Would I notice micro stutter/mouse lag from buying another 5870 for Crossfire?

[hughythomas]

Hi guys

I recently purchased a 5870 and while it definitely is a cracking card - I play games @ 1920x1200 on a 24" Dell Ultrasharp 2407WFP and I still feel the need for more grunt. My Asus 5870 is watercooled and overclocked (core: 1000 mem: 1250 volt: 1.25v). Never goes above 42c under load.

Games I currently play:

BFBC2
TF2
Oblivion (loads of mods)
Dragon Age: Origins
Warhammer DOW2
Batman

My question is - I bought a 4870X2 back in the day which I quickly sold on in favour of a GTX285 as I had never used a multi-GPU setup before and was seriously put off by a couple of issues, namely:

1) Micro-stutter
2) Inconsistent FPS both in game and across new titles
3) Mouse-lag (with and without Vsync)
4) Weird graphical glitches in some games

What I would like to know is if I was to buy another 5870 would I notice these same issues from a multi-GPU setup or have they been ironed out now with the 5xxx series?

I'd really like to hear from people who actually HAVE crossfired 5xxx series cards who could comment on whether or not they notice such issues.

One of the biggest pains for me was the mouse lag and the micro stutter (the latter causing jerky lag despite high FPS?).

Look forward to the replies & many thanks in advance!

Tom

 

[Josh P]

I had 5870 crossfire previously. I only tested it with ArmA2, BC2 and Dirt2. At 900/1300 I got 60fps vsyn'd, ~80fps and ~90fps respectively. I got rid of them because I couldn't keep the top card cool (not an issue if WC'ing), and the only performance issue I had was texture flickering in BC2. This is a game issue that has subsequently been fixed. New drivers have also given Dirt2 a big boost, expect 100+ fps now.

All other hardware was the same as in my signature.

 

[Flanno]

I run 2 5870's in crossfire and have 3 of the games you mention above. Batman, DOW2 and Dragon Age.

1) Micro-stutter. NOT NOTICED IT, AND I DID HAVE IT ON A 4870X2
2) Inconsistent FPS both in game and across new titles. NOT UNLESS THE GAME HAS WHAT MANY CONSIDER A POOR ENGINE (CRYSIS, parts OF MASS EFFECT2)
3) Mouse-lag (with and without Vsync). HAVE NOT NOTICED THIS EITHER. ALTHOUGH IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE TRIPPLE BUFFERING ENABLED USING VSYNC. I USE D3DOVERRIDER FOR THIS.
4) Weird graphical glitches in some games. NOPE.

 

[JeffyB]

I have been really impressed with my cf5770's, apart from teething issues with early drivers last year its been pretty smooth going with great frame rates ingame. I cannot say i have noticed any micro-stutter but from what i can gather it was more prevalent on older/mismatched cards. The past few months drivers from ati have been very good, with substantial gains in a lot of games i play, dirt2, bf bc2. The only game i use v sync on is dirt2 and i use an xbox360 controller so i don't think the lag applies like it does with a mouse, there is none with the controller anyway. Only early drivers gave me odd glitches and these seem to have been ironed out. If you did crossfire your min fps should be only be a smidge lower than a single 5870 (cpu overhead) but nothing you should notice.

 

[hughythomas]

Thanks for the informative replies guys.

I am running P55 with a Core i5 750 @ 4.0Ghz.

Obviously, the second PCI-E lane is limited to 8x - does anyone know if this will make any noticable difference? In terms of micro stutter etc?

Also, I am a bit weird in that I MUCH prefer Vsync OFF as I value the controls feeling 'responsive'. With a single GPU solution (which is what I am used to) with VSYNC on, admittedly there is no tearing but everything feels sluggish - will I NEED to enable VSYNC if I go Crossfire?

Did you guys previously have single gpu cards BEFORE moving to crossfire or did you go straight into the deep end so to speak?

Apologies for all the questions I just want to be sure I don't spank another £350 (card + block) and find I have mouse lag/micro stutter galore!!!

Many thanks

Tom

EDIT: Ooo Flano when you say you had the 4870X2 did you find that even though FRAPS would report high FPS (like in Oblivion for example I was getting 60+ fps outside) but it would still 'feel' like you were getting 25?? It was UBER annoying.

 

[Flanno]

Now that I think about it, that's why I gave up using Fraps. It always seemed to show much higher fps's in games like Oblivion and FarCry then what I was acutally getting or thought I was getting.

 

[hughythomas]

Don't get me wrong I know FRAPS induces a FPS hit when running (along with frame capping iirc) but do your games 'feel' unresponsive and laggy?

Or just smooooth?

I guess I am mainly playing BFBC2 (like the rest of the world it seems!) so anybody with any impressions of this game with dual 5870s would be most appreciated!!!!

Tom

 

[adrichardson81]

8x won't bottleneck a 5870 (outside of synthetic benchmarks, anyway).

 

[kitch9]

I run 2 5870's in crossfire and have 3 of the games you mention above. Batman, DOW2 and Dragon Age.

1) Micro-stutter. NOT NOTICED IT, AND I DID HAVE IT ON A 4870X2
2) Inconsistent FPS both in game and across new titles. NOT UNLESS THE GAME HAS WHAT MANY CONSIDER A POOR ENGINE (CRYSIS, parts OF MASS EFFECT2)
3) Mouse-lag (with and without Vsync). HAVE NOT NOTICED THIS EITHER. ALTHOUGH IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE TRIPPLE BUFFERING ENABLED USING VSYNC. I USE D3DOVERRIDER FOR THIS.
4) Weird graphical glitches in some games. NOPE.

Triple buffering with D3dOverrider increases mouse lag..... Unwinder who wrote the thing said it will do.

 

[MR.B]

2) Inconsistent FPS both in game and across new titles. NOT UNLESS THE GAME HAS WHAT MANY CONSIDER A POOR ENGINE (CRYSIS, parts OF MASS EFFECT2)

What? Mass Effect 2 has a great engine, Unreal Engine 3.5, which many many games use. People like you have no idea what you're talking about when you say these things.
I've had no trouble with it at all on my crossfire 5870's.

 

[hughythomas]

And you don't notice any mouse lag/input delay or micro stuttering?

I am increasingly tempted by getting another having seen what the end users are saying.

Tom

 

[lay-z-boy]

1) Micro-stutter
2) Inconsistent FPS both in game and across new titles
3) Mouse-lag (with and without Vsync)
4) Weird graphical glitches in some games

5870 in cfx here on 2x u2410 + 1x 2407 in eyefinity, I have and have played all apart from batman.


1)Not noticed any. Did notice some on my 'old' 4870x2 and still do on the 9800m gtx sli in my laptop.
2)Only game I've had fps problems (random dips) with is avp in dx11 with everything on max. Seemed to be eyefinity related as turning it off fixed it.
3)Not had any problems with mouse lag. Then again, I don't game with vsync.
4)Won't deny I've had a few but they are usually problems that many others are getting, single or dual gpu. 10.3a ironed out pretty much most of them.

4ghz i5 should allow 2 to run without any major bottleneck related issues. Going from stock 2.6 to 3.8 on my 920 made a substantial improvement in a few games.

 

[hughythomas]

Great! Thanks ever so much for the informative replies guys - most appreciated!

Once I get some fundage I'll nab another 5870.

Lastly, I am running a single ASUS 5870 Volt Edition - can I buy any 5870 and simply flash with the ASUS bios to crossfire them effectively? Obviously I would like to keep the same clocks across both cards...is this a done thing? The Sapphire 5870 is pretty cheap on here atm so I am quite tempted as opposed to buying another expensive ASUS.

Cheers

Tom

 

[uv]

I haven't noticed any micro-stutter / mouse lag on my 4870x2.. just a rubbish crossfire profile for BFBC2. Here's hoping for a fix in 10.4

 

[lay-z-boy]

Great! Thanks ever so much for the informative replies guys - most appreciated!

Once I get some fundage I'll nab another 5870.

Lastly, I am running a single ASUS 5870 Volt Edition - can I buy any 5870 and simply flash with the ASUS bios to crossfire them effectively? Obviously I would like to keep the same clocks across both cards...is this a done thing? The Sapphire 5870 is pretty cheap on here atm so I am quite tempted as opposed to buying another expensive ASUS.

Cheers

Tom

Trusting they use the same pcb, yes you can.

I have mine flashed to pre-oc'd xfx xxx editions, took all of a minute to do.