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Thread: What's the point of SLi if...

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    What's the point of SLi if...

    ... by the time I'm ready to buy the second card they've stopped producing them ?

    I know this is a common whinge !

    Obviously, I appreciate ideally you're supposed to buy the 2 cards at the same time. I'm not made of money though !

    I'm looking at a system with SLi and a 7800GT. Hopefully I'd be able to add another GT in a few months. Of course the 7800GT will be positively ancient by then. In fact the 7900GT might well be scarce by then since we'll all be looking towards Vista, DX10 and HDCP.

    Am i getting older or are they changing cards even quicker nowadays. I remember my shiny Geforce 2 GTS, that was top notch for about, well, 10 mins actually. S'pose things haven't changed that much

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    Almost in control. autopilot's Avatar
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    You will always be second hand ones too on places like eBay. Not an SLI fan myself, think its a waste of time.

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    Quote Originally Posted by dangerous_dom
    You will always be second hand ones too on places like eBay. Not an SLI fan myself, think its a waste of time.
    Agreed - unless you're on the bleeding edge, a single higher-spec card is generally cheaper, cooler and quieter, with fewer issues.

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    not posting kempez's Avatar
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    Yep I too think Sli and crossfire are both wastes of time unless you REALLY must have the very fastest. I'm all about making my games look and run nice and fast but one card can do that without another one adding more heat and driver issues to the equation.
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    So even if I have a limited budget for upgrades you still think it'd be better to go with one gfx card ? I've been reading PC mags a bit too much lately i think. I'm buying into the Sli hype !

    I was just thinking that if I added another GT at around £175 a few months down the line that'd give me a decent boost rather than having to spend £300ish and chucking my old card away.

    I suppose I'd be buying another card with old technology tho' and DX10 compatible cards will be out soon enough. And i guess I'd be better with one new-tech card than two old ones. Would I ?

    Decisions, decisions...

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    not posting kempez's Avatar
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    I'd wait for the next gen ATI and next gen (G80) nvidia which will support DX10 and Vista (and hopefully HDCP) and go for one of them. You should still be able to get reasonable prices for your GT
    Check my project <<| Black3D |>>
    Quote Originally Posted by hexah
    Games are developed by teams of talented people and sometimes electronic arts

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    Almost in control. autopilot's Avatar
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    Also, not all games will work with SLi and you will see little to no performance benifits.

    And why would you throw your old card away? Stick it on eBay to help fund a new card

    Put bluntly, SLi is a geeks toy. Something to show off 3Dmark results with or for people with more money than sense.

    I'm sure i am going to be told how wrong i am, but i really dont see the sence in it.

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    Eosamite Rhyth's Avatar
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    Nail=
    Agreed - unless you're on the bleeding edge, a single higher-spec card is generally cheaper, cooler and quieter, with fewer issues.
    Head

    If you got a significant discount by purchasing two Sli gfx cards from the same retailer in one order, then I could see some sense.
    Last edited by Rhyth; 01-03-2006 at 10:18 PM.
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    Thanks very much for your advice guys !

    I very much want to buy a specific pc just now, right now, this minute dammit ! I'm fairly capable of putting together a system myself but to be honest I can barely even get the components separately for the price they're offering it at, never mind the fact that it'll be built and warrantied for a few years. Sacrilege ! I know !

    It's the Mesh Titan Vision to be precise. System in question has a 7800GT available for minimal upcharge over the 6800GS. Snag is 7900's are just around the corner.

    I know there's always something round the corner but the 7900's are due in a month or so and i really can't be arsed waiting a month or more for Mesh to have systems with this card on their site, then another month for delivery.

    I had thought just to get the current system with the 7800 and if it was annoying me that the card was "last-gen" then i could just get meself another one and put the smile back on my face !

    Ach, nothing's simple is it ?

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    not posting kempez's Avatar
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    I wouldn't be too fussed about the 7900GT mate - it won't bee all that. G80/ATI's next gen are looking exciting
    Check my project <<| Black3D |>>
    Quote Originally Posted by hexah
    Games are developed by teams of talented people and sometimes electronic arts

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    Right, 7800 it is then, skip the 7900's and wait for some next-gen goodness in time for Vista. Thanks again guys.

    Decision made.

    Mmmmmmaybe...

    Monitor next... NEC or Dell... aaargh !

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    I wonder who buys the refreshes.

    For the 2nd time running, I've been buying the first release card after the refreshes are released for a decent price.

    i.e. I went 9700 Pro when 9800 Pro was out, and X1800XT when X1900XT was released.

    Yes 9800 Pro > 9700 Pro, and yes X1900XT > XT1800XT (significantly in some games like F.E.A.R). But the cost saving is not insignificant either. The problem I have with refreshes is that they are clearly better product, but not really provide the "next gen jump". However, they *do* often provide the extra needed to bring out the most out of whatever features introduced in that generatio through tweaks.

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    I'm not a big fan of SLI in terms of buying a card now, and getting another later on down the line. I think you have to either decide to go SLI and buy 2 cards at the same time, or go for a single card solution. Neither am I a fan of SLI on cheaper solutions - it's built for extreme performance which you will only get with the top end cards.

    To those that think it is a waste, I would agree with you were it not for Dell bringing 24" WS goodness to the masses (relatively speaking). Try running F.E.A.R. at 1920x1200 with and without SLI - then you see its true value.

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    not posting kempez's Avatar
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    I AM running a Dell 2405FPW with an X1900XT-X and it runs all my games nicely

    1920 x 1200

    See Here
    Check my project <<| Black3D |>>
    Quote Originally Posted by hexah
    Games are developed by teams of talented people and sometimes electronic arts

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    Eosamite Rhyth's Avatar
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    I'm only now finishing Far Cry and it looks amazing on my 7800GT OC Maybe thats the key, hold off on the cutting edge software untill you can afford next years upgrade? lol

    Rhyth, Playing last years kick ass games... today, cranked
    Last edited by Rhyth; 02-03-2006 at 12:24 AM.
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    Almost in control. autopilot's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by BubbySoup
    To those that think it is a waste, I would agree with you were it not for Dell bringing 24" WS goodness to the masses (relatively speaking). Try running F.E.A.R. at 1920x1200 with and without SLI - then you see its true value.
    I agree, but i dont see it as 'value'. It would be nice, I just wish i had the funds for that, although my GF would skin me alive!

    I was going to make exactly this point...

    Quote Originally Posted by Rhyth
    I'm only now finishing Far Cry and it looks amazing on my 7800GT OC Maybe thats the key, hold off on the cutting edge software untill you can afford next years upgrade? lol

    Rhyth, Playing last years kick ass games... today, cranked
    Thats what i love about these forums, people seem to have more common sense than money
    Last edited by autopilot; 02-03-2006 at 01:10 AM.

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