Well, we've covered a hell of a lot here, and there is more to cover yet. So please hang on tight - there's more where this came from. The next article in the series we will be focusing at the GeForce 6600 GT and GeForce 6800 Std in SLI - both of which are viable SLI options for those who have a relatively normal budget to spend on their next big upgrade.
So, there are ups and downs of SLI from a first look at the platform now it has matured over the past six months. First off, lets have a mull over the bad points that we've come across so far.
The first problem is support for a wide enough range of titles. As we know, The Chronicles Of Riddick does not function with SLI, and according to several charts, the game sells pretty well. There are also other popular games that we tested, but did not record frame rates for, that do not support SLI in any shape or form. Games like Rome: Total War have been around for a while, and would really benefit from SLI, due to the complex geometry that makes up a lot of the scenery in the title.
We're still wondering whether we will see support for titles like this. The game has been a top 10 title in places like Virgin Mega Stores and HMV for a good while, and we would've thought that top 10 titles, or enthusiast favourites would be given the nod for SLI support. Maybe the problem is not related to NVIDIA's efforts to give the game support for SLI, maybe it is down to the way the game is coded? It could be any number of things, so it is hard to put the blame on anyone. That puts a valid question on the table though - what happens to titles that are top sellers, but do not want to play ball with SLI? What happens if ATI's Multi-GPU solution supports that title?
In general though, when the game title has SLI support, it's fantastic, we can turn up the details and add lots of eye candy. We can increase the visual quality of the game across the board, or if that is not possible, we increase the smoothness of the gaming experience when SLI is supported by the title.
There are still questions to be answered about whether you need a fast processor, and which video card option is the one that best suits your budget. Hopefully when we've covered GeForce 6600 GT and GeForce 6800 Std, you will have a good idea of which iteration of SLI fits your budget. We also can't forget ATI's single video card solutions, but seeing as ATI themselves are headed towards a Multi-GPU architecture of their own, we suspect that single video card solutions will be a thing of the past, to a certain extent.
Based on what we have looked at today, the GeForce 6800 GT SLI seems to be a very compelling buy, and it is often not too far behind the GeForce 6800 Ultra SLI in terms of performance. Don't forget that you can also overclock the GeForce 6800 GT's in SLI, and you're likely to achieve clock speeds above 400/1100, unless you are terribly unlucky in selecting your video cards off the (virtual) shelves of your favourite etailer.
There are any number of questions that will always be left unanswered and somewhat in the dark, because there are so many determining factors as to why each particular issue exists with an architecture that is as complex as SLI. Right now, we still see SLI as a technology in its infancy, but it’s a very promising one. We suggest that you take a careful look at the games supported by SLI and check that your favourite game is supported before jumping in and spending before seriously considering what to spend your hard-earned cash on.
Going on our recommendations so far, the DFI LANPARTY nF4 SLI-DR and GeForce 6800 GT combination is going to cost you in the region of £650-£750 depending on which brand of video card you choose to purchase, so it doesn't come cheap.
So, there are ups and downs of SLI from a first look at the platform now it has matured over the past six months. First off, lets have a mull over the bad points that we've come across so far.
The first problem is support for a wide enough range of titles. As we know, The Chronicles Of Riddick does not function with SLI, and according to several charts, the game sells pretty well. There are also other popular games that we tested, but did not record frame rates for, that do not support SLI in any shape or form. Games like Rome: Total War have been around for a while, and would really benefit from SLI, due to the complex geometry that makes up a lot of the scenery in the title.
We're still wondering whether we will see support for titles like this. The game has been a top 10 title in places like Virgin Mega Stores and HMV for a good while, and we would've thought that top 10 titles, or enthusiast favourites would be given the nod for SLI support. Maybe the problem is not related to NVIDIA's efforts to give the game support for SLI, maybe it is down to the way the game is coded? It could be any number of things, so it is hard to put the blame on anyone. That puts a valid question on the table though - what happens to titles that are top sellers, but do not want to play ball with SLI? What happens if ATI's Multi-GPU solution supports that title?
In general though, when the game title has SLI support, it's fantastic, we can turn up the details and add lots of eye candy. We can increase the visual quality of the game across the board, or if that is not possible, we increase the smoothness of the gaming experience when SLI is supported by the title.
There are still questions to be answered about whether you need a fast processor, and which video card option is the one that best suits your budget. Hopefully when we've covered GeForce 6600 GT and GeForce 6800 Std, you will have a good idea of which iteration of SLI fits your budget. We also can't forget ATI's single video card solutions, but seeing as ATI themselves are headed towards a Multi-GPU architecture of their own, we suspect that single video card solutions will be a thing of the past, to a certain extent.
Based on what we have looked at today, the GeForce 6800 GT SLI seems to be a very compelling buy, and it is often not too far behind the GeForce 6800 Ultra SLI in terms of performance. Don't forget that you can also overclock the GeForce 6800 GT's in SLI, and you're likely to achieve clock speeds above 400/1100, unless you are terribly unlucky in selecting your video cards off the (virtual) shelves of your favourite etailer.
There are any number of questions that will always be left unanswered and somewhat in the dark, because there are so many determining factors as to why each particular issue exists with an architecture that is as complex as SLI. Right now, we still see SLI as a technology in its infancy, but it’s a very promising one. We suggest that you take a careful look at the games supported by SLI and check that your favourite game is supported before jumping in and spending before seriously considering what to spend your hard-earned cash on.
Going on our recommendations so far, the DFI LANPARTY nF4 SLI-DR and GeForce 6800 GT combination is going to cost you in the region of £650-£750 depending on which brand of video card you choose to purchase, so it doesn't come cheap.
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