02 - A closer look

The Powercolor X600 features 128MB of GDDR RAM in 4 memory modules from Hynix. Hynix is probably the best memory choice for graphics cards. This will probably show up during the overclocking section of our tests.

A close-up of the Hynix memory module.

However, with only a 128-bit memory bus, it seems the X600 won't be able to compete with the PCX 5900 from Nvidia, just as the 9600XT couldn't keep up with the FX5900.

Even though the R380 chipset, on which the X600XT is built, is a brand new chipset from ATI, not much has changed from the 9600's R360. We found the memory clock speed increased from 300MHz to 370MHz and the X600 now supports OpenGL 2.0 where the 9600 stopped at version 1.5. Everything else has remained the same.

The fan dressed up in its octapus suit is the first thing we noticed when we first got the card in our hands.

What is really impressive with the Powercolor X600XT is the way it cools its core and memory. On the PCB, as you can see for yourself, there are four silver-coloured heatsinks over the memory chips and a fan over the processor unit. This way, the core is relieved of hot air which then flows through the memory heatsinks and away from the card.

The rear side of the X300 (click to enlarge)