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Takes Two to Tango - ATI Radeon HD 5770 in CrossFire Action

By Kenny Yeo - 15 Oct 2009

Results contd. & Final Words

Results Continued...

Final Words

The results revealed a few interesting observations. Where outright performance is concerned, two Radeon HD 5770 cards in CrossFireX could certainly stand up to a single Radeon HD 4870 X2 and even the mighty Radeon HD 5870. This gives us consumers something to think about because a single HD 5770 costs only US$159, whereas the flagship HD 5870 costs a whopping US$379.

What's more, in terms of power consumption, the two Radeon HD5770 cards were only a tad more power hungry than a single Radeon HD 5870. And although the system internals certainly felt hot, it was not extreme to the point that it would cause the system to abruptly hang and such. The low operating temperatures of the Juniper XT chip certainly played a part here, as did the compactness of the card, which allowed for better air flow within the casing. Having said that, a casing with adequate ventilation is still highly recommended. Take note that the temperature measurement for the Radeon HD 5770 in CrossFire reported above is based on per card; so that means both cards are roughly giving out heat at 69 degrees Celsius each.

In light of these observations, if you are undecided about the costly but powerful Radeon HD 5870 and the more affordable Radeon HD 5770, you can opt for 5770 first and decide later whether or not to upgrade in the future with an additional 5770 graphics card. Two Radeon HD 5770 cards would cost less, yet still give roughly the same performance as the HD 5870. This is certainly a very good value for money proposition, but it's on the assumption that you have a CrossFireX compatible motherboard in the first place.

On the other hand, hardcore gamers would want to stick with the Radeon HD 5870 or maybe even wait out for the upcoming Radeon HD 5890 and Radeon HD 5870 X2, since all three SKUs provide the absolute best in gaming performance and efficiency at this point of time.

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