Best 780i based motherboard?

[Carfax]

I've been meaning to get a different motherboard, and I'm looking into getting an SLI based motherboard that uses DDR2 so I get another GTX 285, since I won't be doing a full upgrade until late next year..

So far, I've looked at the XFX and the EVGA 780i motherboards, but after doing a quick search, it seems that the 780i series doesn't perform well in comparison to the Intel chipsets.. :shrug:

Or am I mistaken? For example, this HardOCP review (http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTQ1Niw1LCxoZW50aGlzdWFzdA==) shows BOTH 780i based boards underperforming significantly compared to the x38 board from Asus in all the gaming benchmarks..

Is it due to the tester's incompetence, or is the chipset at fault?

I'm certain such a dificiency can't be due to the different memory types :confused:

Seems like more than just a coincidence to me, but then again, you never know with HardOCP..

[ToTTenTranz]

It's the chipset..
SLI is only a good option with X58 boards, nowadays..
But those differences are only noticed with low resolutions and details, in order to test the CPU performance. At higher IQ you probably won't notice a difference.

Why not sell the GTX285 and buy a GTX295?

[Carfax]

Why not sell the GTX285 and buy a GTX295?

Yeah I thought about that aswell..

As a matter of fact, I'm cursing myself because I could have gotten a GTX 295 when I used my step up from EVGA, but I got a GTX 285 instead, because I believed a single core card is less hassle :shakes:

But it's too late for regrets at the moment.. Anyway, having another GTX 285 in SLI would outperform a GTX 295 by a pretty good margin I'd wager.

But I'm wary of the 780i. Everything I've read on it makes it out to be an underperforming chipset compared to Intel chipsets..

But unless I switch over to an x58 board, I have no choice but to use an Nvidia chipset for SLI..

[zanzabar]

just dont do it, the hassle of the board with its garbage chipset and bad pwms. u have 2 real options 1) get an x58, or 2) get a p2 and a foxconn destroyer.

and what resolution are u playing at and what game is making u want to upgrade, to me it looks like the card isnt being stressed and is running low rez if u want to upgrade

edit or post in the for sale that u want to trade a 285 + cash for a 295

[Carfax]

and what resolution are u playing at and what game is making u want to upgrade

LOL, good call :clap::rofl:

Freaking Crysis! I only ever played the demo, but I bought it last week (since I just installed Vista Ultimate x64) and I've been playing it at 1920x1200, DX10, everything on very high and predictably, it's giving my system trouble.

Every other game I play runs buttery smooth on my system but this one, and I'm a graphics whore so I refuse to lower the settings..

Getting another GTX 285 wouldn't be difficult for me, but it sounds like the 780i chipset is subpar compared to Intel.. Intel really does make the best chipsets to be sure..

Doing a full upgrade to an x58 platform has crossed my mind many times. I was just at Newegg considering my options on this a matter of fact, but I'm not sure that now is the time for a full upgrade.

Like every enthusiast I love to upgrade, but I only do it when it makes sense for me to do so..

For example, the Core i7 is a fantastic chip, but next year, it will be even more powerful after the 32nm shrink where it will get 2 more cores and a host of architectural tweaks..

Why upgrade to the Core i7 now, when the 32nm shrink is only a year away?

I learned that lesson the hard way..

Always wait for the shrink!

[MulletBoy]

is the 32nm shrink of the i7 chip still going to work on the x58 motherboards of today?

[CmB]

Rumoured yes, MulletBoy. but that depends on BIOS support provided byt the board manufactuerers

[zanzabar]

so u can only not get good frames in the worst programed/optimized game of the decade, i dont think that warrants an upgrade, and if u dont get 15-200 fps minimum then sli or xfire wont really help playability with AFR (alternate frame rendering)

[Carfax]

so u can only not get good frames in the worst programed/optimized game of the decade, i dont think that warrants an upgrade, and if u dont get 15-200 fps minimum then sli or xfire wont really help playability with AFR (alternate frame rendering)

Yeah, but even though Crysis has poor optimization, I still want to play it; and Warhead as well..

And the only time I ever upgrade my video card, is when I can't play a game at the settings I want to comfortably.

[zanzabar]

just play at lower settings for crysis, and warhead is on a much better optimized engine and it should play fine

crysis a badly programed game and it needs more cpu than u have so just the gpu wont help much in it and sacraficing any MB stability for a few frames that will still not be much better isnt something that i see as a good idea

[Carfax]

just play at lower settings for crysis, and warhead is on a much better optimized engine and it should play fine

crysis a badly programed game and it needs more cpu than u have so just the gpu wont help much in it and sacraficing any MB stability for a few frames that will still not be much better isnt something that i see as a good idea

Yeah you're right. It's ridiculous to upgrade my hardware just to play one badly optimized game...

Not so sure that it needs more CPU though.. The task manager shows a 30% CPU utilization during gameplay, which is less than other games that I play..

One thing that did help though, was setting my shader clock a bit higher.. Apparently, Crysis is extremely shader intensive, because usually I can't see a difference in games when I set my shader clock to 1585 or 1620..