Almost two months ago, AnandTech took a look at the Hercules Dynamite TNT2 Ultra and decided it was worthy of the prestigious AnandTech Editor's Choice Award. What made the Dynamite TNT2 Ultra so popular? The default clock rate of 175/200 (core/memory) and further overclocking ability was the key that led to us branding it as "the fastest TNT2 in existence."

Hercules' most recent arrival in our test lab is their standard TNT2 based Dynamite TNT2. It pulls some of the same tricks that its older brother used to gain such popularity. But it is a separate product that will have to stand on its own. How's it fare? Only one way to find out...

Card Specifications

• NVIDIA RIVA TNT2 graphics and multimedia processor
• AGP 2x/AGP 4x ready
• 128-bit TwiN Texel Engine, delivering single cycle multi-texturing
• Up to 32MB of high performance memory
• 32-bit true color 3D rendering
• 32-bit Z/Stencil buffer
• Resolutions up to 1920x1440
• 300 MHz DAC

¹ DVD playback requires a software DVD player; not included with all models.
²TV-out included on Dynamite TNT2 Ultra models only.

The Card

The Hercules Dynamite TNT2 is built upon a somewhat sloppily laid out reference design PCB, the same one used on the Dynamite TNT2 Ultra. AnandTech's review sample was a 16MB model, featuring 6ns Hyundai SDRAM and retails for $149.99. A 32MB model is available for $199.99 with an optional software DVD player for $5 extra with either card. Neither TV-out nor an LCD-out is available on the standard Hercules Dynamite TNT2.

The Dynamite TNT2 is based on the "standard" version of the TNT2 chipset, which according to NVIDIA, indicates that the core clock speed and the memory clock speed should be no less than 125MHz and 150MHz respectively. However, NVIDIA has left the exact clock speeds up to the manufacturers and many have chosen to ship at higher than these recommended clock speeds.

In the case of the Hercules Dynamite TNT2, that means a factory setting of 145/170 MHz, which is the highest standard TNT2 we've seen to date. In fact, it's virtually "Ultra" TNT2 speed as NVIDIA suggests the Ultra should operate at 150/183 MHz. What we found in our July 1999 TNT2 Roundup is that all TNT2 boards would overclock to at least 150/170, but the Dynamite TNT2 was still a step ahead of the competition. As a standard TNT2, it overclocked all the way to 190/190, exceeding the maximum speed of all other cards, including Ultra TNT2 based products, except the Dynamite TNT2 Ultra. As always with overclocking, the results will vary from card to card, but with the Hercules, you're guaranteed at least 145/170 operation.

Hercules secret isn't anything magical - just careful construction and testing. The big thing that they did was apply thermal compound properly - the thinnest layer possible, while still covering the whole chip. It seems simple, but it's something other manufacturers continue to overlook. It has paid off for Hercules as we found in our heat tests in the July 1999 TNT2 Roundup where the Dynamite TNT2 was the coolest running card available.

The memory is organized as eight 2MB chips, all on the front of the board. At 6ns, the Hyundai SDRAM is faster than that of other standard TNT2 cards and certainly helps in attaining such high speeds. The exact manufacturer of the memory may vary as the supply of Hyundai 6ns fluctuates, but Hercules should continue to use 6ns memory.

The 2D image quality of the Dynamite TNT2 is fine at resolutions up to 1280 x 1024, unfortunately at 1600 x 1200 the image quality takes a noticeable dive. Although it is noticeably better than the best TNT cards in terms of 2D image quality, the Dynamite TNT2, as well as most TNT2 based cards, aren't too friendly on your eyes at 1600 x 1200 and above. If you're really looking for a combination of a professional/gaming card then Matrox's G400/G400MAX is probably what you should be setting your sights on, unfortunately getting one of those hot items is easier said than done.

Drivers

As we've seen before with Hercules cards, their drivers are a step above the rest. The Hercules Utilities provide the standard NVIDIA TNT2 controls including gamma correction, image quality settings, a variety of performance options (including the ability to toggle vsync), and refresh rates.

Quite possibly the best addition by Hercules is the HercuMeter which allows for quick and easy overclocking straight from the Hercules Utilities. A nice touch by Hercules here is that the driver will automatically restore the default clock rate if Windows is not shut down properly. This is designed to handle situations where the user tries to overclock too far causing the system to lockup and requiring a reboot. Without this little feature, the user might reboot and still be stuck with the card running too fast with no easy way to drop to a lower clock speed.

Unfortunately, Hercules provides absolutely no utilities for Windows NT 4, so you'll be stuck with straight up reference drivers under NT. That's not horrible - primarily no HercuMeter for NT users.

Hercules Dynamite TNT2 - Driver Pictures

Hercules Dynamite TNT2 - Driver Pictures (continued)

Performance

The performance of the Hercules Dynamite TNT2 is virtually identical to that of other TNT2 cards out there at the same clock speed. So instead of publishing the same benchmarks over again, we encourage you to check out the Dynamite TNT2 Ultra Review, our original NVIDIA RIVA TNT2 Review, and the latest July 1999 TNT2 Roundup. Just remember that the Dynamite TNT2 is clocked at a default of 145/170 and our sample was able to hit 190/190.

Final Words

At $149.99 for a 16MB model, the Dynamite TNT2 offers near TNT2 Ultra speeds at standard TNT2 prices. Thanks to Hercules careful construction, 6ns SDRAM, quality heatsink/fan, and HercuMeter overclocking utility, this card can probably be pushed even further.

The 32MB model, at $199.99, is not as good of a value. Although you get TNT2 Ultra speeds, and just as much RAM as most TNT2 Ultras, you're paying almost the same price as the genuine artifact. For just $30 more, you can get Hercules' own TNT2 Ultra, guaranteed at 175/200 operation, with higher quality RAM (5.5ns) and a better heatsink.

Overall, Hercules has done another quality job with the Dynamite TNT2. They applied the same techniques that earned them an Editor's Choice for the Dynamite TNT2 Ultra and it has served them well. The 16MB Dynamite TNT2 is the best value in a TNT2 card currently available, and for that, Hercules has garnered another Editor's Choice from AnandTech. The only question that remains is whether Hercules can keep up with the demand.