Falcon Northwest FragBox SLI: Dare to Dream
by Jarred Walton on May 3, 2006 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Systems
Benchmark Setup
A review of a system without comparisons with competing solutions wouldn't be much of a review, so we've pitted the FragBox SLI against two alternatives. For the first, we've used the Shuttle SN26P SFF, this time upgraded with a couple 7900GT cards - this is the maximum level of GPU performance currently available for the SN26P, as you're limited to two single-slot GPUs. The second system is one of the top configurations you can get in the full ATX market: a custom-built computer using a DFI LanParty SLI-DR motherboard.
We ran several different variations of the FragBox and DFI systems through the benchmarks, though the DFI motherboard failed towards the end of testing and didn't allow us to test every potential configuration. (If you're wondering, we'll take the blame for the motherboard failure - during testing, things can get a bit hectic at times, and trying to hurry while working with electronics is an iffy proposition.) In terms of configurations, we have the high-end setups with two 7900 GTX 512MB cards, and then we have a lesser configuration with two 7900 GT 256MB cards. We ran the 7900 GT cards with an X-Fi sound card as well as with integrated audio. Falcon also shipped us two 512MB DIMMs and two 1024MB DIMMs, and we tested both options.
We didn't bother testing the DFI or SN26P with 1GB of RAM, because we recommend 2x1GB memory setups for high-end computers. We also didn't get a chance to test the DFI board with X-Fi and two GTX cards - the motherboard failed as we were getting ready to run that particular configuration.
While we won't include new performance results for the Monarch Hornet Pro Revenge we tested last month, we will include the system noise levels for reference. In all the remaining tests, since the Hornet SLI and the FragBox SLI use the same EVGA motherboard, performance should be the same with identical configurations.
Here are the specifics of each configuration we benchmarked:
All systems were tested with the latest drivers and BIOS versions available, though we opted for the "beta" 704-2bt BIOS for the DFI board, as this is regarded in the enthusiast community as being one of the best overall BIOS offerings for the platform. Not all of our gaming benchmarks support testing with sound enabled, but for several of those that do we'll be running tests with and without sound.
In order to speed up total testing time, there is one potentially significant difference between all three platforms: the hard drive. The Falcon system ships with two 150 GB Raptor drives, but we used two different hard drive options for the other systems. The DFI system used a 74 GB Raptor, and the SN26P used a Seagate 7200.8 250 GB hard drive. In most instances, the different hard drives won't have a major impact on performance, but we will note in the benchmarks when hard drive activity appears to be a factor.
It is important to remember that benchmarks are not the be-all, end-all when it comes to the "ideal" computer system. Features, performance, appearance, and acoustics are all important factors. If all of the systems perform similarly to each other in our testing, that will be the best possible outcome: you can then make your purchase decision based on the other areas.
A review of a system without comparisons with competing solutions wouldn't be much of a review, so we've pitted the FragBox SLI against two alternatives. For the first, we've used the Shuttle SN26P SFF, this time upgraded with a couple 7900GT cards - this is the maximum level of GPU performance currently available for the SN26P, as you're limited to two single-slot GPUs. The second system is one of the top configurations you can get in the full ATX market: a custom-built computer using a DFI LanParty SLI-DR motherboard.
We ran several different variations of the FragBox and DFI systems through the benchmarks, though the DFI motherboard failed towards the end of testing and didn't allow us to test every potential configuration. (If you're wondering, we'll take the blame for the motherboard failure - during testing, things can get a bit hectic at times, and trying to hurry while working with electronics is an iffy proposition.) In terms of configurations, we have the high-end setups with two 7900 GTX 512MB cards, and then we have a lesser configuration with two 7900 GT 256MB cards. We ran the 7900 GT cards with an X-Fi sound card as well as with integrated audio. Falcon also shipped us two 512MB DIMMs and two 1024MB DIMMs, and we tested both options.
We didn't bother testing the DFI or SN26P with 1GB of RAM, because we recommend 2x1GB memory setups for high-end computers. We also didn't get a chance to test the DFI board with X-Fi and two GTX cards - the motherboard failed as we were getting ready to run that particular configuration.
While we won't include new performance results for the Monarch Hornet Pro Revenge we tested last month, we will include the system noise levels for reference. In all the remaining tests, since the Hornet SLI and the FragBox SLI use the same EVGA motherboard, performance should be the same with identical configurations.
Here are the specifics of each configuration we benchmarked:
| Falcon Northwest Fragbox SLI | |
| Motherboard: | EVGA 131-K8-NF44-AX NF4 SLI (NVIDIA nForce4 SLI chipset) Micro-ATX |
| Processor: | AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 |
| Heatsink: | Zalman CNPS7000 Cu |
| RAM: | 2x1024MB Corsair TwinX 3500LL Pro 2-3-2-7-1T 2x512MB Corsair TwinX 3200C2 2-2-2-7-1T |
| Graphics Cards: | 2 x BFG GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB OC 2 x BFG 7800 GT 256MB OC |
| Hard Drive(s): | 2 x Western Digital 150GB 16MB 10K RPM Raptor Drives configured in RAID 0 |
| Optical Drive: | Plextor PX-740A 16x DVD+/-RW |
| Floppy Drive: | Mitsumi 3.5 Floppy plus 7-in-1 USB Card Reader |
| Audio: | RealTek AC'97 7.1 (ALC850) Creative X-Fi ExtermeMusic |
| Power Suply: | SilverStone 600W Modular PSU |
| Drivers: | NVIDIA nForce4 6.70 NVIDIA ForceWare 84.43 |
| Operating System: | Windows XP Professional SP2 with Updates |
| Shuttle XPC SN26P | |
| Motherboard: | Shuttle SN26 proprietary form factor NVIDIA nForce4 SLI chipset |
| Processor: | AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 |
| Heatsink: | ICE (Integrated Cooling Engine) 4G |
| RAM: | 2x1024MB Corsair TwinX 3500LL Pro 2-3-2-7-1T |
| Graphics Cards: | 1 x BFG GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB OC 2 x BFG 7800 GT 256MB OC |
| Hard Drive: | Seagate 250GB 8MB 7200 RPM 7200.8 |
| Optical Drive: | BenQ 16X DVD-ROM |
| Audio: | VIA 24-bit Vinyl Audio 7.1 |
| Power Suply: | Silent X 350W |
| Drivers: | NVIDIA nForce4 6.70; NVIDIA ForceWare 84.43 |
| Operating System: | Windows XP Professional SP2 with Updates |
| Custom Full ATX Desktop | |
| Motherboard: | DFI LanParty UT SLI-DR NVIDIA nForce4 SLI chipset |
| Processor: | AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 |
| Heatsink: | Thermaltake Big Typhoon |
| RAM: | 2x1024MB Corsair TwinX 3500LL Pro 2-3-2-7-1T |
| Graphics Cards: | 2 x BFG GeForce 7900 GTX 512MB OC 2 x BFG 7800 GT 256MB OC |
| Hard Drive: | Western Digital 74GB 8MB 10K RPM Raptor |
| Optical Drive: | BenQ 16X DVD-ROM |
| Audio: | Karajan Module - RealTek ALC850 Creative X-Fi ExtermeMusic |
| Power Suply: | OCZ PowerStream 600W |
| Drivers: | NVIDIA nForce4 6.70; NVIDIA ForceWare 84.43 |
| Operating System: | Windows XP Professional SP2 with Updates |
All systems were tested with the latest drivers and BIOS versions available, though we opted for the "beta" 704-2bt BIOS for the DFI board, as this is regarded in the enthusiast community as being one of the best overall BIOS offerings for the platform. Not all of our gaming benchmarks support testing with sound enabled, but for several of those that do we'll be running tests with and without sound.
In order to speed up total testing time, there is one potentially significant difference between all three platforms: the hard drive. The Falcon system ships with two 150 GB Raptor drives, but we used two different hard drive options for the other systems. The DFI system used a 74 GB Raptor, and the SN26P used a Seagate 7200.8 250 GB hard drive. In most instances, the different hard drives won't have a major impact on performance, but we will note in the benchmarks when hard drive activity appears to be a factor.
It is important to remember that benchmarks are not the be-all, end-all when it comes to the "ideal" computer system. Features, performance, appearance, and acoustics are all important factors. If all of the systems perform similarly to each other in our testing, that will be the best possible outcome: you can then make your purchase decision based on the other areas.
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Pirks - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
Thanks, but that's still very far from what I was asking. If all the PC is made of were just ONE SINGLE ABIT MOBO, then yeah it'd be a close shot :Pislandtechengineers - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
small and powerful; like another has stated; Build my own. being rich and able to let someone else do the work for you = lazy , but i wouldnt mind putting it in my car if i had cash to throw out...Inkjammer - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
"Performance nerd-vana" may have to be one of the best quotes I've seen in a while. =DMissing Ghost - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
What's so special about it?unclebud - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
the review was still interesting, as alwayswhat i was saying is that another group of journalists reviewed the fragbox before and they encountered a very different type of experience... it's also interesting that they sent a fragbox with an evga board now and not the msi/ati 480~
Gary Key - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
I cannot answer directly for Jarred in this case, but my previous experiences with Falcon Northwest have shown they do listen to their customers and will correct any product issues immediately.unclebud - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
"I can't really evaluate the support that comes from Falcon at this time."imagine that...
JarredWalton - Thursday, May 4, 2006 - link
They put a customer sticker on every system. This one is for "AnandTech" - too bad I have to send it back.daftpunkit - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
My parents got me a Falcon NW for college, 4 years later it still runs pretty sweet, and 4 years in the computer world means it's ancient.The support was outstanding too I would say. They are quick too. I think the original had a MSI mobo but it blew up or something about a year into me owning it and I shipped it to them they replaced it with a nice ASUS mobo and got it back pretty quick.
Ryan Norton - Wednesday, May 3, 2006 - link
Man, I remember when I was 10-14 or so and my dad still picked out the family computer, guaranteeing slowness and poor Doom II performance... he subscribed to Computer Gaming World and the Mach V ads always made me drool! I would never buy a FNW system when I can build my own so much easier, UNLESS I get rich one day... then man, I'm gonna beat a path to their door for whatever octo-SLI quad-CPU 32GB RAM madness reigns in the future.