread it’s heat (this is best done with the fan off), which is critical for the HSF to respond to rapid changes in heat output. If there is a large variance between the closest point to the CPU and the furthest point away from it, then the HSF generally will not deal well with rapid heat output changes or the high heat output from overclocking.
• Testing of heat pipe efficiency is similar to standard variance testing. Testing the heat pipe at the points closest to and the furthest from the CPU will show the efficiency of the heat pipes.
• Building on the heat pipe test, a heat pipe to fin variance test shows the efficiency of the bond between the two materials/components of the HSF. This test shows design weaknesses and may show manufacturing flaws that show up from time to time in production runs. The causes for this are dependent on many factors, and if a HSF is found to be poorly made, the manufacturer should be contacted so that it can be corrected. It is never the intent of a major manufacturer to sell a bad product. If it is found to be a poor design then the tester or reviewer has little choice, a spade is a spade and a bad product should be shown for what it is.
• The fan on test shows which HSF is more capable of dispersing heat into the surrounding environment.

There are many other types of tests that can be done with an out of the box setup. The testing above is just a start.

Data collection: Keeping track of information allows the tester to build a database of results. By studying the variances, from run to run, choose a control heat sink to work with as a standard for comparison; a benchmark of sorts. The best way to record and store the information is with a meter that will log the information and allow output in a standard form that can be used in something like Excel or Open Office.

Obtaining a testing pan and plate: Most of these items are easy to acquire, save the box or pan. Local fabrication shops usually have plenty of scrap around and will usually sell it at a discount rate. If you are a product tester, the shop may cut you a break for a little free advertising in your review/blog, or you can part with the ~ $70 – $200 and just have it made.

That is all for now. Feel free to comment or ask questions and I will be happy to help in any way that I can.

• Compatible with K-, J-, T- and E- thermocouples (others should work but these are the recommended types)
• User programmable offsets
• Internal memory stores 100 sets of temperature readings that can be transferred to PC software
• Data logging software for real time testing (good for working with fan and component placement and viewing their effects in real time)
• Ability to export data sets from software in .xls format to do comparative studies and graphing

The graph capabilities of the 72-7712 software are not phenomenal, it does however serve the purpose. Though dual software readout (T1 & T2) would be preferred; the logging capacity and decent feature set, as well as an Excel export feature make up for the software weaknesses.

Thermocouple 1 reading

Thermocouple 2 reading

Thermocouple 1 - thermocouple 2 reading. Temperature difference. This screen is most effective when trying to move case temperatures closer to ambient room temperature.

Example of exported data to .xls format

Thermal conductivity of the heat sink material is an important factor in air cooling. Copper and aluminum are the most widely used materials in PC HSF (heat sink & fan) construction. The properties of these two materials are critical to proper cooling of the processor.

The Chart below shows the thermal conductivity of materials for comparison. The only three that matter for this testing are aluminum, copper and air (water and the other items may be of interest to those who like to get a little wet).

:More information about thermal conductivity and conductive heat transfer:

Some simple ideas for improving the PC enthusiast experience:

Checking the case for hot spots.

Keeping your entire case as close to ambient is probably the most important thing that can be done to keep the HSF operating at its maximum efficiency. A heat sink can not lower temperatures below case ambient and will usually level out 4-12 degrees centigrade above case ambient no matter how much money is spent on it.

By identifying hot spots, proper fan placement can be made. Though these areas may not seem relevant to CPU cooling; they are. Air circulating throughout the case creates eddies, (a current of air running contrary to the main current; especially: a circular current : whirlpool) which in turn, remain hot and by cross circulation make  air circulating around them heat up.

Working in a similar fashion to the eddy, dead zones (hot area where there is no mechanical air circulation) may seem harmless, it is critical to circulate or eliminate this air to alleviate convection (heat transfer in a gas by the circulation of currents from one region to another). For dead zones a fan may not be an option and directed air may be needed. If directed air is not possible then closing in/sectioning off this area may be the only option.

Knowing where the hot areas of the case are allows for fixes that otherwise would not be possible.

Testing for efficiency.

Methodology: Air can only dissipate a fixed amount of heat due to its low thermal conductivity. Having a material of higher thermal conductivity does not always mean better temperatures, but it does allow a potential for lower temperatures, depending on other contributing factors. Testing the two most common heat sink materials to see these differences helps gain an understanding of what the conductivity numbers really mean.

Copper and Aluminum heat sinks tested for conductivity.

Copper; 56.8 seconds to reach maximum efficiency with a variance of 3.9 degrees centigrade

Aluminum 59.8 seconds to reach maximum efficiency with a variance of 7.9 degrees centigrade

This is the point where temperatures stabilize and heat is dispersed through natural convection. This is not a scientific test as the blocks were not exactly the same and some variables were omitted. What it does show is that copper will transfer heat faster and more evenly.

A double boiler is used to allow for better temperature control

Test equipment and stop watch used (phone) for testing. A Tenma 72-8540 is used as a control.

The copper and aluminum heat sinks used for the test

A two minute test of both materials (copper and aluminum) showed a 3.7 degree centigrade variance, copper being hotter (this is good, it means it will draw that much more heat to be dissipated). It must be taken into consideration that these heat sinks did not have a fan and the variance would have been lower during operation.

The results of this test correlate directly to the previous test results.

Testing your Heat Sink and Fan assembly

Using an Arctic Cooling AF64 PRO

If the HSF is not equalizing temperatures within a reasonable variance or running 10+ degrees above ambient case temperature (check the temperature at the intake area of the HSF to eliminate the possibility of a hot spot causing the problem) then a re-seat of the HSF may be needed and possibly a replacement HSF of higher quality may be in order.

Using information gathered with a good temperature meter will help guide the process of lowering case temperatures and in turn allow for a cooler processor, memory and hard disk drive.

Shots of the 72-7712

All display elements

Temperature readout screen

Variance screen

Setup: Offset adjustment screen

Front view of meter showing controls

Conclusion

Using a dual probe temperature meter with capabilities comparable to the 72-7712 is a definite step up from the volt meter type single probe units that were used in the past. With the data logging capabilities and other features available with this unit it is much easier to maximize case cooling and potentially gain a few hundred MHz from a heat limited overclock.

With acceptable quality, useful software and features the 72-7712 makes an excellent addition to the tool box of the overclocker or small PC mod shop.

]]> http://www.techreaction.net/2010/06/01/tenma-72-7712-dual-chanel-temp-probe-what-happens-with-tempratures-inside-a-pc/feed/ 4 http://www.techreaction.net/2010/05/26/guide-converting-your-vhs-collection-to-digital-and-a-little-more/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=guide-converting-your-vhs-collection-to-digital-and-a-little-more http://www.techreaction.net/2010/05/26/guide-converting-your-vhs-collection-to-digital-and-a-little-more/#comments Wed, 26 May 2010 17:14:39 +0000 Archer http://www.techreaction.net/?p=4123 A lot of people have an old VHS collection gathering dust, or content that was purchased on their gaming device that must be kept on that device. What does it really take to get this content on to a DVD? Not much.
Using a hardware video trans-coder, such as the ADS DVD-ExpressDX2 (does not work with Vista or later without software issues), a DVD+/-RW Drive and an external HDD for portability, converting a video collection as fast as you can play them (even direct to DivX) is pretty simple.

So what is really needed for minor work such as converting your video collection to digital format?

A computer meeting the minimum standards of your capture device, the capture device, DVD+/-RW and an external HDD (if you want to carry your movies with you).

The components used for this article were the ASUS N270 NetBook, ADS DVD-ExpressDX2, a Lite-On external DVD-RW and a WD 500GB External HDD. This setup is affordable, extremely portable and flexible.

Working with home videos may necessitate a higher end device and better than bundled software, this example is great for the basics only.

Capturing movies will take some time. The included software may not have a timer option and therefore it may be necessary to be present to stop the video and recording manually.

Below are pictures of the setup and the  process of simple video capture and DVD creation with the included Cap Wiz utility.

First, all hardware needs to be brought together and hooked up.

Decide what unit will be used for working with the capture and begin hooking everything up to it.

Hook up the capture device.

Probably most important, hook up the output device. Here a PSP UMD disk is being converted to DVD format. This is also great for putting downloaded digital content on to DVD.

This NetBook has no DVD drive, necessitating the use for an external unit. An external HDD is also a great addition for moving media to your HTPC or other media device.

Next, go with the flow. The process is fairly simple and all of the tasks are pretty straight forward as far as getting content on the disk.

The initial screen allows setting of the regional video standard.

Next indicate what type of input will be used.

Choosing the destination for the capture is next. You will need to name the file and, if not burning direct to disk, you will need to choose a location for the file.

Probably one of the better features of these types of devices is the ability to save to various formats.

After the initial setup, power up the device that will be outputting original content. You do not begin to play the content, though the directions for the unit say otherwise.

This is the capture screen for the software. From this screen, access to captured videos is available and burning them to disc is also an option. Here the preview is used to access the device output and then one can start to play and record content.

One of the tools of this software is a brightness control that can be very helpful with older videos.

With the direct to disk pop-up, first choose the format and then the location for the file to be burned.

On the final Direct to Disk screen, the name of the movie and chapter length are set, as well as an option for recording time if the exact length of the video is known.

That is about it. Though hardware and the bundled software vary, most stick to basics in line with what is above. If you want to get your movies off of the VHS and more… then this is the only way to do it without breaking the bank. Just remember, if you are a novice you should read plenty of reviews and tailor your purchase to your needs. Many retailers have user reviews of the products that can be very helpful. Just remember, even when a product gets some bad reviews, that does not necessarily indicate that there is something wrong with the product. It is usually a user error…like the user not reading the manual. I always read the manuals as a last resort.

The features of the DX2 capture device are:

Effortlessly Save & Share Memories on DVD or CD
Transfer video from VHS tapes, digital or analog camcorders directly
to DVD or CD*
Real-Time hardware conversion produces the best DVD quality results
Make Movies for your Sony PSP, Apple iPod or Zen Vision!

Features
Capture audio and video via the USB port to your computer hard drive or “Direct to Disc” (C6666D or DVD disc)
Capture video directly to popular video formats; DVD (MPEG-2), SVCD, VCD (MPEG-1), MPEG-4.
Capture directly to Sony PSP video and Apple iPod video formats
Use the Included CapWiz application for easy video capture direct to your desired video compression format
Record to your computer hard drive or “Direct to Disc”
Exclusive Hardware Encoding chip inside DVD Xpress creates the highest quality video without putting extra strain on your PC

The DX2 is available here.

Some of the features of the bundled software (Ulead VideoStudio™ 9 SE DVD) are:
Features and Benefits
• Movie Wizard is ideal for users new to video editing. Select from 30+ theme styles to get started then let auto-editing make the first edits. Have complete movies with only three steps. Use the new auto pan & zoom to help create entertaining photo slideshows.
• VideoStudio Editor is complete with all the powerful tools needed to produce great-looking home movies while using an intuitive, step-by-step workflow. Spend time being creative rather than learning the program.

Full product description: http://www.ulead.com/events/ati/UVS9_FB_SE_DVD_062405.pdf

This is an older version and newer versions usually have more features. I wont complain as it was a bundle.

Do realize that this is a low end model and it is all that I needed. The prices and features are varied as is the bundled software. I would advise reading reviews and comparing features so that you get the device that best meets your needs.

Just as a little side note: Why do I use a NetBook? Portability! I have kids and when we travel, movies keep them happy. With a 160GB HDD, that is a lot of content to keep them happy. Sure you can buy one of those All-in-one 10 inch portable DVD players for $179, but compared to $249 for the netbook (that will allow you to watch streaming content in the hotel, check your e-mail, update your social networking site and the like, in addition to watching stored movies); I just see the DVD player as a waste of money.

]]> http://www.techreaction.net/2010/05/26/guide-converting-your-vhs-collection-to-digital-and-a-little-more/feed/ 0 http://www.techreaction.net/2010/02/05/epson-workforce-500/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=epson-workforce-500 http://www.techreaction.net/2010/02/05/epson-workforce-500/#comments Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:16:39 +0000 Archer http://www.techreaction.net/?p=3706 While visiting the Target closeout section, to look for electronics deals, I came across a good one.  The Epson Workforce 500, though not top of the line in any one thing it does a good job at everything, best of all it was only $41.99 + tax! What you get is a small office level multifunction printer (document feed, copy, scan, fax and print).

Scan and print quality: With everything at default and 2400DPI scan you can’t tell much difference, until you get up close and personal.

Scan, print and scan of APS photo.

Scan of APS photo.

The color reproduction is good, though anyone who knows digital photo work will tell you, “Calibration is the number one cause of flawed digital prints”. This was not calibrated! There is a slight color difference, but not much.

Now as to quality:

As can be seen above this is not a professional level machine with the real photo at the top showing no granulation at 2400DPI scan resolution,  while the lower looks like a water painting. Even at the highest settings there is no big “eureka” moment. There again nothing can beat real film. Below we have the maximum settings and the high quality settings side by side. Both were scanned at 9600 DPI. I cant really tell a 6 min. difference in quality (one took over 12 min. to print)

Here we have the maximum settings and the high qualitysettings side by side. Both scaned a 9600 DPI.

Well that is the simple overview of the scan and print, now the ADF (Automatic Document Feeder).

Here is a short video of  the ADF in action: Epson. The ADF coupled this with the fax capability make this an excellent machine for the small office or home by any standard. The Fax with the ADF allows for seamless transmissions of multi-document faxes. Great for those of us too lazy to set up the computer to do these things.

Fax panel

The slide show option is very nice as it allows you to load up a card and use it as a digital picture frame.

As shown above this is an excellent stand alone machine with the ability to to set quality and do minor editing in the sub-menus.

Photo edit control

So all in all I feel I got a great deal! My older Epson had seen it’s better days and I don’t print photos (If I want a good picture I use a 35mm or an APS camera with 400ISO film.) so this is perfect for my home or any other home-office that might be in need of the capabilities of this machine!

Software included: Epson Scan, Epson web to page, ABBYY Fine Reader Sprint Plus and an Arcsoft Suite (Media Impression 2, Panorama Maker 4, Photo Book Screen Saver, PhotoStudio Darkroom 2, Print Creations, RAW Thumbnail Viewer, Scan-n-Stitch Deluxe and Video Downloader)

The usefulness of this software is as varied as the selection. Some of the software I did find useful:

Media Impression 2 is a program worth mentioning as it allows you to take it to the next level for a reasonable price!

I like the idea of commemorating a moment with a TEE or a coffee mug at a decent price.

Panorama Maker 4 is great if you have kids and want to border their walls or border your shop with memories.

By putting these pictures together it can become a great topic for conversation.

The one other program I found of value was Dark Room!

It has an astounding number of tools and options that can allow for doctoring of bad shots or total restoration of old photos.

Spec’s

Printing Technology 4-color (CMYK) drop-on-demand MicroPiezo® ink jet technology
Ink Palette Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black
Ink Cartridge Configuration 4 individual ink cartridges
Ink Type DURABrite® Ultra pigment ink
(smudge, fade and water resistant, highlighter friendly)
Fade Resistance / Print Longevity4 Up to 105 years
Minimum Ink Droplet Size 3 droplet sizes, as small as 3 picoliters
Maximum Print Resolution 5760 x 1440 optimized dpi
Print Speed1 Black text up to 33 ppm
Color text up to 33 ppm
4″ x 6″ borderless photo in as fast as 26 seconds (12 m 27.9s highest quality 4×6)
Copy Speed1 Black up to 31 cpm
Color up to 31 cpm
Fax Specifications Black-and-white and color
Modem: 33.6 Kbps — as fast as 3 sec per page
Memory: Up to 180 pages
Speed dials: 60 (max.)
Scanner Type Color flatbed
Photoelectric Device Color CIS line sensor
Optical Resolution 1200 dpi
Hardware Resolution 1200 x 2400 dpi
Maximum Resolution 9600 x 9600 dpi interpolated
Scanner Bit Depth 48-bit color / 24-bit output
Copy Quality Color: Black/White, Draft: Normal
Copy Quantity 1 – 99 (PC-free)
Maximum Copy Size 8.5″ x 11″ (PC-free)
Copy Features Fit to page, automatic reduction and enlargement (25 – 400%),
Adjustable copy density
PC-free Printing Print all photos, photo index sheet and color photo restoration
Automatic Document Feeder 30 sheets
Color Display 2.5″ tilt LCD
Built-in Memory Card Slots Compatibility CompactFlash®, Microdrive®, Memory Stick®, Memory Stick
Duo™†, MagicGate™ Memory Stick, MagicGate Memory Stick
Duo™†, Memory Stick PRO™, Memory Stick Pro Duo™†,
Secure Digital (SD™), SDHC™, mini SD™†, mini SDHC™†,
Memory Stick Micro™†, micro SD™†, micro SDHC™†,
MultiMediaCard™, xD-Picture Card™, xD-Picture Card Type-M,
xD-Picture Card Type-M+, xD-Picture Card Type-H
Direct Camera Connection Front PictBridge™ port (print from digital cameras and
mobile phones)
Supported Digital Camera Technologies Epson PRINT Image Matching®, Exif Print, DPOF
PC-free Filters and Image Enhancements Auto Photo Correction
PC-free Paper Support Plain (8.5″ x 11″), Photo (4″ x 6″, 5″ x 7″, 8.5″ x 11″)                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Maximum Paper Size 8.5″ x 44″

Paper Sizes 3.5″ x 5″, 4″ x 6″, 5″ x 7″, 8″ x 10″, 8.5″ x 11″, 8.5″ x 14″,
A4, B5, A5, A6, half letter, executive, user definable
(3.5″ – 44″ in length)
Borderless Photo Sizes 3.5″ x 5″, 4″ x 6″, 5″ x 7″, 8″ x 10″, 8.5″ x 11″, A4
Paper Types Supports plain paper, Epson Bright White Paper, Photo Paper
Glossy, Premium Photo Paper Glossy, Ultra Premium Photo
Paper Glossy, Premium Photo Paper Semi-gloss, Presentation
Paper Matte, Premium Presentation Paper Matte, Premium
Presentation Paper Matte Double-sided, and Matte Scrapbook
Photo Paper (letter)
Envelope Types No. 10, DL, C6; plain paper, bond paper, air mail
Input Paper Capacity 100 sheets plain paper, 10 envelopes
Recommended Ink Cartridges†† 68 High-capacity Black, Cyan, Magenta and Yellow or
69 Black, 69 Cyan, 69 Magenta, 69 Yellow
Weight and Dimensions (W x D x H) Printing: 18.1″ x 18.9″ x 10.6″
Storage: 18.1″ x 16.1″ x 9.3″
Weight: 16.8 lbs.
Connectivity Hi-Speed USB 2.0
Operating Systems Windows Vista®, XP, XP Professional x64, 2000
Mac OS® X 10.3.9, 10.4.x, and 10.5.x
Software Included Epson printer driver, Web to Page, Epson Scan, ArcSoft® Print
Creations, ABBYY® FineReader®
Color Management Auto Photo Correction, Epson Vivid Color™, Adobe RGB and ICM
Sound Level 39 dB
Temperature Operating: 50 ° to 95 °F (10 ° to 35 °C)
Storage: -4 ° to 140 °F (-20 ° to 40 °C)
Relative Humidity Operating: 20 – 80% (RH)
Storage: 5 – 85% (RH) (no condensation)
Safety Approvals Safety standards UL60950, CSA C22.2 No. 60950 EMI FCC
Part 15 subpart B class B, CAN/CSA-CEI/IEC CISPR 22 class B
Telecom Regulations FCC Part 68 (USA), IC/CS03 (Canada)
Power Requirements Rated voltage: 100–120 VAC
Rated frequency: 50–60 Hz
Rated current: 0.6 Amp
Power Consumption Approx. 13 W ISO 10561 (Standalone copy printing)
Approx. 3.0 W (Standby Mode)
Energy Star® compliant
Warranty One-year limited warranty in the U.S. and Canada
What’s In The Box WorkForce 500 color all-in-one, instructional manual,
CD-ROM with drivers and bonus software, free sample paper
pack with offers, power cord, telephone cord, 4 DURABrite
Ultra Ink cartridges (one 69 standard-capacity Black ink
cartridge and three 69 standard-capacity color ink cartridges:
Cyan, Magenta, Yellow)

]]> http://www.techreaction.net/2010/02/05/epson-workforce-500/feed/ 0 http://www.techreaction.net/2010/01/25/razer-lachesis-a-sexy-comfortable-almost-perfect-mouse/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=razer-lachesis-a-sexy-comfortable-almost-perfect-mouse http://www.techreaction.net/2010/01/25/razer-lachesis-a-sexy-comfortable-almost-perfect-mouse/#comments Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:20:16 +0000 Archer http://www.techreaction.net/?p=3322 What is the best attribute of a mouse? For me it is all about feel! If it does not feel right, I don’t care if it can take out the trash or even walk the dog, it is trash! Razer hit the nail on the head with the LACHESIS, for me the feel along with the tight crisp action makes this mouse a winner.

Let me define my comfort, first and foremost is weight, this mouse has it. In a comparison with some brand name and generic mice it is on the heavy side of the scale for wired and approaching the realm of wireless.

My next issue is the crispness of the mechanisms and the break pressure.

Below are pictures of the button arrangement, to be honest the outside (pinky) buttons are pretty much useless (unless you have small hands or awesome dexterity), especially in a FPS, the two behind the scroll are almost as bad with the one in the rear being almost useless in a game as well.

This mouse put in in mind of a 69 Corvette, so much so that I had to pull one out of the rack for comparison. This mouse is sexy!!

The software is pretty good, allowing for many advanced adjustments not found on the average to mid level mouse.

Other than the button placement I only had one other issue, creep. I noticed at times with all settings to max I would get a little creep. I attribute this to the combination of surface, resolution and polling rate. With the polling rate lowered and the resolution at 2000 I have no problems.

Now for the purpose of this little tool! GAMES

I tested with four games: Battle Field 1942, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, Sins of a Solar Empire and Star Trek Legacy. Where does this mouse fit the best? RTS, due to the ability to use all of the functions without getting fragged! That is not to say it is not good for the FPS, if you love to make head shots then it is great,  just don’t get fragged trying to use all of the buttons! With the Lachesis you can switch from fast action to slow precision on the fly by adjusting the resolution (125-4000 DPI) for a little sniping. Changing control schemes in game by switching profiles is awesome! Going from FPS mode to vehicle mode and changing your profile to allow better situational control with the advanced functions is a big plus.

As you can see above the options are there to take it to the next level.  Setup is easy and when you are done you will be able to frag with the best!

When I think about it, the usefulness of this device far outweighs its minor deficiencies. I found it most useful (don’t hate me) for design work! Sometimes when doing a little modeling the DPI select is a time saver. Don’t get me wrong it is great in games as I have already pointed out, I mean from FPS to RTS to SolidWorks and AutoCAD this mouse can get the job done.

A piece of hardware with a purpose from Budget Gadgets. The USB PCI PC Analyzer Diagnoses Card Tester seems to be just the thing to use before scrapping anything, or should I say save headaches before scrapping.

I have tested this on many assumed dead boards and it worked well as it let me know I was correct and they were dead with a 00 code (int 19 error). You would think that I could get a little more specific than that but why? I have stripped these boards, tabled them, put in known working components with good PSU’s, same error so why waste time.

Testing on a working board is a different story though, way too fast, but don’t worry it will stop on the error as the POST will hang. I did do a forced error, memory, just to test things out and got the correct code for my MB BIOS rev.

Click here for video of a good boot.

There are lights to indicate proper voltage +12, -12 and+3 as well as FRAME (It is cycle frame signal of PCI slot. The LED should be on, As long as the Power is on after you plug the card in the PCI slot on the mainboard. The LED light up when the FRAME signal is present. If there is no FRAME signal. This LED will not light up.) and CLK (As long as the main board is power on after you plug in the card into either PCI slot or ISA slot, the LED is on to determine bus clock signal is present.)

The only issue is getting the proper codes for your board and if it is a customer board prepare to do up to an hour of searching for the proper codes. BIOS CENTRAL seemed a good site, though there is a lot to go through to get the proper information.

If you like this little tool it is available here: PCI POST card for $7.42 USD. In my opinion it is well worth it.

A coupon code that can be used site wide AM5OFF21 will save you 5% as well.

For comparison I used a Craftsman 82369 Clamp Ammeter $59.99 USD

A little smaller than the craftsman

What is in the box

A closer look

Voltage testing AC

@ wall, DT-3266L 119VAC, Craftsman 119.4VAC

@ wall, DT-3266L 238VAC, Craftsman 239.3VAC

Voltage testing DC

9v battery, DT-3266L 8VDC, Craftsman 8.95VDC

1.5v battery, DT-3266L 1VDC, Craftsman 1.6VDC

3v battery, DT-3266L 3VDC, Craftsman 3.2VDC

Resistance testing

RCA cable, DT-3266L 2 Ohms, Craftsman 1.2 Ohms

Current testing AC only

PC 120VAC DT-3266L 2.36A, Craftsman 2.14A

As can be seen by most of these tests the resolution hurts this meter for high precision work (I don’t use the craftsman for much that is critical either). The DT-3266L is well built, epically for the price and is an excellent choice for around the house  general purpose use.

Tolerances:

@20A, res 10mA, +/- (3% of reading + 5 digits), current

@200A, res 100mA, +/- (2% of reading + 5 digits), current

@600A, res 1A, +/- (3% of reading + 5 digits), current

@600V, res 1V, +/- (1% of reading + 4 digits), AC Voltage

@600V, res 1V, +/- (0.8% of reading + 1 digit), DC voltage

@2K Ohm, res +/- (1.0% of reading + 2 digits), Accuracy 1 Ohm

@2M Ohm, res +/- (1.0% of reading + 3 digits), Accuracy 100 Ohms

Other features not tested:

Diode test and continuity test with buzzer <75 Ohms

Meter does not test DC current.

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First we need to clear the air: Socket 775 is dying (FSB is DEAD)! The FSB can no longer adequately support the information flow. In the diagram below and with the data provided the problem is obvious, too much data for the old bus.

As can be seen all information must take one path on the older architecture.

The FSB will become more of a bottleneck with the advent of PCIe 3.0 and 32+ PCIe lanes and that is without considering the ever increasing memory bandwidth, highest current non JEDEC memory being DDR3 2200 (PC3 17600), and the expected release in 2012 of DDR4. The table’s below shows the maximum theoretical gigabytes per second transfer over the FSB, PCIe standards.

AHHHHH! The air is clear.

AMD and Intel are now on the same communication path.

For a comparison, the original Athlon64 X2 was bandwidth limited as compared to modern processors.

As a note: Hyper-Transport 3.0 extends the 1.4 GHz dual data rate (DDR) maximum clock of Hyper-Transport 2.0 to 1.8 GHz, 2.0 GHz, 2.4 GHz and 2.6 GHz, and delivers a maximum aggregate bandwidth of 41.6 gigabytes per second (GB/s) — a bandwidth increase of 86 percent over Hyper-Transport 2.0.( HyperTransport Consortium)

Intel is taking the the same path as AMD by separating Memory from I/O

Here is an example of a VIA chipset with HT for comparison

So gee whiz what are you really overclocking? Is it necessary?

On AMD systems there is one base clock (HT ref) for the CPU\HTT\Mem-Bus and Intel also uses a base clock (Host Clock) to achieve the desired effect.

What do QPI and HTT do and are they better? HTT and QPI do nothing for the CPU speed as they handle I/O-PCIe-ChipSet-MB (I will just call it I/O for ease) communications and are only in need of adjustment if you have a multiple video card solution or other special circumstances. They are better for several reasons; (1) Cost!! It is cheaper to build a fast, short and wide path for memory and a separate long, narrow and faster path for I/O. (2) Data integrity!! By having a bus that is maxed out with a limited data path there is an increased chance of error from data collision. (3) Speed!! When the bus is full (bottle necked) wait states are imposed and the CPU attempts to move the information through the bus as efficiently as possible. This will not be noticed in general use computing but in heavy multitasking and data/graphic/CPU intensive applications and games it will be noticed.

Special circumstances: video work, where video and audio data are constantly being manipulated causing frequent HDD accesses as well as the movement of massive amounts of data. This generally happens while working with CGI or special content creation.

QPI is a point-to-point processor interconnect developed by Intel in 2008 to replace their processor front side bus interface. CSI is defined as a variable width, point to point, packet-based interface implemented as two uni-directional links with low-voltage differential signaling. A full width CSI link is physically configured with 20 bit lanes in each direction; these bit lanes are divided into four quadrants of 5 bit lanes, providing 12-16GB/s of bandwidth in each direction.

The description of what is going on in the chatt is given above

HyperTransport (HT) is a state-of-art packet-based, high-bandwidth, scalable, low latency point-to-point interconnect technology that links processors to each other, processors to coprocessors and processors to I/O and peripheral controllers.

What does this have to do with overclocking? Not much. Don’t be afraid to lower multipliers when dealing with HT/QPI as there is generally no benefit.

Pictures/charts courtesy of: Google Images, HyperTransport Consortium and AMD

The two premises I am focusing on are max (reasonable) overclock for the gamer and undervolting at stock speed for the HTPE\HEPC.

A WARNING: BIOS, BIOS, BIOS!!! do not assume you need to update, and if you do be prepared to revert. When I first installed this CPU I did not update my bios and I had full functionality except for the core temp sensors reading -254. I decided to update and lost the ability to clock past 3.4 and also the ability to lower the NB multiplier (that bios rev. for some reason is no longer available for download). Many BIOS resets and even a proc swap or two may be necessary to get where you want (you could also get a low clocking CPU and then it is a futile battle). Remember this!! some modern bios actually reduce functionality. This was only a warning not a suggestion. I bare no responsibility if you have a problem; this was a kind of public service announcement.

First we do a little undervolting at stock speeds (not much excitement here).  As can be seen from the few tests done, this CPU is neck and neck with it’s 2.6 Ghz AMD siblings and trashes the Tri Core. For simplicity the CPU and CPU/NB v can be lowered in AMD overdrive if you wish this for an HTPC\HEPC build. That is about all there is to this part.

Temps and CPU-Z shot

Benchmarks the ALU and FPU processor units. Shows how your processors handle arithmetic and floating point instructions in comparison to other typical processors.

Benchmark the (W)MMX(2), SSE(2/3/4), AVX processor units. Shows how your processors handle multi-media instructions and data in comparison to other typical processors.

Benchmark the power management efficiency of the processors. Shows how efficient the power management of your processors is in comparison to other typical processors. These tests were preformed with all power management tools off to give a realistic idea of consumption.

Measures the cryptography efficiency of the processor units: encryption, decryption and hashing. Shows how your processors handle cryptographic operations in comparison to other typical processors.

Idle temps

100% load temps after 1 hour Bionic/WCG and F@H GPU 100% cpu useage and F@H CPU 100% useage. All projects @ 100% running concurrently.

Here is where it can get interesting. I must draw the line of personal responsibility; therefore, I will only take it up to 3.7 (not bad for 100 USD). This is an excellent upgrade processor for those with an old dullie or trike and my testing was done on that premise. I must also make a disclaimer:

CPUs are like stock, PAST PERFORMANCE IS NO GUARANTEE OF FUTURE RETURNS-in other words, Expect No OC and be happy if you can OC!!!!!!!

Setup: Athlon II X4 620, 4 Gigs Kingston 667 Value Ram, Biostar TA790GX 128M V5 MB, A\C Arctic Freezer 64 Pro.

I really had no problems doing this after the BIOS issues were taken care of. The issues that need be addressed are speed and volts, NB  and memory multiplier/divider manipulation and most of all patience.

100% load temps after 1 hour Bionic/WCG and F@H GPU 100% cpu useage and F@H CPU 100% useage. All projects @ 100% running concurrently. CPU-Z and Sandra for settings.

Benchmarks the ALU and FPU processor units. Shows how your processors handle arithmetic and floating point instructions in comparison to other typical processors.

Benchmark the (W)MMX(2), SSE(2/3/4), AVX processor units. Shows how your processors handle multi-media instructions and data in comparison to other typical processors.

This simple integer benchmark focuses on the branch prediction capabilities and the misprediction penalties of the CPU. It finds the solutions for the classic "Queens problem" on a 10 by 10 sized chessboard

CPU PhotoWorxx test uses only the basic x86 instructions, and it is HyperThreading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

CPU ZLib test uses only the basic x86 instructions, and it is HyperThreading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

CPU AES test uses only the basic x86 instructions, and it's hardware accelerated on VIA PadLock Security Engine capable VIA C3 and VIA C7 processors. The test consumes 48 MB memory, and it is HyperThreading, multi-processor (SMP) and multi-core (CMP) aware.

This benchmark measures the single precision (also known as 32-bit) floating-point performance through the computation of several frames of the popular "Julia" fractal.

This benchmark measures the double precision (also known as 64-bit) floating-point performance through the computation of several frames of the popular "Mandelbrot" fractal.

This benchmark measures the extended precision (also known as 80-bit) floating-point performance through the computation of a single frame of a modified "Julia" fractal.

I will not say this is for everyone. If you are willing to take a little risk and time, it may work, but it could also cook the thing using air cooling only.

Teaser only. The Pi score is low due to the reduced memory speed. I am not saying that these CPU's will run at 3.9 and will post no other benchmarks. Take it at that.

VALID

As can be seen above the 620 is no joke. It is the perfect price and is competitive with it’s siblings in most areas. Just know that for some applications the L3 of the Phenom may serve you better.

The things I did not see in other reviews:  1. NB multiplier is adjustable 2. When Core V is added excessive heat is not generated 3. CPU is cool at stock speed and can be undervolted by up to .125 (in my case)

I do have much respect for all of the reviewers out there and I am sure some are put under certian constraints; therefore, please understand this is just a supplement to others who have put in many hours and days of hard work.

Archer

Addendum 1. There have been some questions about the Super Pi scores, I do understand and I will be working with this issue and will post a new Blog as soon as I get the hardware. Please understand that this may take up to a week and that due to the lack of L3 these CPU’s will not be able to match the Phenom 2 in this area no matter how fast the memory, but the scores should be better than at the 600 that the tests were run at.

Addendum 2. I have decided to do another round of testing on an AM3 setup:

MSI 785GM-E65 AM3 AMD 785G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

G.Skill 2GB (2×1GB) DDR3 1333

Will post new Blog when testing is complete.

Below are some of these offerings:

AMD Phenom II X3 705e Heka 2.5GHz 3 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 65W Triple-Core Processor

AMD Phenom II X4 905e Deneb 2.5GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 65W Quad-Core Processor

Intel Core2 Q8200S Yorkfield 2.33GHz 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Quad-Core Processor

Intel Core2 Q9400S Yorkfield 2.66GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Quad-Core Processor

Intel Core2 Q9550S Yorkfield 2.83GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Quad-Core Processor

All of these processors will be more than capable of all of the things you wish you could have had in the HTPC, but could never get, UNTIL NOW. I have chosen the middle of the road here with the 905e and have tested it to its limits within the specified voltage range specified by AMD: V-range of 0.825-1.25V (and a tad more) and max temp of 70*. Why not hit the gas? That is what the 940BE and up are for (940 costs about $20 less). I did consider looking for max but decided to make this a directed study of a class of CPU (in it’s own realm) that is unappreciated for its abilities by most and loved by a select few for them.

First the HSF that is included is adequate (~50* 100% load crunching and folding @ 2.5) with good case venting, but make no mistake it is a lightweight. I did a weight comparison and was amazed that this HSF did as well as it did. The included HSF weighs in at just 6 oz whereas the HSF included with the 65w 5200+ weighed in at 8 1/8 oz (bare block’s no fan or mount). I used neither of these for this as the Tt Black Widow V1 seemed more appropriate.

This is to give an idea of the physical size of the included HSF

There is no need to go into comparative benchmarks here as that is not the premise of this review. So what can it actually do?

Below is a list of specs for various AMD quad processors to use as a refrence.

Specs on test system:

OS: XP Pro

CPU: AMD 905e

GFX: PNY 9800GT EE (requires slot power only)

RAM: Kingston and generic 667 and Gskill 800

CPU Cooler: Tt Black Widow V1

PSU: Antec 380w

And the games begin:

CPUZ validation 3.1

1.25v

1.25v

That was my maxx at 1.25v

I went a tad over too see about the heat and was very happy with what I saw:

CPUZ validation 3.4

I took the v up a notch 1.3

3400 idle temps 1.3 v

3400 100% load 1.3 v

All of my testing is done while folding and crunching both CPU and GPU. The CPU does not like WCGBIONIC crunching above 3.1 but will fold up to 3.4 and maintain reasonable temps doing so. I could not reach 3.5 at this voltage and to be honest any higher and this CPU is a waste of money.

So that is what this CPU can do paired with a decent video subsystem is play games, fold, crunch, edit video, encode/transcode video and audio HMMMM???? sounds like the HTPC has graduated to the HEPC and if done correctly it can be cool, quiet and energy efficient to boot.

The voltage is not read correctly by AOD correct set voltages are listed and the droop is .018-.02.