So SLi and CPU?

[scypheroth]

so im looking at upgrading my PC and my GF PC but i was thinking...can i just upgrade individual components? here is my current PC build:

MY PC
i5-3570k processor
8G DDR3 RAM
ASUS maximus genz/gen3 motherboard
550watt supply
128GB SSD
corsair watercooling for CPU
MSI GTX 760

GF PC
i5-3470
8G DDR3 RAM
MSI h61m-p31/w8 Motherboard
500watt power supply
128G SSD
MSI GTX 760

what i was thinking on doing was getting my pc:
GTX 970
700watt power supply
new motherboard

GF PC:
give her my old motherboard
run both GTX760 in SLI mode
new 700watt power supply

SO I GUESS MY QUESTION IS THIS:
would SLI mode work with the current processor and not be bottle necked on her PC and would the new 970 be bottle necked by my PCs CPU.

 

[lehtv]

Definitely a good idea to upgrade individual components. Both PC's have a fast enough CPU. With overclock on the 3570K, it will easily handle GTX 970.

As for running SLI on the other PC... it would work fine, but I don't think it's a good idea. I'd much rather sell both 760's and run a single GTX 970 on that PC as well, thus avoiding having to upgrade the motherboard and PSU. A single card is always better in terms of stable framerates and lower power/heat/noise.

Can you find out exactly what model of power supply each PC has? Also, what cases do you have?

 

[scypheroth]

MY PC
-550watt Ultra D031 LSP power supply
-NZXT VulCan case

GF PC
-600watt RS-600 cooler master power supply
-cooler master elite 310 case

 

[lehtv]

OK, a couple points
1. NZXT Vulcan is quite a tight case, and according to overclockers.com, "the upper [hard disk cage] may prevent you from installing a full size graphics card, depending on the PCI-E slot placement on your motherboard". To be sure, I would pick a shorter GTX 970 like MSI, Asus or EVGA, rather than a long one like Gigabyte.

2. Since your motherboard is microATX, it's not a good idea to give it to your GF in order to run SLI, even if we forget about the fact that there's a GTX 970 on the market that performs as well as GTX 760 SLI. With the cards right next to each other, noise and heat would be bad, especially in an entry level case like the Elite 310. Depending on the cooler design of those MSI cards, it actually may not even work physically. (Previously I said it would work fine, I was assuming it was an ATX setup.)

3. The Ultra unit only has 30A on its +12V rail which amounts to 360W, making it essentially a 400W unit at best. That's way too little for a GTX 970. In addition, the unit lacks an 80Plus certification. You should definitely upgrade it, it's basically trash quality. I couldn't find any reference to a "D301" though, I hope I'm looking at the right specs.

The Cooler Master unit you'll have to look up again, they use that RS-600 model number in a ton of different units which are also of different quality. If it's a Silent Pro, keep it, and if it's a GX or Extreme or something else, upgrade it.

Since I'm suggesting both PC's to remain single GPU setups, there's no need for a 700W+ unit. The best deal I can find on newegg, assuming you're in the States, is Antec TP-550C. It has perfect capacity for a stock or mildly OC'd GTX 970 with an Intel CPU, and it's very high quality with Gold efficiency to boot, for just $60 a piece or $40 after rebate (limited offer). Similar quality units from Seasonic and Rosewill are going for about $70-80.

 

[Techhog]

OK, a couple points
1. NZXT Vulcan is quite a tight case, and according to overclockers.com, "the upper [hard disk cage] may prevent you from installing a full size graphics card, depending on the PCI-E slot placement on your motherboard". To be sure, I would pick a shorter GTX 970 like MSI, Asus or EVGA, rather than a long one like Gigabyte.

2. Since your motherboard is microATX, it's not a good idea to give it to your GF in order to run SLI, even if we forget about the fact that there's a GTX 970 on the market that performs as well as GTX 760 SLI. With the cards right next to each other, noise and heat would be bad, especially in an entry level case like the Elite 310. Depending on the cooler design of those MSI cards, it actually may not even work physically. (Previously I said it would work fine, I was assuming it was an ATX setup.)

3. The Ultra unit only has 30A on its +12V rail which amounts to 360W, making it essentially a 400W unit at best. That's way too little for a GTX 970. In addition, the unit lacks an 80Plus certification. You should definitely upgrade it, it's basically trash quality. I couldn't find any reference to a "D301" though, I hope I'm looking at the right specs.

The Cooler Master unit you'll have to look up again, they use that RS-600 model number in a ton of different units which are also of different quality. If it's a Silent Pro, keep it, and if it's a GX or Extreme or something else, upgrade it.

Since I'm suggesting both PC's to remain single GPU setups, there's no need for a 700W+ unit. The best deal I can find on newegg, assuming you're in the States, is Antec TP-550C. It has perfect capacity for a stock or mildly OC'd GTX 970 with an Intel CPU, and it's very high quality with Gold efficiency to boot, for just $60 a piece or $40 after rebate (limited offer). Similar quality units from Seasonic and Rosewill are going for about $70-80.

That's probably because it's D031. 😛 Not that it actually makes a difference...

 

[lehtv]

That's probably because it's D031. 😛 Not that it actually makes a difference...

It was a typo. I searched for Ultra D031, the first google result is this thread 😛