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Intel on a Rampage


Sometimes you just come across an occasion you simply can not miss . Sometimes the hardware is just like new, sometimes it has it`s original packaging. Other times the equipment found is simply amazing, very rare or delivering top performance. But if you search and trace the unique hardware for so long as myself, you know that very rarely you are so lucky that you will find something combining all of the above features πŸ™‚Β  To be honest, it is only possible because there are enthusiasts out there who can really appreciate powerful and high-end hardware. People who can treat their equipment with respect and keep it in a very good shape for a long time receiving in return unbeatable and stable performance of the highest level. Big shout-out to all of them and especially to Mr. Edgar for helping me materializing a project of mine by being such a person ! πŸ™‚ I hope I can cross my PC Enthusiast roads with the highest number of people like that. Also working on high-end retro and modern computers would be much easier then. But enough of the dwelling on how hard is Retro PC Builder`s life πŸ˜€ There is some exceptional hardware for us to see.

To be honest 2010 was not so long ago, but on the other hand it soon will be almost 10 years since then. Because of that, PC parts from that era can be seen as collectible young timers for sure. Second thing is, after putting back together the set of full box motherboards form NVIDIA`s nForce Striker series I finally understood what is all this fuss around complete box about πŸ˜‰ I never had needs of this kind, for me hardware should work properly and be rare the make me happy. Despite all of this, I decided to start a collection of RoG Rampage motherboards based on my experiences with Republic of Gamers series craftsmanship. First in the family will be RoG Rampage III Extreme, an X58 IOH based motherboard with the QPI interface. Not definitively a retro feature you must say πŸ˜‰ 1366 HEDT socket is also something very modern. It comes with the most powerful 32nm CPU from 2010, the six core 3.33 GHz Core i7-980X. This platform also have support for tripple channel DDR3 memory interface. To put all of the above into perspective let`s summarize it quickly. My 2010 build delivers you twelve 3.46 Ghz threads of computing power or two 3.60 Ghz threads efficiency thanks to Intel Turbo Boost ( 1.0 πŸ˜‰ ) technology, communicate with memory via six high speed direct cpu interface lanes and can take up to four most powerful graphics processing units at a time. Considering current lower-end Z270 enthusiast platform it all seems like superior parameters even now. This reveals how X series High End DeskTop is way more advanced compared to currently available lower-end enthusiast platforms like Z series boards.

RoG products as a high-end Asus offer fits my taste perfectly. Highly advanced and precisely engineered delivers top performance with a nice visual touch.

Board itself also has a lot overclocking/open bench scenarios integrated aids such as dedicated OC iROG chip or on-board buttons and voltage measurement points. It is simply designed by the enthusiast for the enthusiasts.

Thanks to complete full box, you can see how wide is original accessories range received upon purchase of a new product. RoG series motherboard are by far the most equipped sets money can buy. Take a look at some of them.

This is a dedicated Bluetooth module for live, wireless overclocking from your telephone. Mind you, the OC app is only old Windows Mobile compatible, remember we have 2010 and a two year old Android is available in version 2.2 πŸ˜‰

You can extend the cooling performance of installed radiator right out of the box.

Single Rampge III motherboard can hold up to three GPU`s. Top level graphics card of the time is GTX 480 and can be chained up to 4-way SLI configuration. Unfortunately X58 chipset lacks the number of the required PCI Express lanes to communicate with four GPU`s. That is why Asus provided a solution with a kind of daughter board with doubleΒ NF200-SLI-A3 chipsets delivering additional PCI Express lanes. We have to mark that there were two motherboards on the market from EVGA and Gigabyte with additional chipsets already integrated in the main PCB, but RoG solution is unique though more special for me πŸ˜‰ I`m still trying to buy four GPU`s in good shape. It is harder than I initially thought, I already have one but it`s condition leaves much to be desired. Let`s take a closer look on the RoG Xpander.

I must confess i bought it as a new product, and even after a quick examination you can tell that the seller was talking the truth πŸ˜‰

The cooler has no signs of use whatsoever.

Core i7-980X is a CPU build on 32nm Gulftown process from Westmere microarchitecture. Westmere is the second version of the 1st generation Core i7 family. Those processors are still available today with the 9th generation Coffe Lake internal design.

What should be noted is that 8 years ago, freebie called a “stock” cooler was something not to be ashamed of. You can get the premium feel of a high-end end expensive hardware. Also you can change the fan speed with top mounted switch. Classy.

Last is a very nice set of tripple channel memory from my favorite manufacturer. It meets only the base DDR3 frequency for X58 chip but is a good start for the ProRetroPC 2010 build.

And it comes with original 6 DIMM cooler ! I had few of these in my collection but only for the X48 DDR2 4 DIMM setups.

This computer will be a lot of fun to complete, and it will fill the gap for the 2010 year build πŸ™‚

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