Need help with SLI question

[OLK]

so about 8 months ago I upgraded and built a new PC.

I bought a EVGA gtx260 model #896-P3-1260-AR GeForce GTX 260 as seen here
EVGA gtx260

now that card is not that easy to find from the small time I have searched and I want to get another compatible card to SLI with it.

Do I have to have the same exact card? can I get a different 260? can anyone give me suggestions on a compatible card? I didn't expect to wait so long to SLI but stuff happens

any and all help is greatly appreciated

 

[OCGuy]

Just use any 192 core GTX260 and you should be good to go.

 

[thilanliyan]

Originally posted by: OCguy
Just use any 192 core GTX260 and you should be good to go.

You can't use a 216 core card?

http://www.overclock.net/nvidi...192-gtx-260-216-a.html

These guys say yes but who knows...
Keysplayr should be able to help.

 

[aka1nas]

You can mix 216 and 192 core GTX 260s, they kept the model string the same. I'm currently using a 216 as my main along with my older 192sp cards in Tri-SLI without issue.

 

[OLK]

ahhhh TYVM for the info, thats really what I needed to know.. now.. anyone have any suggestions for a sub 200 card?

 

[OCGuy]

Originally posted by: aka1nas
You can mix 216 and 192 core GTX 260s, they kept the model string the same. I'm currently using a 216 as my main along with my older 192sp cards in Tri-SLI without issue.

The people in that above linked thread seemed to think that all the cards will act like a 192 core....

 

[aka1nas]

Originally posted by: OCguy

Originally posted by: aka1nas
You can mix 216 and 192 core GTX 260s, they kept the model string the same. I'm currently using a 216 as my main along with my older 192sp cards in Tri-SLI without issue.

The people in that above linked thread seemed to think that all the cards will act like a 192 core....

SLI is not aware of SPs (or clockspeed for that matter). People on forums seem to always assume that SLI takes the least common denominator of all performance metrics due to the video memory behaving this way (which is only due to the contents needing to be mirrored for AFR).

Chris Ray did some benchmarks with the mixed and unmixed SLI setups when the 216 first came out showing the difference. Between the admittedly small difference between the cards and sub-linear SLI scaling, the performance increase is pretty small in absolute terms usually.