Advice: 8800 GTX or 8800 GTS(640) SLI

Yes, you'll have a noticable advantage with 8800 GTS 640 SLI over 8800 GTX:

http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=335&type=expert&pi...

However, you'll need an SLI mobo, better PSU (650-700W), and good cooling.

On the other hand you will have less headache's managing one card and you will be able to add another one eventually when prices come down.

I'd take the 8800GTX for:

1) Upgrade path to a 8800GTX SLI if you'd ever go that path

2) Less heat and power consumption from a single 8800GTX

3) Drivers are already bad enough with the Geforce 8 series, so using SLI would make game support even worse.

I would add that if you analyze those results in that particular review more closely ( you will find the same true in almost every broad range of games review) the single GTX is sometimes superior to the 2 GTSs in SLI. Look at the AVG and MIN framerates moreso in some cases than the MAX.

There is nothing wrong with the SLI route just keep in mind that each game will depend at least somewhat on optimization for SLI to get the most out of the cards and in some games the performance will simply be inferior to a single GTX due to this. If you go with the 22" monitor and thereby end up with resolution of 1680x1050 then either setup will provide more than enough power for most every game you can think of. I might go with price atm personally, get the GTX and if at some point down the road you want to SLI rather than upgrade to a new generation of card then you can always buy another, likely at a reduced cost to now. Thats what I'd do at least. Have fun with whatever you decide.  

I would take a third option of buying 1 8800GTS 320 and wait till xmas for the 9800 G92. 1 Teraflop G92 to a 332Gigaflop G80. So 1 G92 should kill any SLI G80.

I think (as many do) that the 1 card is better than 2. The heat, hassle and power consumption all point to going with a single gtx. And it is still slightly cheaper. There are a couple of things to consider though. Make darn sure your case can fit a gtx- they are BIG. Another thing to think about for the future is a lot of people say you can upgrade to sli with another card; but, you will then need 4 pci-e power connectors because each gtx requires 2 plugs, where as the gts only requires 1. Just a thought. I still say gtx though.

Another thought is that if you want to save some $, a single gts (or even the 320 as been previously mentioned) would be pretty darn good. As long as you don't go to a 24" monitor (1920x1200). I have a gts320 and play @ 1600x1200 and it does really well in all most everything with max detail. At 1680x1050 you are calculating for 10% less pixels so a 320 would certainly handle it and a full 640 gts (especially OC'ed) should be more than enough for that res, not that I would fault you to get the best you can afford. I wish I could of got a gtx!!! Whatever you decide I'm sure you will be happy.

Ok, so last thing. After taking a look at the benches, a gtx at 1600x1200 with AA on all most never drops below 50fps. Remember, this is 10% more pixel than 1680x1050. Assuming you are buying an lcd the refresh I believe is generally capped around 60 for most lcd's (I hope I'm not mistaken with that). At 50 fps being the lowpoint in all those benches- again this is with AA on and 10% more pixels than you are considering- you would be super happy with a single gtx and I am 100% sure you could be very happy with a gts also. Hope this helps.

Thanks a lot for the replies! Especially that benchmark site, it was exactly the kind of comparison that I have been looking for.

Now that it has been mentioned I am leaning towards a single GTX with the prospect of eventually going SLI after a price drop from any 8900 or 9xxx in the near future...

My personal thing....

1. The only thing SLI is good for is complemeting a card that you already have by buying another one of it for cheap..

2. Getting 2 of the best cards on the market right off the bat.....

Why get 2x GTS when you can get one GTX for less.... You can get another GTX later for more performance... 2x GTS won't really help you out that much over a GTX since its so beastly anyways.. You will also use more power and have to mess with setting SLI....

Get the GTX... Always get one nice nice card if you can, its better than the option of 2 of combined equal cost, or even more cost in most cases..

Yeah I'm firmly set on getting a single card. Now I'm troubled in that maybe I'll just get a single stopgap card GTS 320 or 640 and wait for G92 for a major upgrade.

For me right now ANYTHING in the G80 line is going to be a super fabulous upgrade.

Money isn't really an issue, but I'd rather futureproof as much as possible and I'm not really playing anything _that_ demanding right now. Nothing the GTS couldn't handle.

So will I see a slowdown at 1680x1050 on the 320 vs the 640 version of the GTS, with modest AA and AF and full details in most games?

The Lost Planet DX10 benchmarks I saw, the 8800GTS 640 SLI out performed a single 8800 GTX and 8800 Ultra easily.

365$ x 2 GTS > 900$ Ultra :?: :?: :?:

I would take a third option of buying 1 8800GTS 320 and wait till xmas for the 9800 G92. 1 Teraflop G92 to a 332Gigaflop G80. So 1 G92 should kill any SLI G80.

this man speaks the truth

Hmmm... now that is very interesting! An 8800GTX has less heat and power cunsumption from itself! (see number 2.)
I think the writer meant something else...

hey crowzone, how much do these cards cost in South Korea? Are they cheaper, or more expensive?

Thanks for the response in advance!

Its hard to say about costs -- finding the brands I'm used to back home is proving difficult, and therefore expensive.

I can get brands that are more common in Asia. But its hard for me to research them with my limited communication abilities. Though I imagine the differences, if any, will be within 1 or 2 percentage points of comparable brands back home.

To add:

Prices in Korea for some components are very cheap. I've noticed High Quality Ram is especially cheap. I just got 4 GB of 4-4-4-12 with fancy heat sinks and everything (A korean brand so nothing most would recognize) lifetime warranty and its OCing like a champ -- all for about 120$

So there you have that. Video cards I paid a premium because I wanted a brand I recognized, but there were tons of Korean brands for the same as what you'd find back in North America. My new e6600 CPU seemed cheap as well, about 200$ so yeah I guess prices are not too bad here.

damn right. why in the hell someone would buy two gts when a gtx is almost as good as the sli choice and it is cheaper and it doesn't consume so much power? if you want something special (as written above), buy two gtx, if not buy only one and I assure you that you won't be sorry.

don't wait for g92, its now beings said its an 8700 so it won't beat the 8800's, I would just get the gtx and watch your e-peenz grow like mad