ELSA ERAZOR X SDR GeForce

In general, the GeForce cards that are on the market today are all targeted at gamers with higher end systems. Due to the extreme speed of the GeForce chip itself, a card such as the ERAZOR X would provide little improvement over a TNT2 based card in slower systems where the GeForce would be able to work faster than the CPU could put out. Once this factor has been taken into account, the second issue to think about is whether buying a SDR GeForce is worth it with the recent arrival of DDR GeForce cards. It is true that an SDR GeForce card, such as the ELSA ERAZOR X will run $50 to $100 dollars cheaper than its DDR counterpart, but in this case price does dictate performance. Often, if having the fastest card possible is not of main concern, a TNT2-Ultra or a TNT2-Plus based card can provide almost comparable performance to the GeForce in slower machines. On the other hand, if your machine can keep up, the GeForce SDR does provide some bang for the buck (when compared to the DDR version).

As far as SDR GeForce cards go, the ELSA ERAZOR X is middle of the range, both performance wise and utility wise. The card does come boxed with a game demo CD, however it does not come with any full game titles, once again placing the card in the middle of the pack. As far as performance goes, all GeForce cards tested with 183 MHz SDRAM (5.5 Ns) appear to perform almost identically. ELSA appears to have done a good job in making its own reference design, an engineering feat that is not a trivial matter. This excellent design is reflected in the high overclocking speeds reached in the card. In addition, the ERAZOR X has support for ELSA's own 3D Revelator glasses, LCD based glasses that enhance the 3D images seen in Direct3D game. It does this by rendering alternating frames at different angles, a quality the glasses make up for by opening and closing one eye at the same speed (using LCD technology, like polarizing glasses but much faster). In theory, the net effect is a 3D image created by each eye viewing a different frame and angle. If you are looking to use these glasses, ELSA suggests you use their card for best results, making the ERAZOR X a prime choice. In theory, however, ELSA does provide Revelator support for all NVIDIA processor based cards.

The choice to buy the ELSA ERAZOR X over a comparable GeForce SDR card is not an easy one to make. On one hand, the ELSA card contains excellent monitor tweaking utilities, the ChipGuard utility which prevents the card from ever becoming a coaster, and fits NLX form factor. On the other hand, the drivers are a convoluted and the ChipGuard feature is not that useful in normal circumstances. Then there is the final line: price. The ELSA ERAZOR X actually runs on the more expensive side of SDRAM based SDR cards with no video features. This is most likely due to the high quality of products that come out of ELSA, making a first time buyer a life long supporter. In addition the price increase may be due to the design and test processes that come along with the production of a board. Most companies simply use NVIDIA's reference design, however to make the card NLX form factor ELSA had to produce and test their own design.

As far as NLX case owners go, this card is nothing less than a blessing. It is often difficult to find powerful components that fit this form factor, yet ELSA delivers, providing an essential upgrade for aging NLX form factor graphics cards. For the rest of us out there with ATX or AT cases, the ERAZOR X is a nice purchase, if you are willing to pay the price for the name. The ability for an overclock assures that some extra performance can be squeezed out of the card, which brings us to the final conclusion: if you want the fastest and best card on the market now, get a GeForce DDR; if you want a solid second best performer that has overclocking potential and good brand name recognition at a higher price, the ELSA ERAZOR X is worth a look; if you want a high performance NLX form factor card, the ERAZOR X is a gift from above.