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280 GTX Sli, worth it?

V-Spec

V-Spec

V-Spec

Soldato
Joined
8 Jun 2005
Posts
3,698
Location
London
currently pondering a big build, I know theres a lot of *different opinions* regarding SLI/Crossfire, and the amount of extra performance it brings.. Is it really worth be buying 2x GTX 280s, or am I better off with a single 4870x2 or 280GTX?

I've read stacks of reviews and comparisons, and as normal the results and opinions are mixed depending where you look. I'm just interested in non-biased opinion!..... if that exists :p

Any advice would be much appreciated!
 
Depends what resolution, if youre at 1920x1200 or above then it can bring big gains.

For 1680x1050 or lower then you should be fine with a single one.

My advice is to habng on till after xmas to see what the new nvidia cards bring
 
How about 2 of the new 55nm 260's? Should give great performance for the money. Currently listed at £220 on a competitor site.
 
Will normally will be running 1920-1200, hence why I thought it may be worth it..

Every single time i've everasked about buying a graphics card, advice has always been "wait for the new cards!!!11" :p i'd never end up buying one, as they come out every 2-4 months at the moment!!
 
Diggsy said:
How about 2 of the new 55nm 260's? Should give great performance for the money. Currently listed at £220 on a competitor site.
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Thought about it, however if I can afford the extra to go for 2x280s, would the performance increase be worth it,for 1920x1200?
 
I'd say yes, it's worth it, if you're on a 30" screen.

I switched from a single GTX280 to a single 4870x2 when I got my 30" screen, and it helps a lot at the 2560*1600 resolution. At 1920*1200 though the GTX280 was already plenty powerful enough, and I don't see too much qualitative improvement with the new card at that resolution.

You could also consider the GTX295, the 55nm dual-card solution from nvidia. It seems like this card performs very well, from the inital previews.
 
V-Spec said:
Will normally will be running 1920-1200, hence why I thought it may be worth it..

Every single time i've everasked about buying a graphics card, advice has always been "wait for the new cards!!!11" :p i'd never end up buying one, as they come out every 2-4 months at the moment!!
Click to expand...


"wait for the new cards!!!11"


Most useless piece of advice ever, unless of course you're anally retentive and enjoy spending weeks and weeks agonizing over which GPU to buy. "Wait for the new cards" is also perfect for your anal retentive as it allows him to retain his money for longer.

:)
 
Currently looking at a pair of 260s in SLI, I play on a 24" screen so 9834598345x98345945 resolution isn't that important for me :p

hmmmm
 
Someone has too much disposable income in these trying times!

Is there really a need to get 2 * 280's? What are you struggling with?
 
magicoi said:
Someone has too much disposable income in these trying times!

Is there really a need to get 2 * 280's? What are you struggling with?
Click to expand...

Hey dude, it's his money don't pass judgement on what he spends it on. Hell old GB would see him as a hero for spending money and keeping the wheels turning. ;)
 
I've got two GTX 280's in SLI.

I'll find some tests I did:

8800 GTX
12fps 1920x1200 Very High Crysis DX10 Benchmark

GTX 280
21fps 1920x1200 Very High Crysis DX10 Benchmark

GTX 280 x2 SLI
36fps 1920x1200 Very High Crysis DX10 Benchmark


It may be expensive but you'll be laughing when it comes to playing any game on any settings. Call of Duty 4 plays at 300fps on max settings...
 
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Single cards can handle that res fine, so id just get a 260-216 like the EVGA SSC, or the XFX BLACK EDITION.

EDIT: Poor example above, as he'll be crying at that, not laughing. :p
 
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I'm very tempted to go i7 and get another 280 but trying to hold back! Keep telling myself I don't need it yet lol. Gonna try and hold out for 6 months at least.
 
Just ordered my rig from here... Went for:

I7 920,
2x 260GTX's(BGF Maxcore)
P6T Deluxe,
6Gb Gskill DDR3.
300GB velociraptor,
additional 24" monitor....

As long as I post for advice people will always have different opinions lol, I just need to sift through what people say and it has helped! cheers

:)
 
Ranger07 said:
I'd go for it, SLI is working better than ever these days.

If you have an i7 cpu the gains are even bigger.
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no they aren't. Almost every single review shows no difference at gpu limited resolutions. one single solitary review showed a massive difference, it also benched an I7 with 4 cores against a dual core C2D, every other reviewer engaged their brain, used a C2Q for a like to like comparison and found no difference.
 
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