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970sli worth it?

jbh110tdi

jbh110tdi

jbh110tdi

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so ive been trying to keep an eye out for a cheap 2nd hand 980ti but nothing is coming up.. so I was thinking.. is it worth getting a 2nd 970 and going sli?
 
I have been using SLI 970s since launch (2yrs+) and for 1440p it's pretty good. However, not all games support it well or at all so you may want to check how your favoured games perform first. Personally I wouldn't want to this late in the 970 cycle unless you can pick one really cheap :p
 
Didn't like 970 sli myself, performance never felt right to me, I also tried 980 sli and thought that just seemed to work better, maybe it was the way the 970 memory is implemented but I could not say for certain as I did not keep them long enough to be sure.
I would stick with plan a and keep looking for a 980 ti
 
stooeh said:
I have been using SLI 970s since launch (2yrs+) and for 1440p it's pretty good. However, not all games support it well or at all so you may want to check how your favoured games perform first. Personally I wouldn't want to this late in the 970 cycle unless you can pick one really cheap :p
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Ive had a look at the games I play I don't think its supported for just cause 3 but haven't played that in a while. the other games it is supported.
Im starting to see them drop in price

I picked up a 970 last week for my nieces xmas so im half tempted to drop it in to test it out ( just need to find an sli bridge )

old gamer said:
I would stick with plan a and keep looking for a 980 ti
Click to expand...
yea for what ive seen in benchmarks the Sli 970's score around the same as the 980ti but at least you don't have the sli problems in games.

Im wondering if I found a cheap 970 could I drop that in for Sli and then next year if more 980ti's hit the 2nd hand market then I could try and get one and give my lad the best 970 out of the 2 and sell the other one.
 
The vram limitation is the main issue with sli 970's. That and patchy sli support along with added heat and power consumption. I wouldn't bother.
 
The vram issue is only limited to a tiny fraction of games and even then turn things down from ultra to high = problem solved, i still can't believe that people keep bringing that up, you don't even know what res he is running.

My best mate has 970 sli in his rig and plays at 1440p, the downsides is that some games are flat out not supported, sometimes you will have to wait longer for profiles (not that often though tbh) and in some instances you will be required to do a bit messing around to get it performing as expected.

If you are happy to trouble shoot and can pick one up cheap then it's worth it. A single more powerful card is the better option if you can afford it.
 
VRAM was a much bigger issue in SLI. always has been.

echo above, wouldnt bother unless you can pick up a cheap 970. better off selling your current card and buying a second hand 980ti or something. or a 1070.
 
970 sli is about 1070/1080 gtx performance.

so 1070 is starting to drop in price so might aswell just buy one of them now.save the hassles.
 
I have used SLI for years, when it works, its great!

But at the minute most of the new titles are crap with SLI!

I'm thinking of going single card next time!
 
Get a cheap 2nd hand GTX 970 (at least in Denmark they sell cheap 2nd hand and you can almost get them thown in your neck) and get more performance. If you aren't a person that runs out and buys the newest title when it comes, then SLi will benefit you especially also if you play some older titles where SLi support and scaling has become much better.
When you get to january or so and find a cheap 980Ti or 1070, then you get that and sell the 970's.

Every single new title released always get patched and always get some kind of optimization - it's been like that since the early AGP card days. A decade ago I stopped running out buying the latest titles because I got tired of paying premium price for a buggy experience more than half the time.

Personally I've run SLi permanently since 2006, and I have only seen improvements in the last 10 years. The trouble I had with SLi can be counted on less than 5 fingers.... which may also be because I've waited for the AAA titles to get patched and optimized before even bother buying them :)
 
Forget dual card setups unless you're buying an ultra high end rig where dual cards is the only natural progression (GTX1080 Sli, Titan Sli)

I've always found Sli and Crossfire to be more pain, hassle and heartache then they're worth. Patchy support, constantly having to disable and enable in some games, crap scaling in others....

Far better off with a GTX1070, massive upgrade and reliable, constant performance. Whereas going SLI, you'll get GTX1070 performance at best, but medicore, broken, and patchy performance in more games than not.
 
well Ive found an Sli bridge up the loft in my motherboard box so dropped the nieces 970 in as a 2nd card for a bit of fun..

it scores well on benchmarks not tried it in any games yet.. but I have noticed the extra noise even though I wouldn't say there running hot.

My cpu is idling hotter than before though but think that will be due to the extra heat in my case.

http://www.3dmark.com/3dm/15942361?
valley_2016_11_08_14_41_35_760_zpsssw2jyf6.png

heaven_2016_11_08_14_37_44_447_zpsvxfdzk8w.png


GTA v runs super sweet and hasnt dropped under high 60's FPS @ 1080p and on ultra
so yea that game works well. going to try dirt rally.

even though Im liking the results Im still in agreement that a single stronger card is better than Sli but Im wondering if a cheap 2nd 970 would tide me over till next year till I get a 980ti or 1070..
at the moment the only thing that puts me off is the extra noise..

I might steal the TV tonight and try some 4k gaming...
 
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I wouldn't if I was you.

Back in the day I wanted more power so doubled up on my 670. It was good in sone titles but most of the time it was loud, hot and came with its own issues.

Then you've got the beam problem. Two 970 is still only 3.5Gb of vram.

Save up and get a 1070 if you want an upgrade.
 
opethdisciple said:
I wouldn't if I was you.

Back in the day I wanted more power so doubled up on my 670. It was good in sone titles but most of the time it was loud, hot and came with its own issues.

Then you've got the beam problem. Two 970 is still only 3.5Gb of vram.

Save up and get a 1070 if you want an upgrade.
Click to expand...

I know the old story of only 3.5gb of ram a single 970 has this problem also..

at the moment ive got my niece's 970 in as a 2nd card so I can have a trial before dropping any money on a card.

so far in the 2 games ive tried both have shown a large improvement.

Im not one to rush out and buy the newest game unless it really takes my fancy.. last 2 games ive bought have been Mad Max and Mafia 3 ( which runs like **** according to most on any card ) Ive not really tried these games yet Ill have a play later. I dont think Mafia 3 will improve any. not sure about Mad Max apart from that and the 2 ive already tested it would be Just cause 3 and as far as im aware this does support sli.

I do agree with you I have noticed the extra noise. I wouldnt say my machine is running a lot hoter but there is a wee bit more heat there but its the cold weather so this could be a good thing.. :D
 
I'm currently running 2 MSI GTX 970's in SLI and gaming at 1440p.

I'm very happy with the setup and am running all games either completely or virtually maxed at this resolution. Having no issues with heat or noise either. When SLI isn't supported I find that it's not really required to be honest. Two examples are Doom and F1 2016 which both run very well on one card at a mixture of high/ultra settings (mainly ultra) above 60fps.

However, If I'm perfectly honest, I'd recommend a single card solution. SLI support isn't as good as it was when I first installed this setup a little over 2 years ago, and certainly in some upcoming games I don't think these cards have the VRAM requirement. 4GB seems fine for most current titles but probably not for much longer. I'm sticking with mine until the next Nvidia refresh, or perhaps could be tempted if the 1080Ti is a big jump over the 1080.

The 970's in SLI are pretty good, and I've had no issues; but I'd go with a 1070 I reckon if I only had the one card.
 
so Mad Max works well with Sli, Just Cause 3 doesnt, Mafia 3 doesnt which isint a surprise..

Ive not played JC 3 in a while... the driving is really poor.. think thats normal though thats maybe why ive not played it..

just got the messed up start menu.. first time ever seems to be an Sli issue for what ive found on searching.... yea single card for me..
 
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