SLI choices

[sonicbuddha]

I'm in the process of upgrading my system and want to give SLI a try. What is the best choice for a stable, future proof, yet overclockable mb? I'm in a comfortable place in life at the moment so cost isn't my biggest worry- but headache is. A mb/chipset that is nothing but a constant battle to keep stable with even the smallest overclock isn't worth it.

I have a 8800GT and plan to pair it, esp since the dual gpu cards haven't been rated worth it in comparison to an SLI. Again, though, if SLI isn't stable, then m'be the investment is worth it.

I'm also unconvinced by DDR3, but its far from a blocker.

Suggestions?

 

[surfsatwerk]

I would say that unless you want to SLI two 280GTX cards then get a nice X38 or X48 board and get two 4870's.

But if you just want to do things on the cheap then I'd pickup EVGA's 750FTW and another 8800GT and call it a day.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...188026&Tpk=evga%2b750i

 

[Blazer7]

It's hard to say if SLI is worth it. Some will say it is, others will say otherwise. The latest high-end chipset for SLI is the 790i Ultra. Last I've heard the data corruption problem with nVidia's RAID when ocing has been resolved. That probably means that it?s now easier to oc the 790 a bit higher without that annoying problem. You?re not the only one who?s skeptical about DDR3 but unfortunately the 790 is DDR3 only. The best 790 board out there is probably ASUS?s Striker II extreme although this may change once Gigabyte release their GA-790SLI-DQ6 in July.

 

[sonicbuddha]

I think my biggest question is (and m'be I should change the topic to it)- SLI, is it worth the headache? The reviews I've read so far have put some question into nV boards and their stability. I'd drop an additional $100+ on a faster single card and a stable board rather than struggling with SLI and keeping my machine stable. Even a nVidia Geforce 9800 gx2, since it would not require a new mb purchase for me.

As for Crossfire, I'd find it more appealing if it was more widely supported.

 

[Jessica69]

What I've seen here, on XS, and a few other forums, is most, though not all, users that started out with nVidia chipset motherboards for C2D/C2Q cpus end up ditching them in favor of Intel P35/X38/P45/X48 motherboards......due to the stability of the Intel chipsets and lack thereof in the nVidia end of things.

You can find quite nice, very overclockable DDR2-based Intel chipset motherboards for not a whole lot of money. Pair a decent Intel-based motherboard with an ATi 4870 video card and you could have the "ultimate" value/performance setup. True, you wouldn't have the absolute fastest video card out there, but you'd have one that performs within 80% of nVidia's top end card at a bit less than 50% of the price of nVidia's top dog card.

Myself, I'm just ticking along with an X38 motherboard, a Q6600 OC'd to 3.6GHz, and just put a 4850 into it......and that card will get moved to the "smaller" rig to upgrade its video, when the 4870X2 comes out.

Just throwing out suggestions...........

 

[sonicbuddha]

Good suggestions. I've put it all down and weighed the pros and cons (so much easier to see on "paper") and it doesn't seem worth it to chase an SLI solution at this time, at least for me. It would require purchasing another 8800gt, cooler, and motherboard to support them and, honestly, it didn't seem the wisest purchase choice to chase slowly obsoleting hardware instead of moving forward.

Anyone want to buy a 8800gt, in box, and nickel plated ek-fc800gt? This was all for a project that never got off the ground due to a new job. A job that gives me the $$ to buy, yet rarely play with, new hardware (and they gave me a new workstation for home).

Thanks for everyone's help!