That's almost 2x scaling there but I think overall it's just not worth it; easier to save the money and put it towards a new system when the time comes.
So the way I am reading that review is 2 4870's in crossfire perform better in them games that a single 4870x2? I was having the same dilema should I buy another 4870 or what? My mind is decided for another 100 quid I can have vastly improved performance. Then when the new 5000 series comes out I can then sell my 4870's. Earlydoors thats a great post. You answered the question that was asked.
Graphs like the one above always make for impressive reading, and indeed, 2 x 4870s scale better than one 4870X2 on this particular game. HOWEVER, your not going to witness 79.6 FPS on any current monitor. A real-time frame is the time it takes to complete a full round of the system's processing tasks. If the frame rate of a real-time system is 60 Hertz, the system reevaluates all necessary inputs and updates the necessary outputs 60 times per second under all circumstances. In other words, if you crank a game to anything greater than 60 FPS, and your monitor's frequency is set at 60Htz, then the extra frames are discarded. The monitor simply cannot process them. 2 X 4870s = 79.6 FPS 4870X2 =70.8 FPS Conclusion: Both set-ups will appear EXACTLY the same to your eye.
Yes but the point is that this shows te performance of the card, i.e 2x4870 is abour 10% better than a 4870x2
Of course, it could be argued that two GPUs on two cards are still better than 2 GPUs on one card, but it doesn't take into account the associated problems of having two cards fitted instead of one; including loss of bandwidth. A true measure would be on something like Crysis Warhead, where the FPS would be considerably less than 60. Then, if it was still 10% quicker, I'd have to concede defeat.
It's a hot topic this! As a point of note. If you were in the market for an upgrade and didn't have either set-up, then plumping for a X2 over a 2X would be better bang per buck wise, but waiting for the next series is proberbly better all round...
Same article, Crysis Warhead - 1920x1200, Gamer Bear in mind that these benchmarks were run on a very high end system, so not everyone would be able to attain those framerates if they were to crossfire HD4870s (or whatever) - Processor Core i7-965 Extreme 3.2GHz Motherboard Gigabyte EX58-UD5 Memory Corsair Dominator TR3X6G1600C8D - 6GB (3 DIMMs)
Still with my 1 4870 card I can expect to see huge improvements by adding another 4870 card as I have a 24inch 16:10 widescreen monitor. I have a i7 920 (which I cant see dragging me back). I have the same motherboard but not quite the same memory. According to the graph above I might be able to see a 50% improvement for 100 quid. Not bad.
Yes, you can't take into account Core i7, since it has no improvement in gaming over LGA775. But certainly, adding another 4870 does seem to be preferable. I concede defeat. TESTICALS
well i have just recieved my second sapphire 1gb 4870 (bought brand new from ebay for £112) and i have just tested it on crysis warhead and 3dmark06 and its jsut blown me away. on crysis warhead i used to play on the 'GAMER' setting but it used to stutter now im playing on 'ENTHUSIASTIC' setting and its so smooth and its a joy playing now. on 3dmark06 when on stock cpu setting i got about 13000 with 1 card now on stock i get 19000 (i havent tested it when overclocked yet) Yes theres power consumption and there is alot of heat (espcially as my cards are really close together) but i have a antec 1200 to cool it down. For anyone whos looking 2 go down the route on getting another 4870 i suggest just do it you wont regret it. Best £100 i have spent in years
No it doesnt have to be identical. However if one has better specs than the other one then it will automatically be 'downgraded' to the other card.