Killer NIC M1 Gaming Network Card

[scroyall]

Box Contents

PCI Card
Installation Guide
Software CD

Installation

It's a standard PCI card, so installation took all of about 30 seconds. Even with the fancy 'K' heatsink, the card's fairly thin, so no problems putting it next to anything else.

Software installation is easy too, with the latest drivers on the disc. The setup program installs drivers, software and updates the firmware on the NIC too.

Once the drivers are in, windows picks the NIC up perfectly and everything worked like a charm.

Included Software

Configuration is done primarily through three configuration programs; 'Killer Configuration', 'Killer Firewall' and 'Killer Bandwidth Control'. Also included is 'Killer Tray Control' which gives easy access to the others from the system tray.

Killer Configuration has options for the card itself (link speed, duplex, LED status), optimizations (GameFirst to prioritise gaming traffic, buffer sizes) and an choice of game or app mode. Game mode actually bypasses the Windows Networking Stack for performance but this can cause problems with some software like VPN clients, so app mode functions just like a standard network card. Also available is an advanced configuration mode to allow you to tweak every aspect of your NIC. Sticking to the default mode, I had no troubles getting the card to work perfectly and quickly, although future excursions into the Killer forums (and the very helpful electronic manual) should equip me for a foray into the advanced settings.

Killer Bandwidth Control allows control over both priority and maximum bandwidth for individual programs. It's nice and easy to use, but my only complaint would be that the bandwidth options cannot be customized, so I couldn't use a 10 mbit/s bandwidth limit which I needed.

Finally, Killer Firewall blocks all communication except specific port / program combinations. I found it nice and easy to set up. Killer recommends using the firewall for security while in your routers DMZ for speed, which seems to work well.

Super Advanced Awesomeness

So far, I've been treating the Killer NIC like a normal network card, but under the hood it's an entirely different beast...

The NIC is actually a PowerPC processor running Linux, which allows you to do some amazing things.

Firstly, by bypassing the networking stack and using the processor on your NIC, you free up your CPU to do other things, like run games as fast as possible.

Second, the firewall and bandwidth control applications are running on the card, so there's no appreciable performance hit to using them.

Third, and probably best, you can run any compatible software you want on your network card. My personal favourite would have to be FNATorrent - by plugging in an external HDD to the USB connector on the back panel of the card you can download torrents (think WoW patches, creative commons music, open source software...) without ever using your main CPU or memory. This NIC is all about taking the strain off your other components, and once you've moved your firewall and torrent client to your network card you've got a serious edge in a competitive environment like online gaming.

A full development kit is even included on the software CD, so you can write your own programs to run on the Killer.

Conclusion and Overall Impression

Hardware-wise, this thing is a monster. There's nothing like having a 400MHz computer inside your computer to really get some geek points.

While the included software isn't perfect, it's pretty close and I'm hopeful that future versions will iron out any minor problems.

My experience with the Killer NIC has been very, very positive. Gaining better control over your network traffic, pings that are often bordering on unfair and lowering the strain on your system has no downside. I'm certain that I haven't seen half the amazing thing that this card can do.

This certainly isn't a network card for your average PC user, but if you've just spent $250 on a NIC (or won one in a competition!), you're probably not an average user anyway. With a little time, effort and a willingness to just play with the Killer, you'll be richly rewarded.

So in conclusion, if you've just spent a big 'ol pile of money on a serious rig, why use the same network card as the novice user next door? Splash out on one of these - you won't regret it.

[Funkstar]

I wonder why they never sent Hexus a Killer NIC to do a full and impartial review?

[kalniel]

Hardware-wise, this thing is a monster. There's nothing like having a 400MHz computer inside your computer to really get some geek points.

Dread to think what'd happen if you stuck something like a graphics card in there then

[GheeTsar]

This certainly isn't a network card for your average PC user, but if you've just spent $250 on a NIC (or won one in a competition!), you're probably not an average user anyway.

How much is that in £? Lol. I thought this might have actually been a review from one of the competition winners at first.

[nichomach]

I wonder why they never sent Hexus a Killer NIC to do a full and impartial review?

Because it's easier and cheaper to get someone to register an account on the forums for a wee bit of astroturfing...?

[Nick]

He won the card in a competition and was asked to post his thoughts in here... after all, it is Reader's Reviews...

[GoNz0]

bah comps should be for active members considering its his 1st post..

[Funkstar]

He won the card in a competition and was asked to post his thoughts in here... after all, it is Reader's Reviews...

Thats cool

I'm pretty cynical so a first post like that triggered my spam feelers

scroyall, well done on the win! Glad you find it of benefit. Welcome to the forums. This thread might be useful to you: Post count and other rewards

bah comps should be for active members considering its his 1st post..

So comps should only be for forum members? I suspect there are a lot more regular Hexus readers that are not forum members.

[Jay]

He won the card in a competition and was asked to post his thoughts in here... after all, it is Reader's Reviews...

Obviously its not posters reviews! He won a hexus comp and has never posted on the forum before?

[scroyall]

Just to clarify...

I won the card in a competition, I'm just some broke uni student who got lucky. If it sounds like I'm working for Killer or something, it's because this card is so amazingly cool.

EDIT: Oh, and $250 is about 170 quid... I just pulled the figure off the Killer website (as I didn't pay for it, heh).

[nichomach]

Congrats on the win scroyall, and sorry for leaping to conclusions - my cynical streak now runs to 6 lanes and a hard shoulder...

[GheeTsar]

Apologies for the false insinuation and congrats on winning the card. Nice to know it went to someone who appreciates it!

[MadduckUK]

i still think its dodgy as hell, clarification or not.

[kalniel]

Just to clarify...

I won the card in a competition, I'm just some broke uni student who got lucky. If it sounds like I'm working for Killer or something, it's because this card is so amazingly cool.

EDIT: Oh, and $250 is about 170 quid... I just pulled the figure off the Killer website (as I didn't pay for it, heh).

Having tried it, would you now buy it with your own money, at full price, if it was taken away?

[GheeTsar]

Having tried it, would you now buy it with your own money, at full price, if it was taken away?

I'd doubt it if he's a broke uni student. But then again my sister's a broke uni student and still spends more down the pub than I do.

[Saracen]

Having tried it, would you now buy it with your own money, at full price, if it was taken away?

But that's as much about personal budgets as the product. If I won a Rolls Royce and then someone took it away, I wouldn't buy one with my own money. That doesn't mean it isn't a great car, just that I either can't afford it, or can't justify the cost.

Am I paying $250 for an NIC? Personally, hell no. I'm more likely to buy a new Rolls, which is to say, not very likely at all.

But for someone with a use for the rather unusual facilities of that card, it might well be a worthwhile cost.

Either way, that was an interesting read. Thanks, scroyall, and welcome to the forum. Don't pay to much attention to some of the professional grumps and cynics we have round here - they're not really all that bad.