SLI with a Xeon E5-1650 v3?

[_JakeDavies]

Hi,

Quick question, what's the max amount of graphics cards (Nvidia) that I can put in SLI when using a Xeon E5-1650 v3 and an Asus Sabertooth X99 Mobo? I currently have 1 970 and looking at getting a second 970 so just checking that it's compatible.

Thanks in advance

 

[Suztera]

The maximum will be 3 way SLI. The limitation is more based on what the motherboard supports.
So yes you can do 2 Way SLI with the GTX 970.

 

[_JakeDavies]

The maximum will be 3 way SLI. The limitation is more based on what the motherboard supports.
So yes you can do 2 Way SLI with the GTX 970.

Also, I don't know if you know, but is the Xeon overclockable. I haven't purchased it yet so just wondering in advance.

 

[Karsten75]

Xeon processors cannot be overclocked. SLI is a motherboard feature and the processor plays no part in that.

 

[_JakeDavies]

Xeon processors cannot be overclocked. SLI is a motherboard feature and the processor plays no part in that.

okay then, I might consider getting the i7 5930K instead then so I still have the same amount of cores but I'll be able to overclock them. Mainly for gaming and rendering so I do need a powerful CPU so the i7 might be the better choice.

 

[bambiboom]

The maximum will be 3 way SLI. The limitation is more based on what the motherboard supports.
So yes you can do 2 Way SLI with the GTX 970.

Also, I don't know if you know, but is the Xeon overclockable. I haven't purchased it yet so just wondering in advance.

The maximum will be 3 way SLI. The limitation is more based on what the motherboard supports.
So yes you can do 2 Way SLI with the GTX 970.

Also, I don't know if you know, but is the Xeon overclockable. I haven't purchased it yet so just wondering in advance.

_JakeDavies,

The Xeon E5-1650 v3 has a locked multiplier, but the voltage can be boosted to have 4.2 or 4.3GHz. If the goal is to overclock, have a look at it's i7-version which is the i7-5930K

E5-1650 v3:

http://ark.intel.com/products/82765/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E5-1650-v3-15M-Cache-3_50-GHz?q=E5-1650%20v3

i7-5930K :

http://ark.intel.com/products/82931/Intel-Core-i7-5930K-Processor-15M-Cache-up-to-3_70-GHz

In Passmark results, the E5-1650 v3 (181 tested) has a top CPU score of 16454 at 4.3GHz. The i7-5930K top score is 19358 at 5.1GHz on an ASUS Rampage V Extreme. The ASUS X99-Deluxe (18727) and Sabertooth X99 (18649) also get a lot out of an i7-5930K.

The Top 3D score using the i7-5930K (@4.6GHz) / GTX 970 is 11547 on an ASUS X99-Deluxe.

The ability to use SLI is determined by the GPU design and the motherboard also has to support it. A number of times I've read that the benefits of SLI drops off after two GPU's. Also, a single LGA2011-3 supports 40 PCIe lanes so a third GPU will run at x8.

Cheers,

BambiBoom

1. HP z420 (2015) > Xeon E5-1660 v2 (6-core @ 3.7 / 4.0GHz) > 32GB DDR3 1866 ECC RAM > Quadro K4200 (4GB) > Intel 730 480GB (9SSDSC2BP480G4R5) > Western Digital Black WD1003FZEX 1TB> M-Audio 192 sound card > 600W PSU> > Windows 7 Professional 64-bit > Logitech z2300 speakers > 2X Dell Ultrasharp U2715H (2560 X 1440)>
[ Passmark Rating = 5064 > CPU= 13989 / 2D= 819 / 3D= 4596 / Mem= 2772 / Disk= 4555] [Cinebench R15 > CPU = 1014 OpenGL= 126.59 FPS] 7.8.15

2. Dell Precision T5500 (2011) (Revised) > 2X Xeon X5680 (6 -core @ 3.33 / 3.6GHz), 48GB DDR3 1333 ECC Reg. > Quadro K2200 (4GB ) > PERC H310 / Samsung 840 250GB / WD RE4 Enterprise 1TB > M-Audio 192 sound card > Logitech z313 > 875W PSU > Windows 7 Professional 64> HP 2711x (27", 1920 X 1080)
[ Passmark system rating = 3844 / CPU = 15047 / 2D= 662 / 3D= 3500 / Mem= 1785 / Disk= 2649] (12.30.15)