SLI worth it?

CgS Drone · 07-27-10, 10:03 PM

OK system is posted below, I am going to be getting a HAF 932 case next week and will be getting a better CPU cooler (not sure which one yet) anyway I already have a 9800GTX+ by XFX and I am replacing my sons Zotac 9800GTX+ AMP next week with a GTX460. This will give me the extra 9800GTX+.

Right now I don't really game but will probably pick it back up and was wondering if the heat load of the extra 9800GTX+ is worth it, the case has some really good reviews about being able to handle heat but I have never SLI'd a system before and just trying to figure out if it is worth it (

and no I cannot afford to upgrade my video card at the same time). The power supply is a 750watt Cooler Master and the PSU calculator that I have used say it is enough to handle my system but I have no actual experience to back it up. Sorry cut and paste was easier.

Brand COOLER MASTER
Model RS750-ACAAE3-US
Series GX Series
Spec
Type ATX12V v2.31
Maximum Power 750W
Fans 1 x 120mm
PFC Active
Main Connector 20+4Pin
+12V Rails Single
PCI-Express Connector 4 x 6+2-Pin
SATA Power Connector 9
SLI Ready
Power Good Signal 100-500ms
Hold-up Time 17ms min.
Efficiency 85% typical
Energy-Efficient 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified
Over Voltage Protection Yes
Input Voltage 110 - 240 V
Input Frequency Range 50/60 Hz
Input Current 10A @ 115V, 6A @ 230V
Output +3.3V@25A, +5V@25A, +12V@60A, -12V@0.5A, +5VSB@2.5A

Kozo · 07-27-10, 10:51 PM

In your situation, since you already have the card, definately worth it. The 750w should be fine for those GPUs and for a roughly 70-90% performance gain in most games, there is not much to lose. Update drivers, throw in the new card, add a SLI bridge and activate.

Section8 · 07-27-10, 11:21 PM

Yeah the 9800 series scaled pretty well. In most games you will see about %80 improvement over using a single card. The scaling got even better with the 200 and 400 series as they scale almost %100 going from 1 card to 2. The higher the resolution you run the bigger the improvement you will see as well.

NobleX13 · 07-28-10, 02:05 PM

For both gaming and Folding@Home (if you're into that) adding another GPU, especially in this case, is worth it.

pwnmachine · 07-28-10, 05:23 PM

+ 1 for sli, also to get the most out of those cards a nice overclock to about 3.4gHz is recommended.

CgS Drone · 07-28-10, 08:30 PM

OH wow guess I better think before I post, haven't had this board long and wasn't thinking its amd chipset not nvidia. Well at least I had not tried to SLI it.

xoke · 07-28-10, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CgS Drone

OH wow guess I better think before I post, haven't had this board long and wasn't thinking its amd chipset not nvidia. Well at least I had not tried to SLI it.

There is another option...hacked drivers. I've never done it, but I here it's not too difficult.

07-27-10, 10:03 PM	Thread Starter #1
CgS Drone Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: SLC, UT.	SLI worth it? OK system is posted below, I am going to be getting a HAF 932 case next week and will be getting a better CPU cooler (not sure which one yet) anyway I already have a 9800GTX+ by XFX and I am replacing my sons Zotac 9800GTX+ AMP next week with a GTX460. This will give me the extra 9800GTX+. Right now I don't really game but will probably pick it back up and was wondering if the heat load of the extra 9800GTX+ is worth it, the case has some really good reviews about being able to handle heat but I have never SLI'd a system before and just trying to figure out if it is worth it ( and no I cannot afford to upgrade my video card at the same time). The power supply is a 750watt Cooler Master and the PSU calculator that I have used say it is enough to handle my system but I have no actual experience to back it up. Sorry cut and paste was easier. Brand COOLER MASTER Model RS750-ACAAE3-US Series GX Series Spec Type ATX12V v2.31 Maximum Power 750W Fans 1 x 120mm PFC Active Main Connector 20+4Pin +12V Rails Single PCI-Express Connector 4 x 6+2-Pin SATA Power Connector 9 SLI Ready Power Good Signal 100-500ms Hold-up Time 17ms min. Efficiency 85% typical Energy-Efficient 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Over Voltage Protection Yes Input Voltage 110 - 240 V Input Frequency Range 50/60 Hz Input Current 10A @ 115V, 6A @ 230V Output +3.3V@25A, +5V@25A, +12V@60A, -12V@0.5A, +5VSB@2.5A __________________ C2D E8500/E6300/E6400, Gigabyte EP45-UD3P--------955BE, TA890FXE, Cooler Master GX 750 Noctua D-14, Corsair 750TX---------------------------HAF 932, Cooler Master 212+, Ballistix 6400 4-4-4-12 D9 2x1------------------------Geil Black Dragon (2x2GB) EVGA 8800GTS 512, Raptor 75gb.---------------------9800 GT 512mb, Seagate 500gb >>>>>>>HeatWare<<<<<<<
	QUOTE Thanks

07-27-10, 10:51 PM	#2
Kozo Member Join Date: Mar 2010	In your situation, since you already have the card, definately worth it. The 750w should be fine for those GPUs and for a roughly 70-90% performance gain in most games, there is not much to lose. Update drivers, throw in the new card, add a SLI bridge and activate. __________________ CPU:AMD Phenom II 965BE 4.022 Ghz GPU: Nvidia GTX 580 Stock Case: Antec 1200 HSF Zalman 9900 PSU:Antec CPX 850w Mobo: MSI NF980-G65 MB Lite-On DVD/RW HDD: WD Caviar Black 750GBx2 Raid 0
	QUOTE Thanks

07-27-10, 11:21 PM	#3
Section8 Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Grand Rapids, MI	Yeah the 9800 series scaled pretty well. In most games you will see about %80 improvement over using a single card. The scaling got even better with the 200 and 400 series as they scale almost %100 going from 1 card to 2. The higher the resolution you run the bigger the improvement you will see as well. __________________ Intel Core i7-2600K---> Koolance 370, HWLabs GTX240, D5 Vario 3 X EVGA 480 GTX SC watercooled--> VID-NX480 blocks, HWLabs GTX 480, D5 Vario, Koolance RP-452X2 Corsair 800D Gigabyte GA-Z68X-UD7-B3 MB SILVERSTONE ST1500 1500W PSU 16G CORSAIR DOMINATOR-GT (4 x 4GB) PC3 12800 2 X Kingston HyperX SH100S3B/120G SATA 3 in RAID 0 1 X OCZ Vertex 120G, 1 X WD Caviar Black 1TB Dell 3007 WFP-HC Z-5500's Windows 7 64bit
	QUOTE Thanks

07-28-10, 02:05 PM	#4
NobleX13 Registered Join Date: Jul 2010	For both gaming and Folding@Home (if you're into that) adding another GPU, especially in this case, is worth it.
	QUOTE Thanks

07-28-10, 05:23 PM	#5
pwnmachine Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada	+ 1 for sli, also to get the most out of those cards a nice overclock to about 3.4gHz is recommended. __________________ i5 2500k @ 4.8 gHz. 1.3v..................Q9650 @ 4.0 gHz. Kingston Hyper 1600mHz 4gb..........XMS3 1600mHz 4gb Asus P8P67 Pro B3...........................790i Ultra FTW XFX 5970 BE + XFX 5850..................GTX 260 2xSLI CM Hyper 212/Thermalright HR-03...Scythe Mugen II CM Cosmos S Modified......................NZXT H2 Custom Maple Gaming Case
	QUOTE Thanks

SLI worth it?

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07-28-10, 08:30 PM	Thread Starter #6
CgS Drone Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: SLC, UT.	OH wow guess I better think before I post, haven't had this board long and wasn't thinking its amd chipset not nvidia. Well at least I had not tried to SLI it. __________________ C2D E8500/E6300/E6400, Gigabyte EP45-UD3P--------955BE, TA890FXE, Cooler Master GX 750 Noctua D-14, Corsair 750TX---------------------------HAF 932, Cooler Master 212+, Ballistix 6400 4-4-4-12 D9 2x1------------------------Geil Black Dragon (2x2GB) EVGA 8800GTS 512, Raptor 75gb.---------------------9800 GT 512mb, Seagate 500gb >>>>>>>HeatWare<<<<<<<
	QUOTE Thanks

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