In the test 15 years ago: An almost inaudible gaming PC for 3,100 euros

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In the test 15 years ago, the Intel Ultimo 07 (test) was a complete computer from the German OEM Besser-Leise, which was marketed as an almost inaudible PC suitable for gaming. With a price of around 3,100 euros, the manufacturer paid well for the mix of mid- and high-end hardware. It no longer exists today.

Table of contents

  1. 1 With Intel Core 2 Extreme and Nvidia GTS
  2. Good temperatures (for an insulated system)
  3. Conclusion

With Intel Core 2 Extreme and Nvidia GTS

The Ultimo 07 featured a mix of mid- and high-end hardware. The processor used was the Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800, an extremely fast and expensive CPU. When it came to the graphics card, Besser-Leise opted for a less extravagant model and used a GeForce 8800 GTS – compared to the faster GeForce 8800 GTX and Ultra, the lower energy consumption and thus waste heat was the convincing argument. Apart from these two main components, the computer had a Thermalright Ultra 120 for cooling the processor.

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Two gigabyte kit: Kingston HyperX, DDR2 800
Gainward GeForce 8800 GTS with quiet series cooling
A feast for the ears: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Music
Clean wiring with cable ties, all drive bays are full
Case ventilation with 120 mm Scythe fans. Quiet and effective
Good, safe processor cooling with Thermalrights Ultra 120

The components found in one insulated Silverstone TJ07 with three 120mm fans from Scythe Platz. The computer also impressed with the clean laying of the insulating material and the cables.

A somewhat unusual feature of the Ultimo 07 was the use of two 500 watt power supplies, one of which was used exclusively for the built-in GeForce 8800 GTS. The motivation behind the use of the two power packs was that they were very efficient models for the time, especially more efficient than individual power packs with an output of 1,000 watts. Accordingly, their fans turned up less and the PC was quieter overall.

Better-Leise “Intel Ultimo 07” Processor Intel Core 2 Extreme X6800 (2 × 2.93 GHz, 4 MB L2) coolerThermalright Ultra 120 motherboard Asus P5WDG2-WS Professional, i975X/iCH7R/6702PXH graphics card Gainward GeForce 8800 GTS, 640 MByte sound card Creative Sound Blaster X- Fi Xtreme Music PCI RAM 2 × 1024 MB Kingston HyperX DDR2 800, dual-channel power supply unit 2 × Seasonic S12-500 SS-500HT 500 watt DVD burner< /strong> 2 × Sony NEC Optiarc DVD RW AD-7170S 18x SATA burners hard drives2 × 500 GB Samsung SpinPoint Raid 0, SATA II housing Silverstone TJ07, insulated with noise blocker platinum fan 3 × Scythe SFLEX SFF21D 120 mm (~850 rpm)
2 × ADDA AD1212MB-A73GL 120 mm in the power supply (~1000 rpm)
1 × 70 mm radial as graphics card fan (~1500 rpm) Cardreader 50-in-1 ICY Box , silver Display VL Systems M-Play 202 Plus incl. remote control Total weight ~24 ​​kg Total price3,100 euros

Good temperatures (for an insulated system)

The Ultimo 07 had good temperatures for an insulated system, but had a few isolated hotspots. This affected the graphics card and the mainboard. In particular, the passively cooled chipset reached high temperatures of 60 °C. Overall, the system could nevertheless be attested to have good cooling, as all components were sufficiently cooled.

Temperature measurements

  • Maximum values:
    • CPU53
    • 1. Kern60
    • 2. Kern59
    • Motherboard45
    • GPU75
    • GPU Diode79
    • GPU Environment68
  • Minimum values:
    • CPU37
    • 1. Kern42
    • 2. Kern41
    • Motherboard41
    • GPU56
    • GPU Diode61
    • GPU Environment53

Unit: °C

If the Intel Ultimo 07 could do one thing, it was working quietly. In a normal office with a measured background noise level of 30.4 dB(A), the system was audible, but almost silent. When idling, the measured sound pressure level half a meter away from the front of the PC was a very quiet 31.7 dB(A). In the worst case, when the sound pressure level was measured from the case's lid, it was still quiet at 33.1 dB(A). The sound pressure level increased to 32.0 dB(A) at the front and 33.5 dB(A) at the lid under full load. The boot process with 40.4 dB(A) – when the graphics card turned up the fan for a second – and the operation of the DVD drive when data was copied, with 49.6 dB(A) confirmed the rule.

Loudness Measurements

    • Basic Level30.4
    • Idle (Front)31.7
    • Idle (Left Side)32.7
    • Idle (right side)32.9
    • Idle (rear)33.3
    • Idle (top)33.1
    • idle (left side – open)33.7
    • full load (front)32.0
    • full load (left side)33.1
    • Full load (right side)33.2
    • Full load (rear)33.4
    • Full load (top)33.5
    • Full load (left side – open)34.2
    • DVD burner (access/copy data, front)49.6
    • DVD Burner (DVD viewing, front)36.2
    • DVD burner (DVD burning, front)35.8
    • Boot process maximum ( Front)40,4

Unit: dB(A)

Conclusion

With the Intel Ultimo 07, Besser-Leise had a powerful and extremely quiet computer on offer. The selection of components was somewhat questionable with a comparatively disproportionately expensive main processor, a moderately powerful graphics card and only two GB of RAM. The system was definitely sufficient for gamers, but not necessarily worth the high purchase price of 3,100 euros. Anyone who put quiet operation above performance was still well advised with the Intel Ultimo 07 – assuming you have the necessary change.

In the category “In the test 15 years ago”, the editors have been taking a look at the test archive every Saturday since July 2017. The last 20 articles that appeared in this series are listed below:

  • Corsair's Voyager GT was the best USB stick for 100 euros< /li>
  • HD 2000 with RV610 & RV630 was more convincing than the R600
  • DDR3 celebrated its premiere with the Intel P35 at Asus
  • ATi CrossFire was 80 percent ahead – measured in dB(A)
  • Despite Vista, Halo 2 was a flop on the PC
  • Router, switch and NAS in one from Asus
  • Xigmatek stirred up the market for 25 euros with Direct-Touch
  • < li>The best gaming mouse was Razer's Death Adder

  • 5D ALUs didn't help the HD 2900 XT against the 8800 either
  • GeForce 8800 Ultra
  • The PlayStation 3 was much more than a game console
  • The G84 GPU of the GeForce 8600 GTS came in 80 nm
  • Five GeForce 8800 GTS 320 with G80 GPU at the limit
  • Windows ReadyBoost turned USB sticks into turbochargers
  • Intel's Core 2 Extreme QX6800 had four 2.93 GHz cores
  • The NZXT Zero had the best cooling for 140 euros
  • Water-cooled memory from OCZ
  • Cooler Masters cooling giant with two 120 mm fans
  • Logitech's luxury keyboard returns
  • Nvidia's GeForce 8800 GTS with halved graphics memory

More content of this type and many other reports and anecdotes can be found in the retro Corner in the forum of ComputerBase.