Do you use multiple GPU's in your system?

***Veridian3*** · Feb 29, 2008, 10:24 AM

Crossfire, SLI, X2's... plenty of options out there now... do you use/like multi GPU systems or is single card the way to go?

Zelig · Feb 29, 2008, 10:36 AM

Single card.

On my current SLI-supporting motherboard, I've gone from a 6600gt to a 7900gt to a g92 8800gts. On each upgrade, I considered going SLI, but it's always been a better deal, with better overall performance, to just buy a new card and sell my old one.

|2A|N · Feb 29, 2008, 10:55 AM

I ran dual 7800GT's back when I built my FX55 system years ago but to be honest with today's newer cards a single slot solution seems like the realistic way to go these days.

***Zardon*** · Feb 29, 2008, 10:58 AM

only if I get them as samples to play with. if I was buying my own hardware id probably have a single 8800GTS or something.

Mousey · Feb 29, 2008, 11:03 AM

I would like to run a crossfire setup, but my board doesn't support dual x16s and i can't afford another 3850

Lowfat · Feb 29, 2008, 11:46 AM

Definitely considering it. If the 9800GTX doesn't play out as a top performer, I will definitely be moving over to SLI/CF.

sushrukh · Feb 29, 2008, 12:29 PM

Single card.No money 4 multi-GPU setup.

Matth · Feb 29, 2008, 12:39 PM

Single, never had or wanted support for multi... there will always be a better single card along soon.

Not quite sure if dual GPU cards are usable in systems without SLI or crossfire capability.

Anyway, there are 3 possible targets for multi-GPU.
1. Money no object, 2, 3, 4 of the best you can get, though this means even more investment that will depreciate meteorically when the next model comes out.
2. Pair of middle cards beating a top one and coming in cheaper - this is generally an anomaly that will be corrected as the price of the better card slips.
3. Upgrading to a pair - this can often be difficult to match up, but can be anything from a good bang for buck upgrade to a complete waste.

SFOSOK · Feb 29, 2008, 01:23 PM

Only reason I would I would go dual card (only SLI) would be if I were building a top of the line rig for someone with the newest hardware.

Dual card solutions are usually obsolete every 6 months to a year. Especially if they keep doing that DX 10.1 10.2 crap. And also, like everyone else said, for a 600-800 solution it will cost about 200-300 for a single card in a year or so for better performance and more features.

CDsDontBurn · Feb 29, 2008, 02:09 PM

i would like to go SLI myself with my next build. primarily only for work reasons so i can play around with the settings and know where things are moving to as newer drivers come out.

***Zardon*** · Feb 29, 2008, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SFOSOK

Only reason I would I would go dual card (only SLI) would be if I were building a top of the line rig for someone with the newest hardware.

Dual card solutions are usually obsolete every 6 months to a year. Especially if they keep doing that DX 10.1 10.2 crap. And also, like everyone else said, for a 600-800 solution it will cost about 200-300 for a single card in a year or so for better performance and more features.

Yes I agree, however its more for the power of the cards rather than the DX10.x incremental support, nothing really uses DX10 right now apart from a handful of games, .1 really only adds a few aspects and no one has touched it yet.

People who buy SLI tend to want the best of everything really so another 10fps at 2560 res means a lot to them. seems a mad amount of money mind you.

BlueMak · Feb 29, 2008, 02:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SFOSOK

Only reason I would I would go dual card (only SLI) would be if I were building a top of the line rig for someone with the newest hardware.

Dual card solutions are usually obsolete every 6 months to a year. Especially if they keep doing that DX 10.1 10.2 crap. And also, like everyone else said, for a 600-800 solution it will cost about 200-300 for a single card in a year or so for better performance and more features.

Agreed 100%. By the time you NEED to buy another card, your whole system is obsolete. Even buying a top of the range card at any time near its release seems like a waste of money, not to mention 2 or more.
If you buy a good mid to high range card every year or perhaps 2 depending on the resolution you run your games at, you should be fine.

Lelisevis · Feb 29, 2008, 04:38 PM

Pair of BFG 8800GTS 640mb's. Timing is the key, combined i've paid about the price of a GTX on launch. Just about watching and waiting for special offers.

Just for reference and yes I know it's only a benchmark but with a single card in 3dmark 06 I was getting about 8200. With dual cards i'm getting 14,500.

Mind I must admit if I didnt have a 24" monitor at 1920x1200 I wouldnt have bothered but I need all the pixel pushing power I can pack in (try saying that after a few beers).

SLI is a definite necessity at those resolutions with games like NWN2, LOTRO with DX10, Supreme Commander and Microsoft FSX, all of which I primarily play.

Guess the final thing i'll add is it really depends on how long you keep your build for, I intend on getting another 2-3 years from this on top of the 1.5 years i've already had it. After that it'll get handed on to my brother or father.

OmegaRED · Mar 1, 2008, 12:05 AM

In my opinion, SLI/CF is only really needed if your monitor is running a really high res and you need that power, I'll stick with 1 GPU until I get a monitor big enough to require that resolution.

IvanV · Mar 1, 2008, 04:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zelig

Single card.

On my current SLI-supporting motherboard, I've gone from a 6600gt to a 7900gt to a g92 8800gts. On each upgrade, I considered going SLI, but it's always been a better deal, with better overall performance, to just buy a new card and sell my old one.

From several other people's experiences I've heard, that's generally the case: people build a SLI/CF capable system, but unless they go multi-GPU right away, they almost never do so later.