GTX 580 Lightning SLI

[djcwarren@hotmail.com]

Hi guys

So with the big game releases of the year almost here (BF3 in particular) i am considering a PC upgrade.

I am currently running:

Intel i7-2600k

ASUS Maximus IV Extreme

MSI GTX 580 "Lightning"

Mushkin Redline Ridgeback 2x4GB 1600MHz 7-8-7-24

Noctua NH-D14

Corsair AX1200W PSU

WD Veloci Raptor 10k RPM 600GB

Asus Xonar D2X

Samsung T240 Monitor

Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

Coolermaster HAF X

An Intel 510 SSD 250GB will be added and probably the Alienware AW2310 120hZ gameing monitor.

The main question is will another MSI GTX 580 "Lighting" be a complete waste of money or will it help considerably with maxing out Battlefield 3 as i have heard rumors that 1.5GB of VRAM will not be enough with AA/AF enabled so overclocking the 1 i currently have probalby wont help very much. I will only be useing 1 monitor and will not be using 3D as i am not a fan of either.

Hope you guys can give me any tips as the lightning is currently on sale and costs about the same as a reference GTX 580.

 

[Scoob]

Hi,

With your setup I'd not hesitate to get a 2nd 580 - the performance jump will be huge.

Unless you're gaming at 2560x1600 or beyond (i.e. 3 screens) and for some reason insist on using 32xAA and 8x Super Sampling for everything, then the 1.5gb of vRam of the 580 should be plenty.

I'm gaming with a pair of GTX 570's, so 1.25gb vRam, at 1920x1200 and everything plays great. Bumping AA and SuperSampling to the max does impact FPS in some titles, though generally I find 4x AA gives the lions share of the smoothing myself.

Note: Check out Toms MARS II videos as that's basically what you'll have GPU-wise...he shows gaming using 3x 1920x1080 screens in a number of titles.

Cheers,

Scoob.

 

[djcwarren@hotmail.com]

Will only be useing it on 1 screen which is currently 1920x1200 so no problem there then.

How mcuh would i have to OC the CPU to get a stable setup with Lightning SLI? 4,2? 4,6 Ghz? Temps are not a problem as nothing evan passes 50 degrees in my current setup. But i do want a stable 24/7 clock.

 

[Dolph123]

It will increase your performance a lot, but since the Lightning dumps a lot of heat inside the case, the other one will get much higher temps.

 

[Scoob]

Hi,

No reason you shouldn't get a nice 4.5 / 4.6 overclock with good temps considering your cooler - I'm at 4.6 on my 2500k just fine, and your cooler is a little more effective than mine.

Regarding GPUs dumping air into the case: All you need is a reasonable 120mm extractor fan over the GPUs - not sure about your case but my 690 II has a 120-140mm fan mount right over the GPUs. With a 140mm front fan sucking in and the 120mm side fan exracting temps remain just fine.

Note: drawing the hot air OUT (the side vent) rather than blowing additional cool air IN worked far better for me. Even at 850 core on each of my 570's I barely hit 70c under the most intense load - not bad for air cooling.

Note 2: that 70c is on my TOP GPU which has less effective stock vapour chamber cooling. The lower card has a conventional heat-pipe setup with larger central fan - it's this lower card that vents most of its heat into the case, which is handled by the extractor. My lower GPU can be 10c+ cooler under load due to it's more effective cooling.

Cheers,

Scoob.

 

[Ya93sin]

Absolutely no point, I wouldn't believe for a second that BF3 doesn't max out on a OC'd 580 at 1200p.

Why not spend the money elsewhere, that monitor is good, but you could go for IPS panel technology for better colour production. Ofc that monitor is good anyway, if a little overpriced.

From what I see, you definitely don't need a new GPU, if you really want to invest it in the PC, then invest in either the screen, ssd, or a sound system/headset.

 

[djcwarren@hotmail.com]

Well the 2 cards wouldn't be right on top of each ohter, there would be a couple of cm breathing space in between, and the HAF X does have a 200 mm fan on the side window right over the PCI slots which could easily be flipped over and used as an exhaust fan. That coupled with the top mounted 200mm fan which is also an exhaust fan should provide ample heat dissipation.

 

[Scoob]

I think commenting on what an unreleased game may or may not need is speculation at best. Until we get it on our PCs and see the various graphical options available and tweak them to our preferences it's difficult to even guess if the game will "need" a 2nd powerful GPU. Depends how demanding it is. A single 580 is indeed a powerful beast, as is a single 570 which is only slightly cut-down feature-wise. However when I doubled up it took things to a different level for me.

If the BF3 developers really have gone crazy for the PC version, really taking advantage of the best available hardware, then a single 580 might play the game fine with all setings maxxed. However with a 2nd 580 the game will be silky smooth without a doubt.

If you enjoy your hobby, want to play with SLI and think think the rather substantial FPS boost will enhance your gaming proportional to your additional outlay then go for it. I'd likely still be perfectly happy with a single 570 myself, but now I've tried SLI and it's worked so very well I'd likely consider always getting a pair of cards in the future - unless of course the next gen of cards are such a huge jump that one 670 performs like a pair of 570's...

Cheers,

Scoob.

 

[djcwarren@hotmail.com]

Thnx for the tips dude

Just 1 last question before i order, will i need do plug inn the 4 pin molex connectors to give extra power to the PCI lanes or is that only really needed for 3 or 4 way SLI? These are pretty power hungry cards.

Mobo is Asus Maximus IV

 

[Ya93sin]

Also you do realise that when they let people play the game at E3 and the tech shows, the game was running on one Gainward GTX580?

 

[Scoob]

BF3 system requirements have been published:

External Link

Hope such linking is allowed.

Scoob.