P67, X58, And NF200: The Best Platform For CrossFire And SLI

[steve_str]

Thank you Thomas for the excellent article and data.

When populating the Asus P8P67 WS Revolution with 3 x GPUs, which of the four PCIe x16 slots were used? For example, were the first three slots used for a x8/x8/16/x0 configuration. or were the first, third and fourth slots used for a x16/x0/x8/x8 configuration? One reason for asking is that the former would not require a case with 8 expansions slots. Also, I'm thinking the x8/x8/16/x0 configuration and x16/x0/x8/x8 configuration would give identical results. Do you agree?

Thanks,

steve_str

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]steve_str[/nom]Thank you Thomas for the excellent article and data.When populating the Asus P8P67 WS Revolution with 3 x GPUs, which of the four PCIe x16 slots were used? For example, were the first three slots used for a x8/x8/16/x0 configuration. or were the first, third and fourth slots used for a x16/x0/x8/x8 configuration? One reason for asking is that the former would not require a case with 8 expansions slots. Also, I'm thinking the x8/x8/16/x0 configuration and x16/x0/x8/x8 configuration would give identical results. Do you agree?Thanks,steve_str[/citation]The results should be nearly identical, and the pathways are stated in the charts. Thanks!

 

[steve_str]

Thank you Crashman for the response.

Now I'm wondering is there a particular reason why the Asus P8P67 WS Revolution was configured as x8/x8/16/x0 with triple GTX 570 and as x16/x0/x8/x8 with triple HD 6950? The Asus P8P67 WS Revolution manual does not mention that 3-way SLI and CrossFireX require different PCIe slot utilization and I have triple HD 6950 and 7 slot case in mind.

Thanks,

steve_str

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]steve_str[/nom]Thank you Crashman for the response.Now I'm wondering is there a particular reason why the Asus P8P67 WS Revolution was configured as x8/x8/16/x0 with triple GTX 570 and as x16/x0/x8/x8 with triple HD 6950? The Asus P8P67 WS Revolution manual does not mention that 3-way SLI and CrossFireX require different PCIe slot utilization and I have triple HD 6950 and 7 slot case in mind.Thanks,steve_str[/citation]Based on the length of the CrossFire and SLI bridges. x16/x0/x8/x8 was preferred for cooling but only possible with half the cards due to bridge length.

 

[niknikktm]

Hopefully a lot of short sighted geeks buy into this "X58 is dead" nonsense and the price point drops for that line of product. Nothing quite like building a machine with a 2% disadvantage at a 30% lower cost. When used with a GTX460, arctic cooling, and placed in a Silverstone HTPC enclosure you end up with a HTPC that is cool, quiet, and has game. Best of both worlds. By all means, bring that price down. I want to build another.

 

[cypeq]

[citation][nom]mayankleoboy1[/nom]the only thing left for x8 is "let it go dawg, its over"[/citation]
1st 8x is sufficient for now and 1-2% difference isn't difference at all.
2nd haha nope... pcie 3.0 will bring back 8x as fully sufficient lane.

 

[tinmann]

I'm in the planning stages of building a Core i7 rig and best place to start is the foundation, the mother board. For the last few years the LGA 1366 socket mother boards and CPUs have been king. I read all the reviews on every P67 and X58 motherboard,trolled every forum and did side buy side comparisons on all of them. I was almost on the verge of buying a Asus Sabertooth or a Asus Formula P67 socket 1155 motherboard when a like new Asus P6T6 WS practically fell in my lap. Sooo, I guess I'll just have to eek by with six Pci-e 2.0 slots,True @16 3-Way SLI,SAS Onboard,support for up to 24gigs of triple channel DDR3 ram,8 channel audio,support for CPUs into the Xenon class of chips yada, yada, yada.
If LGA 1366 is dead then why haven't I seen any drop in prices on the Core i7 990x. When the price of that drops below $300.00 Then you can say LGA 1366 is dead.
But for the time being I feel I can build a very competent system with any of the X58 boards, the right ram and a Core i7 950 or above.

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]tinmann[/nom]I'm in the planning stages of building a Core i7 rig and best place to start is the foundation, the mother board. For the last few years the LGA 1366 socket mother boards and CPUs have been king. I read all the reviews on every P67 and X58 motherboard,trolled every forum and did side buy side comparisons on all of them. I was almost on the verge of buying a Asus Sabertooth or a Asus Formula P67 socket 1155 motherboard when a like new Asus P6T6 WS practically fell in my lap. Sooo, I guess I'll just have to eek by with six Pci-e 2.0 slots,True @16 3-Way SLI,SAS Onboard,support for up to 24gigs of triple channel DDR3 ram,8 channel audio,support for CPUs into the Xenon class of chips yada, yada, yada.If LGA 1366 is dead then why haven't I seen any drop in prices on the Core i7 990x. When the price of that drops below $300.00 Then you can say LGA 1366 is dead. But for the time being I feel I can build a very competent system with any of the X58 boards, the right ram and a Core i7 950 or above.[/citation]Well, let's actually read what was said:
"Anyone who needs the added flexibility of X58 to host other devices, such as high-end drive controllers or six-core processors in a workstation environment, must bow to the gaming superiority of NF200-equiped Sandy Bridge motherboards"
The article made concessions for the stuff you were talking about and said that Sandy Bridge was a superior GAMING processor. So, to be honest, you're not being completely honest in your assessment.

 

[tinmann]

My assessment is made on my particular circumstances. I wanted to upgrade from LGA775 and have SLI or Crossfire, I had the good fortune to acquire a Asus X58 P6T6 WS under $100.00. Show me a P67 board that can do 3 way SLI and Crossfire 16x16x16 that's remotely close to that price point. For me it was economics not benchmarks friend and I'm sure my gaming experience will be just as enjoyable as yours in the end.

 

[Guest]

Would using a 32nm cpu in the x58 make a difference? That's the only remaining variable i can think of.

 

[Crashman]

[citation][nom]Gogar[/nom]Would using a 32nm cpu in the x58 make a difference? That's the only remaining variable i can think of.[/citation]Here you go:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i7-2920xm-core-i7-980x-sandy-bridge,2851.html
The new architecture is just better. Not a whole bunch better, but a little better. And it overclocks higher. So the only thing the 32nm processor gives you is hexacore, assuming you can use it.

 

[Why_Me]

Hopefully a lot of short sighted geeks buy into this "X58 is dead" nonsense and the price point drops for that line of product. Nothing quite like building a machine with a 2% disadvantage at a 30% lower cost. When used with a GTX460, arctic cooling, and placed in a Silverstone HTPC enclosure you end up with a HTPC that is cool, quiet, and has game. Best of both worlds. By all means, bring that price down. I want to build another.

LOL ?

Let's see...knowing a bit how intel works on price dropping...in about two more years you might see the 950 drop an entire $40 if your lucky. And lucky you with a HTPC build...your opting for a 1336 build which runs hoter, uses a lot more power, and doesn't come close to a 2500K and/or 2600K in regards to o/c not to mention those two SB cpu's mop the floor with the 1336's in regards to gaming.

 

[Crashman]

LOL ?

Let's see...knowing a bit how intel works on price dropping...in about two more years you might see the 950 drop an entire $40 if your lucky. And lucky you with a HTPC build...your opting for a 1336 build which runs hoter, uses a lot more power, and doesn't come close to a 2500K and/or 2600K in regards to o/c not to mention those two SB cpu's mop the floor with the 1336's in regards to gaming.

Those who have both money and knowledge would rather wait for the improved core to transition to the next high-connectivity platform, since we already know it's coming later this year.

 

[Why_Me]

Those who have both money and knowledge would rather wait for the improved core to transition to the next high-connectivity platform, since we already know it's coming later this year.

Ivy Bridge ? If someone had the money I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a SB build right now. Especially those peeps coming from an C2D build or an older AMD build. Of course it all depends on how often you build a new rig...which of course money and priorities play the major part.

What would be nice is to know for sure if these P67/Z68 boards are going to run Ivy with a bios flash. For now all I know is it's a rumor. If so...well that's the upgrade path for these SB builds.

 

[Crashman]

Ivy Bridge ? If someone had the money I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a SB build right now. Especially those peeps coming from an C2D build or an older AMD build. Of course it all depends on how often you build a new rig...which of course money and priorities play the major part.

What would be nice is to know for sure if these P67/Z68 boards are going to run Ivy with a bios flash. For now all I know is it's a rumor. If so...well that's the upgrade path for these SB builds.

Everyone knows that Intel is replacing the X58 later this year. Beyond that I don't know what I'm allowed to say. But we do know that it will come with a new socket.

 

[xtreme5]

so this mean that NF200 is just like a waste.

 

[airborne11b]

I built an x58 system back in 2009, and lookimg at 1155, and 2011 sockets, i am very happy with my buy. There is no visible difference in gaming, not even compared to 2011 socket. Sure, 1155 is cheaper, so for any new build today it only makes sense to go 1155, but for us early adopters of x58, we won with long life value.

No need to upgrade yet it seems.