SLI - Crossfire poll

[CP5670]

How is SLI compatibility with somewhat older games? If I get two GTs, then in addition to newer games I want to be able to run all my old games on 2048x1536 with 4xTSAA/16xAF and get 60fps at all times.

 

[5150Joker]

I plan to pick up another 7800 GTX by next month for SLI.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: hytek369
first they increase the price of a card, now we need 2 for the ultimate performance

You are one of few here making sense. What "have to sell 2 cards/might not work on every game with every feature/costs too much" naysayers are ignoring:

COD2 45 vs 24fps

Q4 86 vs 55fps

FEAR 54 vs 30fps

IL2 71 vs 41fps

SC:CT 65 vs 34fps

B&W2 32 vs 22fps

BF2 95 vs 56fps

Riddick 76 vs 38fps

I don't think I can make it any plainer than this. It's pretty OBVIOUS that SLI is almost NECESSARY for high resolution, high detail gaming with modern games. It's almost as if the developers thought "This power is available, we're using it".

You COULD listen to trivial concerns like "Oh noes, I'd have to sell to cards instead of one!" or "Heavens to betsy! Year old HL2 only gets a big benefit in half the levels, and SLI AA has a bug!" or "Diminishing returns!". :roll

Those of us who have seen the light are playing all the modern games at modern settings and seeing beautiful graphics. We're turning UP the features and settings while those guys are saying "Can I leave the shadows on at 12 X10, or will it tank???"

I guess the readers can decide for themselves if the "diminishing returns" I've illustrated with these benchmarks warrant their money. I've never looked back and never will.

Ever heard the term "buyers remorse"? Never felt it with SLI.

 

[Corporate Thug]

Originally posted by: Rollo

Originally posted by: Corporate Thug
both are diminishing returns. the SLi is just less of a diminishing return

To say a 5% gain and a 56% gain are both diminishing returns may be technically accurate, but it's also misleading.

yes it is accurate

Nothing gives you a perfect price/performance ratio all the time (E.G. always double cost, always double performance) so your point is moot.

my point was not "twice the money give twice the performance". i think there are times where extra investment is worth it (i.e going from 128mb to ram to 512 for little cost)

in my OPINION, the 56% gain is not worth the 100% investment. this is my personal view. for the people who think its worth it, then go for it

To even compare a 5 and 56% return on investment is pretty ludicrous. One is very much worth having, the other is functionally irrelevant.

never compared the 5% gain to 56% gain. all i said is that you get dimisihed return with both. As far as if its worth having, like i said above, it depends on the individual

 

[GOREGRINDER]

if sli is showing this high of a cieling with the current cpu limitation,.how will it show if M2 has at least identical boosts as it was from athlonxp to athlon64?

is 3000+(s939 E3 or E6) to fx-57 worth the extra 1,000 dollars?!,. hows that for a sh!tty return? when one can run just as fast as the other if max 20 minutes of manual labor is induced,...sli goes above and beyond that parimeter and gives you next gen's performance,..now

 

[niggles]

Originally posted by: Rollo
I've never understood this "argument". We have a thing called "EBay"- there isn't ONE guy on the planet looking to pay $200 for a last gen card, there are THOUSANDS. The only "problem" is having to pay two ship costs and two EBay fees, and if you don't think a 56% increase in framerate is worth that, we agree to disagree.

You're right, you don't understand.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: niggles

Originally posted by: Rollo
I've never understood this "argument". We have a thing called "EBay"- there isn't ONE guy on the planet looking to pay $200 for a last gen card, there are THOUSANDS. The only "problem" is having to pay two ship costs and two EBay fees, and if you don't think a 56% increase in framerate is worth that, we agree to disagree.

You're right, you don't understand.

What is it that I don't understand Niggles?

That having to pay $20 for shipping and Ebay ads to sell two cards instead of $10 to sell one is some pathetic little amount of money that doesn't even deserve consideration when you're talking about boosting your framerate 30-100%?

I think I understand that pretty well, but I'd agree with you, if you actually have to think about maybe wasting an extra $10 on shipping cards you're probably not a SLI candidate.

I said "I don't understand" the "I have to sell two cards vs one!" argument because it's so trifling and ludicrous, not because I don't comprehend then ramifications.

 

[GZFant]

love hearing all the good commentary and arguments but I gotta say, being a mid-range consumer, knowing all the kids out there that actually play games competitively (cs, bf2 etc etc...) as much as I hate saying this to you Rollo, SLi just ain't worth it. Spent too much money on an A8N-SLi Deluxe after listening to all of you guys and I just don't see the AMAZING graphics. 4Xaa 8Xblah blah blah. That is for people who spend most of their time making money and playing on their computer. Reality of it all is it is not worth it.
Sorry, I just don't see the benefit of SLi unless you have the money to spend and the time to spend it on.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: GZFant
love hearing all the good commentary and arguments but I gotta say, being a mid-range consumer, knowing all the kids out there that actually play games competitively (cs, bf2 etc etc...) as much as I hate saying this to you Rollo, SLi just ain't worth it. Spent too much money on an A8N-SLi Deluxe after listening to all of you guys and I just don't see the AMAZING graphics. 4Xaa 8Xblah blah blah. That is for people who spend most of their time making money and playing on their computer. Reality of it all is it is not worth it.
Sorry, I just don't see the benefit of SLi unless you have the money to spend and the time to spend it on.

I think the numbers I posted on the games above speak for themselves.

If you're willing to settle for less than 16X12 4X8X, you're right, SLI isn't worth it. For new games, for that setting, it's practically a necessity.

 

[drifter106]

nevermind.....

 

[GOREGRINDER]

Originally posted by: Rollo

I think the numbers I posted on the games above speak for themselves.

.

actually i dont think they say enough,..

if you play in 1024x768,..yeah its a waste,...anything above a 6800gt would be a waste as well imo

if your mainstream on pc's then yeah prolly not much worth in it for ya

if you dont intend on using 2 high end cards,..then there is plenty of single cards that can do it for ya then,..instead of 2x6600gt's,...just buy a 6800gt or gs,..people that got 2x6800gt's and ultras last year can hang just fine with a single 7800gt and gtx and in some cases outperform the single versions,...but they get all the features of sli with it,and theres new ones added all the time

so seriously,...whats wrong with paying extra to get the performance of the next gen cards a year in advance? we should have had this option a long time ago,..seems primative that we havnt in the past like why have dual cores then?,...why have more than 1 stick of memory(dual channel)? why have 2 hdd's for raid array's? and why have more than 1 channel audio when 1 can sonify teh same frequencies?,...is it worth paying for 2-8 speakers? sure... sounds rediculous now,...and in years to come ... so will some of these things said about dual graphics card setups

 

[BlingBlingArsch]

SLI is for rich ppl, u dont need it to have great gaming epxerience anyway. But if u want to spend more than 2k for a rig, if that makes u happier, why not.

 

[GOREGRINDER]

Originally posted by: BlingBlingArsch
SLI is for rich ppl, u dont need it to have great gaming epxerience anyway. But if u want to spend more than 2k for a rig, if that makes u happier, why not.

wrong,wrong,wrong,...oh your right though it does make me happier 1 out of 4 aint bad eh?..LOL

someone that has set money aside here and there and saved up is considered rich?,...no try smart,(best way to set up for upgradability get the most expensive parts out of the way first,i just happen to get lucky that epox decided to throw sli towards s754)...same with only buyin a part or 2 at a time,...its just smarter if your not rich,....and since someone like me is sporting a cpu ive had for almost 2 year's...thats not a fair assumption,...the money i saved goin to s939 i put into SLi compliments of Epox 2 months ago(already had the first 7800gtx with one of the first s754 pci-e boards which i sold along with my 6800gt agp,creative audigy2zs abit nf8 nforce3 an older 1gb set of ocz eb ,some corsair xms and some other things to get the second 7800gtx,then i kept a few things to reuse like th epower supply dvd burner, the raptors the 2gb of ocz,...... and the saving grace motherboard to tide me over til M2 unless christmas is semi kind to me then i may just splurge into a nice 3700+ and ramp it up),..and i also have to support my guitar fixation and music addiction and i am by no means rich


it just seems funny to me that the ones that actual threw down for high end sli are the only ones that dont seem bitter......odd....if it really truely in fact wasnt worth it,..wouldnt it be the other way around?


i may not need sli for a "good" gaming experience,..but then again nobody Needs soft toilet paper either,but you bet im buying the good stuff...and why should i buy mt dew or cherry coke when i can buy "cola" and "mountain lighting",....pffft

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: BlingBlingArsch
SLI is for rich ppl, u dont need it to have great gaming epxerience anyway. But if u want to spend more than 2k for a rig, if that makes u happier, why not.

This is a common misconception.

Let's say you buy two 7800GTXs this year for $900.. Granted this is a lot of money to pay for video cards.

However, next year at this time you sell them for $450 and buy two more cards for $900..

So now you're in a cycle of spending $450 every year for top flight graphics, instead of $225 every year for 60% of top flight.

Is $450 a year a price "only rich people" can afford? Not IMO. Ask a skiier, golfer, or audiophile if $450 a year seems significant.

Ask someone who owns a boat if $450 a year seems like something for "rich people". Don't think so- I have a pretty typical 16.5'/90hp fishing boat and it was costing me $50-$75 to fill the tank this summer, and the thing gets like 3mpg!

Ask an aviator or guy with a collectable car if $450 seems like a lot of money.

A duck hunter who spends $1.00 a shell on non toxic loads, $1000. on a shotgun. (not to mention license fees, camo, watercraft, dog/dog expenses)

Etc.

With SLI motherboards under $90, and the one time investment of $100 instead of $50 for a good psu, I hardly think being in a cycle of spending $450/year on video cards makes it the "sport of kings"?

 

[BlingBlingArsch]

u mr. a$$ are rich, and iam poor. i cant afford sli gtx combo, if u can then go for it. i get enough fps from my x850xt which i bought for 250,- recently. big deal for me, since iam a student. and i dont think my post sounded bitter? at least wasnt meant to. just my 2 cents and pricing and performance.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: BlingBlingArsch
u mr. a$$ are rich, and iam poor. i cant afford sli gtx combo, if u can then go for it. i get enough fps from my x850xt which i bought for 250,- recently. big deal for me, since iam a student. and i dont think my post sounded bitter? at least wasnt meant to. just my 2 cents and pricing and performance.

I didn't attack you, just noted that $450 a year does not make it a rich mans sport. (although it may be a lot for college students)

I am in no way shape or form "rich". My wife and I are both college grads that earn middle class incomes. (a LONG way from "rich")

 

[GOREGRINDER]

im (still...)finishing up my bachelor's degree,..(so im still a full time student)but i also work a full time job and build systems on the side for extra money,...i live with my gf and she worx a full time job as well,....im just livin life and i feel i earn what i get(and so does she btw)

if i was rich i sure as sh!t would have a bit better cpu than this.....(at least a cheap s939 ffs..and my Line6 spyder 212 guitar amp wouldnt be sittin in a pawn shop either )


whats the topic again?...oh yeah,. SLi its great,.. it gets my gf in the mood,.. gives my car better gas milage,....and is the smoothest thing since canned chili

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: GOREGRINDER
im (still...)finishing up my bachelor's degree,..(so im still a full time student)but i also work a full time job and build systems on the side for extra money,...i live with my gf and she worx a full time job as well,....im just livin life and i feel i earn what i get(and so does she btw)

if i was rich i sure as sh!t would have a bit better cpu than this.....(at least a cheap s939 ffs..and my Line6 spyder 212 guitar amp wouldnt be sittin in a pawn shop either )


whats the topic again?...oh yeah,. SLi its great,.. it gets my gf in the mood,.. gives my car better gas milage,....and is the smoothest thing since canned chili

From what I posted, it wouldn't help you at new games like Quake 4 and Fear. SLI is the only hope.

 

[aatf510]

Did SLI twice found bad performance, and I swear that I would never do it again.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: toattett
Did SLI twice found bad performance, and I swear that I would never do it again.

How do you explain the performance in the eight games I listed then?

I guess you didn't play those. :roll:

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: Rollo

Originally posted by: toattett
Did SLI twice found bad performance, and I swear that I would never do it again.

How do you explain the performance in the eight games I listed then?

I guess you didn't play those. :roll:

I don't care what those benchmark says, but I have a SLI system I do know what I am talking about.
SLI increase average fps significantly because
it increase the max fps by a whole lot,
however, when the game lags, SLI does little to nothing to help.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: toattett

Originally posted by: Rollo

Originally posted by: toattett
Did SLI twice found bad performance, and I swear that I would never do it again.

How do you explain the performance in the eight games I listed then?

I guess you didn't play those. :roll:

I don't care what those benchmark says, but I have a SLI system I do know what I am talking about.
SLI increase average fps significantly because
it increase the max fps by a whole lot,
however, when the game lags, SLI does little to nothing to help.

You are wrong, and I have three, so I know a bit about what I'm talking about too?

Need some links to HardOCP reviews that show increased minimum fps to admit you are wrong?

 

[aatf510]

Turn on the load balancing and you will know what I am talking about.
Bottom line is I played BF2 @ 1280x1024 2xAA butter smooth, 1920x1200 2xAA w/ 1xGTXKO not so smooth, 1920x1200 2xAA w/ 2x GTCO same feeling and similar fps.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: toattett
Turn on the load balancing and you will know what I am talking about.
Bottom line is I played BF2 @ 1280x1024 2xAA butter smooth, 1920x1200 2xAA w/ 1xGTXKO not so smooth, 1920x1200 2xAA w/ 2x GTCO same feeling and similar fps.

Dude-"load balancing" is only in effect for SFR games? SFR gives less benefit?

You are just wrong here, you really shouldn't post this stuff.

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: Rollo

Originally posted by: toattett
Turn on the load balancing and you will know what I am talking about.
Bottom line is I played BF2 @ 1280x1024 2xAA butter smooth, 1920x1200 2xAA w/ 1xGTXKO not so smooth, 1920x1200 2xAA w/ 2x GTCO same feeling and similar fps.

Dude-"load balancing" is only in effect for SFR games? SFR gives less benefit?

You are just wrong here, you really shouldn't post this stuff.

Okay, thanks for telling me that I am "Wrong" and "I shouldn't post here".
I am speaking from my first-hand experience, and I don't think judge me on that.