Mix and Matching ATi and nVidia?

[Drewbo]

Hey, I'm in the process of ordering a new PC from the friendly people at OCUK, however I'm hit by the sudden decision that maybe PhysX will play an important part in my gaming.

I've never had a PhysX enabled system, as I've always favoured ATi cards, for pricing reasons and personal preference.

The problem is, I want to be able to use PhysX whilst simultaneously having an ATi main card. I've heard that you can use a secondary nVidia Graphics Card as a Dedicated PhysX card, however I'm not sure whether you could do this with an ATi main card.

So my question is, would this be possible?

I'm not too fussed about price here, I just wanted a PhysX option whilst still having ATi, and it seems nVidia have monopolised it by buying the company that came up with it. Though as a side note - advice on this matter is always appreciated, I'm not a huge tech buff, just a gamer.

 

[Drewbo]

I'm just really curious, I had money to burn so I thought I'd grab a 5970, but then wanted to push my gaming that little bit further. I've never really experienced PhysX, and I figured it'd be an interesting jump, even if it were only barely noticeable - an improvement of any degree is still an improvement.

So hacked drivers? I'm assuming that's deadly to the Warranty and such?
Doesn't sound altogether trustworthy either.

Is PhysX something that companies will be exploring in the future? If so I'd grab a cheap yet PhysX compatible nVidia card just to do a bit of futureproofing.

Or do you guys think its a waste of time altogether?

 

[Drewbo]

Fair enough, thanks for your help guys.