How many people here are using NVidia SLI?

[jpinard 10]

First I hope I'm putting this in the right sub-forum. If I didn't please accept my apologies.

* I'm thinking of looking for a good deal on a second NVidia geForce GTX 295 since it seems a lot of people with them are selling them to move to the 400 series cards.

* I've never run SLI before and am pretty scared I might be wasting my money if it doens't do what I expect. That being said, in ArmA2 the second card would basically make it so I can max out FSAA and Anisotropic Filtering making my cpu the only bottleneck in the game... right? Maxing out graphic settings and running a super high resolution would be worth it for me, but if it won't let me do this, then it wouldn't.

* Can I use two cards from different companies? I have an eVGA card...could I use a BFG or PNY card that's a GTX 295? Or do they have to both be from eVGA and be the exact same model?

Thanks to anyone who pops in to discuss.

[Leon86 13]

You can mix cards of all manufacturers. If you have a 295 now you are already running some form of sli since it's a dual-gpu card.

[jpinard 10]

You can mix cards of all manufacturers. If you have a 295 now you are already running some form of sli since it's a dual-gpu card.

Because the 295 is a weird card in that it runs multi-gpu, will I not get the benefits of SLI like I would from single gpu cards?

[Leon86 13]

the more gpu's the worse the scaling is usually, atleast that's what online benchmarks tell me but to be honest I dont have any experience with crossfire/sli.

[simo1000RR 10]

what is ur screen reseloution ? and how many inchs is it? usualy ppl install 2 cards in sli so they can ru high reseloution . or multiple screens. if u run the game on a low resoloution like 1600x1050 then u wasting ur money even if u run 1900x**** one gtx 295 still over kill.

[jpinard 10]

1920x1200 on a 26" LCD monitor. But I cannot run decent AA or FSAA at this resolution.

[bangtail 0]

1920x1200 on a 26" LCD monitor. But I cannot run decent AA or FSAA at this resolution.

Scaling is very good from 1 to 2 GPUs but it tends to decline from 2 to 3 to 4 in actual games, in benchmarks the scaling can still be quite dramatic.

[Eotore 10]

First I hope I'm putting this in the right sub-forum. If I didn't please accept my apologies.

* I'm thinking of looking for a good deal on a second NVidia geForce GTX 295 since it seems a lot of people with them are selling them to move to the 400 series cards.

* I've never run SLI before and am pretty scared I might be wasting my money if it doens't do what I expect. That being said, in ArmA2 the second card would basically make it so I can max out FSAA and Anisotropic Filtering making my cpu the only bottleneck in the game... right? Maxing out graphic settings and running a super high resolution would be worth it for me, but if it won't let me do this, then it wouldn't.

* Can I use two cards from different companies? I have an eVGA card...could I use a BFG or PNY card that's a GTX 295? Or do they have to both be from eVGA and be the exact same model?

Thanks to anyone who pops in to discuss.

I had 2 Co-op evga 295's in SLI and then had mad micro studder in this game.Others games ran fine.It seems large open world tpye games the micro studder was very noticeable.I pulled out the second card and ran with 1 295 and this game ran so much smoother.Dont bother getting a another 295,at least for this game it doesnt work.

[JojoTheSlayer 35]

I never really considered to run SLI, even when I have only had SLI ready motherboards, and thats basically because of microstuddering which drives me crazy.

What you should watch out for when using SLI, specially since its Nvidia, is the PSU total use. 2x GTX295 will probably get close to 800-1000W.

Also, the performance gain is more like 33% optimal than logical 50% increase because of two cards.

Some people might wanna run there old GTX card as a PhysX card with there new 400 series.

You dont get Dx11.

[bangtail 0]

I never really considered to run SLI, even when I have only had SLI ready motherboards, and thats basically because of microstuddering which drives me crazy.

What you should watch out for when using SLI, specially since its Nvidia, is the PSU total use. 2x GTX295 will probably get close to 800-1000W.

Also, the performance gain is more like 33% optimal than logical 50% increase because of two cards.

Some people might wanna run there old GTX card as a PhysX card with there new 400 series.

You dont get Dx11.

Please don't talk rubbish, especially when by your own admission, you have no actual experience with SLI.

Everything you have said above is flat-out wrong, from scaling to being able to use DX11 if you use a DX10 card for PhysX with 4xx series cards (PhysX is not tied to DirectX). You can even use ATI's 5xxx series cards in conjunction with an Nvidia DX10 card for PhysX (with the hack) while running DX11.

Too many people read reviews/articles on the net and take it as gospel. In most cases, unless you have actual experience, it's best not to offer advice. Anyone can read reviews and regurgitate the information however wrong it may be.

PS : PhysX is only used to any great effect in about 3 games so it's really a non issue and Metro 2033 is the only game that uses PhysX and DX11 at present.

Edited May 2, 2010 by BangTail

[Vick 19]

Please don't talk rubbish, especially when by your own admission, you have no actual experience with SLI.

Everything you have said above is flat-out wrong, from scaling to being able to use DX11 if you use a DX10 card for PhysX with 4xx series cards (PhysX is not tied to DirectX). You can even use ATI's 5xxx series cards in conjunction with an Nvidia DX10 card for PhysX (with the hack) while running DX11.

Too many people read reviews/articles on the net and take it as gospel. In most cases, unless you have actual experience, it's best not to offer advice. Anyone can read reviews and regurgitate the information however wrong it may be.

PS : PhysX is only used to any great effect in about 3 games so it's really a non issue and Metro 2033 is the only game that uses PhysX and DX11 at present.

id like to also add his PSU remark was complete bs as well, im running sli with a 750watt.

[jpinard 10]

So if I'm understanding this correctly... the one person who ran a GTX 295 in SLI had very poor performance due to microstutters?

[bangtail 0]

So if I'm understanding this correctly... the one person who ran a GTX 295 in SLI had very poor performance due to microstutters?

A 295 is essentially 2 x 275 GPUs so it is SLI by default.

2 of them is Quad SLI.

There were quite a few complaints when the game released concerning the 295 but I haven't heard any of late.

SLI can involve some minor messing about but once you get used to it, it's pretty simple.

Edited May 3, 2010 by BangTail

[MavericK96 0]

All I can say is, this game runs a HELL of a lot better with 2x GTX 280s than with just one. Trust me, I've tried it.

[kklownboy 43]

So if I'm understanding this correctly... the one person who ran a GTX 295 in SLI had very poor performance due to microstutters?

well microstutter, is a different issue. It can be from HDD access ect, but its mostly a render-ahead issue, of which can be fine tuned in the arma2.cfg, and the NVDA CP., also mouse smoothing can help a lot.

Ati render ahead is good at 1, where nvda is best at 3~, and set the CP setting to 1. Most issues with SLI/295 were driver related to multicore CPUs and the latency of the nvda sli chip,on the card its self. But as all ways your mileage may very.

[JojoTheSlayer 35]

Please don't talk rubbish, especially when by your own admission, you have no actual experience with SLI.

Everything you have said above is flat-out wrong, from scaling to being able to use DX11 if you use a DX10 card for PhysX with 4xx series cards (PhysX is not tied to DirectX). You can even use ATI's 5xxx series cards in conjunction with an Nvidia DX10 card for PhysX (with the hack) while running DX11.

Too many people read reviews/articles on the net and take it as gospel. In most cases, unless you have actual experience, it's best not to offer advice. Anyone can read reviews and regurgitate the information however wrong it may be.

PS : PhysX is only used to any great effect in about 3 games so it's really a non issue and Metro 2033 is the only game that uses PhysX and DX11 at present.

* 2x GTX295 will not give you Dx11...

* That some people that go over to GTX400 series will still use there lower GTX card for PhysX means less GTX280s, or similar cards, on the used market.

* Maybe 800w was a bit much, but if anyone is planning to run first or second gen Nvidia cards in SLI they should check that there PSU can handle it and not be border lining. ( Edit: Minimum of a 680w, +12 Volt current rating of 46 Amp, power supply for 1x GTX295).

* The performance gain isnt 50% + just because you have two cards.

* Microstuddering is still an issue in Crossfire and SLI.

Nothing I said was invalid if you actually read it in context to the op rather than making up shit.

Edited May 3, 2010 by JojoTheSlayer

[bangtail 0]

* 2x GTX295 will not give you Dx11...

No, a DX10 card will not allow you to run DX11 games :rolleyes:

* That some people that go over to GTX400 series will still use there lower GTX card for PhysX means less GTX280s, or similar cards, on the used market.

What do you care and how is this relevant?

* Maybe 800w was a bit much, but if anyone is planning to run first or second gen Nvidia cards in SLI they should check that there PSU can handle it and not be border lining.

Thanks Captain Obvious.

* The performance gain isnt 50% + just because you have two cards.

It can be 100% in some situations (mileage varies depending on the game). Of course, you wouldn't know that, having never actually owned an SLI rig.

* Microstuddering is still an issue in Crossfire and SLI.

Microstuttering is easily alleviated for the most part.

Nothing I said was invalid if you actually read it in context to the op rather than making up shit.

It was either irrelevant, wrong or blatantly obvious, either way, you're not one to talk about 'making shit up' :rolleyes:

People with no experience of SLI shouldn't be giving advice on it PERIOD.

Edited May 3, 2010 by BangTail

[JojoTheSlayer 35]

You wont have Dx11 support on 2x Dx10 cards in SLI.

Thats what I said from the start, but youre trying to invent that I said something else.

If anyone is planing to get a cheaper second gen card the used market is a good choice, but if less people are selling there used cards because they can still use it for PhysX it will most probably affect pricing. That was the relevance.

If you want to run 2x295 on 700w or less be my guest, but I wouldnt go so low even if its technically possible on some setups.

The performance gain isnt usually 100% and you know it.

Depending on your tolerance for noticing it microstuddering is an issue.

Now settle down kid and dont get so upset that not everyone agrees with you.

[bangtail 0]

You wont have Dx11 support on 2x Dx10 cards in SLI.

Like I said, thanks Captain Obvious.

The performance gain isnt usually 100% and you know it.

I never said it was but it CAN be.

Depending on your tolerance for noticing it microstuddering is an issue.

It's microstuttering JFYI and I don't know how you can say that having never used SLI.

Now settle down kid and dont get so upset that not everyone agrees with you.

It's not about agreement or disagreement. It's about facts vs what you say (AKA not facts and not even based on any personal experience).

I don't care what someone who, by his own admission, has no practical experience of SLI thinks. Anyone who has any experience with SLI knows what's up.

You were making incorrect statements about SLI, nowhere did I see you make a direct reference to GTX 295s in SLI.

You sound like a garden variety 'SLI hater' tbh.

Good luck with that :D

/back on topic now as this has gone far enough.

Edited May 3, 2010 by BangTail

[JojoTheSlayer 35]

My views are based on facts. Its just that you went way overboard because you didnt manage to understand that my first comment was actually in regards to the op and made wild false troll claims about what I supposedly was saying instead.

"I don't care..."

Really? You dont care that someone dont share your view?

You could have fooled me, troll.

[Alex72 1]

Ok calm down guys.

JojoTheSlayer: Now settle down kid

Comments like this isnt necessary, and BangTail is closer to the nursing home so that would be a false statement anyway. :D

[bangtail 0]

Ok calm down guys.

Comments like this isnt necessary, and BangTail is closer to the nursing home so that would be a false statement anyway. :D

/mounts Zimmerframe

/hobbles away laughing

[SWAT_BigBear 0]

I personally would not put together a SLI system for ArmA1/2 alone. If you play other games that support it properly then yes.

I started with ArmA1, Vista (drivers is where it failed back then) with 2 8800GTX.

Tried it with A1 & 2 and W7, still was not impresssed with cost vs performance gain.

Those 8800's died, ASUS replaced them with GTX285's, basically 1 285= 2 8800's when it came down to ArmA1/2 gameplay.

Since ArmA is the game I play mostly, when I have time to enjoy gaming, I sold 1 of those 285's since there wasn't much of a performance gain with ArmA.

[Zipper5 74]

Apparently, a lot of people found that Crysis' SLI profile worked very well with ArmA. All you had to do was rename the arma.exe file to crysis.exe. Of course, it was inconsistent. Some found great gain from it, some found worse, some didn't change. I don't know if it still work with Arma 2, but if you have a SLI machine there's no harm in trying it out. Just rename the arma2.exe to crysis.exe and away you go!

[bangtail 0]

When I turn SLI off, my FPS is almost halved in ArmA 2.

Edited May 4, 2010 by BangTail