Quad-core and SLI
 

I'm in the process of selling my house and (hopefully) will have some spare cash to upgrade to a better PC. The system I'm looking at has an Intel Quad-core processor and two GeForce 768mb 8800GTX SLI cards. I'm wondering if a system like this would present any problems/conflicts with SH4.

Let see, this set up could launch the Space Shuttle....I think SH4 will run just fine. A lot of guys have this type system. Games runs maxed!

Uhhh SH4 doesent even 'take advantage' of a dual core.

probably total overkill for playing games, but why drive a Honda when you can afford a Porsche.

Might have problems with vista, then again who doesnt.:rotfl:

LOL:rotfl:

You would be fine for SH4, but you could also wait alittle while till the newer cards come out. a few months and that set up will fall into mid-low range as is the harsh way with computers :nope:

Even better wait untill after the holidays and get em on sale :smug:

Sounds like thats going to give off quite a bit of heat, im not a hardware expert but ive heard of problems with the Quad Core overheating even whens its idle. Plus with 2 Graphics cards im sure it will add to the heat given off aswell. Make sure you have it sufficently cooled:up:

Alot of guys must of been selling their houses too!!!:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Get a motherboard that can handle a quad at a later date, for now go with a dual-core. When you are ready to upgrade down the road, there will be more games for quads, plus the quad-core will be cheaper :yep:

RDP

Yeah, the guys from NASA are selling them;)

Ahhh :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

...as far as SLI goes.

I have an SLI machine running dual 6800's... I don't know that I can recommend it. Honestly, I almost see it as more gimic than anything. I guess some games are designed to take advantage of it but as far as playing SH4:


1) I don't really see a huge noticeable difference in performance so doubling the cost of the graphics cards didn't give me too much bang for the buck.

2) When you're in SLI mode you're dictating that both cards focus on a single monitor. I usually find it far more useful to have dual monitor support.

3) Although nVidia offers a system setup manager that (theorhetically) is supposed to allow you to manage and save different configurations; I've found that in actual practice it's clueless on recalling my settings when trying to convert from SLI mode back to dual or quad monitors. Which makes converting from SLI back to multi-monitor support enough of a pain that I seldomly use SLI.

4) Power hungry... you'll need a beefed up power supply! ...and the box will get hot with both cards chuggin. The good news is, the fans on mine add to the emersion factor when I'm playing Flight Simulator X. :lol:


Although SH4 may not benefit at all from it... If I were building a new machine, I'd be looking for multi-core CPU's, preferrably 64bit to take advantage of the next generation of Vista, directx 10 and so forth, and I'd probably snoop around again to see if anyone's gotten any further along on the concept of a dedicated physics processing card (as opposed to installing a second graphics card.) The big slowdowns you'll see in SH3 & 4 are almost always around the explosions when the tiny pieces start flying... that's where a physics card would really help.

^^^ Your dual 6800s are extremely dated... I wouldnt judge SLI based on them...

As for FPS just get 1 single 8800 and they go through the roof... I average well over a 100 FPS at all times in this game with no issues whatsoever. I cant imagine what dual 8800s will be like down the line.

As for quad core... that is a huge waste of money... Its like shooting a deer with a .50 cal... Go get a E6600 and saved yourself a ton of money down the road for upgrading that... I'd worry mainly about your Motherboard and Graphics card purchase at this time. With both of those you can upgrade everything else later on to match.

ROFL, I think you could play crysis maxxed out with that rig never mind SHIV!

...extremely dated? That's a bit harsh. Couple years old, but 6800 ultras are still decent cards. I guess I build my machines with the idea that I'll be able to live with em for 5 years.

Since I've been using SLI for a couple years I feel justified in weighing an opinion. based on my REAL experience. I wouldn't waste my money again on dual cards... unless I really feel like I need to keep all 4 of these monitors. You'll be down $1700 and two years from now someone will be calling your rig extremely dated.

...and my comments about forcing you to operate on a single monitor and the dysfunctional nVidia configuration manager software are still going to be valid regardless of 68's vs 88's.

Overkill
 

There would be no problems or conflicts really with the game, however the cost of a system you described might be a problem especially if you consider how little increase in performance you get for spending a lot more. $$$-$$$$

For SH4 that would be overkill. The performance increase between say a Core 2 duo and Core 2 Quad or Extreme is not really worth the extra bucks (thats what I think), especially with a game that does not take advantage of the multiple cores. It is worth it if you do video/picture editing.

It is cheaper to build your own gaming pc then pay the markup of the seller. I was going to buy my computer but I decided it was best I build it and save over $ 1500 and I put that money towards my new car fund.

If you do buy a system with Vista make sure the card supports DirectX 10, ATI 2900HD or the GeForce 8800 series which you mentioned. Buddy of mine just got the ATI. The card was worth it, amazing stuff.

I would really not recommend a SLI configuration. The extra 2-20fps (my experience) does not justify the additional cost. ($500-$800) Diff MB and Card.

My Configuration...
Core 2 Duo E6700
Intel D975XB BX2 Motherboard
4X1GB OCZ Plat Revision 2 DDR2 800MHZ (previsouly 2GB)
Raid 5
Ati X1950XTX PCIE X 16
22in Benq WS

buteobuteo, sincerelly, what is the purpose of this thread???

you came here to say something like "hey, lets go hunting elephants with my new m1 tank, then we could make some practice with my new F22 shooting down some spitfires. But I'm still wondering if such systems like these would present any problems/conflicts.... BTW, did you see those photon rockets I put in my wheelchair? arent they loooovely?" :88)

Come on. You know the answer beforehand.

Isint it obvious.

Midlife crisis computer envy :88)