MSI N465GTX Twin Frozr II Graphics Card review

👤by Sahil Mannick  Comments 📅01-07-10

Closer Look (Continued)

Hi-c Caps
A closer look at the back and we can see the small nine grey and black Hi-c Caps dotted around. With a Tantalum core, the capacitor ensures greater efficiency and reliability. Stability is what MSI are striving for with their GTX465 and since the card has been designed for overclocking, it's no surprise to see MSI opting for these solid capacitors. These can also be seen on the high end motherboards.

The rear I/O panel
The rear I/O panel sports 2x Dual Link DVI-I connectors and one mini-HDMI 1.3a port. Adapters have also been provided for maximum compatibility. The air vents lie below (or above depending on how you view it) the connectors and MSI have engraved their logo on it as a finishing touch. It also shows their attention to detail that they have oriented it the correct way once installed!

The two 6-pin PCIe power connectors
The graphics card is powered by 2 6-pin PCIe connectors which have been mounted very conveniently on the side to avoid any conflicts with hard drive bays, had they been placed at the end of the card.

the SLI connectors
On the other side of the card are the SLI connectors. Up to three cards can be used simultaneously for Tri-SLI.

A 4 pin fan header and Y-splitter
In the corner, the fans are connected to a 4 pin header for PWM functionality. A small splitter is employed to avoid any more header being used and it also makes for a tidy looking card. There is a small metal clip on the side of the heatsink to help route the braided fan cables, again demonstrating MSI's close attention to the smallest detail.

Size comparison: MSI GTX465, ASUS HD5850, XFX5870
Comparing the Twin Frozr II card to other custom designed cards, it can be seen the MSI solution has employed a much bigger heatsink. In terms of size, the PCB alone would have made the card 24.7cm but the metal cover protrusion extends its length to 26.0cm. This still makes it 1cm shorter than the ASUS HD5850 in the middle but 0.1cm longer than the XFX HD5870 at the back. It is also the only solution with the side mounted power connectors.