Test System And Benchmarks
| Test System Configuration | |
|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i7-4770K: 3.50 GHz, 8 MB Shared L3 Cache, LGA 1150 Overclocked to 4.5 GHz at 1.20 V |
| Motherboard | ASRock Z87 Extreme9/AC, BIOS 1.80, PEX 8747 48-Lane PCIe 3.0 Switch |
| CPU Cooler | Thermalright MUX-120 with Zalman ZM-STG1 Paste |
| RAM | G.Skill F3-17600CL9Q-16GBXLD (16 GB) XMP-2200 CAS 11 at DDR3-1600 CAS 9 Defaults |
| GTX 780 Graphics | Nvidia GeForce GTX 780: 863-902 MHz GPU, 3 GB GDDR5-6008 |
| GTX 760 Graphics | EVGA 04G-P4-2766-KR: 980-1033 MHz GPU, 4 GB GDDR5-6008 |
| Hard Drive | Samsung 840 Series MZ-7PD256, 256 GB SSD |
| Sound | Integrated HD Audio |
| Network | Integrated Gigabit Networking |
| Power | Corsair AX860i: ATX12V v2.3, EPS12V, 80 PLUS Platinum |
| System Software | |
| OS | Microsoft Windows 8 Professional RTM x64 |
| Graphics | Nvidia GeForce 331.58 WHQL |
| Chipset | Intel INF 9.4.0.1017 |
The biggest issue we face when it comes to testing three-way SLI is that Intel’s fastest mainstream CPUs only have 16 PCIe 3.0 lanes. The LGA 2011 platform is an alternative, though the processor architecture it hosts is one generation older. The other alternative is to use a motherboard with a bridge chip able to turn 16 lanes of PCI Express connectivity into 32. ASRock sent over our lab's first Z87-based platform with the requisite on-board components, its Z87 Extreme9/AC.
The reason bridges work so well is that they’re able to send multiple copies of the same data to each card. Because the members of an SLI array operate on identical information, this has the benefit of multiplying out bandwidth without needing a much more complicated on-die PCI Express controller. A slightly latency penalty is the only noticeable drawback to this approach, since data has to go through one more piece of silicon.
| Games | |
|---|---|
| Battlefield 3 | Campaign Mode, "Going Hunting" 90-Second Fraps Test Set 1: Medium Quality Defaults (No AA, 4x AF) Test Set 2: Ultra Quality Defaults (4x AA, 16x AF) |
| Far Cry 3 | V. 1.05, DirectX 11, 50-Second Fraps "Amanaki Outpost" Test Set 1: High Quality, No AA, Standard ATC, SSAO Test Set 2: Ultra Quality, 4x MSAA, Enhanced ATC, HDAO |
| F1 2012 | Steam version, in-game benchmark Test Set 1: High Quality Preset, No AA Test Set 2: Ultra Quality Preset, 8x AA |
| Metro: Last Light | Steam version, Built-In Benchmark, "Frontline" SceneTest Set 1: DX11, Med Quality, 4x AF, Low Blur, No SSAA, No Tesselation, No PhysXTest Set 2: DX11, High Quality, 16x AF, Normal Blur, SSAA, Tesselation Normal, No PhysX |
| Tomb Raider | Steam version, Built-In Benchmark Test Set 1: High Quality Preset (8x AF, FXAA), Motion Blur, Screen Effects Test Set 2: Ultimate Quality, (16x AF, FXAA), Tesselation, TressFX |
| Synthetic Benchmarks | |
| 3DMark Professional | Version 1.1, SystemInfo 4.17.0.0, Fire Strike Benchmark (Extreme Off/On) |