Systemax Wildcat AMD Athlon 64 FX-60 SLI Gaming PC

BIOS Details of the Systemax Wildcat Full Retail BIOS with all the Trimmings

When it comes to testing pre-configured PCs, we focus on the Out-of-Box experience.  That was we can accurately explain what an end-user is going to experience when they unpack the system, plug it in and start gaming, working or doing whatever they want.  Another item we assess is the system's added features, such as BIOS options, performance settings and overclocking options. 

Under that Advanced menu we found the Jumper Free Configuration section, which was home to many of the performance-related options of the Wildcat's BIOS.  Here we could set ASUS' AI overclocking to dynamically adjust clock speeds, or follow a set of profiles that ranged from 1, 3, 5, 8, or 10% increases, or each item could be altered manually.  CPU frequency was adjustable from 200-500MHz in 1MHz increments while PCIe Frequency ranged from 100MHz to 200MHz in 1MHz increments as well. 

Voltage options were more restrictive, with a simple Enable/Disable option.  Enabling CPU Over-Voltage added and offset of 200mV to VCORE while NB VCORE was upped to 1.3v and SB VCORE to 1.6v.  The Over-Voltage option for the HyperTransport raised from 1.2v or 1.3v while DDR voltage offered a full range of settings from 2.6v though 3.2v in .05 increments.  Enabling FID/VID Change unveiled Processor Frequency Multiplier settings of 6x-25x in .5x steps.  CPU voltage settings were broad and precise ranging from 1v - 1.5625v in .0125v increments. 

The CPU Configuration screen offered a view of the CPU's current configuration including Speed, L1 and L2 cache complements, Multiplier and core revision.  Additionally, a Memory Settings sub menu offered advanced memory options for performance tweaking.  The memory speed could be configured automatically or manually set from 100MHz - 250MHz in 33MHz increments.  Timing options were also available with CAS Latency ranging from 2, 3, 1.5 and 2.5 as well as a whole host of advance features too numerous to list.  Rounding out the BIOS features is a Hardware Monitor that reported CPU and Motherboard temperatures, CPU fan speeds and operating voltages. 

Test Systems Specifications Parade of Power

To give a complete picture of how the Systemax Wildcat performed, we compared our benchmark results to a host of other systems in its performance class.  Performance data was compiled from several recent reviews in an effort to paint a clear performance picture.  Every effort was made to configure each system as closely as possible, however, variation in driver versions and other hardware differences should be considered when making comparison.  With commercially available systems such as the Systemax Wildcat and Voodoo Omen, testing was performed with systems as they came configured from the manufacturer.