Performance benefits of SLI

robkeane2304

I was just wondering if u guys could fill me in on the performance benefits (mainly with regards to 3d games such as battlefield 2) of running two graphics cards in sli rather than just the one. is it straight double performance in frame rate abilities? probably seems like a dumb question but im not too informed :P
im using a cheap legend 128mb pciX card, im thinking of getn an sli mobo and getting another of the same card...maybe keeping current mobo and juest spending the money on a better graphics card would be more productive.
cheers
rob

Zuntar

I'm no SLI guru, but i'm quite sure that frame rate is not double in SLI mode.

What hardware do you have? that might help us help you.

robkeane2304

ive currently got an abit an8-v, with an athlon 64 3000+ ( i know i need to upgrade this haha) with 2x512 ddr400 hynix ram. the graphics card is a cheap radeon legend x300se.

im slowly upgrading as im low on funds atm but i have two options i was considering.
1) spend cash and just buy a really good 256 mb grafix card
2) buy the an8 sli motherboard and another of my current graphics cards (this obviously leaves it open for more upgrades)

both options will cost me similar amounts but im really looking for the best short term performance improvement before i bite the bullet and get a new cpu

Nive11en

I'm not sure about the Abit AN8-V mobo or the Radeon X300SE. Haven't read any reviews or user opinions on them. But it would seem that there might be quite a gap between an X300 and an X800, this might be both a performance gap and a gap between the technologies that they can display (like the X300 having something disabled that the X800 does or whatever). I don't think it would pay to have 2x X300 in SLI. It would be a better choice to just get a powerful high-end Radeon, or get something like 2x X600/X700 (is there even an X700? ).

Come to think of it, you should just get a high-end X800, but don't overpay. Once the time of upgrading your cpu comes, you will probably be going for one these new dual-core cpu's whatever their respective names are. It would be interesting to get a dualcore and a SLI mobo, and then buy another X800. Would end up with SLI (2x X800) and a dual core processor in the long run, now that might be interesting. Again, I'm sorry I'm not very specific, don't have the time to keep up to date on the newest tech stuph.

You'd get one of the graphics cards now, say a X800, then save up cash for a new motherboard (with SLI) and cpu that are compatible with your X800. Then save up more cash for another X800.

Then again, I heard there are new graphics cards coming out that will have dual cores just like the new dual core cpu's? This could be comparable to the SLI technology.

Okay, this brings up more questions, I'm not up to date on the SLI technology either, so correct me if I'm wrong. Is SLI available both for AGP and PCI Express? Does your current X300SE use AGP or PCI Express? If it's AGP, then we might be running into a compatibility problem, since the future motherboard you could buy would probably be using PCI Express.

Anyway, if possible, my personal suggestion is:
Dual core cpu
Dual graphics cards, whether through SLI or one dual-core graphics card
New motherboard

A setup like this might be very very fun in gaming.

Money wise you should stay with your current motherboard and cpu, they certainly don't lack performance. Get one high-end graphics card, make sure your hard drive or ram aren't limiting the performance of your cpu/graphics card and you should be fine.

Zuntar

Nothin wrong w/ your system at all!! I'd go for a nice graphics card, just make sure your PSU can handle it all.

robkeane2304

Is it true that u can only use SLI with nvidia cards? this could really make the decision for me I guess. was thinking about getting the nvidia xpertvision 6600gt 128mb
u guys know of this one? good performer for 3d games?

Zuntar

The 6600GT cards are very good w/ games. If you could squeeze out the cash for a 6800 256MB it would be all that much better, but for the most part the 6600GT should do fine.

Are you lookin for eye candy or just playable gaming?

Your-Amish-Daddy

Warning. I am very mean.

...For dual physical processor situations. SLI uses both PCI-X ports in 8X mode, basically saying you spent all that money to have AGP again. Oh yeah, two cores, woopity do, All you use on the second card is the processing power. Nothing else. So, in theory, you take something that isn't half bad, and literally make it half bad.

3d implementation:
See, for someone who makes models, animates, and renders models for games, that's a good idea, twice the vertex calculations, twice the power, but memory's never a big thing for us, so it doesn't matter.

Gaming:
Doom3 on SLI, with two of your Nvidia cards, is like having one slightly better card. You spent 500 bucks on two SLI cards, When you could've spent 240 on an X850XT. Wow, aren't you smart.

Production work:
For my audio engineering buckos, two monitors without SLI would be great for soundforge, and protools, so they could process everything they needed in one place, at the same time.

Overall:
You spent 500 on SLI. Congratulations, you wasted money. I could spend 250 on an X850XT, and outperform you. Oh, and I'm gonna drop a bomb on you nvidia users. Nvidia's 16 pipe design is for shading only. No pixel or vertex pipes are added to that. (Vertex and pixel are what you use to render the actual models and process the textures. They make you get higher frames.)