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- Underclocking
- Videocard OC
- CPU, Mem OC
- PQI P800
- MSI NX6200TC
- OCZ PC4000
- PCstats Weekly Tips |
Overclocking Guides and Experimental Underclocking
Hello,
One of PCSTATS' founding ideals is
that our articles, reviews and
guides should present you with enough information that you can make
informed decisions on your own. We're not here to tell
you what to buy or
where to shop, because we're
not the lap dogs of the computer industry, certain brands, or online retailers. Though
it is sometimes prudent to point out which
gear to avoid, when it comes to questions of ATI or
nVidia, Intel or AMD, the answer is always the same: whichever currently
offers the best bang for the buck!
Via the PCSTATS reader feedback page hundreds of
questions arrive in my mailbox each week. While I can't reply to everyone,
I do read each and every comment. When it comes to questions of which gear
to get, your first stop should be the PCSTATS ShoppingList, or Forums. Those are the best avenue's
for hardware recommendations, and if you have suggestions on how we can
make things even better please let us know.
This weeks PCSTATS Newsletter focuses on
Overclocking. Two new Beginners Guides deal specifically with the how-to's
of overclocking
CPUs, videocards,
memory, and motherboards
in a clear and concise manner. The third article is an experiment in
underclocking... something of a
rarity considering the popularity of the latter.
If OC'ing isn't your thing, check out the PQI mPack
P800 personal media player and MSI NX6200
Tubo-Cache Videocard reviews. A pair of PC4000 dual
channel DDR modules from OCZ round out things before we dive
head first into PCSTATS Weekly Tech Tip!
PCstats knows overclocking. You know
overclocking. Everybody knows overclocking.
The PC runs faster and hotter, provides more performance, and yadda yadda
yadda. Overclocking has become so routine in the hardware world that every
processor, motherboard, memory module and videocard
needs to be overclocked as part
of its review. We never know if the people actually buying the hardware
care about its overclocking potential, but as computer journalists and
enthusiasts, we know we have to test it out. This got us
thinking though; what about
under-clocking? Most modern processors and motherboards can just
as easily run under a rated speed as it can run over... but is there a
point to this? Well possibly. Continue
Here>>
 Overclocking is a subject that we deal with every time a new
processor, motherboard, stick of
memory or videocard comes in for review, so it's a topic near and dear
to our hearts. As you might expect, after having experimented with the
subject so frequently, we have developed a pretty good idea of what does
and doesn't work. Videocard
overclocking can hold many benefits for the gamer or benchmarking
enthusiast. From theory
to practice, ATI to nVidia, basic
overclocking to tips and BIOS flashing, it's all in this guide!Continue
Here>>
The prospect of overclocking
a computer system can be intimidating for a computer newcomer, to say
the least. The idea is simple enough; make the computer's processor run
faster than its stock speed to gain more performance without paying for
it. The execution of this idea though, can be anything but simple. The
article will guide readers
step-by-step through understanding overclocking concepts, how to
discover their hardware's overclocking
options and the actual process of overclocking. If you consider
yourself an expert already, read on - there are a few tips and tricks packed
into this guide that you may not know...Continue
Here>>
There's always a type of gadget out there that the
techno-literate are drooling for long before the regular public becomes
aware of its existence. The MP3 player is a great example; my vote for the
next technology likely to blow up is the personal
multimedia device. Today we have the pleasure of looking at PQI's
newest entry into this soon-to-be crowded field, the mPack P800 portable
entertainment centre. From it's nice 3.5" LCD
screen outwards, the PQI mPack
P800 supports a pleasingly large array of formats. For video, MPEG 1,2
and 4 (and DivX) are covered, along with XviD, WMV and ASF. Advertised battery life
is 4.5 hours for video playback and 10 hours for audio playback (with
screen off).Continue
Here>>
Economical videocards of today allow users to
experience all the same DirectX 9 eye candy that higher end models offer.
The MSI
NX6200TC-TD32E is based on the GeForce 6200 Turbo Cache core and
actually includes 32MB of onboard memory in addition to borrowing
system memory when necessary. The card supports dual analog monitors
and includes the necessary DVI-to-analog
converter. The videocard also supports S-Video and Component output
which should make it useful for HTPC use.Continue
Here>>
For the computer geek looking for an adventure,
there has never been a better time to be an enthusiast. OCZ's 512MB PC4000 Gold
Dual-Channel VX (Voltage eXtreme) DDR memory is rated to run at 250
MHz with timings of 2-2-2-8 and a maximum voltage of 3.3V. If you do not
plan to overclock this memory, the PC4000 Gold
Dual Channel VX can also run with 2-3-3-8
timings at 200 MHz with only
2.6V. Heatspreaders have become
standard equipment on memory, even if they're mostly redundant for their stated
purpose. Continue
Here>>
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PCstats Weekly Tech Tips: New hard drive, New Partition |
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A few weeks ago my cousin bought himself
a new hard drive and installed it into his computer. Later he
called me to ask why he couldn't access the new drive within
Windows, after all he could see it at the POST screen.
From talking to him, it became clear that he didn't partition and format the HDD, so I explained that fresh hard drives must first be partitioned with a proper file system and then formatted. He was puzzled, and didn't know what I was talking about... and you'd be surprised how often this happens.
Luckily it's not hard to partition and format a HDD in WindowsXP. After all the hard drive has been physically
installed, right click on the My Computer icon and select
Manage. From there expand the Storage section and click on
Disk Management. On the right hand side of the screen you
should see the various partitions in your computer as well as
a list of the storage hardware that has been installed. Right
click on the *Unallocated* space, select New Partition, follow
the wizard (you can just keep clicking next) and you're set! Yes it really is that easy. Best of all your drive is also formatted and ready to use. For more information on formatting and partitioning a hard drive, also check out PCSTATS Guide on the subject right here.
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PCstats Issue
No.180
irculation: 201,438
| This Issue By |
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Editor-in-Chief
. M. Page
Weekly Tips
. C. Sun
. M. Dowler
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PCSTATS Q & A:
Send in your tough tech
questions today! |
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