Mr. Fox

So, the temporary Mint Mobile carrier lock expired (60 day hold on a new phone) and so I unlocked my new Google Pixel 10 XL Pro and installed GrapheneOS. Super easy and really slick. Initial install took like 15 minutes including the time it took for me to read the instructions. No ADB software or sketchy apk downloads required. (Actually officially authorized by Google as weird as it seems.) So, now no more Google tracking or data collection. I created a Google-free user account named "No Google" and another named "Google Crap" with Google Play and all of the Google apps sandboxed into their own little dysfunctional world where they can't function like the Alphabet identity theft cartel wants them to. So far all of the sandboxed Google garbage is working correctly, including my banking and financial apps. The only part that was a little bit of a pain was my Micro$lop and Google Authenticator app migration. I finally got everything but one of my four Micro$lop accounts working and I cannot get a auth code for it for some reason. I only had one recovery email assigned to that account and trying to receive a text message with a code produces an error that "this method cannot be used right now, please try again later" so maybe tomorrow it will sort itself out. Everything worked normally for the other 3 Micro$lop accounts, Google 2FA and Yahoo, just that one being stubborn. Overall, I am surprised at how little effort this was. Other than having one account with no trace of Google garbage (which is awesome) it seems like an ordinary phone. It's crazy how snappy it functions with like 15 open source (non-Google) apps installed on the de-Googled user account. Things open so instantaneously in the absence of bloat that it is kind of freaky and surreal.

https://hwbot.org/benchmarks/3dmark_-_steel_nomad_dx12/submissions/6007850 https://www.3dmark.com/3dm/155957074

This GPU seems to like Fire Strike. It would be interesting to see how well it would do with a waterblock, but I don't want to spend $200+ on one. I'm keeping an eye open for a cheap one. https://hwbot.org/benchmarks/3dmark_-_time_spy/submissions/6007753 https://www.3dmark.com/3dm/155933233 https://hwbot.org/benchmarks/3dmark_-_port_royal/submissions/6007762 https://www.3dmark.com/3dm/155933802

https://hwbot.org/benchmarks/3dmark_-_fire_strike/submissions/6007736 https://www.3dmark.com/3dm/155931816

A decrease in boost by 100MHz creates a very unfavorable first impression with me. I would have been lukewarm to it staying the same and I think it is lame that it was not increased by 100-200MHz. It will also be interesting to see if they have better quality and matched CCD bin. If they continue with having one good CCD and one trash CCD that's going to suck, too. Considering the massive increase in price it needs to deliver a scaled increase in performance. If it doesn't do that then it's just a worthless gimmick to entice people that are obsessed with the notion of having more 3D cache regardless of whether it actually does anything for them.

I still think these were the best CPUs I have ever owned. I wish I still owned my Z790 Apex and best 14900KS. I don't hate the CPUs I have now. They perform well (about the same as 14900KS by most measurements) but they are pretty boring products when it comes to overclocking CPU and RAM. I really do not like the hard-coded performance limiters AMD bakes into their products. They are not truly "fully unlocked" or "unlimited" like Intel. If and when the retarded tech landscape corrects itself and prices return to something that resembles sanity my next build will most likely be a return to Intel. 9950X3D2 is going to be a DOA product to me. Zen 6 will likely be good, but we haven't seen Intel's answer to that yet.

Yet another example of denied RMA/warranty for totally bogus reasons by a fundamentally dishonest company. GPU was malfunctioning due to defective factory thermal paste application, not the bent I/O bracket. Seems like the notion of having a warranty is just a joke. They did not even take it apart. We're truly on our own now. In addition to getting screwed over on ludicrous pricing you get screwed again when their predisposition to dereliction of duty manifests itself in a denied warranty claim.

New version of ZenTimings with new features. Works nice and looks nice. Square corners FTW! Much better than icky round Winduhz 11 ugliness. https://github.com/irusanov/ZenTimings/releases/tag/v1.38 @jaybee83 @Raiderman wassup?

It seems like almost everything new is trash now. Built to fail and only last long enough for the warranty to expire to keep revenue streams on repairs and sale of replacement products flowing. Even in construction, materials and building techniques are engineered in a deliberate manner so as to require ongoing maintenance rather than durability. Pharmaceuticals are not a remedy because big pharma, doctors and hospitals do not make money on cures. They only make money when people stay on meds for life and stay sick and require medical care until they die. Natural remedies can't be patented and require no maintenance from the medical profession, so they label it as quackery.

I suspect the defective design of the Founder's Edition trash GPUs is also affecting their warranty claim frequency. There is no way that fragile garbage can be serving them well. Engineered to fail by engineers that are failures. Their demented machinations are ludicrous, and you can tell at a glance that the product design is predestined for failure. As far as I know there is no ASUS software for XOC. I have not heard of any. Just the Astral XOC vBIOS that reduces performance for most. I do not recall having seen anyone report a performance increase using that vBIOS versus Gigachad or Matrix firmware. I have only seen the opposite reported. I loved what it did to my default voltage, but my benchmark scores decreased using it.

I am not sure whether he got a white one or black one. If he got the white one then yeah, just flash the Matrix vBIOS and good to go.

Brother @johnksss I think this is it (above). turbogear figured it out But, also have a look at my post here (below) when I asked for clarification on the Astral mod... https://www.overclock.net/posts/29558012/

I am using the Matrix vBIOS. I think there is an issue using any other vBIOS on the black Astral unless you move resistors on the PCB to match the white Astral due to a different fan controller arrangement. If you flash something else on the black Astral it causes the GPU to report code 43 problems in Device Manager even though it is only a fan issue. There is a post on OC.net showing how to move the resistors so you can use any 5090 vBIOS you want to use on the black Astral. I think I posted a link to it in this thread and tagged Brother @Papusan about the Astral fan resistor mod. Yep. Found it... Brother @johnksss I think this is it.

This fake Windows support website delivers password-stealing malware | Malwarebytes Labs A fake Microsoft support website is tricking people into downloading what looks like a normal Windows update. Instead, it installs malware designed to steal passwords, payment details, and account access. Because the file looks legitimate and avoids detection, it can slip past both users and security tools. At first glance, everything looks legitimate. Its file properties are carefully spoofed: the Author field reads “Microsoft,” the title reads “Installation Database,” and the Comments field claims it contains “the logic and data required to install WindowsUpdate.” The package was built with WiX Toolset 4.0.0.5512, a legitimate open-source installer framework, and was created on April 4, 2026.

Yikes. That's just insane. Even more insane to think they would sell even just one at that price. Have a good week, Brother @johnksss. I hope all is well with you.

They've priced things beyond reason, to the point that even an idiot that has money to burn and is typically frivolous and lacks discretion with their wallet is starting to pause and recognize that things are simply not worth the asking price. What will likely happen next is that manufacturers will begin to complain about sales being off, b*tch because nobody is buying, whine and moan about low sales and revenue being down. But they won't be smart enough to figure out that nobody is buying because the prices are beyond stupid, not because they don't want the products but because they are not stupid enough to pay what they are asking.

I do think this GPU was more of a gimmick and scam than anything else. MSI deception and misrepresentation aside, it appears the damage that Northridge Fix was repairing was not a result of an inexperienced modding attempt, just reckless and inexperienced handling that ended in accidental user-induced damage that knocked resistors off. He may have been attempting to install an aftermarket water block to replace the AIO. Maybe it wasn't inexperienced handling and he dropped the GPU block onto the GPU by accident. Hard to know, but unfortunate whatever the cause. I looked to see if the finale video was released to see if it was fixed. Hasn't dropped yet.

I think there are a number of us that would fall into that category if we are as honest as you are being. For me it would be something like a shunt mod. It looks like the owner of this GPU damaged the GPU being reckless (knocked off memory circuit resistors) and then tried to fix it. I suspect the ripped pads were caused by ripping the resistors off the PCB rather than novice soldering skills.

Maybe it will be easier to count the things about Winduhz 11 that are good and work correctly rather than trying to keep track of how many things are broken or sucky.

Nice little documentary on EVGA, why they were awesome, etc. They did what they wanted and it was what we wanted. They did not play by the rules, just like we would not if given a chance to break them. They were great because they didn't play nice and refused to obey the "rules" of the hardware cartels.

Better now.

Got second place for 5080 leaderboard... MrFox's 3DMark - Fire Strike Score 68585 marks with GeForce RTX 5080 @ 3187.00/2250 MHz hwbot.org http://www.3dmark.com/proxycon/images/futuremark-fb-mini.jpg I scored 68 585 in Fire Strike AMD EPYC 4585PX, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 x 1, 49152 MB, 64-bit Windows 11} www.3dmark.com

Definite improvement in temps over the AIO for the CPU and (no surprise at all) the memory max temp is a lot less. Not bad for a board with limited VRM headroom. About 1,000 point less and 100W less than the X870E-E Strix and X870E Apex with roughly half as many stages to work with.

I know Brother @Clamibot swears by it and it has gotten more traction lately in some YouTube videos. I need to order some new fittings to replace the XSPC fittings I am using on this now. (The outside collars are too tight for this tubing.) But, the little monster is now a custom loop with the IceMan bare die block and the Supercool direct touch memory blocks. When the new fittings arrive I will see if I can figure out a better place for the in-line trash filter.