To SLI or Not to SLI, that is the question - Thoughts Needed

[...PACMAN...]

Managed to get hold of a dirt cheap Palit GTX 960 4Gb card, seriously, it's only 1 month old and I nabbed it for £100!!

I've tried it out and to be honest it's surprised me with how capable it is at 1080p....I'm now thinking SLI 4Gb 960s. Even factoring in the cost of a new Palit 4Gb 960 it would only add up to £250 for both cards which outperform the 970 in a lot of titles but fall short in others. GTX 970s are about £250 and up in the UK.

I game at 1080p but use DSR for 1440...I aim to get one of those nice ACER 144 Gsync 1440 IPS Monitor's at some point.

Should I get another 960 for SLI or should I sell this one and get a very nice GTX 970?

All opinions and thoughts welcomed, thanks

 

[Jborg]

Managed to get hold of a dirt cheap Palit GTX 960 4Gb card, seriously, it's only 1 month old and I nabbed it for £100!!

I've tried it out and to be honest it's surprised me with how capable it is at 1080p....I'm now thinking SLI 4Gb 960s. Even factoring in the cost of a new Palit 4Gb 960 it would only add up to £250 for both cards which outperform the 970 in a lot of titles but fall short in others. GTX 970s are about £250 and up in the UK.

I game at 1080p but use DSR for 1440...I aim to get one of those nice ACER 144 Gsync 1440 IPS Monitor's at some point.

Should I get another 960 for SLI or should I sell this one and get a very nice GTX 970?

All opinions and thoughts welcomed, thanks

I have never used SLI before, but from my general understanding. A single card is always better, just to avoid the hassles of SLI in games, dealing with SLI profiles etc.

If I remember correctly the GTX 960 4G really does not even have enough GPU horsepower to actually utilize the full 4Gigs of memory it has. (EDIT Correction: It would have more horsepower in SLI to use more of the 4G of memory than the single card would)

My personal opinion would be to grab a 970 or maybe a second hand 980.

Having used/owned a GTX 970 myself for the last year, they are certainly very capable cards, I would say its a perfect card for 1080p, All games I play I am able to play @ a solid 59FPS with nearly everything maxed out. - However, I do wish I waited a while to pick up a new card, because I would have certainly picked up a 980 over the 970 if I were to do it all over. - The hype was to great for me ;D

All in all I am satisfied with the 970 and would recommend it over SLI 960s - Just my thoughts, if I am wrong on anything somebody please correct me.

 

[GhostRyder]

Managed to get hold of a dirt cheap Palit GTX 960 4Gb card, seriously, it's only 1 month old and I nabbed it for £100!!

I've tried it out and to be honest it's surprised me with how capable it is at 1080p....I'm now thinking SLI 4Gb 960s. Even factoring in the cost of a new Palit 4Gb 960 it would only add up to £250 for both cards which outperform the 970 in a lot of titles but fall short in others. GTX 970s are about £250 and up in the UK.

I game at 1080p but use DSR for 1440...I aim to get one of those nice ACER 144 Gsync 1440 IPS Monitor's at some point.

Should I get another 960 for SLI or should I sell this one and get a very nice GTX 970?

All opinions and thoughts welcomed, thanks

Sell and buy a GTX 970, most of the reviews showed even combined they were just barely above the 970 in performance and that's of course when SLI works great.

If your planning on 1440p 144hz in the future, the GTX 970 is going to be a better choice of the two options IMHO.

 

[...PACMAN...]

I have never used SLI before, but from my general understanding. A single card is always better, just to avoid the hassles of SLI in games, dealing with SLI profiles etc.

If I remember correctly the GTX 960 4G really does not even have enough GPU horsepower to actually utilize the full 4Gigs of memory it has.

My personal opinion would be to grab a 970 or maybe a second hand 980.

Having used/owned a GTX 970 myself for the last year, they are certainly very capable cards, I would say its a perfect card for 1080p, All games I play I am able to play @ a solid 59FPS with nearly everything maxed out. - However, I do wish I waited a while to pick up a new card, because I would have certainly picked up a 980 over the 970 if I were to do it all over. - The hype was to great for me ;D

All in all I am satisfied with the 970 and would recommend it over SLI 960s - Just my thoughts, if I am wrong on anything somebody please correct me.

You see I kind of see the point about the 4Gb but a lot of games now are demanding above 2gb just to use the highest textures in games. GTA V was full to the brim when I tried it and it was playing lovely with MSAA off of course. I tried a bit of Skyrim modded and not one stutter in site. I think the SLI would justify that even more, adding that extra grunt to match up to the 4gb Vram it comes with. Even so, my head keeps saying 970!!! lol

@GhostRyder Yeh very true.....and then possibly SLI 970s!! ouch I'm getting a bit addicted to all this Thanks for your input.

 

[newtekie1]

If I remember correctly the GTX 960 4G really does not even have enough GPU horsepower to actually utilize the full 4Gigs of memory it has.

That is the point of SLI, it gives the extra GPU horse power.

That being said, if you have the option for a single GPU, go for it. I say sell the single 960 and buy a 970.

 

[...PACMAN...]

Yeh it's definitely looking to be a single card purchase.

So, suggestions on a nice 970? I'd like the MSI Gaming, good performance and ties in with my motherboard but it has no backplate. Asus Strix looks alright and has a backplate but is meant to be a tad noisier with possibility of coil whine.

Any ideas guys?

 

[GhostRyder]

Yeh it's definitely looking to be a single card purchase.

So, suggestions on a nice 970? I'd like the MSI Gaming, good performance and ties in with my motherboard but it has no backplate. Asus Strix looks alright and has a backplate but is meant to be a tad noisier with possibility of coil whine.

Any ideas guys?

Well out of all the different series this go round I am fond of the MSI gaming cards and coolers. Generally just good reviews and performance of the cooler.

 

[erocker]

If you can pick up another 960 on the cheap, go for it! The only issue I find with SLI is it not working sometimes with new releases. Usually though there's a workaround or support comes shortly thereafter.

 

[...PACMAN...]

If you can pick up another 960 on the cheap, go for it! The only issue I find with SLI is it not working sometimes with new releases. Usually though there's a workaround or support comes shortly thereafter.

No erocker, don't you come in here with your sensible suggestions changing my mind yet again!!! (I really want to try SLI, I can always sell them if I have issues )

 

[rtwjunkie]

Yeh it's definitely looking to be a single card purchase.

So, suggestions on a nice 970? I'd like the MSI Gaming, good performance and ties in with my motherboard but it has no backplate. Asus Strix looks alright and has a backplate but is meant to be a tad noisier with possibility of coil whine.

Any ideas guys?

Get the MSI 100ME version. It has a backplate. We have one in the house. Fantastic card. IDK why, but reading user reviews of this version show less incidence of coil whine and greater satisfaction. coincidence, or placebo, or real, I cannot say.

 

[...PACMAN...]

Backplate or no backplate, it's still green

I'm back to thinking I might give SLI a chance, this 960 is an awesome card - dead silent, no coil whine and pretty little white LEDs plus it's black and red and looks sweet on my board. Two of them with an MSI SLI dragon bridge would look great..... I've tried the Fallout 4 demo (cough) and it runs fantastic on max settings with no stutter on just that card alone (obviously below 60fps) when they finally pull a SLI profile out of there chocolate starfish and I buy the full release it should run sweet.

 

[rtwjunkie]

Backplate or no backplate, it's still green

True, but it has a very striking look inside a case.

I could take a picture this evening if you want to see?

 

[Toothless]

I went from a single 780 (970-like performance) to 780's SLI. As @erocker has said not all titles are going to SLI (Killing Floor 2 for example)

As long as that 4GB is a full 4GB however, SLI might be better in this case. If it's cheaper, go for it. (I got my two cards for under $500 - less than a single 980)

 

[...PACMAN...]

True, but it has a very striking look inside a case.

I could take a picture this evening if you want to see?

Nah, it's just not a colour I like unfortunately. That said, the card obviously looks good!!

I went from a single 780 (970-like performance) to 780's SLI. As @erocker has said not all titles are going to SLI (Killing Floor 2 for example)

As long as that 4GB is a full 4GB however, SLI might be better in this case. If it's cheaper, go for it. (I got my two cards for under $500 - less than a single 980)

@Toothless I tanked as much of the VRAM with GTA V as I could, about 3850 and it ran sweet for 1 hr going above and below that so I'm in no doubt that I'm getting a solid 4Gb of usable VRAM. No stutters in sight

 

[GreiverBlade]

well i will agrees with the rest: if you can sell the 960 4gb take a 970 3.5+0.5gb ... its a better deal (for you ... not for me, for me the 970 does not exist ... it's 960 or 980 nothing in the middle, just a void ... )

tho as i've read the rest of the thread ... you might also be comfortable with a single 960 ... so why bother SLI it?

SLI... CFX... nowaday : gimmick, tho the MSI dragon bridge looks nice (albeit gimmicky) more hassle than advantages ...

i stopped my "I want SLI or nothing!" at the GTX 580, because in the end SLI/CFX are just a "it might work and give you up to 80% performances more.... or not.... tho it will "double" the power needed for your GPU"
tho i might go 980 SLI for fun .... after all a Poseidon is only 628chf/619.88$ atm ... (non Ti ofc )


ohhh whatever ... if you can find another 960 4gb cheap : go for it,
if you want a 970: think twice before selling your 960 (or 960 SLI if you choose to give it a try )
a 980 is a good (if not, the best) alternative if you find a good deal on it.

edit: the 970 hate come from some of my games ... i DSR 1323p or sometime 2149p (4k) which goes sometime above 3.5gb vRAM usage and Skyrim would stutter like mad if i had a 970 instead of a 980 again it's a "you might be fine for a while without any issue.... or not... " but simply the fact that this issue exist : is freaking no go.

i confess tho ... for 1080p my 980 is overkill already ...

 

[Jborg]

Nah, it's just not a colour I like unfortunately. That said, the card obviously looks good!!



@Toothless I tanked as much of the VRAM with GTA V as I could, about 3850 and it ran sweet for 1 hr going above and below that so I'm in no doubt that I'm getting a solid 4Gb of usable VRAM. No stutters in sight

I really like the Gigabyte G1 Gaming cards... it is kinda unfortunate only the new 980TI has RGB LED lighting for the windforce logo.

But the 970/980 only have a blue LED. ( I just removed mine cuz it doesn't match my build colors)

 

[rtwjunkie]

As long as that 4GB is a full 4GB however, SLI might be better in this case. If it's cheaper, go for it. (I got my two cards for under $500 - less than a single 980)

Yes, it is a full 4GB, just like the 980 has full 4GB. It's just the 970 they screwed that up on.

 

[dcf-joe]

I have only used SLI once and I will never be using it again.

I had two 570s in SLI and the card that sat on top was always running much hotter than the other. Obviously, the card on top ran hotter because the air it was using to "cool" itself was the hot air emanating from the card right underneath it. Eventually, the card on top burned out and I was stuck with one 570. I do not know if maybe I got a card that just had a manufacturing defect or if the card could not handle the heat.

From that point on, I told myself that I will always just spend a little bit more and get a single, but powerful GPU.

 

[...PACMAN...]

I have just ordered the second 960, should be with me on Saturday.

"May my framerates be high and my temperatures low".

I may document my findings in a 'First time SLI user thread' at some point. Today I'll be doing a crap load of benching and then rebenching once I have the SLI setup to see what gains I have reaped and any problem/issues I have faced. Hopefully, It may help others in the future who are in a similar quandary.

Thanks for your thoughts and opinions guys

 

[Filip Georgievski]

I guess I had the same mind set when I bought my second 6770HD. It is a mid range card and for the first time I tried CFX, I'm very satisfied.
Advantages of SLI and CFX:
1. Performance boost guaranteed
2. More VRAM with 2 cards than a single one.
Drawbacks on SLI and CFX:
1. Not all games support it ( for example, BF3 and BF4 on my 2 6770HD works awesome, 1080p with ultra textures, no effects, 60fps average). It depends on the game with what GPU manufacturer is it ment to be played.
2. Higher temps and more noise from fans.

These are my conclusions of both SLI and CFX

 

[RCoon]

More VRAM with 2 cards than a single one.

VRAM doesn't stack, data is duplicated to both cards.

 

[Filip Georgievski]

It cannot be duplicated.
The usage on both cards is not the same.
Main goes 90% while second does 60 to 70%.
GTA 5 for me with 1 card shows 1 GB, but when I apply CFX, it shows 2GB in graphics settings.
Also a proof are the temps on my cards.
Main get to 85C while second hits 60C.
If you duplicate, then logically both cards will have same usage and same temps.
The second card is here to help the first with boost and vram for things the main card can't process at higher settings.

Edit: Also you would need 2 HDMI for 1 monitor or 2 monitors to play at CFX or SLI Mode if data is duplicating to both cards.And by duplicating you cannot get boost because both will render same stuff and it will make no difference if you play with single card or dual cards, by duplicating, performance will be the same.

 

[RCoon]

It cannot be duplicated.
The usage on both cards is not the same.
Main goes 90% while second does 60 to 70%.
GTA 5 for me with 1 card shows 1 GB, but when I apply CFX, it shows 2GB in graphics settings.
Also a proof are the temps on my cards.
Main get to 85C while second hits 60C.
If you duplicate, then logically both cards will have same usage and same temps.
The second card is here to help the first with boost and vram for things the main card can't process at higher settings.

Edit: Also you would need 2 HDMI for 1 monitor or 2 monitors to play at CFX or SLI Mode if data is duplicating to both cards.And by duplicating you cannot get boost because both will render same stuff and it will make no difference if you play with single card or dual cards, by duplicating, performance will be the same.

VRAM does not stack, it duplicates regardless of anything you might think from your results:
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/t...sli-use-the-sum-of-vram-from-all-gpus.167301/

This is literally something people have known and understood for years. It is fact, and the only thing that might change it (probably not though), is DX12.

 

[...PACMAN...]

Yeh it may be added with DX12 like RCoon has stated. Personally , I think they may struggle to implement it correctly and it may be more hassle than it's worth.

 

[Estaric]

VRAM does not stack, it duplicates regardless of anything you might think from your results:
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/t...sli-use-the-sum-of-vram-from-all-gpus.167301/

This is literally something people have known and understood for years. It is fact, and the only thing that might change it (probably not though), is DX12.

as amazing as vram stacking would be, especially with what they said about how you would be able mix different cards. I think it would be difficult to make happen and it could be abused really fast. Get a R9 390 with 8 gb of vram and then get something with better performance and have the vram stack. I just feel like it would be misused fast.
But i have no clue. all i an say is from what iv learned from this forum is instead of Dual cards you shoulld always get a more powerful single card if that an option.