I just bought a ASUS HD 3850 256mb and I'm loving the card ATM(beat the crap out of my old 6800 gts). I'm getting a new CPU, mobo and mem asap. I was wondering should I get a CF mobo and hook up 2 cards? If I do that then I got some q's. My main questions are: Can I buy a 3870 and put that to work with my 3850, and will it be better than 2 3850's? If I buy the 512mb version of 3850 and use that as my "main" card, will it work better than having 2 256mb versions? Thanks in advance.
I would recommend a CF board, yes. The 790FX atm is about the best you'll find. And no, I don't think you can buy a 3870 and run it with your 3850. If you're looking into CF I would advise you to buy two 3870's. If that is too expensive then I would get two 3850 and whether or not you want the 512meg or 256meg version depends on what resolution you play at. If you play at a high resolution then I would buy the 512meg version, if you play at 1024x768 like myself then the 256meg version is fine.
Buying 2 3870's is out of my range right now, since I alreayd went and bought the 3850(it was so cheap and reviews loved it). Would I see any improvement buying the 512mb as the mastercard and having the 256 as a slave compared to having both 256mb cards? I'd like to play 1280x1024. I'm planning on dropping AMD and going with a dual or quad core intel, as it seems that they perform a lot better than anything that AMD has out right now atleast in the money vs performance comparisons.
While I'm at it, a few more questions: What would be a good motherboard for Crossfire? This be ok? Asus P5K http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=11&l3=534&l4=0&model=1637&modelmenu=1 or should I go with this: P5K3 Deluxe/WiFi-AP http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=11&l3=534&l4=0&model=1645&modelmenu=1 How about CPU: This Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 or this Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Thanks
Yes u can, in fact i did a test review about it. U can check here : http://forum.chip.co.id/graphic-display/92189-crossfirex-real-game-test-3870-3850-ix38.html Yeah, i know it's in indonesian but at least picture/screenshots worth thousand words They will work independent, u can adjust the clock for each card differently with..too bad...catalyst. Or U can adjust in riva separately before u enable the crossfire mode Best mainboard for CF is abit IX38 QuadGT. It's pcie 2.0 and gives u balanced bandwith(16x2) plus abit is the only x38 board with 3 pcie slot. Anytime the driver ready u can just plug 3 cards there...
There's nothing wrong with HD 3850 Crossfire. http://service.futuremark.com/compare?3dm06=4459470 http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthread.php?p=1335274023#post1335274023 They run "Oblivion" @ 1680x 4xAA|8xAF + HDR better than my overclocked GTX. http://www.rage3d.com/board/showpost.php?p=1335276609&postcount=23 http://www.rage3d.com/board/showpost.php?p=1335276615&postcount=24
The question is, if you run a 3870 and with one of the older 3850's that have 256mb then will the 3870 not use all of its 512mb mem or will it only limit itself to 256?
If your considering x-fire, then the p35 mobos are limited to one lane @ x4 pci. You would be better served with an x38, and they do not come cheap.
