Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hey all,

I am just getting to the Eyefinity party and have some basic questions. First, my system (don't know how much of this matters);

Asus P8P67 Deluxe (Rev 3.0)
Intel i5 2500k 3.3GHz (stock for now)
Corsair Vengeance 16GB DDR3 1600 Ram

MSI R6850 Cyclone PE Radeon HD 6850 1GB x2

Western Digital WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb HDD

Corsair CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V v2.2 PSU

ASUS VH236H Monitor (soon to be x3)

Ok, I hope that covers all the major parts that would be needed.

I plan on connecting the main VH236H to video card via StarTech DP2DVIS DisplayPort to DVI Active Adapter and then DVI the other two from the main video card (so a total of three monitors from that same 'main' HD6850) and then I will CrossfireX the second HD6850 with the main card.when I get them.

So at last my question, will this setup allow me to experience Eyefinity with the three monitors (5760 x 1080) basically enough to make it worth the purchase of the other monitors?

I only play Star Wars The Old Republic really with this rig and with just one HD6850 on max video setting I can get 30-60 fps throughout on 1920x1080.

Will I be able to go moderate setting at least at 5760 x 1080? Thanks for your time and I look forward to hearing from those that know. If there is anything else I can add to help break this down, please ask!

K

if it is an active Dp to DVI adapter that should work!

the problem is more the 1gb VRAM. Thats not much! You will not in all games be able to run AntiAliasing! Dont know exactly when 1GB VRam will be Full, but in 5760x1080 it will be more than in 1920x1080! Increasing further with AA.

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We gonna send it to outa space!

Thanks for the quick response!

Again, pointing to the "noob" reference...will the second 1GB HD6850 what I will have in Crossfire with the first card...will that help at all or is the second card there only to 'boost' the main card?

Would it make any difference if I dropped the crossfire and used the second card to power the outside monitors?

Hi Kingfish,

I don't have any personal experience with the Old Republic, so I can't say too much about the game and the settings you'll be able to run at.

But, in order for Eyefinity to work for any game, you have to connect all three screens from the same card. If you're thinking about doing Crossfire and Eyefinity together, be aware that the extra card in Crossfire does not raise the overall available graphics memory. So, two 1 GB cards in Crossfire still limits you to 1 GB of total video memory available, not 2 GB. I believe that's because both cards have to keep a copy of the same data in memory.

Haldi's absolutely right that 1 GB of video memory is pushing it at 5760x1080, but I'm satisfied with my performance using a similar, slower setup than you describe. I use 2 X 1 GB 5870s at 5760x1080 and most games run well but require me to drop down to 2X antialiasing or disable antialiasing altogether. On newer games like Battlefield 3 or Skyrim, I have to lower most graphical settings to Medium or High rather than Very High to get a playable framerate.

Another thing to watch out for when running Eyefinity and Crossfire at the same time is microstutter. Haldi's far more knowledgeable about it than me, but the simple explanation is that your framerate will be consistently higher with two cards in Crossfire, but you may see microstutter that makes the framerate seem "choppy" even though your overall FPS are high. There's been lots of speculation about what causes microstutter and some people seem to be bothered by it more than others. My recommendation is to use 1 card for Eyefinity whenever possible, to prevent microstutter. If you don't already have two cards, you may want to try running with just the one card and see if you get acceptable performance at your desired settings. If not, you can always add the second card later.

Awesome, thanks for the input!

I had that first 6850 in my old Q6600 system for a while and its worked so well playing The Old Republic on High graphics I decided to match it with an exact 6850 that was on clearance, i mean first one cost me $190 over a year ago and this one was $100 with a $20 MiR so I said 'what the heck'!

I was going to give this a chance and then save up for a 7970 later this year when the good ones drop down to sub $500.

EDIT: actually I may wade into the water a little at a time now that I have thought on it. I may start with a 2GB 6970 and see how it handles what I am doing.

Anyway, I had heard about the micro-stuttering issues and I hope it won't turn out to be a big problem for me...cause I am itching to buy the two matching 23.6" monitors for this system. Thats a LOT of widescreen real-estate and I am kinda psyched about it!

Thanks again and if there are any other thoughts, I will be checking back regularly!

You can have both cards installed but enable/disable Crossfire from the Catalyst Control Center. If you've already got the two cards, try it out single card and in Crossfire mode and see which way you prefer. For games that properly support Crossfire, I usually prefer it enabled, even with microstutter. If you find a game that doesn't work well with Crossfire enabled, you can now use Application Profiles in the Catalyst Control Center to disable Crossfire when the game launches, instead of having to remember to do it manually. I think you have to be running the 12.1 drivers or later to get support for Application Profiles.

I'm looking for an upgrade in the next year too, but I think it's too soon to tell if the 7900 series will be a winner or not. It looks good to me, but I'm still waiting on prices to drop and drivers to mature before taking the plunge.

You'll love Eyefinity once you get it running well for your games. For The Old Republic, be sure to check out the detailed report. It sounds like it works pretty well by default, but you may need to use the Widescreen Fixer to get a centered HUD. Good luck!

Don't waste your money on a HD6970 buy a HD7950 instead if you want it cheaper! I know there is still a big difference in price, but it's worth the cash! And if you need more performance you could overclock this card and get 10-20% more performance.

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We gonna send it to outa space!

You guys are great! Thanks for the help.

I am really a dabbler in FPS, flight sims and driving games but I spend 90% of my time on the computer between SWTOR and DDO both seemingly basic MMOs and neither of them will knock your socks off visually.

As I said earlier, I get 30ish FPS with the single HD6850 in SWTOR so unless the micro-stuttering is too much I should be happy with adding another one, at least on my single 23.6 monitor.

I will probably wait to add two more monitors until later this year when I can get a 7950-70 card to replace these.

Again let me thank you for your advice and help!
K

Ok...well that ain't gonna work! The micro-stuttering just can't fly...so, I am returning it along with a couple other items and should get about $300 in credit in a month or so :/

Oh well...so, as someone mentioned on here earlier, is the 7950 the best bang for the buck now? I am thinking if I dump another $150 to $200ish into this I can get a single really nice card. Any other suggestions...oh and this has been a nightmare :(

I would be buying a single 7950 with as much VRAM as possible, if I was in your situation. 3Gb if possible but 2Gb at a minimum.

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