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AM3 mobo SLI/CF question

Forum Motherboards & Memory : General Motherboard - AM3 mobo SLI/CF question

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touchdowntexas13   05-21-2009 at 06:39:03 AM

I think i am going to build a new machine based on the new AM3 mobo. However i want it to handle BOTH Sli and CF

Will this mobo do the trick?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128377

The website shows support for CF, but i also want the ability to do SLI if i so choose.

Also, can someone recommend a good 4gb of memory for this mobo? right now this is what i have selected:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231200

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hunter315   05-21-2009 at 06:46:02 AM
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Only the intel X58 chipset and nVidia chipsets support SLI and the nVidia chipsets for AMD boards dont get stellar reviews unless you are going the i7 route you are restricted to either a lesser motherboard or CF only.

Reply to hunter315
touchdowntexas13   05-21-2009 at 06:49:31 AM
- 0 +

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/S [...] ,7330.html

"For Gigabyte's EX58-UD4, the method does work according to the PC Home Advance article. The magazine managed to flash the motherboard with the latest F6 Gigabyte EX58-UD4P (note the "P" ) Nvidia SLI-certified BIOS and actually enable SLI on the cheaper EX58-UD4 model. Ironically, the EX58-UD4 offers CrossFire multi-GPU setups right out of the box, so by flashing the BIOS, the board thus supports both CrossFire and SLI. Coolness."

That says that the "p" means that sli is supported. the mobo i have selected is ud5p. That's the article on unlocking SLI on a non-sli gigabyte mobo. however it says the p at the end is what makes the mobo sli compatible...

Reply to touchdowntexas13
touchdowntexas13   05-21-2009 at 06:50:45 AM
- 0 +

oh but i see that's the x58 mobo. i guess that might make a difference being that it is an intel socket...

that sucks.

Reply to touchdowntexas13
megamanx00   05-21-2009 at 07:03:13 AM
- 0 +

There are no SLI AM3 boards. Blame nVidia. I don't think they will release any new chipsets for AMD platforms and they haven't offered the ability for board partners to add SLI to AMD chipsets like they did for Intel's X58 chipset. The only way to get SLI on an AM3 platform is by using hacked drivers.

------------------------------ Playing X-Men Origins: Wolverine Athlon 64 X2 5000+ @3.24 Brisbane | GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-DS4 | 4GB Mushkin DDR2 1066 | Plextor 760A| 2x 3850 512M CF| WD 1TB Black| Fortron Blue Storm II 500W | APEVIA X-Dreamer Black | Win XP Pro & Vista Buisness 32bit
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Bronze Motherboards badge gkay09   05-21-2009 at 07:11:39 AM
- 0 +

^ +1
The SLI chipsets apart from the X58 are flaky and many would not suggest you to get them...
And as for the memory, how about CAS 6 with LED effect :P for about $71 and one of the most stable RAMs out there - Crucial
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820148261

Reply to gkay09
touchdowntexas13   05-21-2009 at 08:40:31 PM
- 0 +

That really sucks. It almost makes me not want to buy from Nvidia. However, as a consumer i have to buy what is best for the money, and there is no way to predict that two years down the road.

 

The only solution to this problem would be to go the i7 route. What do you guys think? There is a $123 difference between my AM3 build and i7 build (all parts from Newegg). I am not even sure if i would do SLI/CF, but i like having my options open too. Is the i7 with SLI worth the extra $123?


Message edited by touchdowntexas13 on 05-21-2009 at 08:41:06 PM
Reply to touchdowntexas13
touchdowntexas13   05-21-2009 at 09:29:08 PM
- 0 +

Actually with rebates it's only a $106 difference. That's also with the processor from Newegg. Someone told me that i could get a core i7 920 from Micro Center for $200, but i can't even find an i7 920 on Micro Center's site...

Reply to touchdowntexas13
Bronze Motherboards badge gkay09   05-22-2009 at 06:06:36 AM
- 0 +

^ Well I had heard that in Microcenter, they have only store pick up for i7...so it might not be listed on their website....


Message edited by gkay09 on 05-22-2009 at 06:21:30 AM
Reply to gkay09
touchdowntexas13   05-22-2009 at 08:00:09 AM
- 0 +

oh ok thanks. If i could get the i7 for $200, i would for sure go for i7, though i don't necessarily need the extra computing power.

Reply to touchdowntexas13
Bronze Motherboards badge gkay09   05-22-2009 at 08:16:07 AM
- 0 +

If you are dead set on SLI, then the i7 is the way to go...
As it supports both SLI/ Crossfire, you can choose any card from the red and green camp which offers best value ;)

Reply to gkay09
touchdowntexas13   05-22-2009 at 08:24:38 AM
- 0 +

haha yeah. somethin just bugs me about not having that option...

I think it's rather ridiculous, but i'm not the one selling/making pc parts here.

Reply to touchdowntexas13
zipzoomflyhigh   05-22-2009 at 05:27:15 PM
- 0 +

I dont see why you MUST have SLI and crossfire, just pick one and go with it.

------------------------------ P965/Q6700@3.2 8MB HD4850 OC Edition
4GB Corsair XMS 800
Vista64/Win7
Fatality 550w/Antec 300
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touchdowntexas13   05-22-2009 at 05:56:20 PM
- 0 +

well either you didn't read my post, or somehow you don't place a lot of importance on getting the best value out of your hardware. who's to say that ATI will still be offering the best $200 deal (2xhd4770's) a year from now? As a consumer i would like the option to choose.

does that make any sense?

Reply to touchdowntexas13
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