Cadalyst - October 2008 - (Page 26)

cadalystlabsreview By Ron LaFon Xi MTower 2P64X Dual quad-core workstation is responsive, fast to boot, and quiet. T bs • La his review of @Xi Computer’s MTower 2P64X workstation is the second time Cadalyst Labs has completed an extended review of a system and monitor combination. Over a three-month period, I put this workstation through the paces of a variety of Cadalyst Labs projects — including tests of graphics cards, visualization solutions, and benchmark software — to gain a broad sense of how well it functions in extended use. The MTower 2P64X workstation is the ﬁrst dual quad-core system Cadalyst has evaluated. It was accompanied by a ViewSonic Optiquest Q241wb 24” wide-screen LCD monitor. Testing Procedure When I received the MTower 2P64X, I installed current versions of the software for testing, along with the Cadalyst benchmark testing software. The system had arrived preloaded with Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2, as requested. Microsoft has since discontinued Windows XP Professional, unfortunately, so the specific system configuration we tested is no longer available. You can, however, purchase the MTower 2P64X with one of several different versions of Linux or Windows Vista. (Cadalyst plans to test all future workstations with 64-bit versions of Microsoft Windows Vista.) The MTower 2P64X was configured with 4.0 GB of DDR2 800-MHz ECC RAM. Graphics were provided by an NVIDIA Quadro FX 3700 PCIe2 graphics card using NVIDIA drivers v.6.14.11.6939, dated February 1, 2008. The Xi MTower 2P64X workstation is based on dual processors. The system we reviewed had two Intel quad-core processors. 26 adalyst •C Xi MTower 2P64X Dual Quad-Core Workstation Overall grade . . System/monitor combination . Performance. . . Pricing . . . . . . Warranty. . . . . Expandability . . Return policy . . A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Pros: Good performance and design; quiet; lots of expandability. A Cons: Expensive. A Price: $8,636.13 with B ViewSonic Optiquest Q241wb A A+ 24” LCD display. A @Xi Computer 800.432.0486 www.xicomputer.com For the first part of the benchmark tests, I ran the Cadalyst C2008 benchmark (www.cadalyst.com/c2008) under AutoCAD 2009, which I used to test performance with both AutoCAD’s native OpenGL drivers and Direct3D drivers. I tested the MTower 2P64X system at 1,280 x 1,024 resolution at 32-bit color depth. The Cadalyst C2008 benchmark adds two 3D tests — Hidden Shade and Flat Shade — and works with AutoCAD 2008 under both Windows XP and Vista operating systems. In addition to the single OpenGL and Direct3D tests, I also ran side-by-side simultaneous sessions of C2008, as I typically do with multiprocessor or multicore systems. I combined these two test times for a final result. Because AutoCAD is not yet multiprocessor aware, this procedure presently seems to be the best method for testing AutoCAD on multicore systems. I also ran the MAXBench4 benchmark test with Autodesk 3ds Max Design 2009, which I tested in three configurations: with the native OpenGL drivers, with the native Direct3D drivers, and with the accelerated NVIDIA MAXtreme driver. This system is among the last that I expect to test with the MAXBench4 benchmark — future 3ds Max tests for Cadalyst Labs workstation and graphics cards reviews will use only the SPECapc 3ds Max benchmark. For this review only, I’m providing scores from both 3ds Max benchmarks. www.cadalyst.com cadalyst October 2008 http://www.cadalyst.com/c2008 http://www.xicomputer.com http://www.cadalyst.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Cadalyst - October 2008

Cadalyst - October 2008 Contents Editor’s Window Cad Central SimCity for Real Designs Spring to Life — 3D Publishing Tools Make File Sharing as Easy as Opening a Book Xi MTower 2P64X — Dual Quad-Core Workstation ArchiCAD 12 — BIM Software Dell Precision M6300 — High-End Mobile Workstation Cad Manager Mcad Modeling Aec Insight Cad Cartoon Issue Indexes Hot Tip Harry

Cadalyst - October 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.