CAD User (UK) 2/99
CAD User (UK) 2/99
"Power booster"
"Give your graphics performance an extra large boost with the ELSA Gloria-XXL."
"Every month, new, faster graphics boards come to the market. Unfortunately, many are designed for the games market and cannot benefit CAD users to any great extent. ELSA is one of the few companies to really address the CAD market, supplying high-speed graphics cards with suitable drivers and software to let you take advantage of the performance available."
"The XXL is a true workstation class graphics adapter with OpenGL and Direct3D standards being supported in hardware. For the really serious user, it is also possible to connect 3D shutter glasses [...]."
"Enough of the technical speak - what is it like to use?
It is normally difficult to perceive the performance improvement on graphics cards unless you perform some kind of standard benchmark test. However, this was not the case with the XXL."
"The main difference [...] is the inclusion of the geometry processor and light sources. The hardware geometry processor makes 3D walkthrough and animations far more realistic with smoother motion.
ELSA has gone to great lengths to make sure that CAD and design professionals can take advantage of the power of all the GLoria graphics cards, with the inclusion of various software. For AutoCAD users, the ELSA POWERdraft software provides a very fast display list driver to replace the built-in Whip driver in R14. Since the Whip driver that Autodesk supply has to work through the Windows graphics subsystem, there is bound to be a compromise. POWERdraft takes direct advantage of the processing power available on the GLoria card. As well as generally speeding up redraw times, POWERdraft adds some useful tools. The MagniView function provides a close-up image of the part of the drawing being worked on. When selecting objects using object snap or grips, MagniView allows very fine control over which point is picked, without ever having to zoom in or use the TAB key to cycle snap points. The Cockpit controls enable pan and zoom to be controlled with simple mouse movements - not as intuitive as using an IntelliMouse or Space mouse, but useful nevertheless. Of course, if you do use an IntelliMouse or Space mouse, the new display list driver will be used by these, making them even more productive."
"The ELSAview 3D viewer is used to inspect 3D models from AutoCAD or Mechanical Desktop. [...] Since the GLoria-XXL card supports light sources, these can be defined and controlled from within the 3D viewer. [...] While inspecting a model, it can be exported to bitmap, rgb, iv or wrl file - making this an ideal way to create images for online distribution."
"The ELSA GLoria-XXL is intended for users who work at the high end of 3D and with dynamic content creation. In these areas, the true power of the XXL can be realised. That being said, when used with ELSAview 3D software, examination of AutoCAD 3D drawings was very easy. ELSA has made a good job of providing leading edge hardware with leading edge drivers and software which let you take advantage of the graphics card. This has been done without compromising the tools that you use to generate your designs - in most cases thea have been enhanced."
NewMedia (USA) 12/98
"The GLoria-XXL matched the dual-GMX boards in 3D Studio MAX, perhaps due to ELSA's specialized MAXtreme drivers. Such application-specific drivers are an ELSA trademark, and the XXL offers presets for applications such as Softimage and Lightwave, with a control panel slider bar that lets you select between highest quality and fastest speeds. However, this is nothing compared with MAXtreme's optimization capabilities. Although it uses the same 16MB video frame buffer as the other GMX cards, the GLoria-XXL achieves the highest true-color resolutions of any card we tested, going all the way to 1,920 by 1,200. ELSA credits its higher-quality RAMDAC."
Rating: Thumbs Up
Pro/E Magazine (USA) 9/98
"The GLoria-XXL has strong 3D performance, good Windows integration and 2D speed, and crisp visuals. It makes an excellent choice for high-end Pro/ENGINEER users who want large screen support, outstanding warranty support (six years), solid drivers and good all-around performance for a competitive price. For Pro/ENGINEER users looking for the best value in high-end performance, the GLoria-XXL makes an excellent investment."
3D LIVE 6/98
"Die Standardauflösung von 1280 x 1024 Punkten wird bei True Color mit ergonomischen 100 Hz dargestellt, deutlich mehr als die 85 Hz der beiden Mitbewerber. Für 16:10-Monitore gibt es auch einen Modus mit 1920 x 1200 Pixeln, der allerdings 'nur noch' mit 65.000 Farben darstellbar ist, womit das ELSA-Board aber immer noch besser dasteht als seine Konkurrenten. Wie die anderen Karten im Test unterstützt die GLoria-XXL bei allen Auflösungen Double- und 24-bit-Z-Buffering, schafft aber dazu auch bei den sehr hohen Auflösungen noch 24 bit Farbtiefe. ELSA denkt auch an die Anwender von Windows 95 und liefert entsprechende Treiber mit. Für den, der auf seiner CAD-Workstation nach Geschäftsschluß noch ein paar Zombies ins Unreale schicken will: DirectX- und Direct3D-Treiber liegen bei. Auch ein Anschluß für eine Stereo-Shutter-Brille nach dem VESA-Standard ist vorhanden. An Software wird ein 3D-Viewer für AutoCAD mitgeliefert, das normalerweise OpenGL nicht unterstützt."
"Die XXL ist eine Empfehlung für CAD-Anwendungen, denn sie bietet hier die beste Performance und ergonomischste Darstellung im Testfeld. Durch den guten Support von ELSA, die umfangreiche Dokumentation und die sechs
Jahre Garantie kann sie ebenfalls Punkte sammeln. Bedingt durch den günstigen Preis erhält sie das Prädikat 'Preis-Leistungs-Sieger'."
Preis-Leistungs-Sieger