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Hello all.
I come from not only a production standpoint where stable and quiet hardware is essential but also a tweaking/overclocking/hacker standpoint and mentality which embraces the sharing of information, to never stop improving, to fix what isn't fixable (and likewise to break isn't broken), to be smart enough to surround oneself with people smarter than oneself, etc. So, here's my Parhelia story:
I do audio production work by trade and run many PC setups that are noiseless and watercooled utilizing two types of videocard arrangements to run Three 18" LCD monitors per PC via DVI (digital) connection. Several PCs use: Matrox G550 Dual-DVI AGP card + Matrox G450 PCI Single-DVI card, and several other PCs use: Nvidia NVS 200 Dual-DVI AGP card + Nvidia GeForce2 MX400 PCI Single-DVI card. The nvidia combination is slightly faster than Matrox combo running on identical mobo/cpu/mem/hardware (because they're just newer product offerings Nvidia is addressing to Matrox's existing market). These systems work great with no fans on any heatsinks due to noise-free requirements. The only downside to running a video card on the PCI bus (the second graphics card in each system to drive 3rd monitor) is that any display/windowing activity on the monitor driven by this card can at times flood the PCI bus all the way to 85% of the bus's bandwidth limit in short bursts. This has the effect of causing occasional dropouts on timing-sensitive PCI-based pro audio cards. A hardware-based PCI bus monitor card (RC2 Geiger) was used to verify the behavior of the PCI DVI video cards in initial testing to support the onscreen "real-life use" phenomenon of often sluggish video on the display that the PCI video card drives. In addition, when there is a lot of audio card activity, the PCI video card produces a sluggish display due to these high-bandwidth cards fighting over the PCI bus.
These particular multi-graphic card combinations were boiled down from testing of dozens of combinations from just about every multi-monitor card manufacturer, including some high-end workstation cards. Never satisfied, I'm always open to improving things one more step, and have been waiting on one of the major manufacturers players to overcome the technical problems associated with driving more than 2 monitors via the AGP interface (nvidia continues to toil away at it - crossbar memory architecture snafus, blah blah, no need to get into details here, and given that the upcoming Matrox G450 MMS cards don't offer an AGP flavor that provides more than 2 DVI displays, perhaps they're having problems as well).
So, I finally purchased a Parhelia Retail version last week after reading many reviews and deciding that the ability to run my three monitors on a single AGP card and (consequently) without touching the PCI bus was the dealmaker. I wasn't thrilled about the fact that I would have to run 2 of the 3 flat-screen monitors via analog when in Triplehead mode, having "seen the light" and sheer magnificence of a flatpanel thru DVI, but at least the analog outputs of the DACs on the P are the best in the industry (conversion from digital to analog on the card, then analog back to digital on the lcd monitor is a terrible shame in video just as in audio).
Initial tests: The 2D application performance of the P in triple-head mode is *lightning* fast, in fact FASTER than any combination of Dual-DVI AGP card + PCI DVI card we ever tested. Besides standard Sysmark/Sandra benchmarks and things, just the smoothness and quickness of things like minimizing/maximizing windows (or testing the blink rate of desktop-show by holding down WindowsKey-D for example) and watching all three screens behave identically is a joy (no traditional "crippled secondary display" here).
After a day's testing of the card within a typical day's workflow, my colleagues and I were hooked - all the applications just plain "felt" smoother given that a lot of window and desktop switching goes on in the audio apps we use (and one less 'troubled child' on the PCI bus to boot with the absence of a PCI video card for the 3rd display).
Next thing: For permanent installation the whiny fan on the heatsink had to go, given it was the only thing producing noise in the test system. Keep in mind that its fine for most peoples' tastes when it wouldn't be heard over case fans and CPU fans anyway. I noticed the main chip runs VERY hot upon initial tests. A quick trip into the freezer in a plastic ziploc bag and 20 minutes later the heatsink's adhesive was brittle enough to remove. After using some "Goof-off" (Xylene-based chemical) the thermal wax was cleaned from the P's heatspreader, after which Arctic Silver thermal adhesive was applied, followed by slapping on the Innovatek GPU waterblock: the Parhelia was now officially watercooled! Ofcourse the mem chips run hot but I won't worry about them for now since we don't really plan on overclocking the card for gaming. Another noise-free solution for quiet-computing fans might be the upcoming fanless (noiseless) Zalman heatpipe-based copper GPU heatsink.
Though the P may be on the expensive side when I extrapolate its cost across building many more audio workstation PC's utilizing it for other studios, and since all its really being used for is fast triple-monitoring without bothering the PCI bus and only used for occasional gaming, I suppose its still worth the price given no other manufacturer does more than 2 displays via AGP. Yes, there IS a noticable difference in sharpness when A/B comparing between the DVI and Analog outputs of the P on an Eizo L685 18" LCD (utilizing this monitor's dual-inputs for fast A/B switching), and granted you have to put your face up to the screen to see, so I guess its quite passable in normal use. I do realize that its probably the best analog output that any card can deliver right now for the price range.
So, bottom line for me is an 8 out of 10 rating. It loses points for the fact that it would've been more professional for matrox to include a larger/denser heatsink combined with a larger slower-spinning fan to bring the noise down. Second, the inability to run all three monitors via DVI is a disappointment, as well as for the inability to run separate desktops with three monitors to enable monitor pivoting software because triplehead mode combines displays into one giant desktop as windows sees it, which makes pivoting software useless. Portrait mode really is much more like one giant screen because there's 33% less eye-travel horizontally - you ought to try it sometime. For now we'll live without portrait mode on new setups built around Parhelia, because faster screen responsiveness and a PCI bus left free for the audio cards was voted as more important by myself and the other testers.
If a future incarnation of the P supports triple-DVI via Matrox's LFH connector replacing one of the current two DVI outs on the PCB, you can be sure we'll be getting them. Perhaps a future driver refresh will allow separate desktops for each of the three monitors to allow for portrait mode orientation.
Regards,
Joe T.
Hello all.
I come from not only a production standpoint where stable and quiet hardware is essential but also a tweaking/overclocking/hacker standpoint and mentality which embraces the sharing of information, to never stop improving, to fix what isn't fixable (and likewise to break isn't broken), to be smart enough to surround oneself with people smarter than oneself, etc. So, here's my Parhelia story:
I do audio production work by trade and run many PC setups that are noiseless and watercooled utilizing two types of videocard arrangements to run Three 18" LCD monitors per PC via DVI (digital) connection. Several PCs use: Matrox G550 Dual-DVI AGP card + Matrox G450 PCI Single-DVI card, and several other PCs use: Nvidia NVS 200 Dual-DVI AGP card + Nvidia GeForce2 MX400 PCI Single-DVI card. The nvidia combination is slightly faster than Matrox combo running on identical mobo/cpu/mem/hardware (because they're just newer product offerings Nvidia is addressing to Matrox's existing market). These systems work great with no fans on any heatsinks due to noise-free requirements. The only downside to running a video card on the PCI bus (the second graphics card in each system to drive 3rd monitor) is that any display/windowing activity on the monitor driven by this card can at times flood the PCI bus all the way to 85% of the bus's bandwidth limit in short bursts. This has the effect of causing occasional dropouts on timing-sensitive PCI-based pro audio cards. A hardware-based PCI bus monitor card (RC2 Geiger) was used to verify the behavior of the PCI DVI video cards in initial testing to support the onscreen "real-life use" phenomenon of often sluggish video on the display that the PCI video card drives. In addition, when there is a lot of audio card activity, the PCI video card produces a sluggish display due to these high-bandwidth cards fighting over the PCI bus.
These particular multi-graphic card combinations were boiled down from testing of dozens of combinations from just about every multi-monitor card manufacturer, including some high-end workstation cards. Never satisfied, I'm always open to improving things one more step, and have been waiting on one of the major manufacturers players to overcome the technical problems associated with driving more than 2 monitors via the AGP interface (nvidia continues to toil away at it - crossbar memory architecture snafus, blah blah, no need to get into details here, and given that the upcoming Matrox G450 MMS cards don't offer an AGP flavor that provides more than 2 DVI displays, perhaps they're having problems as well).
So, I finally purchased a Parhelia Retail version last week after reading many reviews and deciding that the ability to run my three monitors on a single AGP card and (consequently) without touching the PCI bus was the dealmaker. I wasn't thrilled about the fact that I would have to run 2 of the 3 flat-screen monitors via analog when in Triplehead mode, having "seen the light" and sheer magnificence of a flatpanel thru DVI, but at least the analog outputs of the DACs on the P are the best in the industry (conversion from digital to analog on the card, then analog back to digital on the lcd monitor is a terrible shame in video just as in audio).
Initial tests: The 2D application performance of the P in triple-head mode is *lightning* fast, in fact FASTER than any combination of Dual-DVI AGP card + PCI DVI card we ever tested. Besides standard Sysmark/Sandra benchmarks and things, just the smoothness and quickness of things like minimizing/maximizing windows (or testing the blink rate of desktop-show by holding down WindowsKey-D for example) and watching all three screens behave identically is a joy (no traditional "crippled secondary display" here).
After a day's testing of the card within a typical day's workflow, my colleagues and I were hooked - all the applications just plain "felt" smoother given that a lot of window and desktop switching goes on in the audio apps we use (and one less 'troubled child' on the PCI bus to boot with the absence of a PCI video card for the 3rd display).
Next thing: For permanent installation the whiny fan on the heatsink had to go, given it was the only thing producing noise in the test system. Keep in mind that its fine for most peoples' tastes when it wouldn't be heard over case fans and CPU fans anyway. I noticed the main chip runs VERY hot upon initial tests. A quick trip into the freezer in a plastic ziploc bag and 20 minutes later the heatsink's adhesive was brittle enough to remove. After using some "Goof-off" (Xylene-based chemical) the thermal wax was cleaned from the P's heatspreader, after which Arctic Silver thermal adhesive was applied, followed by slapping on the Innovatek GPU waterblock: the Parhelia was now officially watercooled! Ofcourse the mem chips run hot but I won't worry about them for now since we don't really plan on overclocking the card for gaming. Another noise-free solution for quiet-computing fans might be the upcoming fanless (noiseless) Zalman heatpipe-based copper GPU heatsink.
Though the P may be on the expensive side when I extrapolate its cost across building many more audio workstation PC's utilizing it for other studios, and since all its really being used for is fast triple-monitoring without bothering the PCI bus and only used for occasional gaming, I suppose its still worth the price given no other manufacturer does more than 2 displays via AGP. Yes, there IS a noticable difference in sharpness when A/B comparing between the DVI and Analog outputs of the P on an Eizo L685 18" LCD (utilizing this monitor's dual-inputs for fast A/B switching), and granted you have to put your face up to the screen to see, so I guess its quite passable in normal use. I do realize that its probably the best analog output that any card can deliver right now for the price range.
So, bottom line for me is an 8 out of 10 rating. It loses points for the fact that it would've been more professional for matrox to include a larger/denser heatsink combined with a larger slower-spinning fan to bring the noise down. Second, the inability to run all three monitors via DVI is a disappointment, as well as for the inability to run separate desktops with three monitors to enable monitor pivoting software because triplehead mode combines displays into one giant desktop as windows sees it, which makes pivoting software useless. Portrait mode really is much more like one giant screen because there's 33% less eye-travel horizontally - you ought to try it sometime. For now we'll live without portrait mode on new setups built around Parhelia, because faster screen responsiveness and a PCI bus left free for the audio cards was voted as more important by myself and the other testers.
If a future incarnation of the P supports triple-DVI via Matrox's LFH connector replacing one of the current two DVI outs on the PCB, you can be sure we'll be getting them. Perhaps a future driver refresh will allow separate desktops for each of the three monitors to allow for portrait mode orientation.
Regards,
Joe T.
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