SLi dual cards vs single card?

[Sadeka]

I'm in the process of planning my new rig. Currently got as far as getting it's case, Coolermaster Wave. Now I can't decide which board to get. Should I go for a SLi board and have dual graphics cards or just for the regular single higher powered card?

I do play a lot of games however also use the PC for everything else, from movies to music to banking to work and so on.

So basically, is the price difference between dual and single cards justified byits performance increase? I could either afford one really good card or two pretty good ones. Any help would be much appreciated.

[BUFF]

If you can afford a 7800GTX (~£370 at DABS, £380 @CCL) I would just go with 1 of those.

[Sadeka]

See, I don't mind spending that kinda money on one. Have to save some up of course, but as I'd get so much use out of it, its doesn't seem too extreme. If I was to go down the duel SLi route I'd be looking at spending £150 - £200 max on each card.

[sawyen]

GF 7800 GTX would fit the bill nicely... it puts 6800 Ultra SLi a run for its $$... £350 isnt alot to for a smile of irony on current SLi users.. god bless and hopes 7800GTX arrives on AGP protocol... hope hope hope....

[Butcher]

Till the SLi users go for dual 7800 GTXs

[Sadeka]

Thats a serious investment though, two 7800 GTX's....I'm guessing that would handle anything you threw at it.

[sawyen]

the drivers for 7800GTX SLI is yet to be optimised... you might want to hold ur horses till they figure out how this GTX beast really ticks... stick in a single 7800GTX... when all drivers are good and u have another £300 quids to spare... then slip in another.. you'll already be head over heels on one GTX... let alone 2.. PLS COME TO AGP... IM BEGGING!!

[mike_w]

But if we had two 7800GTXs in SLI, would the CPUs be able to keep up? I would have thought even the fastest would be a bottleneck.

[Sadeka]

Good point...I was going to go for this set up....

Asus A8N-Sli Deluxe nForce 4 (Socket 939) board
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Venice 90nm (socket 939) chip

This is just what I've got in my head at the moment so it isn't set in concrete.

[utdmleach]

...why does anyone need two in SLI, thats extreme, aren't people content with smooth games, since when do we need frame rates so high that we don't even notice them.

I would have thought a gig of ram, and the cream of this current gens card would largly suffice ( one 6800U / x850 xt)

[Rys]

If you give our article a read, you can see the benefits of SLI 7800 GTX, given a fast enough CPU.

For playable framerates at high-res with aniso and HDR rendering in Splinter Cell and Fary Cry, SLI is what you need. The article explains why.

Without HDR, SLI is what gives you the same playable average framerates that you need in both those titles, when you enable high levels of AA and AF. That's SLI for 6800 too.

There are clear benefits to the technology, the drivers are ready enough (there's always work to be done on the driver, SLI or not, so saying 'wait' is a false economy when things work well enough, which it clearly does) and if you can afford it, why not go for it? Your gaming experience will be second to none.

You're clearly an enthusiast, going by the specs of your rig (overclocked CPU and graphics, high-end PSU) and you love to game. SLI would rock for you...

CPU limitations definitely hold a single board back, and it's worse with SLI, but CPU limited titles are the exception rather than the norm overall. I'm guessing most enthusiasts on this forum are capable of getting something like a Venice core 3000+ and abusing it though, right?

Just to reiterate, there are clear and tangible benefits to SLI, should your wallet give you the go ahead. The same will be true of ATI Crossfire when that comes to market.

The ability to play current games at knockout levels of IQ (especially this!) and performance are not to be ignored.

[utdmleach]

I thank you

But my wallet is calling you a bastard, would need an SLI setup too,,,maybe

[Rys]

But my wallet is calling you a bastard

[sawyen]

SLI is indeed a sensible solution, but for enthusiast who doesnt want to drill a hole in their wallet instantaneously... buying just a single card solution wudn't be too bad... SLI can come in later when our wallet fills up in 6 months or so... (our girlfren's induced guilt as well)... I personally rig a 3500+ venice, and there are currently no games that I can't drill 60fps odd on 1280x1024 on my setup with all candys turned on.. AA and AF included.. maybe not NFSU2... but still 99% of games... SLI will have to come sooner or later, just figured that you might want to save that extra £300 odd for sum flowers fer ur gf or a nice box of cigar for ur dad to convince them that this £700 odd upgrade makes sense..

and yea, lots exploited a 3000+ venice.. and with good sense.. as it runs rock stable 2.6Ghz on out of the box cooler. (at least the one i tested did)... Its less of a buck for more of the performance, I'd always support 3000+... (Hexus only came out with 3000+ venice OC article after I ordered the 3500+..)

300 odd for the GTX seems plausible if u ask me.. 600 odd would just be a little too much for the sake of my wallet. Unless you really going for a 21'' TFT... there's really no brick hard reason for getting GTX on SLI.. other than showing to ur m8s... and no, these show off's dun apply to girlfrens...

[Sadeka]

I agree....I think I'll probably stick to one 7800GTX for the time being and if the prices come down, which I'm sure they will, then I'll double up at a later point. By the time I've brought all the other bits I've a feeling I'm going to be pretty skint anyway.

[Butcher]

Main reason I wouldn;t buy 7800 SLi now is I don't have a 21" TFT to really take advantage of it.