Can i upgrade to 2 hd5850's

[Guest]

hello,

i am currently looking at upgrading my system. these are my specs atm:

Intel Core i5 750 2.66GHz
Asus P7P55D iP55 Socket LGA 1156 8 Channel Audio ATX Motherboard
8gb GSKILL ripjaw ram
HD Radeon 5850 1gb

my PSU is Coolermaster Silent Pro M600
http://www.coolermaster.com/product.php?product_id=4199

i am looking to buy a second 5850 and run the 2 in crossfire. My question is whether or not my psu is capable of running these 2 cards in crossfire or if i will need to upgrade that aswell.

thanks for any help!

 

[bavman]

It depends. How much are you going to spend on that second 5850?
Crossfire scaling performance isn't that great on 5xxx series cards....it might be just better to upgrade to a single better card and sell your 5850 for some cash to help.

Your PSU should be enough and your mobo supports it though

 

[Quaddro]

Silent Pro series from cooler master is a very good unit..
(unlike extreme power and real power..both series is a crap)

AMD recommend 600w power supply when using in crossfire mode..

So you can fly your frame rate with crossfiring your card without worry..
____________________________

i agree with mr. bavman..
single 7870 almost as fast 2x5850 but with much lower power..

 

[Sakkura]

Tom's review of the 5850 showed their system (with an overclocked i7) using under 500W at the wall with two 5850s in crossfire running furmark.

It should be okay.

 

[Guest]

im not looking to spend alot on one. as cheap as i can possibly get one is my aim lol. looking to buy one second hand

 

[bavman]

The reason I ask is because I was in the same position as you a while ago. I wanted a second 5850 off ebay for ~$150 (probably cheaper now). I ended up selling mine and getting a GTX 580 instead for $300 so I basically spent the same amount after selling my 5850, but it was a much better upgrade over 2x5850

 

[maestro0428]

Your best bet is to sell your 5850 and get the fastest single graphics card you can get. Crossfire (and SLI) have their issues and its always better to avoid them entirely. I once had 5850s in crossfire and although my 650w Corsair psu was up to the task, I ran into microstuttering and issues with several games.