DigitalStorm BlackOps: Almost Too Fast
by Dustin Sklavos on December 29, 2010 12:45 AM ESTThe BlackOps in Practice: Build, Noise, Heat, and Power Consumption
So what is it like to actually use the DigitalStorm BlackOps? The system is obscenely powerful, but there are chinks in its armor that prevent me from being too excited about it, and I'm not talking about price. Machines like this are already priced past the point of reason and don't exist to produce bang-for-the-buck; they cater to customers who simply must have the best and most powerful desktop they can afford.
The first item on my list is basically the same complaint I've had about other pre-overclocked machines from boutique manufacturers: lazy overclocking. I'm starting to wonder if these towers come with water-cooling standard not because of its superior performance, but because it allows them to just dump a bunch of voltage into the processor, set the clocks high, and call it a day. DigitalStorm is guilty as sin for this: the overclock is achieved with 1.32V on the core, and the processor doesn't idle. Instead, the i7-950 just runs at 3.83GHz all the time. When you're paying this much for a tower, it would be nice to see a more finely tuned overclock than this because it plays hell on idle power consumption and results in a tower throwing more heat into the room than it needs to. When we get to those power numbers, you're going to see what I mean.
My second issue is kind of a silly one but it bears mentioning: there's no eSATA anywhere on this tower. eVGA's motherboard doesn't have an eSATA port (or any digital audio for that matter), making it a questionable choice for such a high-end machine. My personal tower—which cost maybe half as much to build, if that—shouldn't run circles around a computer like this in terms of connectivity.
Third and final complaint: while I'm glad DigitalStorm splashed out on the cooling and especially the case (the SilverStone Fortress really is a sight to see), I do feel like they cheaped out a bit on the memory and power supply. You can order a 1.2 kilowatt Corsair power supply but it'll cost twice as much as the one in this build. Likewise, I would've liked to see a better brand of memory than A-Data. A-Data's stuff works fine and the BlackOps was perfectly stable in testing, but I'd like to see a more reputable/performance oriented brand.
So, how about that power consumption? As it turns out, not so good. The DigitalStorm BlackOps idles at about 240 watts at the desktop. NVIDIA has made great strides in keeping idle power consumption low on their high-end cards, but that processor idling at such a high voltage and clock is a killer. When placed under different loads, I saw a peak consumption of about 660 watts. That's not horrible given what's in the tower, but I'll put it another way: while the BlackOps was running, I never turned the heater on in my apartment.
For comparison's sake I ran the same tests on my tower. I have an i7-930 overclocked to 3.6GHz, but it idles at 2GHz and the voltage drops. Likewise, I'm running a single AMD Radeon HD 5870 instead of a pair of GeForce GTX 580s. My idle consumption is 190 watts, which seems high until you realize I have three screens connected to the 5870 that keep its clocks up. Under the same load the BlackOps was tested with, my tower only consumes 320 watts. It's nowhere near as fast in games, but nonetheless it draws less than half the wattage the BlackOps does. Given that kind of power consumption, how does the BlackOps fare in terms of managing heat?
Really well, actually, and the smart case design (along with Corsair water-cooling and the improved coolers on the GTX 580s) keeps both thermals and noise down to reasonable levels. The iBuyPower Paladin XLC with SLI 470s generated far more noise under load than the BlackOps does. Of course, the BlackOps is doing a much more efficient job of dissipating all that heat...right into your living room. I can't stress that enough, a computer this powerful that draws this much current is going to noticeably increase room temperature. That's fine in the winter months, but when summer comes you may find a machine like this hitting your power bill from two sides: consumption on its own, and the air conditioning required to keep your living space habitable.
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tim851 - Thursday, December 30, 2010 - link
Who spends the premium of dual GTX 580s and then games in 1080p?I'd argue that NO game actually needs SLI 580s in 2560x1600. Thank you Xbox.
And where did you pull the 1/8 from?
My PC came in at just under 1000$ and I bought a 1500$ 30" on top of it. 'Cause I didn't feel like spending more on the PC just to fit your crazy a$$ logic.
If people were following your "logic", only those who somehow manage to build a PC for 15,000$ would buy 30-inchers. Very likely...
Zan Lynx - Monday, January 3, 2011 - link
Who buys a 30" monitor and doesn't know how to fix the DPI settings in the OS?Please don't be those people who buy 30" displays to run at 640x480 just to make the text bigger. Please.
sethiol - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
"The A-Data RAM ran flawlessly in the machine, but you'd rather see a different brand? Does <Brand X> RAM do something besides run flawlessly?""but I'd like to see a more reputable/performance oriented brand"
You miss the point. There are several brands out there, Corsair, Crucial, and OCZ. that might be considered better choices because of track record, design, or more suited to a high end build. A-Data is seen as the choice for builds on a slim budget. This build is not in that category.
"Is the Corsair more efficient, or quieter?" Point missed again.
"Your machine runs circles around this because it lacks E-Sata? Really?"
Once again, your either didnt read it all or missed the point. "shouldn't run circles around a computer like this in terms of connectivity."
All in all it appears you have selective reading. I couldnt have agreed more with Dustin. This was a half ass effort in overclocking, parts selection, and build. They got a very nice case with good ventilation. If your going to build a high end machine, you use high end parts all the way through the build. Also, sharpen your reading skills, he qualified every one of your questions, you half assed your reading.
Attic - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
Yes, well put sethiol. I thought Dustin did an excellecnt job of pointing out the bizarre drawbacks of a machine in this pricerange.A-Data Ram in a 3.5k system? Yes, tackled fine by author.
Subpar PSU?, well I too would like to know what PSU the system was outfitted with, but i'm going to assume it was one of the highly regarded brands that should be used in a 3.5k build.
No eSata, no digital audio? In a 3.5k build, yes this is absolutly worth sticking it to the builder for.
I understand corners being cut to hit a sub 2k build, though you don't really need to cut many. But when you add a 1.5k cieling to that build I think the buyer deserves more than what we see in this Digital Storm offering and Dustin got that point across without being dismissive of the other solid qualities that made up this machine.
For what its worth to anyone considering going with Digital Storm I have heard nightmare customer service stories from the only two guys I've talked to who decided to purchase from this boutique. Both got taken for a ride when their machines encoutered issues as opposed to just getting the issue resolved in an appropriate (read: quick and respectful manner)
Robear - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't RAM a commodity item? AFAIK, they all run the same chips: the only difference is really warranty and bling (heat spreaders, etc). This is where OCZ really came up in the world...Nit-picking aside, I do agree with GeorgeH here that if you're going to criticize a component, that you provide a substantiated reason and an alternative. I couldn't find what PSU brand was in this thing: only that it "should have been Corsair." I mean I love corsair as much as the next guy, but I think you need to provide more than a personal preference if you're going to put a component on blast.
Overall, not a bad article: i just think it needs more data and less 'opinion.'
It would be nice to see more boutique reviews, and to compare them to similar custom builds. Every boutique build I've seen is pit against some build that's clearly inferior in spec, causing me to all but dismiss the article as a covert advertisement. Boutique buyers assume they're paying a premium. Why not define that premium?
james.jwb - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
no, not really. What you get is speed binning, this is what you pay for. In a build of this price, it should have a higher end memory part, unless the adata has or is capable of tight timings etc etc...Slash3 - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
I've had some A-Data DDR2 over the years that overclocked like a cat on fire, and I've had Crucial and Corsair that wouldn't go a half inch past the stock speeds. Depends on the PCB used and the memory chips used.dustcrusher - Thursday, December 30, 2010 - link
I'm an overclocking newb, so I have a question:A-Data's memory is advertised to run at voltages from 1.55-1.75. Assuming that it isn't just marketing hype (making a bullet point of something standard to most quality RAM), could this explain why DigitalStorm chose A-Data over more established brands?
This of course assumes that A-Data didn't cut them a sweet deal on bulk RAM, of course.
Nentor - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
So basically there are four reasons A-Data ram should not be used?1) "Track record." This seems unfounded to me. Please prove A-Data does not have a track record as great as OCZ or Corsair.
Wikipedia (I'm no fan, but hey!) "A-DATA is the world's 2nd largest DRAM Module Suppliers with 7.1% market share." OCZ can't match that, sorry.
2) "Design." Just looks eh? Means nothing quality wise, but since this case has a window it makes sense.
3) "More suited to a high end build." This sure sounds nice, but in the end is just marketing speak. What does it mean actually. WHY is it more suited? If you answer timings, we need more benches first before we can decide.
4) "A-Data is seen as the choice for buils on a slim budget." This is perspective only. An enforced marketing perspective mostly, because the other brands advertise more and have more image because of this. Maybe it is time for this perspective to change?
Personally I think this whole build lacks everywhere (home premium?), keeping the price in mind and the reviewer has been INCREDIBLY soft on it.
GeorgeH - Wednesday, December 29, 2010 - link
" There are several brands out there, Corsair, Crucial, and OCZ. that might be considered better choices because of track record, design, or more suited to a high end build. A-Data is seen as the choice for builds on a slim budget. This build is not in that category."More suited? For what? Apparently the A-Data RAM ran flawlessly, so why not use it? What objective difference is there between a Corsair gaming module and the A-Data RAM that was used?
"Point missed again."
No, you missed the point completely. Subjective brand impressions are fine for a forum post, but have no place in an objective review. Corsair got their reputation from objective reviews - if another product works just as well, then that product is just as good as a Corsair product and has just as much validity in a high end build.
"shouldn't run circles around a computer like this in terms of connectivity."
The only thing required to implement E-Sata is a cable and a bracket. That's not really missing connectivity (no, I didn't miss that part) so much as missing cabling. Furthermore, USB 3.0 is already much more popular (in terms of external hard drives available for sale), so really there isn't any missing performance or capability in this machine; there's only a minor inconvenience for those with E-Sata devices. A flaw? Sure. Running circles? Not even a little bit.