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    by Published on April 22nd, 2013 08:42 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Hard Drives
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    OCZ, ever on top of its game, has released another high performance SSD solution equipped with its own, home-brew Indilinx Barefoot 3 controller. In the past, the SandForce controller dominated the OCZ lineup up until recently. The SandForce did not disappoint, so it will be interesting to see how exactly the Barefoot 3 controller compares. On paper, this SSD does not dissapoint. Sporting speeds of 550MB/s read speeds, and 530MB/sec write. This leads me to believe that OCZ made a good call switching to the new controller. However, time will tell as we get into the testing phase later on in this review.



    Along with the upgraded controller, the Vector sports a brand new design including aluminum housing, slimmer size, and new artwork. In this review we will be taking a look at the 256GB model. Other sizes include 128GB, and 512GB.





    We mentioned on the page prior that the OCZ Vector SSD is equipped with OCZ's own in-house controller, the Indilinx Barefoot 3. This is no doubt the biggest difference when comparing the Vector with any other prior version, or any other SSD for that matter. We will discuss this controller in detail on the next page and hopefully answer some questions you may have especially the advantages or disadvantages over the SandForce controller. But one thing is for sure, from what we have found, an SSD is mostly limited by the performance of the controller.

    Here are the detailed specifications for this particular SSD taken from OCZ's website:

    Performance numbers per capacity



    The Vector is covered by a 5-year warranty.






    Indilinx Barefoot 3 is the new controller which powers the Vector series SSD which is essentially the 'brain' of the SSD. We mentioned earlier that in the past OCZ has always used the SandForce lineup of controllers which worked very well with the success of the previous Vertex series from OCZ. However, to date, there is not a whole lot of information available about the Indilinx controller compared to the piles of info we have on the SandForce.

    So, what do we know? Pretty much all the information that OCZ cares to share with the rest of us! Most of it comes from a detailed press release found HERE.

    In addition to that, take a look at this comparative chart. Currently the only drives taking advantage of the Barefoot 3 controller is the Vector Series. When you compare the data of the latest SandForce 2281 controller, the numbers are in favor of the Barefoot 3 controller. It also appears that the Barefoot 3 controller gives a small advantage over the Everest 2 controller currently used in the Vertex 4 lineup.

    The Indilinx Barefoot 3 is controlled by two separate processors; the ARM Cortex processor, and the Aragon Co-processor. Caching for this SSD is powered by two chips of DDR3 from what we could tell. For this particular model, caching is set to 1GB. The 128GB model is said to only have 512MB.





    The OCZ Vector SSD is packaged nicely featuring some nice attractive design work on the package exterior. Inside you will see that everything is bundled nice and tight, eliminating wiggle-room which could cause damage during shipping.








    Upon opening the package, you'll notice the SSD packed into its custom fitted foam shell inside an anti-static bag. Included also are your warranty information, a I <3 my SSD sticker, a mounting bracket for 3.5" configurations and mounting screws. The SSD is tucked away in an anti static bag to reduce electronic shock damage. We have always been impressed with the level of care OCZ uses when packaging their solid state drives.





    The Vector series sports a much improved design over the Vertex series. To date, all other OCZ solid state drives were made up of a plastic and metal housing. The Vector is in a complete metal housing giving it a nice solid feel. The corners are also rounded even further improving on the design. Lastly, the artwork on the top is much improved taking advantage of the entire top surface. Overall I was very impressed with the level of detail OCZ put into this SSD.







    The reverse side contains a sticker all of the drives technical information. The four screw holes on the bottom are for mounting the SSD to the included metal bracket if you chose to mount this into a desktop in a 3.5" drive bay.




    Inside we find the single PCB with all the internal components installed. What probably stands out most is the Indilinx Barefoot 3 controller chip located right in the center. Surrounding the chip are all the OCZ branded NAND flash memory chips and cache.









    Overall, I was very impressed with the quality of the Vector. For an internal component, the level of detail that went into the design is much more than I have ever seen before on any other SSD. Now that we've seen what we are working with, lets start crunching some numbers!





    Testing Methodology

    The OCZ Vector was tested in full SATA 6 mode using a supported motherboard to maximize the performance of the drive. To measure performance we used several benchmark applications geared towards measuring drive speeds or transfer rates. The applications include Crystal Disk Info, HD Tune, Atto Diskmark, Crystal Disk Mark, and HD Tach. The firmware for the Vector was updated to the latest version running 2.0.

    The motherboard used was an EVGA Z77 FTW configured in full SATA6 mode.

    Installation

    Installing the hard drive is about as straight forward as it gets. When installing into a desktop, provided you don't have a SSD mount in your case, the bracket allows you to mount the drive into any 3.5" drive bay. From there it is just like installing a typical HDD into a computer. In a notebook scenario, of course installation will vary depending on what you are installing it into, but the Vertex 4's size and screw configuration will match whatever 2.5" HDD you currently have in your system. So you should not have to worry about any hard drive incompatibilities.




    Testing
    HD Tune

    For our first actual test we used a program called HD Tune. This handy program comes with a vast array of testing features. To kick things off we started with a good ol' fashioned read/write benchmark









    For the read test, it looks like the Vector scored around 309MB/sec maximum read speeds.



    Write speeds gave us a maximum of 371MB/sec. Below we have our random read and write speeds.




    Lastly, below we gave the file benchmark a run. The file benchmark is a much more accurate representation of real-world performance results.


    Using this test we were able to get the transfer speeds up to around 396MB/sec read, and 417MB/sec write.



    Atto HD Benchmark


    Atto HD Benchmark is another great benchmark utility. It measures drive performance incrementally and gives results in a nice easy to read format.



    Things are looking much better for the Vector here. Our read test maxed out at a whopping 552MB/sec, with read speeds clocking in at 510MB/sec.



    HD Tach


    HD Tach is another hard drive benchmark utility that uses a sequential read test similar to that which we used in HD Tune.



    The Vector not doing too well this time around with speeds averaging 280.1MB/sec.



    AS SSD Benchmark



    Sequential read speeds proved to be the best with this benchmark measuring in at 509MB/sec and read speeds at 477MB/sec. For whatever its worth, AS SSD Benchmark gave us a final score of 1070 based on its total performance.

    So what do all the numbers mean? It's hard to make sense of SSD transfer speed results from different programs because they are all... well different. Basically all this proves is what the drive can do under different scenarios. Each program benchmarks a little bit differently. Exactly how different we will never know. This is why we did not reach the Vector's rated speeds of 550MB/sec read and 530MB/sec write. To achieve these speeds you need to hit a perfect set of circumstances ...
    by Published on March 31st, 2013 08:55 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Cases
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    The lineup of Lian Li's mid tower case arsenal continues to expand with its latest edition, the PC-9N or in particular the PC-9NB which is the Black model which we will be reviewing. Lian Li has a history of manufacturing cases with an almost meticulous sense of exceptional quality and design. This particular model at a glance features brushed aluminum exterior with a full metal aluminum interior. It fully supports ATX and micro-ATX motherboards on its new rail mount motherboard mount design which we will cover more in depth later on in the review. But lets not waste any more time! On with the review...



    The MSRP for the PC-9NB stands at $99.99. Not too bad considering this is a Lian Li case.




    The Lian-Li PC9N was packaged typical to pretty much any case we have seen. The case is secured inside the box with two custom formed Styrofoam inserts to secure it during shipping. Overall we have found this method very effective and from what we could tell, there was no damage to the case due to shipping mishaps.




    ...
    by Published on February 4th, 2013 09:00 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Power Supplies
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    Just when you thought the Toughpower series power supplies from Thermaltake didn't get any better, the Grand Platinum series is proof that they do. The Toughpower lineup has always been the best of the best from Thermaltake's lineup, and the Grand Platinum series takes it one step further. How? Well, all Grand Platinum series power supplies carry a 80+ Platinum (hence the name) efficiency rating. This is the highest standard a power supply can achieve which speaks good things about this PSU at first glance. Typically we find that more efficient power supplies are made from higher rated parts and components which makes them run longer and much cooler.

    The Toughpower Grand Platinum series comes in just two varieties, 600W and 700W. If you are looking for a bit more oomph than 700W, you will have to sacrifice that platinum efficiency rating for a gold rated one. With the Grand Series' design, Thermaltake has completely reworked this power ...
    by Published on January 26th, 2013 08:00 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Power Supplies
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    In the world of computer power supplies, it seems that all the big name companies like PC Power & Cooling are constantly pushing the limit when it comes to performance. Users know that the power supply is probably the most important component in their system, and many are willing to buy the best of the best. If you are one of these people, looking for a power supply that not only can provide massive amounts of power to your components, but will do it reliably and efficiently, then look no further than the Silencer MK III from PC Power & Cooling which is what we will be reviewing today. In this review we will be taking a look at the 1200W model which is the highest output rated model of the MK III family. Other variations include the 400W, 500W, and 600W.



    This particular model combines a high power output with an exceptional efficiency rating. According to PC Power & Cooling, this power supply is 92% efficient which earns it an 80-Plus Platinum rating which is the highest level a power supply can achieve. Another noteworthy feature is is that at maximum load, the MK III 1200W will maintain a maximum temperature of only 50 ...
    by Published on January 14th, 2013 03:00 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Power Supplies
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    Presents...

    The 2013 Thermaltake Power Supply Giveaway!

    GND-Tech and Thermaltake have teamed up to kick off the new year by giving away some prizes! This time around, we got two brand new Thermaltake power supplies to give away. Up for grabs we got a SMART series 750M and a SMART 850M. Registration is simple: complete the form below, and enter in as many times as you can!

    Thermaltake SMART 750M PSU:
    http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/Produc...C=1266&ID=2084
    ...
    by Published on December 16th, 2012 08:00 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Peripherals
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    The first thing that comes to mind when you consider the Level 10 lineup from Thermaltake is Design. Level 10 products have had a history of having a certain uniqueness to them that separates them from the rest. With that being said, the Level 10 M gaming mouse from Thermaltake is absolutely no exception. Its sleek and complex design is the product a design team who work for BMW. Not only does this thing look top-notch, but it has the construction to back it up. The base is made out of thick aluminum, and the top portion is a hardened vented plastic. And like any good quality gaming mouse, the cable is braided.



    But what about customization? Well, if this is your thing, then you will not be disappointed. The Level 10 Mouse has more customization options than we have ever seen in a mouse. Each of the 11 buttons is fully customizable to any operation you need via the included software. Not only are the buttons customizable, but each individual light can be changed to a specific color, or turned off. And in addition to that, the physical size of the mouse can be changed. Using the included hex-wrench, you can change the height and angle of the top portion of the mouse.

    So with all of its features, which we will get into later on in the review, you can bet that this mouse is about as high end as you can get. ...
    by Published on November 6th, 2012 09:31 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Hard Drives
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    Well here we go! another SSD series from OCZ, the Vertex 4. Now you may be thinking, with SSD speeds as good as they are now days, how is the Vertex 4 any different? Well probably the biggest answer to that question is the addition of the new home-brewed Indilinx Everest controller. Up until now, the Vertex lineup has been powered by the SandForce series controllers. Since the SandForce controllers have a long history of bringing in massive performance, it will be interesting to see how OCZ's controller stacks up.




    In this review we will be looking at the 256GB model which according to OCZ's website, brings in a whopping 560MB/sec read and 510MB/sec out. This along with 90,000 IOPS random 4K read, and 85,000 IOPS 4K write, tells us before even testing the drive that we should see some pretty impressive numbers from the start. The Vertex 4 comes in four verieties: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB. MSRP is $279.95 USD.

    Continue on, and lets dig a little deeper into its features and specs.








    Like mentioned on the page prior, the OCZ Vertex 4 is equipped with OCZ's own in-house controller, the Indilinx Everest. This is no doubt the biggest difference when comparing the Vertex 4 with any other prior version. We will discuss this controller in detail on the next page and hopefully answer some questions you may have especially the advantages or disadvantages over the SandForce controller. But one thing is for sure, from what we have found, an SSD is mostly limited by the performance of the controller.

    Here are the detailed specifications ...
    by Published on August 27th, 2012 10:00 PM
    1. Categories:
    2. Cooling
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    Thermaltake has been in the water cooling business for quite some time now beginning with their Big Water series 8 years ago back in 2004. Today Thermaltake is still at it with their new Water 2.0 series, a completely redesigned all-in-one (AIO) CPU liquid cooling solution. The series includes three models ranging in performance: the Performer, Pro and Extreme. In this review we will be looking at the Performer which is the smallest out of the group. Though it's the last in line of the series, we expect to see some pretty decent numbers considering that this is still a water cooling system.



    In a nutshell, this cooler features a 120mm radiator attached to a pump mounted directly to the CPU water block. Thermaltake has included two 120mm fans which allow you to use the push-pull method to get the lowest temps possible. Currently you can pick this cooler up for $64.95. Not a bad price for an all in one water cooler. But keep on reading.... more details on the next page!




    Feature-wise, the Thermaltake Water 2.0 Performer ...
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