Video Array

[Slava]

Way cool:

<A HREF="http://www.madshrimps.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4961" target="_new">http://www.madshrimps.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4961</A>

<font color=red>Might we interest you in a motherboard with two PCI-Express graphics slots?</font color=red>

<A HREF="http://arstechnica.com/news/posts/1084398037.html" target="_new">http://arstechnica.com/news/posts/1084398037.html</A>

<font color=green>"The creative powers of English morphology are pathetic compared to what we find in other languages." (Steven Pinker, The Language Instinct)</font color=green> <P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Slava on 05/13/04 11:11 AM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[darko21]

Yes interesting stuff,

Here is another <A HREF="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1558,1591812,00.asp?kc=ETRSS02129TX1K0000532" target="_new"> Alienware PC To Contain Two Graphics Cards </A>


If I glanced at a spilt box of tooth picks on the floor, could I tell you how many are in the pile. Not a chance, But then again I don't have to buy my underware at Kmart.

 

[Slava]

Yeah. Finally, the path is clear. The only question is, will I have the patience to survive on my current system until X2 motherboards + corresponding CPUs and full-fledged PCI-E video cards become available.

It really sucks though that if you want the video array goodness you will have to buy a complete system from Alienware ... or wait yet ANOTHER year till someone reverse-engineers it. I am sort of hoping for ASUS to deliver promptly, as always, so I can build my own machine around PCI-E video array technology cuz I know for sure that I can do almost better than Alienware and at least $1000 cheaper at the same time. (They do make very beautiful cases though )

P.S. Hmmmm. Here's (raises a glass of scotch) to 3DfX, the pioneers of video array concept! I actually had a 2 Scan-Line Interleave machine once – all you needed was two PCI cards + a cable to connect them . . . Boy, how long ago was that?

<font color=green>"The creative powers of English morphology are pathetic compared to what we find in other languages." (Steven Pinker, The Language Instinct)</font color=green>

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

It really sucks though that if you want the video array goodness you will have to buy a complete system from Alienware ... or wait yet ANOTHER year till someone reverse-engineers it.

They don't have to reverse engineer it, it's not a new idea and is indeed in the standard. I even linked to it way back. Alienware has their proprietary way of making it work, but I doubt that it's that difficult. Unlike dual AGP, which was also possible, but required more bridge work, this was not a question of the ease of doing it, but the justification for the extra costs. Hopefully with an entry like Alienware in this technology it will push others to do similar solutions. You can almost be guaranteed there will be another entrant before year's end. Although by the same token, if no one is interested in the solution, or no benifit can be seen from it (like programs still not using it well for surround gaming), you might also see it die this year and be held in storage for future dates when it may be revived.

This is EXACTLY what I was hoping for though, so despite industry nay-sayers saying that the costs would be prohibitive (and me accepting those lines), it looks like there could be the possibility of and X880XT for the main monitor and an X6x0 supporting both surrounds. Heck we may even be able to have both and X880 and an NV45 in the same rig at the same time (can you imagine the driver hell? :lol: ).

In any case, looks good. Hope we see some early samples running even the most basic surround by mid-summer.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK

 

[Vapor]

Erm....X-Bit's take on the situation is that both cards will need to be the same card and will render the same image at once...not exactly one card per monitor (though that would be GREAT, [probably even easier to implement, IMO] the design is probably to have the two cards work together on one monitor).

Maxtor disgraces the six letters that make Matrox.

 

[TheGreatGrapeApe]

Ahhhh like the HR256 from Matrox, except with two cards.

I can see that, but that has less practical applications IMO. I also think it's going to be much harder with gaming versus something like the HR's slower/even static images. Sync will be interesting.

Well we'll see, I have a feeling that the software and driver support is still going to be a b1tch though.


- You need a licence to buy a gun, but they'll sell anyone a stamp <i>(or internet account)</i> ! - <font color=green>RED </font color=green> <font color=red> GREEN</font color=red> GA to SK

 

[coolsquirtle]

oh boy....... what's next? motherboard array?

RIP Block Heater....HELLO P4~~~~~
120% nVidia Fanboy+119% Money Fanboy
GeForce 6800 Ultra--> The Way we thought FX 5800Ultra is meant to be played
THGC's resident Asian and nVboy

 

[Mind_Rebuilding]

We have got multi-CPU, multi-channel memory, video array,
RAID...... The next: sound card array?

 

[flamethrower205]

lol, that'd be sick. Dual headphones....one all bass vibrator for your crotch and one regular pair for your ears. Mmm...this could lend a new dimension to porno!

SEX is like math. Add the bed, subtract the clothes, divide the legs, and hope you dont multiply

 

[Vimp]

Support for it shouldn't be neccesary, whether it be driver support or software support, since, from the sounds of it, its designed so that the two graphics cards will evenly split the load regardless of whether programs have been made to support it or not. I just wonder if the dual cpus on Alienware's mobo works the same way. Other wise there won't be alot of use for the two cpus. And without two cpus it is likly that the dual videocards will be held back in most games anyways.

<font color=blue>_______________________________</font color=blue>
Canada
Asus A7N8X-X, Athelon XP 2500+ Barton,
Samsung 1gb DDR400, MSI GeforceFX5900 XT.
Aquamark=<b>36077</b> 3DMark03=<b>5322</b>