With a relatively successful launch of the HD 5870 under their belt  (unless you take into account availability), ATI is gearing up for act two of the play.

The ATI Radeon HD 5870 x2 is supposedly due out sometime in October, and with the single GPU 5870 performing so well, one can only speculate at the power the dual GPU version might wield. The 5870 x2 is on track to become the best performing card on the market if it can properly scale, however one of the downfalls of the card may be its sheer size.

The HD 5870 already measures in at an unheard of 11″ long, bigger than what a lot of case manufacturers have budgeted for (standard spacing is 10.5″).  Images obtained this morning seem to depict that the x2 version could be even bigger!

While it is difficult to get an accurate length just from pictures, with a second die , it would be nearly impossible to squeeze it into the same sized PCB as the 5870. From our basic visual calculations, the card appears to be extended by at least 1″ – 1.5″, giving it a total footprint of an estimated 12″-12.5 inches long. Best of luck fitting this behemoth into any mid sized tower, or even a smaller full tower.

As seen in the photo’s, at least one prototype of the 5870×2 has it built with a squarish fan shroud, with plenty of venting along the far side to hopefully provide adequate cooling for the dual GPU’s. The 5850×2  has dual circular fans over just the chips, with no shroud as seen on the rest of the product line. We can be fairly cetain that this is not the ATI OEM spec, but rather a particular manufacturer’s unique cooling option.

The x2 versions of the card include both dual DVI, and a mini display port in between; however, they have taken out HDMI, opting instead to have the whole bottom space dedicated to venting.

UPDATE (09/25/09):  Exclusive photos from Cowboy @ HWC have been submitted confirming the existence of this giant and showcasing the extreme length of the cards along with photo’s of the HD 5850 x2 with a unique duorb style cooler.

No images featured here were taken or made possible by Hardware Canuck’s staff or its affiliates. All information was obtained from non related external sources