Crossfiring... Is it worth it?

mxoagentjohnson

mxoagentjohnson

mxoagentjohnson

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Hey guys, i'm here to ask a question to those out there with Crossfire/SLI rigs.

Is it worth it, my current rig runs a 68701gb with an i7 2600 and 6 gigs of ram, but only a 750w power supply

Is it worth crossfiring this for that extra push in games such as BF3, Saints Row 3 and the ever growing demand of some games!

Thanks again! if no to crossfire make some recommendations, im always up for trying a SLI rig for NVIDIA! :)

(Also to note, i was planning on getting a 3D ready 120hz monitor to give that 120fps push and the crossfire setup would make sure i hit that many frames!)
 
The only question is do you play enough games that will use crossfire warrant it? BF3 you'll get the full benefit.
 
I originally got my rig to play games such as TF2, Fallout 1-2, deus ex and other not so demanding titles, including source mods.

But now as i feel the strain of Bf3, feel the strain of other games that i wanna max i kinda do want to get a second card, and considering the 6870 is cheap and gives great crossfire performance i would consider crossfiring, unless sli nvidia was better if i possibly wanted to use nvidia 3d in the future (highly unlikely, just want the 120hz monitor)
 
Dear god YES :D


I love my 6950s, only complaint would be the delay in getting crossfire profiles out, but they scale incredibly well :) much better than i'd expected.
 
mxoagentjohnson said:
The reason i am skeptical is i heard micro stuttering is rampant on crossfire rigs.

That and i shouldnt really crossfire a 6870.
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Honestly, it's not something I've had any real issue with. If you've seen it in action and it's an issue for you then fair enough, go with a high end single-card solution. :)

Why shouldnt you xfire a 6870?
 
Alex74 said:
Honestly, it's not something I've had any real issue with. If you've seen it in action and it's an issue for you then fair enough, go with a high end single-card solution. :)

Why shouldnt you xfire a 6870?
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Someone said "It's only really worth crossfiring with a 560 or 580 setup (sli in this case) because they are similar price + better performance.

that and i want to get the 120hz monitor and 3D setup )maybe for the 3d)
 
mxoagentjohnson said:
Someone said "It's only really worth crossfiring with a 560 or 580 setup (sli in this case) because they are similar price + better performance.

that and i want to get the 120hz monitor and 3D setup )maybe for the 3d)
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Huh. Well the idea has merit insofar as if you're building a totally new rig, single card solutions in the mid-high range will be generally cost effective.

But given you have a decent card already, in this case I'd argue that it's much more cost effective to keep what you already have and crossfire with a second one, especially when they can be had on the cheap.

Although if you're considering the 3D route, then you might want to take that step back and consider an NVidia solution. A decent 120Hz monitor will set you back a fair amount, so it's up to you and what solution you'd like to go with. I dont have experience in 3D so I cant really advise on that front.


Generally in these situations I'd suggest seetting down a budget, and seeing what the best you can do is going to be out of that. That tends to be the best way to approach hardware choices. :)
 
Alex74 said:
Huh. Well the idea has merit insofar as if you're building a totally new rig, single card solutions in the mid-high range will be generally cost effective.

But given you have a decent card already, in this case I'd argue that it's much more cost effective to keep what you already have and crossfire with a second one, especially when they can be had on the cheap.

Although if you're considering the 3D route, then you might want to take that step back and consider an NVidia solution. A decent 120Hz monitor will set you back a fair amount, so it's up to you and what solution you'd like to go with. I dont have experience in 3D so I cant really advise on that front.


Generally in these situations I'd suggest seetting down a budget, and seeing what the best you can do is going to be out of that. That tends to be the best way to approach hardware choices. :)
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Before i knew about 120hz, ipurcahsed a hp2311x for 150 pounds, its great but i dislike screen tearing (yea im picky) and mouselag with vsync on so im trying to sell of my hp and get a 3d monitor (or just wait for a few monthjs, i mean i dont mind tearing but some games dont feel smooth with vsync off, andwith it on i get almighty mouse lag.

Yea, im gonna stay with my 6870 and crossfire, because i highly doubt i will do 3D until its actually cheaper and more common.
 
Wait dont do it! I did it and regretted it because it meant that even with all that power to boast, the VRAM limitation left me with way too many frame drops in some games, and that wasnt something a CAP could fix.

I suggest you crossfire AFTER a future upgrade that has atleast 2GB VRAM, I know the 6870 xfire power sounds wonderful, but it really does have its limitations due to the vram.
 
Well i have been considering waiting until the new NVIDIA cards come out next year, then buying 1 or possibly 2 560s-580s (depending on how they go down) and getting a
3D setup for the 120hz, because atm im running my stuff fine, but i want that power to boast, i never realised when buying the pc a 6870 was midrange, i dont regret it its a great card but id rather have more power.

AS for this monitor, it is great but i want 120hz for screen tearing help and futrue nvidia 3D

I still didnt really feel up for crossfiring as i heard a lot of stuff about it but then im impatient aswell.
 
KoubaDZ said:
Wait dont do it! I did it and regretted it because it meant that even with all that power to boast, the VRAM limitation left me with way too many frame drops in some games, and that wasnt something a CAP could fix.

I suggest you crossfire AFTER a future upgrade that has atleast 2GB VRAM, I know the 6870 xfire power sounds wonderful, but it really does have its limitations due to the vram.
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So say I wanted to crossfire my 6950 TFIII, as its a 2GB card, I wouldn't have a problem. Right?
 
J-FRO said:
So say I wanted to crossfire my 6950 TFIII, as its a 2GB card, I wouldn't have a problem. Right?
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No problem at all on your end, in fact many people are happy with their 6950 Xfire experiences.

mxoagentjohnson said:
How mch do you think the 560-580 nvidia cards will go down in price this winter on overclockers and when the 600 series comes out?
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To be honest with you, next-gen cards tend to have better scaling so the better move would be to upgrade to a single-card next-gen solution and then upgrade to SLI/Crossfire when required (which I doubt will be very soon :P)
 
Swish, that's going to be my new years present to myself I think once the 7XXX cards come out and the 6XXX's drop their price a little.
 
Ok, does anyone know what next fen cards will replace what, do nvidia do it simpler like 680 will replace 580 etc?

Also, what's the estimated price range?
My 6870 is fine, but j wanna ultra bf3, saints row 3 and stuff
 
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