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I
would like to start out with a special thank you to
Chaintech USA, especially Ruby, for providing this
sample for review!
I
have to be honest here, the last time I reviewed a
Chaintech product, I received an email asking if I
had been paid by Chaintech to write such a positive
review. The truth is that their attention to detail,
the huge bundle, and high marks in both quality and
performance all at a low price point really made it
hard to say anything bad about the motherboard I covered.
However, this time around I am reviewing one of their
mid-range graphics cards and I may or may not be as
enthusiastic, but for the record, I am an independent
reviewer writing for an independent site, neither
3DV or myself take any form of financial compensation
for the reviews that we produce. With that said, it’s
time to get into this review…
Built on the nVidia 5700Ultra GPU and paired with
DDR2 RAM, the AA5700U from Chaintech might have the
right combination to win me over once again, depending
on the new bundle, and if the monster cooler can keep
temps down enough to get some free MHz out of the
deal. We all know how the GeForce FX line has been
received in the latest wave of GPUs, so we have somewhat
low expectations in DX9 and PS2.0 performance, but
a quality build can lead to decent frame rates in
DX9, and the latest round of drivers from nVidia promise
to boost PS2.0 performance. With VGA card in hand,
the latest drivers downloaded and a serious urge to
see what Chaintech has to offer this time around,
I dive headlong into this review… let’s go!
The
first thing that you may notice about the box is that
it’s pretty big for a graphics card; I can only hope
that it is full of freebies and extras and not Styrofoam
peanuts.
Well,
my hopes were validated, Chaintech has once again
thrown in more stuff than most with their graphics
card. Included with your card are several CD’s worth
of data, which include the full version of Commandos
3, some video editing software as well as a game demos
disk with 5 demos. Of course, there is a driver CD
with drivers and utilities, but they also include
a CD with their Graphical Overclocking Software Utility
(GOSU) which is an on-the-fly overclocking utility
that rests in your system tray, we will definitely
get into that later. Also included with your card
are several adapters to connect your card to any type
of supported display from DVI to VGA and S-Video.
You may notice the green tennis ball in the picture
as well. That is actually a Q-Ball, and is used for
cleaning your monitor. It has a velour main body,
with one face made of chemise (faux suede) and it
really does a great job cleaning your monitor, TV
and PDA screen…
Lets
have a look at what you are really reading this for...
the card itself... on to the next page!
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