Should I go SLI or get a new card?

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nebulashadow

nebulashadow

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Nov 6, 2012
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I currently have the MSI 660ti PE card in my rig, which I use primarily for gaming. For the next few years, I expect to go no higher than 1920x1080p resolution, and will stay somewhere between a 60-120hz refresh rate with my TV/monitors. I was intending on upgrading this summer, and had the 770 in mind to replace the 660ti. I have had the card for about 2 years, but honestly the 25-30% increase with the 770 I was seeing in most games didn't justify the $300-$400 price for me. I am a broke college student, and I want my money to be well spent. For 1920x1080p resolution, with everything else completely maxed out, would I be better off for the next 2 years to go ahead and drop the money for the 770, or try to snag a used 660ti for a lower price and run SLI?

System Specs:
Intel i5 3570k OC'D 4.4ghz
Cooler Master Hyper 212 CPU Cooler
MSI 660ti PE
EVGA 550ti (dedicated to Physx)
Seagate Barracuda 2TB HDD
G.Skill Ripjaws 8GB RAM
Asrock Z77 Extreme 4 MOBO
Seasonic X-850 PSU
Rosewill Challenger USB3.0 case
 
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Eggz
Wait, now that I am thinking about it, there is no way that two 660 ti cards in SLI can be on par with the 780 ti. The 780 ti is at the level of two 680 cards in SLI, and the 660 ti is significantly slower than the 680. Maybe it was just the benchmark I looked at and posted above. I mean, the 780 ti outperforms (in most cases, but not all) the gtx 690, which is two 680s. http://gpuboss.com/gpus/GeForce-GTX-780-ti-vs-GeForce-GTX-690

I still think that the 660 ti SLI combo will be pretty solid, but I also think that saying it will keep pace with a single 780 ti is overstating things a little bit. My guess was that it would have been between the 770 and the 780, which would still be strong, but the results below suggest that you'll...
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Eggz

Eggz

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Sep 3, 2013
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I would upgrade to a new single card if you have money to, and then bump that 660 ti up to your PhysX card. You have enough power in your PSU for that, no problem. Check the physical space in your case and funds in your wallet, but that is definitely the optimal choice; otherwise, another 660 ti with that 550 ti will be an okay setup for a while. It won't max everything in 1080p, but you'll get pretty good performance. The 780 ti is obviously the best card, but if you were able to potentially afford a 770, the 780's jump in performance over the 770 far exceeds the jump in price. The 780 would probably be faster than two 660 ti cards in SLI, especially with a single 660 ti dedicated to PhysX. Here is another thread where someone was asking between the 780 and a pair of 660 ti cards in SLI. He went for the 780 and reported back being very happy: http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2061198/asus-gtx-660-tis-sli-gtx-780.html
 
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Eggz

Eggz

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Yeah, looking at benchmarks, the 660 ti in SLI will perform up to to the speed of a 780 ti, though that depends on idea circumstances. Keeping in mind that the 780 ti is a little faster than the Titan was, take a look at this graph showing that a pair of 660 ti cards in SLI is also a bit faster than Titan:

Crysis_02.png


Seeing that makes me take the SLI setup a little more seriously given your budget. If you can go for the strong single card, do it; otherwise, SLI with the 550 ti on PhysX will be pretty solid in titles with SLI support.
 
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Eggz

Eggz

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Wait, now that I am thinking about it, there is no way that two 660 ti cards in SLI can be on par with the 780 ti. The 780 ti is at the level of two 680 cards in SLI, and the 660 ti is significantly slower than the 680. Maybe it was just the benchmark I looked at and posted above. I mean, the 780 ti outperforms (in most cases, but not all) the gtx 690, which is two 680s. http://gpuboss.com/gpus/GeForce-GTX-780-ti-vs-GeForce-GTX-690

I still think that the 660 ti SLI combo will be pretty solid, but I also think that saying it will keep pace with a single 780 ti is overstating things a little bit. My guess was that it would have been between the 770 and the 780, which would still be strong, but the results below suggest that you'll be performing up to Titan levels (in ideal situations). So, the best case scenario is that you'll run between 780/Titan and the 780 ti. Pretty solid.

Here is a good point of comparison showing the non-660 ti cards under consideration: http://www.anandtech.com/show/6973/nvidia-geforce-gtx-780-review/15

And here is a point of comparison showing the 660 ti SLI: http://www.ocaholic.ch/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=997&page=9

And the 780 ti: http://www.digitalstormonline.com/unlocked/nvidia-gtx-780ti-review-benchmarks-and-teardown-idnum100/

Results - Bioshock Infinite, Ultra, 1080p

Titan: 125 fps
660 ti SLI: 129 fps
780 ti: 110

I'm totally baffled. If you look up benchmarks, the 780 ti comes up with 680 sli and 690; the 660 ti comes up with the 780 ti; and the 660 ti is slower than the 680. CORN-Fused!
 
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