MaximumK0527
New member
I'm planning on getting 3 GTX 580 for Tri SLi but people says that it runs very hot. How hot does it run and how much does it affect the performance? And one last thing, how much power should I get for this?
GTX 580 Tri SLi
- Thread starter MaximumK0527
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Rastalovich
New member
It'd very much depend on your case situation, in terms of air flow, but running at stock levels you're going to get something like the lower of the 3 cards running just above the temps it would as a single on it's own, then progressively the temps will go up by anything as much as 10 degrees per card. Doesn't sound much, but it could mean the top card being something like 25-30 degrees above a regular single card for load and idle.
This is assuming you have a regular upright case. Trouble being of course that the cards are that much closer together.
Water cooling would be a lovely option. This will involve not only the purchasing of the blocks, but the additional wc kit and most likely a new case, depending on your present situation.
You have to forgive the fact that people will assuming you have the cash to spare for all this merely cos you're contemplating 3x580s, which is a mortgage for most on their own
Does 3 run that much better than 2 in real games tho ?
PSU, again assuming you're cash, invest in one which is probably way overboard. If 800-850 makes people happy in sli, go 1000-1200w and be sure it has all the connections and an excellent quality. I'd get lower myself, but that's cos I'm a tight-ass
This is assuming you have a regular upright case. Trouble being of course that the cards are that much closer together.
Water cooling would be a lovely option. This will involve not only the purchasing of the blocks, but the additional wc kit and most likely a new case, depending on your present situation.
You have to forgive the fact that people will assuming you have the cash to spare for all this merely cos you're contemplating 3x580s, which is a mortgage for most on their own
Does 3 run that much better than 2 in real games tho ?
PSU, again assuming you're cash, invest in one which is probably way overboard. If 800-850 makes people happy in sli, go 1000-1200w and be sure it has all the connections and an excellent quality. I'd get lower myself, but that's cos I'm a tight-ass
GiftedReflex
New member
For a PSU i would recommend Corsair's AX1200 modular PSU. You're gonna want a lot of power to run this set up. Also, like benj3 said, water cooling would probably be the way to go. I fail to see where three GTX580s would do you much good considering that you can run nearly any game with a single 580 overclocked if you have a decent CPU.
3 cards won't affect performance much in-game unless you are looking to run 100+ frames in ALL games. For this, i'm more talking about games like Metro, which are EXTREMELY graphics dependent. A single 580 no overclock will run it at around 35 fps, overclocking will pull it up to around 43fps and dual cards overclocked will run somewhere near 65-70 fps when using a 950 CPU. IF you still choose to go with three cards, look into watercooling for your cards as well as AT LEAST a 1000w PSU but i recommend 1200w.
Also, for the amount of wattage you are gonna be working with, you may want to get your power checked in your house to make sure that you can support a system of this magnitude. Just to put it into perspective, washing machines are put on their own circuit and they pull about as much power as this computer will. Just a few helpful tips.
hope this helps.
3 cards won't affect performance much in-game unless you are looking to run 100+ frames in ALL games. For this, i'm more talking about games like Metro, which are EXTREMELY graphics dependent. A single 580 no overclock will run it at around 35 fps, overclocking will pull it up to around 43fps and dual cards overclocked will run somewhere near 65-70 fps when using a 950 CPU. IF you still choose to go with three cards, look into watercooling for your cards as well as AT LEAST a 1000w PSU but i recommend 1200w.
Also, for the amount of wattage you are gonna be working with, you may want to get your power checked in your house to make sure that you can support a system of this magnitude. Just to put it into perspective, washing machines are put on their own circuit and they pull about as much power as this computer will. Just a few helpful tips.
Also, for the amount of wattage you are gonna be working with, you may want to get your power checked in your house to make sure that you can support a system of this magnitude. Just to put it into perspective, washing machines are put on their own circuit and they pull about as much power as this computer will. Just a few helpful tips.hope this helps.
LOL !
Also don't see why he should go watercooling ?!
simply because if he didnt go watercooling their would be close to no reason for him buying 3 580's :/ would be a waste of moneyjust my opinion
Yea but why does he need to go watercooling ?
Maybe he is a die hard Folder then 3x GTX580 is NO waste at all , if you have the money for them.........
GiftedReflex
New member
you're kidding right? the temps he's going to be hitting with the top card in that system will be unreal. My 2010 rig had dual GTX580s superclocked and I added water cooling just for good measure and still was getting high temps. If he is looking to overclock these three cards, it's going to give even higher temps than what I was getting on my system, and water cooling turned out being exactly what it needed. Most cases don't support the air-flow needed to keep 3 enthusiast cards cool enough. Unless he has something like an Antec case with a ton of fans on it, its gonna take a better cooling solution than that.
Also, the last part of my first reply wasn't meant as a joke. I built a computer for a coworker and he got a similar set-up to this with the 1200w Corsair AX1200 with triple SLi. He plugged the computer in and began to run some benchmarks and started overclocking, soon after he fried his circuit board in his house because he wasn't on a stable enough circuit to support that much wattage. I'm speaking purely from experience on this, so don't trash the idea.
Also, the last part of my first reply wasn't meant as a joke. I built a computer for a coworker and he got a similar set-up to this with the 1200w Corsair AX1200 with triple SLi. He plugged the computer in and began to run some benchmarks and started overclocking, soon after he fried his circuit board in his house because he wasn't on a stable enough circuit to support that much wattage. I'm speaking purely from experience on this, so don't trash the idea.
S_I_N
New member
making sure your house can handle the power is a very wise idea. I once ran a comp that was chilled water cooled using a chiller that required 2 psu's on its own. I lived in an apartment at that time and had to buy heavy extension cords that could handle the wattage to run to 3 different circuits in the apt to keep from blowing the breakers. Y'all need to understand its not only the voltage one must consider but the amps as well. granted the amps needs of 3 cards in sli is prolly minimal but when adding it to the whole picture it shouldnt be overlooked.
edited watts to amps
edited watts to amps
NO i am not kidding,
i have 3x GTX470 in one rig i know how hot the upper card can get (24/7 full F@H load) ,
this doesn't mean he NEEDS to go watercooling , saying that is just silly!
K and that house power thing is also pretty overrated !
Must have old ass electrical or an overloaded circuit then. A 20A breaker is rated for about ~2400W IIRC. I wouldn't run at max though 100% of the time.
As for a washer being on it's own circuit, it's not because of power draw it's because of safety. A washer needs to be on a "wet" circuit or GFCI.
Something like an electric oven though, needs to be on it's own circuit.
S_I_N
New member
I must first apologizes earlier I spoke in watts I meant amps.
I am certainly not saying he is going to have any issues at all. Just if this is going to be an everyday usage rig then it should be looked at. the more components you toss in the more amps it'll pull on average that will taxing on a breaker. A mig on the other hand is not such a creature the only time it pulls the full 135amps is when ur welding (pulling the feed trigger causing the spark between the feed wire and objects to be welded) outside that its draw is minimal. Prolly a non issue I was just chiming in my experiences to assist.
I am certainly not saying he is going to have any issues at all. Just if this is going to be an everyday usage rig then it should be looked at. the more components you toss in the more amps it'll pull on average that will taxing on a breaker. A mig on the other hand is not such a creature the only time it pulls the full 135amps is when ur welding (pulling the feed trigger causing the spark between the feed wire and objects to be welded) outside that its draw is minimal. Prolly a non issue I was just chiming in my experiences to assist.
I only said he would need some kind of watercooling if he wanted to not worry about temps underload the top 580 would be at 70c temps roughly based on the temps of a friends dual gtx 580 sli whos top card underload reachs 63 and bottom one 52 so its his call really but id prefer my top card not to be running at 70c :/
btw SnW what temps you getting on tri sli 470's on full load?
http://nascasho.com/Photos/Reviews/GTX470/3-way.jpg
this guys getting 90c which is a bit insane if you ask me and he tripped the breaker switch while idling in dirt 2 lol
btw SnW what temps you getting on tri sli 470's on full load?
http://nascasho.com/Photos/Reviews/GTX470/3-way.jpg
this guys getting 90c which is a bit insane if you ask me and he tripped the breaker switch while idling in dirt 2 lol
MaximumK0527
New member
So most of you are saying to get water cooling, could you recommend any water coolers? and will it fit in a NZXT Phantom? And another thing, how does the temperature affect the performance? Does it damage the card or something?
Well high temperatures are going to damage your card over time and reduce its lifespan. The NZXT Phantom only fits a 240mm rad so this is not going to be a great choice if you plan on watercooling. Alternatives, are the Cooler Master HAF X or some of Lian Li's cases (they are quite expensive but made out of aluminum).
MaximumK0527
New member
So if I get a cooler master HAF X, what watercooling brands do you recommend for the radiator and for the block? and do you know the price range?
A decent watercooling setup is going to cost you about 300 quid, because for tri-SLI you will need three block and a lot of radiator size. I can't recommend any parts because I don't have the experience in watercooling that many others at the forums do have, so I hope they will drop in and give you some suggestions on what you are going to need, if you want to go water cooling.
