Absolute Multimedia Outrageous Ultra GeForce DDR

Overclocking

Despite the use of a self-proclaimed "Gaming Fan", the Absolute Multimedia Outrageous Ultra GeForce DDR would only provide a core overclock of 36 MHz, the same amount of speed that we were able to squeeze out of the original Outrageous GeForce DDR with its run of the mill square heatsink. Although the circular heatsink may appear drastically different and may offer a tad bit more surface area compared to standard heatsinks due to its height, in practice these qualities do not provide a more effective cooling solution. As the old saying goes, looks can be deceiving. It appears that the circular heatsink's striking look is a perfect example of this saying in action. Not that a core speed of 156 MHz is anything to be ashamed of, it is just that it is no better than the maximum core speed reached by a standard heatsink/fan combination.

On the plus side of cooling, the heatsink comes attached to the GPU surface via a thin layer of thermal grease, perfect for aiding heat transfer from the hot GPU surface to the easily cooled heatsink. In the case of the GeForce 256, where the GPU runs rather hot, use of thermal grease can make a large difference compared to cards that do not utilize this method of bonding. Often times thermal grease is avoided due to the fact that it is often hard to put on the GPU in a production line. Using a lesser attachment method, such as thermal glue, saves money by saving labor costs. Absolute Multimedia did not cut corners here, as the thermal grease was properly applied.

Previously we discussed the poor memory overclocking we experienced on the Outrageous GeForce DDR. This is most likely the fault of Infineon and not Absolute Multimedia, as the quality of the SGRAM chips seen on the Outrageous GeForce DDR must have been lower than average. We are happy to say, since it appears that Infineon has solved its production problems, that the memory clock of the new Outrageous Ultra GeForce DDR was much more forgiving. We were able to push the 6 ns SGRAM chips to 350 MHz (175 MHz DDR), 24 MHz higher than we were able to obtain previously. With a core speed of 156 MHz and a memory clock speed of 350 MHz, the Absolute Multimedia Outrageous Ultra GeForce DDR performs at least on par with the other DDR GeForce cards reviewed, surpassing many in some cases.