The Core
The RV350 core on this AIW video card boasts the fastest un-over clocked speed of this generation. At 525MHz, it is 25MHz faster than the standard 9600XT core, giving it a boost in 3D performance.
ATi has dealt with the excess heat by offering a golden copper one slot cooler. At a quick glance, the cooler seems to not only cool the core, but the RAM chips as well.
A closer look reveals that even though the RAM chips may seem to be covered, the cooler in fact does not even touch them at all. This may pose a problem for some enthusiasts who want to install RAM sinks on the video card for over clocking purposes. Changing the cooler would then be a must. On the bright side, having a cooler this small would keep it running extremely quiet.
The RAM
The RAM on the 9600XT AIW is made up of 8 K40263238E-GC2A chips manufactured by Samsung. According the website, the chips have are rated for 128-bit operation at a clock speed of 350MHz. However, the memory speed on the 9600XT AIW is set 25MHz lower than the specs stated by Samsung, therefore this card runs at a clock speed of 325MHz. This 25MHz headroom allows for some over clocking. I will be examining how much more speed the RAM, as well as the core, can take.
Theater 200
On board, this video card is the Theater 200 analog video decoder and stereo audio processor. The 9600XT AIW would not be what it is without this chip. The Theater 200 chip handles all of the video decoding necessary for the S-Video, composite and component inputs of the card. The Theater 200 handles this with ease due to the 12-bit analog to digital converter and adaptive comb filtering. The awe that this chip inspires does not just end there. The Theater 200 is also capable of decoding and digitizing stereo audio, supporting most broadcast standards around the world including BTSC, Dual FM, EIA-J and NICAM.
