Guru3D tests and reviews the Scythe Ninja 3 CPU cooler. The new organization of the aluminum fins allows, in cooperation with the eight U-shaped copper heatpipes marketed as M.A.P.S. (Multiple Airflow pass-through structure) guarantees high performance. This will get more clear in the photo-shoot though. According to Scythe is that translates into 7 per cent more heat removal compared to a cooler like the previous Ninja. The cooler is equipped with a 120mm-ventilator that can be regulated with the help of an included fan-controller in RPM from 470 to 1900 RPM with noise levels varying from 7 to 37dBA depending on your preference.

You can find out all about it right here at this URL.

It doesn't end there though, MSI is pre-overclocking this 1024MB HAWK model towards 780 MHz. That makes this the top dog GeForce GTX 460 on the market, interested ? Well, you can read the full review right here and now.

We test the OCZ RevoDrive. Pretty much two SSDs slapped onto a PCB, armed with a RAID controller. Pop it in, install the new storage unit and you'll have tremendous performance right of the shelves without the need to configure anything. What OCZ did was done right.

 They smacked 120GB or alternatively 240 GB of the fastest NAND Flash memory on the PCB, armed that Flash memory with two separate 8-channel SandForce SSD ICs, then bind them to a SIS RAID controller, pop on a PCie x4 bridge and then offer a "PCIe SSD" (if you can call it that) reaching 300,k 400 even 500 MB/sec read and write speeds.

Check out the full review right here.

Speaking of specifications, the card comes with 48 CUDA Cores, 700 Mhz Graphics Core, 1400 MHz of Processor Clock (aka Shaders) and finally 900 Mhz Memory Clock. The standard memory capacity is 2 GB DDR3 (really, why that much?) over a 128-bit interface that offers a memory bandwidth of 28.8 GB/sec. All known features are also supported, such as nVIDIA 3D Vision Ready, PureVideo, PsysX, CUDA, DirectX, OpenGL and PCI-e 2.0 x16 lanes port. As for the display support, there is maximum digital resolution of 2560x1600 and maximum VGA resolution 2048x1536.

Finally, let’s plug our displays in that. So, looking the back I/) panel you will be familiar with a DVI-I, HDMI and VGA connectivity ports. Please notice that Multi-monitor, HDCP, HDMI and there is also an audio input for that high definition videos, all of them are also enabled. The card has maximum GPU temp at 105 C degrees and maximum TDP of 50W. So, is this an answer to ATI Radeon 5450 ? We will soon find it out. For the time being, there are no any prices or release dates confirmed.

Bobcat's firstborn will be the 40nmOntario mobile chip and comes with embedded DirectX 11 graphics. is intended for desktops and servers with Orochi being one of the flagship chips.

No real information was provided on this 8-core product besides that it will be the second 32nm-based product and will be built immediately after the Llano. The Orochi will feature a set of 4 Bulldozer modules, which provide 8 cores and 8 threads, and will probably have an AM3+ package with an integrated DDR3 memory controller.

On the other hand, the individual L2 caches will be of 1MB and will support dual-channel DDR3 and will, of course, have its own built-in graphics with support for DirectX 11.The APU should also feature an integrated northbridge, integrated PCI Express root complex, a HyperTransport interface to the chipset and an integrated SIMD array with 480 stream processors.

The Llano will have to compete with the Sandy Bridge processors from Intel, which also have integrated graphics and will feature better performance than the current Core series [via Softpedia / PCPer].

Click the thumbnails.

AMD will reportedly first release entry-level and mainstream Radeon HD 6000 graphics cards sometime in the fourth quarter of this year, but where it gets a little bit weird is that the dual-GPU Radeon HD 6970 will allegedly arrive first by Christmas 2010, with the Radeon HD 6800 cards to follow in early 2011.

Widespread rumours suggest that the first release is indeed a mainstream card - the Radeon HD 6700 series - on October 13th 2010. However, the schedules of the other HD 6800 and HD 6970 come as a surprise, especially the dual-GPU HD 6970 releasing before the HD 6800 series. Of course, the HD 6970 being a dual-GPU HD 6770 is also a possibility. The other cards in the family - HD 6500/6600/etc., are not mentioned explicitly, though it is implied they might release before the HD 6800 series.

The THX TruStudio Pro audio technology, developed by the legendary sound engineers at Creative, in conjunction with THX, uses proprietary advanced algorithms that allow sounds to be recreated above, below and all around the gamer, surpassing the limitations of typical 5.1 and 7.1 headsets. It also allows gamers to hear voices and sounds in amazing detail regardless of how far away they are, making the Tactic3D line of headsets the optimal way to fully experience audio in the next generation of 3D gaming.

THX TruStudio Pro Surround Audio delivers a 360 degree surround sound gaming experience so gamers can hear sounds clearly from the front, back, above and below. “The difference between hearing sounds just to left of me versus to left and above me is huge when playing in a tournament match. THX TruStudio Pro Surround gives me the advantage I need versus using standard 5.1 and 7.1 headsets,” said Yfran "Eafra" Garcia, professional FIFA player.

THX TruStudio Pro features proprietary THX TruStudio Pro Crystalizer™ real-time audio restoration technology, which enhances in-game sound by restoring low and high end frequency curves lost to compression. “With THX TruStudio Pro Crystalizer we hear details that you just aren’t able to hear otherwise, which gives us a definite competitive advantage,” said Alex "Sodah" Ringe, professional World of Warcraft player.

THX TruStudio Pro Smart Volume™ addresses the problem of abrupt volume level changes in games by automatically and continuously measuring volume, and intelligently applying gain and attenuation to compensate for those changes. “In critical gaming matches there is a lot going on audio-wise. You have team leaders calling out instructions, gun fire and other audio cues happening all around you. Having THX TruStudio Pro Smart Volume is important because it allows me to hear everything in the map, near or far,” said David "Xp3" Garrido, professional Counter-Strike player.

THX TruStudio Pro Dialog Plus™ enhances voices during in-game communication for clearer dialog, allowing the gamer to hear the dialog over the rest of the sounds and over ambient noise in the listening environment. “Whether you are listening to dialog or listening to your team strat caller, it’s critical to be able to hear commands clearly and THX TruStudio Pro Dialog Plus allows voices to cut through in-game audio even in the most intense situations,” said Michael "Twix" Shane, professional World of Warcraft player.

Explosive THX TruStudio Pro Bass™ produces heart-pounding, customizable bass levels without compromising signal integrity. “It is always satisfying to get a frag with the rocket launcher. It is even more satisfying with THX TruStudio Pro Bass enabled,” said Brian "dkt" Flander, professional Quake Live player.

All of the features within the THX TruStudio Pro software suite are completely customizable and can be saved with the TacticProfile feature, so gamers don’t have to modify their settings every time they play.

Features of Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Alpha Headset

• 40mm Neodymium drivers for great gaming audio performance
• Optimized lightweight design for marathon game play
• THX TruStudio Pro software suite for an immersive audio experience
• Customizable TacticProfile enable gamers to save their own settings or use pre-configured settings from pro-gamers
• Programmable VoiceFX™ for voice morphing into in-game characters or during VoIP chats
• Detachable noise-canceling microphone allows headset to be used as great sounding headphones
• Dual Mode™ USB 2.0 adapter enables headset to be used in analog mode
• Non-tangle flat ribbon cable

Features of Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Sigma Headset

All of the features of the Sound Blaster Tactic3D Alpha, plus:

• 50mm Neodymium gaming-tuned linear high-resolution drivers
• Steel core headband for a precise fit with maximum durability

Pricing and Availability
The Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Sigma will retail for US$89.99 and the Sound Blaster Tactic 3D Alpha will retail for US$59.99. Both headsets will be available in September.

GPU-Z is a lightweight utility designed to give you all information about your video card and GPU.

Changes in version 0.4.6:

• Added MSI hardware giveaway
• Fixed temperature readings getting stuck on ADT7473 sensor (GTX 400 cards)
• Fixed broken BIOS reading on all cards
• General improvements to Intel support, still far from perfect
• Added support for ATI FirePro V8750
• Added support for GeForce GTS 455, GTS 450, GT 440, GT 430, GT 420, GT 330, GT218 based ION, GTX 470M, GTX 460M, GT 445M, GT 435M, GT 425M, GT 420M, GT 415M, GeForce 310M
• Added basic detection for AMD Radeon HD 6000 Series
• Improved handling for unknown NVIDIA cards
• Added fan RPM monitoring for NVIDIA cards

DOWNLOAD

We announce new version 2.0.0 of highly-acclaimed MSI Afterburner. The most important function of Afterburner 2.0.0 is "Triple over-voltage" and you can start to use it on our hot-selling N460GTX Hawk that also is announced and reviewed here today.

We plan to announce our next major Afterburner revision in coming month, we can assure you the best will be EVEN BETTER in next version! Stay tuned!

[2.0.0 Changelog]

• Voltage control layer has been seriously revamped to give additional freedom to extreme overclockers with new custom design MSI graphics cards. Now MSI Afterburner is able to control up to 3 voltages on custom design MSI Fermi and other future custom design MSI graphics cards. New adjustable voltages include memory voltage and special multi-purpose auxiliary voltage feeding either memory bus (also known as VDDCI on AMD graphics cards) or PCIE bus and crystal (PEXVDD on NVIDIA graphics cards)
• Added core, memory and auxiliary PEXVDD voltage control for custom design MSI N480GTX Lighning series graphics cards with uP6225+uP6262 voltage regulators
• Added core, memory and auxiliary PEXVDD voltage control for custom design MSI N470GTX Twin Frozr II OV3 series graphics cards with uP6218+uP6262 voltage regulators
• Added core, memory and auxiliary PEXVDD voltage control for custom design MSI N460GTX Hawk series graphics cards with uP6262 voltage regulators
• Added core voltage control for custom design MSI N460GTX Cyclone series graphics cards
• Added auxiliary VDDCI voltage control for reference design AMD RADEON HD 5870 series graphics cards
• Added fan tachometer monitoring for NVIDIA graphics cards. Please take a note that not all graphics cards are tachometer reading capable. So depending on graphics card and cooling system fan tachometer monitoring can be unavailable
• Optimized NVIDIA driver-level clock frequency monitoring codepath
• Minimum clock limits for all graphics cards have been reduced from 75% to 50%
• Dynamic overclocking, voltage and fan speed limits. MSI Afterburner no longer uses static slider limits calibration and adjusts the limits dynamically when some external factors affect it (e.g. Overdrive clock limits on AMD cards or VGA BIOS fan speed and voltage limits on NVIDIA GeForce GTX 400 cards)
• New temperature hysteresis settings for software automatic fan control mode gives you additional way to improve cooling system thermal and acoustic parameters
• Now fan speed limits (i.e. minimum and maximum fan speeds accepted by VGA BIOS and display driver) are displayed in custom fan speed curve editor window
• Built-in skin sizes have been reduced due to optimized internal skin panels representation and optimized compiled bitmap cache
• Optional skin compression ability in the built-in skin compiler. Skin format reference documentation has been updated to document new compression options
• Minor built-in skins appearance tweaks
• Now MSI Afterburner uses previously undocumented power user oriented startup mode via the task scheduler under Windows Vista / Windows 7. MSI Afterburner launch no longer requires UAC confirmation at Windows startup. Please take a note that Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 runtime libraries must be installed to get new startup mode working
• Now MSI Afterburner automatically fixes startup link if or is enabled but the registry or task scheduler startup entry is missing
• Startup profile is now displayed in option floating tooltip instead of the main window
• Now power users can enable optional DirectInput based hotkeys handler via the configuration file. DirectInput based hotkeys processing can seriously reduces hotkey response time in the applications heavily loading CPU (mostly 3D games) and leaving not enough time for processing standard keyboard input message queues. Please take a note that enabling such sophisticated hotkeys handling mode can cause some system security applications (e.g. pro-active application behavior analysis module of KIS) to warn you about possible keylogging threat
• Improved skin engine, now skinned controls support horizontal and/or vertical centering. Skin format reference guide has been updated to document these new alignment modes
• MSI On-Screen Display server has been upgraded to version 3.7.2. New version gives you the following improvements:
• Now screen capture events are identified visually by text message flashing in On-Screen Display during 0.25s
• Built-in skin sizes have been reduced due to optimized compiled bitmap cache
• Added On-Screen Display profile for Startcraft II : Wings of Liberty
• Added configuration file switch allowing sending MSI Afterburner to system tray instead of closing on button click
• option is no longer set in the startup task settings to allow automatically starting application via the task scheduler on laptops or on some UPS models
• Added optional data filtering mode for all hardware monitoring graphs. Now it is possible to enable special math data filtering algorithm independently for each hardware monitoring graph to reject misreading spikes caused by sensor access conflicts when running multiple hardware monitoring tools at the same time
• Now it is posssible to use both core and shader clock as the primary clock when adjust the clocks in linked mode
• Fixed videomemory usage monitoring for non-primary NVIDIA graphics cards
• Application restart is no longer required to apply new user interface language
• Updated localization engine. Now floating tooltips based context help system supports macro definitions
• Localization reference guide documentation has been updated to v1.1
• Various typo fixes in different language packs
• Added Korean localization

DOWNLOAD AfterBurner 2.0.0 Final (7MB)

Here is a graph from EOC to put things in perspective: Once the above graph sinks in, I extend a special thanks to our Top 20 Contributors:

Top 20 Producers
Rank Team	User Name	Points 24hr Avg	Points Total
1	Jacko36	59,224	4,343,384
2	yoyo69_(Guru3D)	39,390	7,756,974
3	iancook221188	23,296	4,397,542
4	PantherX	22,041	3,189,559
5	Madskillz07(JDS)	17,194	329,504
6	JarithOne	16,814	808,257
7	89Mustang	12,967	4,680,874
8	lesoo7	11,810	4,611,644
9	mrtom82	11,429	171,336
10	Tarkus	11,377	2,720,049
11	Jordan_Locke	9,477	1,618,974
12	TM80	9,263	958,503
13	Yoni800	9,078	2,239,037
14	Dorn_Adoy	8,729	237,976
15	ra_alfaomega	8,541	1,606,081
16	Dr._Robert_Richardson	8,152	1,245,257
17	rum.ping	7,976	193,076
18	brazen_nl	7,879	187,320
19	abcdgaitan	7,332	101,426
20	Mikester1290	6,741	314,742

Now if you interested in joining our F@H Team, remember that our Team Number is 69411.

If you have GTX 400 Series GPU and want to contribute, you can read this guide as it contains all relevant information about GPU3 BETA Client.

Guru Members having Quad Core CPUs or higher, may want to look into the SMP2 BETA Client. It has been update to version 6.30 and makes installation a breeze. The entire set-up will take approximately 5 minutes. A thread containing important information is available here.

If the SMP2/GPU3 BETA Client doesn’t fit your needs, you have the option of running the Classic Client too. A detailed guide is available here.

Remember that regardless of what Client you are running, you are contributing Scientifically Valid data that will be useful in fighting diseases like Alzheimer, Parkinson and other nasty stuff.

New F@H Gurus will be mentioned in this thread so if you have recently joined, your name will be present there. In the month of August we have a total of 62 new F@H Gurus!

Finally, there is a thread that is dedicated to significant F@H updates so you can check it out periodically.

The VF3000F is specially designed for the Fermi Series from nVidia (GTX480/470/465) and comes with the dedicated RAM/FET Heatsinks to maximize the cooling performance on the GPU as well as FET/RAM with lower noise. ZM-STG2 will help the heat transfer from the heat source to the heatsink for efficient cooling. Fanmate 2 will enable variable fan speed so users can choose either silent operation or performance setting.

Please note that VF3000F comes in 2 different model : one for for GTX480 and one for GTX470/465

Please explore key features below to understand more.

► Model: VF3000F

• Powerful Cooling Performance with Zalman’s First Dual Fan Solution.
• Dedicated RAM/FET Heatsink.
• Ultra Quiet Design with Special Fin design.
• Excellent Peripheral Component Cooling.
• High Performance Super Thermal Grease ZM-STG2.
• Fan Speed Control with Fan Mate2

Swiftech is counting on the versatility and performance superiority of their kits 'design to attract an expanded range of users. A key factor with respect to versatility is the kit's ability to easily support additional devices such as liquid cooled graphics coolers or extra radiators which is a must-have among power users; the extremely broad performance range of the H20-X20 kits is of equal importance in terms of competitive advantage, as the kits can be tuned to satisfy both ends of the users 'spectrum: from silent operations to extreme cooling; and finally the ease of installation is expected to appeal to quality oriented first-time users.

Capitalizing on 10 years of experience in designing and manufacturing liquid cooling systems, Swiftech also turbo-charges user-support by including multiple sets of accessories to accommodate various installation strategies, and they provide one of the most comprehensive installation guides in the industry which includes dozens of fully detailed pre-built 3D models.

"While Swiftech's Ultra, Ultima and Apex series of liquid cooling kits have set the performance standard among power users for the past 5 years, the Edge series combine equal or superior performance with the new triple radiator, a broader gamut of utilizations, and most of all a stupendous ease of installation that will appeal to anyone willing to make the jump into serious liquid cooling" said Gabriel Rouchon, Swiftech's Chairman and CTA.

MSRP:

• H20-220 EDGE: $309.95
• H20-320 EDGE: $339.95

More information here.

The makers stated that legal considerations, in terms of permission from Intel for Nvidia to participate in the chipset business, should be made smoother by the recent lawsuit the US Fair Trade Commission (FTC) took up with Intel. However, Intel is not expected to start any such negotiations with Nvidia in the near future, the sources speculated.

Therefore, Nvidia is developing the new chipset to bypass Intel's new Sandy Bridge architecture, which combines CPU and northbridge chipsets. Nvidia's expected business model would be for motherboard makers to purchase Intel's Sandy Bridge solution without the southbridge solution (Cougar Point). This would save the makers US$10-15, and that money could be applied to purchasing Nvidia's combo solution, though the sources did not comment on any Nvidia pricing..

Parsippany, NJ – September 1, 2010 – PNY Technologies ®, Inc. (“PNY”), a global leader in flash memory cards, USB flash drives, solid state drives, High Speed HDMI ® cables, computer memory upgrade modules, as well as consumer and professional graphics cards, today announced a promotion to offer PNY NVIDIA® GeForce ® graphics card discount options to current BFG Tech graphics card owners.

Starting today, PNY will be offering up to a 25% discount on a selection of PNY GeForce graphics cards, valid only to existing BFG Tech graphics card owners. Consumers can choose to send in either a functioning or non-functioning graphics card in exchange for the discount. Discounts are off of MSRP pricing and are only attainable via PNY.com. This program is available for a limited time and will only be in effect until October 31, 2010.

“Consumers can feel that their investment in PNY graphics card is safe based on our 25-year-old business foundation, solid warranty program, and first class Technical Support team,” said Nicholas Mauro, senior marketing manager, PC components for PNY. "We’re giving them the opportunity to either trade in an otherwise defective card or trade up for an even better value at an incredible price.”

Consumers can visit PNY.com or call PNY Technical Support at 1-888-316-1193 to find out more about this program and for instructions on sending in their old card and how to claim their discounted card.

Additionally, all graphics card users taking advantage of this program will receive a bonus copy of the acclaimed PC game “Just Cause ® 2” from Square Enix, via an online download redemption code, valued at $49.99 MSRP.

PNY’s extensive line of graphics cards also feature value-added special promotions, such as bonus full- length movie downloads from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, a bonus 3-month subscription to E- Sports Entertainment (ESEA) Premium Video Game Network, or a 30-day trial version of vReveal ® from MotionDSP, Inc. with a 30% discount off the purchase of the full version of the software.

PNY offers a Limited Lifetime Warranty for the entire XLR8™ Enthusiast series of graphics cards, which includes the GeForce GTX 400 series. Users have a standard 1-year out of box warranty, extended to the lifetime of the original purchaser upon completion of product registration at PNY.com within 90 days of purchase.

For the XLR8 Performance series, PNY offers a 5-year warranty, which includes the GeForce GTS 200 series of graphics cards: standard 2-years out of box warranty, extended an additional 3-years upon completion of product registration at PNY.com within 90 days of purchase.