[Fr3ak] EVGA nForce 750i SLI FTW review

[JohnnyNitro]

Hello all.. I just want to verify.. I am building my first gaming rig this weekend. I have all the stuff and am Xtramely excited. I have a couple of questions...

1) I did order a Palit 1GB 9600 gt but only 1.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814261013

I WILL run SLI when my bank account recharges.. so I shouldn't have any issues with one card right out of the box?

2) I am running the Tuniq tower..
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835154001

Will this be a good cooling solution for the EVGA 750i / E8400 combo?

Anything else you all can recommend for a first time builder I am open..

Thanks in advance!

[Fr3ak]

The Tuniq tower is a great cooler and from the picture it looks like it will fit the 750i just fine.

Now for the 9600GT: I think you will have the same problems, even when the card is running at stock speed. It might work, but it might not work. Why don't you get a 8800 GT instead? That card is faster and about the same price.

[AndrewL1950]

Ya, I am going to be picking up this board along with a Q9450. First system build in a long time. Mainly in part to the reviews here and Guru3d's new review. I think I am going to get back into overclocking also which I have not done in a LONG time.

I have the Noctua U9B and didn't know if the unique mounting system would fit the board. Here is a photo



If anyone who has the board could confirm it would fit, that would be appreciated.

[Fr3ak]

After looking at my board, I am 99% sure your mountng will fit fine on the EVGA 750i. There is a keep-out area around the socket to make sure there is some kind of standard. I didnt see any parts violating the defined rules. The mosfet heatsink is far away, so I am very positive, there won't be anything in the way for the mounting.

I am running 9800 GTX SLI right now and it works flawlessly. Will post some screenshots and results later. I switched to a 4 GB DDR2 kit aswell and I am running 400 MHz 4-3-3-4 right now. No problems at all.

[JohnnyNitro]

Fr3ak.. thanks for the advice..
I like the Palit as it has the HDMI and display port right on the card. I am thinking on hooking this up to my LCD TV. I looked and nobody really makes a comparable card. (connection wise)
any suggestions?
I know you can get the DVI to HDMI cable and all but its nice to have it port out the back directly.

[Fr3ak]

All cards from Zotac have a DVI to HDMI adaptor. I dont know any cards that have a native HDMI port. I am more into overclocking than multimedia hardware tbh.

I really suggest a 8800 GT over a 9600 GT , especially with a 750i. In Germany the cards price is about the same, but 8800 GT has a better performance and the same cooler. There are some brands with aftermarket coolers like the Elitegroup 8800 GT with Arctic Cooling Accelro S2 and Turbo module.

[Rattle]

After looking at my board, I am 99% sure your mountng will fit fine on the EVGA 750i. There is a keep-out area around the socket to make sure there is some kind of standard. I didnt see any parts violating the defined rules. The mosfet heatsink is far away, so I am very positive, there won't be anything in the way for the mounting.

I am running 9800 GTX SLI right now and it works flawlessly. Will post some screenshots and results later. I switched to a 4 GB DDR2 kit aswell and I am running 400 MHz 4-3-3-4 right now. No problems at all.

are you in xp or vista 64 by chance ?

[JohnnyNitro]

I see. But isnt the "9" series more future proof?

[Fr3ak]

No, just because the number is higher, does not mean it's better. The G94 is a light version of the G92-GPU that the 8800 GT uses. The whole 9 series is basically a refresh of the 8 series. I would get a 8800 GT over a 9600 GT any time and a 8800 GTX over a 9800 GTX.

[BrokeDown]

Fr3ak,

I think I'm gonna pick this board up soon with a E8400 from Newegg.

I see. But isnt the "9" series more future proof?

doesn't matter when talking about the GTs. the 88GT a better card, period.

[AndrewL1950]

Thats what I am doing. I am going to pick up an 8800GT. With the system I am building I will be able to play any game I want at max settings (Outside of 1900X1200 AA Crysis) for a few years. When Nvidia launches there new line of cards, I will pick one up but the 9 series is not a big enough of an upgrade and on most games it's overkill. My eyes can't tell the difference between 65 FPS and 75 FPS.

[geoffsthaboss]

im thinkin of throwin together a new rig using this mobo. either that or a x38, prob a dfi dk.
cant decide if i wanna go with sli or xfire.
either way ill be usin a 2x2 kit of ram (red tracers or pi g.skills) and a e8200 or e8400.
with 1 retail and one open box you can get 2 8800 GTs or 3870 for right around $300
should be a good rig, this review has helped sway me to what might be my first nvid board.

[JohnnyNitro]

Oh man.. I havent even built my system and I am going to have to RMA at newegg already.... Oh well

How about this.. worthy>>?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814500006

[drizzt5]

For that price, just get an 8800 gts g92

[cornman]

Yes, definitely get an 8800gts g92, I have the evga version and it is faster than an 8800gtx and maybe even an ultra if you overclock it which it does really well. It also stays very cool because of the dual slot cooler, it never goes over 55 degrees celcius while playing crysis.

[JohnnyNitro]

Ok.. I have been doing research.. I am torn. Not an easy one! What do you all feel is the best card for $200 after rebtates (give or take 10 bucks)?
Thanks for your responses.

I like this unit so far...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130337

[cornman]

I would get that card for sure, I can overclock mine (which is already overclocked) from 670mhz to 760 and it could go higher I just havent tried it yet. The 8800 gt can get really hot (like 90C) and the 8800gts g92 only gets to around 55C with the fan set at 55%.

[JohnnyNitro]

Ok.. I am still going to build my system this weekend with my 9600, as I have been waiting too long not to! I will RMA the 9600 and grab the 8800GTS.


Thanks for all your help and responses guys... I apprecaite it!

[Shampoo]

Good information about the behaviour of this board.

I'm thinking about upgrading soon only because I want to be a part of the 4GHz club.

I'm currently running an E6420 @ 3.2GHz, couldn't get this stable at 3.4GHz and up on my Asus P5N-E SLI board (650i chipset).

I love my current board. It clocks well, I've had an E8400 up to 480MHz FSB, I know, I know, that's nothing compared to the most recent chipsets, but for such a board I think it's great.

Plus it's very stable, handles 4GB of ram just fine after recent bios updates, before it had a big gaping hole from high 700s to low 800s for ram speeds when using 4 sticks of ram.

When do you guys think the price will drop?

I'm planning on going with an E8400 or the X3110 (probably the X over the E).

I'm used to thinking midrange boards should cost in the 130-150 range, and this board is a good 200 bucks, which I believe is a highend board, here in Canada.

Cheers,
Mike

[AndrewL1950]

Good information about the behaviour of this board.

I'm thinking about upgrading soon only because I want to be a part of the 4GHz club.

I'm currently running an E6420 @ 3.2GHz, couldn't get this stable at 3.4GHz and up on my Asus P5N-E SLI board (650i chipset).

I love my current board. It clocks well, I've had an E8400 up to 480MHz FSB, I know, I know, that's nothing compared to the most recent chipsets, but for such a board I think it's great.

Plus it's very stable, handles 4GB of ram just fine after recent bios updates, before it had a big gaping hole from high 700s to low 800s for ram speeds when using 4 sticks of ram.

When do you guys think the price will drop?

I'm planning on going with an E8400 or the X3110 (probably the X over the E).

I'm used to thinking midrange boards should cost in the 130-150 range, and this board is a good 200 bucks, which I believe is a highend board, here in Canada.

Cheers,
Mike

I am also waiting for a sale or price drop. I order my stuff from Ncix and their sales are downright horrible (save $5). The EVGA 750I was on for $170 a couple days ago now they bumped it up to $200. Same with the Q9450. The OEM version was on for $370 now it's up to $394, only $5 less then the retail package.

[Fr3ak]

are you in xp or vista 64 by chance ?

I am on 32bit XP. I totally forgot to upload the pictures yesterday - shame on me about that. I will post them during the day.


8800 GTS G92 > 8800 GTX > 8800 GT > 9600 GT

[Fr3ak]

Here are two screenshots of 9800 GTX SLI. The board is running just fine and it seems to like my Corsair Dominators. 4 GiByte @ 450 MHz 4-3-3-4 at 2.2V. Still tesing for max clocks. I need a new CPU badly hehe

[Hyperhorn]

What's your feeling about the memory(-controller)? You mentioned the "b*tchy" 680i, but I liked it when it came to tight (sub)timings.
And how do you feel about the per-clock-performance?

[GOZR]

Testing SLI at 1024x768 ????

[Fr3ak]

That is the standard resolution of 3DMark 03 and 05

And 03 scales with every additional video card or higher GPU clocks =)

About the 680i: I was more talking about the boards suddenly stop working or only booting 2 out of 10 times. The memory clocks really well on 750i. I have no set of memory that I tested on P35, 680i and 750i, so I cannot give you a exact estimation.

Memory performance on 680i was worse compared to P35 clock for clock and I have the impression 750i's performance is closer to P35 than 680i, which is a good sign.