By the look of it, the Ultimate M5-64 is a rather staid gaming system. Our test model came in a large, gray, generic Antec tower case with a clear side window and green interior lights--so last year. One look inside, however, tells you this PC is anything but dull. Equipped with an AMD 2.2-GHz Athlon 3400+ processor and a gigabyte of DDR400 memory, this machine achieved a score of 142 running PC WorldBench 4, placing it among an elite group of current top performers. The price is right, too, as long as you're happy with a 19-inch CRT monitor. With high-end graphics, SATA drives, and custom interior cabling, the cost is a relatively modest $2249.
Equipped with a 256MB ATI Radeon 9800 XT graphics board, the system aced our graphics test suite, churning out top scores in all of the tests--even at a demanding 1600-by-1200-pixel resolution and 32-bit color depth. And to jumpstart your game collection, the system comes with a generous selection of titles--including Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3 Ravenshield, and five titles from the Half-Life series.
The bundled 19-inch flat-screen Samsung SyncMaster 955DF CRT earned above-average marks in our tests for color: When displaying a photo of a group of children, the monitor produced natural-looking flesh tones, and the colors in the clothing were vivid. We also found text easily legible at all tested sizes, though it could have been a bit sharper.
For listening to games, movies, or vocal music, this system's sound capabilities are right on key. The combination of Creative's Audigy 2 ZS sound card and Logitech's Z-680 5.1 speaker system produced pounding bass and clean trebles in our audio tests. Logitech's external console features a large LCD panel that allows you to tweak effects and channel levels, as well as connect devices such as MP3 or minidisk players.
The M5-64's exterior design is uninspired, but functional. A door covers the front-panel drive bays and power switch. One of the bays has a media reader with a USB port. The reader supports all of the common media types except XD-Picture Card. Midway down the front, a small, inconspicuous flap covers one FireWire and two USB 2.0 ports. There's no headphone jack--something sorely missed on a gaming system.
Inside, the M5-64 is nicely organized--typical of a windowed gaming machine. ABS used tubular data cables, which are more expensive, but easier to work with; power cables are neatly bundled; and there are quick-release drive cages. In addition to the green-glowing fans and matching green light tube, the M5-64's RAM modules have flashing LED status lights, which enhance the system's coolness factor.
The M5-64's extensive list of components leaves somewhat fewer upgrade options than we've seen on other full-tower ABS models. The rewritable DVD and DVD-ROM drives take up half of the M5-64's four 5.25-inch, front-panel bays. And the two 80GB SATA hard drives take up two of four interior bays. But with a 450-watt power supply, the M5-64 will support whatever additional drives you add later.
ABS's documentation includes manuals for the major components, and an improved user manual that includes troubleshooting tips for common software problems, as well as new sections for setting up a network. CDs and manuals are housed in plastic cases, which are color-coded for easy reference.
A generic case and 19-inch CRT are the only knocks on this fast, nicely configured, and reasonably priced power system.
Mick Lockey
