Does SLI/Crossfire help at 1280-1024?

[Fire_Zealot]

Does SLI/Crossfire help at 1280-1024? But lets say I by a mid-high card like a 7900GS. Then, 2 years later, when I need a boost I buy another 7900GS and I SLI 'em. Would the boost be substantial?

 

[sailer]

Does SLI/Crossfire help at 1280-1024? But lets say I by a mid-high card like a 7900GS. Then, 2 years later, when I need a boost I buy another 7900GS and I SLI 'em. Would the boost be substantial?

SLI/Crossfire will help on 3DMark scores, but will do nothing positive at 1280x1024 resolution. The frame rates will be so high you can't tell the difference between them and a single card. To put in perspective, few people can recognize anthing beyond 60 fps, in fact, some can't recognize differences beyond 30 fps. So if you boost a single card's rate from 90 to 130, does it make any difference? Not to your eyes, at least.

As far as looking two years from now, by then Vista and DX10 will be in place and anything you buy now will be at best old, and at worst, useless. Basic theory is if you don't buy both cards within a three month period, you're wasting your money. Part of that is because in three months, a better single card will come out that beats the old one(s) in SLI. Even the quad SLI is falling behind, as shown by tests that Tom's did, to the newest single cards.

The only time SLI/Crossfire is worth it is if you have a big monitor, using a very high resolution, and you buy both cards at once.

 

[prozac26]

Pointless.

In two years (especially), it will suck even worse, since much better cards wil be available and games will run on them instead of two 7900s.

Also, SLI/CF are really helpful at 1600x1200 though.

 

[Fire_Zealot]

I'm just doing an example here. I'm thinking about buying a new PC when I see R600-8800 performace charts. But I was thinking, If I bought a card then, and then 2 years later,bought the same card and did SLI, would I see a diferance. ( in other words, when the card I bought would be considered old tech. ( like what a GF 6600 would be like now)

Would it perform like a high end card of that generation?

 

[sailer]

I'm just doing an example here. I'm thinking about buying a new PC when I see R600-8800 performace charts. But I was thinking, If I bought a card then, and then 2 years later,bought the same card and did SLI, would I see a diferance. ( in other words, when the card I bought would be considered old tech. ( like what a GF 6600 would be like now)

Would it perform like a high end card of that generation?

Ok, didn't realize that the 7900 GS was only an example, but what prozac says holds true. Any card that is two years old will be so far behind that buying another and running SLI would be pointless. Last winter I did the SLI route with 7800 GTX's. Then the 7900 series came out and my 7800's were slower than one card. In another year, they will be so far behind as to be useless on the games that are then coming out. Yeah, it would work on the games of its era, but that's about all

As prozac pointed out, at 1600x1200 and above, SLI/Crossfire comes into doing what its meant to do, and at those resolution, I have no argument with using it. Just don't rely on two year old technology. Besides, in two years you may not even be able to get a given card. After all, who is making new 7800 GTX's for instance? And that card is hardly a year old.

Anyone want to buy a 7800 GTX? Got one for sale, cheap.

 

[Heyyou27]

Would you notice a performance increase when using SLI or Crossfire at 1280x1024? Maybe, but generally SLI/Crossfire aren't worth using unless your monitor resolution is higher than 1280x1024.

 

[rwaritsdario]

To be simply and blunt, No.
SLI not only has awful $/performance ratio but it isnt worth it at all unless you play at higher than 16x12 with lots of visual settings.
And if youre planning on getting the 7900GS I would advice you to cough up some more and get the X1900XT 256mb (froogle it for cheap).
But with DX10 cards coming so close I would advice you to wait above all.

 

[sirheck]

like everyone else has said, it probably wont make a difference.

i have sli, bought one card and about 6 months later bought another one
(68gt,s)
mostly i game at 10x7 and cant see any difference. i can crank up the
settings with sli (at 10x7) x16aa and x16af, but i can do that with one card anyway
on almost evrygame but oblivion.
the main reson i got the other card was for my 32inch hdtv
to plat at 19x10 and it only works on a couple of games

i havent messed with the 32inch sli setup much
so i still game at 10x7 with one card
as it is getting to be winter here i just added the other card
to keep the house warm

 

[Fire_Zealot]

First off, I DONT HAVE AND I"M NOT BUYING A 7900GS! THAT WAS AN EXAMPLE. I'm waiting for Quad-core, Vista, and DX 10 before I upgrade.

So, lets say that the card I will buy in May the coming year is worth 100-150 USD 2 years from that date. What would be a better price-performance, SLI with the 2 older cards, or 1 newer card. Again, the newer card would a newer card ( in the 150-200 USD range) be more effective?