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SLI not an upgrade path.

B

Balex99

Senior member
Why would any one buy a 6800Ultra now to upgrade their sli rigs when they could sell their current Ultra for say 250 and add that to the cost of a new one and go ahead and buy a 7800?

Unless you are going to add two cards right away or upgrade right after the initial purchase it seems a waist of money to go SLI when after only a year 1 7800 beats 2 ultras in sli (in most cases)?

I fully understand wanting to have two cards, I just do not see the logic in upgrading to second card unless you do it midway or earlier between refreshes.

I am not trying to flame any sli folks out there. Just trying to understand it all. Nvidia's pricing is what is confusing me I think. Plus it is 1:00am and I am at work and it is slow.
 
Yeah, that's the first thing that hit me when I saw the benches. Almost like NV are shooting themselves in the foot when it comes to SLI.
 
It would be an upgrade path if they didnt screw up their pricing scheme.

They still want $350 for a single 6800GT, yet you can get a 7800 for $600. That's $100 less than buying two 6800GT cards.

They should have done price cuts on the 6800's before releasing the 7800.
 
LOL, even if the 6800Ultra's were down to $250 each, you'd still have the bigtime PSU, extra noise, buggy drivers, and heat to consider. I'd be feeling pretty sic if I was running a dual 6800 setup right now.
 
To me, the question isn't whether SLI will be discontinued, it is when. I am going to laugh when water cooling is mandatory for top of the line systems.
 
Yep, I think their SLI selling point: "Buy one card now, and get a second later" idea failed...big time.

Cheapest PCIe 6800 Ultra: $439 x 2 = $878 !

LOL @ last years SLI, "I'll buy another card later when the prices come down" bandwagon jumpers 😀
 
The PCI-E versions of last generation's parts NEVER followed the price curve they should have. And it really isn't entirely nVidia's fault; the resellers were/are the ones gouging customers due to low supplies.

Since the 7800GTX succeeded in the elusive 0-day availability, not to mention has already been sold for as much as 10% off MSRP, I would not be surprised to see SLI look a lot more attractive as an upgrade path the NEXT time around. If the 6800 line had followed historic trends, adding a second card for SLI instead of selling your current card and getting a GTX would actually be an option. I suspect prices this round will drop much more consistently due to good supply.

Also, 6800GT's are still capable of running all of today's games reasonably. The people who don't have to be at the absolute front of the bell curve don't NEED to SLI yet. By the time they actually feel they need more power for their games, a second 6800GT might only be $150 and give them more power than whatever new generation card costs $250 at the time.

And, of course, as the previous poster stated, there's always the bleeding edgers who just buy two cards at a time now. 😉 So as for the "discontinued" theory, I'm sure the technology will continue to exist indefinitely if only for the money those guys provde nVidia with, not to mention the marketing bullet they can continue to print on the box. Now that the R&D is done, my impression is tossing SLI support on the boards is practically free.
 
Originally posted by: Xentropy
The PCI-E versions of last generation's parts NEVER followed the price curve they should have. And it really isn't entirely nVidia's fault; the resellers were/are the ones gouging customers due to low supplies.
Click to expand...


That sir, is an oxymoron...


LOL...Well then who's fault is it for low supplies ???????
 
Originally posted by: Continuity27
Fortunately there are some people that say "Buy two cards now, buy two more later!" That's my version of SLI. 😉
Click to expand...
Yeah, when a single card can crank out any game on the market with ease, that makes perfect sense😛 My "ancient" i875 + 6800GT combo runs every game I throw at it at 1600x1200 with 4xAA and 8xAF just fine:thumbsup:
 
Originally posted by: 302efi
Originally posted by: Xentropy
The PCI-E versions of last generation's parts NEVER followed the price curve they should have. And it really isn't entirely nVidia's fault; the resellers were/are the ones gouging customers due to low supplies.
Click to expand...

That sir, is an oxymoron...

LOL...Well then who's fault is it for low supplies ???????
Click to expand...
You really believe nVidia was purposefully holding back to keep the market prices high? Considering they didn't make any of the extra money from such a tactic (and in fact made LESS than if quantity was available since they're selling the chips for the same price to the card manufacturers regardless of what the cards ultimately sell for by the resellers), I highly doubt that.

Thus, not nVidia's intention. Not their fault. The fault of the RAM suppliers, supposedly. Or low yields at TSMC. Or some combination. Fact is, if nVidia could have kept the channels full, they would have. Period. No possible reason exists that I can think of in doing otherwise.
 
I don't want this thread to turn into a "SLI is stupid" and "My rig runs everything just fine". If you want the best there is then SLI is where it is at. No doubt about it.
 
Originally posted by: KoolHonda
Originally posted by: Continuity27
Fortunately there are some people that say "Buy two cards now, buy two more later!" That's my version of SLI. 😉
Click to expand...
Yeah, when a single card can crank out any game on the market with ease, that makes perfect sense😛 My "ancient" i875 + 6800GT combo runs every game I throw at it at 1600x1200 with 4xAA and 8xAF just fine:thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Many games aren't that playable with 1920x1200 4x/8xAA and 16x AF, that's what I like SLI for. 😉
 
Originally posted by: Xentropy
Originally posted by: 302efi
Originally posted by: Xentropy
The PCI-E versions of last generation's parts NEVER followed the price curve they should have. And it really isn't entirely nVidia's fault; the resellers were/are the ones gouging customers due to low supplies.
Click to expand...

That sir, is an oxymoron...

LOL...Well then who's fault is it for low supplies ???????
Click to expand...
You really believe nVidia was purposefully holding back to keep the market prices high? Considering they didn't make any of the extra money from such a tactic (and in fact made LESS than if quantity was available since they're selling the chips for the same price to the card manufacturers regardless of what the cards ultimately sell for by the resellers), I highly doubt that.

Thus, not nVidia's intention. Not their fault. The fault of the RAM suppliers, supposedly. Or low yields at TSMC. Or some combination. Fact is, if nVidia could have kept the channels full, they would have. Period. No possible reason exists that I can think of in doing otherwise.
Click to expand...

I never said that they were doing it on purpose. What I'm saying is, if they knew before or saw it coming that they were gonna have trouble with memory supply or whatever, then why push the SLI idea last year in the first ?
 
Originally posted by: 302efi
Yep, I think their SLI selling point: "Buy one card now, and get a second later" idea failed...big time.

Cheapest PCIe 6800 Ultra: $439 x 2 = $878 !

LOL @ last years SLI, "I'll buy another card later when the prices come down" bandwagon jumpers 😀
Click to expand...

They may well be LOL@you as they gamed at levels you couldn't dream of?
 
KoolHonda, DO YOU owna 6800U, i own a AGP version so no SLI for me, but its not hot or loud, you have being reading crappy 2nd hand info again, and BTW the fan is controled by temp and software, it only runs as fast as it needs to, and core is far slower mhz in 2D mode which is 99% of PC's use outside gamming.
 
Originally posted by: AnnihilatorX
From the very start wise people know that SLI isn't really an attractive upgrade path.
Click to expand...

Give me a break. "Wise" people? More like penny pinching people.

The fact is, SLI was the only way to achieve this level of performance. If you review my benches, you'll see it still stacks up now. (albeit without the transparency AA)

Nobody who bought 6800GT/U SLI is sad they'v e been enjoying 7800 level performance for the first half of this year. (and no one expected it would never be exceeded by a single card)
 
Originally posted by: Rollo
Originally posted by: AnnihilatorX
From the very start wise people know that SLI isn't really an attractive upgrade path.
Click to expand...

Give me a break. "Wise" people? More like penny pinching people.

The fact is, SLI was the only way to achieve this level of performance. If you review my benches, you'll see it still stacks up now. (albeit without the transparency AA)

Nobody who bought 6800GT/U SLI is sad they'v e been enjoying 7800 level performance for the first half of this year. (and no one expected it would never be exceeded by a single card)
Click to expand...

Rollo, I think he meant upgrade, as in buy 1 6800U and then later on when the 7800 series comes out, buy another 6800U when the prices have dropped. I pretty much agree with him. SLI should be done right from the get go. Not one card now, another later.
Originally posted by: KoolHonda
Yeah, when a single card can crank out any game on the market with ease, that makes perfect sense😛 My "ancient" i875 + 6800GT combo runs every game I throw at it at 1600x1200 with 4xAA and 8xAF just fine:thumbsup:
Click to expand...
What freakin' games do you play? NES' Mike Tyson's Punch Out? Try playng Far Cry with all settings maxed with that resolution and your 6800GT will get b!tch slapped! I know, I have a 6800GT. 🙁
 
Do we really need a new one of these threads every week? No, SLi is not a buy-new upgrade path right now, with the 7800GTX out. But that won't stop someone in a year from buying their friend's old 6800GT/U for cheap and enjoying some nice gains. You really aren't convincing anyone, since both sides have already chosen.
 
Originally posted by: KoolHonda
Originally posted by: Continuity27
Fortunately there are some people that say "Buy two cards now, buy two more later!" That's my version of SLI. 😉
Click to expand...
Yeah, when a single card can crank out any game on the market with ease, that makes perfect sense😛 My "ancient" i875 + 6800GT combo runs every game I throw at it at 1600x1200 with 4xAA and 8xAF just fine:thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Really. You must be an awesome tweaker. Please come and get my 6800GT at Ultra speeds to run BF2 just fine at 16x12 4x8x. Idiot.
 
Originally posted by: BTA
It would be an upgrade path if they didnt screw up their pricing scheme.

They still want $350 for a single 6800GT, yet you can get a 7800 for $600. That's $100 less than buying two 6800GT cards.

They should have done price cuts on the 6800's before releasing the 7800.
Click to expand...

Actually there are numerous places and rebates to obtain a PCI-e 6800GT at 300.00 or just under. I can start a whole new thread on 6800GT PCI-e pricing if you wish.

BUT!!!!! 😉 If you already have a single PCI-e 6800GT and an SLI board, you would only have to shell out another 300.00 for a second one instead of a full 600.00 for a 7800GTX. Thats a lot of money at one sitting to hand over. 300 is a little easier to swallow and the performance, judging from Rollo's benchmarks, with 2 6800GT's do not dissapoint. Shown here.
As you can see, the SLI'd 6800GT's perform in the neighborhood of the single 7800GTX.
Sometimes better, sometimes worse.

 
I'm buying into the whole buy one get one later. I rather pay the extra $50 to get a board that supports SLI than to limit myself from the get go. You just never know what may happen in the future.
 
Originally posted by: keysplayr2003
Originally posted by: BTA
It would be an upgrade path if they didnt screw up their pricing scheme.

They still want $350 for a single 6800GT, yet you can get a 7800 for $600. That's $100 less than buying two 6800GT cards.

They should have done price cuts on the 6800's before releasing the 7800.
Click to expand...

Actually there are numerous places and rebates to obtain a PCI-e 6800GT at 300.00 or just under. I can start a whole new thread on 6800GT PCI-e pricing if you wish.

BUT!!!!! 😉 If you already have a single PCI-e 6800GT and an SLI board, you would only have to shell out another 300.00 for a second one instead of a full 600.00 for a 7800GTX. Thats a lot of money at one sitting to hand over. 300 is a little easier to swallow and the performance, judging from Rollo's benchmarks, with 2 6800GT's do not dissapoint. Shown here.
As you can see, the SLI'd 6800GT's perform in the neighborhood of the single 7800GTX.
Sometimes better, sometimes worse.
Click to expand...

Why not sell the 6800GT he already has for ~$200-250 and get a new 7800GTX?
 
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