Conclusion and Score
Performance wise, it's the fastest system I've ever had the pleasure of using. It has some performance downsides, all of which I've covered in previous pages, but they still allow it to perform like precious few x86 desktop systems available today. Using the fastest available consumer x86 processor helps, although let down a little by the choice of motherboard and definitely by the memory.The case is pleasant and noise is kept to an absolute minimum. Not as quiet as the UltraStation, who's graphics card would turn its fan off completely, but not loud enough to make you wish you'd bought something else. Power doesn't mean an earsplitting din, the Platina pleases in that area. While I'd have preferred a different chassis for the money, it's easy to work with and Time have the cabling issues inherent with wide IDE ribbons down to an absolute minimum. It's single tool access to all components, you'll need nothing more than a Philips screwdriver to work inside the case.
The inclusion of plenty of USB ports was nice to see, not forgetting the 4 downstream ports on the monitor, should you wish to sacrifice a port on the motherboard for that pleasure. FireWire, two ports worth thanks to the Audigy, means that usage of the Platina as a simple DV editing box, although without any dedicated capture and effects hardware like a Matrox RT200, is within its remit. The 160GB hard disk, nice and quiet and very fast, makes that possible too. The 250GB drive from the UltraStation would have been nice.
DVD-RW capability gives you 4.7GB of removable storage for archiving your data. Pinnacle InstantCD+DVD is a decent compliment to the drive, although a copy of Nero would have put a bigger smile on my face.
The monitor is excellent, with better geometry performance than the identical model that shipped with the UltraStation and all the benefits of 18" of visible screen size and perfectly flat glass in all directions. A highlight of the package.
Sound wise, the Audigy 2 ZS and Inspire T7700 bundle are about as good as it gets, without spending a silly amount of money on a high end 8 speaker setup. Highly recommended to anyone, not just buyers of a Platina Viper FX, the T7700's are subjectively better than my regular ZXR-500's.
The software bundle is scarce, criminal given the price you'll pay for one of these systems, something I have to knock marks off for. The CPU on its own may cost more than £600, but Time shouldn't offset that by saving money on the bundled software. That brings me nicely on to the final price.
Brace yourselves. £2049 is the VAT and shipping included price for the system, as specified and tested. It's going to be hard to justify that kind of money when 3.2GHz P4's with DVD-RW and TFT monitor's are £500 cheaper from most OEM vendors. You really have to decide whether the FX-51 is the CPU for you, since it undoubtedly eats up most of the cost. There's no benefit to the 64-bit support on the CPU in the Platina, it doesn't ship with a 64-bit operating system. You're paying for 32-bit x86 performance only just now.
The fact the system doesn't ship with DDR400 memory for that price is criminal. I'd recommend asking Time to sort that out for you, should you wish to purchase one. Performance would see a nice boost and you deserve it when spending £2000 on a PC.
In summary, excellent performance that could easily be even better, a meagre software bundle but excellent monitor and speaker system to balance it out. Good features mean you get some value back for your substantial outlay. Disappointing in a few key areas for the money, could so easily have been much better.
To fix, Time need to offer you a better chassis, keyboard and mouse, DDR400 modules and a bit more software. As it stands, those issues detract from a formidable package just a bit too much to recommend it. A valiant attempt at the ultimate home PC, but it falls just a bit too short for the money you'll pay.
Score
Pro's
Excellent CPU subsystem performanceGood graphics performance
Nice clean case internals
Speaker and soundcard package
Good monitor
Con's
No DDR400 memorySubstandard software bundle
Stupidly expensive, even for FX-51
Poor mouse still, surely a better solution exists?
Buggy first generation nForce3 Pro motherboard
Thanks
Komplett for the digital camera used to take the shots.Time Computers for the sample.
