Test Settings
| Test System Configuration | |
|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i7-980X (3.33 GHz, 12 MB Shared L3 Cache) Overclocked to 4 GHz at +100 mV, 160 MHz BCLK |
| Motherboard | Gigabyte X58A-UD9 BIOS F3 (05/28/2010) Intel X58 Express, LGA 1366 |
| RAM | Kingston KHX16000D3ULT1K3/6GX (6 GB) DDR3-2000 at DDR3-1600 CAS 7-7-7-21 |
| OS Hard Drive | Western Digital Velociraptor WD3000HLFS, 300 GB 10 000 RPM, SATA 3Gb/s, 16 MB cache |
| Sound | Integrated HD Audio |
| Network | Integrated Gigabit Networking |
| Power | OCZ-Z1000M 1000 W Modular, ATX12V v2.2, EPS12V, 80 PLUS Gold |
| Software | |
| OS | Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit |
| GeForce Graphics | ForceWare 258.96 |
| Radeon Graphics | AMD Catalyst 10.10 |
| Chipset | Intel INF 9.1.1.1020 |
Gigabyte’s four-way CrossFire/SLI-supporting motherboard provides today’s test cards with all the performance they need, while opening up the possibility of future CrossFire scaling articles using some of today’s data.
Clock speed has often been our biggest bottleneck in achieving full graphics card performance. None of our games require more than three processing cores, yet Intel’s six-core Core i7-980X is already in the board and easily supports 4 GHz overclocked.
OCZ’s Z1000M provides over 88% efficiency across a very broad range of loads, at minimal noise.
| Benchmark Configuration | |
|---|---|
| 3D Games | |
| Aliens Vs. Predator Benchmark | Alien vs Predator Benchmark Tool Test Set 1: Highest Settings, No AA Test Set 2: Highest Settings, 4x AA |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | Campaign, Act III, Second Sun (45 sec. FRAPS) Test Set 1: Highest Settings, No AA Test Set 2: Highest Settings, 4x AA |
| Crysis | Patch 1.2.1, DirectX 10, 64-bit executable, benchmark tool Test Set 1: Highest Quality, No AA Test Set 2: Highest Quality, 4x AA |
| DiRT 2 | Run with -benchmark example_benchmark.xml Test Set 1: Highest Settings, No AA Test Set 2: Highest Settings, 4x AA |
| S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call Of Pripyat | Call Of Pripyat Benchmark version Test Set 1: Highest Settings, No AA Test Set 2: Highest Settings, 4x MSAA |
| Synthetic Benchmarks and Settings | |
| 3DMark Vantage | Version: 1.0.1, GPU and CPU scores |
| Power, Heat, and Noise | |
| GPU Load | FurMark 1.6.5 Stability Test, 1920x1200, 4x AA |
| P3 Kill A Watt P4400 | Global Power Consumption at AC outlet |
| Galaxy Check Mate CM-140 | Measured at 1/4 meter, corrected to 1 m (-12 db) |
This author’s argument against definitive noise measurements is that it’s almost impossible to remove background noise contamination from a running system. Yet, many readers insist that these measurements must be taken for relativity's sake. Using a “supersized” CPU air cooler that takes several minutes to warm up, the CPU fan has been temporarily disconnected during sound tests to get a somewhat-close approximation of each card’s true noise level.