ASUS R7 260 Performance Review

Having a high-end graphics cards like the GTX780 Ti, R9 290X has always been the dream to many gamer and enthusiasts, but the cost might be out of hand to budget gamer whos unable to afford these beast. This is when middle-end graphics cards with a decent performance and affordable price comes to play. 

Introducing the ASUS R7 260, the middle-end budget graphics card that we will be looking into in today's review. Let's find out what the ASUS R7 260 is capable of, compared to what's above it - ASUS R7 260X.

*SRP for the ASUS R7 260 is set at RM479.00.*

Technical Specifications

Technical Specs	ASUS R7260-1GD5
Dimensions	220.9mm x 111.17mm x40.06mm
Stream Processor	768
Base Clock	1000 MHz
Bus Standard	PCI Express 3.0
Video Memory	1024 MB
Memory Clock	6000 MHz
Memory Interface	128-bit
Display Output	DVI Output : Yes x 1 (DVI-I) Display Port : Yes x 1 HDMI Output : Yes x 1 HDCP Support : Yes

Detailed specifications on TechPowerUp GPU-Z 0.7.8

Overview

The feature highlighted at the front of the packaging is the Dual Fan Cooling where ASUS boast to provide twice as much airflow and 3 times quieter that the reference design R7 260.

Back of the packaging comes with a brief introduction on the features of the ASUS R7 260 such as the display output, appearance of the card, cooling options, etc.

what's in the box - the ASUS R7 260, driver & software CD, User's manual, DVI to VGA converter and a Crossfire bridge.

The ASUS R7 260 looks pretty identical to ASUS R7 260X (ASUS classic Black-Red themed shroud and fans), except that it's cooled by a big chunk of Aluminum heatsink instead of the directCU II heatsink.

Display output wise, the ASUS R7 260 comes with 3 options:

• 1 x DVI port
• 1 x Display Port
• 1 x HDMI port

AMD Eyefinity isn't supported on this card, which we find it a little disappointing.

Flipping the card around, we can see that the actual PCB size is shorter.

6pin power connector is required for the card to actually work and giving some extra juice for minor overclocking if user finds it as an absolute necessity. 

Performance Test

Test Rig Configuration
CPU Cooler	Corsair H100i
CPU	I7 4770K @4.3 GHz
Motherboard	ASUS Sabertooth Z87
Memory	Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB
Primary Hard Drive	Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB
Power Supply	Corsair AX650
Chassis	Bitfenix Ronin
Display Monitor	Dell U2312HM

We will be comparing the ASUS R7 260 with the ASUS R7 260X from our previous review as a quick comparison on both cards. Both cards is installed to our test rig with the above configuration and room temperature of 31C°.

Performance

The ASUS R7 260 is slightly overclocked where adjustments is as following:

1120 MHz on the base clock
6100 MHz on the memory clock
No adjustments is done to the voltage

We ran a quick test with several graphically demanding games and synthetic benchmark in our possession at the resolution of 1920 x 1080 and 4x Anti-aliasing, with the result as presented on the graph below:

When overclocked, the ASUS R7 260 appears to be able to perform closer to a non-overclocked ASUS R7 260X in most of the test but there's isn't much improvement in terms of performance from what we have tested so far.

Temperature
Temperature wise, we're using FurMark GPU stress test utility for our stress test for maximum heat output. Do note that purpose of this GPU stress test is to check on the highest temperature both cards will reach and this doesn't represent the actual temperature you will be getting during gaming session.

the large aluminum heatsink seems to be performing quite well on load compared to the DirectCU II cooler on the R7 260X. When it comes to idle, R7 260X DirectCU II cooler leads by a 3C° difference, leaving the R7 260 large aluminum heatsink hovering at 41C°.

Final Thoughts
The ASUS R7 260 performs fairly decent as an entry-level graphics card but it's in an odd position where it doesn't comes with AMD Eyefinity support nor able to Crossfire with any of the current latest AMD APU, leaving us with a mixed feelings.

Pros

• Good heat dissipation and quieter operation
• Support AMD Crossfire for that extra performance 

Cons

• No AMD Eyefinity Support
• Limited models for Crossfire configuration
• Not much performance increase after overclocking

At the price of RM 479.00, the ASUS R7 260 is still a decent entry-level graphics card for medium low settings for several graphics demanding games we've tested. If there's still a little budget to stretch, with a little extra of RM 50.00, you can access to at least the AMD Eyefinity and slightly better performance.

Still, its value is much doubted if it were to be compared side by side with the NVidia GTX 750,  it's not doing really well with the features offered and performance compared its rival that doesn't even requires external power source from the 6pin connector.

Based on its performance and features as what we have tested in this performance review, the ASUS R7 260 is hereby awarded with our Tech-Critter Bronze Award.

GIGABYTE Introduces the World’s Most Powerful VGA Cooling Systems during COMPUTEX 2014

A new realm gaming experience with WINDFORCE & WATERFORCE

Taipei, Taiwan, 30th May 2014 – GIGABYTE, the leading manufacturer of graphics cards unveils the industry-leading graphics card cooling system during the COMPUTEX 2014. Whatever the preference of air-cooling or liquid-cooling, gamers can find the most outstanding VGA cooling system designs this year! Continuation of the stunning performance of WINDFORCE 450W cooling system, GIGABYTE once again self-breaks and launches the WINDFORCE Air Cooling System 600 Watt Edition. It is not only equipped with the patented “Triangle Cooling” technology, GIGABYTE also re-designs the fans and the fins of the cooling system and using the high-performance composite cooper heat pipes for new WINDFORCE. The heat dissipation performance is enhanced up to 33% than the reference card. GIGABYTE can proudly announce that WINDFORCE 600 Watt is the best air cooling system for graphics card in the world! Even more, GIGABYTE introduces WATERFORCE All-in-one External Liquid Cooling System with 3 GeForce GTX 780 Ti, specially designed for the gamers who dream about a silent and super gaming PC. With intuitive control panel, WATERFORCE allows gamers to separately control the GPU temperature, fans speed and pumps speed. No more noise nightmare or harass of uneven temperatures while using multi graphics cards. With the world’s first 3 way SLI water cooling solution, WATERFORCE, gamers can easily enjoy every moment and victory during the games. 

The best air-cooling system ever – WINDFORCE 600W

GIGABYTE understands that a fan is crucial to the graphics card, so only the fan with the most efficiency is selected for WINDFORCE. Therefore, GIGABYTE constantly evolving the WINDFORCE to provide the latest and the best cooling solution to gamers. The latest WINDFORCE 600W with excusive cooling technology can signifcantly disspate up to 600W heat. 

Patented “Triangle Cool” technology enhances 35% cooling performance

Features with the patented “Triangle Cool” technology, WINDFORCE 600W can bring away the heat easily from GPU. The cooling performance is 35% better than the regular fin designs. 

Unique fan design increases 23% CFM 

The whole new fan design with special 3D stripe curve can split the air flow, reduce the calm zone and increase the cooling performance. The air flow is amazingly increased up to 23%! 

Special fin architecture augments 45% heat dissipation area

GIGABYTE also designs WINDFORCE 600W with a special fin architecture. The height differentiation design increases more than 45% heat dissipation area for better cooling capacity and significantly reduce the air resistance. 

Composite heat-pipes increases 29% cooling capacity

The cooling system is supplemented by the composite heat-pipes, a heat-transfer device combines both thermal conductivity and phase transition for efficiently managing the transfer of heat between two solid interfaces which increases 29% of cooling capacity. 

With only 2-slot height heat sink, the compact WINDFORCE 600W increases more than 33% thermal performance. It is not only the most powerful air-cooling system, but the best choice for a ultimate gaming experience.

All-in-one external liquid cooling system – WATERFORCE

WATERFORCE is specially designed for the gamers who dream about a silent and powerful super PC. With the exclusive 3-way SLI closed loop liquid cooling system, it can dissipate the heat of GPU, memory and MOSFET. The WATERFORCE intuitive control panel can let gamers to check the performance of the 3 graphics cards from the panel and separately adjust the temperature, fan speed and pump speed for uniform temperature of the cards. 

42.9% lower temperature and 13.1dB lower noise than reference cooler

Comparing with 3-way SLI reference cooler, the cooling solution by WATERFORCE presents 42.9% lower temperature and 13.1 dB lower noises! 

No more noise nightmare or harass of uneven temperatures while using multi graphics cards. No more try & error liquid cooling system DIY. With the world’s 1st 3 way SLI water cooling solution, WATERFORCE, gamers can easily install and enjoy the battles!

For more information, please visit GIGABYTE official website: http://www.gigabyte.com

Welcome to join us on GIGABYTE.VGA Facebook fan page to know more latest news:

http://www.facebook.com/gigabyte.vga

About GIGABYTE

GIGABYTE, headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, is known as a global leading brand in the IT industry, with employees and business channels in almost every country. Founded in 1986, GIGABYTE started as a research and development team and has since taken the lead in the world's motherboard and graphics card markets. On top of Motherboards and Graphics cards, GIGABYTE further expanded its product portfolio to include PC Components, PC Peripherals, Laptops, Desktop PCs, Network Communications, Servers and Mobile Phones to serve each facet of the digital life in the home and office. Everyday GIGABYTE aims to “Upgrade Your Life” with innovative technology, exceptional quality, and unmatched customer service. Visit www.gigabyte.com for more information. 

GIGABYTE Launches The Ultimate Powerful GeForce® GTX TITAN Z, Dual-GPU Gaming Graphics Card

The unprecedented fastest gaming monster for the super gaming PC!

Taipei, Taiwan, 28th May 2014 – GIGABYTE, the world’s leading premium gaming hardware manufacture, is pleased to introduce the latest super gaming graphics card, GV-NTITANZD5-12GD-B.



Built with the GeForce® GTX TITAN Z Dual GPU architecture, GV-NTITANZD5-12GD-B utilizes the latest 28nm fabrication process, features 12GB of 7Gbps GDDR5 memory and a massive 5760 CUDA cores. GIGABYTE GV-NTITANZD5-12GD-B is designed with the highest-grade components to deliver the best experience—incredible fast, cool and quiet performance—all in a stunningly crafted aluminum case. Plus, it is loaded with advanced technologies like NVIDIA ShadowPlay™ to capture and share every moment of gaming domination, groundbreaking G-SYNC™ display technology, and NVIDIA GameStream™ to stream games to the NVIDIA SHIELD™ portable. With the use of GIGABYTE OC GURU II software, GV-NTITANZD5-12GD-B can increase the overclocking capacity by unlocking the hardware limitation and brings hardcore gamers an ultimate gaming experience base on the GPU Boost 2.0 technology.

OC GURU II, liberates the overclocking limitation

According to the latest NVIDIA® technology “GPU BOOST 2.0”, GV-NTITANZD5-12GD-B provides gamers an unlimited overclocking capability by using GIGABYTE OC GURU II to adjust maximum core voltage and synchronize the GPU temperature and power consumption. These main features not only increase the overclocking ability, but also deliver an extremely performance to make gamers enjoy the amazing gaming experience.

4K Ultra HD Gaming Experience

The GV-NTITAND5-12GD-B uses the new dynamic power balancing technology which ensures peak performance across two GPUs with optimal power delivery. This means you can game on multi-monitor displays and hyper PCs at high setting and super-fast frame rates. With support for NVIDIA SLI®, you can even add a second card and immerse yourself in graphically intense games in full 4K Surround.

For more details of GIGABYTE GV-NTITANZD5-12GD-B, please visit the GIGABYTE VGA website at: http://www.gigabyte.com/products/list.aspx?s=43&p=52,53@53@53,62&v=1,8@1@2,19

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GIGABYTE.VGA

About GIGABYTE

GIGABYTE, headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, is known as a global leading brand in the IT industry, with employees and business channels in almost every country. Founded in 1986, GIGABYTE started as a research and development team and has since taken the lead in the world's motherboard and graphics card markets. On top of Motherboards and Graphics cards, GIGABYTE further expanded its product portfolio to include PC Components, PC Peripherals, Laptops, Desktop PCs, Network Communications, Servers and Mobile Phones to serve each facet of the digital life in the home and office. Everyday GIGABYTE aims to “Upgrade Your Life” with innovative technology, exceptional quality, and unmatched customer service. Visit www.gigabyte.com for more information.

Quick Review: Edifier H690 Stereo Headset

Edifier gave me another white box, so I won't cover the unboxing, this time containing their latest headset, the H690 stereo headset. At the time of writing this, the H690 is already made available in your local I.T stores at RM119 SRP. Before I made off with the sample, I was told that this is to be Edifier's highest end headset yet, needless to say I was very excited after that :) so lets get to business.


Specs

Frequency Response: 20Hz - 20KHz
Impedance: 38Ohm
Connector: 3.5mm Stereo
Sound Pressure Level (SPL): 98dB
Cable Length: 1.3m

The Headset

If you've seen the Edifier W670BT , much of the design is similar, except that the H690 is not a Bluetooth headset. The H690 is very light but sturdy, making it an ideal travel companion.

To give you a sense of the size, here is one of the many product campaign shots done with the actual product. It's really small.

The H690 is overall grey and black overall that gives it a subtle style. Construction is solid even though the headset is very lightweight, mostly due to the high quality plastic used. Branding is kept to a minimum and just printed on the headband.

The earpieces have a meshed design with chrome ring adorning the sides.

Not losing in style, the 3.5mm connector is encased in what looks like aluminium with the Edifier branding etched to it.

Both earpieces can be folded and tilted 90-degrees for ease of transport and storage.

The headband is pretty thin but it should be adequate having experienced the same design in the W670BT.

The headband is of course expandable for up to an additional 20mm on either side. Edifier used stainless steel inserts that adds to the rigidity of the H690.

As for comfort, these soft foam cushions are what's keeping the audio drivers from coming into direct contact with your ears.

The H690 also comes with a handy travelling pouch. You will also find a product information sheet and a users guide.

Testing

Physically, the H690 is very comfortable to wear not just because of the plushy earpieces but also because it's very light indeed. I would like to have a little more clamping force as this one tends to slide off a bit when moving about, walking is fine though, else it stays where you want it to be. This is an open design headset so noise isolation is hardly there which means that I tend to crank up the volume when in public places. Without an in-line volume control, you're left depending on your device for any sort of control, and no you do not get a microphone built-in to the H690 so this is just for pure listening experience.

Sound quality is rather impressive as I can detect no distortions of any kind that can be heard in any level of volume, song genre or instruments. Vocals are clear with good mid tones and though the bass is smooth, it isn't as punchy as some headsets I've tested so pure bass heads will have to keep note of this. Nevertheless it is smooth and enjoyable for songs that doesn't emphasize on that aspect.

Plugging it into the PC for movies, I find that speech is much more clearer and I could detect more vibrance in the BGM; though the explosions sounds realistic enough, I'd like to have it present more kick  into it. If I must make a comparison, the H690 is definitely hands-down better than the W670BT in terms of overall sound quality, only losing slightly in the bass department.

Conclusion

As expected of Edifier, the H690 is a fine set of cans despite it's small stature. The construction is good with quality materials which makes it durable and it is even pleasing aesthetically from the meshed design of the earpieces down right to the encased 3.5mm connector. As for sound quality, the Edifier H690 is definitely worth the consideration as I would say that it is more than impressive, especially for first time users looking for the bang-for-buck deal. 

Pros

• Lightweight and solid construction
• Excellent sound quality
• Unbeatable price/performance ratio

Cons

• No controls built into the headset

The after about a week of listening to the Edifier H690, I'd say it has no doubt earned the Tech-Critter Gold and Recommended badge.

New 3DMark benchmark landing soon - Watch the trailer now!

HELSINKI, FINLAND – May 28, 2014 – Futuremark today announced 3DMark Sky Diver, a new DirectX 11 benchmark test for gaming laptops and mid-range PCs. 3DMark Sky Diver is the ideal test for benchmarking systems with mainstream DirectX 11 graphics cards, mobile GPUs, or integrated graphics. A preview trailer for the new benchmark shows a wingsuited woman skydiving into a mysterious, uncharted location. The scene is brought to life with tessellation, particles and advanced post-processing effects. Sky Diver will be shown in full at Computex from June 3-7, or find out more on the Futuremark website:http://www.futuremark.com/3dmark  

Sky Diver trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV5jjUQDNdw

Screenshots: http://www.futuremark.com/benchmarks/3dmark#skydiver 

Jukka Mäkinen, Futuremark CEO said, 

"Some people think that 3DMark is only for high-end hardware and extreme overclocking. Yet millions of PC gamers rely on 3DMark to choose systems that best balance performance, efficiency and affordability. 3DMark Sky Diver complements our other tests by providing the ideal benchmark for gaming laptops and mainstream PCs."

3DMark - The Gamer's Benchmark for all your hardware

3DMark is the only benchmark that offers a range of tests for different classes of hardware:

• Fire Strike, for high performance gaming PCs (DirectX 11, feature level 11)
• Sky Diver, for gaming laptops and mid-range PCs (DirectX 11, feature level 11)
• Cloud Gate, for notebooks and typical home PCs (DirectX 11 feature level 10)
• Ice Storm, for tablets and entry level PCs (DirectX 11 feature level 9)

With 3DMark, you can benchmark the full performance range of modern DirectX 11 graphics hardware. Where Fire Strike is like a modern game on ultra high settings, Sky Diver is closer to a DirectX 11 game played on normal settings. This makes Sky Diver the best choice for benchmarking entry level to mid-range systems and Fire Strike the perfect benchmark for high performance gaming PCs.

See 3DMark Sky Diver in full at Computex

3DMark Sky Diver will be on display on the ASUS, MSI, GIGABYTE, Galaxy, Inno3D, and G-Skill booths at Computex, June 3-7.  

S.Y. Shian, ASUS Vice President & General Manager of Notebook Business Unit said,

"We are proud to partner with Futuremark to show 3DMark Sky Diver at Computex. Sky Diver helps PC gamers choose systems that offer great performance and great value. We invite everyone to visit our stand to experience 3DMark Sky Diver on a range of new ASUS products."

Coming soon

Sky Diver will be released as an update for all editions of 3DMark, including the free 3DMark Basic Edition. Further details, including the release date, will be announced at Computex and on Futuremark's website:http://www.futuremark.com/3dmark 

Unboxing & Review: Prolimatech Samuel 17 Low Profile CPU Cooler

When it comes to small form factor build, huge and tall CPU coolers is usually something small form factor PC builders would want to avoid as there will not be much space available in most small form factor PC chassis that will fit those colossal CPU coolers - This is where low profile CPU coolers come to play. 

We have the Prolimatech Samuel 17 sent to us for today's review, courtesy of Prolimatech. The Samuel 17 is Prolimatech's only low profile CPU cooler that offers an amazing total of 6 heatpipes and 120mm fan support. Let's see how well can this David handles the Goliath of our test rig (i7 4770K) shall we?

*The Samuel 17 is priced at $44.99 from newegg, estimated to be around RM145 after converting to our currency of Malaysian Ringgit.*

Technical Specifications

Fan Compatibility	Standard 120mm Fan Slim Type 120mm Fan 140mm fans with 120mm mounting holes
CPU Socket Compatibility	Intel LGA 775/1366/1156/1155 AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3/AM3+
Dimension	121.2mm x 120mm x 45mm
Weight	410 g
Heatpipe	6 pieces of 6mm in total

Overview

The Samuel 17 comes in a rather simple and compact packaging, not very attractive from our point of view.

The included accessories are Intel and AMD mounting bracket, screws, user's manual and a generous amount of thermal compound from Prolimatech.

Our first impression on the Samuel 17 is that the cooler is light and compact but very solid in terms of build quality. The 120mm fan frame is seems extended beyond the actual size of the fins, installing a fan will leave an extra space to allow air to be blown down to components below for that extra cooling effect.



140mm fans that has 120mm mounting holes on its fan frame can be installed on the Samuel 17, a good example would be Prolimatech's very own Ultra Sleek Vortex 14.

A quick comparison in height with the Western Digital MyPassport Elements external hard drive.

45mm in height makes it as one of the thinnest low profile CPU cooler available and it's very ideal for small form factor build, HTPC especially.

Moving on to the base of the Samuel 17, we're totally surprised by the numbers of heatpipes available.
Most low profile cooler we've seen only comes with a maximum of 4 heatpipes, the Samuel 17 has a total of 6, much like most large CPU coolers - but will it act like one of the large CPU coolers?

Installing the mounting bracket was a breeze.

While not having any backplate for mounting the cooler, these little guys will do the job.
The plastic spacers act as an insulation layer to prevent any potential electric conductivity on it's contact point with the motherboard.

Mounting the cooler won't be much of a trouble if the motherboard is not yet in the chassis.

We've found out that there's 2 different ways to install the Samuel 17. The first orientation, as shown in the picture above, the fins were very close to the RAM module thus will only allow you to install value RAM at most.

Turning the Samuel 17 around seems to solve the aforementioned issue hence will allow installation of almost any type of RAM with zero clearance issue.


Performance Test
Moving on with the performance test, the following system configuration is prepared for our test:

Test Rig Configuration
CPU Cooler	Prolimatech Samuel 17 (with Prolimatech USV14 installed) Intel i7 4770k Stock Cooler
CPU	I7 4770K (running at stock clock speed)
Motherboard	ASUS Z97I-PLUS
Memory	Corsair Vengeance Pro 4GB x 2
Primary Hard Drive	Crucial M500 120GB
Power Supply	Silverstone ST60F-P 600W 80 Plus Bronze Certified
Chassis	Jonsbo V4
Display Monitor	Dell U2312HM

CPU stress test is conducted using the Prime95 with the option 'In-place large FFTs' for maximum heat output from the CPU itself and the room temperature where the test is conducted varies from 28ºC to 30ºC. The test that we've ran consists the following different setup:

• Samuel 17 without fan
• Samuel 17 with Prolimatech USV14
• Samuel 17 with Prolimatech USV14 equipped with the Static Booster 14
• Intel i7 4770K Stock Cooler

The test is done repeatedly for several days so we can obtain the average temperature for each setup and the final result is presented in the graph below:

Fanless setup is giving a pretty high temperature reading even on stock clock speed, but it still beats the Intel stock cooler that runs on a fan. The setup with Prolimatech USV14 installed is giving even better temperatures, an impressive temperature drop of at least 18ºC difference in compared to the Intel i7 4770k stock cooler. Adding the Static Booster 14 to the USV14 yields even better result, giving another 2ºC drop in temperature. Do note that there are wide variety of fans out there that would produce different result from ours.

Final Thoughts
We have our sizzling hot Intel i7 4770K setup installed in the Jonsbo V4 as the example of the imaginable worst case scenario for a small for factor build /HTPC and the result turns out pretty well as Prolimatech Samuel 17 did a wonderful job in keeping the temperature down in such confined space in our setup.

The small but mighty Samuel 17 is definitely one of the best low profile CPU cooler we've tested and we would not hesitate to recommend to anyone who requires good cooling for their CPU (running at stock clock) in a confined HTPC or small form factor gaming rig.


Pros
Ideal for small form factor build or HTPC
Small and solid
Supports 120mm fans and almost any larger fans with 120mm mounting holes
Very generous amount of thermal compound included
Easy to install
Almost no clearance issue with tall RAMs

Cons
No fans included
Screws for slim type fans is rather short but suffice
Clearance issue with motherboard with tall heatsink / armor

The Prolimatech Samuel 17 is a worthy product and is awarded with recommended and gold award from Tech Critter.