Dual Graphics Comparison Table
Swipe to scroll horizontally
| Feature | ATI MVP Crossfire | NVIDIA SLI |
|---|---|---|
| Motherboard Requirements | ATI Radeon Xpress Crossfire Edition chipset or compatible (Intel 975X). | NVIDIA SLI certified chipset. Currently nForce4 SLI family only. |
| Motherboard Availability | Still limited. | Plenty of models around. |
| Graphics Cards Requirement | One MVP/Crossfire-compatible Master card and a second one that is at least equally good | Two equal SLI-compatible graphics cards |
| Dual Graphics Facts | Best performing scenario uses MVP/Crossfire Master graphics cards. These come with an additional chip that composes the imaged rendered by the two graphics chips. | SLI has some more overhead due to image composition that is done by the GPUs. In exchange, the GeForce 7 series top model is slightly faster today. |
| Dual Graphics Modes | SuperTilingScissorAlternate Frame RenderingSuper AA | Alternate Frame RenderingSplit Frame RenderingSuper AA |
| Graphics Card Interlink | DVI-type interlink cable | SLI bridge connector |
| Graphics Card Flexibility | Using ATI's 5.11 Catalyst driver (and up) eliminates the need for a Crossfire Master graphics card and allows running entry-level MVP setups without the interlink cable.Highest end models still in short supply. | Using ForceWare driver versions 80 and up eliminates the need for identical graphics cards and allows running entry-level SLI setups without the SLI bridge connector. |
| Driver Requirements and Details | ATI graphics driver with Crossfire/MVP mode enabled. Dual core CPU support to be added with release 5.12 | NVIDIA graphics driver with SLI mode enabled. Dual core CPUs supported. |
| Price range for two entry level graphics cards | $95 each (Radeon X1300) | $90 each (GeForce 6600LE) |
More about chipsets
