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NVIDIA's GTX 680 tested in SLI and multi-display modes, loses some of its lead
Just hours after our review round-up of the new GeForce GTX 680 graphics card yesterday, a Dutch site has managed to test multiple cards in different (but invariably exorbitant) SLI modes. One of the strange things we learned during our hands-on was that SLI is complicated by NVIDIA's GPU Boost technology, which causes individual cards in the same chassis to run at different clock speeds depending on their load and temperature. Fortunately, Hardware.info reports no problems with SLI whatsoever, but it also concludes that the GTX 680 doesn't scale quite as well as AMD's Radeon HD 7970 in this type of niche setup. That changes if you throw down even more money on a 5760 x 1080 triple-display rig, in which case NVIDIA takes the lead in some games, but loses in others -- leaving the two rivals closer than the single-card reviews we looked at yesterday. If horizon-filling gameplay is your thing, don't give anyone thousands of dollars until you've checked out the source link.[Thanks, Koen]
ATI's CrossFireX now offered on Alienware Area-51 gaming PC
Alienware's AMD-powered Aurora ALX picked up CrossFireX support just as soon as it went live from ATI, but it has taken a few weeks for the technology to make its way over to the iconic Area-51. Said gaming rig is now available with ATI CrossFireX, meaning that you can take advantage of all four GPUs across a pair of Radeon HD 3870 X2s. Full release posted after the jump.
NVIDIA's 9800 GX2-based Quad SLI solution gets mixed reviews
NVIDIA's high-end GeForce 9800 GX2 graphics card has been pretty well received on its own, but it looks to be decidedly more of a mixed bag when it comes to a Quad SLI configuration, at least according to a pair of early reviews. Least impressed with the setup was PC Perspective, which described the system's performance as "uninspiring" and "frustrating more often than it was fun to play on." The site did see some potential in the system, however, saying that it's very possible that NVIDIA will be able to address many of the problems in upcoming driver releases. Slightly more positive about the config were the folks at HotHardware, who were pleased with the performance, and seem to have been more satisfied with the setup's ability to scale with various applications than PC Perspective was. On the downside, they did admit that the system didn't scale well for everything, and there is of course the little matter of price (about $1,200), which will likely be pretty hard for even the most die-hard performance junkie to justify.Read - PC PerspectiveRead - HotHardware
Thermaltake kicks out Quad GPU-ready power supplies
There's just nothing quite like the smell of four graphics cards burning through energy in the morning to get you amped for the day, and Thermaltake is making sure you've got the juice and the connectors to make it happen. While not quite as mighty as Ultra Products' 2,000-watt behemoth, the 1,200- and 1,000-watt Toughpower PSUs support both AMD and Intel rigs and boast a trio of six-pin PCI-E connectors, eight SATA and Molex ports, and both units claim the "world's first" tag by collectively being numero uno to include eight-pin PCI-E connectors. The backwards compatible ports allow gamers to hit up a bit of Quad SLI action on their own, and considering the massive power draw demanded by such cards, it's good to know you've got so much energy on tap for those graphically straining firefights. Although there's no pricing information available just yet, the W0133 / W0132 should be available soon, and if you're already considering throwing down for four high-end GPUs, we highly doubt cashflow is of primary concern.[Via FarEastGizmos]Read - Thermaltake Toughpower W0133Read - Thermaltake Toughpower W0132
NVIDIA releases Quad SLI for the masses
If you've got the cash to wrangle your very own Quad SLI setup, you're probably not far off from one of those snazz Alienware or Voodoo PC boxes, which give you all that graphic muscle with none of the hassle. But if it's DIY or bust, NVIDIA has just released the necessary Quad SLI drivers to the public, meaning you can finally have the joy of putting four horrendously expensive graphics cards into that trusty homebrewed box of yours. So, if you're thinking of taking such drastic action -- the necessary pair of GeForce 7950 GX2 SLI cards will cost you almost $1200 -- PC Perspective has the low-down on what to buy, and how to make it all work. Though you might want to peep their benchmark scores before you take the plunge, because 4x time video cards sure doesn't mean 4x the frames per second.
Quad SLI gaming for cheapskates
The guys over at destructoid.com weren't too impressed with Dell's $10,000 pricetag for the company's flagship Renegade system so they decided to take the matter into their own hands by collating the key components of a custom built Quad SLI gaming rig. Breaking their imaginary system down, they found that the main areas essential for building a machine comparable in performance to the Renegade were: Duh, the Quad SLI graphics cards. A budget of around $2800 should set you up with a 4 card bundle. A Gigabyte Quad SLI motherboard to stick those four cards in, $240. Pentium 3.73GHz Extreme, $1300. 10,000 RPM Hard Drive and 2GB of branded RAM, $450. Battlefield 2 at 1600x1200 with graphics on full, priceless. Chuck in a case, cooling, sound card, DVD drive and peripherals (keyboard, mouse and 2.1 speaker system) and you're looking at a budget of $6,000 for a well equipped Quad SLI system. That's around $2,000 less than the Renegade PC (sans the $2,199 30" widescreen monitor that Dell includes with their system) so you're not quite saving the $4,000 that the destructoid guys claim you will.The obvious downsides to building your own Quad SLI rig include: the hassle of constructing the system and installing Windows yourself (although we're sure most people could do a better job than Dell) and the lack of a warranty, but before you think about these problems ask yourself the question: is that red flame color scheme worth two grand?[Thanks, Franco]
Excess (ekses) n. : a Quad SLI gaming rig
Nvidia has announced that Quad SLI technology will be available from top system sellers, delivering ridiculous framerates at resolutions up to 2560x1600. Systems include Dell's already announced XPS 600 Renegade as well as machines from power players Alienware, Falcon Northwest, Voodoo, and—of course—the PrimeA Galleria 64Quad-SLI.With prices around the $5K mark, don't expect to see Compaq offering these space heaters at the local department store; hardcore gamers only need apply. With this setup, you'd only need about 7 systems to push all the pixels in that ridiculous 10240x3072 display. Let's see, uh, 7 times $5K... [Via Engadget][UPDATE: Added a clarification]
