General Gaming Article

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• Build It: Radeon HD 7990 PC
• Regulatory Hurdle Delays Microsoft's $7.2 Billion Deal with Nokia
• Steve Ballmer Enjoys Downtime, Ponders Whether to Relinquish Board Seat at Microsoft
• EVGA to Start Offering GeForce GTX 780 Graphics Cards with 6GB of GDDR5 Memory
• F-Secure Offers Tips to Windows XP Users Who Don't Plan to Upgrade
• Newegg Daily Deals: MSI N660 GeForce GTX 660, AMD FX-8320 Vishera, and More!

Build It: Radeon HD 7990 PC Posted: 24 Mar 2014 03:22 PM PDT A dual R9 290X card isn't here yet, but the 7990 is the next best thing The ongoing war between Nvidia and AMD for supremacy over the PC gaming landscape has been like the Hatfields and the McCoys of enthusiast computing: long, bitter, and deeply entrenched. Contrary to rumors, AMD hasn't revealed a dual R9 290/290X card yet, but the Radeon HD 7990 is the next best thing, combining two HD 7970 GPUs onto one card. It didn't come out until spring 2013, though, which was long after Nvidia's own dual-GPU behemoth, the GeForce GTX 690, had dug in its heels. And it wasn't until mid-summer that AMD began to address the stuttering issues that marred its multi-GPU setups. With AMD's R9 series arriving late last year, this crown jewel didn't really have much time to shine. Today, we'll try and change that, pitting this Cadillac of a card against nothing less than Battlefield 4, with everything maxed out and running at 1920x1080. With the previous Battlefield regularly favoring Nvidia cards, this might seems like enemy territory. But this time, AMD is working closely with the developer to make sure nothing goes awry.  Note: This article was originally featured in the Holiday 2013 issue of the magazine. Gathering the Troops We're not working with a tight budget this time, so our roughly $750 video card will have some appropriately fancy company. With two 8-pin power connections, the 7990 draws a lot of juice, so that's our first consideration. We went with an 800-watt Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold. As its name indicates, it's a "gold"-rated PSU, so it will work efficiently, and it has some other nice features that we'll get into later. We also wanted a nice motherboard and CPU that could handle all the bandwidth that a dual-GPU card needs—that led us to the Asus X79 Deluxe and a Core i7-4960X. This is the LGA2011 platform, which gives us up to 40 PCI Express lanes, while LGA1150 boasts just 16 lanes. Since LGA2011 uses quad-band memory architecture, we'll be using four sticks of RAM. That's not critical for gaming, but the extra bandwidth is great for video encoding. For storage, we have a speedy 240GB SanDisk Extreme II SSD to boot with and run games from, and a 3TB Seagate Barracuda for media storage. Our favorite item, though, has to be the case in which everything gets crammed. That would be the Silverstone FT04 mid-tower. It's not the easiest case we've ever worked with, but the end result is pretty cool, in more ways than one. You've probably noticed that the picture on the opposite page appears to be reversed. That's not an optical illusion. The inside of the case was designed on Opposite Day, and that has some neat side effects that we'll dig into soon. INGREDIENTS PART Price Case Silverstone FT04 $230 PSU Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 800W $160 Mobo Asus X79 Deluxe $350 CPU Intel Core i7-4960X $1,000 (street) Cooler Phanteks TC14PE $80 (street) GPU AMD Radeon HD 7990 $550 (street) RAM 4x 4GB Corsair Vengeance LP $150 (street) Hard Drive 240GB SanDisk Extreme II $225 (street) SSD 3TB Seagate Barracuda $135 (street) Fans Samsung SH-S223 $15 (street) OS Windows 8 64-bit OEM $90 (street) Total   $2,985 1.  The Guest of Honor The HD 7990 is about 12 inches long, so it's not for the faint-hearted builder. Our case officially has 13.3 inches of room, so it'll work. We wanted to use the case's bundled VGA bracket, which prevents the card from sagging, but it obstructed our jumbo CPU cooler. Fortunately, the HD 7990 has a metal backplate to keep it from bending, so the bracket's not critical. (Water-cooling the CPU would allow use of the bracket). The card needs two 8-pin cables, which can be challenging to route in a traditional case layout, but here the power supply is installed right above the card, in the top of the case, so the cables don't need to do anything complicated to supply juice. 2. Power to the Tower The top of the case is no longer a common location for a power supply, but Silverstone is shaking things up. In ye olden days, the practice fell out of favor, as PSUs ended up sucking in heat rising off the CPU cooler and the video card, which was bad for long-term reliability. In the FT04, however, the power supply has a meshed vent right above it to aid cooling. Just remove a few thumbscrews in the back to slide off the case top and get the PSU inside. The top of the case has a built-in bracket to support the PSU's weight. Minimal heat comes off the GPU right below because the intake fans have been reversed, since the motherboard is flipped. The overall thermal design is much improved from earlier implementations. The side panels has tabs on the back that overlap with the top panel, so you have to remove the sides before taking off the top, then do the same in reverse. 3. Features for Creatures The X79 Deluxe (not to be confused with the older P9X79 Deluxe) has a number of interesting features. We like the beefy voltage regulators, integrated dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, eight SATA 6Gb/s ports, DTS audio, push-button USB-based BIOS updates, and even dual LAN ports and a stainless-steel I/O plate (pictured). The black-and-gold theme is also rather pimp. As an added bonus, the board recognized our Ivy Bridge-E CPU right away. This Intel chip is not a huge upgrade from the Core i7-3960X, but it performs moderately faster and generates a lot less heat. It's a hexa-core chip with Hyper-Threading. Games don't usually make much use of HT, but Battlefield 4 hungrily chews up every available processing thread. So it's nice to have 12. Click the next page to continue.   4. The Drive to Survive Ordinarily, there isn't a whole lot to say about installing a couple of storage devices in your average case, but the FT04 is anything but average. It has two cages at the bottom and one large cage in the front, all of which are removable. On the bottom, one cage gets an integrated SATA and power-connection bracket, while the other has a mini-jack for holding up a large air cooler. We said, "por qué no los dos," and put the bracket and the jack on the same cage, since we didn't need both cages. The FT04 has mounts for screwing up to four SSDs directly into the bottom of the case anyway, so the extra container would just take up space. To remove it, you lay the FT04 on its side and remove the cage screws from underneath, five in all. Being able to remove the screws from within the case is easier, but this will do in a pinch. 5. Air to the Throne You may wonder why we went with an air cooler in this system, since we're not really holding back in other areas. There are two reasons. One, we wanted to check out the case's built-in heatsink kickstand. It was just too neat of a widget to discard. Two, the FT04 doesn't have many case fan mounts. To put a 240mm radiator in the front, you have to remove two 180mm "Penetrator" fans, which are cool-looking and pre-connected to independent fan controllers. It seemed a shame to take those out of the picture, because they create some excellent airflow while keeping noise levels down. (In fact, the entire case is layered with sound-absorbing foam panels.) Since there are no fan mounts on the top, sides, or bottom, the only other alternative would be the 120mm mount in the rear, which we're already using as an exhaust port. We'd have to replace that with a radiator and fan, blowing outward. Not as thermally efficient as an intake, but you don't have much choice. Regardless, we opted for air. The FT04 does not ship with a rear fan, so we pulled our Scythe Gentle Typhoon from a box of Dream Machine parts. Waste not, want not. 6. Cable Commentary Like the Fractal Design Define R4, the Silverstone FT04 is a wide case for its mid-tower form factor, so we have a lot of room to route cables behind the motherboard tray. Some excess power supply cabling can be tucked in the top of the case, as well. We needed the full length of the PSU's 8-pin CPU power cable, but we had overly long cables elsewhere. We used a piece of tape to secure the wiring of the Scythe Gentle Typhoon fan because its cabling is surprisingly stiff and prone to popping out otherwise. A pre-installed sleeve would be nice, considering the relatively high cost of this fan. The Silent Pro Gold's cables are flat and very flexible, so we had no trouble connecting them to the HD 7990 in a presentable way. Into the Fray Once we got the system up and running, it was pretty smooth sailing. We had the 13.11 beta Catalyst drivers for the video card, and we were able to keep Battlefield 4 solidly at 60fps at 1080p, with all visual effects cranked to max settings. There were occasional dips into the single digits, but this could be the result of network congestion or unfinished optimization (we were playing the beta version of the game as this issue went to press; and the Mantle version of BF4, which replaces DirectX, is not scheduled for release until mid-December, so we can't test that yet.) Also of note, BF4 seems happy to take as many CPU processing threads as you can give it, including Hyper-Threading (HT). Six appears to be the magic number; less than that, and the cores get pegged at 100 percent utilization. In addition to this system, we also tried the game on a Core i5-4670K system with dual GeForce GTX 770s, an i7-4770K system with a single GTX Titan, and an AMD FX-8350 system with dual GTX 780s, and then the HD 7990. Enabling HT bumped up performance about 10 percent. However, the FX-8350 could not hit 60fps even with the HD 7990, while an i7 with Hyper-Threading disabled stayed comfortably above that mark when using a GTX 780. Like we said, the game was in a beta state as this issue went to press, so some performance optimizations may have arrived by the time you read this. But right now, the gap between Intel and AMD CPUs is consistent and noticeable (although Premiere Pro spat out some odd results, despite repeated tests). Temperature-wise, dual 180mm intake fans bring in a lot of external air, and the Lab is temperature-controlled around 70 degrees F. Leaving a single 120mm fan to remove heat didn't seem to be a problem, though the Gentle Typhoon is admittedly very good at air displacement. Still, it seems like a $230 case should offer more options. The top has an intake for the power supply, and it looks like there's plenty of room for a fan mount up there, as well. The similarly priced Thermaltake Level 10 GT has a 230mm fan in the top and on the side, and a bonus mount on the bottom of the case. Of course, its aesthetics are much different. The FT04 is obviously designed to look sleek. But it may sacrifice too much in the process. Nevertheless, this build felt like a success. We got the performance we wanted, and the system felt very solid and stable. It was also fun to see a game use more than four CPU cores. Benchmarks ZERO POINT Premiere Pro CS6 (sec) 2,000 2,020  (-1%) Stitch.Efx 2.0 (sec) 831 744  ProShow Producer 5.0 (sec) 1,446 1,309 x264 HD 5.0 (fps) 21.1 24.2 Batmans Arkam City (fps) 76 93 3DMark11 Extreme 5,847  5,684 (-3%) The zero-point machine compared here consists of a 3.2GHz Core i7-3930K and 16GB of Corsair DDR3/1600 on an Asus P9X79 Deluxe motherboard. It has a GeForce GTX 690, a Corsair Neutron GTX SSD, and 64-bit Windows 7 Professional.

Regulatory Hurdle Delays Microsoft's $7.2 Billion Deal with Nokia Posted: 24 Mar 2014 11:33 AM PDT Deal is now expected to close in April Microsoft and Nokia are both anxious to finalize a $7.2 billion transaction in which the former will become the new owner of substantially all of the latter's Devices and Services business, but not all regulatory authorities around the world are quite as excited. Specifically, certain antitrust authorities in Asia are still conducting a review and it's now expected the deal will become finalized in April. Despite the temporary snag, Microsoft and Nokia reiterated that they're both committed to seeing the transaction through. They're also confident that there won't be any other issues that could delay or otherwise block the sale of Nokia's phone business to Microsoft. "Nokia and Microsoft have already received most of the required regulatory approvals, including approvals from the European Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice," Nokia and Microsoft said in a statement. "Furthermore, Nokia and Microsoft continue to make good progress related to the closing conditions and integration planning. However, the transaction is pending approvals from certain antitrust authorities in Asia which are still conducting their reviews." Microsoft in September of last year announced plans to acquire Nokia's phone division. The $7.2 billion dollar deal also includes the licensing of some of Nokia's patents. Prior to the deal, Nokia has been Microsoft's biggest supporter in the Windows Phone space. Image Credit: Flickr (Vernon Chan) Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Steve Ballmer Enjoys Downtime, Ponders Whether to Relinquish Board Seat at Microsoft Posted: 24 Mar 2014 10:11 AM PDT Microsoft's former chief is now unsure how long he'll remain on the board of directors Steve Ballmer became of the face of Microsoft after being named the company's chief executive officer in January 2000. It's a demanding position, to say the least, and after 14 years at the helm, he finally relinquished the role, with Satya Nadella taking over last month. With his time suddenly freed up to think about things, Ballmer's been reflecting on what to do next and whether or not that includes remaining on Microsoft's board of directors. He made the revelation in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, saying the decision ultimately "depends on how I see the rest of my life playing out." His initial decision to remain on the board was viewed by some as a controversial one to begin with, but this is Ballmer we're talking about -- it's not likely he'd let some soft rumblings get under his skin. If he leaves, it will be on his on accord. Ballmer told WSJ that he's enjoying his first break after spending more than three decades working at Microsoft in some capacity. The long overdue hiatus has given the 58-year-old a chance to really reflect and ponder what comes next. While it's unlikely he would succumb to whispers questioning his decision to remain on the board, Ballmer did say that it feels different to just be a board member rather than a CEO. When the board met earlier this month, Ballmer said he was quieter than usual. Image Credit: Flickr (orcmid) Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

EVGA to Start Offering GeForce GTX 780 Graphics Cards with 6GB of GDDR5 Memory Posted: 24 Mar 2014 09:34 AM PDT GeForce GTX 780 cards with double the memory One of Nvidia's hardware partners is getting ready to roll out a line of GeForce GTX 780 graphics cards with twice as much memory as reference. EVGA sent out emails announcing plans to refresh its GeForce GTX 780 family with 6GB models, including at least one SKU that will feature the company's ACX cooling solution. They'll also be featured in EVGA's Step-Up program, which allows users who purchased an EVGA graphics card within the last 90 days to upgrade to the new model by paying the difference in price. What this essentially boils down to is EVGA giving the GeForce GTX 780 the Titan treatment but without the massive pricing premium. Pricing will start at $550 MSRP, which is just $30 more expensive than EVGA's 3GB SKU, though interestingly it's $50 higher than the GTX 780 with ACX cooler. Either way, it's nice to see that EVGA isn't is getting crazy with pricing for the additional memory. There will be at least two SKUs -- the EVGA GeForce GTX 780 6GB SC and a second SC model with an ACX cooler. The first will feature a base clockspeed of 941MHz, boost clockspeed of 993MHz, and of course 6GB of GDDR5 clocked at 6,008MHz on a 384-bit memory bus. EVGA's ACX cooled model will see clockspeeds bumped up to 941MHz (base) and 993MHz (boost). It's not yet known if EVGA will offer any additional SKUs of the 6GB model. Before adding new cards to the lineup, EVGA already has no less than 9 different GTX 780 SKUs ranging from a stock clocked card to the GTX 780 Dual Classified Hydro Copper with pre-installed waterblock and dual BIOSes. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

F-Secure Offers Tips to Windows XP Users Who Don't Plan to Upgrade Posted: 24 Mar 2014 08:27 AM PDT Support for XP might be ending, but the world is not Security outfit F-Secure has published its Threat Report for the second half of 2013, which provides a detailed look at the threat landscape as well as trends in malware. It also contains some advice for Windows XP users who aren't planning to upgrade to a newer OS once support ends on April 8, 2014. Whether the decision to stick with XP is based on contractual obligations or other reasons, F-Secure says "all is not lost" for businesses and users who ride it out. "Patching XP is not the first line of defense. Or it really shouldn't be," F-Secure notes in its report (PDF). "Folks that continue to use XP at home can do so with some reasonable amount of safety, for a while still, but they absolutely need to review their Internet (particularly web browsing) and computing habits." F-Secure lists out a series of steps XP users should take, starting with the installation of Microsoft's final security update for XP. After that, the security firm recommends ditching Internet Explorer as the default browser. Some other recommendations include keeping Microsoft Office fully patched, reviewing third-party software and uninstalling anything that isn't needed, uninstalling browser plug-ins for software that's kept, have an up-to-date antivirus and firewall installed, stay connected to a NAT router, and of course consider upgrading at some point. On the mobile front, F-Secure says malware writers almost exclusively target Android, which was the target of 97 percent of new mobile threats in 2013. Trojans account for three-quarters of malware on Android -- these usually come bundled with repackaged apps that look and sound similar to their legitimate counterparts. Image Credit: Flickr (Manuel Cernuda) Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook

Newegg Daily Deals: MSI N660 GeForce GTX 660, AMD FX-8320 Vishera, and More! Posted: 24 Mar 2014 06:14 AM PDT Top Deal: "Integrated graphics rock!," said no gamer ever. Hey, Intel and AMD deserve all kinds of props for making today's integrated graphics solutions less crappy than ever, but what gamer is content with settling for "less crappy" graphics? Only the budget-constrained, but you needn't spend $500 onwards to game at 1080p. For example, check out today's top deal for an MSI N660 2GD5/OC GeForce GTX 660 Graphics Card for $179 with free shipping (normally $210 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHP87]; additional $10 mail-in-rebate and free Daylight game wiith purchase). This Kepler card comes factory overclocked and cooled by MSI's custom Twin Frozr III apparatus, which the company claims lowers temps by 19 degress and reduces noise by 12.9dB compared to reference coolers. Other Deals: Seagate Backup Plus Slim 1TB USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drive for $60 with free shipping (normally $70 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHP49]) AMD FX-8320 Vishera 3.5GHz (4.0GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 125W 8-Core Desktop Processor for $150 with free shipping (normally $160 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHP22]) G.Skill Trident X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory for $149 with free shipping (normally $165 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHP32]) Gigabyte GA-F2A88XM-D3H AMD A88X (Bolton D4) HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard for $65 with free shipping (normally $70 - use coupon code: [EMCPGHP88])

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