Anyone know if x8 by x8 PCI-e SLI is adequate for SLI'd 8800GTS's?

[Keysplayr]

I am checking this board out at the egg. ASUS P5N-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI

Just really wanted to see if anyone knows if the x8 by x8 PCI-e lanes would be restricting the 8800's in any way.

Thanks!

 

[josh6079]

You'll be fine.

 

[Keysplayr]

Good news. Thanks!! :thumbsup:

 

[SexyK]

I have the P5N-E w/ an E6600 and 8800GTS.... it is extremely fast and extremely stable. Oblivion maxed out with AA+HDR @ 1680x1050 is ridiculous. IMO the whole package is great, hardware and software - including the nVidia control panel which has some great tweaking features. Haven't managed to pull together enough cash for a second GTS to try out SLI on the board yet, unfortunately, but you shouldn't have a problem. Post some impressions once your build is done and have fun.

 

[Keysplayr]

Originally posted by: SexyK
I have the P5N-E w/ an E6600 and 8800GTS.... it is extremely fast and extremely stable. Oblivion maxed out with AA+HDR @ 1680x1050 is ridiculous. IMO the whole package is great, hardware and software - including the nVidia control panel which has some great tweaking features. Haven't managed to pull together enough cash for a second GTS to try out SLI on the board yet, unfortunately, but you shouldn't have a problem. Post some impressions once your build is done and have fun.

Thanks for that input!! I will only be purchasing a single GTS/GTX initially. A second one down the road a little ways. For now, I'm just going CPU, mobo, single 8800, and 1GB DDR2.
When I get this thing built (Hopefully within the month) I will let you know how it goes. Judging from your report, I should be just fine. Looking forward to it!!

Keys

 

[morgash]

lol. You will likely find out that SLI is only feasible if you do it right when you build the system. By the time you are ready to purchase the next card something faster and cheaper will be out. I would spend any money you might be saving on an extra gig of RAM. With the way DirectX 10 looks to be panning out (by the way Crysis plays at 2500x1500 full everything at 60fps on a 8800gtx) i would say the second card will be unnecessary and the extra gig o RAM will be a much bigger help. 2gb is the current gamer's choice and it wont be long before we move up to 4gb as the high end, and 2gb as mainstream.

morgash

 

[SexyK]

Originally posted by: morgash
lol. You will likely find out that SLI is only feasible if you do it right when you build the system. By the time you are ready to purchase the next card something faster and cheaper will be out. I would spend any money you might be saving on an extra gig of RAM. With the way DirectX 10 looks to be panning out (by the way Crysis plays at 2500x1500 full everything at 60fps on a 8800gtx) i would say the second card will be unnecessary and the extra gig o RAM will be a much bigger help. 2gb is the current gamer's choice and it wont be long before we move up to 4gb as the high end, and 2gb as mainstream.

morgash

This is probably a valid point actually. I would be hesitant to go for a new build at this point without 2GB considering the requirements of some of the newer titles along with the impending Vista launch. Something to consider at least, if you have the cash on hand now.

 

[Keysplayr]

Originally posted by: SexyK

Originally posted by: morgash
lol. You will likely find out that SLI is only feasible if you do it right when you build the system. By the time you are ready to purchase the next card something faster and cheaper will be out. I would spend any money you might be saving on an extra gig of RAM. With the way DirectX 10 looks to be panning out (by the way Crysis plays at 2500x1500 full everything at 60fps on a 8800gtx) i would say the second card will be unnecessary and the extra gig o RAM will be a much bigger help. 2gb is the current gamer's choice and it wont be long before we move up to 4gb as the high end, and 2gb as mainstream.

morgash

This is probably a valid point actually. I would be hesitant to go for a new build at this point without 2GB considering the requirements of some of the newer titles along with the impending Vista launch. Something to consider at least, if you have the cash on hand now.

I would agree about the 2GB thing, but the 1GB of mem I speak of, I already own. I will get another GB as soon as I feel it's needed for my purposes. Any slowdowns, stuttering due to hard drive thrashing will the the sure sign. When the time comes, I will go for a nice pair of 1GB sticks.

@ morgash: Disagree on the feasability of SLI only if purchased right from the start. This is an "age old" argument that can never truly be settled, because both sides of the coin have advantages/disadvantages. The "faster and cheaper" thing you mentioned actually applies to the method I am choosing. I will by a cheaper 8800 later for a faster rig. See? Same idea you had, just a different way of getting the same results. A single 8800 is PALUNTY fast enough for anything I can throw at it right now. When it struggles a bit down the road, I will buy second one. And, don't forget that Nvidia is still working on SLI support for Vista, so it wouldn't really do me any good to buy 2 8800's right off the bat. I could wait. patience definitely is virtuous. And frugal, hehe.