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SLI / CrossFire FAQs - Page 5

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Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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June 23, 2008 5:10:11 PM

But doesn't crossfire and SLI have variances in their support for multiple monitors, which would influence the decision to use one or the other? Or is your focus to be whether or not to use a single card or multigpu and not crossfire vs. sli?
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
June 23, 2008 5:45:25 PM

Well i know what your are talking about, but i as i said i want to tell about the advantage and disadvantages of both technologies,and the motherboards and other "Inside case" components.

Anyways thanks for your idea :) 
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
July 10, 2008 5:17:09 PM

Edited
Now i put both Deskop and Notebook's "MultiGPU Compatible" cards.
For AMD/ATI,there isn't still a card capable of MultiGPU support.
Related resources
Can't find your answer ? Ask !
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
July 17, 2008 11:13:59 AM

Edited with a new charts and some card updates.
July 23, 2008 11:55:39 PM

hi im new to this but i need some help, i have just bought another evga 8800 gts 640mb acs3 ko edition and ran 3dmark06 (Full version) with a single card i get 9724 but when i sli them i get 9089 thought thats abit strange. here is my rig

e6850 x2 3.0ghz
6gb adata ddr2 800 6400
evga 680i mobo
2x 8800gts ko sli
500gb hdd
coolmaster 650w psu

i thought with sli i should be pushing 12k
the sli is all setup ok
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
July 24, 2008 6:04:58 AM

I dont think there is a problem with your system,when you run 3DMARK, you run it in 1280x1024 resolution which barely benefits from SLI,so you can do something else,you can run it with higher resolution like 1680x1050 or 1920x1200 and then you will see it will benefit from SLI.

Also don't worry about 3DMARK so much,run some games and see what will happen,playing games and getting good FPS is more important than 3DMARK.
July 26, 2008 2:56:08 AM

What about 3870,and 3850,how do they work together ?

Can you have more than one 3870 or 3850 when there is a 3870 and 3850 crossfire in your computer?
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
July 26, 2008 6:01:54 AM

If you look at the chart at the first page,you will see that HD 3870 can be used in CrossFire with another HD 3870 or HD 3870X2,and HD 3850 can be used in CrossFire only with another HD 3850.

So you can't use HD 3870 with HD 3850 in CrossFire mode.
a b U Graphics card
August 17, 2008 4:25:04 PM

The chart is not the clearest in saying it, but I think it does show exactly that. The "." (dot) is what they recommend. But, any combination in a red box will work (and uses the internal crossfire connection). So 2600 pro with 2600xt, 3850 with 3870 or 3870x2, 4850 with 4870, etc.
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
August 17, 2008 7:27:28 PM

Oh,i see thanks for that :) 
August 24, 2008 11:18:05 PM

I have a Triple SLI Nvidia "SUPER PC" and it's really awesome. Most of the time
I turn off the SLI because I have a Quad Multiple Monitor Display with four LCDs.
During the day, it is my Day Trading Computer, but at night, I crank up that SLI
and hook it into my 60" LG Plasma and play the heck out of some video games!
Man, it makes those graphics so smooth because I have three 512MB GDDR3
Graphics cards that combine into one giant monster video card. Unfortunately, you
can't use multiple monitors when the SLI is on. However, I think they have a
new breed of SLI coming out that can support the multi-monitor function.
September 10, 2008 6:20:36 AM

I'm free at last!

Great post, thanks! I've been trying to figure out what I need a for a new system, and it was really bumming me out that my motherboard choice was dependent upon whether I wanted to go SLI or Crossfire. Seemed like the tail wagging the dog, but I built my current system 7 or 8 years ago, so what do I know? Other than, if you start out with solid infrastructure, you can get by for 7 or 8 years with only minor upgrades, even for a game machine.

Now I just need to figure out what motherboard to get. Though I still kinda want the Asus Rampage. :/ 
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
September 10, 2008 6:38:08 AM

No problems mate :)  glad you found this useful.
Well what is your budget? what resolution do you play at ?
September 16, 2008 9:40:43 AM

HI. I'm new to the toms hardware forum. sorry if this is the wrong thread to ask this is. Can anyone tell me if the ATI cards on this page are shown for crossfire or if the single cards. i know most of the NVidia cards on this page are SLI but i wasn't sure if the ATI's are or not.
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
September 16, 2008 11:17:51 AM

Hello and welcome to the forums mate :) 
In that link u posted there are both Single&Dual ATI and Nvidia cards.
September 16, 2008 7:32:11 PM

On the ATI cards, i cant figure out how do tell if they are single or dual.
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
September 16, 2008 8:39:49 PM

Example:
ATI X1600(Single)
ATI X1600 CF (Dual)
September 29, 2008 10:41:56 PM

Hello
Something's been keeping me up.
I have "ga 965p ds4" MB, with 16x 4x crossfire support.
I was planning to get 4870 1gb card, and then later another one. But your report raised some questions.
16x 4x is NOT recomended you say.
So, should I buy 4870 1gb, and then later when getting another one also change MB? What exactly happens if I push 4870 into 4x pcie?
Should I go with 1gb now and worry about crappy 4x slot later? Or should I save some more juice and just get 4870 X2?
What's the estimated performance difference with two 4870 16x 16x vs 16 4x? I'm handling 42' so prefered resolution is 1920*1080.
Thank you in advance.
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
September 30, 2008 10:40:10 AM

Hello and welcome to the forums mate :) 

Well as i said 16x4x mode will kill your CrossFire performance,if u want to get a HD 4870 now and get another one later so you have 2 choices:

1_Change the motherboard to a X38 one when you want to buy the second HD 4870.

2_(Recommended)Instead of gettign 2 HD 4870s get 1 HD 4870X2 which requires one PCI-E 16x slot and keep your motherboard.

The difference is very noticable between 16x4x and dual 16x.
October 6, 2008 5:22:34 PM

hi there

First of all congtatulations on this exellent topic!

for my first question:
On the previous post you recomend X38 board, why not x48 ou even a p45?
I think the X38 is becoming a bit out of date.

My Second question and motive for my reading of this topic:

Im am building a new rig, and after all the investigating i've found out that the 4870 1Gb card is the card to get if you are into 1600 resolution gaming (correct me if im wrong).
The motherboard im eyeing is the Asus P5Q Delux, and i have a doubt about it.
in the specs it says:
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots, support ATI CrossFireXT technology at x8 link
(PCIe x16_1 blue, PCIe x16_2 black*)
so if i understand well it has 2 16x pci slots, just one thing confuses me, what does the x8 link mean?

And why i want to know this, is because im thinking of the future and so i will probably invest in a second graphics card to pair up with my 4870 1Gb. Also would like to know if its is possible and if it is a good idea do eventualy pair a 4870x2 (that will be much more afordable in like 6 to 8 months) with my 4870 1Gb?
because when i will upgrade my rig it will be with a better 30" or 32" screen beeing able to do much higher resolutions than 1600.

Thanks in advance for any tips or advice.

XiZeL
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 6, 2008 9:08:05 PM

Thanks mate :) 

About your first question,i recommend X38 over X48 for 2 reasons:
1_The difference between X38 and X48 isn't much
2_X38 is cheaper.
Also X38 is older than P45/X48 but its still a very good chipset.
About P45,well i don't recommend P45 for Dual ATI cards because P45 supports CrossFire at dual 8x mode which sometimes hurts the performance compared to dual 8x mode.

About your second question,ASUS P5Q(P45 series) have 2xPCI-E 16x slot BUT when you want to CrossFire a card then the speed will be dual 8x.
In other words it has 2xPCI-E 16x slot,it means when you have single card it will operate at 16x but when you add another card then both cards will run at 16x.

Yes HD 4870 is good for 1600x1200 gaming,but if you are planing to get a bigger display and CrossFire later,you may want to get a HD 4870X2 instead of HD 4870.
October 6, 2008 9:14:14 PM

Maziar said:
Thanks mate :) 

About your second question,ASUS P5Q(P45 series) have 2xPCI-E 16x slot BUT when you want to CrossFire a card then the speed will be dual 8x.
In other words it has 2xPCI-E 16x slot,it means when you have single card it will operate at 16x but when you add another card then both cards will run at 16x.


i think you meant "both cards will run at 8x" ?

maybe i put it wrong but i was asking if it was a good ideal to eventualy pair up a HD4870 with a 4870X2

since now the X2 is much to expensive and maybe in 6 to 8 months would be more affordable.

so for the same price i shoud get a ASUS P5E ?

a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 7, 2008 6:57:48 AM

Yeah sorry:)  i meant they will run @8x.
Instead of P5E go for ASUS MAXIMUS FORMULA the price difference isnt much and u get solid capacitors and some extra features too.
October 7, 2008 11:26:39 AM

Ok thanks for the tip, Maximus Formula is a hard to find here, can find it from 190€ to 250€.

Im not to aware of what capacitators are and what they do?

I also stumbled apon the ASUS P5E DELUXE, its x48 board. what u think about that? its at an afordable 215€.

Also noticed that all these cards have SupremeFX II Audio Card is this card any good? is it onboard or does it take up one of the PCIe slots?

And you havent answered my other question about eventualy
pairing a HD4870 1Gig with a HD4870X2 ? (which is the most on topic question :p  )
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 7, 2008 3:49:38 PM

Well if u can afford the P5E DELUXE go for it,what is the price difference between RAMPAGE FORMULA and P5E DELUXE ?

The onboard sound card is pretty good i like mine :)  it takes on of the PCI-E slots.

I dont recommend u pairing a HD 4870 with HD 4870X2,i recommend u getting 1 HD 4870X2.
October 7, 2008 8:12:54 PM

i can get the P5E Delux for 214€ and the RAMPAGE FORMULA is 241€.
I didnt want to pass the 200€ margin on my board, i got to see what kind of prices i can get ton the MAXIMUS FORMULA.

The HD4870X2 is way over budget for me at the moment, why dont you recomend puting a 4870 with a 4870X2?

Edit:
Just found a
ASUS MAXIMUS FORMULA for 185€
and a
ASUS RAMPAGE FORMULA for 219€

what do you think is the best deal?

Also i have a doubt about my HD4870 1Gb
I can get a Sapphire for 256€
or
POWERCOLOR OC version for 264€
problem is that im not to familiar with POWERCOLOR but i know the OC version has improved cooling
And i know Sapphire is a good reliable brand

a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 8, 2008 10:19:33 AM

Go for MAXIMUS FORMULA because as i said the difference isnt much and it will save you some bucks.

I dont recommend you putting a HD 4870 with HD 4870X2 because if you want to CrossFire just get 2 same cards in my opinnion.

If the OC verion has better cooling go for it,i have a SAPPHIRE HD 4870X2 and its performing very well.
October 8, 2008 11:21:42 AM

Thank you verry much man you were a big help, i will go for the MAXIMUS FORMULA, its the best option. For the Graphics card im not shure yet... i would love to get a HD4870X2 but its way over budget for me.

once again contrats for the topic, real helpfull i will defenatly be cheking it out again when i upgrade my Rig :) 

thanks again
XiZeL
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 8, 2008 2:09:49 PM

No problem mate :)  glad i could help you :) 
Get a HD 4870 its a solid card and when you wanted to upgrade your monitor,CrossFire it :)  or get a HD 4870X2
Good luck :) 
October 8, 2008 7:37:33 PM

Thanks its what i intend to do :) 
today i went with a firiend and he bought a Sapphire HD 4870X2, Im jeaolus :p .
But i told him it was a mistake because his LDC is 1680 max resolution, so he wont be taking full advantage of it :p 
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 9, 2008 11:47:06 AM

It isnt a mistake :)  i have a HD 4870X2 with a 22" monitor(1680x1050) resolution,yeah i cant take the full advantage of it with 22" but it performs awesome :) 
October 9, 2008 1:32:03 PM

I have two separate HD4870s which have been in use in separate computers. Now one of the machines is upgraded to a 4870x2, and I want to do Crossfire with the two single 4870s. The problem is that I think I've lost my ribbon cables. I may be able to find one of them, but I think finding both may be impossible.

My question, Will full blown Crossfire work with 1 cable and not have a performance degradation ? I ask because all the crossfire setups I see use 2 cables. Also, if all else fails can I buy the crossfire ribbon cables anywhere?... I have upgraded to an X48 mobo so I will have full x16 crossfire support

Thanks in advance
October 9, 2008 2:37:01 PM

to crossfire the 2 HD4870s i think you only need one ribbon cable
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 9, 2008 7:43:17 PM

Do you want to CrossFire 2xHD 4870s ? or do you want to CrossFire
2xHD 4870 with your HD 4870X2?
October 9, 2008 8:07:10 PM

Maziar said:
Do you want to CrossFire 2xHD 4870s ? or do you want to CrossFire
2xHD 4870 with your HD 4870X2?



I will be using Two (single chip) HD4870s... Most of the time I see them, people are using two ribbon cables between the cards. The 4870x2 is in a totally different computer. (it gets confusing talking about two 4870s and the 4870x2 :)  )

All the pics I see of the 4870 cards crossfired have 2 ribbon cables... like this:
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 10, 2008 9:10:11 AM

Yes i think you need both
October 13, 2008 11:23:07 AM

hey Maziar, remeber you recommended me to buy a MAXIMUS FORMULA Mobo? just like yours. seems ASUS doesnt build it any more :(  and the guys from the shop recommend the ASUS P5E WS PRO. what do you think.
Seems all the same as maximus formula just without the good Sound card.
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 13, 2008 9:18:34 PM

Thats bad,so take a look @ ASUS P5E its exactly the same like MAXIMUS but doesnt have solid capcitors.
October 14, 2008 12:27:50 AM

ASUS P5E WS PRO has the solid Capacitors, but doesnt have the SupremeFX II. bothe are the same price, and in same price range is also the ASUS P5E DELUXE.
What to doo what to doo?


a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 14, 2008 7:42:04 AM

P5E DELUXE is a X48 board which i dont recommmend over X38 because the difference isnt much.
Between P5E and P5E WS PRO,both are good,P5E has a little better cooling and P5E WS PRO has solid capacitors.
October 17, 2008 8:38:37 PM

:) 
sticky!!!


good job

n thanx to maziar..
this post realy help full for me..n another :D 

..great job..

i can wait for your next post :D  :D  :D  :D  :D  :D  :D  :D  :D  :D 
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 18, 2008 9:01:05 AM

thanks mate :)  glad u found it useful
I have made another sticky for laptops too,its not informative,its 13 questions :) 
October 19, 2008 5:36:45 PM

Ok I'm still confused about x8 and x16 xfire - Will it make a big diff if i get 4850 xfire on x8 link rather than x16? Would the xfire bottleneck my e8400 3.4ghz?
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 19, 2008 6:22:05 PM

omar,plz read this FAQ completely,i have clearly stated in it,also other have asked the same question,so please read before asking :) 
October 23, 2008 9:35:13 PM

is it possible to SLI 8800 GTX with 8800 Ultra ???
both cards are detected and use the same clocking (clock of the GTX) but with nHancer, its said SLI detected but i cant Enable it!!!!

Plz help!!! need an answer fast cause if it dont work with GTX-Ultra, i wanna get another Ultra before they're sold out!!
a b Î Nvidia
a c 169 U Graphics card
October 24, 2008 8:26:11 AM

What is GPU-Z reporting ?
Also you can't enable SLI in Nvidia Control Panel ?
October 25, 2008 12:22:19 AM

Quote:
What is GPU-Z reporting ?
Also you can't enable SLI in Nvidia Control Panel ?


I didnt try GPU-Z and no i cant enable SLI in Nvidia Control Panel.

I read alot last night on somes forums and it's look like u cant SLI GTX with Ultra.
So i ordered another Ultra :D 
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