Nvidia 9800 gx2 or 2x9800gtx??

[FIESTARIA]

Hello guys!

I am not sure if this topic has been discussed before but I would appreciate any opinions about this dilemma...

So what do you think? Should I go for 2 9800GTX's or a single 9800 GX2??

Any opinion very much appreciated!!

Thanks in advance.

 

[Jax Omen]

generally, if you already have an SLI mobo, SLI 8800GTS 512 or SLI 9800GTX beats the GX2 and costs less money.

If you don't have an SLI mobo, the GX2 is a much better route.



Both are bad routes right now with R770 and GT200 looming on the horizon.

 

[error8]

Originally posted by: Jax Omen




Both are bad routes right now with R770 and GT200 looming on the horizon.

 

[Syntax Error]

Originally posted by: error8

Originally posted by: Jax Omen




Both are bad routes right now with R770 and GT200 looming on the horizon.

 

[sgrinavi]

Are you building a new system?

 

[FIESTARIA]

Thank you very much for your responses!I really appreciate it.

I am not following the hardware technology much the last year to be honest due to lack of spare time, so I didn't have a clue about the new cards which are about to be launched.

It seems that I'll have to wait a bit longer before I upgrade. I was about to go for a new mobo, a pair of memory modules, a new cpu and of course a new graphics card.

The hardware that I was tempted to go for are:

Asus Striker II nvidia 790
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 Yorkfield
OCZ 4GB DDR3 PC3-10666C7
and whatever gpu I would decide from this topic.

Do you have any ideas of when the new cards will be launched? My rig is now running on a intel D830 and 1gig of ram...not to mention the totally outdated 7800gtx...

So that means that the upgrade is quite...critical!!

Thanks in advance and thanks for letting me know about the new hardware comin up!!

 

[Tempered81]

Originally posted by: FIESTARIA
Asus Striker II nvidia 790
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 Yorkfield
OCZ 4GB DDR3 PC3-10666C7
and whatever gpu I would decide from this topic.

790 has 3 pci slots & 8800gtx 768mb cards are 289 AR now.

If you know how to overclock i'd try this:

Asus Striker II nvidia 790
Intel Core 2 Quad qx9650 or E8400 ($900 or $180)
pc 8500 DDR2 2gb or 4gb ($60)
3 8800gtx TRI SLI ($850)

get some other people's advice but I'd say that would be a hard system to beat, especially with a 4ghz CPU in the mix...

 

[DerComissar]

Originally posted by: FIESTARIA
Thank you very much for your responses!I really appreciate it.

I am not following the hardware technology much the last year to be honest due to lack of spare time, so I didn't have a clue about the new cards which are about to be launched.

It seems that I'll have to wait a bit longer before I upgrade. I was about to go for a new mobo, a pair of memory modules, a new cpu and of course a new graphics card.

The hardware that I was tempted to go for are:

Asus Striker II nvidia 790
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 Yorkfield
OCZ 4GB DDR3 PC3-10666C7
and whatever gpu I would decide from this topic.

Do you have any ideas of when the new cards will be launched? My rig is now running on a intel D830 and 1gig of ram...not to mention the totally outdated 7800gtx...

So that means that the upgrade is quite...critical!!

Thanks in advance and thanks for letting me know about the new hardware comin up!!

I have a 9800GX2 and am lovin' it. Since I run an Intel P35 board sli is not an option for me but this dual-gpu card takes care of that. However, based on what your new system plans are, and I think that will be a great system you are building, you have the option of going to two 9800GTX cards as well. As for the upcoming 9900GTX, nothing official from Nvidia yet but there is a lot of indications that they will bring out the new cards this summer, possibly July. If you did buy a 9800 series card(s) now, either EVGA or BFG gives you the option to a trade-up within 90 days of purchase to a 9900 series card. Not that you would be lacking any firepower with a 9800GX2 or 2x9800GTS sli.
Getting back to your question, I prefer the 9800GX2, as it avoids many of the hassles of running two separate cards in sli

 

[nitromullet]

Originally posted by: FIESTARIA
Asus Striker II nvidia 790
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 Yorkfield
OCZ 4GB DDR3 PC3-10666C7
and whatever gpu I would decide from this topic.

ASUS Striker II Extreme LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 790i Ultra $449.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131274
OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) $330.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820227293

...$780.98 total for a motherboard and RAM!?!

Do yourself a favor and go with something more reasonable like:

EVGA 132-CK-NF78-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI $239.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813188024
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) $149.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231166

...$389.98 total for a motherboard and RAM...

I doubt you would notice a difference between those two setups with a Q9450...

With the almost $400 saved, you can invest in a very nice power supply that you will be needing to run whatever dual high end cards you decide on.

With the kind of budget you appear to have, I would go with either a single 9800GTX or 9800GX2 right now, but get EVGA... That way you can step-up if the next gen comes out within 3 months, and if not you'll have had a great card for over 3 months that you can still sell for a bit towards your new card.

 

[Keysplayr]

2x 9800GTX would for the most part will be faster than a single 9800GX2. This is mainly due to the higher core and memory clocks of the 9800GTX's.
If you do not have an SLI board currently, then your best option is the 9800GX2.

If you are going for a completely new system, then I might look into the M3N-HT Deluxe Mempipe from ASUS.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131290

Supports Athlon AM2/AM2+ (X2/X3/X4 Athlon/Phenom) and has Hybrid Power. This will shut down your 9800GTX's when not gaming. Great power saver.
This works with 9800GTX's and 9800GX2's only.

You can get an Athlon X2 or Phenom X3/X4 for pretty decent prices right now. And this board still uses DDR2 memory. The memory that Nitro listed above looks like a great deal for 4GB.

 

[FIESTARIA]

Thank you very much for your informative responses!

It seems that I have changed my mind through this topic although the prices are quite different here in London.

I won't go for the 790 chipset but for the 780 given that the difference in performance will not be noticeable. So that means that I'll go for a DDR2 instead of DDR3 and my choice will probably be this:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/...701&catid=8&subcat=817

It appears that I will be saving approximately £245 (around $490), an amount that I could definitely invest in a better PSU, as nitromullet has very wisely suggested.


Now in regard to the graphics cards, I find this EVGA upgrade option very..handy! I didn't have a clue about that, so thanks for informing me!

But still I haven't made my mind up whether to go for a pair of 9800 GTX's or a single 9800 GX2. The only reason I'm going for the 780 chipset is because of the SLI capability. If I don't go SLI (in that case buying a 9800GX2) then I would prefer an X48 motherboard given that I had several issues with the nvidia chipsets before. Apparently Nvidia has made made a progress since the last time I upgraded but let's say that I am a bit prejudiced. Or I shouldn't be?


Thank you very much for your help!

 

[taltamir]

I am pretty sure the eVGA step up is only for residents of the US and maybe canada. You live in london!

Also, the idea of 3 way SLI with 8800GTX is downright horrible.

Also, I wouldn't upgrade right now, wait 1 month for the brand new stuff, the entire geforce 9 and radeon HD3xxx series were both just shrinking of existing tech from 2 years ago. And the new designs from both AMD and nVidia should be coming out in a month. In the past such new designs annihilated previous ones.

 

[DerComissar]

Originally posted by: taltamir
I am pretty sure the eVGA step up is only for residents of the US and maybe canada. You live in london!

Also, the idea of 3 way SLI with 8800GTX is downright horrible.

Also, I wouldn't upgrade right now, wait 1 month for the brand new stuff, the entire geforce 9 and radeon HD3xxx series were both just shrinking of existing tech from 2 years ago. And the new designs from both AMD and nVidia should be coming out in a month. In the past such new designs annihilated previous ones.

The EVGA Step-Up Program also includes Europe, which means the U.K. is included.

 

[DerComissar]

Originally posted by: FIESTARIA
Thank you very much for your informative responses!

It seems that I have changed my mind through this topic although the prices are quite different here in London.

I won't go for the 790 chipset but for the 780 given that the difference in performance will not be noticeable. So that means that I'll go for a DDR2 instead of DDR3 and my choice will probably be this:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/...701&catid=8&subcat=817

It appears that I will be saving approximately £245 (around $490), an amount that I could definitely invest in a better PSU, as nitromullet has very wisely suggested.


Now in regard to the graphics cards, I find this EVGA upgrade option very..handy! I didn't have a clue about that, so thanks for informing me!

But still I haven't made my mind up whether to go for a pair of 9800 GTX's or a single 9800 GX2. The only reason I'm going for the 780 chipset is because of the SLI capability. If I don't go SLI (in that case buying a 9800GX2) then I would prefer an X48 motherboard given that I had several issues with the nvidia chipsets before. Apparently Nvidia has made made a progress since the last time I upgraded but let's say that I am a bit prejudiced. Or I shouldn't be?


Thank you very much for your help!

I tend to avoid Nvidia-based motherboards, as I have had issues with them as compared to no problems with Intel chipsets. If you do fancy the new X48 chipset, several brands are available that offer DDR2 versions as opposed to the expensive DDR3. That would allow you to use the OCZ DDR2 kit you want to get from OCUK. Very nice kit, I might add! As I posted, EVGA does offer the Step-Up Program in Europe, which includes the U.K.

 

[FIESTARIA]

Thanks DerComissar!

You are actually right about the EVGA step up program in Europe. That means that I could go for an Intel chipset ''accompanied'' with just one graphics card (9800 gtx) for now, with prospects of upgrading in the imminent future. This sounds like the best thing I can do for now, considering that the upgrade is necessary!!

I really appreciate your help you guys and thank you very much for your time!