Hybrid Graphics here to stay?
Sudeep Naik, Aug 01, 2008 1907 hrs IST
Is it another one of those 'You need to have a Physics card to enjoy games' kind of statement or are things really different this time?
A lot has been said about the latest chipsets and their capabilities from both, Nvidia and AMD. They claim that multiGPU graphics is here to stay and is definitely the way forward. But is it another one of those "You need to have a Physics card to enjoy games" kind of statement or are things really different this time?
For now, both multiGPU solutions look great on paper, whether they live up to the claims, we'll soon see.
Based purely on alphabetical ordering, we'll start with AMD first,
The AMD 780G
Based on the 55nm fabrication process, the 780G chipset (Codenamed RS780) hosts the new generation Integrated Graphics Processor (IGP) and is the first to use a DX10 and Shader model 4.0 compliant graphics core. It has an on-chip Unified Video Decoder (UVD), HT 3.0, DVI/HDMI interface, internal or external TMDS and DisplayPort capability, each of which we'll discuss a little later in the article. It supports the new AM2+ socket interface, while retaining backward compatibility with the socket AM2 AMD Athlon and Sempron processors.
Powered by a Radeon HD 3200 graphics core, the 780G is capable of running DX10 games without the need for any "extra" hardware (read, a DX10 graphic card). It's not just a DX10-enabled graphics core that we are celebrating here; with this new chipset, they have come up with what they term as ATI Hybrid Graphics technology.
Hybrid Graphics works in Vista (only) and can combine the power of the graphics card with the integrated graphics engine giving you a "CrossFire-like" graphics performance at a very low cost.
Here's a small table that shows the innovations.
Any motherboard that uses the 780G chipset (northbridge) will make use of the SB700 southbridge. The northbridge (780G) has 26 PCI Express 2.0 lanes, out of which 16 are reserved for a single graphics slot, 4 for interfacing it with the SB700 southbridge and the other 6 for PCI-E x1 and PCI slots or other onboard peripherals.
This is what the SB700 can do:
Support 6 SATA 3.0 Gbps ports that can be setup in IDE, AHCI, JBOD, RAID 0, RAID 1 or RAID 10 modes
Supports 12 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 1.1 ports
HyperFlash interface
DASH 1.0
6 PCI slots
HD Audio
IDE, Serial and Parallel ports that give it unparalleled compatibility with current as well as older hardware.
USER COMMENTS
Download the latest ATI Catalyst 8.8 driver from amd.com and install, Asuming you have the display cable connected to the discrete graphics card, enable the onboard display from the BIOS and shift the display cable to the integrated display port on the motherboard after you save the settings in the BIOS, restart the machine and select the crossfire option in the catalyst control center.
by Amit Jaokar, Mumbai, on Aug 22, 2008 02:53 PM, Report abuse
download the latest 8.8 ATI catalyst driver from amd.com and install, asuming your monitor display cable is attached to the HD3450 graphics card, activate the onboard graphics from the BIOS settings and exit, your monitor won't start so don't panic, move the display cable to the onboard graphics port and then restart, after you are in windows enter the catalyst control center and enable the crossfire option-Enjoy hybrid graphics.
by Amit Jaokar, Mumbai, on Aug 22, 2008 03:12 PM, Report abuse
well is it true that with the amd780g board we have to use an ati card only to get "CrossFire-like" graphics performance , no nvidia? or we can use something like an 9600gt or 8800gt?
by cybertron, kolkata, on Aug 10, 2008 12:58 PM, Report abuse Reply
Why are these benchmarks taken at >1024x768? Its an onboard soln. And games like Crysis can be enjoyed on 800x600 perfectly with all the bells and whistles turned on. So show relevant results.
by amd_guy, mumbai, on Aug 07, 2008 01:43 PM, Report abuse Reply
Call For All AMD, ATI, NVIDIA, ASUS, Products. SETHIA INFOTECH, Ph.32982159/98841-20789
by Pradeep, chennai, on Aug 06, 2008 11:26 PM, Report abuse Reply
There is the small problem that all the low end 8-series chips are pretty shafted. Which means you'll get a faster board/card on the nv front. And it'll fry itself faster too. And the other problem. Despite the inherent goodness of the 780G, AMD has nothing on the processor front that can compete with the low end intel offerings. E7200 trashes the 6000+/8450. E8200 ravages the 9550. It's sad really. Go intel, get a great procy, sad mobo. Go AMD, get an amazing mobo and a miserable procy.
by lxq_ikrana, Pune, on Aug 03, 2008 12:41 AM, Report abuse Reply
ya dude ur right things are in mismatch manner, while need to relook intel pro. with nvidia mobos or can market and companies allow each other with cross platform compitable mobos and pro. think intel pro can run AMD mobo.
by Sachin, Bhopal, on Aug 03, 2008 01:18 AM, Report abuse
wait for the asus p5q pro for intel mobo. It is coming at a great affordable price.
by maree, chennai, on Aug 03, 2008 07:31 PM, Report abuse
@ Maree, The P5KC costs 130$, 9k here. The P5Q PRO is 140$ odd and so cannot cost less than 9-9.5k Now compare that to the 4.5k Gigabyte 780G. The 780G flogs the P5Qs backside when it comes to pure price vs performance and features. Intel has no reasonable mobo on the market. What the market REALLY needs is Intel procys running on an AMD chipset mobo. * Sigh. Like that's going to happen *
by lxq_ikrana, Pune, on Aug 04, 2008 08:46 PM, Report abuse
A very well researched review! Good to see the good old TT style of in-depth reviewing
by killer1314, Hyderabad, on Aug 04, 2008 10:56 AM, Report abuse Reply
VIEW ALL LATEST
Intel Core i7 Powers HCL's Infiniti Challenger
News > Gadgets , December 02, 2008 1848 hrs IST
Speeds up multimedia tasks ...
India Has 81 Million Internet Users!
News > Internet , December 02, 2008 1808 hrs IST
A statistical enigma ...
Uncharted 2: Await Its Coming
News > Gaming , December 02, 2008 1805 hrs IST
Trailer to debut during the VGA awards on December 14th ...
Hugo Boss Baby Steps Into The Mobile World
News > Consumer Electronics , December 02, 2008 1751 hrs IST
Another looker from the fashion brand in collaboration with Samsung ...
Rural India to Sustain Wireless Growth
News > Telecom , December 02, 2008 1728 hrs IST
Thanks to cheap mobile handsets and low tariff ...
MOST REQUESTED REVIEWS
Motherboards NEWS
|
Asus Launches Affordable MotherboardNews | Consumer Electronics | 17 Nov 2008 Over-voltage and short circuit protection and power-good signal generation |
|
Experts Opinion on Intel's Core i7Best processor money can buy? |
|
AMD Kuma Coming Soon!AMD has revealed plans about its upcoming range of processors, including Phenom... |
Motherboards REVIEWS
|
ECS A780GM-A UltraReviews | Basics | Motherboards | 02 Dec 2008 Another Black Series from ECS, this time on the 780G. |
|
Zotac 630i mini ITX (WiFi Edition)Reviews | Basics | Motherboards | 11 Nov 2008 This one's for all you HTPC buffs out there. |
|
Zotac 9300Reviews | Basics | Motherboards | 03 Nov 2008 This motherboard is for those who want a strong onboard solution that will... |
Motherboards USER REVIEWS
|
ASUS M2AVMMotherboards | ASUS | Tue, 29 Apr 2008 If you are looking for AMD 690G & VFM Mobo consider Jetway M2A692-GDG (AMD... |
|
|
Biostar TA 690G AM2Motherboards | Biostar | Wed, 23 Apr 2008 one of th best motherboards in |
|
|
Jetway M2A692-GDGMotherboards | Jetway | Thu, 27 Sep 2007 Can't be beat for the price. |
MOST POPULAR NEWS
|
Could A DVR Save Your Marriage?News | Consumer Electronics | 04 Sep 2008 ...Or should you stick to your shrink? |
|
Firefox Counters Chrome's Speed TestAccording to Mozilla's SunSpider test, Firefox 3.1 is 28% faster than Chrome on ... |
|
Nokia N96 for Rs. 40,000?False alarm everyone... We have learnt from Nokia that the N96 will be priced be... |
MOST POPULAR REVIEWS
MOST POPULAR GAMES
MOST POPULAR DOWNLOADS
|
Forbidden.exe |
|
md5deepDownloads | System Tools | 04 Sep 2008 |
|
RivaTunerDownloads | System Tools | 03 Sep 2008 |
hey man i hv asus m3a78-eh m/b based on amd780g n msi r 3450 g/c n usin vista ultimate bt m not able to do hybrid crossfire b/w thm ....... plz tell me how to do this .............plz help man...rep soon plz
by nickiscool, Chandigarh, on Aug 10, 2008 09:00 PM, Report abuse Reply