Need advice if I should go eyefinity or not

I

Icestation

Weaksauce
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Aug 6, 2008
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So I am thinking about getting 2 more monitors but I don't want to be disappointed in performance. So chime in any results or recommendation please.

Currently I have a 6950 2gb twin frozr and looking to add two 22inch 1680x1050 monitors for eyefinity so will be gaming at 5040x1050.

X6 1100t
12gb of 1600
the above 6950 2gb MSI twin frozr III

So will I be happy with the performance in TF2, BF3, and soon to be SWTOR, And happy as in have reasonably high settings no AA (I assume I wont be turning AA on with current setup) and that doesn't bother me. Just want to make sure I wont be turning everything on Low.

the alternative upgrade will be going intel and scratch eyefinity for now. as much as I want an i7 2600k (have one on my Solids workstation at work) if I can run eyefinity with my current setup then I will wait on the next gen of CPU's

Not a lot of eyefinity benchmarks at 5040x1050, most are at 5760x1080 and that is like almost a million more pixels, so can I assume I will get about 15% more FPS then all the 5760x1080 benchmarks? (I did the math 5040x1050 is about 15% less pixels then 5760x1080)
 
You know what? Buy your extra 2 monitors and trying running on just a single 6950. It will be smooth enough for most games since you are running 3x 1680x1050.

Even @ 3x 1920x1080 25" monitors for me (5916x1080 actually with bezel comp), a single 6950 is good enough for most games but I have two just in case. For you, see if it's good enough, if not buying 1 more 6950 is easy.
 
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Each to their own i suppose. I'm not happy with 5760x1200 performance in modern games even with tri fire 5870s. I wouldn't even consider running eyefinity on a single gpu. I'm sure its fine for tf2 but bf3 i doubt it.
 
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Kardonxt said:
Each to their own i suppose. I'm not happy with 5760x1200 performance in modern game even with tri fire 5870s. I wouldn't even consider running eyefinity on a single gpu. I'm sure its fine for tf2 but bf3 i doubt it.
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I was just recommending he try with a single card first. Then he can easily upgrade. A single 6950 will destroy TF2 and SWTOR. BF3 with all the goodies will definitely need more power.
 
ive been using eyefinity for a while and overall im just kinda meh about it... some games require editing files to get it to work correctly or another program. the games it does work are kinda cool but nothing amazing... at first you might think it is... I was in the beta for TOR and ill tell you it got kinda anoying since you cant move any UI elements (yet) you spend a lot of time turning your head to view stuff... if i didnt get my 3 monitors for $50 each (crazy work deal) and had payed full price i would be pretty underwhelmed and disapointed.
 
thanks for the replies guys
so i might turn this into different upgrade,
Look forward to anyone with a 3x 1680x1050 on a 2gb 6950 that can post some real world BF3 benchmarks because if its playable with decent settings then I might still do it, or else I will just do the CPU upgrade now.
 
having the extra 2 screens is great even for mornal desktop use. having the extra space is awesome. when the games use eyefinity its even better. the ones that dont, you can always run them on your center screen at max res if you wanted to. honestly i use mine more for normal use than gaming lately, and i wouldnt want to go back to using just a single screen, unless it was the size of my triple 24s. get the screens and try it out on your single card. if you like it then get another card. if youre not impressed you'll still use those screens.
 
I use my triple monitors more for desktop productivity reasons than gaming. In terms of gaming, Eyefinity has it's best effect in racing games.

In 1st or 3rd person games where you aren't zooming through the scenery, the fisheye distortion effect can be annoying and it's not really what you expect until you use it. You have to train yourself to just look forward and not turn your head to look at your side monitors because they will be distorted and are only supposed to appear normal if you catch them only with your peripheral vision.
 
Icestation said:
thanks for the replies guys
so i might turn this into different upgrade,
Look forward to anyone with a 3x 1680x1050 on a 2gb 6950 that can post some real world BF3 benchmarks because if its playable with decent settings then I might still do it, or else I will just do the CPU upgrade now.
Click to expand...

As far as bf3 is concerned, there's plenty of results out there that would give you pretty spot on data. But generally speaking, the graphics performance and requirements scale pretty closely to actual pixels pushed. Standard 1080p is close to 2MP, and a 6950/70, depending on oc, can usually handle ultra in bf3 with AA turned off at pretty close to 60fps. Similarly, 2560x1600 is closer to 4MP and likewise requires a xfire solution to get similar results. So, rough math on 3x1680x1050 gives us ~5.3MP. Expect at least to use 2 cards with turned down settings to get reasonable framerates, and trifire to be able to run mostly ultra.
 
I can't speak for 3x 1680x1050 with a single 6950 but I can speak for 3x 1920x1080 on a single 6950, I wasn't happy with the performance. I bought 2 and absolutely love high eye candy. I use high res texture packs whenever possible on a older game and even a newer game if their available and improve the graphics enough. Running 2 6950s gives me the performance I enjoy at this resolution with high IQ in just about every game I play while giving me a good fps. I think it ultimately depends on you and what fps and iq settings are tolerable to you. 2 6950s would run 3 1680x1050 monitors beautifully and allow you to max AA in most games and is not a bad sounding idea. The only thing I would suggest is that you consider removing the bezels on your monitors. The bezels will look huge to you on small panels running 1680x1050 and it's a very easy mod to do. I think your best bet is 2 6950s but I like spare-flair's recommendation to try with one card and then decide then and there if 1 is enough for you. Buying a second 6950 is not gonna be hard so it's a solid recommendation.
 
One card is plenty for TF2 and any source game engine maxed out well over 60fps (more like 100). I played with a single card (5870) for a long time and was very happy with the performance. In more graphic intensive games you are going to have to drop down to 2x AA or and start backing off on the shadows, etc., but there is plenty out there to play off of one card. If you don't like the performance in a graphics intensive game (like BF3), simply power off the outside monitors and you're good to go singlemonitor. I'd recommend buying the two additional monitors for the desk real estate alone. Eyefinity is just a plus on top of that. It's really hard to go back to a single cramped monitor for typical desktop usage after having a lot of space. You will be pleasantly surprised by how much you can play off of one card -- it's worth the trip back through your Steam library.
 
I run 3 24" at 5760x1080 on my single 6870, and while im not maxing stuff like BF3 and DA2 it does run nicely at medium.
 
IceStation,
I have an eyefinity rig (2600K @ 4.8Ghz w/ Noctua D14, 8GB ddr3-1600, 6990 (2nd bios), 3x 22" Samsung @ 5040x1050) and my BF3 FPS is pretty decent.

With the settings on ultra, I lowered the anti-aliasing to 2x, disabled ambient occlusion, and i manage to hit a steady 52-80fps. However, the game keeps crashing with low virtual memory errors.

I do have my system page file disabled, but i keep the task manager running and it doesn't look like my system ever uses more that 75% of ram, and there is actually a Direct 3d error message which pops up saying that my graphics card is out of memory. So believe it or not, i don't think my 4GB 6990 has enough memory to run BF3 on ultra with a few tune downs.

I'm going to run it on low to see what the max fps i can obtain is. When i play on my primary LED monitor (I have two 22" LCD and one 22" 1080p LED) at 1080p, I get 103-188fps on ultra with all settings maxed.

Let me know if you have any questions, i'd be glad to test for you and share the results.
 
It really depends on what sort of games you play, what sort of performance you're happy with and what sort of detail level you like. If you play primarily source games, or don't care about getting low frame rates (30s-40s) on medium detail, then one card at eyefinity might do. If you like to play modern titles smoothly though, especially with a lot of detail, then crossfire is mandatory for eyefinity, really.
 
Eyefinity is not as good as I expected. I have 3 24" monitors and I found eyefinity to more of pita. If there was a more streamline process to go from eyefinity to extended I would happier.

I do find that having 3 monitors to be very convenient. I spend more time playing games on the middle monitor with a webpage on monitor and a movie on the other.

For me eyefinity is way too wide. But I don't regret being an early adopter and getting it. I pretty much had to get itch out my system.
 
Its hard to change the settings without crashing. I receive the following error message:

szznmt.png
 
That's a bug - it thinks you have 0KB of memory, nowt to do with the 6990 running out of video memory.
 
qbanb8582 said:
Eyefinity is not as good as I expected. I have 3 24" monitors and I found eyefinity to more of pita. If there was a more streamline process to go from eyefinity to extended I would happier.

I do find that having 3 monitors to be very convenient. I spend more time playing games on the middle monitor with a webpage on monitor and a movie on the other.

For me eyefinity is way too wide. But I don't regret being an early adopter and getting it. I pretty much had to get itch out my system.
Click to expand...

Set up the hot keys in CCC. I use Alt D for single desktop and Alt E for eyefinity. Switches instantly.


Kardonxt said:
Each to their own i suppose. I'm not happy with 5760x1200 performance in modern games even with tri fire 5870s. I wouldn't even consider running eyefinity on a single gpu. I'm sure its fine for tf2 but bf3 i doubt it.
Click to expand...

I run 6040x1080 on a single 6950...runs BF3 at a mix of medium/high fine. Good enough til next gen.
 
hmmm ok, I'll try re-enabling my virtual memory to see if that solves the issue. I'm using the 11.10 preview 3 driver, maybe there are a few bugs within.

With all settings on absolute lowest, I get a solid 100-115fps in 5040x1050 eyefinity.
 
nissanztt90 said:
Set up the hot keys in CCC. I use Alt D for single desktop and Alt E for eyefinity. Switches instantly.
Click to expand...

I used it in the past but when ATI switched the new CCC earlier this year swtiching between profiles was hit or miss for me.
 
qbanb8582 said:
I used it in the past but when ATI switched the new CCC earlier this year swtiching between profiles was hit or miss for me.
Click to expand...

Yeah ive noticed it was kinda quirky to get set up but once set up its been workin fine for months for me.
 
qbanb8582 said:
Eyefinity is not as good as I expected. I have 3 24" monitors and I found eyefinity to more of pita. If there was a more streamline process to go from eyefinity to extended I would happier.

I do find that having 3 monitors to be very convenient. I spend more time playing games on the middle monitor with a webpage on monitor and a movie on the other.

For me eyefinity is way too wide. But I don't regret being an early adopter and getting it. I pretty much had to get itch out my system.
Click to expand...

You sound like a perfect candidate for portrait eyefinity then. Have you tried portrait? I removed my bezels and have never looked back. It's awesome and less quirky than landscape eyefinity.
 
Lord_Exodia said:
You sound like a perfect candidate for portrait eyefinity then. Have you tried portrait? I removed my bezels and have never looked back. It's awesome and less quirky than landscape eyefinity.
Click to expand...

Should be aware of potentially shitty viewing angles when going to portait.
 
I used 3x 1680x1050 with an overclocked 6970. Getting 40 fps on auto with BF3. Even though I run vsync on, there is microstuttering that gives me a headache after 20 min. Playing on 1920 x 1200 is 60 fps. Also, the triple screen is disorienting with FPShooters. You have to turn to aim and shoot so the game feels like you are on a roller coaster. Unlike driving sims where the extra screen real estate really adds to your situational awareness. You can turn your head to look around but you dont have to spin the moouse to execute any targetting-like in shooters. The constant 'head on a swivel' you need to survive in bf3 with three screens is a pain in the eyes.

Three screens though is a dream for doinng work. The single most significant upgrade to productivity. Next I would rank either a raid-0 boot drive set or an SSD.
 
bwanaaa said:
I used 3x 1680x1050 with an overclocked 6970. Getting 40 fps on auto with BF3. Even though I run vsync on, there is microstuttering that gives me a headache after 20 min. Playing on 1920 x 1200 is 60 fps. Also, the triple screen is disorienting with FPShooters. You have to turn to aim and shoot so the game feels like you are on a roller coaster. Unlike driving sims where the extra screen real estate really adds to your situational awareness. You can turn your head to look around but you dont have to spin the moouse to execute any targetting-like in shooters. The constant 'head on a swivel' you need to survive in bf3 with three screens is a pain in the eyes.

Three screens though is a dream for doinng work. The single most significant upgrade to productivity. Next I would rank either a raid-0 boot drive set or an SSD.
Click to expand...

Big mistake. Do not turn your head, thats what makes you feel sick/headache in FPS. You must move your mouse...the two extra monitors are essentially your peripheral vision of the game world...you need to "turn your head" in the game world, not real world, which is achieved by moving the mouse.

The extra screens are the visual analog of surround sound....more immersion by filling your field of view. You should only be looking at the center screen and letting the extra screens fill your vision field for the surround feeling.

Racing games are a slight exception since you can look around like you would in real life, but FPS games are a very different animal. In racing games its the same effect as being able to tilt your head into the turn and look ahead if you know what i mean.
 
bwanaaa said:
I used 3x 1680x1050 with an overclocked 6970. Getting 40 fps on auto with BF3. Even though I run vsync on, there is microstuttering that gives me a headache after 20 min. Playing on 1920 x 1200 is 60 fps. Also, the triple screen is disorienting with FPShooters. You have to turn to aim and shoot so the game feels like you are on a roller coaster. Unlike driving sims where the extra screen real estate really adds to your situational awareness. You can turn your head to look around but you dont have to spin the moouse to execute any targetting-like in shooters. The constant 'head on a swivel' you need to survive in bf3 with three screens is a pain in the eyes.

Three screens though is a dream for doinng work. The single most significant upgrade to productivity. Next I would rank either a raid-0 boot drive set or an SSD.
Click to expand...

I know how you feel, I didn't have that affect so much in first person shooters as I did playing WoW.

But I actually enjoy having three screens because I don't have to alt-tab that much anymore.
 
I've been using 3x 24" Eyefinity and it's been great (not perfect). I actually wasn't a big fan of the 3x landscape configuration. Most of the games I played didn't support it; with the games that did, I didn't like the fisheye distortion.

If you have rotate-able monitors (or have a stand), I highly recommend 3x portrait. For games, the sheer size of the screen makes it amazing to play on. It's also compatible with almost every game, since the aspect ratio is not super wide. The only annoyance with this is that the bezels are very noticeable in RTS games (not so much in FPS).

My advice is if you do go Eyefinity, try to get a configuration where you can rotate into portrait mode, so that you can try both and see which one you like.
 
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