Using the AMD Crossfire technology means that you get to multiply your PC’s performance by using multiple AMD graphics cards simultaneously. Especially if it’s a gaming PC, you can push the limits and use around four AMD 7970 graphics cards to have a much more seamless and powerful gaming experience.
Now to get that kind of power boost, you first need to know how to enable AMD crossfire because it’s a proper process and there are some specific requirements to be fulfilled for AMD crossfire. In this article, we’ll be talking about all those requirements along with the step-by-step process on how to enable AMD crossfire.
Setting Up AMD CrossFire-Step By Step Process
Want to know how to set up CrossFire? Here are the steps you need to follow;
Step1:
Uninstall the AMD drivers you are currently using and then click the “Start” button. Once done, you now have to type “uninstall a program” and then select AMD Catalyst Install Manager. You’ll see an option of “Change” at the top right of the screen, click on it. Now to remove the AMD drivers, you have to select “Express-Uninstall ALL AMD Software,”.
Step2:
Download the latest version of the AMD driver software and then click on the “Express Installation” option. After this, you have to follow the rest of the instructions given on the screen. You just have to restart your system and you’ll see that the screen will turn back to normal.
Step3:
Now you have to check if your motherboard supports the use of dual graphics cards because some of them don’t. Here you can head to the product page and check the kind of motherboard you have. This step is of utmost importance before you install the second graphics card. Moreover, you have to check if the two cards you are using for AMD CrossFire are compatible with one another or not.
Step4:
Once you are done checking the compatibility, the next step is to install the second graphics card and for this, you first need to shut down the system completely and ensure that the CrossFire bridge is turned off. Now check if the system is recognizing the second graphics card that you just installed after turning on the system.
Step5:
If the system recognizes the graphics card and now that you have successfully installed it, the next step is to put it on the CrossFire bridge. Turn your computer on and then head to the “AMD CrossfireX” option. Click on it and then click on the “Enable AMD CrossfireX option. Now restart your system and you’ll have a fully functional AMD CrossFire setup.
What Are The AMD CrossFire Requirements?
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For AMD CrossFire, here are the requirements that you must fulfill;
- The motherboard should be AMD crossfire certified with at least PCIe x16 slots that’ll be running at a speed of PCIe x8. To ensure compatibility, you should first check with the manufacturer of the motherboard.
- If you are using R7 300 Series, Radeon™ RX Series, or Radeon R9 graphics cards, they should belong to the same family model number.
- The power supply unit has to be more than the overall power draw requirements of the total system. For this, you can use the PSU calculator by adding all of the components of the system.
- Windows® 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10 currently support AMD CrossFire but it still depends on your graphics card so you have to check the compatibility here with your video card’s manufacturer.
If you are meeting all these requirements you then need to check if the hardware and software of the graphics are properly installed before you get started with the whole AMD CrossFire configuration.
What Are The Benefits Of AMD CrossFire?
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There are multiple perks that step when you are opting for AMD CrossFire. Some of the important ones are;
Higher Resolutions
With a single powerful graphics card, you can get the excellent performance of around 1080p resolutions but when you’ll be using more than one graphics card, you’ll, of course, get a higher resolution like 4K displays.
Better Gaming Performance
The graphics quality of your games will increase to a whole other level and this is one of the best reasons that explains why you should opt for AMD CrossFire. With it, you’ll get better frame rates, extra filters, and whatnot.
Multiple Monitor Support
You can connect to multiple monitors all at the same time using dual graphics cards. It’s not necessary but yes, it does make a lot of difference especially for pro-gaming geeks.
What’s The Flipside Of Enabling AMD CrossFire?
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Just like there are some benefits to using AMD CrossFire, there are some downsides to it too. Some of them are;
High Running Cost
Graphics cards are never cheap and especially if you are buying two of them to enable AMD CrossFire, you’ll have to spend almost a fortune on it and this is one of the biggest flipsides of using dual graphics cards.
Compatibility Issues
The whole compatibility issue can be quite overwhelming for some people especially if you don’t have much knowledge about motherboards and AMD graphics cards. Finding the right AMD-based motherboard and then ensuring that it supports both of the AMD graphics cards can be quite complicated and difficult.
Significant Power Consumption
Dual graphics cards are quite power-hungry. In other words, your system would consume double the amount of power it usually does. For example, one high-end card alone would require a 600-watt power supply to function properly and when you have two of them you’d need around 1000 watts or more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You CrossFire Two Different AMD Cards?
The simple answer to this question is “no”. Two different AMD cards won’t crossfire. To enable AMD crossfire, you’ll have to use the same GPUs.
How Good Is AMD CrossFire?
AMD CrossFire is quite good, especially for a gaming PC. For example, the Crossfire RX 590s improved the average frame rate by almost 90% while keeping the frame time performance optimal. Then at 1440p the scaling went from 90% to 94% so yes, we’d say that you do get exceptional results when using AMD CrossFire.
Is AMD Radeon Compatible With Windows 10?
These are the AMD Radeon graphics that fully function on Windows 10; AMD Radeon RX Series Graphics. AMD Radeon™ R9 Series Graphics. AMD Radeon R7 Series Graphics.
Why Does It Say “No AMD Driver Is Installed?
The “No AMD Driver Is Installed” error means that no driver is controlling the AMD hardware on your PC or on your laptop. This usually happens when the driver is corrupt or when the installed driver isn’t compatible with your AMD hardware.
What Is CrossFire Compatibility?
With the AMD crossfire technology, you can connect around four GPUs and then use them to render 3D graphics on your system. But for this to happen, you have to make sure that your motherboard is AMD CrossFire compatible and that your two AMD graphics card
Conclusion
Now that you know how to enable AMD CrossFire and whether or not it’s worth the hassle, it’ll be easier for you to make a decision on what to do and what not to do. Overall, for gaming or mining, you might require dual graphics cards, and enabling AMD CrossFire would definitely help you boost your PC’s performance here. So if you have the budget for it and if you do fulfill all of AMD CrossFire’s requirements then you should go for it without giving it a second thought.
