Gaming
We test both OpenGL and DirectX 10 performance at opposite ends of the performance spectrum.
Quake Wars Enemy Territory uses a somewhat dated but highly adjustable OpenGL game engine with all the settings turned down to minimum and no anti-aliasing or anisotropic filtering. As such playable frame-rates can be achieved from even the lowest-end IGP if a low resolution is chosen.
IGP and discrete graphics performance can be compared directly at a resolution of 1,024x768. However, with the HD 5770 installed, we also run at a 1,680x1,050 resolution with all the settings increased to their maximum, 4x anti-aliasing and 16x anisotropic filtering so we can check performance against the reference numbers generated on our high-end graphics platform.
Far Cry 2 on the other hand uses a much more recent and still somewhat demanding DirectX 10 game engine. As the game engine isn't anywhere near as scalable as ETQW, and in order to give the graphics a thorough workout, very high quality settings are used, the same as used as in our high-end graphics suite, albeit at a much lower, and some would say more realistic, 1,024x768 resolution with no anti-aliasing.
Quake Wars: Enemy Territory
| CPU test - ET:QW - 1,024x768 - IGP | |
|---|---|
| Intel DH55TC (H55) | ASUS P7H57D-V EVO (H57) |
| 38.53 | 38.27 |
| CPU test - ET:QW - 1,024x768 | |
|---|---|
| Intel DH55TC (H55) | ASUS P7H57D-V EVO (H57) |
| 143.33 | 141.13 |
Once again there's nothing to differentiate the performance of the two boards. If you haven't read our review of Intel's Westmere CPU range then you'll be surprised that even the Intel IGP is able to deliver playable framerates.
Even so, a simple upgrade to a Radeon HD 5770 boosts performance by more than 3x when running identical settings. At such low settings and resolution, performance when using the HD 5770 becomes CPU limited.
| CPU test - ET:QW - 1,680x1,050 high detail | |
|---|---|
| Intel DH55TC (H55) | ASUS P7H57D-V EVO (H57) |
| 79.77 | 80.1 |
There's no such issue once running the high-end test suite settings at 1,680x1,050, however. Both boards are able to deliver effectively identical frame rates to that achieved when running our high-end graphics platform.
Far Cry 2
| CPU test - Far Cry 2 - 1,024x768 - IGP | |
|---|---|
| Intel DH55TC (H55) | ASUS P7H57D-V EVO (H57) |
| 8.52 | 8.7 |
| CPU test - Far Cry 2 - 1,024x768 | |
|---|---|
| Intel DH55TC (H55) | ASUS P7H57D-V EVO (H57) |
| 100.16 | 100.65 |
Even at 1,024x768, these results perfectly demonstrate how even the latest generation of IGPs struggle with a modern game engine when decent levels of eye candy have been turned-on, and how once again there's nothing on a performance basis to differentiate the two boards. Dropping in the Radeon HD 5770 graphics card increases performance more than 11 times!