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HP Blackbird gaming PC
- Thread starter fornarmr
- Start date
Cnet already has a review of a system. It mentions that the Nvidia 680i motherboard has been rigged so that it also supports Crossfire, though they also raise the possibility that the implementation has a bug that screwed with their FEAR benchmark. Interesting.
http://reviews.cnet.com/desktops/hp-blackbird-002/4505-3118_7-32592299.html?tag=nefdprod.rev
http://reviews.cnet.com/desktops/hp-blackbird-002/4505-3118_7-32592299.html?tag=nefdprod.rev
FallenMystic
Gawd
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2006
- Messages
- 894
Humm... I wouldn't expect the drivers necessary for crossfire to be updated on a regular basis... and I'd be willing to bet nV won't be to thrilled that Asus/Voodoo are screwing with their chipset... definately interesting development though.
Hey guys, just so you know, I've seen the blackbird in person.
But, I must tell you... it does not have crossfire capability. It will run two cards in SLI and a Physx card.
I know the guys who did most of the designing of it, and tested some of it's watercooling capability's... (he got the chip down to 54 F with some ice...
)
Lol, just givin' you guys a heads up!
But, I must tell you... it does not have crossfire capability. It will run two cards in SLI and a Physx card.
I know the guys who did most of the designing of it, and tested some of it's watercooling capability's... (he got the chip down to 54 F with some ice...
)Lol, just givin' you guys a heads up!
Are you deliberately trying to spread misinformation or do you just not understand what's unique about the motherboard? The same motherboard supports BOTH Crossfire and SLI. So just because you see a system with SLI doesn't mean that it doesn't also support Crossfire. It does. The cnet review that I linked to above was tested and benchmarked with Crossfire. The review in PC Magazine also tested and benchmarked with Crossfire:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2179613,00.asp
Plus, if you go to the Blackbird site, it says you can get ATI graphic cards in dual configuration, otherwise known as Crossfire. So two independent reviews and the Blackbird site itself all say the system supports Crossfire. Get your facts straight.
that thing doesn't look too big but it is heavy as hell. I would never pay for a computer again as long as I can still build my own. I do think the case is very nice with most of the things screwless and easy to get in and out of. its ashame that they don't sell the case as a DIY.
FlimFlam
Limp Gawd
- Joined
- Jan 5, 2005
- Messages
- 490
Hey guys, just so you know, I've seen the blackbird in person.
But, I must tell you... it does not have crossfire capability. It will run two cards in SLI and a Physx card.
I know the guys who did most of the designing of it, and tested some of it's watercooling capability's... (he got the chip down to 54 F with some ice...
Lol, just givin' you guys a heads up!
So you know Danny?
The case is pretty neat, but in the end it's just a major vendor's prepackaging of off the shelf hardware which you can build yourself (with an equally snazzy if not as unique case) for less than half the price. Of course, if you absolutely need to have Crossfire on an nForce board (which makes absolutely no sense to me,) the Blackbird is probably the way to go.
However, if you were to take the parts of the Blackbird and list them here for review in building a custom PC, many would probably recommend better choices (such as the EVGA A1 in place of the overpriced, under performing Striker Extreme.) Of course comparing the Blackbird to an off the shelf build with the same parts may not be entirely apples to apples, as HP / Voodoo has probably done a good deal of their own tweaks and modifications to the motherboard and BIOS, but that just means you're locked in to their own upgrades and support.
Mark.
However, if you were to take the parts of the Blackbird and list them here for review in building a custom PC, many would probably recommend better choices (such as the EVGA A1 in place of the overpriced, under performing Striker Extreme.) Of course comparing the Blackbird to an off the shelf build with the same parts may not be entirely apples to apples, as HP / Voodoo has probably done a good deal of their own tweaks and modifications to the motherboard and BIOS, but that just means you're locked in to their own upgrades and support.
Mark.
Ddark,
I was not diliberately trying to spead misinfo.
My bad, it does support Crossfire.
I was not diliberately trying to spead misinfo.
My bad, it does support Crossfire.
I might...So you know Danny?
I must confess that I'm very seriously considering making a move on one of these sometime in October (hopefully immediatly on the first of the month), when they start allowing people to customize rigs the way they want.
9/10 times I'd favor a DIY option, but in my case, I'm running a 4 year old AGP based system and it's just time to "start from scratch."
PC Gamer, anandtech, among others really just gave this thing such glowing reviews it's almost unbelievable outright.
It's going to be interesting to watch. I'm no super tech expert, but I think this thing could be a real winner.
9/10 times I'd favor a DIY option, but in my case, I'm running a 4 year old AGP based system and it's just time to "start from scratch."
PC Gamer, anandtech, among others really just gave this thing such glowing reviews it's almost unbelievable outright.
It's going to be interesting to watch. I'm no super tech expert, but I think this thing could be a real winner.
Quick heads up:
I just got off the phone with these folks and as of 1 PM Mountain Time or so today as I write this, if all goes well, the HP Blackbird website will be setup where people can see all the tiers and customizations, but they have some site programming they want to refine that might take longer, so people can customize and do whatever they want on the site but they'll have to actually set it up and finish it over the phone.
In other words, as of that time today, they will start taking orders for whatever configurations people want. The Dedication Edition will be the high end tier to customize off of and there will be two lower tiers beneath that.
I just got off the phone with these folks and as of 1 PM Mountain Time or so today as I write this, if all goes well, the HP Blackbird website will be setup where people can see all the tiers and customizations, but they have some site programming they want to refine that might take longer, so people can customize and do whatever they want on the site but they'll have to actually set it up and finish it over the phone.
In other words, as of that time today, they will start taking orders for whatever configurations people want. The Dedication Edition will be the high end tier to customize off of and there will be two lower tiers beneath that.
http://www.anandtech.com/systems/showdoc.aspx?i=3115
New and in depth take down by anandtech.com
Here's something I've been having a problem with and I suspect some people will be with me on this while others won't be.
The obvious given upfront, before anything else, would be "cost", but that goes without saying
when it comes to boutique anything.
But past that, the second thing I'm wondering about is this:
I don't know about you all, but does anyone kind of balk at the idea of getting a machine that weighs at least 70 lbs?!
According to anandtech.com, the liquid cooling accounts for some of that weight, but most of that excessive weight is due to this uber case.
I love the concept behind this case in terms of ease of use and tool-less features, but honest to God: I don't think I can handle a 75 lb. beast, at least not by myself and certainly not up and down a flight of stairs. YMMV, of course. <- Just kind of balking at that a little bit...
New and in depth take down by anandtech.com
Here's something I've been having a problem with and I suspect some people will be with me on this while others won't be.
The obvious given upfront, before anything else, would be "cost", but that goes without saying
when it comes to boutique anything.
But past that, the second thing I'm wondering about is this:
I don't know about you all, but does anyone kind of balk at the idea of getting a machine that weighs at least 70 lbs?!
According to anandtech.com, the liquid cooling accounts for some of that weight, but most of that excessive weight is due to this uber case.
I love the concept behind this case in terms of ease of use and tool-less features, but honest to God: I don't think I can handle a 75 lb. beast, at least not by myself and certainly not up and down a flight of stairs. YMMV, of course. <- Just kind of balking at that a little bit...