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ATI X800 XL Shootout
[Abstract]
High End Value for the DollarWhen ATI upgraded their RADEON X800 series of graphics card last December with the introduction of the RADEON X850 series, most of the attention was focused on the ...
[Content] PCDigitalMobileGame
Gigabyte GV-RX80L256V
As mentioned previously, Gigabyte is the only manufacturer to use heat pipes as the main cooling solution. The result of this approach is immediate. In place of the usual whine and hum of the cooler, there is nothing. The silence of the Gigabyte GV-RX80L256V is almost surreal compared to the whirl of activity from the other fans in our test system. This makes it eminently suitable for systems where noise is a critical factor. The main disadvantage associated with a passive solution like Gigabyte's heat pipe technology is that the increased heat output. The temperatures recorded for the Gigabyte GV-RX80L256V was on the average, 15 degrees Celsius warmer than the coolest X800 XL card in our roundup. Of course, some may find that a small price to pay for some peace and silence. From our inspection of the heat pipe cooler, Gigabyte has certainly considered the size of its heat pipe cooler during the design phase. There was no avoiding the larger surface area needed for the radiator part of the cooler, but Gigabyte has placed that at the back of the card with sufficient clearance so as not to hinder any motherboard components.
Our Gigabyte contender, the GV-RX80L256V. |
Gigabyte chose a pure heat pipe cooler to create a truly silent solution. |
The dual heat pipes extends from the VPU to the back of the cooler where the heat is dissipated. |
Here is the large heatsink needed for Gigabyte's heat pipe solution. |
Only a small minority of the RADEON X800 XL cards in our comparison had VIVO (Video-In, Video-Out) capabilities. Gigabyte is one of these lucky few and has enabled this feature with an onboard ATI Rage Theatre ASIC. Besides this, the software titles include two complete games and a couple of useful applications. Gigabyte's own V-Tuner 2 overclocking utility is also included and we found the GV-RX80L256V capable of some decent overclocking despite using a heat pipe only cooling unit. Here is the list of items found in the package:
DVI-to-VGA adaptor
9-pin mini-DIN to HDTV / S-Video/ Composite dongle
Gigabyte X800 XL user Manual
Driver CD
CyberLink PowerDVD 5.0
CyberLink PowerDirector 3 ME
V-Tuner 2 (Plus) Overclocking Utility
Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising
Thief: Deadly Shadows
No more messy cables, Gigabyte provided an all-in-one solution here. |
Final view of the Gigabyte GV-RX80L256V. |
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