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StarCraft Legacy |
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Starcraft-Source |
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Sc2Blog |
2 years 8 months
by Anderson Mccutcheon
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Starcraft II Armory |
2 years 8 months
by gearvOsh
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StarCraft Legacy |
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Sc2Blog |
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StarCraft Legacy |
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Starfeeder |
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CreepColony |
2 years 9 months
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Starcraft II Armory |
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by Death-Con 5
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Starcraft II Armory |
2 years 9 months
by gearvOsh
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Sc2Blog |
2 years 9 months
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Starcraft II Armory |
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Sc2Blog |
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by Zetaras Xal'Kurat
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Sc2Blog |
2 years 9 months
by Anderson Mccutcheon
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Starcraft II Armory |
2 years 9 months
by gearvOsh
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StarCraft Legacy |
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Sc2Blog |
2 years 9 months
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Starcraft-Source |
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Starcraft II Armory |
2 years 9 months
by gearvOsh
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With the recent announcement of our contest, "Win an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460", it only makes sense to write up a review on this specific video card. I myself am currently using the GTX video card in my machine (however, using the 1GB instead of the 756MB). This review will be written from the perspective of using it for SC2. I will be using examples against my current computer setup and my previous, as well as comparing it with Team Fortress 2 along side Starcraft 2. Before I get into the review, lets preface with some specifications:
Current Setup
OS: Windows 7 32-bit
Mobo: EVGA P55 SLI
CPU: Intel i7 870 quad-core 2.93 GHz
RAM: 2 x 2GB DDR3 2200MHz (3GB)
HDD: 300 GB
Power: 650 watt
Video: GeForce GTX 460
Previous Setup
OS: Windows 7 32-bit
Mobo: ASUS M2N AM2
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 dual-core 2.6 GHz
RAM: 2 x 2GB DDR2 800MHz
HDD: 300 GB (same HDD between both setups)
Power: 350 watt
Video: GeForce 9500 GT
In regards to gaming, it's a good idea to monitor the FPS (frames per second). Below are the averages I received from both my setups for both of these games. To view your FPS in Starcraft 2 just press ctrl + alt + f, and in Team Fortress 2 you need to open up your console (~) and type in net_graph 3. Also note that some FPS is restricted by your monitors refresh rate.
Current FPS
Starcraft 2 (Ultra)
Average: 65
In action: 45 (lowest 25 in a 4v4)
Team Fortress 2
Average: 150
In action: 100
Previous FPS
Starcraft 2 (Medium)
Average: 45
In action: 25 (lowest 10)
Team Fortress 2
Average: 85
In action: 50
At a quick glance my current setup runs with about 40% more FPS. In comparison to my old computer setup, the major two differences are my CPU and my video card (you could also mention the DDR3 vs DDR2 memory). However, Starcraft 2 only utilizes 2 cores of the CPU which renders the additional 2 cores of my i7 unused. The differences between the two CPUs listed (besides the amount of cores), is the caching and frequency. Both the CPU frequencies are within a 0.3 GHz range, so I will disregard the speed of these CPUs as a major benefit to my review. In regards to caching, the i7 supports a L3 8GB cache while the AMD supports a L1 256KB and a L2 1GB. Now that is a huge difference, but how beneficial is the CPU to the game compared to the graphics card? It really depends on how much of the CPU is used within the game; you can usually find this information by researching a specific game. For reference, Starcraft 2 uses the CPU mainly for physics rendering and special effects, where as the rest is rendered with the GPU (video card).
So what does that leave us? The video card. The GTX is basically double, and sometimes triple the specifications of the 9500 GT. It has a higher memory/graphics/processor clock, memory config, interface width, bandwidth and texture fill rate, just to list out a few. To say the GTX isn't a beast is a lie, this thing destroys any video card I have ever used. I have successfully been able to play all my games on the highest settings, with full 3D and OpenGL capabilities, anti-aliasing, and all the while enabling all physics and real-time rendering.
AA (anti-aliasing) and AF (anisotropic filtering)
I took the liberty of taking some in-game screenshots to compare these settings. I began by turning both AA and AF completely off. You will notice the jaggedness of certain areas (the TV, units and characters for example) and the blurriness of some specific textures.
In Campaign #1
In Campaign #2
In Game #1
In Game #2
In the next test I re-enabled both AA and AF. I set my AA setting to 4x (I tried 8x, 16x and 32x but could not see any differences) and my AF setting to 8x (again, I tried 16x but could not see a difference). Here are the results:
In Campaign #1
In Campaign #2
In Game #1
In Game #2
Now you may be thinking to yourself "I really don't see much of a difference", and you're right, I thought the same exact thing. I tried multiple types of AA/AF settings but it seems most of them did not make much of a noticeable difference (visually). Regardless, I could see some slight differences between completely disabled and enabled, but at that point, who cares? But the big question is, how much did it affect your FPS? Noticeably. When I was running with AA at 8x and higher, I would notice a loss of about 10-15 FPS and a small delay between my clicks and commands. It's best to set your video card into balanced mode to allow it to choose the best option for you. Or you can take it to the extreme and turn AA/AF completely off so that it does not effect your competitive experience.
Would I recommend this card?
Hells yes! This card is beautiful. It runs smoothly, it's quiet, it's at a constant temperature (be sure you have good fans and circulation!) and it has to be one of the best priced cards for its abilities within its category. One caveat though, is that it is really big, I mean big. It takes up a lot of room within your desktop case so be sure you have a full ATX tower case with enough room around the video card slot.
Furthermore, I would recommend getting at minimum a dual-core CPU (since SC2 only utilizes 2 cores); a perfect choice would be the Intel Core i5 (which is reasonably priced for its power). Alongside the CPU you will need a motherboard that supports the specific CPU socket as well as the video card. I have no suggestions besides the board I am currently using (for my i7 however), the EVGA P55 SLI. As for memory, a minimum of 4GB would be a good choice (32-bit only uses 3/3.25 GB).
Related Reviews
Now my review isn't as thorough and detailed as I would like it to be, but don't worry, the internet has you covered. The following links are more articles related to Starcraft 2 performance and benchmarking.
- PCGamesHardware - SC2 CPU Benchmarks
- TomsHardware - SC2 Benchmarks
- LegionHardware - SC2 Beta Performance
- SC2Blog - GeForce GTX 460 Benchmarks
- VileGaming - GeForce GTX Review
Feel free to ask me any questions and I will answer them the best I can!
(P.S. I would of made some awesome benchmark and graph artwork, but I currently do not have Photoshop or any image editing applications, sorry!)
   
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CreepColony |
2 years 9 months
by Quelex
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