Is the 9800GTX+ SLI as good as 4870x2 for only 2/3 the money?

[EKgamer]

Is the 9800GTX+ SLI as good as 4870x2 for only 2/3 the money?

9800GTX+ is now only £120 in UK per card (Novatech/Scan/Overclockers etc), £240 for SLI.

4870 x2 is now £335 in UK.

Based on the Toms Hardware FPS chart it looks like 2 9800GTX+'s in SLI offers 595 points v a 4870x2 or 4870 CF at about 603 points.

So for £240 in UK I can get Nvidia 9800GTX+ SLI, or for £335 I can get a 4870x2.

Is the 9800GTX+ SLI really that good value and performance? Is it the same performance for only 2/3 of the money of a 4870x2?

Currently I have a dual core 939 Opteron running at 2.25GHz, 2GB RAM, 22 inch monitor 1680x1050, Asus A8N32-SLI motherboard with a single 7600GT.
Games I mostly play are Eve Online, Frontlines Fuel of War, BF2, COD5, Counter Strike but I'm looking to add to these. So I expect a single 9800GTX+ to be a massive leap forward for me, and after 6-12 months I will buy another for SLI and be capable of running most games for the next couple of years ok.

Link

Tom's Hardware - Benchmark Sum of FPS Benchmarks 1680x1050 AA

 

[xxcoop42xx]

ok ive had those cards in sli before and i can only say one thing, WOW. they will rip through anything you put to them at the highest settings. i played at 1440x900 with mine and it was heavenly. but then i got sli gtx 260-216 just because. and fyi sli 9800gt outpreform a gtx280 most if not all the time so sli 9800gtx+ will be even more. and the gtx280 and 4870x2 trade blows sometimes so i say go for it. your going to want to oc your cpu around 3.0ghz though if you can, if you cant you may want to upgrade that first. check this review out

http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce--9800-gtx-sli-review-plus-model/1

 

[roush2fast]

I’m in a similar debate as I also have a 9800GTX+


1) 9800GTX+ SLI
or
2) GTX260 C16

Just can’t make up my mind.

with E8400 ( 4.0 )

 

[magicbullet]

I understand that 98gtx SLI is as good as 4870x2, but you should look more into single card solution. As you may know, some games could not utialize duel graphic card solution. GTX+ is ok, but in a year, you will not be able to find it on the market. by chance if you are able to find it, your CPU will be the limitation of your system and it would not be that much helpful. I would suggest any nvidia 2XX GTX would be a better choice then upgrade your CPU.

 

[orangegator]

Whatever you choose, your opteron cpu @2.25ghz is going to be a big bottleneck to those graphics card(s). You're going to need a much faster cpu to take full advantage of the better graphics cards.

 

[boulard83]

Agree ... Need new CPU ... and GPU ! (mobo too)

 

[Rosanjin]

Definitely time to overhaul the entire platform. You'll get a lot more out of your new GPU's that way. Old CPU/MOBO/RAM will choke the performance of todays GPU's.

 

[cyber_jockey]

Nice comparison using toms charts why dont you break up the 4870x2 into a single card then you would get a HD4870 Now split the 98gtx sli and compare a single 98gtx to a single 4870. I'm no brainer but a 4870 demolish the old gtx 260 and even the gtx 260 with its huge memory width smoked the 98gtx. What I'm getting at is a 4870 is way faster then a 98gtx btw do you know who scale better between cfire and sli ? I made my point do more digging about performance and great ape already pointed this out about their charts and the ppl using it in forums. 4870x2 never trade blows with the gtx280. ATi own the gtx series until recently. Why do think the gtx295 exist to take back the crown ofcourse?

 

[boulard83]

IM pretty happy with my SLI 9800GTX+ OC. I perform REALLY good with of course an OCed cpu and a good alim. Firstly had a GTX+ and SLIed it later. Buyed my first one last years, Futurshop had a listing error. the GTX+ was 179.99 CAD (150 US) and my second one last mont for about the same price. So this SLI cost about .. 380$ CAD (320 US). quite cheap for the Perf i have now ... Im now waiting for the next Gen to go for a SLI GTX280-285.. im the kind of guy that wait till the NEW one is out to buy the one just under it ... CHEAPER !!! and still good.

 

[4745454b]

For 16x10, with a 2.2GHz K8 CPU, you don't need SLI 9800GTX. Any single high end card will work fine. Yes, SLI 9800GTX should be able to handle just about anything out there right now, at just about any res. The 4870x2 is really for people who have only one PCIe slot.

Your in a tough spot right now. Both your motherboard, CPU, GPU, and ram need upgrading. Judging from the age of your machine, you'll probably need a new PSU as well. (unless yours has the new 8 pin motherboard connector and enough PCIe plugs to power two 9800GTXs) I would grab a 9800GTX now, then upgrade your mobo and CPU and RAM next. Depending on your PSU, you might need to upgrade this BEFORE you upgrade your "guts" so you can support the new motherboard. After all this, you can probably toss the 9800GTX as something else will be better

 

[Maziar]

+1^^ get a single 9800GTX and upgrade your CPU/Motherboard and RAM, a single 9800GTX is good for 16x10 resolution

 

[EKgamer]

Guys, thank you so much for the excellent replies, they are all first class. It's been useful to hear that some of you have tried 9800GTX+ and said it rocks! ;-)

I have some further information which might help. Maybe some other readers are in a similar position.

Motherboard - Asus A8N32-SLI - so it sort of leads me towards an Nvidia solution, or I can only get a single ATI until I change mobo/cpu/ram and that will cost £400-£700 (Core2/Phenom or Corei7) which is money I can't spend on a pc rght now.

Budget - I'm trying to get pretty good performance for the best price. A single 9800GTX+ is now only £120, I know it's similar or perhaps slightly stronger than the £125 4850, but weaker than the £190 4870. But the 4870 costs £70/$100 more.

Right now I'm sticking with my cpu/mobo/ram but will probably upgrade in the second half of 2009 when prices for Corei7/DDR3 have lowered, and I can see what's available from both camps then.

CPU - 2.25 ghz socket 939 Opteron.
Mobo - Asus A8N32SLI-Deluxe with 3GB RAM.

PSU - Akasa P650FH, luckily I bought a fairly good 650W. 4 x 12v rails, it has 2 dedicated PCI-E 6 pin cables. Actually does the 9800GTX+ need both 6 pins? If so then I might need to upgrade the psu when I get a 2nd gfx card, that would add to the cost of a 2nd card. Mmmm.

So for a single card at £120 - Is the 9800GTX+ the best for "my situation"? (crappy cpu, nvidia sli mobo etc lol)

For a total of £240 on graphics card tech is the 9800GTX+SLI going to outperform any other solution costing about £250/$330?

FYI - Just seen 512MB 4870 for £155 inc VAT at Novatech, http://forum.novatech.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7043. This makes my decision harder again!!!

Looking forward to the replies.

 

[boulard83]

newest 98gtx+ have one PCI6 (my 2 BFGs are. only one PCIe-6)

Your cpu cant handle a SLI. so stick with one card for now. GTX+ or HD4870 if you can affort.

just Update to be able to have fun for today. Wait till I7-DDR3 are cheaper to start having BIG fun.

 

[xxcoop42xx]

newest 98gtx+ have one PCI6 (my 2 BFGs are. only one PCIe-6)

Your cpu cant handle a SLI. so stick with one card for now. GTX+ or HD4870 if you can affort.

just Update to be able to have fun for today. Wait till I7-DDR3 are cheaper to start having BIG fun.

agreed, anything from the 4850 to the 9800gtx+ and the 4870 will hold you over well for now

 

[EKgamer]

I got the 9800GTX+ for £124 from Novatech "own brand". It's working sweetly. It fitted in my case, just had to move a hard drive up a slot. It's a red pcb Palit card, looks cool.

Temps approx 1 minute after closing Eve Online:
CPU 43'C
Mobo 43'C
Hard Drive 40'C
GTX9800+ 38'C

I have just closed a game and the room is warm here at approx 24'C.

I've tried the 9800GTX+ with 2 games so far, Eve Online and Call of Duty 5 (World at War). I've turned up all all the eye candy and space looks even better in Eve Online and it's giving 120fps.

COD-WOW gave a notification that the system appeared to have changed, I accepted the offer to update the ingame settings. The settings were all max, or just 1 level below max. I've turned them all to max, it looks that little bit better and plays very smoothly.

Thanks guys.

FYI - in case anyone else is looking for comparison of upgrading, I went from a 7600GT 256MB PCI-E to a 9800GTX+ and it has meant that I can play with all the settings turned to max and have really smooth gameplay. While my 7600GT was a good card and allowed me to play all the games I have tried, it's fps and eye-candy were limited a bit.

Also, my system is this
CPU - AMD Opteron dual core cpu at 2.25ghz socket 939.
RAM - 2GB/3GB of DDR (old style 400 RAM).
Mobo - Asus A8N32-SLI Deluxe (2 x PCI-E x16 slots).
PSU - Akasa P650FH with PCI-E 6 pin connectors and 4 x 12v rails. It's had good reviews.

I used to have a cheap 650w PSU by Sweex but it went bang and took my motherboard with it. Both were returned to the supplier under warranty, but the motherboard took ages to get a replacement because Asus had stopped making them. Asus have 3 yr warranty on mobos but you're kind of SOL if they have stopped making it when it goes wallop.

But all kudos has to go to www.bluepoint.net for staying on the case and getting me an Asus A8N32-SLI Deluxe motherboard after about 7 weeks of trying.

 

[boulard83]

haha nice ! happy to hear it milord !