Ballistics Report: WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO

Pros

Performance:It goes without saying that the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO is one helluva fast graphics card thanks to its GeForce FX 5950 Ultra core and 256-bit DDR memory operating at 950MHz. This card screams at high resolutions, even with anti-aliasing and anisotropic filtering turned on.

Cooling: Leadtek’s Air Surround cooler gets the job done well thanks to its massive copper heatsink and 60x60mm fan. Unlike the RADEON 9800 XT, this isn’t poorly machined copper either. We found that it performs slightly better than NVIDIA’s stock cooler, but we would’ve preferred it if Leadtek would have drawn the air from the outside of the case (like the NVIDIA cooler) rather than the air within the case.

Acoustically the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO is quieter than the WinFast A350 Ultra TDH MyVIVO, but it is a little louder than the stock NVIDIA GeForce FX 5950 Ultra and RADEON 9800 XT. They’re all pretty easy on the ears however, and in 2D mode the WinFast A380’s fan spins slower, in fact the noise level blends in with the CPU cooler. And of course, don’t forget that dust filter.

Features: While the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO is based on NVIDIA’s reference GeForce FX 5950 Ultra design, it does have video input support, making it a good choice for video editing duties as well as Leadtek’s thoughtful power connector which is placed parallel to the edge of the board’s PCB. This makes installation a little bit easier.

Packaging: Leadtek includes an extensive collection of software and hardware accessories with the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO. WinFox II is used for hardware monitoring and overclocking, while WinFast PVR adds multimedia functionality to the WinFast card. WinFast PVR is used to capture video; this software supports MPEG1/MPEG2, AVI, Windows Media, VCD and DVD video formats as well as the ability to burn videos directly to DVD. Leadtek also boasts picture-in-picture and timeshifting support, but this simply refers to WinFast PVR’s ability to display live video while recording in PIP mode and the ability to view, rewind, or stop the playback of recorded video while recording.

For video editing, Ulead’s VideoStudio 7 SE DVD is included, as well as DVD Movie Factory 2 SE for burning home movies to DVD or CD. Cool 3D, GunMetal, and Big Mutha Truckas round out the software package.

On the hardware side Leadtek now includes YPrPb output connections on the MyVIVO cable (which has S-Video and composite inputs), so you can hook your HDTV set up to the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH. Also included is a DVI-to-VGA adapter, S-Video cable, power adapter, and an RCA cable. Basically, the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO has it all as far as accessories are concerned.

Price and Availability (among GeForce FX 5950 Ultra cards): Currently, the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO is among one of the least expensive GeForce FX 5950 Ultra listings on Price Watch.

Cons

Value: With an MSRP of $500, obviously the WinFast A380 Ultra TDH MyVIVO can’t be classified as a value card. You do get what you pay for, but if you’re looking for an NVIDIA-based card that offers more bang-for-the-buck, the GeForce FX 5900 128MB is pretty hard to pass up. It’s based on the same fundamental core as the WinFast A380 Ultra, but ships with less memory and at slower clock speeds.