Six months ago, I built my first PC, just to say I am extremely happy with it and I am glad I built it. My rig as it stands at the moment: Case: CM 690II advanced CPU: Core i5 750 @ 2.8Ghz Graphics Card: XFX 5850 Motherboard: P7P55D Deluxe (I don't think that was worth the money but still happy with it) PSU: Antec 750W truepower RAM: Corsair 4GB Heatsink: Gield Tranquillo I now want to bring in a second graphics card another ATI 5850 for crossfire, I have thought about adding a 5870 instead, but I have read it is better to have the same card Also I am wondering on how many more fans to add, I have the standard three fans which come with the case. I will probably add one to the side to cool the graphics cards and I am unsure about another exhaust fan on the top. I am wondering what other people have done with this case in terms of fan set up. Also I am wondering if using the graphics card holder that comes with the case is worth using or not. Finally, this probably isn't much of an issue as everything is fine, but at idle my temperatures average around 27-28, under load using prime 95 the temperatures average 42-43 so obviously the heatsink is working perfectly. I am just wondering why I have maybe quite a high idle temperature Thanks for replying
I dont think those idle temps are high at all. Also your core i5 can go alot higher than 2.8, 3.6Ghz is normally possible.
Just a quick heads-up regarding getting another graphics card to run CrossFire. It's very advisable to get an identical card to the one you're already using. This'll minimize possible issues. If you can't get an identical card, then get one with the same specs. Remember, CrossFire (and SLI) works much like RAM in this regard. All units/devices/modules fall back to the lowest common denominator. Let's say you get a HD5870 and pair it with your HD5850. If it works at all (and I'm not 100% certain it would) the HD5870 will behave like the HD5850. Even if you have two HD5850 cards and one of them is an OC'ed edition that one will clock down to match the slower card. Oh, and your CPU idle temps sound perfectly fine. I could only hope for such low idle temps.
The way you're system is at the moment the motherboard is a waste. Overclock it and get what you paid for. Reguarding the Crossfire. As Azrael said it is adviseable to get the same card but it will still work with a 5870. you have three choices really. 1-either buy another another 5850. 2-Sell your 5850 and buy a 570GTX 3-Sell your 5850 and pick up a second hand 5970 for decent money. The stock vetalation is great with that case but if you want more fans the gentle typhoons are great. with the longer card i would use the bracket as it really take alot of the strain. (And it's free _
Remember you will need a high res screen to see much of a benefit from crossfire, if your fps is already high then you might not see any improvement, considering most screens are 60Hz and therefore cannot display faster than 60fps. What screen res are you running? and what games? Some games are more compatible with crossfire than others.
My screen resolution at the moment is 1920 x 1080, the main games that I play are Left 4 dead 2, Napolean Total war, Metro 2033. I had not thought of those options I will consider them as maybe crossfire is not the best option for what I have. Yeah, that is something I should have done already, I'll get around to it very soon Also, thanks for the information on the temperatures.
Crossfire would net you more performance per £ than selling and getting a single card. An i5 will be fine up to 70-80C your temp are fine.
I have been thinking over getting another 5850 for CF? Or, is it better to get a better graphics card for a bit more selling my 5850 at the moment. Which will give the better performance increase at a resolution at 1920x1080. Also, if you know of a 80mm*15mm fan which is at about 20db Thanks
You will get better performance from two cards, though a good powerful single card should be giving enough juice that the Framerate difference is not even notable to the eye. I always support going one powerful card instead of two weaker cards in XFire (no chance of microstuttering, no compatibility issues etc.) but others swear by SLI/XFire set ups. As for additional fans in the case, no harm in buying a few more to fill it, though until you start OCing I would doubt you actually need to. Finally, those idle temps are good - anything to low 30s is ok. Mine idles at 43C not overclocked! (I believe when I moved the parts from one case to another I may jostled the cooler so I need to refit it correctly) but while 43 is way too high for idle it is still well within safe temps for the CPU
Definately opt for getting a better single card than going x-fire if you can, sell your 5850 and get a gtx 570. Benchmarks will probably show crossfire 5850 giving higher average fps, but you'll get a far smoother real world experience with a single 570. And it'll be plenty of power at 1920*1080. Dont bother with multi-card setup at that res. And your temps are more than fine. No need to add any more fans until you overclock it and record temps there. Unless you end up with high GPU temps or CPU after overclocking you'll just be increasing noise in your case.
I totally agree! I'd rather spend money on an SSD and sound card right now rather than a graphics upgrade when you don't need it. Wait a while till games start to outpace your gpu and then you can go out and buy even stronger cards than what is out now.
I'd buy a more powerful card while the 5850 is still worth money that way you can sell the card to someone who does want a 2 card set up or an upgrade to an old card
