Month: May 2016

Processors

Intel i7-6950X Broadwell-E CPU Review

May 31, 2016 Joe Shields 37

Today we are going to get a chance to review Intel’s next processor in their High-End Desktop (HEDT) platform. The king of the consumer hill used to be the mighty i7-5960X our friend Dino reviewed back in August of 2014. That ‘extreme’ CPU shook up the landscape then by providing the consumer with a high clocked, octo-core CPU with a total of 16 threads. Since then Intel brought to market their 14 nm Broadwell CPU architecture, on their mainstream platform, through their “tick-tock” cycle. Naturally, the next HEDT processor is based off the same 14nm lithography, Tri-gate(FinFET) technology is Broadwell-E. Broadwell-E, specifically the i7-6950X, brings us our first deca-core processor which isn’t based on the Xeon or Opteron platforms.

Cooling

Coolers for the Intel i7 Broadwell-E

May 31, 2016 Ed Hume 0

Intel is bringing out its Intel i7 Broadwell-E. What coolers and heatsinks should you use for one of these beasts? The Intel i7 is a Broadwell-E on a 14nm process, with a TDP of 140 watts. The chip will arrive with options for 10, 8 or 6 cores. Joe Shields (earthdog) has done a review of one of the Broadwell-E chips and associated motherboard. This summary will review some of the coolers you should consider for your new chip.

News

G.SKILL Hosts OC World Record Stage & OC World Cup at Computex 2016

May 24, 2016 Matt Ring 2

Our good friends at G.SKILL are hosting a massive overclocking event at Computex in just a few short weeks. The showcase will feature some of the best overclockers in the world attempting to break as many records as possible as well as a competition with prizes. G.SKILL will be partnering with ASRock, ASUS, EVGA, GIGABYTE, Intel, MSI and Samsung to supply the overclockers with everything they need to put on a show.

Cooling

NZXT S340 Case Review

May 19, 2016 Ed Hume 4

NZXT has put out a lot of shapely cases in past years. We’ve become accustomed to swoops and curves, glistening gewgaws, and fancy colors. But what happens when NZXT produces a flat black rectangle and calls it a computer case? Oh, sure. They sent me one with a window on the side, but still. Why would you want such an unprepossessing black box? Why indeed! Let’s explore and find out.

Cooling

EKWB GIGABYTE GTX 980 Ti Xtreme Gaming Full Cover Waterblock Review

May 18, 2016 Joe Shields 2

EKWB has released a lot of great cooling solutions, be it, CPU blocks, GPU blocks, parts for a loop, or entire custom loop kits. We reviewed the full cover block EK made for the 295×2 previously and with good results in our loop. Today we are going to look at another high-performance full cover water block made especially for Gigabyte’s monster GTX 980 Ti Xtreme Gaming card. The EK-FC980 GTX Ti XG reviewed here actively cools the RAM, GPU, and VRM’s with water flowing directly over top of them. If its anything like the results we saw before, things are are going to get a lot cooler around here!

Memory

G.SKILL Announces New Colors for Trident Z

May 9, 2016 John Nester 0

On Friday May 6th, 2016 G.SKILL International announced five new color schemes for their highly popular, extreme performance Trident Z DDR4 memory. In addition to the classic silver and black heatspreader with a red top they will offer a silver brushed aluminium heatspreader with black or white highlights as well as a black brushed aluminum heatspreader with white, yellow, or orange highlights. With the increase of gamers and enthusiasts customizing their systems, G.SKILL will further broaden our possibilities.