g80 (SLI) vs r600 (XFire) not so easy choice

[robtrevino]

I'm in the market for a new PC, particularly to play Crysis and UT3 when they come out. I know all the rage right now is the g80 and r600. I've also researched and most people favor the r600 because of some tests they've seen on the internet, now, eventhough the r600 might be faster, I've been researching another important factor: The motherboards. It seems as though mobos with the 680i chipset are far superior in terms of features and performance compared to those that support Xfire (I've only seen the ones for socket 775). So what I was thinking is: Even if the r600 card is faster than the g80, and let's assume they are at the same price, won't people be inclined to buy the g80 because of the supporting chipset?

 

[robtrevino]

just leave, now. right now.

I'll think I'll stay around, even if I do get flamed, I don't care. I learn by asking and there has to be someone in this forum mature enough to dignify a response.

 

[enforcerfx]

Chipset usually does not have anything to do when selecting a graphics card. You could have a 680i board with a Ati Graphics card and see no altercations or flaws with the system. Most of the time, when it comes down to a graphics card it goes down to price, and sometimes availability. If you so wish to spend roughly 1,000 dollars on a Dual Graphics card setup, then by all means go for it if you want bragging rights. Otherwise, these days 1 graphics card is more than enough to drive many monitors and many games on the market these days. Even when DX10 supported games come out, you don't need a vastly large SLi/CF setup whatsoever.

 

[robtrevino]

@EnforcerFX.. I know that I can use a 680i board with the ati card, but if someone wanted to go with dual graphics cards, wouldn't the mobo be an important factor in deciding?

 

[robtrevino]

What the hell stranger? do you just go around looking for posts and flame on people just because people pick on you at school? Get a life, if you don't have anything productive to say just shut up. You don't HAVE to post, if you think this post is stupid, just skip it.

 

[robtrevino]

I frankly do not care if I'm irritating you. You must be a sad person. Oh and there's a difference between ignorance and stupidity, you should learn the difference and choose your words accordingly.

 

[prozac26]

There are no real benchmarks for R600 so we can't say which is better. So there is no point in asking this question, and then trying to argue...

Also, I'm with stranger in this fight.... :roll:

 

[robtrevino]

it's not a question on which is better. the question was: "Should the platform itself (SLI or Xfire) be a decisive factor in choosing the card"

 

[darkstar782]

1: There are no verified R600 benchmarks about yet. It may be faster, it may be slower, who can guess how well/badly that will translate into Xfire performance

2: We are not sure of R600 pricings yet. We are not sure if there will be a G80 price drop on the launch of R600. 1GiB of GDDR4 and a 13 layer 512bit PCB doesnt come cheap.

3: As for motherboards, the 975X chipset supports Xfire, and are not far behind nForce 680i. The RD600 board from DFi is an *excellent* motherboard that is arguably better than any current nf680i board. Intel Bearlake may well have Xfire support, and could easily leave P965, 975X, and NF680i for dust.

Platform availibility does have some influence, after all the options for SLi on Intel were VERY limited at C2D's release. But with RD600 about on an excellent DFi board, and 975X supporting Xfire, with the possibility of Bearlake soon, I dont see an issue here.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

First of all what kind of F'in poll is that? Yes/No to the existential question of WTF !?!

I'm in the market for a new PC,...

Don't bother, you sound like the type of person best served by an Xbox.

also you forgot that the intel solution will be better than all of them because it makes the mobo, the CPU, and the Graphics, must be better!

St00pid thread created by a tool or a troll.

 

[robtrevino]

thanks to the two people that have actually posted something constructive.

 

[ArbY]

Wow, I'm really taken aback by some of the posts here. 8O

darkstar and I both have the ASUS P5W DH Deluxe which is chaulk full of features, also while being of the 975X chipset (supporting crossfire).
I think when it comes down to it, as long as you're buying a nice motherboard you needn't worry about the performance of the chipset -- features is what you should concentrate on.
SLI or Crossfire ... bleh, I'm almost certain that with the two top competing chipsets, performance would be least inhibited by the chipset on either set-up.

My motherboard has more features than I can even put to use. Some (such as the built-in wireless) have proven quite useful in unique scenarios.

If you're currently in the market for a new PC, don't even bother considering the AMD offering, especially if you have the cash to consider dual R600's. Look at the LGA 775 mobo's and make your decision.

R600 isn't slated to be released in some months. The "reviews" people have been talking about are shady and really shouldn't be taken seriously. Wait until for the launch (in March or April I believe) which is when reviewers will have their hands on the product.

What with the alleged re-design I've heard ATI has put into the R600, I'm sure it'll be a killer card.

 

[Assman]

I'm in the market for a new PC, particularly to play Crysis and UT3 when they come out. I know all the rage right now is the g80 and r600. I've also researched and most people favor the r600 because of some tests they've seen on the internet, now, eventhough the r600 might be faster, I've been researching another important factor: The motherboards. It seems as though mobos with the 680i chipset are far superior in terms of features and performance compared to those that support Xfire (I've only seen the ones for socket 775). So what I was thinking is: Even if the r600 card is faster than the g80, and let's assume they are at the same price, won't people be inclined to buy the g80 because of the supporting chipset?

what a waste of everyones time

 

[aBg_rOnGak]

First of all what kind of F'in poll is that? Yes/No to the existential question of WTF !?!

I'm in the market for a new PC,...

Don't bother, you sound like the type of person best served by an Xbox.

also you forgot that the intel solution will be better than all of them because it makes the mobo, the CPU, and the Graphics, must be better!

St00pid thread created by a tool or a troll.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

I've also researched and most people favor the r600 because of some tests they've seen on the internet

..and where would the link be? http://www.robtrevino.com :?:

Come on man,unless you work for ATi and have been in the design/testing team whatsoever,you won't find any real benchmark currently.My point is, wait till R600 released and benchmarked, then you make your decision

 

[pauldh]

Let me rephrase your question:

Which is better? Please answer yes or no. :roll: Is it the card that is available or the one that isn't released or reviewed yet? Oh, and I am specifically wondering how they will do in games that are over 6 months from being released. Thanks guys.

PS. If you would be so kind as to also fill me in on which stock will gain the most value by the end of 2007, I'd greatly appreciate a yes or no answer to that also. :twisted:

 

[Assman]

PS. If you would be so kind as to also fill me in on which stock will gain the most value by the end of 2007, I'd greatly appreciate a yes or no answer to that also

lol

 

[Valtiel]

Whenever I see r600 now I die a little inside.

 

[cleeve]

So what I was thinking is: Even if the r600 card is faster than the g80, and let's assume they are at the same price, won't people be inclined to buy the g80 because of the supporting chipset?

People who want to game will buy the fastest videocard.

All gamers care about is that the faster videocard will win. Platform is secondary, and won't have nearly the impact a videocard does in games.

 

[yourmothersanastronaut]

You're starting to irritate me, Stranger. He asks a logical question, no matter how much you think he might be trolling. If you were new to this and wanted to plunk down a huge sum for a high-end gaming PC, I think you'd ask some questions too. You are not the all-knowing force on these forums, if anyone it'd be Crashman. So lay off.

In answer to your question, the chipset really only should influence your video card decision if you want to go dual graphics. In which case you'll have to find a company and stick with it until you want to hop the fence and try the other side.

The possible exception would be the high-end Intel chipsets like 975x, which run Crossfire with their regular drivers, or SLI with le hacked drivers. If you don't feel like hacking, however, you're pretty much stuck as I said earlier.

As people have said, the platform isn't the most important part in determining performance. If you look at motherboard benchmarks, they're pretty much all identical with the same CPU, GPU, RAM, etc. because the chipset is secondary, possibly even tertiary to the other parts.

Now, if you're overclocking, the chipset will have an impact on how high you can OC. nVidia's 680i is the the new king of the clocks, so hit up those boards (in particular the eVGA one) if you want to OC. That will limit you to SLI or a single ATI card, but I wouldn't worry. Even a single R600 will be fast, even if it probably won't beat dual 8800s.

 

[ls]

So why didn't you tell him this in your first post in this thread, instead of telling to leave?

 

[sailer]

So what I was thinking is: Even if the r600 card is faster than the g80, and let's assume they are at the same price, won't people be inclined to buy the g80 because of the supporting chipset?

People who want to game will buy the fastest videocard.

All gamers care about is that the faster videocard will win. Platform is secondary, and won't have nearly the impact a videocard does in games.

One thing I sincerely wish is that AMD/ATI would make Crossfire so that it could be run on the same board that can run SLI. After all, this thing of having to buy a different motherboard just to run a different card setup is silly, probably self defeating as well.

Think of it this way: when I bought my present motherboard, I had SLI in mind. When I decided to get an ATI card, I was forced to either stick with one card only or spend a lot of money to buy a new motherboard as well. And then if I decide to back to a SLI setup, I have to go through the hastle of changing boards again. Guess what I'm most likely going to do if I want to run two cards? That type of thing can't be good for Crossfire sales.

 

[sailer]

oh and sailer, compatability between rival companies which would benefit the consumer, lets not be silly now

I know. Must come from smoking all that sagebrush here in Nevada, or whatever it is that grows all over the place.

 

[ghostface24]

troll's are not welcome here. you may be so stupid as to not even know you are trolling but you are.

there is no benchmarks out right now to compare and the cards will likely be out in march at least for the ATI card. there is no point in discussing this at this stage.

also, to indulge your stupidity. if you were going for that sort of setup, to hell with mobo features you go for best performance in games.

now again STFU and leave, you are starting to irritate me. this forum has no place for you and your ilk.

He was just providing a reference point so that the question is clear and not confusing for others. Just telling him to leave is just making you the troll. What is the definition of a troll? One who states blatant statements that incites a flaming, pointless argument. The question is:

So what I was thinking is: Even if the r600 card is faster than the g80, and let's assume they are at the same price, won't people be inclined to buy the g80 because of the supporting chipset?

The way I would respond to that is that people would consider the speed of their setup while worrying about compatibility as well.

The way you responded to it was just refusing his presence and denying his question. So what if he did say "Some people said the R600 was faster." Doesn't the question also open up with, "even if the R600 is faster than the g80, wouldn't people be inclined to buy the g80 because of the supporting chipset?" That in itself doesn't incite any argument or debate about what's faster. It's just a hypothetical question. And this is a forum, if all you're going to do is flame people for asking questions that seems stupid to you but not stupid to others, then you might as well just leave.

 

[Heyyou27]

Just wait for the titles to see which videocard card performs the best.

 

[rubix_1011]

...Not really sure why you all are arguing over hardware that doesn't even exist for consumer purchase. Yeah, it will come out...when? Good question. People will by what is the best, not what their favorite company is. IMO, ATI and AMD have been pretty notorious about, "you just wait and see, we will come out with something here in a while that will beat what you already have." And then nVidia releases their next GPU a month later. Just my $0.02.