[Solved] GTX 480 SLI + 8600GT PhysX?

Forum Graphics & Displays : Graphics Cards [Solved] GTX 480 SLI + 8600GT PhysX?

Hello all,

I have a friend who's got a 8600GT lying around and would gladly give it to me... but I'm not sure if a 8600GT would improve FPS.
Would I be better off just using the 480's or would it actually give me a little boost?

If it's 2-3 fps, then I'd rather not use the extra power, but if it's a bit more, I'd consider it.
I have read a few articles with a single 480 and more recent 200 series cards as the dedicated PhysX card, and was pleasantly surprised...
Although this is an extra 480 and a weaker PhysX card... What do ya think?

I'd be playing Metro 2033, Dragon Age: Origins, and Batman: AA to name a few with PhysX.

Reply to redechelon

Best answer

it's not worth it to use a 8600GT with such a high powered SLI setup. I have seen real benchies from a GTX480 SLI setup perform better alone than with a lower end dedicated Physx card. In this case, it was a 9800GT with a GTX480 setup. It didn't help at all.

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Reply to pinaplex

In games that use GPU accelerated PhysX (there are about 15), it would help performance, because the PhyX would steal power from the 480's ability to render while performing PhysX calculations. The rest of the time, you might see a ~1% slow down in performance due to the extra driver overhead.

For a list of GPU accelerated games: http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_physxgames_home.html

Reply to bystander

pinaplex wrote :

Yeah i've wondered if the game would prefer to use the 480's even if there is a dedicated card... that's a bummer to hear.

Quote :

For a list of GPU accelerated games: http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_physxgames_home.html

This list claims WAY more than 15 btw... I have enough of these to make it worthwhile if it is an improvement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PhysX#Games

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Message edited by redechelon on 06-08-2010 at 01:41:28 AM

Reply to redechelon

=[ Had to ask. Thanks guys.

Reply to redechelon

Best answer selected by redechelon.

Reply to redechelon

redechelon wrote :

Well I listed the PhysX games I'd be using... and I know in theory, it should improve performance, but I'm not sold. I hope you're right.
Maybe I'll just ask him to borrow the card and try for myself.

This list claims WAY more than 15 btw... I have enough of these to make it worthwhile if it is an improvement.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PhysX#Games

Your list of games is not for "PhysX GPU accelerated" games. That is a list of games using physX in any form, or just using a physX capible game engine. These games either use PhysX on the CPU only, or not at all (the engine is capible, but the dev's decided not to use it).

The list I gave ( http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_physxgames_home.html ) is a list of games that will benefit from a PhysX video card (or PPU). That list has 17 games on it. The list of games you show, the vast majority will not benefit one bit from a physX video card.

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by bystander on 06-08-2010 at 02:36:05 AM

Reply to bystander

bystander wrote :

The list I gave ( http://www.nzone.com/object/nzone_physxgames_home.html ) is a list of games that will benefit from a PhysX video card (or PPU). That list has 17 games on it. The list of games you show, the vast majority will not benefit one bit from a physX video card.

Ahhhh, thanks. Sorry, bystander.

I see Metro 2033 is missing... Is it just not updated, or does it not benefit from a card? I know the game has an "Advanced PhysX" option, but I guess that could just be in general. More so just curious now, as it seems like a pointless upgrade for me.

Message edited by redechelon on 06-08-2010 at 04:02:12 AM

Reply to redechelon

Metro 2033 is interesting. It can use accelerated GPU physX, but it performs better without GPU accelerated physX. It might belong on the list, as it will use the GPU if given the choice, but it performs best on the CPU (unless you have a dedicated physX card).

Reply to bystander

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