3 monitor set-up

[rein001]

, just wondering guys is Asus P8Z77-V PRO ( http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8Z77V_PRO/#specifications) mobo good way to go if i want high reso at high Hz ?

 

[jaquith]

I wouldn't be my choice, instead look for the Z77 + PLX; examples:

ASUS P8Z77-V Premium (Thunderbolt)
ASUS Maximus IV Extreme
ASRock Z77 Extreme9
ASUS P8Z77 WS **
EVGA Z77 FTW **
Gigabyte G1.Sniper 3

** For the money my picks, and the ASUS P8Z77-V Premium if you want Thunderbolt.

Keep in mind with 5760x1080 chance are you're staring at 3-WAY SLI/CF if you like a quality image (high AA) with good frame rates.

 

[rein001]

i was thinking of 2 way hd 7970 crossfire, this powerhouse should run fine even bf3 as far as i know. but ty for your advice i will look up this choices.

 

[jaquith]

If all you'll play is BF3 then minimums 25~35FPS with averages 40~45FPS. Personally, I like my frame rates to match my refresh rates or at least 60FPS min.

Anyway, then with the ASUS P8Z77-V PRO you have a very poor upgrade path when not if you figure-out you need a 3rd GPU (HD 7970) and it's a PCIe 2.0 x4 slot so you have PCIe 3.0 mixed with PCIe 2.0 -- it can be done but nothing I'd recommend doing.

 

[rein001]

and what would you say after you watch this video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ovm7XBtaQAM (put 720p and watch upper left corner) , u can see his specs at the description

 

[jaquith]

I would say crap details, no AA, etc...

 

[rein001]

lol i bet tht he has high and ultra settings only and he has 2x AA by the way...

 

[rein001]

but yes about tht 3rd gpu thts all correct and i m sure i have to add a 3rd one sooner or later.

 

[roadkill922]

i was thinking of 2 way hd 7970 crossfire, this powerhouse should run fine even bf3 as far as i know. but ty for your advice i will look up this choices.

2 way 7970s will run triple monitors just fine. You do not need 3. I am running trip monitor on a single 670. Runs just fine at medium and a couple high settings. I get ~ 60fps with those settings. Maybe you won't always get 60 fps all of the time with everything on ultra and full AA, but i do not believe that 5 or so frames extra will be worth 400 + dollars.

 

[jaquith]

Interesting...I've been running 3xHD (5900x1080) for 2½ years and the majority of my hobby builds are 3xHD. So telling me about what can & cannot be done is like talking to the wall. I 'get' vRAM bottlenecks, scaling, rendering quality, 3D Vision and yes even AMD HD3D not to mention differences with LightBoost.

Specifically to BF3 the frame rates I mentioned are max settings with 4xAA and 16xAF. The minimum I can tolerate is 2xAA otherwise it's like watching an Xbox.

Personally, I'd follow my recommendations with a MOBO with an Ivy Bridge or if a SB-E then my picks are either the ASUS R4E or R4F. You'll have room to grow vs being stuck & SOL.

Here's the problem, TODAY with 3xHD you're barely making it work, but newer and more demanding games you'll be hitting a wall with nowhere to go.

 

[roadkill922]

Interesting...I've been running 3xHD (5900x1080) for 2½ years and the majority of my hobby builds are 3xHD. So telling me about what can & cannot be done is like talking to the wall. I 'get' vRAM bottlenecks, scaling, rendering quality, 3D Vision and yes even AMD HD3D not to mention differences with LightBoost.

Specifically to BF3 the frame rates I mentioned are max settings with 4xAA and 16xAF. The minimum I can tolerate is 2xAA otherwise it's like watching an Xbox.

Personally, I'd follow my recommendations with a MOBO with an Ivy Bridge or if a SB-E then my picks are either the ASUS R4E or R4F. You'll have room to grow vs being stuck & SOL.

Here's the problem, TODAY with 3xHD you're barely making it work, but newer and more demanding games you'll be hitting a wall with nowhere to go.

That's what future upgrades are for. If I do run into a problem, I will just throw in another 670. If I get another now it will be another 420 bucks. If I wait until I run into problems (at least another year or two) the price of the 670 will have come down significantly and I will have saved a lot of cash. I just can't justify spending another 400 - 800 bucks just to smooth out some jaggies, although I bet it looks really nice.

 

[jaquith]

That's what future upgrades are for. If I do run into a problem, I will just throw in another 670.

No kidding, look at the OP's MOBO Selection vs my selection. Maybe then you'll 'get' where I'm coming from in the recommendations.

ASUS P8Z77-V PRO - http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8Z77V_PRO/
2 x PCIe 3.0/2.0 x16 (x16 or dual x8) *3
1 x PCIe 2.0 x16 (x4 mode, black)
*3 = PCIe 3.0 speed is supported by Intel® 3rd generation Core™ processors. (aka Ivy Bridge)

Then compare it to my selection, one of them ASUS P8Z77 WS - http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Intel_Socket_1155/P8Z77_WS/
4 x PCIe 3.0/2.0 x16 (dual x16 or x16/x8/x8 or quad x8) *2
*2 = PCIe 3.0 speed is supported by Intel® 3rd generation Core™ processors. (aka Ivy Bridge)

I just can't justify spending another 400 - 800 bucks just to smooth out some jaggies, although I bet it looks really nice.

Your choice.