Dedicated PhysX card

[Matthias2437]

I have an extra 9800 GTX+ laying around and was thinking of throwing it in with my GTX 580 as a dedicated physX card. I was just wondering if anyone knew how much of a performance increase you actually see running a dedicated physX card in games that use PhysX (Metro 2033 ect.)

 

[S_I_N]

well I'd say since ya already have one layin around give it a go and see and post ur results for others to see. But imho I'd bet ya see an increase to be sure as you reduce the load on the main card by adding a second for physics. My question is can this trick only be done on intel platforms or is it doable on AMD as well??? Sry to ask in ur thread but figured it was a good place

 

[Matthias2437]

It can be done if you have an AMD CPU but not with AMD gpus. Even if you put in an Nvidia card it wont let you run it as PhysX. And yeah I figure I will give it a shot and run Metro 2033 and cryostasis benchmarks then post the results I get. Expect to see them in the next day or so =)

 

[timby]

I wonder also if the power penalty is worth the effort? Since and correct me if I'm wrong, not all games utilize Physicx. Also, not sure what it would do to other apps (word, power point, spread sheets, internet browsing). Something to ponder.....

 

[Matthias2437]

Yeah that is the reason I did not put it in at first. Not that I have power restraints in my PC but the only thing having a PhysX card will effect are the games on the short list of PhysX using games. (Off the top of my head all I can think of is Metro 2033, Crystasis, Shattered Horizon, Mirrors Edge, Batman Arkham Asylum, Warmonger, Mafia 2.) But outside of those it wouldn't really effect anything.

 

[ciksas]

If you already have it give it a go surely you will get a few fps more. The card won’t always run at load, mostly it will idle and even when running physics it won’t be at 100%( so it won’t draw that much power)

 

[murphy7801]

Yer its useful when your running directx11 games since there bit more demanding on some of the resources physx also uses. So games like metro 2033 get a nice boost.

 

[realneil]

I will give it a shot and run Metro 2033 and cryostasis benchmarks then post the results I get. Expect to see them in the next day or so =)

What were the results? How did it work, and did you have any trouble with configuring it?

 

[Matthias2437]

I saw about 5-10 more frames in Metro 2033 (Max settings 1920-1080 DX11). In physics heavy games like Cryostasis I saw an increase of about 10 fps in most parts. (Max setting, 1920-1080 DX10) It was actually very easy to set up, only took a couple of minutes to get it in and running. Also when it comes to more power or heat in your case it wasn't a big deal at all, the 9800 gtx+ only takes one six pin and my temps hardly changed from the one 580 to the 580 and the 9800. So final verdict, if you play games that use PhysX, have an old 9000 series or higher card and an extra slot in your case then it is worth the time to put it in.

 

[ahboyhan]

I read from some other forums mentioning that the Cuda cores on the physX card must be at least half of your main GPU. Thus, you are using GTX 580 with 512 Cuda Cores. your physX card needs to be at least a GTX 460SE with 288 Cuda Cores. 9800 GTX+ only have 128 cuda cores.

But testing from the thread starters shows that its all nonsense.

so is this true??

 

[Runebeard]

I haven't read it needs to be half, but have seen it recommended that you use at least a 260 for PhysX else it can actualy impede performance. I'm assuming due to the results the massive grunt of the 580, and relieving it of physics calculations more than made up for this

Maybe I'll keep back one of my 275's when I upgrade...

 

[Rastalovich]

Anything 8800 GT and above really, with modernish cards as the main ones.

You can also get a significant Cuda boost if you use Cuda apps.

I've got to get around to build this media converting box for someone, made out of their old hardware. Theory being, they have a mobo with loads of pcie slots (the speeds aren't an issue), and something like 480, 285, 9800 and a 8800 - according to the software, if all the cards are listed within nvidia's driver panel as Cuda using, the encoder will take advantage of them all. Something to behold and I'll believe the results when I see them.

Physx is in more places than you may think.