Xworks X8i-C2D - MCAD - October 2007

The Xworks X8i-C2D is aimed squarely at mid-range CAD users who need high levels of compute power, but whose 3D demands are not quite so exceptional. Under single threaded applications the machine’s Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 is possibly the fastest CPU on the market at the moment with a front side bus of 1,333MHz and a clock speed of 3GHz. And when coupled with the brand new Intel DP35DPM, which incorporates the new generation P35 chipset, it delivers some of the fastest computational scores we’ve seen for our SolidWorks STEP import test. The two CPU cores of the Core 2 Duo E6850 will offer enough flexibility for most designers and engineers, though if you’re looking for a true multi-tasking machine, for serious analysis or rendering work, then a Quad Core machine should really be on your shopping list.

ATI’s brand new FireGL V5600 should keep your 3D models running smoothly in virtually all CAD applications. However, because this card is so new, it has not yet been certified for Inventor 2008 and this is illustrated by the poor scores in OpenGL mode. We expect this to jump up over the next few months, but with the card’s excellent performance in DirectX mode there is little cause for concern, even in the short term.

There’s nearly 400GB of storage inside the X8i-C2D and this is made up of a fast (10,000RPM) Western Digital Drive for OS and applications, and a 320GB 7,200RPM drive for storage. Many CAD users may find this excessive, particularly if you’re working in a networked PDM environment, but this can easily be taken off the specification at time of purchase.

It’s good to see XWorks has finally opted for a better quality chassis [In the opinion of MCAD magazine] than the one it used to ship with its Core 2 Duo machines. When you’re spending £1,000+ on a workstation you expect the quality of the components to be reflected in the quality of the case. The new Antec P180B is not only solid in construction, but with its simple lines and matt black finish it actually looks quite stylish. 

If I had to find fault with the X8i-C2D it would be that it only ships with 2GB RAM, not the 4GB that you would usually expect from a machine of this specification, but I really would be scraping the bottom of the barrel there. All in all Xworks has produced another excellent machine, which should more than satisfy the requirements of any mid-range CAD user out there.

"...Xworks has produced another excellent machine"

Specifications

• Xworks X8i-C2D
• Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 (2x 3.00GHz - 4MB Cache) - 1333MHz Front Side Bus
• Intel DP35DPM Mainboard (Intel P35 chipset)
• 2GB (2x1GB) Corsair TwinX2 XMS2 PC-6400 DDR-2 800MHz
• ATI FireGL V5600 (512MB) graphics card
• 1 x 74GB Western Digital 10,000RPM Serial ATA Raptor / 1x Western Digital 320GB S-ATA II
• Samsung 20x DVD+/-R/RW/RAM Drive
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition (SP2) or XP x64 Edition

Xworks X8i-C2Q - MCAD - January 2007

"...In terms of components, Xworks' X8i-C2Q is impressive throughout. "

Intel’s Quad Core process or, the Core 2 Extreme QX6700, looks set to become a popular choice among high-end
CAD/CAM/CAE users in the coming months.It melds impressive single core speeds with excellent potential for multithreading and multitasking in future software developments.

XWorks has taken this new generation chip and put it inside its latest X8i-C2Q workstation, which is supported by Intel’s new Quad Core D975XBX2 Motherboard. This is an evolution of Intel’s D975XBX board, a popular choice of workstation vendors over the past year, and one which offers multiple PCI Express slots for future expansion, not only for additional graphics, but for potentially offloading traditional CPU tasks to GPGPUs (General Purpose Graphics Processing Units).

While this is more of a technology for tomorrow’s CAD/CAM/CAE applications, today’s GPU requirements are taken care of a single 512MB ATI FireGL V7300, which put in some extremely impressive 3D graphics scores under our 3ds Max 9 benchmark. This is one application in which ATI still has a lead over arch rival Nvidia, but Nvidia’s Quadro FX cards still look to be the ones to beat when it comes to Inventor 11 and SolidWorks 2005. With the new Vista Operating System, and new generation graphics architectures on the horizon, it will be very interesting to see how this battle pans out in 2007.

Elsewhere in the X8i-C2Q, XWorks has opted for a single 74GB Serial-ATA 10,000RPM drive, which while providing good performance, some may find its capacity a little restrictive. At the other end of the storage spectum, CAD 2’s Imagine QX64 offers a whopping 320GB of hard disk for data and a performance 150GB Raid 0 array for OS and applications, though this is naturally reflected in the price of the two systems. A balance between the two is likely to satisfy the requirements of the average user, though workstation storage should be specified to dovetail most effectively with any network storage. There is, for example, little point in having a 320GB hard drive inside your machine if all your data is stored on a server. In terms of components, XWorks’ X8i-C2Q is impressive throughout but the quality of the chassis does not suitably reflect its £2,000 price tag, and feels a little lightweight in its construction. This aside, the machine is still a good proposition for design visualisation or high-end CAE users who are able to take advantage of the powerful graphics and plentiful
processor cores at their disposal.

Specifications

• Xworks X8i-C2Q
• Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (4x 2.67GHz - 2x4MB Cache) - 1066MHz Front Side Bus
• Intel D975XBX2 Mainboard (Intel 975X chipset)
• 4GB (4x1GB) Corsair TwinX2 XMS2 PC-6400 DDR-2 800MHz
• ATI FireGL V7300 (512MB) graphics card
• 1 x 74GB Western Digital 10,000RPM Serial ATA Raptor / 1x Western Digital 320GB S-ATA II
• Samsung 18x DVD+/-R/RW/RAM Drive
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition (SP2) or XP x64 Edition (With free Vista upgrade coupon)

Xworks X8i-C2D - ComputerandVideoGames - January 2007

"...It goes like sh*t off a shovel and we love it but there's options galore to overclock if you so want, not that there's much of a need.

...in fact, we liked the X8i so much, we're going to keep it and make it our review and test machine for all forthcoming PC games that come CVG's way over the next few months - making it our PC of choice for 2007"

We've long cast envious glances over at our colleagues on PC Zone. Why? Well it's not because of their good looks, stellar charm and pearly white teeth (although they're obviously all major factors). No, rather it's the great hulking beast of a games PC which sits ominously in the corner of their office section, which takes every graphically and CPU intensive modern PC game they can throw at it before spitting them out in flawless polygons of perfection.

"Time to get in on a bit of that action," we thought, so a quick call to those nice people up at XWorks and soon a shiny black box of its own was speeding our way in the form of the X8i-C2D, which you can see pictured above. Okay, so a PC case isn't going to be raising your gaming pulse anytime soon, but naturally when the box arrived we unwrapped it as quickly as possible and were soon field testing it with an array of high end PC titles.

Okay, so we're not so quite so hung up on pure tech specs, but rather its gaming performance which floats our boat, however a quick glance at the payload on your right will quickly confirm to you that this is the high end games-playing PC that you've always dreamed of, but one which could quite possibly bring tears to your bank manager's eyes.

The Intel D975XBX2 Mainboard is certainly a tried and tested favourite from Zone's Buyer's Guide and once it's paired with the Intel Core Duo E6700 there's really no need to tweak anything (especially as its cooled by the copper-plated Zalman). It goes like shit off a shovel and we love it but there's options galore to overclock if you so want, not that there's much of a need.

Still, moving onto the graphical splendours, the GeForce 8800GTX (which was released back in November to much acclaim) plugged into the mainboard has allowed us to lord it all over our Zone colleagues as they struggled along with their mere GeForce 7950GX2 (only kidding fellas). The 8800GTX's fully DirectX10 compatible too, so when Vista and all it's goodies hit later this year, you'll be able to get some absolutely blistering visuals on DX10 games like Crysis. The addition of two Gigs worth of fast DDR-2 800MHz RAM might seem a bit excessive, but then that's what this PC is all about - and with high end games like Battlefield 2142 gobbling up system resources, those two gigs can really make a difference. The onboard audio from Zone's version has also been replaced by a Creative X-Fi which delivers crisp, smooth sounds with none of the lag they experienced.

But for us really it's all about the performance with some of today's high end PC titles and we've fed the X8i -C2D with some top quality fare to give it a proper work out. Rainbow Six Vegas is one of the most demanding modern FPS's, but this machine had it running smooth and sweet as a nut and the bright lights and neon glare of Vegas looked simply awesome. Next up was Creative Assembly's Medieval II: Total War and with thousands of individual medieval warriors sauntering across the battlefield, you might expect some slowdown and lag. However, the X8i gobbled it up and spat it out, with you able to zoom in and enjoy the individual man-to-man combat which makes this the strategy general of choice. It looked so lovely that at one point, when we sat back to admire our handiwork and the sheen on the medieval warriors' armour, we were almost totally surprised by a French counter attack. Almost.

Our final playtest involved a wander around the wonders of Turbine's new MMO Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar. While the rest of the CVG team were monkeying around with draw distances and graphical settings to get a smooth look and feel on their bog standard office PCs, we were boldly striding around JRR Tolkien's fantasy world with all settings turned to max and the epic world brought magnificently to life. By the end we were sitting in the corner stroking the X81's case and muttering, "Our precious, ooour precioooous".

Downsides? Well, of course all this high end PC loveliness comes at a price and in this case that price is £1495 (or £1756.63 Inc. VAT), but for what you're getting, that's actually pretty damn reasonable for a machine that's going to last you years.

If you've got some cash to burn and want to invest in a ninja level PC gaming rig, then the X8i has all the right credentials and then some. In fact, we liked the X8i so much, we're going to keep it and make it our review and test machine for all forthcoming PC games that come CVG's way over the next few months - making it our PC of choice for 2007. We haven't told Xworks yet of course, but they live a long way away and if anyone asks, you haven't seen us, right?

Specifications

• Xworks X8i-C2D
• Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 (2x 2.67GHz - 4MB Cache)
• Intel D975XBX2 Mainboard (Intel 975X chipset)
• 4GB (4x1GB) Corsair TwinX2 XMS2 PC-6400 DDR-2 800MHz
• NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTX (768MB) graphics card
• 1 x 150GB Western Digital 10,000RPM Serial ATA Raptor / 1x Western Digital 500GB S-ATA II
• Samsung 18x DVD+/-R/RW/RAM Drive
• Creative X-Fi Xtrememusic
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition (SP2) or XP x64 Edition (With free Vista upgrade coupon)

Xworks X8i-C2D - MCAD - October 2005

"...the combination of dual core processing power and high-end graphics is sure to make the X8i-C2D an attractive option for users of multithreaded visualisation applications like 3ds Max."

introduction of Intel’s new dual core processors has shifted the landscape a little in the workstation sector. The standard Pentium D processor provides users with a much lower price point with which to buy into a dual processor system, but this comes at the expense of Hyper-Threading, Intel’s virtual dual processor technology.

With Hyper-Threading built in, Intel’s dual core Pentium Extreme Edition offers a different proposition, with little to differentiate the processor from two Xeon CPUs. However the similarities between the two solutions aren’t restricted to paper as our tests show there is very little difference in performance between workstations featuring 3.2GHz versions of each technology. Indeed, in terms of raw computational power, Xworks’ new Pentium D 840 Extreme Edition X8i-C2D workstation on test this month produced virtually identical results to Evesham’s dual 3.2GHz Xeon workstation we reviewed in the July/August edition of Workstation.

So where does a machine like the X8iSLIDC fit in the workstation landscape? In Xworks’ workstation range, the X8iSLIDC is more than £100 cheaper than its dual Xeon machine with an equivalent specification. Dual Xeon workstations can of course, go up to 3.6GHz, but you’ll pay a premium for the extra speed.

So now we’ve got the positioning out of the way, what else does Xworks’ latest workstation have to offer? Built around the Asus P5WD2 Premium motherboard, the machine boast two PCI Express slots – a x16 and a x4. Filling the x16 slots is ATI’s top end FireGL V7100 graphics card, which features 256MB RAM, two DVI-I ports and a stereo port. The card also features single Dual Link mode for ultra-high resolution displays. The second PCI Express slot could come into play if CrossFire, ATI’s dual graphics card technology (a competitor to Nvidia’s SLI technology) is brought to market in the workstation sector.

Elsewhere the machine features 2GB of PC4200 (533MHz) DDR2 RAM, which is sufficient for average users of most mid-range CAD applications, but with two spare slots there’s also room for expansion if required. A pair of 74GB Western Digital 10,000RPM Serial ATA Raptor drives (Raid 0) round off the core specification.

In terms of performance the dual core Pentium D 840 Extreme Edition processor gives the X8i-C2D plenty of power under our only multi-threaded benchmark, our 3ds Max rendering test, which makes use of both processors and Hyper Threading. However, under single threaded applications such as SolidWorks or PowerMill, which don’t take advantage of dual processors or Hyper Threading, the lower clock speed is evident. Because of this the 3D performance also drops under Inventor, but the impressive power of the FireGL V7100 keeps the 3D figures high under 3ds max, an application that isn’t bound as much by the speed of the CPU. With this in mind, the combination of dual core processing power and high-end graphics is sure to make the X8i-C2D an attractive option for users of multithreaded visualisation applications like 3ds Max.

Specifications

• Xworks X8i-C2D
• Intel Pentium D 840 Extreme Edition CPU (2x 3.2GHz - 2x1MB Cache)
• Asus P5WD2 Premium motherboard (Intel 955X chipset)
• 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC4200 (533MHz) DDR2 RAM
• ATI FireGL V7100 (256MB) graphics card
• 2 x 74GB Western Digital 10,000RPM Serial ATA Raptor drives (Raid 0)
• Pioneer DVR-110 DVD+RW - Dual Layer
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition (SP2) or XP x64 Edition

Xworks X8i-C2D - DIGIT - October 2005

"In our graphics processing tests in LightWave, Xworks' workstation matched its two competitors that use X2 chips even just beating the top-rated Armari Gravistar ST. "

"...the machine is whisper quiet"

The X8i-C2D uses Intel's fastest Pentium D dual-core processor but doesn't come off quite as badly as Dell's Precision 380 and Fujitsu-Siemens' Celsius M against workstations featuring AMD's Athlon 64 X2. In our graphics processing tests in LightWave, Xworks' workstation matched its two competitors that use X2 chips even just beating the top-rated Armari Gravistar ST.

The unit performed pretty well in our Photoshop tests, scraping into the top half of the score chart. These results are helped by the two 74GB, 10,000rpm hard drives. These deliver information to the rest of the computer much faster than conventional 7,200rpm drives. They're ideal especially for video editors where data throughput can be instrumental in the level of real-time performance you get, but any creative who has to work with large files will see a boost from them.

One problem with the drives included in the X8i-C2D is that they rattle. It's not loud but as the rest of the machine is whisper quiet, it's noticeable. The other is that the equally-priced Gravistar ST also has two 74GB, 10,000rpm drives - plus a 300GB media drive. See how big creative files are getting these days, 148GB of storage is going to get used up pretty quickly.

Instead, Xworks has installed a top-notch ATI FireGL V7100 graphics card, which is overkill for a unit mainly aimed at 2D work.

The X8i-C2D's chassis is roomy inside without being huge, and everything is easy to get toon the Intelboard. It's no looker, but it's not particularly ugly either.

Specifications

• Xworks X8i-C2D
• Intel Pentium D 840 Extreme Edition CPU (2x 3.2GHz - 2x1MB Cache)
• Intel D955XBK motherboard (Intel 955X chipset)
• 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC4200 (533MHz) DDR2 RAM
• ATI FireGL V7100 (256MB) graphics card
• 2 x 74GB Western Digital 10,000RPM Serial ATA Raptor drives (Raid 0)
• Pioneer DVR-110 DVD+RW - Dual Layer
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition (SP2) or XP x64 Edition

Xworks X8i-C2D - PC Zone - September 2005

"...Build quality is faultless and it’s as quiet as a mouse"

"...if a bewildering specification, reserved styling and an unquestionable pedigree mean anything to you, there’s no other machine to consider."

EIGHTIES CHILD
Can Xworks really be worth all that lovely moolah?


You’re probably asking how the X8i-C2D can be worth your consideration when it costs an epic £2,525. In the immortal words of a Rolls-Royce salesmen everywhere, “If sir has to ask…”

What the Xworks offers is the best of everything for enthusiasts and wealthy gamers. People looking for something a bit low-key, a bit mysterious, a bit more techy than usual. The X8i-C2D has genuine heritage and is a real talking point – Xworks machines have helped programmers, animators and CAD designers develop countless PC and console chart toppers for years. The Rolls-Royce metaphor really works.

If you’re still rubbing your wallet, take a longer look at the individual components and the price isn’t too shocking. A GeForce 7800GTX is the fastest video card on the market, setting you back at least £400 in a store. At £750 the Pentium Extreme Edition is almost twice as much again, and that’s before we’ve counted the buckets of RAM and that epic flat flat-screen NEC.



You’ve never heard of Xworks, but that’s hardly a surprise. The company specialises in systems tailor-made for developers rather than players, and its workstations are bought by Europe’s top games-makers. The X8i-C2D you see here is assembled on the same production line to the same standards and gives homes users the chance to buy the brand behind some of the best-known PC and console titles.

The specification wants for nothing. A dual-core Pentium Extreme Edition, GeForce 7800GTX, 2GB PC5300 RAM, a striped Raptors twosome, eight channel audio and our own Buyer’s Guide favorite NEC flat screen.

The case is a bit frumpy but it’s the one Xworks uses for its development systems. Build quality is faultless and it’s as quiet as a mouse with a throat infection – the only occasional cough from the hard drives.

Benchmark results remain majestic rather than mind-boggling. The X8i-C2D was slower than the Dell XPS 3.6 in Half-Life 2, and was behind the Wired2Fire Pyro in everything, but the Pyro has the help of two GeForce 6800 Ultras and comes tweaked from the box. If you double up with a second 7800GTX, the Xworks rockets out front – aggressive overclocking also pays big dividends and future driver upgrades will push things even further.

There are a couple of areas where the X8i-C2D could be improved (Athlon 64 FX aside). To start with, it doesn’t need 2GB RAM. Halve that and there’s no discernable detriment to real-world performance, nor anything major to report in the benchmarks. It also doesn’t need the 19-inch Multisync LCD, ravishing though it is, because none of its rivals come shipped with a screen. These two upgrades make the X8i-C2D look relatively expensive – if you delete them, the price becomes a lot less traumatising.  

Xworks has made a fine PC, but one which lacks the external glamour of competitors like Alienware. Few people will look at the X8I-SLIDC and say, “Wow, that sure is a sexy computer!”, but if a bewildering specification, reserved styling and an unquestionable pedigree mean anything to you, there’s no other machine to consider.

82%


ASUS P5WD2 Premium/Intel D955XBK motherboard, Intel Pentium D 840 Extreme Edition CPU, 2GB Patriot DDR-2 PC5300 RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 7800GTX 256MB. Intel HD 7.1 Audio, Western Digital Raptor 74GB S-ATA (x2 RAID 0), Windows XP Professional Edition, Pioneer DVR-110 DVD+/-RW Drive, NEC 19-inch Multisync LCD1970GX.