939 SLI boards: any performance benefits besides SLI?

[slowpogo]

After looking at reviews and benchmarks I'm having a hard time forming a direct performance comparison between nforce4 ultra boards and their SLI counterparts.

My question is, do the nforce 4 SLI chipsets outperform nforce 4 ultra in non-SLI gaming? I have no intention of going dual-gpu, but I'm wondering if the sli (or Crossfire) boards are worth the extra $ for performance.

I'm wondering if most SLI boards aren't basically the same as Nforce 4 ultra, but with SLI capability.

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Most high end S939 boards are SLI. They have more features and overclockability. There's no performance benefit though.

 

[mb103051]

sli is the only difference.ultra is just as fast as non sli boards.i personally think sli and crossfire is a big waste.you get same game play results with 1 top of the line video card in the pcie x16 slot/you get some additional frame rates with sli but no enough to make any viewing difference.plus when dual gpu cards come out you wont need sli.its a gimmick to sell more video cards.
all of the nf4 boards are equal as far as speed goes,the ultra gives you sata2 and the sli gives you sli.thats about it in a nutshell.

 

[Kakumba]

yeah, pretty much the same. As has been said, high end boards have SLI, and are the ones you want for overclocking (but if you arent overclocking, then theres no point at all)

 

[emilyek]

Yep. Don't have 2 cards?

No reason to get SLI motherboard instead of non-one

Unless, of course, you just like spending more money.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I can't see using a price as an issue There are at least another handful for under $80 shipped there. If planning to keep the board a couple years, who knows what use the 2nd slot might be put to? Maybe using your present card for physics? I guess I'm just a "better to have it and not need it, than need it, and not have it." type, when the cost difference is marginal.

 

[lopri]

Another thing: This rather has to do with physical X16 PCI-E slots than SLI, but if you have 2 PCI-E X16 slots you have a freedom to use either slots for video. (this may depends on boards/BIOSes) The performance difference is minimal and if you want to keep your CPU cooler, you could go with the 2nd PCI-E slot for video.

 

[Skott]

SLI does have better performance at higher resolutions. Thats been shown in many benchmarks. Thats why alot of folks get SLI for running games at resolutions above 1600x1200. If you arent running games at those high resolutions then, no, there isnt any performance gain really as far as the mobo goes. The SLI mobos tend to have more features though which in of itself is appealing to many people.