System Setup and Notes

In keeping with the board's intended usage, we tested using an overclocked Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 system, versus a GeForce 7600 GT.

Hardware

  • Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 @ 2.7GHz, LGA775
  • ASUS P5N-E SLI (NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI)
  • 2GiB (2 x 1GiB), DDR2-800, 5-5-5-15 2T
  • 2 x Seagate 7200.10 250GB SATA2, nForce 650i RAID0
  • Amacrox Calmer 400W fanless PSU
  • Dell 2407FWP 24" LCD Monitor

Software

  • Windows Vista Premium x86
  • NVIDIA ForceWare 158.24
  • Oblivion v1.2 (w/ OOO + QTP2 + Better Water + IWR)
  • Prey
  • Tomb Raider Legend v1.2
  • Company of Heroes v1.7

Notes

Note that we used a extended Oblivion which increases the graphics load placed on the GPU versus a standard installation. TR:L and CoH were installed using Metaboli, Oblivion and Prey were standalone installations from optical media.

We did everything we could to make sure performance measurements were consistent and representative, given the hardware and software platform, and if you have anything to ask about how we tested for this article, ask away on the forums.