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General Forums => Hardware and Software => Topic started by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 07:05:20 AM

Title: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 07:05:20 AM
I'm thinking of buy dual 4850s. Found a really good price on a saphire 4850. Should I or am I wasting my money? I currently have an ATI 3850.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127049R

Here's my mother board
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Ghosth on January 28, 2009, 07:22:53 AM
for 10% improvement, and double the cost, why?

Better to take that extra money and buy a better card in the first place.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 07:32:41 AM
for 10% improvement, and double the cost, why?

Better to take that extra money and buy a better card in the first place.

I like ATI cards. They've been good to me. I had an Nvidia 8600 that was just awful and so did several other folks. However, I won't discount your opinion but will await the opinion of others.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: falcon23 on January 28, 2009, 08:25:03 AM
WOW,is that a good board getback??? Not bad for $57..Probably heads and tails better than My gigabyte ep-35ds3l..
                                         
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 08:40:19 AM
WOW,is that a good board getback??? Not bad for $57..Probably heads and tails better than My gigabyte ep-35ds3l..
                                         

I actually paid $135 bucks for it originally. I looked real hard at that Gigabyte board you have. Certainly a good board. I showed my board to an IT guy and he loved it and was impressed as well.
Unfortunately Abit quit making boards.

What do you think of the dual 4850s?
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: BaldEagl on January 28, 2009, 08:59:05 AM
for 10% improvement, and double the cost, why?

Better to take that extra money and buy a better card in the first place.

Nvidia claims up to 90% performance gain from SLI.

Back in the days when SLI configurations would only run at x8/x8 your statement was probably true.  Technology has changed and the best motherboards can now run SLI at x16/x16 with both slots in 2.0 configuration.

So why not 100% gain you ask?  Because one card has to act as the controller coordinating the output of both cards to the system.

Obviously, if your running a x8/x8 or a x16/x8 configuration your not going to see as much of a gain as x16/x16.

EDIT:  Of course the offset to this is that, if your card can already handle everything you throw at it without slowing down why bother?  Mine does and I'm still SLIing my machine just because I can.  :)
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: falcon23 on January 28, 2009, 09:03:02 AM
I have not really studied up much on duals,so I am going by what I have read.many usually say it is better to get a bigger card than to go SLI...Also as I was looking at that board,I could not find where it supports SLI??? :salute

Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: BaldEagl on January 28, 2009, 09:05:12 AM
I have not really studied up much on duals,so I am going by what I have read.many usually say it is better to get a bigger card than to go SLI...Also as I was looking at that board,I could not find where it supports SLI??? :salute



It doesn't support SLI or Crossfire.  It's a single slot (PCIe x16) P35 chipset board.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 10:09:18 AM
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/477/3

Here's a better article. It says it supports crossfire. Now will it support SLI if it supports crossfire?

Update, it's crossfire I want. Crossfire is for ATI cards.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Denholm on January 28, 2009, 10:19:01 AM
Yeah... I was about to ask, "Wait, ATI Cards can go SLI? I thought they, 'Crossfired.'"
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 10:29:06 AM
Yeah... I was about to ask, "Wait, ATI Cards can go SLI? I thought they, 'Crossfired.'"

I'm not building much confidence in you guys am I.  :rofl :rofl

Well I pulled the side panel off and looked. Yes it has 2 pci-e slots and matches the second link.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: AirFlyer on January 28, 2009, 10:46:56 AM
I'm assuming the original link you sent was your motherboard. And from the picture of that it only has 1x PCI-E x16 slot. Then it looks like 2x PCI-E x1 slots and 3 PCI slots. Unfortunately you need two PCI-E x16 slots and a Crossfire bridge to make Crossfire happen, two things your mobo doesn't appear to have.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 11:10:29 AM
I'm assuming the original link you sent was your motherboard. And from the picture of that it only has 1x PCI-E x16 slot. Then it looks like 2x PCI-E x1 slots and 3 PCI slots. Unfortunately you need two PCI-E x16 slots and a Crossfire bridge to make Crossfire happen, two things your mobo doesn't appear to have.

No this link.http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/477/3 I have the IP35 Pro Left off the pro in my search at newegg.com

I ran Belarc adviser and it is the IP 35 Pro for sure. Couldn't find the manual here at home. I can download it if necessary I hope.


Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: BaldEagl on January 28, 2009, 12:21:36 PM
No this link.http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/477/3 I have the IP35 Pro Left off the pro in my search at newegg.com

I ran Belarc adviser and it is the IP 35 Pro for sure. Couldn't find the manual here at home. I can download it if necessary I hope.

According to that article your motherboard only supports a x16/x4 configuration so, I'd say it's not worth the cost.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 28, 2009, 01:30:32 PM
According to that article your motherboard only supports a x16/x4 configuration so, I'd say it's not worth the cost.

Rgr, may just go with one 4850 and get the g15 kb.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Chalenge on January 28, 2009, 02:19:28 PM
In my experiece Ati is better suited for FPS games and GeForce for flight sims. Had to say it.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: AirFlyer on January 28, 2009, 02:30:09 PM
Really? I;m not disagreeing but I've never had trouble with FPS with my 8800GT.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: splitatom on January 28, 2009, 02:43:34 PM
i find that nividia is better because i have seen a few games that only use navidia
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Fulmar on January 28, 2009, 02:46:34 PM
In my experiece Ati is better suited for FPS games and GeForce for flight sims. Had to say it.
Within the last few years, it more so depends on the developer.  They usually sign agreements with Nvidia or ATI for their games and they gear their coding to emphasize the advantages of their drivers and hardware.  I find that EA likes to do this quite a bit with their games.

Examples are games like Call of Duty, BF2, and Company of Hereos where they're geared towards Nvidia cards.  A comparable Nvidia card will bench higher than an ATI card (maybe not a whole lot, but its there).  I can't recall the last time I played an ATI sponsored game, it was probably Black and White.

Just looking at some benchmark tests at Tomshardware, Assassin's Creed is more so dominated by Nvidia Cards.  Crysis does well with ATI cards (depending on the setting) and is only beaten by Nvidia cards in SLI.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Dragon on January 28, 2009, 05:16:40 PM
I just saw this ad and I'm wondering the same thing...

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3445092&sku=P450-8670 (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3445092&sku=P450-8670)

I'm currently running this card in my ASUS P5NE-SLI with a Intel 6750 on 22" monitor with 850 W power supply 2 G memory and Visturd.   

I'm not sure if I should spend the $ on this card before it goes obsolete or save it for a new one.  I'd like to stick to NV.

Opinions?
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Chalenge on January 28, 2009, 05:25:49 PM
Okay let me correct what I was saying since I worded it wrong. I bought two 4870x2s for FSX and they suck compared to even the Nvidia 8800s so they are now dedicated to a computer that does not have a flight sim loaded but they do just fine for Crysis and Assassins Creed.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 28, 2009, 08:20:26 PM
Rgr, may just go with one 4850 and get the g15 kb.

When I crossfired my 3870's 2 x 512 I went from 12,500 to 15,500 in 3DMark06. The preformance gains vary in what application you are using. The 4870 1G card is a nice one too. You can get 4870 1g for $225-$250.


It really depends on what you are using your system for. If its just AH you really don't need 2 cards crossfired. It does make sence to go to a better card for 2 reasons. The performance gain is only 10-20% in X-fired and less potential problems.

Your MOBO really did not get a great review with exception to price.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 28, 2009, 08:33:17 PM
I just saw this ad and I'm wondering the same thing...

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3445092&sku=P450-8670 (http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-Details.asp?EdpNo=3445092&sku=P450-8670)

I'm currently running this card in my ASUS P5NE-SLI with a Intel 6750 on 22" monitor with 850 W power supply 2 G memory and Visturd.   

I'm not sure if I should spend the $ on this card before it goes obsolete or save it for a new one.  I'd like to stick to NV.

Opinions?


Its a crossroads thing. Spend more get better. Your system will handle any card made. I would a few more $ and get 9800GT but its your budget. The 9800GT can be bought from $90 to $150 depending on manufacturer. For the difference of maybe $40, you will have a card that is much better and will be around for a few years.


Challenge.... Hell go tri fired. Get another 4870 X 2!
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Chalenge on January 28, 2009, 09:13:06 PM
It will be soaring season soon and I wont need a 'tri-fire.'  :D
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 29, 2009, 04:35:05 PM
Would there be no gain in going Crossfire? Any stats on this.

BTW, that wasn't a bad review of the board. They just thought the pricing was a little high. I only paid $135 for it and it seems to do a wonderful job. Like I said, My IT guy thought it was great. Although he does prefer Intel MBs.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 29, 2009, 06:36:04 PM
There is a gain in crossfire. Look up^^^^^^^^^. My 3870 with a AMD Phenom 9850 BE benchmarked in the high 12,000 range. With 2 (512) 3870's I benchmarked 15,500 in 3DMark06. This is about a 20% gain. When benchmarking games the gain will be different in each one. After looking at various benchmarks depending on the application I noticed 10-40% gainds depending on high end systems overclocked to the max. It would be safe to say a 10-30% improvement on most applications.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 29, 2009, 06:42:23 PM
Within the last few years, it more so depends on the developer.  They usually sign agreements with Nvidia or ATI for their games and they gear their coding to emphasize the advantages of their drivers and hardware.  I find that EA likes to do this quite a bit with their games.

Examples are games like Call of Duty, BF2, and Company of Hereos where they're geared towards Nvidia cards.  A comparable Nvidia card will bench higher than an ATI card (maybe not a whole lot, but its there).  I can't recall the last time I played an ATI sponsored game, it was probably Black and White.

Just looking at some benchmark tests at Tomshardware, Assassin's Creed is more so dominated by Nvidia Cards.  Crysis does well with ATI cards (depending on the setting) and is only beaten by Nvidia cards in SLI.

Fulmar is right on the money with that statement but.... The ATI cards are gettin pretty down and dirty cheap which makes them attractive to the $ minded person. Saw a ATI 3650 for $29 after rebate and the 4350 for $50 after rebate. If all you play is aces high and have a decent system, these cards will work fine. Again, Fulmar is right, all around Nvidea seems to have better all around benchmarks applications.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 29, 2009, 06:47:26 PM
Okay let me correct what I was saying since I worded it wrong. I bought two 4870x2s for FSX and they suck compared to even the Nvidia 8800s so they are now dedicated to a computer that does not have a flight sim loaded but they do just fine for Crysis and Assassins Creed.

Challenge, bare with me. I exchanged my 4870 X 2 for a Nvidea GTX280(had no patience). I never went far with investigating, but it benchmarked 3Dmark06 lower than 2 3870's crossfired(15,500 vs 14,700). If I remember, it showed both GPU's working in 3Dmark but it didn't seemed they were both kicking in. These cards are supposed to rock and they didn't for me. Maybe see if both GPU's are kicking in and look that direction. They are supposed to be the best out there.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 29, 2009, 06:49:39 PM
Would there be no gain in going Crossfire? Any stats on this.

BTW, that wasn't a bad review of the board. They just thought the pricing was a little high. I only paid $135 for it and it seems to do a wonderful job. Like I said, My IT guy thought it was great. Although he does prefer Intel MBs.

I saw reviews only strong point was price. Maybe I read the typical biased reveiws.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Getback on January 29, 2009, 11:50:20 PM
There is a gain in crossfire. Look up^^^^^^^^^. My 3870 with a AMD Phenom 9850 BE benchmarked in the high 12,000 range. With 2 (512) 3870's I benchmarked 15,500 in 3DMark06. This is about a 20% gain. When benchmarking games the gain will be different in each one. After looking at various benchmarks depending on the application I noticed 10-40% gainds depending on high end systems overclocked to the max. It would be safe to say a 10-30% improvement on most applications.

Keep in mind that the other PCI-E slot is only 4x. Would I still get a gain?

BTW, I was being philosophical. I like jacking around with my machine every now and then. Although I should leave well enough alone. It's running great.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: Chalenge on January 30, 2009, 12:04:28 AM
No you will only get more headache and eventually buy another MB anyway.
Title: Re: Should I go SLI
Post by: drdeathx on January 30, 2009, 03:16:55 PM
Keep in mind that the other PCI-E slot is only 4x. Would I still get a gain?

BTW, I was being philosophical. I like jacking around with my machine every now and then. Although I should leave well enough alone. It's running great.

No Getback, don't get the wrong idea this is cool stuff nobody has really discussed. If you're just using AH leave it be. Like they say "If it ain't broke, no need for duct tape!"

 :rofl :rofl :rofl