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Radeon HD 5770 And 5750 Review: Gentlemen, Start Your HTPCs

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Test Setup

As we add more and more comparison numbers, it gets difficult to interpret the charts at a quick glance. We’re working on a way to make this easier (splitting each resolution off into a separate chart, tripling the number of charts, isn’t really the answer). In the meantime, though, I’ve tried to re-order the way cards appear this time around. The three new configurations are up top: Radeon HD 5770 in CrossFire, Radeon HD 5770, and Radeon HD 5750. Then you’ll find the products in ATI’s own stack, in order of performance. Finally, we have two cards from Nvidia: the GeForce GTS 250 (priced to compete with ATI’s Radeon HD 5750) and the GeForce GTX 260 (a Radeon HD 4870 competitor priced more aggressively than the Radeon HD 5770).

Test Hardware
ProcessorIntel Core i5-750 (Lynnfield) 2.66 GHz, 8 MB L3 Cache, power-saving settings enabledOverclocked to 3.8 GHz (20 * 190 MHz) for scaling tests
MotherboardAsus P7P55D Premium (LGA 1156) P55 Express chipset
MemoryCorsair Dominator 4GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 7-7-7-20 @ 1,600 MHz
Hard DriveIntel SSDSA2MH160G2C1 160 GB SATA 3 Gb/s
NetworkingRealtek RTC8111C, 1 Gbps
Graphics CardsATI Radeon HD 5770 1GB
ATI Radeon HD 5750 1GB
ATI Radeon HD 5850 1GB
ATI Radeon HD 4890 1GB
ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB
ATI Radeon HD 4770 512MB
Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 896MB
Nvidia GeForce GTS 250 1GB
Power SupplyCooler Master UCP 1100 W
CPU CoolerThermalright Ultra 120 Extreme
System Software And Drivers
Operating SystemMicrosoft Windows 7 Ultimate x64
DirectXDirectX 11
Platform DriverIntel INF Chipset Update Utility 9.1.1.1019
Graphics DriverAMD Catalyst 8.66 RC6
AMD Catalyst 9.9
Nvidia GeForce 191.07
BenchmarkConfiguration
World in ConflictVery High Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Patch 1009, DirectX 10
Very High Quality Settings, 4x AA / 16x AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Patch 1009, DirectX 10
Far Cry 2Very High Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version
Very High Quality Settings, 4x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version
CrysisHigh Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1900x1200, 2560x1600, Patch 1.2.1, DirectX 10, 64-bit Executable
High Quality Settings, 4x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1900x1200, 2560x1600 Patch 1.2.1, DirectX 10, 64-bit Executable
Left 4 DeadHighest Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version
Highest Quality Settings, 4x AA / 8x AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version
Grand Theft Auto IVHighest Quality Settings, No AA / "High" AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Patch #4
Stalker: Clear SkyHigh Quality Setting, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10 lighting
High Quality Setting, 4x MSAA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10 lighting
H.A.W.X.Highest Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, AO enabled, DirectX 10/10.1
Highest Quality Settings, 4x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, AO enabled, DirectX 10/10.1
Resident Evil 5High Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10, Fixed Benchmark
High Quality Settings, 4x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10, Fixed Benchmark
3DMark VantagePerformance Default, High Quality, Extreme Quality
Batman: Arkham AsylumHigh Details, No AA / Max AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200/2560x1600, Patch 1.1, In-game benchmark, w/ and w/o PhysX
123 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Summer Leigh Castle 13 October 2009 11:54
    Can we BOLD or change the color of the card that's being reviewed?
    Reply
  • masterjaw 13 October 2009 12:12
    Nice one, but the charts are a bit cluttered without giving emphasis on the featured cards (bold fonts, etc). A media card that could do games pretty good.

    I'm quite agree with the nvidia's G92 still hanging around but looking at their newly released cards (gt220, 210), I don't know what to say anymore. Hopefully, they're making the right choices at the right time.
    Reply
  • megamanx00 13 October 2009 12:13
    Looks to me like the 5770 really needs faster memory speeds, though that would defeat trying to make it cheaper, and perhaps a higher core clock. Perhaps we'll see some factory overclocked cards with memory that can reach a significantly higher speed.
    Reply
  • JohnnyLucky 13 October 2009 12:17
    Power consumption, temperature, and noise levels are very encouraging. I just finished reading other reviews where the 5700 cards are described as mid-level and mainstream cards.
    Reply
  • buzznut 13 October 2009 12:22
    If I was building today (htpc), I would still go with a HD4670. Who knows six months from now...
    Those other features are compelling. If I could afford 2 more monitors that is.
    Reply
  • cangelini 13 October 2009 12:23
    Summer Leigh CastleCan we BOLD or change the color of the card that's being reviewed?
    For sure--I've looked into this and would be happy to implement, but haven't had much luck. Any Excel gurus able to get only certain axis labels bolded without changing the entire series?
    Reply
  • noob2222 13 October 2009 12:28
    and bitstreaming HD audio in an HTPC (a reason to buy a second card for the living room).

    Personally I use my main computer as my HTPC, after all, I can't play games and watch movies from 2 different rooms at the same time, and all it takes is the HDMI cable (at least until they make it wireless.)
    Reply
  • cangelini 13 October 2009 12:35
    That works as well. But for someone with a triple-head setup *and* an HTPC, I can justify both usage models.
    Reply
  • lashabane 13 October 2009 12:52
    I'm looking to upgrade from my dated 3850 and was thinking that these would really impress me for the price. I'm thinking I'll just spend the bit extra and get the 5850 when the prices come down.

    Of course, I wouldn't have been able to make such an informed decision so early if it weren't for TH and columnists such as yourself.

    Thanks for another great article Chris.
    Reply
  • ambientmf 13 October 2009 12:53
    What's the benefit of DirectX 11 capabilities if the cards are worse performing than last gen cards in DX9/10 games? I'd rather get a 4800 series card, being a gamer myself, for slightly better framerates.
    I can see the other benefits for the hardcore HTPC crowd though.
    Reply