that test in 3Dmark 06 your referring too, even the most powerful top of the line system doesn't get good framerates in that one, as its testing the CPU's abilities & workload etc...
read here:
Futuremark - Products - 3DMark06 - The Tests Quote:
3DMark06 CPU Tests
CPU Tests - Red Valley (requires full SM2.0 support or better)
Both CPU tests use our new game engine, and rely on AI, physics and game logic to generate a multi-threaded workload that can be distributed on multiple processors, cores or even on a single processor. Ageia PhysX library and D* Lite path finding AI algorithm are produce demanding CPU loads. Tests are run in a fixed frame rate of 2FPS for more equal CPU loading. Resolution is locked to 640x480 to decrease GFX influence of performance. The shader profile is locked to 2_0 and no dynamic shadows are used. The D* Lite AI algorithm generates unit path requests in a dynamic path finding grid, where each unit represents a moving obstacle, and paths sync back at 200ms-600ms intervals. The complexity of the path request fulfillment varies; the dynamic re-planning algorithm can re-use the state of previous searches. The Ageia physics uses 87 units and their rigid bodies at 20ms physics steps. Professional reviewers can disable a second CPU or other core of either a virtual or physical dual core system for comparable results regardless of the number of cores or CPUs.
CPU Test 1
The test uses a high level of path finding complexity, tight AI synchronization intervals over 40 frames, locked to fixed frame rate of 2FPS with a Shader Profile of 2_0 and a resolution of 640x480.
CPU Test 2
The test uses a lower level of path finding complexity, lax AI synchronization intervals over 60 frames, locked to a fixed frame rate of 2FPS with a Shader Profile of 2_0 and a resolution of 640x480.
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But here's a question for you with your new rig... why in gods name are you running an ATI Crossfire Motherboard & running not 1 but 2 Different Video cards, not that that is a bad thing but read on with my next comment, to make things worse ones an nVidia Geforce 8800GTX, & the other is an ATI Radeon HD2600XT?
if your trying to run them together, they're not compatible, either use one or the other...
it may be possible to run both, use one for gaming & the other for whatever... but its going to be more of a headache than its worth. (conflicting drivers, setting up which one is the main card, etc etc)
yes the machine could be considered a beast, though its not top of the line, as far as AMD Dual core machines go, its near top of the line... 6400+ is one of the fastest X2's available... 8800GTX is a generation behind... sort of, but is still close to top of line for a graphics card...
2GB RAM is average, DDR2-800 is more or less minimum average for a gaming machine these days.
HDD is a reasonable size, though not the fastest SATA drive out there.
would have to rate the over all system as well above average, but not top of the line. If it were packing an AMD Quad core, 64-bit Windows, & 4GB of RAM, & maybe a 9800GTX or 9800GX2 (need an SLI compatible Mobo for this card) for an nvidia card, or an ATI 3870 x2 card for an ATI Solution (or 2 3870 x2's for Quad Crossfire), then yeah, it would be top of the line, as far as AMD/ATI's camp goes, but TOP top of the line over all still falls in the Intel Realm.
Not sure about the Beep errors, but wondering if its related to the issue with both video cards?...