Question about an upgrade

[thun712]

Hello, I am looking into upgrading my 3 year old computer to better run Skyrim when it releases later this year.

I am currently running 2 ZOTAC GeForce 9800 GTX 512mb in SLI. Unfortunately I don't have the budget for another high-range SLI upgrade. My question is then will I get better performance staying with the SLI setup? Or upgrading to a newer mid-range single card like the HD 6870?

The rest of my setup is:
-EVGA nForce 780i SLI mobo
-4gb CORSAIR XMS2 RAM
-Intel Core 2 Q6600 OCd to 3.0GHz
-Win7 Pro

Can post more details if need be.

Looking for any suggestions for an optimal upgrade. I'd say my budget is about $250~300 and I'm hoping to get better/more RAM.

Thanks

 

[toyota]

you left out resolution which is an important factor here. and I am assuming that is Win 7 64 bit?

 

[thun712]

you left out resolution which is an important factor here.

Running @ 1680x1050

Sometimes outputting to the HD TV, but not very often

 

[toyota]

I would probably sell the 9800gtx cards and get a single gtx560 Ti. that would provide you with a much more consistent and overall better experience. I would leave everything else in your pc alone.

 

[thun712]

Anything more specific within that suggestion? I've seen the EVGA gtx560 Ti model, but EVGA customer support in the past has been non-existent. I really wish nVidia had something more in the price range of the 6870 which is almost $100 cheaper with rebates

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Any reason you want nvidia so badly? In your price range you really aren't going to be getting a card capable of physX and i doubt you have a 3d capable monitor so 3D is out of the question too. Sounds like the 6870 would be a great card for you.

Don't listen to the bs about drivers or whatever. Amd is right on par with nvidia these days except for 3D which doesn't matter to you anyways

 

[thun712]

The only reason to stay with nVidia is for an easier future upgrade to another SLI setup if I wanted to. It's a shame to waste the main feature of that 780i motherboard. Other than that I am looking for the best performance for the money. I just was not sure if a single card was worth replacing 2 9800s

 

[Fallen Kell]

At this point, it is a little hard to say. I mean, simply pop over and look at the GPU chart on toms hardware:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-radeon-hd-6870-geforce-gtx-570,2834-7.html

Your 2 9800's in SLI should be a little faster than the 9800 GX2, which means a GTX 470, is about par for your existing solution in terms of performance. The GTX 560 ti is about 10-20% faster than the GTX 470 depending on the game (at 1920x1200 resolution). So it should be faster and use a lot less power/heat than your existing 2 card solution.

 

[thun712]

How about the performance gain from getting say a 560 or a 560TI and running it alongside one of the 9800s as a dedicated PhysX card?

Would it otherwise fall down to whether or not I want to enable DX11? Am I simply underestimating my 3 year old rig?

 

[DaveSimmons]

Does Skyrim have _hardware_ PhysX? Up until now Bethesda has been using Havok instead.

Unless it has hardware PhysX (not just CPU-based) that second card will just sit there heating up your case and wasting power.

 

[Keysplayr]

How about the performance gain from getting say a 560 or a 560TI and running it alongside one of the 9800s as a dedicated PhysX card?

Would it otherwise fall down to whether or not I want to enable DX11? Am I simply underestimating my 3 year old rig?

I was just about to suggest this. You can run a GTX560/Ti alongside one of those 9800's. Use the 9800 for PhysX. Nice setup.