MSI N430GT MD1GD3/OC/LP Video Card Review

The MSI N430GT MD1GD3/OC/LP (Cont’d)

In Figure 4, you can see the video card with its cooler removed. Being an entry-level video card with a  GPU that dissipates only 49 W, there is no need for auxiliary power connectors.

MSI decided to use only high-end components on this video card, like solid caps and solid chokes, also known as “super ferrite chokes” or simply SFC, which are military-class components. Electronic components are available in two series, civilian and military. Military components are more expensive, but can work under a higher temperature range and have a tighter tolerance.

Figure 4: Video card with the cooler removed

Since the GPU doesn’t dissipate a lot of power, its cooler is made of aluminum.

Figure 5: The GPU cooler

Figure 6: The GPU cooler

The reviewed card uses eight 1 Gbit GDDR5 chips, making its 1 GB video memory (1 Gbit x 8 = 1 GB). Each chip is connected to the GPU using a 16-bit data lane, making the video card’s 128-bit memory interface (16 bits x 8 = 128).

The chips used are H5TQ1G63DFR-11C parts from Hynix, which support up to 900 MHz (1.8 GHz DDR) and since on this video card memory is accessed at 1.1 GHz (2.2 GHz DDR), this means the memory chips are working above their rated clock rate (i.e., they are overclocked).

Figure 7: Memory chips

In Figure 8, you can see the two low-profile brackets that come with this video card.

Figure 8: Low-profile brackets

MSI included their Afterburne
r overclocking utility with this video card.

Before seeing the performance results, let’s recap the main features of this video card.