Would I benefit from using a separate gpu for physx?

chiefkikaho

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Sep 11, 2011
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So I have an extra gpu laying around and it's an 8800 Ultra OC....

I am currently running a gts 250 1gb oc.....

I was originally going to sell it and then I went poking around through forums to see if i could SLI them because they are very similar cards. Obviously I can't and i ran into some threads about using a separate card just for physx alone.... the debates were inconclusive but the threads were also from 08 or 09.

I was wondering if slappin in the 8800 ultra would help with anything.... I do have dual monitors i use... I normally turn one off when i'm gaming but when i'm doing everything else, i normally have an extended desktop to watch videos on while i'm doing whatever on my primary display.

what would the benefits of having 2 cards in my rig? Answer for any situation you would think i could benefit from. with the money i was gonna get from selling the ultra, i was thinking about sellin the gts 250 as well and upgrade to a higher single card. Money is a lil tight so i would rather deal with the 2 cards for now, and put that towards an SSD instead and pick up an elite card later.


my configuration:

i5 2500k @ 4.5ghz
GA-Z68X-UD4-B3
Cooler Master hyper 212+ (35c at idle, 57 at full load)
8gb g skill ripjaws 1600 (overclocked to 1866)
antec neo eco 620c
BFG gts 250 oc 1gb (mildly overclocked on my end as well)
1.5tb caviar green
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
 
Solution
GPU accelerated Physx is a worthwhile feature in approximately 5 games IMO. Of those the ones you would be most likely to play at this point are Batman:AA and Mafia 2. Perhaps use it as a Physx card and go through those games if you are interested in them but I wouldn't recommend using it long term as a Physx card. The 8800 Ultra used a lot of power even just at idle, over 70w. So outside of when you are playing the handful of games that can actually benefit from a Physx card it will just be sucking down power and raising your bill.
GPU accelerated Physx is a worthwhile feature in approximately 5 games IMO. Of those the ones you would be most likely to play at this point are Batman:AA and Mafia 2. Perhaps use it as a Physx card and go through those games if you are interested in them but I wouldn't recommend using it long term as a Physx card. The 8800 Ultra used a lot of power even just at idle, over 70w. So outside of when you are playing the handful of games that can actually benefit from a Physx card it will just be sucking down power and raising your bill.
 
Solution