|
eVGA.com is a relative newcomer to the video card market, starting their operations in 1999. Although they may not be a household name just yet, we have a feeling that things are about to change for this "new" company. Becoming a major player in a market that is fiercely competitive is no small task, however. Early on, eVGA realized that they had to offer the user a product line that would give them something the other manufacturers couldn't. For starters, the team at eVGA put together a patented install software package, dubbed ADM (Automated Driver Management), that would make the installation process as hassle free as possible, while giving end-users the tools to get out of trouble if any problems arise. Throw in complete and thorough documentation and some free software and the package becomes a lot more alluring. But we all know it takes a lot more than some free software to develop a solid customer base. Knowing that computer enthusiasts are a demanding bunch, they had to come up with something that would grab the potential buyer's attention. If someone is going to drop $450 on a new video card, they better be getting something the other guys don't offer, otherwise it is a futile battle. However, aside from offering a standard reference video card, what else could they do?
Today we have an answer to that question, with the review of the eVGA e-GeForce4 Ti4600, with the unique Asymmetric Cooling System², or ACS². It is no real secret that offering video cards based on nVidia technology is a relative safe bet. These cards have a well established history of being performance leaders, usually staying a step or two ahead of the competition. However, adding a unique cooling package that no one else offers, is a sure way to grab peoples attention. The ACS² is a cooling solution designed for extreme conditions. With a two piece construction, copper heat-pipe, and high-speed fan, the new eVGA e-GeForce4 Ti4600 with ACS² dares you to overclock it. So let's get started by taking a look at what the eVGA e-GeForce4 Ti4600 with ACS² has to offer. Then we'll take a closer look at the card and it's impressive cooling design.
 | | Specifications of the eVGA e-GeForce4 Ti4600 w/ACS2 | | The Complete Video Card | | eVGA e-GeForce4 Ti 4600 w/ACS/2 Cooling: - 300MHz GPU
- VGA, TV In/Out, DV
- 256-bit Graphics Accelerator
- 1.23 trillion operations/sec.
- Lifetime Warranty
Nvidia nfiniteFX II Engine: - Dual programmable Vertex Shaders, faster Pixel Shaders and 3D textures give developers the freedom to program a virtually infinite number of custom special effects never seen before and gives you the power to play true-to-life characters in hyper-realistic environments. At twice the performance of GeForce3, Xtasy Ti 4600 delivers the most realistic game play available.
Lightspeed Memory Architecture II: - With 128-bit DDR Lightspeed Memory Architecture II provides nearly double the memory bandwidth of GeForce3.
Accuview Antialiasing Engine: - High-performance visual quality at high frame rates.
TV In and Out Jack: - TV In/Out connector allow you to play on any size TV in your house with an S-video connector.
| Specifications: - Controller: NVIDIA GeForce4 Ti 4600
- Bus Type AGP
- Memory 128MB DDR
- Core Clock 300MHz
- Memory Clock 650MHz DDR memory
- RAMDAC 350MHz
- API Support Direct-X, Open GL ICD for Windows
- Connectors VGA, DVI, TV In/Out
- 1.23 trillion operations/sec.
- 136 Million triangles/sec setup
- 10.4GB/second memory bandwidth
Features at a Glance: - AGP 4x compatible with fast writes
- 256-bit 3D and 2D graphics accelerator
- NVIDIA nView display technologies
- Lightspeed Memory Architecture II
- Accuview Antialiasing
- High Definition Video Processing Engine
- TV In/Out connectors
- DVI connector
- eVGA Asymmetric Cooling System
| | ² (ACS²) The Bundle: The eVGA e-GeForce4 Ti4600 that we received for review was a complete retail package with a good amount of bundle items to compliment the video card itself. Below is a complete list of the retail package contents. Click To Enlarge
- eVGA.com Video Graphics Card
- Driver Install CD with ADM Technology
- User's Guide
- Registration Card
- Warranty Information
- PowerDVD XP 4.0
- Entertainment Software Bundle
- Warranty ID Tag
- S-Video Out Cable (Optional
) - DVI to DB15 Adapter (Optional)
| The User's Guide is well laid out, with easy to follow step-by-step instructions for installing, configuring and troubleshooting the video card. They even go so far as to give a list of recommended BIOS settings for optimal video performance, although we do question some of those settings. For example, in this list of 27 recommended settings, eVGA recommends setting the AGP Aperture for 4MB and the AGP Transfer Mode to 1x. We're a little curious how they arrived at those settings and think we may run some tests in the near future to show how variations in those, and other settings affect this video card's performance.
An Installation CD is also included that makes installing this video card as painless as possible. Using the patented ADM (Automated Driver Management) software, the video card and the Operating System is detected, automatically launching the appropriate software for your system. In fact, eVGA takes it one step further by programming the software to detect the motherboard's chipset, prompting the user to install updated chipset drivers if they are needed. eVGA has done a fine job at making installation of the video card a painless process, insuring that the novice and experienced user gets their new video card up and running without any hassles. Once you're card is ready to go, they've included a demo version of Comanche4, to show how much fun can be had with the new Ti4600, as well as several nVidia demos.. Quality, Setup and the Drivers
|
