SLI / CrossFire FAQs

[Maziar]

Am I right in assuming that when a motherboard says '3-way SLI/CrossfireX ready' that it COULD support 4 cards, but it doesn't have sufficient PCI-e slots for it? So it's not related to the capability lacking, but that there's no space for it?
From what I know, CrossfireX is three or more cards, so if it supports CrossfireX at all..

When it says that it supports 3-way SLI/CrossFireX,it means that you can use up to 3 cards on it.
As an example,if you use 3 HD 5850's on it,you will have 3 GPUs in CrossFire,but if you use 2 5970's on it(or cards that have 2 graphic cores),then you will have 4 GPUs in CrossFire.

 

[Chard the First]

will the multi-display ATI Eyefinity technology work with NVIDA cards also? I actually expect the answer to be no but what the hell don't ask a question you never get an answer. Matrox can NOT handle the Hi-Resoultions that 3 24" HDMI 1080p HD Wide Screens. I asked and they have no plans on doing so at this point. I just bought the Geforce CTX 260's and really really don't want to replave them just to play Eve across 3 really nice big screens

 

[Maziar]

No Eyefinity currently works only with ATI cards.

 

[wolfram23]

Hi Maziar, I was just briefly looking over your FAQ again and I thought of a possible addition to be added. Although not an officially supported feature, hybrid ATI/Nvidia systems for running a dedicated PhysX card with ATI rendering might be a valid topic in the FAQ. True, it's not actually in crossfire or SLI, but it is a multi GPU set up... and it definitely works (personal experience )

 

[Maziar]

Hey
You mean like using a Nvidia card as a PhysX card and use an ATI card alongside it ?

 

[wolfram23]

Hey
You mean like using a Nvidia card as a PhysX card and use an ATI card alongside it ?

Yeah exactly. I decided to give it a go, bought a GT 240 ($40 mail in rebate 😀) and followed a guide online... it was very easy just install Nvidia drivers, install latest PhysX, install the GenL patch... reboot and bam good to go. I made a little thread on it, I posted a link to the instructions and near the bottom a pic of now the cards all look in my PC as well as a bit of info on how it's running
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/290283-33-dedicated-physx

 

[Maziar]

That's a good idea,but there is an important factor to consider,and its that Nvidia once dropped support for having a Nvidia card as a PhysX card with an ATI card as the main one.
http://www.ngohq.com/graphic-cards/16223-nvidia-disables-physx-when-ati-card-is-present-136.html
So if things go OK for some months,I'll add it that time,because for now,Nvidia may again drop its support.
But,overall it was a great suggestion,I'll definitely consider it in the main post if things go well.
Thanks again for you recommendation

 

[sandyvong]

thanks for the loads of information

 

[Maziar]

You are welcome,glad you found it useful

 

[irfan88]

I have an nForce 750i sli motherboard and a E7500 2.93 Ghz dual core processor.

Will the HD 5770 run perfectly on an nforce motherboard.

I want to play all games at max on a 1440*900 resolution.

if I want to add another card to my SLI board, will I be able to add another HD 5770 card or do I need to go with the nVidia cards.

One last question. will a HD 5770 crossfire be better than a GTX 260 SLI (2*896 MB) configuration.

 

[Maziar]

You asked it already in a thread that you created before, and i told you that you can't add another 5770 to your motherboard, because your motherboard supports SLI not CrossFire.If you read the first page, all of this facts are covered.
And as for 2 5770s vs 2 GTX 260s,2 GTX 260s perform better,but for your resolution either SLI or CrossFire is a waste, and a single 5770 or GTX 260 can handle everything fine

 

[irfan88]

thanks for the help.

 

[ycr_net]

Nice Artical..........lots of info available.................thnx

 

[Maziar]

You are welcome

 

[mjsharma]

i cant find any SLI slot on the top of my GTS250...
it says its SLI ready...
how can i connect it to SLI bridge? or is there no need to connect a bridge to use it in SLI?

 

[Maziar]

Your motherboard(assuming that its the one in your signature) has 1 PCI-E 16x slot, so it doesn't support either SLI or CrossFire
http://www.msi.com/index.php?func=prodmbspec&maincat_no=1&cat2_no=&cat3_no=&prod_no=1839

 

[mjsharma]

m gonna change it soon....may be in a month.. will b goin for sli... but i cant see any sli slot(i mean the place where v connect the bridge) on the top of my gfx card

 

[Maziar]

It seems that Palit GTS 250 doesn't have a SLI bridge but supports SLI
http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=158612

 

[mjsharma]

ohk...thanks

 

[Maziar]

You are welcome

 

[htelectrical]

I would like to be able to use 3 displays. 2 monitors, and the 3rd would be my projector. Currently I have a x1900xt 512MB card installed on a ASUS P5WDH Deluxe board. I am running the 2 monitors in extended mode, and I would like the projector to be an independent monitor. Can I install a 2nd card, that supports HDMI if possible, (like a HD5670) to accomplish this? I am not really concerned with crossfire.
Thanks in advance!!!!!

 

[Maziar]

You want to get a 5670 to use it with a projector ? if so,then yes its possible

 

[htelectrical]

Basically I want to add it so I can use the projector and the 2 monitors at the same time. Is the 5670 a good card for this use? (Bang for buck so to speak)

 

[Maziar]

I think i misunderstood at first.You can't use a X1900XT with a HD 5670 on a same motherboard.The cards have to be the same.

 

[Cruzan]

Hey folks,

This one's been driving me nuts for two days now Googling the 'Net, and I can't find the answer to my Q...

Simply, does a motherboard HAVE to be "Crossfire ready" or "Certified" in order for me to run two Crossfire GPU's, i.e. two Radeon HD 5850 cards, on a board, and run them well? And what could be the possible implications/complications? 😉

Thanks to all.

Cruzan