System Setup And Benchmarks
We tested on an LGA 1366-based machine sporting Intel's fastest Core i7 processor, the 975 Extreme, overclocked to 4 GHz. The idea here is that we wanted to eliminate CPU bottlenecks wherever possible, though you'll noticed these graphics cards are so fast that CPU-bound situations are unavoidable at times.
Also, the GeForce GTX 285s had to be run at 100% fan duty cycle in SLI mode, else they'd crash.
Finally, it's worth noting that the Radeon HD 5870 intermittently exhibited corruption in the first 3DMark Vantage test.
| Test Hardware | |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Core i7-975 Extreme (Bloomfield) 3.33 GHz, 6.4 GT/s, 8 MB L3 Cache, power-saving settings disabledOverclocked to 4 GHz (25 * 160 MHz) |
| Motherboard | Asus Rampage II Extreme (LGA 1366) X58/ICH10, BIOS 1504 |
| Memory | Corsair Dominator 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3-1600 8-8-8-24 @ 1,600 MHz |
| Hard Drive | Intel SSDSA2MH160G2C1 160 GB SATA 3 Gb/s |
| Networking | Realtek RTC8111C, 1 Gbps |
| Graphics Cards | ATI Radeon HD 5870 1GB |
| ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB | |
| ATI Radeon HD 4890 1GB | |
| ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB | |
| Nvidia GeForce GTX 295 1.8GB | |
| Nvidia GeForce GTX 285 1GB | |
| Power Supply | Cooler Master UCP 1100 W |
| CPU Cooler | Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme |
| System Software And Drivers | |
| Operating System | Microsoft Windows 7 x64 |
| DirectX | DirectX 11 |
| Platform Driver | Intel INF Chipset Update Utility 9.1.1.1019 |
| Graphics Driver | AMD Catalyst 8.66 RC6 |
| AMD Catalyst 9.9 | |
| Nvidia GeForce 190.62 | |
| Benchmark | Configuration |
|---|---|
| World in Conflict | Very 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 2 | Ultra High Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version |
| Ultra High Quality Settings, 8x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version | |
| Crysis | Very High Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1900x1200, 2560x1600, Patch 1.2.1, DirectX 10, 64-bit Executable |
| Very High Quality Settings, 8x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1900x1200, 2560x1600 Patch 1.2.1, DirectX 10, 64-bit Executable | |
| Left 4 Dead | Highest Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version |
| Highest Quality Settings, 8x AA / 16x AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Steam Version | |
| Grand Theft Auto IV | Highest Quality Settings, No AA / "High" AF, vsync off, 1680x1050/1920x1200, 2560x1600, Patch #3 |
| Stalker: Clear Sky | Extreme Quality Setting, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10 lighting |
| Extreme 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, 8x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, AO enabled, DirectX 10/10.1 | |
| Resident Evil 5 | High Quality Settings, No AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10, Fixed Benchmark |
| High Quality Settings, 8x AA / No AF, vsync off, 1680x1050, 1920x1200, 2560x1600, DirectX 10, Fixed Benchmark | |
| 3DMark Vantage | Performance Default, High Quality, Extreme Quality |