The Fastest Xbox of All Time
Linus Tech Tips
·Linus Tech Tips
·2019-05-06
·
3,252 words · ~16 min read
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This might appear to be a normal original Xbox, but what's inside it is far from normal.
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Now, lots of people have done PCs in an Xbox chassis before, and if we're being honest,
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the finish on some of those is better than what we've done here. But every other project we've
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found either compromised on the form factor, like adding more space to the bottom, or compromised
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on the performance, with most of them rocking a mid-tier gaming graphics card at best. Well,
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compromise is not the Linus Tech Tips way. We will settle for nothing less than the first Xbox
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with support for real-time ray tracing. Nothing less than the fastest Xbox ever. Getting all that
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performance in here wasn't easy though, so let's get started.
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Let's take a look at what it took to make our latest sleeper PC, Patrice. Brought to you by our
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sponsor, Madrina's. Madrina's Coffee blends specialty cold brew coffees into 15-ounce grab-and-go
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cans for everyone's convenience. Check them out and use offer code Linus to save 40%. We'll have
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that linked below. So the very first thing we need to do is just make sure that everything that we
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have here fits. So we have this GeForce RTX 2070 from Zotac.
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And it should fit in. Look, I did some CAD, and everything fits in theory, but we have, I think,
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three millimeters of space on the side. So, wow, that's a really long screw.
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For those of you freaking out, we got this Xbox in non-working condition for $10. So don't stress
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out about us destroying vintage gaming hardware. This assembly was about what you'd expect.
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Inside, the Xbox One, not to be confused with the Xbox One,
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is basically a normal computer with the majority of the internal space being used for a disk reader
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and a mechanical hard drive. Well, we won't be needing either of those anymore. Let's do a test
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fit. For this sleeper, we'll be using one of Zotac's epic mini graphics cards. In this case,
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an RTX 2070 and a Core i5-8400 6-core CPU. Now, compared to some of our other sleepers,
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Patrice's performance isn't as over-the-top.
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We're working with a passively cooled HD Plex power supply, and we wanted to save as much of our power budget as possible
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for the graphics card.
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Besides, we figured chances are anything more powerful would have thermal throttled anyway.
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It seems like everything will fit.
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We just need to make sure it all works together and,
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more importantly, that our power supply is actually able to handle it all. So don't mind the mess at this stage.
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This is just for testing purposes.
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Power there.
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I'm short at the pins and...
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Oh, hello!
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Yeah, it's past test number one, but we do need to get a monitor and keyboard and make sure that it's
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actually able to, like, run Windows and crap.
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So, we got into Windows, no problem, everything's working. That's kind of expected.
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But the real test here is when I hit start, it might shut down, and if it does, we're gonna have to rethink the whole thing.
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So, uh...
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So far, so good.
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How are you gonna get all of that stuff in there?
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That's the thing I want to discuss with you.
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So, um, poorly is basically the answer.
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Oh, that's not an answer.
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Well, it kind of... so we can do two things.
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We can either have it be really powerful, or look good on the inside.
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And I don't think there's a way to have both of those things.
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Okay, sleepers... let's bring it back to cars, right?
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Mm-hmm.
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Sleepers have to look bone stock from the outside, that we agree on, and sleepers have to be just head-turningly fast off the line.
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Yeah.
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Is there any rule that says they have to be gorgeous inside?
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No.
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Then I guess we know what to do.
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You're gonna need ventilation holes on the bottom of the case.
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Yeah.
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Okay.
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Like, you're gonna need to cut away the bottom of the case.
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Pretty much, yeah.
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Okay.
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We might have to shave off a bit of this plastic shroud as well.
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I just... I just... I just... I just... I just... I just... I just... I just... I just...
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I think we just remove it.
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We could probably just remove it.
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Yeah.
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Yeah, I mean, what's it... what's it even do other than look cool?
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Yeah.
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Yeah, I think we need to go in that way.
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Then we have the perforation in the bottom.
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This thing shouldn't even overheat.
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Perfect.
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Perf...ect.
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Because we're gonna perf... orate.
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And that's my cue to exit.
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Goodbye.
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Our methods for CNCing sheet aluminum have improved significantly since our previous attempt in Margaret.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
5:12
We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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We now have a single flute end mill and double-sided tape that doesn't gum up the surface.
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better rigidity compared to the paper thin metal that's currently in here off camera i did a
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prototype bend with with our little vice break here and it's we could just kind of go yeah good
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enough but it's not good enough no so we have a solution okay um i i took the credit card and
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we we got a we got a really big thing that's going over here do you want do you want to come
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oh that kind of solution is this safe how are you supposed to move these things um
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oh that's why you guys are all here okay uh okay how much was this like 800 bucks
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oh that's actually not as bad i was expecting just based on the weight
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yeah no it was actually very on sale we got a good deal i wanted to buy the three thousand dollar one
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all right well then in that case good work alex all right fun fun fun actually this
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is not that bad with six people wait so this countertop is going to be basically unusable
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for like weeks months who signed off on this um you said you don't care that's that's the actual
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quote of what you said about it all right okay hold on so you guys go ahead and come out
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why do you get the coolest toys around here brandon also gets really cool toys
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that's true but i think this one's cooler and how do you pick the angle you want
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you eyeball them elated just kind of eyeball it okay and then you unlock it down and then uh boom
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there you go you done bent some metal there boy so for bending sheet metal
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kind of the best way to do it is to use this what's it called blue layout die and that lets you
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come in you just cover it it dries really fast and you can scribe directly on it and get this
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super high contrast and also very precise line we have a plan here that just tells us all of
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our dimensions where the bends need to be and also i've numbered each bend because like if you bend
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let's say number six before number one you won't be able to complete it because the bend will hit
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the rest of that as it goes around since the part wasn't designed with this break in mind a couple
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of the bends were pretty sketchy but v2 got all of the critical dimensions correct and was miles
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ahead of the previous prototype so we consider it a success the next step was a test fit and oh no
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don't worry mr Linus so it was at this point that we confirmed that the stock fans and shroud from
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our graphics card would need to be removed while he was at it alex replaced the original thermal
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paste with some cryonaut since we're going to need all the help we can get when it comes to cooling
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with our replacement liner prepared the old liner was forcibly removed and all of the old
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mounting needs to come out now with lots of dremeling and oh wow that fits like a glove
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now we have to make some holes for the uh motherboard and GPU there
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yeah this is
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this is really the point of no return right here like the stuff on the inside you can't
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tell but if i screw this one up geez we're just we're just done first the bulk was removed with
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a cutting disc then alex brought it close with a grinding bit finishing off with a file for a
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nice smooth cut so uh what's about to happen is not for the squeamish um so the dvi connector here
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it goes in like this and unfortunately it kind of interferes with where
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the power connector is going to be 10 out of 10 would not recommend doing this to your GPU
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the now dvi connector list card got blown out with compressed air to ensure that no
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metal shards would short it out then it was taped up and reassembled
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but that actually wasn't the end of the carnage for this poor thing the io shield needed to be
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first flattened out and then cut down to size to fit into the extremely small space we have for it
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in the bottom of the case were drilled out
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and a fan intake was cut into the bottom.
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A hole was added for the power connector,
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not because this is the best time for that step,
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but rather because we forgot to do it before.
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And then the sheet metal interior
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was ready to be riveted together.
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We're actually getting pretty close to final product here.
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So the blue layout dye that was covering it
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was removed with acetone
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and then our liner was given a coat of black paint.
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While that dried, the hole for the GPUIO
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was created with the Dremel
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and we were ready for a real test fit.
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Since the original GPU's fans ended up being too big,
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smaller ones were added using zip ties.
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Fitting everything in a case like this is difficult
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even with purpose-built parts.
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As for our machine, well, everything does have its place,
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but getting it in is another story.
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Like the GPU is so close to the motherboard
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that even the IO cover needed to be removed
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for it to all fit.
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But lo and behold, everything did fit.
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Now it's just time to make sure that it all still works.
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Oh, nice.
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Like it's showing up over there.
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Oh, wow.
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It just worked.
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I honestly wasn't expecting it to just work.
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I figured I'd have to do at least one little kajiggering.
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Damn.
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That's not the power button.
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Look, I didn't have an Xbox.
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That can be controlled, right?
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Yeah, yeah.
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Like that can be dialed back?
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Yeah, if you want it to be full-blown sleeper,
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you can just be like, kabam.
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Okay, is it supposed to be green?
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Yeah. Okay.
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Oh, I'm enjoying this.
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It's not especially quiet.
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I wouldn't describe it as crazy loud either, though.
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And the exhaust system that you've built, such as it were,
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does seem to be working.
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Like there's definitely warm air coming out.
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So let's see what kind of performance
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we can expect out of this thing.
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130 to...
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160 FPS.
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Not bad.
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Get that glory kill.
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Ba-ba, ba-ba.
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Oh yeah, you're dead.
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So we're seeing 84 degrees, 96% GPU usage though.
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So we're definitely hitting it hard.
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And then our core clock is here.
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Here is in like the 14, 13 high, 14 lows.
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Okay.
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So-
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It's like right at base clock for the car.
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Should we hook it up in its new home?
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Sure.
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So right down here, guys.
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We've got the Xbox One X versus...
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You could call this like an X box.
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You know, it's got that X factor.
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It's Patrice.
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Patrice.
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Sure.
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Apparently the One X runs at 60 FPS.
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What compromises are they making here?
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I mean, the Xbox One X is what?
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Like an RX 480 or something like that.
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Well, okay, so fine.
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The Xbox One X runs at a higher frame rate
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and is probably less buggy than the PC version.
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the PC version.
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Okay, that was not smooth.
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Shut up.
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You're in a field.
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There's like four trees.
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Wee, oh God.
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So this is a little overpowered
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for most like local multiplayer PC gaming experiences,
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isn't it?
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Are you saying we should have put less power in it?
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I'm saying the power we put in it
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might've been unnecessary.
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Oops.
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No, I meant to put it down in my hair and then I missed.
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This is just hard to, this is hard to watch.
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Oh, no way.
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How do you slide?
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X, I believe.
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Yep, that works.
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Okay, cool.
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I can't believe they saved that.
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They're better than us so far,
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but they're not very good.
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I can't find the ball.
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I legitimately have no idea where the ball is.
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Did they quit?
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We won.
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We're that bad and we still won.
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This is gonna be awesome once we have this
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like all set up and everything.
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I mean, this aspect of it is basically good to go.
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Like we can plug wired controllers in from the front.
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We've got wireless Xbox controllers.
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So you can use any kind of controller you want.
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Cause if someone wants a PS4 controller or whatever,
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they can just plug in a wire.
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Like this is freaking awesome.
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And it's so stealth.
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It's our most useful sleeper ever.
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So we've got one terabyte of storage now
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cause we're using a one terabyte M.2 boot drive.
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But I suspect we're gonna wanna add a larger game library.
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I mean, the worst case scenario
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is we grab an external four terabyte hard drive
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and plug it into USB 3.
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Set resolution.
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Just, you can't set any other resolution.
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You know what?
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I bet if we just exit the game again
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and try again, like Rocket League,
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it'll just, it'll just get its act together.
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This is like really not a great sales pitch for PC gaming.
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It's really great after you go into like,
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a config file and manually,
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I'm just seeing if it has that.
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No, I don't see an obvious way to, I doubt it.
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Oh, all right.
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Oh, heck yeah.
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There we go.
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Okay.
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You can't do this on a console.
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Yeah, you wouldn't want to
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cause it's a really, really bad experience,
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but 3840 by 2160 full screen.
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I bet I have to change that to true.
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Okay.
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I don't think there's anything else
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we should probably change in here.
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That all looks fine.
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PC gaming.
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Yay.
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Yay.
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Find the parameters, change the parameters.
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And then, oh, it's time to go to bed.
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You missed out on your gaming time tonight.
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That looks better.
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Yeah.
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Damn it.
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Why is this necessary?
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Oh, that looks so much better.
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That was worth it.
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Yes.
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Okay.
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Campaign?
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Yep, sure.
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I don't understand what weapon I have.
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Oh, I have a flamethrower.
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Oh, cool.
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Nice.
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He's actually OP.
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He is?
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Yeah.
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Oh, does it make a difference?
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Like do all the guys have different weapons?
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Yeah, they do.
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Did you kill me?
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Did I die?
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No, you killed yourself.
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Why?
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MacGyver throws dynamite.
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Okay.
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Well, I didn't know.
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There you have it.
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We built the world's most powerful gaming Xbox.
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Take that Microsoft.
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There were some anomalies with Forza,
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but we're gonna blame Microsoft for that.
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They stacked the deck in their favor.
17:18
So all that's left then is to tell you
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If you just go to freshbooks.com slash tech tips,
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we're gonna have that linked below.
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Just make sure you enter Linus Tech Tips
18:04
in the how did you hear about us section.
18:06
So thanks for watching guys.
18:07
If you disliked this video, you can hit that button.
18:09
But if you liked it for its sheer awesomeness,
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then go ahead.
18:14
Hit the subscribe button, get subscribed,
18:15
or maybe consider checking out where to buy the stuff
18:16
we featured at the link in the video description.
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I mean, yeah, not this specifically, but like,
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I don't know, Zotac has super compact graphics cards
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and we've used them for all kinds of cool stuff
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at this point.
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So you can go check those out.
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Also linked in the video description,
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our merch store, which has cool shirts like this one
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and our community forum, which you should totally join.
18:35
We'll also put CAD files down there.
18:37
Oh, really?
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Nice.
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Yeah, might as well.
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Bro-fest.
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This game's pretty fun.
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We should play some more later.