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  Tom's Hardware UK and Ireland Forums » Graphic & Displays » Graphics Cards » Triple GTX 280 vs Dual 4870X2-Please Help!
 

Triple GTX 280 vs Dual 4870X2-Please Help!

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 Thread : Triple GTX 280 vs Dual 4870X2-Please Help!
 
Profile: enthusiast
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As I'm sure everyone has caught on by now, everybody wont stfu about how I want to use 3 gtx 280s. Honestly. I make a post about what case would fit this, or if a certain PSU would power it, and bam, all of the posts are "omgwtf noob lol 3 gtx 280s r waste of $ noob rofl". They probably then wish they had them. But after scanning a benchmark, I might reconsider.
Here is the 1st benchie, it supports the triple gtx 280s, especially in crysis.http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-280-sli-triple-review-test/13

Heres the 2nd, which gives pretty terrible fps(compared to 3 gtx 280s, of course) in the absolute best settings for crysiss in 2650x1600 that I will be running, but appears to have higher fps in all other games. Of course, I've never even heard of this site, and its benchies are so drastically different from 3dguru's(which I trust, been a member for years and years), that I don't know. http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/15293/11

So, based on this, and what you guys already know, what do you think will give better performance in crysis,cod4, and AOC(other game too, but these are by far the most demanding of what I'll play)- 3 gtx 280 OC editions in TRI-SLI, or Dual 4870X2s in quad crossfire?

Thanks.

Edit: Seriously, I'm not picking different gpus. Please, just tell me which is better for those games, and how you know.

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Profile: addict
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Here is one that tests 2X X2s versus one: http://www.anandtech.com/video/sho [...] i=3372&p=6
You only get 2 more FPS's. Sadly, they did not try a tri-SLI test with the 280 GTX.

Here is another technology that looks better than CF or SLI: http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3385

BTW, your link to guru3D does not work. :sarcastic:

Profile: addict
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The 4870x2's hands down. The 280's only win in Crysis because that game is heavily optimized for nVidia. Otherwise the benchmarks speak for themselves.

Profile: stranger
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im gonna bet that ati fan boys will rant and rave for hours about me saying this but the 3 gtx 280's will be wickedly fast. look at it. 2 gtx 280s can almost keep up with 4 4870 cores. so imagine what 3 can do. not to mention it would just be awesome

problem is your talking about a seriously cpu limited machine. lol

You dont have to be a rocket surgeon to know bette
Profile: Forum Fixture
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Unless these benches show the 4870 quad using the 8.9 drivers, they are somewhat useless, as the 8.9s are truly the first drivers for this config. So, ignore all previous benches using older drivers, as they dont show CFX abilities as yet


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Every artist is a cannibal,every poet is a thief,they all kill their inspiration then sing about their grief
You dont have to be a rocket surgeon to know bette
Profile: Forum Fixture
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May as well show benches on pre sli for G200 benches. Its nothing more than maturing drivers. One card is a month old, the other? Give it three more months and readdress this


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Every artist is a cannibal,every poet is a thief,they all kill their inspiration then sing about their grief
Serenity Now!
Profile: Faithful Poster
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remember, the 4870 X2 is 30% faster than the 280 GTX

Logically speaking 4870 X2 CF is 30% faster than 280 GTX sli. So that means that the extra 280 GTX would only needs to scale 30% to match the 4870 X2 CF:P


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L1qu1dat1on Ag3
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 @ 3.6, RAM: 8 gig OCZ 1:1, Fan: Water Cooling, Mobo:Striker II Formula, HDD: 2x's 150 Raptor (RAID 0)+ 1TB Seagate, VGA: 280 GTX TRI PSU:CorsairHX1000 Windows Vista Ultimate 64
You dont have to be a rocket surgeon to know bette
Profile: Forum Fixture
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Ecept those games where the 4870x2 beats G200 in sli by itslef, which also tend to be newer games as well.


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Every artist is a cannibal,every poet is a thief,they all kill their inspiration then sing about their grief
Profile: newbie
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Not sure why people would tell you not to do it. The only advise I have is to make sure you never buy your video cards from ASUS. I myself am going with the twin 4870 x2s, though if I was willing to spend the extra cash for the 3rd card, new MB and a much larger case. I would probably go with the gtx 280s.

Let us know which way you go.



UltimaSlayerVII wrote :

As I'm sure everyone has caught on by now, everybody wont stfu about how I want to use 3 gtx 280s. Honestly. I make a post about what case would fit this, or if a certain PSU would power it, and bam, all of the posts are "omgwtf noob lol 3 gtx 280s r waste of $ noob rofl". They probably then wish they had them. But after scanning a benchmark, I might reconsider.
Here is the 1st benchie, it supports the triple gtx 280s, especially in crysis.http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforce-gtx-280-sli-triple-review-test/13

Heres the 2nd, which gives pretty terrible fps(compared to 3 gtx 280s, of course) in the absolute best settings for crysiss in 2650x1600 that I will be running, but appears to have higher fps in all other games. Of course, I've never even heard of this site, and its benchies are so drastically different from 3dguru's(which I trust, been a member for years and years), that I don't know. http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/15293/11

So, based on this, and what you guys already know, what do you think will give better performance in crysis,cod4, and AOC(other game too, but these are by far the most demanding of what I'll play)- 3 gtx 280 OC editions in TRI-SLI, or Dual 4870X2s in quad crossfire?

Thanks.

Edit: Seriously, I'm not picking different gpus. Please, just tell me which is better for those games, and how you know.


You dont have to be a rocket surgeon to know bette
Profile: Forum Fixture
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Of course, as we havnt really seen the potential of the quadfire solution as its too new, and so far the drivers have focused on DX10, the only 1 that we do have, like I said. :p


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Every artist is a cannibal,every poet is a thief,they all kill their inspiration then sing about their grief
Profile: Eternal Poster
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How many damn posts do you think you need to make on the subject?

Use Google for research, how lazy can you be?

After you research buy whatever you want!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Get a life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Profile: enthusiast
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yea, I'd normally go with the dual 4870X2s because they're about $200 cheaper and faster in a lot of games... but Crysis is going to be my little plaything. It's gonna be the thing that tells me $1500 on GPU alone was worth it when im running 2560x1600 DX10, max settings, full AA/AF at 38fps... with the dual 4870s, its only in the unplayable 20s. Also, I kinda like nvidia more.

But I'm still unsure if crysis/far cry 2 alone are worth it, or if I should go X2s. Btw sorry if the link doesent work, just copy&paste :kaola:

Edit: Oh, and my burning question that hasn't been answered on another thread, maybe one of you know the answer... What mobo supports 3 gtx 280s, DDR2, and a X-FI sound card? Give or take the DDR2, I'd go with DDR3 if I absolutely need to, but I mainly want a mobo that can take those 3 gtx 280s and a great sound card. Thanks a ton if you know :sol:

You dont have to be a rocket surgeon to know bette
Profile: Forum Fixture
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Until either nVidia or ATI show a greater return in performance in using these solutions, its basically pointless, unless you have nothing to do but spend money. I havnt responded in your previous posts, but Im sure youve heard the same thing before, but the numbers speak for themselves, and at this point, those numbers suck compared to price/performance. If you truly want a recommendation of these 2 solutions, I gave mine. Its too early to evaluate the quad system, and actually the tri sli as well, as theyre both too new, and since it is very low on the drivers list in importance, wont get addressed as often, nor as thoroughly as any other card/solution out. If I were to guess? My guess would be on the 4xxx solution for these reasons. ATI is definately heading into the multi core CF solution as the future, so they MAY be more serious about drivers for their quad solution, and, the side port, somewheres down the road will play a part in all this. My 2 shekals worth


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Every artist is a cannibal,every poet is a thief,they all kill their inspiration then sing about their grief
Profile: enthusiast
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jaydeejohn wrote :

Until either nVidia or ATI show a greater return in performance in using these solutions, its basically pointless, unless you have nothing to do but spend money. I havnt responded in your previous posts, but Im sure youve heard the same thing before, but the numbers speak for themselves, and at this point, those numbers suck compared to price/performance. If you truly want a recommendation of these 2 solutions, I gave mine. Its too early to evaluate the quad system, and actually the tri sli as well, as theyre both too new, and since it is very low on the drivers list in importance, wont get addressed as often, nor as thoroughly as any other card/solution out. If I were to guess? My guess would be on the 4xxx solution for these reasons. ATI is definately heading into the multi core CF solution as the future, so they MAY be more serious about drivers for their quad solution, and, the side port, somewheres down the road will play a part in all this. My 2 shekals worth



do you by any chance know the answer to the edit in my last post? I've decided to go triple gtx 280s, and I really need that question answered... havent gotten help on mobo forums

Profile: nimble knuckle

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Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 3.2ghz, HIS 4850 IceQ4 Turbo, 4GB OCZ Reaper Crossfire Edition @ 800mhz 1:1, ASUS P5Q Pro
Profile: nimble knuckle