Newbie question about SLI...?

[jakobkraft]

If your mobo has only 1 PCI-e slot, then there's no way to utilize SLI...is this correct?

 

[imported_rod]

Yeah. It needs to have 2 PCI-E x16 slots (look similar to the AGP slots they replaced) to use SLI.

why?

 

[jdogg707]

Yup, for SLI you need a nForce 4 SLI board w/2 PCIe x16 slots and two SLI capable graphics cards.

 

[jakobkraft]

Originally posted by: rod
Yeah. It needs to have 2 PCI-E x16 slots (look similar to the AGP slots they replaced) to use SLI.

why?

These two morons at my job were arguing over the benefits of a 6800 GT card vs. an x850 XT. I knew offhandedly that the 6800s supported something called SLI...so while they were arguing, I looked it up and it seemed like unless your mobo had two PCI-e slots, it wasn't relevant.
I've now pointed this out to them.

And guess what, the guy's mobo doesn't. So the discussion has ended and the office is now quiet...:laugh:

 

[imported_rod]

Originally posted by: jdogg707
Yup, for SLI you need a nForce 4 SLI board w/2 PCIe x16 slots and two SLI capable graphics cards.

They've almost released the p4 SLI chipset. Good news for intel fans.

Originally posted by: jakobkraft
These two morons at my job were arguing over the benefits of a 6800 GT card vs. an x850 XT. I knew offhandedly that the 6800s supported something called SLI...so while they were arguing, I looked it up and it seemed like unless your mobo had two PCI-e slots, it wasn't relevant.
I've now pointed this out to them.

And guess what, the guy's mobo doesn't. So the discussion has ended and the office is now quiet...:laugh:

Who buys non-SLI boards these days anyway ?

RoD

 

[jdogg707]

Originally posted by: rod

Originally posted by: jdogg707
Yup, for SLI you need a nForce 4 SLI board w/2 PCIe x16 slots and two SLI capable graphics cards.

They've almost released the p4 SLI chipset. Good news for intel fans.

Originally posted by: jakobkraft
These two morons at my job were arguing over the benefits of a 6800 GT card vs. an x850 XT. I knew offhandedly that the 6800s supported something called SLI...so while they were arguing, I looked it up and it seemed like unless your mobo had two PCI-e slots, it wasn't relevant.
I've now pointed this out to them.

And guess what, the guy's mobo doesn't. So the discussion has ended and the office is now quiet...:laugh:

Who buys non-SLI boards these days anyway ?

RoD

The Intel board is also called the nForce4, except this time, it is the Intel Edition. And people don't buy SLI motherboards because they either don't want to spend the money, the performance increase in a given scneario doesn't justify the increased price, and/or don't have the power requirements to handle an SLI system.

 

[FerrisBuller]

Originally posted by: jdogg707

Originally posted by: rod

Originally posted by: jdogg707
Yup, for SLI you need a nForce 4 SLI board w/2 PCIe x16 slots and two SLI capable graphics cards.

They've almost released the p4 SLI chipset. Good news for intel fans.

Originally posted by: jakobkraft
These two morons at my job were arguing over the benefits of a 6800 GT card vs. an x850 XT. I knew offhandedly that the 6800s supported something called SLI...so while they were arguing, I looked it up and it seemed like unless your mobo had two PCI-e slots, it wasn't relevant.
I've now pointed this out to them.

And guess what, the guy's mobo doesn't. So the discussion has ended and the office is now quiet...:laugh:

Who buys non-SLI boards these days anyway ?

RoD

The Intel board is also called the nForce4, except this time, it is the Intel Edition. And people don't buy SLI motherboards because they either don't want to spend the money, the performance increase in a given scneario doesn't justify the increased price, and/or don't have the power requirements to handle an SLI system.

Two graphics cards... that can get real pricey.

Is SLI graphics worth the cost, IYHO?

 

[jdogg707]

Originally posted by: FerrisBuller

Originally posted by: jdogg707

Originally posted by: rod

Originally posted by: jdogg707
Yup, for SLI you need a nForce 4 SLI board w/2 PCIe x16 slots and two SLI capable graphics cards.

They've almost released the p4 SLI chipset. Good news for intel fans.

Originally posted by: jakobkraft
These two morons at my job were arguing over the benefits of a 6800 GT card vs. an x850 XT. I knew offhandedly that the 6800s supported something called SLI...so while they were arguing, I looked it up and it seemed like unless your mobo had two PCI-e slots, it wasn't relevant.
I've now pointed this out to them.

And guess what, the guy's mobo doesn't. So the discussion has ended and the office is now quiet...:laugh:

Who buys non-SLI boards these days anyway ?

RoD

The Intel board is also called the nForce4, except this time, it is the Intel Edition. And people don't buy SLI motherboards because they either don't want to spend the money, the performance increase in a given scneario doesn't justify the increased price, and/or don't have the power requirements to handle an SLI system.

Two graphics cards... that can get real pricey.

Is SLI graphics worth the cost, IYHO?

If you are playing on a monitor with a native resolution of 1920x1200 or something like that, then probably yes. It just depends on how much you are willing to spend in order to make your computer play games faster. I had a pair of 6800GT's and though they were amazing, I just didn't see the benefit from them. Are you hardcore? Do you have money to burn? If you answered yes to these, then SLI is for you, otherwise, a fast single card solution will probably be just as adequate.

 

[exilera]

I don't think any game out currently will benefit much from an SLI setup over a x850 or even 6800gt ultra. In the future, probably, but then you'll have single card alternatives that'll be cheaper than buying a pair of lesser cards to equal the same performance.

 

[fstime]

NF4 Ultra > SLI mod for the win!