Sapphire HD5770 Flex Review on 3 monitors

For testing today we have broken our own rules and partnered the Flex HD5770 with the most powerful system in the KitGuru labs. The reason is that we want the fastest possible partnering equipment when we test across three screens at 5760×1080 resolution. We are using a ‘mix and match' configuration of donated 1920x1080p monitors from various companies, however in the ‘real world' we would expect people to buy three screens all from the same manufacturer at the same size. Why? Well, to minimise brightness, contrast and colour balance differences.

We would like to take the time to thank our friends at Intel, AMD, Illyama, Asus, Dell, Crucial, Corsair and Thermaltake for the partnering equipment.

We have tested the HD 5770 many times in the past and we all know by now the basic performance in single screen mode, therefore we don't feel the need to compare it against a plethora of other cards. We are focusing on performance across 3 screens at 5760x1080p.

We are also aiming to showcase playable settings at this resolution, as it will benefit people interested in this product – can it run our choosen games at 5760x1080p for instance? and what compromises need to be made across three screens for solid frame rates?

Review System:
Intel Core i7 980x @ 4.3ghz
Thermaltake Frio Cooler
Noctua NH D1 Thermal Paste
Crucial RealSSD C300 256GB
Dell 2309W
Asus MS236H
Illyama PLE2472 HDD (review coming soon)
Antec Dark Fleet 85 Case
ThermalTake ToughPower XT 775W PSU

Technical Monitoring and Test Equipment:
Keithley Integra unit
Thermal Diodes
Raytek Laser Temp Gun 3i LSRC/MT4 Mini Temp
Digital Sound Level Noise Decibel Meter Style 2
Panasonic DMC TZ10 Camera

Software:
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit Edition (fully updated)
HQV 2.0 Benchmark
Catalyst 10.7a driver
Fraps Professional
Steam Client
FurMark
Widescreen Fixer Beta

Games:
Far Cry 2
Colin McRae Dirt 2
Resident Evil 5
Left 4 Dead 2
Call Of Duty 2
Unigine

All the latest bios updates and drivers are used during testing. We perform under real world conditions, meaning KitGuru test all games across five closely matched runs and average out the results to get an accurate median figure.

Our minimum frame rate game graphs have three main zones. These are sampled over a specific 30 interval period of time and then mapped into a chart. These are handy reference guides to detail worst case performance of the product being reviewed. When we test video cards we try to find the best combination of resolution and image quality settings while still maintaining playable frame rates.

Over 30fps is the zone most people want at all times, this means perfectly smooth frame rates with no hitching.

Between 30fps and 25fps is the KitGuru ‘Playable’ zone, although some people might notice occasional stuttering in specific scenes.

Under 25fps is classed as the KitGuru ‘Danger Zone’ which means that the game experience will be less than impressive. Settings and/or resolution would need lowered to help smooth out the frame rate.

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