Search found 761 matches

by AZBrandon
Mon Sep 27, 2010 9:56 am
Forum: Newcomers Briefing Room
Topic: Passive cooled opteron, borderline temps
Replies: 3
Views: 3418

A peltier adds heat. Yeah, it subtracts from the CPU side of the pad, but it adds to the heatsink side, which means in order to move, say, 50 watts, it will subtract 50 watts from the CPU side, move it to the heatsink side and have a "transportation cost" of 50 watts, so the heatsink will be absorbi...
by AZBrandon
Wed Sep 15, 2010 8:45 pm
Forum: The Silent Front
Topic: Cheap, readily available sound meter for SPCR forum members?
Replies: 54
Views: 58169

Good catch, I'm not sure why I can only assume some time in the past I scraped 35db off of a retailers site that had mislisted it. I thought it was exceptionally good for what was practically disposable sound meter. Probably just an error somewhere - I guess I missed it the last time this thread wa...
by AZBrandon
Wed Sep 15, 2010 8:38 pm
Forum: SPCR Article Discussion
Topic: Seagate Momentus XT: The Best of Both Worlds?
Replies: 32
Views: 22375

My take is that this is maybe a decent replacement for the stock/slow hdd in a laptop. If you have a desktop, just get a small SSD for OS/apps and slow/quiet HDD for data and get the best of both worlds. Yeah my wife's laptop has a slow bootup and application start time, partly due to the fact it's...
by AZBrandon
Wed Sep 15, 2010 8:35 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: The Pope's visit to an unreligious country
Replies: 40
Views: 20970

Here in the USA, the Catholic church funds something like a quarter of the hospitals. A lot of hospitals in the US, especially in my home state of Arizona, run a slim profit or actually loose money, even at the crazy prices that healthcare has reached. It's partly because hospitals do not turn peopl...
by AZBrandon
Tue Sep 14, 2010 9:44 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Eaarth
Replies: 123
Views: 98098

Global climate change is what is happening, and it will be made worse the longer we keep burning carbon fuels. I'm sorry, I don't see a date in there, or a reference to any peer-reviewed studies. Go ahead and cite your sources so we can see how much it costs to convert from fossil fuels to sustaina...
by AZBrandon
Tue Sep 14, 2010 9:30 am
Forum: The Silent Front
Topic: Cheap, readily available sound meter for SPCR forum members?
Replies: 54
Views: 58169

Why is the Scosche SPL1000 listed as 35 dB minimum? Every search on the internet suggests it has a 60 dB floor. link That's useful for some kinds of applications of course, but not anything for SPCR.
by AZBrandon
Tue Sep 07, 2010 11:11 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Eaarth
Replies: 123
Views: 98098

If you think it's expensive to change over to renewable energy -- it will be far more expensive NOT to. Uh - what do you mean by "not to"? Everybody knows that coal, oil, natural gas, uranium and other finite resources won't last forever, so of course there will be transition, duh! Decisions can't ...
by AZBrandon
Tue Sep 07, 2010 8:35 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Eaarth
Replies: 123
Views: 98098

the above numbers are being disputed, which is why we have included broad ranges. This is not the point we are trying to make – the point is incremental replacement of fossil fuel-based plants, especially cheap coal with more expensive technologies has the potential to lead to large increases in ...
by AZBrandon
Tue Sep 07, 2010 7:37 am
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Is this a good Energy-Efficient PC Build?
Replies: 6
Views: 4055

maalitehdas wrote:Your selected CPU is great, just for correction best performance / watt is reached with VIA C7 processors.
Maybe 5 years ago the C7 has the best performance per watt at the low end, but nowadays the Intel CULV processors take that honor.
by AZBrandon
Thu Sep 02, 2010 9:18 pm
Forum: CPU Cooling
Topic: P180 + noctua D14
Replies: 13
Views: 6742

I'm running a D14 in my P180 with an occasionally overclocked/overvolted AMD 1090T. I picked it because it's already a 125 watt rated chip and obviously even more than that when overclocked and overvolted. It's a nice cooler, but yeah - there's similar performing options that are both smaller and qu...
by AZBrandon
Wed Sep 01, 2010 7:34 pm
Forum: Green Computing
Topic: Best energy efficient monitor?
Replies: 28
Views: 41879

atmartens wrote:Dell Ultrasharp 24" still gets you 1920x1200.
Oh they're still out there, but I checked and the U2410 is CCFL backlit. It doesn't seem that any LED backlit monitors are 1920x1200. If they're out there, they are pretty rare indeed.
by AZBrandon
Tue Aug 31, 2010 4:00 pm
Forum: Green Computing
Topic: Best energy efficient monitor?
Replies: 28
Views: 41879

Virtually all LCD screens are LED backlit now, although that downside is that I don't think anybody makes 1920x1200 displays any longer. I picked up a 25.5" CCFL 1920x1200 display a couple months ago as they were being discontinued. Now everything is LED backlit, which is better, but all new monitor...
by AZBrandon
Tue Aug 31, 2010 3:39 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Eaarth
Replies: 123
Views: 98098

Wind power is right here, right now: zero fuel costs, zero pollution, zero waste. Be careful any time you say something has zero fuel costs when everybody knows that it's very expensive. Windmills are reasonably cost effective, yes, but they don't build themselves (lots of GHG's to manufacture, tra...
by AZBrandon
Mon Aug 30, 2010 11:41 am
Forum: Power Supplies
Topic: 80Plus Platinum (115v) finally exists
Replies: 20
Views: 11815

The real kicker factors in production cost. Generally, production cost is reflected in retail cost. If a platinum power supply is $200 and a gold power supply is $100, that usually indicates the R&D as well as production costs are higher and possibly (likely?) higher for the more expensive unit. Now...
by AZBrandon
Sun Aug 29, 2010 7:03 pm
Forum: Video Cards & Monitors
Topic: GTX 460 launched today
Replies: 93
Views: 68936

amstel wrote:Are all GTX 460 1GB high pitch whining free?
I don't think anyone can guarantee they "ALL" are, but I have seen many people including on the folding forum saying they noted their new 460's not whining, while the older generation cards did. It does seem promising.
by AZBrandon
Sat Aug 28, 2010 7:44 pm
Forum: System Advice / Troubleshooting
Topic: Which PSU should I buy? (X-400, X-650, AX750, Pro87+500)
Replies: 8
Views: 3979

Of that list, I would get the X-650. Seasonic is a proven excellent power supply builder and although it's a bit more expensive than the Enermax, I know there were a lot of complaints over the past few years over the inconsistency of how loud or quiet different power supply samples were. Some were e...
by AZBrandon
Sat Aug 28, 2010 9:17 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: My new refrigerator adventure (part green, part noise rant)
Replies: 22
Views: 19950

No gas, heating oil or anything like that. We have district heating here. We have a washer. No dryer though. They are still too inefficient for my liking. Also I love the smell our clothes has when it has been hanging outside. :D That's great to hear - I did a search and learned a bit about distric...
by AZBrandon
Sat Aug 28, 2010 9:00 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: No Bulldozer for the AM3 socket!
Replies: 17
Views: 9811

Considering Bulldozer is the first all-new architecture in a long time, it makes sense to me that it would get a new socket. I'm not sure what the statistics are, but I'd bet that the percentage of people who replace the CPU on their computer is no more than 5% of the market. Over half of all new co...
by AZBrandon
Sat Aug 28, 2010 8:49 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Sandy Bridge preview at Anandtech
Replies: 15
Views: 8987

While his article didn't specifically address the mobile computing market, I think that's where this chip will dominate. I've never been able to use laptops as my primary use computers since they were always significantly slower for the money than a desktop computer. Now, with 2.5" SSD's, a big part...
by AZBrandon
Thu Aug 26, 2010 11:56 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: My new refrigerator adventure (part green, part noise rant)
Replies: 22
Views: 19950

Natural gas is still a fossil fuel and by definition it is unsustainable. Worse yet, it's subject to political manipulation. See what Russia did last winter, cutting off the gas? That's garbage - we, the developed world, need to get away from ALL fossil fuels, especially any time you are importing t...
by AZBrandon
Thu Aug 26, 2010 8:13 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Eaarth
Replies: 123
Views: 98098

It's no wonder why the green/climate change movement is more accurately called the watermelon movement. Carbon taxes, green taxes, emissions trading schemes are just statist slush funds. I'd never heard that expression before, but here in the states there is a small but statistically significant mo...
by AZBrandon
Thu Aug 26, 2010 7:53 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: My new refrigerator adventure (part green, part noise rant)
Replies: 22
Views: 19950

I'm totally stunned by your numbers. They are HUGE ! Edit: Why are your using so much? Extremely low efficiency on appliances or what? I just don't get it. Are you using gas or heating oil for anything? I don't have any way to attach a power gauge to my water heater, but I know for a fact that's a ...
by AZBrandon
Wed Aug 25, 2010 12:52 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: My new refrigerator adventure (part green, part noise rant)
Replies: 22
Views: 19950

Now we live in a 136 m2 appartment with loads more appliances. + we got a 1½ year old boy now. (and expecting a girl dec. 19) :D We use ~2500vkWh/year now. That's still crazy-low. That's less than 7 kw/h per day. Are you sure that's right? I use more than 7 kw/h just to do two loads of laundry (I'...
by AZBrandon
Wed Aug 25, 2010 8:53 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Eaarth
Replies: 123
Views: 98098

The easiest way to live green is to be poor. Consuming resources takes money, so the only way to truly reduce the usage of resources is to make everybody poor. The more poor, the lower the resource usage. This is proved by the UN statistics of per-capita income versus per-capita resource usage. In c...
by AZBrandon
Mon May 17, 2010 3:11 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Life Sucks
Replies: 92
Views: 73208

There is no "point" to life. Again, all of it comes down to personal beliefs. If you want to believe there is no point, it's certainly your right to believe whatever you want to. I choose life and I choose to believe in something greater than nothing. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ...
by AZBrandon
Thu Feb 25, 2010 10:15 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Not a hero, not even close.
Replies: 36
Views: 21775

Whoever said all atheists are "enlightened people who are smarter than everyone else" -- if someone did in fact make that argument -- was not having his finest intellectual hour. To answer your question, it was a satirical response to the "what's wrong" thread and the funny posts in it. This one se...
by AZBrandon
Thu Feb 25, 2010 9:23 am
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Not a hero, not even close.
Replies: 36
Views: 21775

It's apparent from reading his manifesto that this guy was an atheist. He rails against any type of church, saying they are all conning people out of their money, basically that you're an idiot if you believe in God. So how do you atheists reconcile such things? The atheists here always maintain tha...
by AZBrandon
Thu Dec 24, 2009 7:55 am
Forum: CPUs and Motherboards
Topic: Upgrading an Athlon 64 3200+ to a dual core...
Replies: 15
Views: 10338

my S754 Venice 3400+ can only be undervolted to 1.35V from 1.40V stock you mean - at stock speed? Any Athlon can be undervolted to 1.1V 1GHz. X2 would draw then about 18W at load (I measured some time ago). A bad chip draws twice what a good one of the same model does. s939 X2 must be really cheap ...
by AZBrandon
Mon Dec 14, 2009 1:46 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Compulsory Voting
Replies: 43
Views: 16366

If rich people somehow control all the votes, why do they have to pay all the taxes? Here in USA, we don't have that problem. The richest 1% have to pay 12% of all the money collected by the government, and the richest 10% pay out nearly HALF the money collected! source . We're so awesome that the b...
by AZBrandon
Fri Dec 11, 2009 2:56 pm
Forum: Off Topic
Topic: Compulsory Voting
Replies: 43
Views: 16366

With respect AZ I believe you are confusing compulsory voting with direct Democracy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_democracy Andy No, I've not confused anything. When people who don't even care enough about their country to show up and vote at all are forced into something, the results will b...