Processor(s): Intel Core 2 Quad QX9650 @ 4.4GHz (400MHz x 11) Cooling: Swiftech Apogee GTX Block (CPU) 3x 120mm Radiator, MCP655-B Pump Motherboard(s): EVGA 780i SLI Memory: 2 X 2GB OCZ Reaper X PC6400 DDR-2 4-4-3-12 Hard Disk(s): Western Digital Raptor 150GB 10,00RPM SATA Power Supply Zalman 1000W Modular Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium 64Bit Drivers: Forceware 174.53 and 174.40
With the system now clocked at 4.4GHz and a WHQL driver available for Quad SLI, it was time to run a number of setups in more applications than we checked out last time.
3DMark06 is the very latest version of the “Gamers Benchmark” from FutureMark. The newest version of 3DMark expands on the tests in 3DMark05 by adding graphical effects using Shader Model 3.0 and HDR (High Dynamic Range lighting) which will push even the best DX9 graphics cards to the extremes.
3DMark06 also focuses on not just the GPU but the CPU using the AGEIA PhysX software physics library to effectively test single and Dual Core processors.
Straight away we can see that we get some good gains when we move from a single card to a dual 9800 GTX. The gains at 1920 x 1200 are about 80%. When you move from a second to a third card though, the performance isn’t nearly as impressive. We can see that Quad SLI and Tri SLI perform almost identical to each other.
