AlienWare X51 System Review (Core i7)

1. Introduction2. AlienWare X51 (Bundle)3. AlienWare X514. AlienWare X51 System (Super High Res Gallery)5. System Configuration & Software Installation6. Testing Methodology7. Synthetic: SiSoft Sandra 20118. Synthetic: PCMark 79. Synthetic: Cinebench R11.5 64 bit10. Synthetic: Unigine Heaven Benchmark11. Synthetic: 3DMark Vantage12. Synthetic: 3DMark 1113. Synthetic: HQV Benchmark 2.014. HDD Performance15. Real World: 3D Studio Max 201116. Real World: Video Encoding17. Real World: Handbrake 9.518. Gaming: Battlefield 319. Gaming: Mass Effect 320. Gaming: Crysis 221. Technical: Acoustics Performance22. Technical: Thermal Dynamics23. Technical: Power Consumption24. Closing Thoughts25. View All Pages

To test the system today, we are using a mixture of synthetic and real world software as well as a series of games. We will also compare the results from the AlienWare X51 System against some other systems we have tested in recent months.

These are listed below:

Comparison Systems:

Intel Core i7 2700k System
Cooling: ThermalTake Frio OCK
Graphics: XFX HD6870 Black Edition x 2
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3 Z68 Motherboard
Chassis: Silverstone Raven 3.
Power Supply: Corsair 850W.
Memory: Corsair 1600mhz memory
Storage: Intel 80GB SSD (boot) / Patriot Wildfire 120GB SSD.
Monitor: Toshiba Regza 55 inch LED television & Dell U3011.

AMD FX 8150 Black Edition
Motherboard: Gigabyte 990FXA-UD7
Cooler: Noctua NH D14
Memory: G-SKill Ripjaws 1600mhz 8GB (2x 4GB)
Graphics Card: HIS HD6970 IceQ Mix
Power Supply: ADATA 1200W
Optical Drive: Asus BluRay Drive
Chassis: SilverStone Raven 3
Monitors: 3x Ilyama ProLite E2472HDD
Boot Drive: Intel 40GB SSD
Secondary Drive: Patriot 120GB WildFire

AMD Phenom II X6 1100T
Processor: AMD Phenom II X6 1100T @ 3.3ghz
Motherboard: Gigabyte 990FXA-UD7
Cooler: Noctua NH D14
Memory: G-SKill Ripjaws 1600mhz 8GB (2x 4GB)
Graphics Card: HIS HD6970 IceQ Mix
Power Supply: ADATA 1200W
Optical Drive: Asus BluRay Drive
Chassis: SilverStone Raven 3
Boot Drive: Intel 40GB SSD
Secondary Drive: Patriot 120GB WildFire

Intel Core i5 2500k
Processor: Intel Core i7 2500k @ 3.3ghz
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z68AP-D3 Z68 Motherboard
Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer Xtreme Rev.2 CPU Cooler
Memory: Corsair 1600mhz memory 8GB (2x4GB)
Graphics Card: HIS HD6970 IceQ Mix
Power Supply: Corsair 850W.
Optical Drive: Asus BluRay Drive
Boot Drive: Patriot Pyro 120GB SSD.

Software:
3DMark 11
3DMark Vantage
PCMark 7
Cinebench 11.5 64 bit
FRAPS Professional
Unigine Heaven Benchmark
CrystalDiskMark
HD Tach
Atto Disk Benchmark
Cyberlink PowerDVD Ultra 11
Cyberlink MediaEspresso

Games:
Battlefield 3
Crysis 2
Mass Effect 3

Technical Monitoring and Test Equipment:
Lacie 730 Monitor (Image Quality testing)
Dell U2410 Monitor
Thermal Diodes
Raytek Laser Temp Gun 3i LSRC/MT4 Mini Temp
Extech digital sound level meter & SkyTronic DSL 2 Digital Sound Level Meter
Nikon D3X with R1C1 Kit (4 flashes), Nikon 24-70MM lens.

Some game descriptions are taken and edited with courtesy from Wikipedia.

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