• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

HELP! Combining 2 Radeon HD6850 Different brands & Clocks!

Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
Hi there my friends! i wanna ask, if i can combine 2 radeons (HD 6850) but each card got different clock speeds (Core, memory) is there going to be any problem?

my actual card is this one:

MSI Radeon HD 6850 CYCLONE OC power edition 1Gb

http://www.msi.com/product/vga/R6850-Cyclone-1GD5-Power-Edition-OC.html

and i wanna buy this one to make a crossfire:

SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6850 1Gb

http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?leg=&psn=0001&pid=497&lid=1

or this one:

http://www.sapphiretech.com/presentation/product/?cid=1&gid=3&sgid=1037&pid=1270&psn=&lid=1&leg=0

Those 2 sapphire got different clock speeds (one 900Mhz and the other 775Mhz) and my MSI too.

I need urgent advice and tips from you guys, any anwser will be really helpful

Tnx a lot and have anice day! (excuse my bad english)
 
Joined
Jul 19, 2006
Messages
43,585 (6.74/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS TUF x670e
Cooling EK AIO 360. Phantek T30 fans.
Memory 32GB G.Skill 6000Mhz
Video Card(s) Asus RTX 4090
Storage WD m.2
Display(s) LG C2 Evo OLED 42"
Case Lian Li PC 011 Dynamic Evo
Audio Device(s) Topping E70 DAC, SMSL SP200 Headphone Amp.
Power Supply FSP Hydro Ti PRO 1000W
Mouse Razer Basilisk V3 Pro
Keyboard Tester84
Software Windows 11
There should be no inherent problems with CrossFiring the two cards. I suppose it's a good idea to get another card that matches the clocks of your first card, though it really shouldn't matter.
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2010
Messages
11,878 (2.31/day)
Location
Manchester uk
System Name RyzenGtEvo/ Asus strix scar II
Processor Amd R5 5900X/ Intel 8750H
Motherboard Crosshair hero8 impact/Asus
Cooling 360EK extreme rad+ 360$EK slim all push, cpu ek suprim Gpu full cover all EK
Memory Corsair Vengeance Rgb pro 3600cas14 16Gb in four sticks./16Gb/16GB
Video Card(s) Powercolour RX7900XT Reference/Rtx 2060
Storage Silicon power 2TB nvme/8Tb external/1Tb samsung Evo nvme 2Tb sata ssd/1Tb nvme
Display(s) Samsung UAE28"850R 4k freesync.dell shiter
Case Lianli 011 dynamic/strix scar2
Audio Device(s) Xfi creative 7.1 on board ,Yamaha dts av setup, corsair void pro headset
Power Supply corsair 1200Hxi/Asus stock
Mouse Roccat Kova/ Logitech G wireless
Keyboard Roccat Aimo 120
VR HMD Oculus rift
Software Win 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 8726 vega 3dmark timespy/ laptop Timespy 6506
no problem , it should work fine, im using an odder couple <check

as erocker says they work better oc,d/set to the same gpu and memory clocks
 

dorsetknob

"YOUR RMA REQUEST IS CON-REFUSED"
Joined
Mar 17, 2005
Messages
9,105 (1.31/day)
Location
Dorset where else eh? >>> Thats ENGLAND<<<
No Problem
the crossfire set up you end up with will default to the lowest spec individual card
suggest you purchase one that is nearest to your original card spec's so as to maximize the crossfire potential of your intended set up
 
Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
the thing is that i cant afford and MSI one so i need to grab the sapphire one that is in stock in my country, and i can keep the factory clocks of both and got nice performance or its an obbligation to overclock or modify the sapphire or the other one clocks to get a stable performance? Thanks a lot for your responses!
 
Joined
Jan 2, 2012
Messages
1,079 (0.24/day)
Location
Indonesia
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700X
Motherboard ASUS STRIX X570-E
Cooling NOCTUA NH-U12A
Memory G.Skill FlareX 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX 4070 DUAL
Storage 1 TB WD Black SN850X | 2 TB WD Blue SN570 | 10 TB WD Purple Pro
Display(s) LG 32QP880N 32"
Case Fractal Design Define R5 Black
Power Supply Seasonic Focus Gold 750W
Mouse Pulsar X2
Keyboard KIRA EXS
As far as I know, for CrossFire, your cards will run at its own clock speed, no downclocking.
Only difference you will see is the faster card with have a slightly less load.

But in SLI, your card will automatically follow the lower clocked speed.
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2010
Messages
11,878 (2.31/day)
Location
Manchester uk
System Name RyzenGtEvo/ Asus strix scar II
Processor Amd R5 5900X/ Intel 8750H
Motherboard Crosshair hero8 impact/Asus
Cooling 360EK extreme rad+ 360$EK slim all push, cpu ek suprim Gpu full cover all EK
Memory Corsair Vengeance Rgb pro 3600cas14 16Gb in four sticks./16Gb/16GB
Video Card(s) Powercolour RX7900XT Reference/Rtx 2060
Storage Silicon power 2TB nvme/8Tb external/1Tb samsung Evo nvme 2Tb sata ssd/1Tb nvme
Display(s) Samsung UAE28"850R 4k freesync.dell shiter
Case Lianli 011 dynamic/strix scar2
Audio Device(s) Xfi creative 7.1 on board ,Yamaha dts av setup, corsair void pro headset
Power Supply corsair 1200Hxi/Asus stock
Mouse Roccat Kova/ Logitech G wireless
Keyboard Roccat Aimo 120
VR HMD Oculus rift
Software Win 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 8726 vega 3dmark timespy/ laptop Timespy 6506
you should be able to get the slower card overclocked that high:), but lowering the fastest a bit wouldnt hurt, it would still perform v well

on radeons ,saphire trixx oc software works best and will go beyond limits on some/most
 
Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
thats nice to hear, and for power wattage, i got a corsair TX650W, 52amp. it should be enough for this 2 beasts? if need more specs on proc. memory, etc., be sure to watch mines :D power supply calculator gives me a 490w in full 100% system load
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2010
Messages
11,878 (2.31/day)
Location
Manchester uk
System Name RyzenGtEvo/ Asus strix scar II
Processor Amd R5 5900X/ Intel 8750H
Motherboard Crosshair hero8 impact/Asus
Cooling 360EK extreme rad+ 360$EK slim all push, cpu ek suprim Gpu full cover all EK
Memory Corsair Vengeance Rgb pro 3600cas14 16Gb in four sticks./16Gb/16GB
Video Card(s) Powercolour RX7900XT Reference/Rtx 2060
Storage Silicon power 2TB nvme/8Tb external/1Tb samsung Evo nvme 2Tb sata ssd/1Tb nvme
Display(s) Samsung UAE28"850R 4k freesync.dell shiter
Case Lianli 011 dynamic/strix scar2
Audio Device(s) Xfi creative 7.1 on board ,Yamaha dts av setup, corsair void pro headset
Power Supply corsair 1200Hxi/Asus stock
Mouse Roccat Kova/ Logitech G wireless
Keyboard Roccat Aimo 120
VR HMD Oculus rift
Software Win 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores 8726 vega 3dmark timespy/ laptop Timespy 6506
thats nice to hear, and for power wattage, i got a corsair TX650W, 52amp. it should be enough for this 2 beasts? if need more specs on proc. memory, etc., be sure to watch mines power supply calculator gives me a 490w in full 100% system load

will do, good luck

psu may be near its limit, it should power it fine, but might get flakey on higher overclocks
 
Joined
Jan 2, 2012
Messages
1,079 (0.24/day)
Location
Indonesia
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700X
Motherboard ASUS STRIX X570-E
Cooling NOCTUA NH-U12A
Memory G.Skill FlareX 32 GB (4 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX 4070 DUAL
Storage 1 TB WD Black SN850X | 2 TB WD Blue SN570 | 10 TB WD Purple Pro
Display(s) LG 32QP880N 32"
Case Fractal Design Define R5 Black
Power Supply Seasonic Focus Gold 750W
Mouse Pulsar X2
Keyboard KIRA EXS
thats nice to hear, and for power wattage, i got a corsair TX650W, 52amp. it should be enough for this 2 beasts? if need more specs on proc. memory, etc., be sure to watch mines :D power supply calculator gives me a 490w in full 100% system load

TX650 will do just fine.
 
Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
and my last question, (sorry to bother so much) my motherboard got 1 pci express 2.0 X16 and the second expansion slot is running at max x4, those 2 cards will going to run in x4 speed? or 16x? half? that hurt my performance?
 
Joined
Jul 19, 2006
Messages
43,585 (6.74/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
Motherboard ASUS TUF x670e
Cooling EK AIO 360. Phantek T30 fans.
Memory 32GB G.Skill 6000Mhz
Video Card(s) Asus RTX 4090
Storage WD m.2
Display(s) LG C2 Evo OLED 42"
Case Lian Li PC 011 Dynamic Evo
Audio Device(s) Topping E70 DAC, SMSL SP200 Headphone Amp.
Power Supply FSP Hydro Ti PRO 1000W
Mouse Razer Basilisk V3 Pro
Keyboard Tester84
Software Windows 11
and my last question, (sorry to bother so much) my motherboard got 1 pci express 2.0 X16 and the second expansion slot is running at max x4, those 2 cards will going to run in x4 speed? or 16x? half? that hurt my performance?

One will run at x8 or x16 and the other will run at x4. I would not recommend using CrossFire on this board. Boards that use x4 for the 2nd card have had a lot of problems with CrossFire in the past. Sorry for the bad news.
 
Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
interesting but in a loooong investigation running on all websites i found this the most interesting, and for me the most definetely:

http://www.insidehw.com/reviews/graphics-cards/6178-crossfire-x8x8-or-x16x4-the-ongoing-dilemma

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/HD_5870_PCI-Express_Scaling/25.html A BIG NICE EXAMPLE, PCI express 2.0 bandwith is a nice upgrade over 1.1 :)

i add that we are in 2012, a lot of new catalyst drivers and PCI express 2.0 and that means those past problems became solved over the years
so im going to try that Xfire and have some fun. tnx to all for your responses and have a nice day! :D
 
Last edited:
Joined
Jul 24, 2008
Messages
515 (0.09/day)
Processor 2500k
Motherboard Asrock Extreme3 Gen3
Cooling CM Hyper 212 EVO
Memory 16G Corsair Vengence
Video Card(s) XFX 390 DD BE
Storage OCZ Agility3 / F1 1tb
Display(s) Hazro HZ27WC 2560x1440 / x3 BenQ G2222HDL Eyefinity - 5760x1080
Case Fractal Design Define XL
Audio Device(s) Onboard / Edifier RT1600
Power Supply Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 700W
from my personal experience with using 6950s in crossfire x16 x4 it was awful and all i got was negativ4 scaling i would get more fps by disabling crossfire
i had to get a new board for x8 x8 then it was like godmode
 
Joined
Nov 29, 2011
Messages
5,975 (1.33/day)
Location
Hi! I'm from the Internet
System Name Selene / Yoda
Processor Fx 8350 @ 4.4 / Phenom II x6 1090t @ 3.6
Motherboard Gigabyte 990FXA-UD3 r4.0 / Gigabyte 890XA-UD3
Cooling H100i / Xig Dark Knight
Memory 4x 8gb G.Skill Snipers / 4x 4gb G.Skill Ares
Video Card(s) Gigabyte R9 290x / XfX DD & VisionTek HD6850's C'fired
Storage 256gb ssd, 2x 2tb Wd Blacks & 1x 1tb Wd black / 1x 1tb
Display(s) Dell Ultra Sharp 2408 WFp / Hp w2207
Case Raidmax Vampire / Chieftec Alum. Dragon Blue
Audio Device(s) Onboard Hd Audio / Onboard Hd Audio
Power Supply Corsair TX 850 watt / Corsair TX 750 watt
Mouse Logitech G500s
Keyboard Corsair Strafe
Software Win 10 pro / Win Vista Home prem. 64 bit
Benchmark Scores What are benchmarks anyway?
There is no problem with running to different speed cards together in xfire. I ma doing just that with a Asus dark knight and a Dell oem reference card (4870's) with no issues what so ever.
 
Joined
Mar 4, 2011
Messages
299 (0.06/day)
Location
Canada
System Name Something Esoteric
Processor Intel i7 7700K @ 5GHz (2021 delid by Silicon Lottery)
Motherboard ASUS Maximus VIII Hero
Cooling CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Evo
Memory 32GB Crucial Ballistix 3600MHz DDR4
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3080 GAMING OC
Storage 480GB SanDisk Extreme Pro / 1TB WD SN750 NVMe / 2 x 8TB Seagate Ironwolf NAS
Display(s) Dell S2721DGF IPS + BenQ V2400W 16:10 LCD (https://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1315565)
Case Fractal Define R5 Windowless
Audio Device(s) Asus Xonar Essense STX, Samsung Buds2 Pro, SteelSeries Siberia 800
Power Supply Corsair AX850
Mouse Logitech G903
Keyboard Microsoft Sidewinder X6
Software Win10 Pro x64
Just a thought I had upon reading all this, though it might be relevant to any difficulties:

Wouldn't this combination of two different core/memory speeds greatly increase the likelihood SUPERREDDEVIL will experience micro-stutter in all of his endeavours?

Yes, it has been stated numerous times that he should match the core/memory speeds across both cards, but the consequences if he doesn't hasn't nearly been raised enough.

SUPERREDDEVIL, be warned that not matching your card's speeds with each other may greatly increase the chances of micro-stutter you're going to experience in-games, as well as introduce weird ass flash based difficulties (youtube videos anyone?) when using the idle clocks on your desktop.
 
Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
ok so you recommend me to match the 2 video cards speeds? cause i can do that and it will be fine right?
 

eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
40,435 (6.61/day)
Location
Republic of Texas (True Patriot)
System Name PCGOD
Processor AMD FX 8350@ 5.0GHz
Motherboard Asus TUF 990FX Sabertooth R2 2901 Bios
Cooling Scythe Ashura, 2×BitFenix 230mm Spectre Pro LED (Blue,Green), 2x BitFenix 140mm Spectre Pro LED
Memory 16 GB Gskill Ripjaws X 2133 (2400 OC, 10-10-12-20-20, 1T, 1.65V)
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon 290 Sapphire Vapor-X
Storage Samsung 840 Pro 256GB, WD Velociraptor 1TB
Display(s) NEC Multisync LCD 1700V (Display Port Adapter)
Case AeroCool Xpredator Evil Blue Edition
Audio Device(s) Creative Labs Sound Blaster ZxR
Power Supply Seasonic 1250 XM2 Series (XP3)
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD
Keyboard Roccat Ryos MK Pro
Software Windows 7 Pro 64
ok so you recommend me to match the 2 video cards speeds? cause i can do that and it will be fine right?

ok if one runs higher speed in any value and the other doesnt, the one with the higher speed needs to match the lower speed so adjust the clocks of the faster card to match the lower card
 
Joined
Jan 19, 2008
Messages
326 (0.06/day)
Location
Planet Earth
System Name V I K I N G
Processor Intel Core i5 11400F
Motherboard Gigabyte AORUS Z590 PRO AX
Cooling Corsair iCUE H100i RGB PRO XT + Corsair Commander PRO + Corsair QL 120 x 3 + Node Pro
Memory 16 GB / Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO SL @ 3200Mhz
Video Card(s) Gigabyte AORUS ELITE RTX 3060 12GB
Storage 500GB WesternDigital BLACK PCI Gen 4 M.2 NVMe
Display(s) AOC 27" 144Hz Monitor AGON G2 series
Case Corsair iCUE 4000D
Audio Device(s) ASUS ROG Delta S Quad DAC Hi-Res Audio + Samsung 300W modded Home teather speakers
Power Supply Thermaltake Thoughpower Grand 750W RGB 80 Plus GOLD
Mouse Corsair SABRE RGP PRO Champion series
Keyboard Corsair K70 TKL Champion series
Software Windows 11 PRO X64
ok i guess it will be no problem for the MSI card cause its overclocked and the sapphire dont, so i can lower its values to match sapphire, using the catalyst control center? :) tnx a lot!
 

eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
40,435 (6.61/day)
Location
Republic of Texas (True Patriot)
System Name PCGOD
Processor AMD FX 8350@ 5.0GHz
Motherboard Asus TUF 990FX Sabertooth R2 2901 Bios
Cooling Scythe Ashura, 2×BitFenix 230mm Spectre Pro LED (Blue,Green), 2x BitFenix 140mm Spectre Pro LED
Memory 16 GB Gskill Ripjaws X 2133 (2400 OC, 10-10-12-20-20, 1T, 1.65V)
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon 290 Sapphire Vapor-X
Storage Samsung 840 Pro 256GB, WD Velociraptor 1TB
Display(s) NEC Multisync LCD 1700V (Display Port Adapter)
Case AeroCool Xpredator Evil Blue Edition
Audio Device(s) Creative Labs Sound Blaster ZxR
Power Supply Seasonic 1250 XM2 Series (XP3)
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD
Keyboard Roccat Ryos MK Pro
Software Windows 7 Pro 64
ok i guess it will be no problem for the MSI card cause its overclocked and the sapphire dont, so i can lower its values to match sapphire, using the catalyst control center? :) tnx a lot!

CCC or Afterburner

Reason why for that is because the Sapphire card may not be able to match the clocks of the MSI
 
Top