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With the launch of P55 and Intel’s three LGA 1156-based CPUs, we wanted to revisit the topic of gaming performance. However, we couldn’t do it in quite the same way. You see, whereas X58 serves up to 36 lanes of PCI Express 2.0 connectivity, P55 only boasts eight—and those eight aren’t even meant to accommodate graphics cards, since the chipset communicates with its host processor via Intel’s Direct Media Interface (DMI). The company won't say how fast this generation of DMI is running, but it's not fast enough for serious gaming.
Thus, we only have the CPU’s 16 lanes of on-board PCI Express 2.0, which can be used as a single x16 link, split up into two x8 links, or multiplexed via something like Nvidia’s NF200 bridge into additional x8 links. That third option is a little extreme for a platform aimed at a mainstream audience though, so we’re going stick with single- and dual-card configurations here.
ATI’s Radeon HD 4870 X2 remains the company’s fastest board (almost a year later, even), but Nvidia now offers the GeForce GTX 285 and GeForce GTX 295. While we don’t have a second GTX 295 in-house, we got our hands on the next best thing: a pair of BFG’s GeForce GTX 285 OCFU Edition cards, which work out well because they cost just about as much as the dual-GPU Radeon.
So Many Variables!
Comparing performance results in a story like this, and then identifying the cause underlying frame rate dips and spikes can be a challenge, as we’re testing a range of different CPU architectures and platforms that do different things with PCI Express.
Fortunately, we spent some extra time normalizing the clock speed of today’s most popular enthusiast architectures and comparing the effect of integrated PCI Express 2.0, a pair of chipset-based links full x16 signaling, and chipset-based links at x8 signaling rates in our story In Theory: How Does Lynnfield’s On-Die PCI Express Affect Gaming?
The general conclusion there was that we do see theoretical advantages to running one graphics card on an integrated x16 link. However, that benefit does not translate to real-world gaming. And when you add a second graphics card, halving the on-die link to create two x8 connections does hit performance a bit in environments that are platform-limited. Of course, as you get closer to 2560x1600 with anti-aliasing enabled, the benefits of CrossFire and SLI are sufficient to mask that architectural compromise.
At the end of the day, you end up with what amounts to a wash at high resolutions with one card installed. With two, even at 2560x1600, the pair of dedicated x16 links turns out slightly better results. Is that enough to warrant a pricy X58 motherboard and Core i7 processor? With everything running at a constant 2.8 GHz, not really.
But let’s shift away from our theoretical look at performance and get all of these processors running at their retail speeds for a more real-world look at gaming using ATI’s CrossFire and Nvidia’s SLI in Intel’s new P55.
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so we can assume for gaming the 965BE (or 955 oc) and ATi cards are just as fast as Core i7 and i5 but at a fraction of the price
The 955 does cost less. The 965 is more expensive than Core i5.
Only thing I don't like is how you knock Crossfire with 2 HD 4870X2's, since when is it even feasible that 4-way CF would scale as well as 2-way SLI?
But excellent review, overall, I'm actually surprised at how the 965BE did, I thought it'd be behind, where it was actually right in the pack.
I would have liked to see a 780a or a 980a SLI motherboard used to check the SLI numbers on the P2 965BE. I'm also surprised there's no overclocking numbers in the comparison, is that article still to come out?
It's upcoming dirt; Patrick is the one working on it (and our Italian team sent word of its i5 and i7s in excess of 4.2 GHz)
Nice game collection you got there.......
Great review.
I like vista, rock solid and stable since I got it years ago. Don't listen to the bashers who never have tried the product.
You giotta remember vista is design for spoecific hardware and powerfull hardware that can run it, so people with P4 3GHz and vista complain about its speed, vista is OK, i dont like it cause my computer doesm't like it thats fine i get over it and chnage my OS
Thanks for weighing in, guys!
So there's no benafit from adding a second 285 to a q9550s or an x4 965 be ??
I get a good performance boost from my second gtx280 with my q9650 @ 4 gz
crash--
As mentioned in the story, these were tested on 790GX and X48 platforms, which don't do SLI. While there are Nvidia-based SLI platforms available for both configurations, I felt that they were quite a bit more rare and applicable to a much smaller contingent of readers than the CrossFire-capable platforms. The beauty of X58 and P55 is that they'll do both!
Regards,
Chris
Kudos for adding the Flight Simulator X as a benchmark.
Why so many tests today with 2 4870x2s?
I'd rather have seen 4890 and then 4890CF. That way you see single card performance compared to crossfire instead of dual corssfire compared to quad crossfire.
I do understand why the card is compared to the GTX 285 based on price though.
Let's be glad AMD is still around to provide competition to Intel. Gaming is obviously fine on either CPU, but some people say: "OMG, I must have the Core i7 because it can do the Monte Carlo simulation faster!!!". The performance difference between Core i7/Phenom II is marginal right now, but if AMD were to exit stage left, then these round ups would be VIA vs. Intel, and I don't know about you, but VIA's offerings really AREN'T fast enough for me... Consider a Phenom II, I love mine...
Let's be glad AMD is still around to provide competition to Intel. Gaming is obviously fine on either CPU, but some people say: "OMG, I must have the Core i7 because it can do the Monte Carlo simulation faster!!!". The performance difference between Core i7/Phenom II is marginal right now, but if AMD were to exit stage left, then these round ups would be VIA vs. Intel, and I don't know about you, but VIA's offerings really AREN'T fast enough for me... Consider a Phenom II, I love mine...
I wish there is a third and fourth player in the market so AMD won't sit on its butt and do nothing. AMD has this idea that “we don’t have to compete on performance, just make our product cheap enough and people will buy it”. That’s what doomed GM and Chrysler.
I wish Nvidia and NEC join/rejoin the CPU market.
Thank you, Toms, for the detailed Graphics comparison. Yet regarding the comments section, I have to shake my head that we're again continuing the AMD versus Intel wars.
I thought people should have learned by now that GPU~intensive tests say little about CPUs, except whether they're 'Good Enough', or not.
I wonder if u will ever include WOW in ur benchmark suite. Its just a MMORPG but it happens to be the most played game on the planet, thus making it interesting for a lot of us out there who are looking on information when deciding to buy one video card vs another or one processor vs another. Thnkz.
Pei-Chen: This article shobuld make it painfully obvious that AMD can and DOES compete on performance in games. AMD has brought plenty of innovation, even if they don't always finish first, but only for the CPU-based video rendering enthusiast does it make no sense to purchase AMD, the other 99.9% of us couldn't tell the difference in a taste test.
PS: If you want a 3rd and 4th player, you should go discuss x86 licensing with your beloved Intel...
The only question that remains for me is how things will turn once the DirectX 11 cards are announced.
Then, I can see x8 PCIe2.0 links hurting the P55 chipset and the X58 showing its true potential.
This will definitely affect SLI/Crossfire setups but I am not sure how it will affect single card solutions.
I like vista, rock solid and stable since I got it years ago. Don't listen to the bashers who never have tried the product.
Agreed. Vista was pretty good after all the manufactures released the drivers. I still think Win 7 is better than XP and Vista.