GeForce GTX 295

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
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you better have one hell of a cpu and even then it would need to be oced to fully push that setup. also this much gpu power would really only be needed at 2560x1600. its funny though because 896mb of vram would limit the cards from actually cranking the settings up in some games at that res. Far Cry 2 Ultra settings with more than 4x AA, Rome Total War with more than 4x AA and longer viewing distances in GTA 4 would all require more than 1gig of vram at 2560.
 

Keysplayr

Elite Member
Jan 16, 2003
21,211
50
91
Yes you can SLI 2 GTX295's on an SLI motherboard. Preferably with a board that has 2x 16X PCI-e slots.
You will need a ton of CPU power to realize the power of these GPU's, and only at the highest of resolutions. Not to mention a hefty power supply with 2x 8pin & 2x 6pin PCI-e power connectors.
 

imported_Shaq

Senior member
Sep 24, 2004
731
0
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It doesn't take as much CPU power as you think IF you have an i7 @ 3.2 and above.

COD4
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...e-performance-review/8
Still not CPU limited at 1024 with 4870x2 quadfire or 280 tri-SLI.

FarCry2
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...-performance-review/11
Still not CPU limited at 1024 with 4870x2 quadfire or 280 tri-SLI.

FEAR (yeah the first one)
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...-performance-review/12
It looks like there may be a CPU limit at 1024 with 4870x2 quadfire.

Crysis Warhead
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...-performance-review/15
CPU limited at 1024 and 1280 with 280 tri-SLI.

So if he has an OC'd i7 that power won't be wasted. If he games even at 1600 almost all games will still be GPU limited at high settings. If he games at 1900 he can upgrade to G300 tri-SLI this fall/winter and then he might be CPU limited.

 

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
1
0
Originally posted by: Shaq
It doesn't take as much CPU power as you think IF you have an i7 @ 3.2 and above.

COD4
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...e-performance-review/8
Still not CPU limited at 1024 with 4870x2 quadfire or 280 tri-SLI.

FarCry2
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...-performance-review/11
Still not CPU limited at 1024 with 4870x2 quadfire or 280 tri-SLI.

FEAR (yeah the first one)
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...-performance-review/12
It looks like there may be a CPU limit at 1024 with 4870x2 quadfire.

Crysis Warhead
http://www.guru3d.com/article/...-performance-review/15
CPU limited at 1024 and 1280 with 280 tri-SLI.

So if he has an OC'd i7 that power won't be wasted. If he games even at 1600 almost all games will still be GPU limited at high settings. If he games at 1900 he can upgrade to G300 tri-SLI this fall/winter and then he might be CPU limited.
well an i7 at 3.2 or better IS exactly what would be considered FAST by most people. if he has a lesser cpu such as the E8400 then he would be wasting his money as the graphs clearly show. an i7 at 3.2 or better is the only cpu that should be considered for a gtx295 sli or faster setup if you want all it can do.

 

error8

Diamond Member
Nov 28, 2007
3,204
0
76
You need to game at 2560X1200, to feel the need for 4 gpus. And even then, those 898 mb of vram, might prove insufficient in some situations. There is no need for more then one gtx295 if you are bellow 2560X1200. Everything will fly anyway.
 

alcoholbob

Diamond Member
May 24, 2005
6,379
445
126
With load balancing on 4 GPUs you are basically at the mercy of nvidia's driver team for SLI driver support or enjoy a stutter fest when new games launch. And if you ever have the urge to play older games you'd be in a huge disadvantage. Even with multi-core CPUs you have to set affinity to run a single thread for older games or it's a major stutter party.