REALLY Bad Tom's article...

[Whizzard9992]

Maybe I'm missing something, so I figured I'd throw this to the community:

I'd like to direct your attention to the article, How Many Cores Do You Need To Be "Hardcore"?

They're evaluating two ubar AMD boxes. What do they use to benchmark 2 SLI & RAID AMD setups against? A P4 660 with Kingston Value RAM, a single vvid card and a single HDD. Check out the specs here:

The Test System

The only thing I'm going to say about the "Reference Platform" is that it's more than 50% less than the other 2 systems. I'll let the specs speak for themselves.

Seems like a shameless advertisement under the guise of an article to me. Anyone who skips to the conclusion or to the benchmarks (As most don't compare the test specs) would be mislead to believe that these systems are better than they really are (versus comperable systems).

Maybe I'm missing something someone else can point out (And I read the explanation on the test setup page, and it's BS).

 

[slvr_phoenix]

I'm not going to bother actually reading the article, but from your description it sounds pretty typical of the state of affairs at THG lately.

 

[parlee]

i think its just showing how dual-core/videocards is faster than single cards... but in that case maybe they coulda used a single 7800gtx 512 instead of the whimpy 7800gt... (not that the 7800 is whimpy, just compared to the gtx 512 it is )

 

[Flakes]

We were approached by Redmond Magazine to share with their readers (in the January 2006 issue) the latest and greatest gaming PCs that the market had to offer. Naturally, we decided to take what we learned during that testing and share it with our readers. For those of you who read our articles regularly, you will find some of the explanations elementary; bear with us though, as it has been a while since we have had something oriented towards the entry level.

and they did they found two uber AMD gamming systems, everyone knows Intel has screwed up royally, and so couldnt compete at the high end gamming level even with a high end intel results would of been basically the same :roll:

 

[mpasternak]

I havnt been able to read an article on THG in a while now without rolling my eyes

they're poorly wwritten

and they're few and far between these days.... before the design layout there were at least 1 -2 new ones a day

now i've seen the same top story on the front page for almost a week. and the side stories havnt changed in longer

 

[phonicsmonkey]

I read that too and was kind of wondering what point they were trying to make. The only thing I took away from that article was if you have a ton of money to spend you can get a super fast computer. I thought it sounded like a big advertisment too.

 

[SGTHACK]

Yea, to have an intel machine anymore is to be shamed. I can remember when intel was it. Then AMD came along as a cost effective challenger. Now AMD is expensive. This is the reason more and more people are buying consoles anymore. They can't afford a $5000.00 computer to play a $50.00 game. But, it is like I have always said "IF YOU ARE GOING TO PLAY YOU ARE GOING TO PAY"!

 

[slvr_phoenix]

I havnt been able to read an article on THG in a while now without rolling my eyes

they're poorly wwritten

and they're few and far between these days.... before the design layout there were at least 1 -2 new ones a day

now i've seen the same top story on the front page for almost a week. and the side stories havnt changed in longer

:lol: :lol: :lol: I haven't even been able to figure out where things are since the layout change. Not that I've tried very hard though, since there's not been anything I've wanted to read there for much longer than that. 😱

 

[Snale]

Yea, usually they build "Reference systems" so that they are below the analyzed hardware, but this time it was waaaay slower... 8O

 

[function9]

I haven't even been able to figure out where things are since the layout change.

I will second that. Whoever is in charge of this department for THG should definitely NOT let his 14 yr old child do the design again. The site is horrid.

 

[mpjesse]

Yes, the article is pure trash.

I think Eagle and that other enthusiast sent them test products and they had to come up with some lame excuse to review them.

They should have just reviewed the systems individually.

-mpjesse

 

[Ided]

For this we were asked by Redmond to use an Intel based system with high end hardware that typical consumers would be able purchase and put together themselves. This configuration included 2 GB of DDR SDRAM, a Western Digital WD740 Raptor hard drive, an EVGA 7800 GT, and an Asus P5WD2 Premium motherboard.

It clearly states that for a reference system they wanted to use a system that "TYPICAL CONSUMERS WOULD BE ABLE TO PURCHASE AND PUT TOGETHER THEMSELVES". Obviously clarifying the reason they "only" used a Intel CPU and a single video card. And if you ask me the system they put together is certainly a typical system that almost anyone can purchase and put together. They accomplished exactly what they said they wanted to. Whining on forums at this point is pretty ineffective to say the least.

 

[slvr_phoenix]

Whining on forums at this point is pretty ineffective to say the least.

And griping about people whining is any better? :lol:

 

[Whizzard9992]

For this we were asked by Redmond to use an Intel based system with high end hardware that typical consumers would be able purchase and put together themselves. This configuration included 2 GB of DDR SDRAM, a Western Digital WD740 Raptor hard drive, an EVGA 7800 GT, and an Asus P5WD2 Premium motherboard.

It clearly states that for a reference system they wanted to use a system that "TYPICAL CONSUMERS WOULD BE ABLE TO PURCHASE AND PUT TOGETHER THEMSELVES". Obviously clarifying the reason they "only" used a Intel CPU and a single video card. And if you ask me the system they put together is certainly a typical system that almost anyone can purchase and put together. They accomplished exactly what they said they wanted to. Whining on forums at this point is pretty ineffective to say the least.

I just wanted to point out to people who normally rely on THG for accurate, unbiased information this shady article. I don't care to troll forums, normally, nor do I care to whine. I read the explanation you quoted, which in and of itself is inaccurate. The specs you quoted contradict the table below it. I had also hoped posting this would raise enough of an uproar to ring a bell in THG that the community isn't accepting of those articles.

Along similar lines regarding their 'reasoning', I'd like to note that there is no (valid) reason to compare the reference system to the test systems: it's like comparing a Ford Taurus to a Nissan Z. You know the Z is faster, but anyone interested in buying the Z isn't going to want to see the Z versus the Taurus; they're going to want to see the Z versus the Mustang.

We all know that AMD is whomping the P4 in most areas gamers are concerned about, but a good 'Reference' would have been the Falcon versus an air-cooled FX-57 and/or a P4EE. The X2 would have been good against an air-cooled X2 or an Intel 8xx. Moreover, both test systems had RAID at 10k and SLI. The reference system a single HDD at 7200 and a single vid card.

I'd also like to reference the 'Good' THG articles, like the recent one about the new Intel EE. It compares the system oc/non-oc against a plethora of other Intel and Non-Intel products, allowing a reader to truly compare the new processor against its predecessors and competitors.

At any rate, the point I'm trying to make is when someone is looking to buy one of these computers, their search engine may lead them to this article, and it's very misleading, especially for someone who wouldn't understand what RAID and SLI mean, or the difference between RAM with a 2-2-2-5 timing and RAM with a 4-4-4-8 timing ( :!: ). For those of us who are educated buyers, just knowing that the ONLY reference platform these AMD system were pitted against was an Intel, would leave someone to believe that THG was intentionally skewing the benchmarks.

No whining, just a (detailed) cautionary note, and hopefully a red-flag to those in THG that their readers won't be duped so easily.

 

[slvr_phoenix]

I completely agree with everything that you said except one thing: The Ford Taurus SHO, with the right customization, is quite the fun car. :mrgreen:

 

[Whizzard9992]

I completely agree with everything that you said except one thing: The Ford Taurus SHO, with the right customization, is quite the fun car. :mrgreen:

HAHA. I stand completely corrected (and humbled ) The SHO was one of the best sleepers ever manufactured.

 

[slvr_phoenix]

One day, you know, when money grows on trees and time like a river flows, I'd like to do some serious work on my Mercury Sable. You know, new engine, new transmission, new suspension, better brakes... The little things. 😀

I figure since I've put 205K miles on it, it's due for some major work, right?

 

[Whizzard9992]

One day, you know, when money grows on trees and time like a river flows, I'd like to do some serious work on my Mercury Sable. You know, new engine, new transmission, new suspension, better brakes... The little things. 😀

I figure since I've put 205K miles on it, it's due for some major work, right?

The sad part is, I read that as "Time flows like a river."

Damn my slysdexia 8)

I could buy a nice BMW if I never spent the money on my (many) computer parts. It's an addiction... In the mean time, I like my Civic lol.

 

[slvr_phoenix]

Yeah, at the moment if my Sable keels over dead (god only knows why it hasn't yet) I may just pick up a cheap used Civic myself. At the moment, what I'd really like is a hybrid Pontiac Vibe or Toyota Matrix, but first one of the two manufacturers has to make a hybrid version. :lol: And then I have to find the money for a brand new car. 😱

But I've really enjoyed the heavy feel of my Sable. I don't know why, but I just really like the way it drives. It'll be a shame when I finally have to put it down. But I really need better fuel efficiency right now, and some decent cargo room certainly wouldn't hurt.

 

[Whizzard9992]

Yeah, the feel of the car is important. I drove a malibu, and it felt like driving a tank. I couldn't stand it.

I like the responsiveness of smaller, foreign cars. I really hope the domestic market picks up: they've been slacking and I'd prefer to buy american, especially in these times.

 

[parlee]

i already forget what the old layout looked like , at first this one is pretty confusing but ive been able to find all ive been looking for, sure it could be a lot better... but also a ton worse. and i agree that the articals lately have been crap... maybe they should do some affordable/easy mods for cooling computers since every1 seems to be into that 😛.. and if theyve done it maybe its time for a revise or a part 2!... just a suggestion

 

[bourgeoisdude]

THWG needs to hear us out on this. They claimed they needed the layout change due to the overwhelming content anyway, but also claim it was designed based on reader feedback. Guess what? THIS IS READER FEEDBACK! I WANT THE OLD THWG BACK! :x

 

[hella-d]

I Only Paid A Total Of About $1600.00 For My PC And It Smokes PCs That Are Twice As Much (Factory Build Gaming Machines And Other Homebuilts Alike) Moral Of The Story.... If You Choose Wisely You Can Have A Super Quick Ass-Kickin PC Thats Lite On Your Bank, Dont Have More Money Than Brains

 

[parlee]

or u can buy an xps pay 4 grand and get crap performance 😀... or buy from alienware and get a decent comp for the same as an xps! or go to falcon-nw spend 6k for top of the line and get performance the same as urs... i find it to be a tough choice...

 

[hella-d]

LOL, Exactly, LOL