Digital Trends

Gateway FX540XT

April 1st, 2008 | by Josh Norem

General Usage

Once we had gotten the FX540XT to a stable state by downclocking its processor, we ran a series of benchmark tests to give us an indication of its overall performance. First we ran PC Mark Vantage, which tests all aspects of a PC’s performance including 3D gaming, image editing, web surfing and productivity, etc. The FX540XT scored 5,237 PC Marks, which is the highest score – by far – that we’ve seen thus far. We also ran 3DMark06, which is a well-known gaming benchmark. The FX540XT scored 15,329, which is very good. Not surprisingly, with its 3.0GHz quad-core processor and dual 8800 GTX cards, it’s an understatement to say this machine is good for gaming.

Looking at the FX540XT’s Windows Experience Score, we saw that it was listed as 5.9, which is the highest score possible. This is the first time we’ve ever seen a system top this chart, as there’s usually a weak link somewhere (usually RAM) that ends up lowering the score. Needless to say, the FX540XT was very fast in Windows and we never experienced any slowdowns or hitching whatsoever.

Upgrading and Expanding

Though a machine this powerful will likely not need any upgrades for a long, long time, it’s still worthwhile to note its expansion options. Removing the side door is pleasingly simple, as all you have to do is unscrew a thumbscrew and pull a lever to get the door to pop out of its hinges. Inspecting the interior we noted that both optical drive bays are full, and the drives are held in place by small levers that slide to lock the drive into place or to free it. The same tool-less mechanism is used for the hard drive cage, which has one free bay. Gateway has even left a SATA power cable dangling in front of the empty bay to make adding a drive easier, but you’ll still have to run the SATA cable over to one of the three free SATA ports. Gateway also provides little clamps that hold down the SATA cables, which is a nice touch. There are no free PCI slots at all, however, as the dual 8800s take up four slots, and the XFi soundcard takes up the final slot. There are two free 3.5” internal bays as well.

Conclusion

Obviously, we had some issues with this machine. The overclocked CPU wasn’t stable and the machines’s fans were way too loud, even when the machine was just idling at the desktop. Plus, this chassis has always looked a little bland to us, and now that it’s been around several years it’s beginning to look downright moldy. If we were in charge at Gateway, we’d jettison this chassis and the BTX standard and move in the direction of the newer FX machines, namely the FX7020 desktop and P171XL FX notebook . We loved both of these machines, and thought they not only offered great value but were a marked improvement over the old FX machines in terms of style and aesthetics. The FX540XT offers great performance for sure, but it’s too loud, too old, and too unstable to recommend in its current condition.



Pros:

• Great gaming performance
• Overclocked processor
• Plays HD movies



Cons:

• Fans are too loud
• Overclocked CPU was not stable
• Typical Gateway PC despite “gaming” branding