HIS Excalibur AIW 9600

INTRODUCTION

A couple of weeks ago I reviewed the HIS Excalibur AIW 9600XT TURBO, a All In Wonder card based on the Radeon 9600XT with both FM and TV and good performance. But what if you don’t need the speed and want an AIW-card that not only is cheaper but also quieter and which would fit perfectly into a SFF system? HIS has the answer for you with their HIS Excalibur AIW 9600, the card I am reviewing today.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

Let us take a look at the specifications of this card:

• Graphics Processor
  Powered by ATI RADEON™ 9600  - 325MHz
  
• Memory Configuration
  128MB DDR memory - 400MHz
  
• RAMDAC
  Dual integrated 10-bit per channel palette DACs operating at up to 400MHz
  
• TV Video and Audio Processor
  Powered by ATI THEATER™ 200
  
• Bus Interface
  AGP 8X / 4X
  
• Connectors
  Dual VGA connector
  Audio and video input and output through adapter and cables
  TV turner requires TV signal of Amplified antenna or cable
  
• Drivers Included
  Windows® XP
  Windows® 2000
  Windows® ME
  
• System Requirement
  Intel® Pentium® 4/III/II, Celeron™, AMD® Athlon
  One available AGP 8X / 4X slot
  128MB of system memory
  Installation software requires CD-ROM drive
  DVD playback requires DVD drive
  500MHz minimum processor speed for MPEG-2 video capture
  
• Other
  Now includes the REMOTE WONDER.

The biggest difference between this card and the AIW 9600XT is that this uses the slower Radeon 9600 chip at a speed of 325 MHz and with 128 MB memory clocked at only 400 MHz. The AIW9600XT runs at 525 MHz (Core)/650 Mhz (memory). The card also is lacking the FM-support. Other than that the card is comparable to the ‘big brother’, the HIS Excalibur 9600XT Turbo (LINK).

Let us look at some of the features of the card:

ATI's MULTIMEDIA CENTER offers a full range of multimedia functions including:

• Enhanced TV-ON-DEMAND™ PVR for instant replays, pausing live TV or recording live broadcasts for later viewing  
• mulTView™ - Enables dual TV tuner capabilities such as Picture-in-Picture when combined with ATI TV WONDER™ or TV WONDER™ VE (not included)
• THRUVIEW™ - Allows for translucent viewing of TV, DVD (digital versatile disk) and video file playback
• VIDEOSOAP™ - Delivers advanced filtering to reduce noise, improve sharpness and soften focus as desired to provide the highest quality video compression for PVR and personal video editing functions
• FULLSTREAM™ - Uses pixel shaders, based on innovative technology in RADEON™ 9600, to remove blocky artifacts from streaming video and provides sharper image quality and greater
  scalability
• EAZYLOOK™ - Allows the user to entertain without ever leaving the couch by offering TV and DVD support at a distance and seamless integration with the REMOTE WONDER™.
• ATI's THEATER™ 200 - Provides exceptional video and stereo audio quality viewing during live TV and video input and capture
• RADEON™ 9600 (video processor unit) and 128MB (megabyte) DDR memory - Designed for exciting 3D graphics and gaming
• VIDEOSHADERS™ - Uses programmable pixel shader technology to accelerate video processing and provide better-looking visuals
• REMOTE WONDER™ - Offers remote control via RF (radio frequency) for instant easy access to all the multimedia features (TV, video, DVD - and more) [requires USB - universal serial bus] - it's the 30-foot User Interface in the palm of your hand
• Security/monitoring camera functionality (signal from separate video camera)
• Stereo TV-tuner with 125 channels
• FM-tuner
• Analog video capture and editing in MPEG-2 format at up to 720x576x25 fps PAL
• Support for DirectX® 9.0pixel shaders and OpenGL®
• Dual VGA support

We will go through some of the features later in the review but as you can see the card is packed with features.