sli or cf?

[t800]

Im thinking to buy new parts my computer, but wondering which would be best option for highres-gaming:shrug::

cpu:
-E8400

mobo:
-X38/X48 (bad fsb, best cf performance)
-P45 (good fsb, worse cf performance than x38/x48)
-780i mobo (fsb ok, performance in sli good~)

Video:
-2*4870X2 / 2*280SLI


Any ideas which to buy :p:

[xMrBunglex]

i would advise against two 4870 X2's because Quad CrossFire doesn't scale terribly well. unless you're just swimming in money, you should limit yourself to two GPU's or one. the same goes for SLI. read Anandtech's newest review of the Radeon 4K series and you can see it compared to all of Nvidia's newest cards - they tested single-card setupts as well as CrossFire vs. SLI. it's a great review.

[disruptfam]

4870 x 2 :)

[systemviper]

I would shoot for the 4870 x 2 crossfire and get yourself a good x48

I am getting excited about the 4870, i think it's going to be a great CF card for cost and performance!

I have the blackops but i am waiting for it to mature more.
I think one of the best x48 borads out there are the DFI X48 LT
You can get it in ddr2 or ddr3 flavor

I have also heard some good results from gigabyte....but no personal exp.
maybe even the x48 asus, i forget the name....


regards
steve

[Eldonko]

4870 x 2 :)Seconded

[Heretic]

If you want to game at 2048 with all the pretty on, then (pending 4870x2 results) the GTX is your only real option. At 1920, the 4870 becomes viable and depending on your budget, maybe even preferred. It might also help if you list any games in particular that you want to play as CF/SLI might not even be necessary for you for a while.

[t800]

im not swimming in money, i just put all of my money to again fps :)

Im quite sure 4870gx2 will outperform one GTX280, but CF maybe different thing that CF would scale so well...(2gpu SLI vs 4gpu CF)

I don't have any particular game, any games will do. At moment gtx280/hd4870 will run games smoothly, somepoint newer games will push fps down again :)

[systemviper]

I thought you were talking about 1 - 4870 first, then if you like it and need it get a second, i didn't mean the 4870X2 that is gonna cost you a bunch aof cash and for that money you might have better choices.

So my advice is to get a single 4870 and Rock it to the max and se if you like it then if so, which i cannot see any reason why not, then get a second, it's very cost effective that way.

that is the way I am going to do it.

If your looking for the best bang for your buck RIGHT NOW get yourself the 9800GX2 I have seen them as low as 390 and the card Rocks, I know i have one....

[Ghost326267]

maybe even the x48 asus, i forget the name....

Rampage Formula, good board

Edit: P5E3 Premium/Wifi@N also -rampage ddr2 P5E3 ddr3

[Heretic]

im not swimming in money, i just put all of my money to again fps :)

Im quite sure 4870gx2 will outperform one GTX280, but CF maybe different thing that CF would scale so well...(2gpu SLI vs 4gpu CF)

I don't have any particular game, any games will do. At moment gtx280/hd4870 will run games smoothly, somepoint newer games will push fps down again :)

If you're price-conscious, the 4870 (or maybe even 2 4850s at the prices they're going for...) is undoubtedly the better value. It won't be as fast as a 280, but you're also not paying $600+ for it. Since single board solutions generally have a better price/performance ratio (the current ATI vs Nvidia situation not withstanding), you'll probably be able to just upgrade to a better card by the time you need more frames from new games.

[non]

dont even think CF X2. 4 GPU wont scale high because there's still bandwith limit. 2 Cards will be the best bang. Besides 2 X 4870 will do just fine in 1920 res. Btw, why did u say X38/X48 is "a bad fsb" board? i owned 3 X38( not at a time of course) none of them are "bad fsb" board

[zanzabar]

unless ur on an abit or ds4 the x38/48 are good for fsb u just have to change the gtls so that leaves dfi and foxconn as the only viable for high fsb, but they also have digital pwm so its thats another advantage

and the x38/48 will do much better fsb than a 680i or 7x0i while still being more stable than their NV counterparts


but 2x 4870 looks to be the same or better than 2x 280 cards while costing the same as 1 280gtx

[Rickpatbrown]

Quote:
Originally Posted by systemviper View Post
maybe even the x48 asus, i forget the name....
Rampage Formula, good board

I was gonna say that. I was feeling a little left out:(


I'm definitely going for a 4870. I'm just trying to figure out if I want to buy one now and CF later, or if I want to just wait for the 4870x2. The 4870x2 should perform better than crossfired singles.

Is CF 4870x2 something that will better scale as drivers mature. Shouldn't PCIe 2.0 fix bandwidth problems, or are you talking about a different bandwidth?

[t800]

dont even think CF X2. 4 GPU wont scale high because there's still bandwith limit.

What i looked from hothardware review, quad-cf 3870 will give 30-40% boost in 1920res and 50% boost on 2560 res in compared 3870x2:rolleyes:

But will 4870X2 scale just as good?

What bandwith limit you mean? PCIe?

2 Cards will be the best bang. Besides 2 X 4870 will do just fine in 1920 res.
Yes, but im thinking that somepoint we will get games (Crysis 3 etc :P) when 2x4870 is not able to run fine anymore smoothly, so wondering would then quad 4870 show it strength?.

Btw, why did u say X38/X48 is "a bad fsb" board? i owned 3 X38( not at a time of course) none of them are "bad fsb" board
What i looked reviews, i saw only x38/x48 to gain 450-470fbs, and p45's are gaining 500-600mhz :) ..cpu will SS cooled so i don't want overclock will be limited by motherboard. But how much affect cpu mhz will have in multi-gpu's on highres? So it same to have 3ghz or 5Ghz :P

[mustrum]

dont even think CF X2. 4 GPU wont scale high because there's still bandwith limit. 2 Cards will be the best bang. Besides 2 X 4870 will do just fine in 1920 res. Btw, why did u say X38/X48 is "a bad fsb" board? i owned 3 X38( not at a time of course) none of them are "bad fsb" board
x38/x48 are bad FSB boards when combined with 45nm quads. It`s still better then a P45 if you plan on using crossfire though from what i saw so far in reviews.

On topic: I`d go for 2x 4870 crossfired. They should run anything you throw at them perfectly fine for a reasonable price.