crossfirex posts

AMD's ATI graphics division is doing things a little earlier than normal this month with the release of their regular monthly update to its Catalyst drivers for their Radeon graphics chips. The 10.6 version of the drivers are now available to download via the AMD Game web site.

The release notes for the 10.6 drivers reveals that the new version has a number of PC games that get performance boosts if you have a CrossfireX PC set-up. Among the games that get some performance improvements are Batman: Arkham Asylum, Company of Heroes, Dirt 2, Crysis Warhead and World in Conflict.

[Via Blue's News]

It's time for a new monthly release of AMD's new ATI Catalyst graphics drivers for their ATI Radeon products. However this month is a little different in that there are a couple of game-related new features that have been added to the 10.2 version of the drivers. One is a separate executable file for CrossFireX game profiles. That means if you have a PC with a CrossFireX rig you won't have to wait for the next monthly release to get up to date profiles for games that run on the system.

.The new driver release also lets CrossFireX set-ups save energy by letting the secondary GPU go down to low power levels when not being used by games. It also adds full support for the new multi-monitor Eyefinity features in CrossFireX. There are also some small performance boosts in Dirt 2, Battleforge and other games and apps with these new drivers.

AMD is leading the way with offering DirectX11-based graphics chips under the ATI Radeon brand. Next week the first game in the US with DirectX11 support out of the box, DiRT 2, is due to be released. However it seems that AMD couldn't get CrossFireX support into its latest monthly Catalyst driver updates for the game.

That's why AMD has made the decision to release a ATI driver hotfix update that enables CrossFireX support for DiRT 2. In theory, that should allow the game to have the support of more than one graphics card which should also increase the game's performance on CrossFireX-based PC rig. Meanwhile DiRT 2 for the PC makes its debut on December 1.

So, the curtain is finally up on the Phenom II, and folks seem to be pleasantly surprised by what the green arrow group have pulled out of their collective hats, especially with the Black Edition X3 (model 720), which is aimed solidly at our enthusiast-flavored selves. The BE is the unlocked version, which means we can tinker with both the multiplier and the FSB to find the sweetest spot to hang our performance hats, and is a welcomed throwback to the old days when both chip manufacturers didn't try to dictate what their consumers did with our toys.

Fogey Check: Anyone else remember the pencil trick? Anyone ever do it? BI lacked the deft and delicate touch to succeed in his attempts, but it wasn't for lack of trying. Just another failed DEX check....

Okay, not awards, per se, but at least some recognition of things that didn't suck -- stuff like improved performance and big price reductions (sometimes). Generational advancement in the CPU and video card arenas brought more power to our desktop systems than ever before. DDR3 stopped costing its weight in gold. The Phenom... got its ass handed to it all year long. (Seriously, AMD? You can't roll out a replacement soon enough.)

Also, one of the biggest legends in the realm of physical vaporware finally came to market, but BI doesn't see a lot of folks ponying up two grand for the Optimus Maximus keyboard. At least it made it to market after a rumor-and-tease gestation period that rivals that of Duke Nukem 3D.

There were a handful of big stories in the realm of gaming hardware in 2008, and, for a change, they were almost all good news for gamers.

Tim Allen wasn't precisely the same flavor of hardware guy that we are, but his Tool Time mantra, "More Power!" certainly resonates with a lot of computer enthusiasts. Not only do the games we play and the applications we use require more and more computational chutzpah to perform well, but the silicon bits themselves are not shy about sucking down the wattage to do it.

If you're considering an upgrade or a new build, you're going to need to feed that beast. Onward, to the supplies of power!