Originally Posted by
dsumanik
Fair enough, but at what point does benching switch from hardware tweaking/cooling prowess to driver optimization/software tweaks in order to gain the upper hand.
I guess it depends on what you see as the goal..if the highest score on a given bench is all you are after...then really, the compeition is all about cheating that benchmark, or at least bending the rules and software your system is running on in order to gain a few more points.
so in the end, why not just photoshop? Bending the rules, is bending the rules. Hacking the driver, trimming the fat off your system, modifying the OS, running the bench under multiple frequency profiles to allow it to make it through certain parts...in the end...Ask yourself whats more impressive...someone who cracks 6ghz stable or someone at 5.7 suicide scoring higher in 3dmark due to optimizations?
A solid hardware overclock is the most impressive, at least for me.
Proof the rig is up and stable at a given speed is what i see as the goal, but I understand others such as OPB and other pro benchers are more interested in the other side of things...and im sure to compete in this arena requires just as much skill, or perhaps combining them is even harder.
but for me, when I am stability testing.... the ethernet drivers better be working, and the sound drivers, and the video drivers and everything else the system needs to be up and running and fully functional...otherwise is it really actually stable?
Whats the use of a really, REALLY, REALLY fast computer you can't even check your email on?
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