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SLI 570

Associate
Joined
4 Oct 2011
Posts
1,548
Location
Newbury, UK
Hi all,

I currently have one of these http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-129-MS

Would it be a good decision to buy another one to run in SLI? I am curious about the amount of VRAM as at the moment I am using close too the 1280MB on Battlefield 3 tho with the two cards that shouldn't be an issue should it? I mean, I know the VRAM doesn't double but would it then get spread over the two cards if that makes sense.

I game at 1920 x 1080 and wouldnt go any higher than this. The main game I play is Battlefield 3. Would this be a worthwhile purchase?

Cheers,
 
I think VRAM usage should stay the same.

I also have a 570 try this to free up some VRAM and u should be clear - Assuming you have either Vista or Windows 7. Find the folder is installed in (Program Files (x86)\Origin Games\Battlefield 3). Right click properties for bf3.exe. Under Compatibility tab, tick "Disable Desktop Composition" and apply. This will disable aero when BF3 is running and revert when the program closes. This can free up to 200MB VRAM.

Also another tip, close down any open browsers (including battlelog) once you have loaded the game, this will free up another 100MB.

U should then even be able to increase AA if you want until ur back up at the 1280MB cap again :) Use MSI Afterburner to monitor in game VRAM usage (amongst other things).
 
Hi man,

thanks for your reply. Great tip on disabling aero. I have done it once and it was just a pain to then have to enable it again after but I will do what you mention above.

Do you think it would not be worth me going into SLI then?

Cheers,
 
850w will be grand with sli 570's. Im using two of the more power hungry gtx 470's on an 850w corsair hx 850w. Power draw at the wall of 630w for the system, cards overclocked as well at 750/1500/1674.
 
I would like sli 570s but cant be bothered with driver issues and the extra heat they produce + I think my CPU may be a bottleneck.
 
I would like sli 570s but cant be bothered with driver issues and the extra heat they produce + I think my CPU may be a bottleneck.

Well my single card atm never goes above 66 degrees on Battlefield and I have a fair amount of fans in my case. Its just the case of would it be a suitable decision to by another one.
 
VRAM doesn't double, or get used in any sense. The VRAM on card 2 is only really there to make the card work.

Why are you going SLI may I ask?

If you are having trouble making frames? then you're doing something wrong.

If you're running a huge res? catch 22. Up the res, up the textures, up the VRAM. So none of that GPU grunt will do you any good whatsoever. I really can't stress the importance of VRAM enough. I have quad SLI, it's terrible because I only have 896mb VRAM, ya da da da da YAWN.

Sell your card and get a 3gb 580 if you want to truly upgrade.
 
VRAM doesn't double, or get used in any sense. The VRAM on card 2 is only really there to make the card work.

Why are you going SLI may I ask?

If you are having trouble making frames? then you're doing something wrong.

If you're running a huge res? catch 22. Up the res, up the textures, up the VRAM. So none of that GPU grunt will do you any good whatsoever. I really can't stress the importance of VRAM enough. I have quad SLI, it's terrible because I only have 896mb VRAM, ya da da da da YAWN.

Sell your card and get a 3gb 580 if you want to truly upgrade.

I am not having any trouble making frames I am getting nothing below 45 on the new maps with ultra settings with a few turned down to high and other bits and bobs lowered like ambient is on ssao etc.

It was purely for that extra increase in fps but I can't decide whether I think it is worth it. I was looking at the EVGA 580 3GB but can't afford that right now hence another reason I was looking at this option.
 
I game at 1920 x 1080 and wouldnt go any higher than this. The main game I play is Battlefield 3. Would this be a worthwhile purchase?

Cheers,

:D That bit made I laugh.

570 is about the best card for 1080p. Well, apart from its achilles heel - VRAM.

Adding another one will net you nothing, as the 570 is good enough for Battlefield 3 apparently.

An upgrade.. A true, worthy upgrade is 3gb 580. Otherwise? don't bother. Ride the card til it dies and then replace it when it's no longer current or good enough.
 
:D That bit made I laugh.

570 is about the best card for 1080p. Well, apart from its achilles heel - VRAM.

Adding another one will net you nothing, as the 570 is good enough for Battlefield 3 apparently.

An upgrade.. A true, worthy upgrade is 3gb 580. Otherwise? don't bother. Ride the card til it dies and then replace it when it's no longer current or good enough.

Glad I made you laugh that was one of the aims of my post.... other than that I do agree with the last part of your post so thanks.
 
Heat can be a problem in a case with poor ventilation, running oc'd 470's here, max ingame temps of 70c (bf3), vram usage of 1200mb ono on the settings below.

res = 1920x1200
advanced settings

graphics quality = custom
texture quality = ultra
shadow quality = ultra
effects quality = ultra
mesh quality = ultra
terrain quality = ultra
terrain decoration = ultra
antiliasing deferred = off
antiliasing post = high
motion blur = off
motion blur amount = 50
anisotropic filter = 16
ambient occlusion = off

Few quick fraps benches.
2011-11-27 11:13:19 - bf3
Frames: 5912 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 98.533 - Min: 67 - Max: 150

2011-11-27 11:14:30 - bf3
Frames: 5954 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 99.233 - Min: 63 - Max: 158

I thought about ditching the 470's and buying a 580, but decided it was a bit silly. Ill wait till the next generation.
 
Heat can be a problem in a case with poor ventilation, running oc'd 470's here, max ingame temps of 70c (bf3), vram usage of 1200mb ono on the settings below.

res = 1920x1200
advanced settings

graphics quality = custom
texture quality = ultra
shadow quality = ultra
effects quality = ultra
mesh quality = ultra
terrain quality = ultra
terrain decoration = ultra
antiliasing deferred = off
antiliasing post = high
motion blur = off
motion blur amount = 50
anisotropic filter = 16
ambient occlusion = off

Few quick fraps benches.
2011-11-27 11:13:19 - bf3
Frames: 5912 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 98.533 - Min: 67 - Max: 150

2011-11-27 11:14:30 - bf3
Frames: 5954 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 99.233 - Min: 63 - Max: 158

I thought about ditching the 470's and buying a 580, but decided it was a bit silly. Ill wait till the next generation.

That the sort of benchmarks I was after when I thought of getting a second card. The only reason I haven't yet is partly VRAM and also this new generation coming out. I think I will have to decide more. Thanks for your help.
 
Those are from 32 player matches, heres a few from 64 player matches.

2011-11-30 21:15:06 - bf3
Frames: 5638 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 93.967 - Min: 68 - Max: 138

2011-11-30 21:18:46 - bf3
Frames: 7064 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 117.733 - Min: 81 - Max: 177

2011-11-30 21:20:58 - bf3
Frames: 5247 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 87.450 - Min: 62 - Max: 146

Pretty similair, same settings as before. With a single card the game isnt great, i have to lower settings to a mix of medium and high to get a decent experience. As i mentioned, the gpu's are only clocked at 750mhz, (pretty mild for a gtx 470). Theyll go higher, (bench/game stable at 800mhz). But the fan gets a bit loud. Sadly aftermarket coolers and sli is a no go due to board space. Only option would be to watercool them, but that would be pretty costly.
 
Those are from 32 player matches, heres a few from 64 player matches.

2011-11-30 21:15:06 - bf3
Frames: 5638 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 93.967 - Min: 68 - Max: 138

2011-11-30 21:18:46 - bf3
Frames: 7064 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 117.733 - Min: 81 - Max: 177

2011-11-30 21:20:58 - bf3
Frames: 5247 - Time: 60000ms - Avg: 87.450 - Min: 62 - Max: 146

Pretty similair, same settings as before. With a single card the game isnt great, i have to lower settings to a mix of medium and high to get a decent experience. As i mentioned, the gpu's are only clocked at 750mhz, (pretty mild for a gtx 470). Theyll go higher, (bench/game stable at 800mhz). But the fan gets a bit loud. Sadly aftermarket coolers and sli is a no go due to board space. Only option would be to watercool them, but that would be pretty costly.

Thats not a lot of difference at all. My card is getting a minimum of 42 and a max of about 70 using these settings:

graphics quality = custom
texture quality = ultra
shadow quality = High
effects quality = High
mesh quality = High
terrain quality = High
terrain decoration = High
2xMSAA
motion blur = on
motion blur amount = 50
anisotropic filter = 8x
ambient occlusion = ssao

So being me I do want everything maxed out tho I guess not being a hardcore gamer I don't need it.
 
:D That bit made I laugh.

570 is about the best card for 1080p. Well, apart from its achilles heel - VRAM.

Adding another one will net you nothing, as the 570 is good enough for Battlefield 3 apparently.

An upgrade.. A true, worthy upgrade is 3gb 580. Otherwise? don't bother. Ride the card til it dies and then replace it when it's no longer current or good enough.

Just plain wrong! There is no VRAM achilles heal at 1280MB VRAM on a 570 at 1080p on BF3. Whilst having more VRAM means more VRAM can be used, BF3 does not stutter at Ultra settings 4xAA with a 570!! Adding a second 570 should pretty much double ur fps from the 45-70 fps range up to average 90-100 fps. Ignore ALXAndy's comments about needing a 3GB card :rolleyes:

And this "Adding another one will net you nothing, as the 570 is good enough for Battlefield 3 apparently." where is the logic here?! Yes 570 is good enough to run BF3 at average 50fps but if u want average 90 fps to run it silky smooth adding a second 570 should get u there.
 
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Never had any issues with vram. The game stutterd in a few rounds for me. But thats lag from my net connection. Ive ran it on lowest settings to test this, vram use on low was 600mb or so, and in a few games i still had the stuttering. So obviously it wasnt a lack of vram.
 
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