PC Club Enpower Sabre Extreme: E6600 Made Easy
by Jarred Walton on August 29, 2006 4:40 AM EST- Posted in
- Systems
Noise and Power
Another aspect of system performance that would like to test is the noise and power requirements. As this is supposed to be a general use computer, most people aren't going to be interested in turbine engine noise levels or high power bills. We test systems at stock and overclocked (where applicable) speeds in both idle and 100% load situations. We then measured power draw and noise levels created by the system. 100% load is achieved by running two instances of Folding@Home along with the Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory benchmark. Performing video encoding or other CPU intensive tasks while playing a game will achieve a similar CPU load. We also provide a CPU-only stress test to show the difference between 100% CPU load and 100% CPU + GPU load. The CPU load is achieved by running the two Folding@Home instances without starting any games or other tasks.
Some of our readers have questioned in the past why we even perform such heavy stress test scenarios. After all, there are a lot of people that will never run to CPU intensive tasks along with a game to fully stress their computer, right? The problem is, we really don't know for sure what the future holds. Right now, most games and applications will not achieve the same load levels that we are using. In another year, however, with products like Windows Vista shipping and new games on the horizon, we may actually see situations where "typical use" scenarios put a similar stress on a system. We consider these tests a worst-case scenario, but provided the systems can run fully stable throughout our testing then we can say with some confidence that they will be okay with future applications and games.
For the ABS system, noise results basically showed no difference between any of the clock speeds, as all of the fans run at a constant RPM. However, the water cooling fan does come with the ability to control fan speed, so we set that to minimum for idle testing and maximum speed to show the difference in noise levels. The PC Club Sabre Extreme uses variable fan speeds to deal with heat output, so we enabled the appropriate setting in the BIOS for testing.
Starting with power requirements, it should come as little surprise that increasing CPU speed and voltage requires more power. The 25% overclock we used on the Sabre Extreme uses an additional ~20W of power. In comparison to an extreme system like the ABS Ultimate X9, the power requirements of the Sabre Extreme are extremely low. Using two faster graphics cards, a faster CPU, not to mention the water cooling configuration and hard drives clearly requires a lot more power than a typical midrange computer.
Looking at noise levels, the charts look relatively constant on the PC Club. At higher overclocks (not shown), noise levels did increase a few more decibels, but it required additional CPU voltage to reach that point. The PC Club Sabre Extreme is not a silent system, but it is relatively quiet. One thing that isn't shown is the variations in noise level that occur with variable fan speeds enabled in the BIOS. We actually found the changing RPMs of the fans to be more annoying than simply leaving them at maximum fan speed all the time. Particularly at lower RPMs, the fans in the PC Club tend to generate a dull hum that resonates with the case. We preferred disabling the CPU fan speed control in order to eliminate this effect, although there's no way to disable the variable fan speed of the PSU.
The ABS Ultimate X9 is louder at maximum fan speed and quieter at minimum fan speed -- nearly silent in the case of the latter -- but we also have to mention that the X9 was not entirely stable during testing in the original configuration, and for high stress situations you would definitely want to increase the fan RPMs.
Another aspect of system performance that would like to test is the noise and power requirements. As this is supposed to be a general use computer, most people aren't going to be interested in turbine engine noise levels or high power bills. We test systems at stock and overclocked (where applicable) speeds in both idle and 100% load situations. We then measured power draw and noise levels created by the system. 100% load is achieved by running two instances of Folding@Home along with the Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory benchmark. Performing video encoding or other CPU intensive tasks while playing a game will achieve a similar CPU load. We also provide a CPU-only stress test to show the difference between 100% CPU load and 100% CPU + GPU load. The CPU load is achieved by running the two Folding@Home instances without starting any games or other tasks.
Some of our readers have questioned in the past why we even perform such heavy stress test scenarios. After all, there are a lot of people that will never run to CPU intensive tasks along with a game to fully stress their computer, right? The problem is, we really don't know for sure what the future holds. Right now, most games and applications will not achieve the same load levels that we are using. In another year, however, with products like Windows Vista shipping and new games on the horizon, we may actually see situations where "typical use" scenarios put a similar stress on a system. We consider these tests a worst-case scenario, but provided the systems can run fully stable throughout our testing then we can say with some confidence that they will be okay with future applications and games.
For the ABS system, noise results basically showed no difference between any of the clock speeds, as all of the fans run at a constant RPM. However, the water cooling fan does come with the ability to control fan speed, so we set that to minimum for idle testing and maximum speed to show the difference in noise levels. The PC Club Sabre Extreme uses variable fan speeds to deal with heat output, so we enabled the appropriate setting in the BIOS for testing.
Starting with power requirements, it should come as little surprise that increasing CPU speed and voltage requires more power. The 25% overclock we used on the Sabre Extreme uses an additional ~20W of power. In comparison to an extreme system like the ABS Ultimate X9, the power requirements of the Sabre Extreme are extremely low. Using two faster graphics cards, a faster CPU, not to mention the water cooling configuration and hard drives clearly requires a lot more power than a typical midrange computer.
Looking at noise levels, the charts look relatively constant on the PC Club. At higher overclocks (not shown), noise levels did increase a few more decibels, but it required additional CPU voltage to reach that point. The PC Club Sabre Extreme is not a silent system, but it is relatively quiet. One thing that isn't shown is the variations in noise level that occur with variable fan speeds enabled in the BIOS. We actually found the changing RPMs of the fans to be more annoying than simply leaving them at maximum fan speed all the time. Particularly at lower RPMs, the fans in the PC Club tend to generate a dull hum that resonates with the case. We preferred disabling the CPU fan speed control in order to eliminate this effect, although there's no way to disable the variable fan speed of the PSU.
The ABS Ultimate X9 is louder at maximum fan speed and quieter at minimum fan speed -- nearly silent in the case of the latter -- but we also have to mention that the X9 was not entirely stable during testing in the original configuration, and for high stress situations you would definitely want to increase the fan RPMs.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
30 Comments
View All Comments
unclebud - Friday, September 1, 2006 - link
having to push the optical drives closed instead of being able to press the eject button to do it? terrible designhopefully it won't require a couple hundred customers rmaing their drives to change it someday
JarredWalton - Saturday, September 2, 2006 - link
I've never had a problem pushing the tray to close a CD-ROM. The trick is that you push it gently rather than trying to slam it shut. I could see children having a bit of an issue doing this, but I would wager heavily that most children pushed the tray in regardless of whether or not you can access the eject button.Iceboie - Thursday, August 31, 2006 - link
Will we see an article in the future for us who wants a Conroe system but on a low budget scale?JarredWalton - Saturday, September 2, 2006 - link
Just drop from the E6600 (tested) to an E6300, dropped the graphics card down to a lower-cost version, maybe get a smaller hard drive, and you can quickly get the cost down to under $1000 (not including monitor). The system as a whole is fine, so basically just get whatever CPU and other settings you can afford.giantpandaman2 - Tuesday, August 29, 2006 - link
Nice Review. Only things that'd be nice to add is how long it takes to get a system shipped to you and how difficult is it to RMA something. Can you take it to the store? Do they give you a run around? Is it painless? I figure you guys could use a girlfriend/buddy to bring in the computer so you can remain anonymous. :) Sounds like getting things fixed should be pretty easy since they have stores, but it'd be nice to know for sure.giantpandaman2 - Tuesday, August 29, 2006 - link
oops, I know you can take it to the store.Capt Jook - Tuesday, August 29, 2006 - link
Hi all,James here, manager of the Tigard, Oregon PC Club. Just wanted to say thanks for a great review and maybe answer a few questions.
RMA through the web can be a bit of a pain...at the moment we do not offer a cross-shipping option for defective parts, so it can take a week or two to get back a good part after you send in the faulty one. In store, if we(PC Club) build the system and it is in warranty, we swap a new part right off of the shelf, 1 year warranty or 3. On 3 year warranty systems, we also cover End of Life(EOL), so if a CPU is 2 years old and EOL...we give you the logical replacement or an upgrade. We usually hire enthusiasts at our stores, so many people feel welcome when they want to discuss multipliers or voltages, etc.
We do use all standard, off the shelf components...nothing proprietary. Our "restore" CD is actually just an XP CD. We are sure to give the customer physical copies of all of the software installed on the system, in case of a catastrophic drive failure. We have a http://pcclub.com/forum/index.cfm">Customer support Forum that has help available 24/7. Mostly other PCC customers, but I know of at least 10 store level employees that frequent the forum on a daily basis(myself included).
The Allied 350W PSU has seen at least 10,000 hours of(combined) testing in the configuration listed. All of our system configurations must pass at least 5,000 hours of testing by our Engineering Department before they are released for sale to the stores and the web.
Each store is required to have a tech on duty 7 days a week, 362 days a year(we are closed xmas, Thanksgiving and 4th of July), so service is available if you are local to a store.
Thanks for your time!
JarredWalton - Wednesday, August 30, 2006 - link
Thanks for the additional information, James. (I'm up north of you in Olympia Washington, so the closest store to me is in Tacoma.) I actually do know a couple enthusiasts that work at PC Club stores, so I agree that the local support should be good. I wish I had some place like PC Club close by my house, as other than ordering online my only options are an overpriced brick-and-mortar store down the street, or I can try my luck at Best Buy. Needless to say, nearly all of my purchases come from web sites.giantpandaman2 - Wednesday, August 30, 2006 - link
Thankfully I'm in Bellevue. I can go anywhere. :Pyyrkoon - Tuesday, August 29, 2006 - link
I own a Vewsonic VA1912wb 19" widscreen monitor, and its a great monitor, however, its also rated @ 8ms, not 5ms listed in your review (I know what Viewsonics webpage says, but according to my box, manual, and newegg, this is incorrect) - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82...">http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82.... Perhaps Viewsonic has since reworked this part, but In my opinion, that would call for a new part # ?As for the Pre-built system, interresting choice of motherboards, they frown on OC'n, yet they offer the best OCable motherboard for the C2D ? You would think, they would have picked something a bit more stable like the ABIT AB9 Pro or something . . .