SLI 8800GTX : Not sure if I'm getting the full "Bling"

[TantrumusMaximus]

Got a good price on a second 8800GTX so figured why not it's going to wife as I move to i7 very soon. I'm not too cozy with the 3Dmark06 scores I'm getting. I only have the demo version of the benchmark so these are stock setting results:

14K 3DMark06 Score?

System:
EVGA 680i
E6600 @ 3.375Ghz
Unlinked Clocks: 1500FSB / 800 MEM
SLI 8800GTX (Stock)
4GB OCZ Gold DDR2-800
PCI-E @ 115MHz

I was at ~12K on one board, 14K with 2 boards? Seems low to me. I'm seeing single board results out there on equivalent setups getting over 13K. When I compare my score at the end it shows a 8800GT with 12K with 3Ghz CPU. I've got same system with either GTX and lower score???

Completely fresh: XP SP3 & 180 driver build from nVidia.

I've tested both 8800GTX by themselves to make sure it wasn't either of the cards with an issue and either card by itself scores about 12000.

(I do have a Q6600 but it won't OC at all in this 680i board. So I don't use it in this system but overclocks to 3.4+ on the 650i Ultra board it's in so it's not the chip. Sigh I wish the 650i wasn't the ultra or I'd use that board for this one.)

When I had the Q6600 the most it would go is 2.7GHz but still scored about the same as the much more OC E6600... Am I concerned about nothing or is there an issue?

However last time I benchmarked the Q6600 was before the second card was on hand... would it drive SLI any better near stock speeds than the OC E6600?

 

[LarryJoe]

I'm running a Q6600 at stock speeds and just completed an SLI upgrade by adding a 2nd 8800GTX, so I think we are fairly comparable.

At default 3DMark06 settings, you are not going to see a dramatic change because your CPU is doing most of the work and not putting enough on the cards. I had the same issue. I got 11,500 with one card and pretty much the same with two. Then I got an education on how it works.

Try this and I know you will be pleased. In 3DMark06, turn the resolution up as high as your monitor can go and turn AA up to 8X and then run it with SLI on and off. The results should be dramatic. For reference, at 1920x1200 and 8X AA I got 10,000 SLI and 5,500 with one card. To me, this is the real test. You are adding the second card to improve gameplay quality, not to have the highest 3DMark score (which is more of an indicator for overclocking the CPU than graphics IMO).

I can play any game at full spec.

 

[Fallen Kell]

Also, try using 3DMark Vantage to get a good idea.

 

[MTDEW]

However last time I benchmarked the Q6600 was before the second card was on hand... would it drive SLI any better near stock speeds than the OC E6600?

I'm sure you know the answer to this already and just like me, dont like the answer.

It depends on what you're running and if it makes use of all 4 cores or just two.

I have the same delema so i just stuck my q6600 in one pc and my e8400 in the other.

I figure once enough titles make use of the quad , i'll switch it back to my main gaming pc.
But right now my e8400 @ 4ghz runs "most" games faster than my Q6600 @ 3.6ghz

But im not so sure even if the games uses 4 cores how much a q6600 @ 2.7ghz would hold two 8800gtx cards back.

Last time i tested, i believe my sli'ed 8800GTS 512mb cards benefitted from pure cpu speed pretty well up to about 3.2ghz and then after that, any more than 3.2ghz the gains were minimal ....they are there, you just dont get big gains after about 3.2ghz.

Anyway, short answer....... no a quad at lower ghz(2.7ghz) the q6600 wont "push" the 8800gtx cards any better than an e6600 3.4ghz.

 

[TantrumusMaximus]

Thanks for the in depth responses! Makes me feel much better about how it's sitting now. And yeah I didn't even think about the fact that by running the demo version of 3DMark06 it's running a lower res where I'm really not going to notice a huge difference with that second card... that makes a lot of sense I need to push it to a higher res (DUH!!! bonk on my noggin.)

When the wife get's this rig I'll prob just put a diff mobo in it that works better OCing the Q6600. EVGA has been cool about offering up a swap but I'm not going to hide regarding being very impatient and couldn't stand leaving this system down for a week or more while I wait for an RMA swap. I'd be more apt to buy a diff board at the time and save this 680i for a rainy day.

On another note: I wish EVGA offered cross shipping... they have bar none some of the best support of their products however. Even supporting aftermarket coolers on their cards, that's a big diff between them and BFG.

 

[Fallen Kell]

Originally posted by: TantrumusMaximus

(I do have a Q6600 but it won't OC at all in this 680i board. So I don't use it in this system but overclocks to 3.4+ on the 650i Ultra board it's in so it's not the chip. Sigh I wish the 650i wasn't the ultra or I'd use that board for this one.)

Why the heck didn't you step-up that EVGA 680i to the 780i? The 680i has all kinds of issues with overclocking. The 780i is what the 680i SHOULD have been. Yes, I know it cost some money...

 

[Juddog]

Originally posted by: Fallen Kell

Originally posted by: TantrumusMaximus

(I do have a Q6600 but it won't OC at all in this 680i board. So I don't use it in this system but overclocks to 3.4+ on the 650i Ultra board it's in so it's not the chip. Sigh I wish the 650i wasn't the ultra or I'd use that board for this one.)

Why the heck didn't you step-up that EVGA 680i to the 780i? The 680i has all kinds of issues with overclocking. The 780i is what the 680i SHOULD have been. Yes, I know it cost some money...

I'm actually looking into picking up the 780i this weekend myself. Right now I have a 650i and it sucks due to the 8x per lane on the PCI-E which somewhat limits SLI mode from what I understand. Plus I have been having trouble getting it to work right with 4 GB of RAM (on 2 GB runs great).

 

[nitromullet]

Plus I have been having trouble getting it to work right with 4 GB of RAM (on 2 GB runs great).

A tad bit off topic, but this might be helpful... On my 780i I have to install Vista x64 with 2GB, install KB929777 and SP1, and then I can install the other 2GB stick and run with no errors.

 

[sgrinavi]

3dMark06 is highly CPU dependent so your scores are probably accurate. Try some crysis benchmarks... I think you'll be a bit happier.