High Definition content is the future of entertainment! Playing High Definition content on current generation PCs can bog down the fastest processors because there is more data to handle. Similar to the need for DVD accelerators a few years back, nVIDIA PureVideo enables computer users to view MPEG-2/DVD and WMV HD formats without slowing the PC to a crawl.

The PureVideo standard incorporates a hardware accelerator for the afore mentioned MPEG-2/DVD, and Microsoft Windows Media HD Video standards (WMV HD). According to nVIDIA's documentation on PureVideo, the GPU (GeForce 6 and 7 series GPUs) takes on video decoding tasks from the CPU, and the end result is smoother, shutter free HD playback. nVIDIA PureVideo also supports most current and future high definition formats. The system seems to be built with a good degree of future proofing for upcoming standards - as it should be.

PureVideo is more than just a media accelerator; it also includes features to improve video picture quality. If you believe the marketing; DVD, cable, and satellite video provide poor crispness, clearness and smoothness that consumers are desperate to be "saved from." nVIDIA's PureVideo technology applies spatial temporal de-interlacing to apparently deliver a better image than traditional de-interlacing can muster. PureVideo also fixes the 3:2 pull down problem that can arise from 24 fps video being converted to 30 fps for viewing on TVs or monitors. By recovering the original 24 frame content, PureVideo apparently allows for a clear crisper image.

PureVideo can also scale videos to any resolution, while maintaining a relatively detailed picture. This means users can view lower resolution videos at a high resolution without suffering too much from blocky or blurry pictures.

To test PureVideo's HD accelerating capabilities, we decided to play one video through Windows Media Player 10, which was downloaded from Microsoft's WMV HD Content Showcase. The Discoverers (IMAX) video is available in both 720P and 1080P formats, and CPU utilization was monitored through Task Manager to give a general indication of system load.

With the 720P version of the Discoverers video playing back, CPU usage immediately jumped to 27-36%. There was a small blip while running the video that saw CPU usage jump to 47%, but that was for only a second.

The 1080P version of the Discoverers video is a lot more demanding and here CPU usage jumps between 45-60%. While that sounds high, with a videocard that does not support HD acceleration, CPU usage stays stuck at 100% and the video quality is choppy.

Next up, overclocking a passive videocard; a futile attempt for more speed or worth the effort?

Overclocking a Passive Videocard

Overclocking Results:

Stock Overclocked GPU (Core) Speed: 515 MHz 617 MHz Memory Speed: 824 MHz 875 MHz If you're new to Overclocking and not sure what to do, check out these two excellent Guides for some pointers: Overclocking the CPU and Memory Overclocking the Videocard

Starting with the core first, it was increased in 10 MHz intervals and seemed up to the overclocking challenge. The 6600GT cracked the 600 MHz barrier before hitting the wall at 617 MHz.

Up next was 2.5ns Infineon DDR2 BGA DRAM. Starting at 824 MHz, the memory was overclocked in 5 MHz intervals. A speed of 875 MHz was the fastest it could manage, however it is a pretty big handicap when compared to most other 6600GTs.

PCStats Test System Specs:

processor: amd athlon64 4000+ clock speed: 12 x 200 mhz = 2.4 ghz motherboards: asus a8n-sli premium (nf4-sli) videocard: ati radeon x850 xt pe msi rx850xt-td256e msi rx800xt-vtd256e ati radeon x800 xl powercolor x700 pro msi nx7800gtx-vt2d256e (single mode) msi nx7800gtx-vt2d256e (sli mode) asus en7800gt 2dhtv/256m/osp/a (single mode) asus en7800gt 2dhtv/256m/osp/a (sli mode) msi nx6800gt-t2d256e msi nx6800-td128e (single) msi nx6800-td128e (sli mode) msi nx6600gt-td128e (single mode) msi nx6600gt-td128e (sli mode) gigabyte gv-nx66t256de memory: 2x 512mb mushkin pc3200 l2 v2 hard drive: 74gb wd raptor 10k rpm sata hdd cdrom: aopen 52x combo powersupply: pc power & cooling turbocool 510 sli heatsink: stock athlon64 4000+ hsf software setup windowsxp build 2600 nforce4 6.53 catalyst 5.10 detonator 78.01 benchmarks 3DMark03 3DMark05 AquaMark3 Halo FarCry Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory Doom 3 FEAR Quake 4 AA+AF Benchmarks FarCry FEAR Doom 3