9600GT SLi Upgrade - Advice Appreciated

C

ChappyEight

New Member
So, when I built my machine back in `08 this forum was invaluable in helping me make smart decisions and purchases. I ended up with a machine that is still running strong to this day. So, I'm coming back for some more advice.

I don't do a lot of online gaming but I'm really big into a service known as iRacing (http://www.iracing.com). The GPU requirements for this game aren't by any means insane but I feel like there is much to be gained (in FPS) if I were to upgrade my video card(s).

Here are my current components:

- PSU --> OCZ GameXStream 700W
- MoBo --> EVGA NVIDIA nForce 780i SLi
- CPU --> Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0 GHz (not overclocked)
- HDD --> Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB (x2)
- RAM --> OCZ SLi-Ready 4GB
- GPU --> EVGA GeForce 9600GT KO (x2 in SLi configuration)


Thoughts/Questions:

1. I am shooting for a price range of ± $200 but could go close to $300 if necessary (though not preferred).
2. I don't plan to upgrade my CPU anytime soon so that should probably be taken into consideration.
3. I really like Nvidia but I'm not married to it. If there is an ATI solution out there that makes sense from a cost/performance standpoint, I'd be willing to listen.
4. I don't really have the cash to go SLi right now so I'm looking for something more powerful than my current setup (which I'm guessing wont' be too difficult), but likely a single card solution.


I've been out of the technological loop for more than a year so I basically know nothing anymore. Any advice or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Landon
 
The 6870 is a really good card, but as stated, a 6950 would obviously be better. There's also still a chance of getting one that unlocks to a 6970 if you feel so inclined. One thing I would definitely recommend though is getting a good cooler for your CPU (If you don't already have one.) and overclocking it. The 8400 gained its fame through its excellent overclocking ability, and will give you a big boost on your aging hardware. Especially with a new graphics card, it might be a bottleneck at stock clocks.
 
Thanks everyone for the quick replies. It definitely looks like the 6950 or the GTX 560 TI is the way to go. I really appreciate the suggestions.

CSword, I've got a 92mm Zalman on my CPU (I assume this is still sufficient).

I'm glad you mentioned the possible bottleneck. I've got it currently running at the stock 3.0GHz and have always been afraid of screwing something up by overclocking. Guess I need to start reading up on how to get a little more juice out of my CPU.

One last thing, is there a major power draw difference between the Nvidia and ATI cards? Someone had mentioned on another site I should SLi two GTX 460's. Do you think it would be worth it rather than one 6950?

Thanks again, for the quick replies.
 
Personally, I'd much rather one powerful card than 2 weaker ones. Dual card set ups draw much more power, generate heat and all kinds of headaches. They're good upgrade paths down the line, so I think of them more as a trump card upgrade (If you'll forgive the pun.) rather than jumping straight into it. I can explain more if you'd like but I hope you know what I'm trying to say. That's just me though. You would probably get better performance in the SLI'd 460's, but its really not the path I'd take myself.

You're cooler is pretty solid and overclocking isn't anywhere near as scary as it seems. The main thing to keep in mind is to take your time. It's a very time consuming process, but I think its a lot of fun too. There's something about knowing just how far you can push your hardware that's pretty exciting. There are a bunch of guides around, both on this forum and elsewhere that can get you started and explain the whole process much better than I. Good luck with it and let us know how high that thing can go! I've heard of an awful lot of people breaching the 4Ghz barrier with them. :)
 
I tend to agree with your logic about a single card over two. Full disclosure, I went SLi because I thought it would be cool (cut me some slack, it was my first build :D).

I need to decide if I think I'll ever SLi/Crossfire again in the future because if so, I'll likely need to go with a GTX 560 Ti or something similar since my board is an Nvidia and I don't believe supports Crossfire (I could be wrong).

Thanks for pointing me in the overclocking direction. Let the research begin!
 
ChappyEight said:
I tend to agree with your logic about a single card over two. Full disclosure, I went SLi because I thought it would be cool (cut me some slack, it was my first build :D).

I need to decide if I think I'll ever SLi/Crossfire again in the future because if so, I'll likely need to go with a GTX 560 Ti or something similar since my board is an Nvidia and I don't believe supports Crossfire (I could be wrong).

Thanks for pointing me in the overclocking direction. Let the research begin!
Click to expand...

Yes, your board is only SLI BUT, when you next have money for your system, it would be better spend on a new CPU, mobo and memory, which, if you stick with Intel, will mean that your board will almost certainly be able to Crossfire or SLI on the same board (not at the same time, but you will have the option to do either).

If you did go SLI instead, then what you would find is performance gain would be very little because your CPU would be a large bottleneck, so further upgrading of your graphics performance would be pointless
 
The 560 is a real solid card too, so its pretty much a win-win-win :P Can't find any details on whether or not your board supports xFire in the 25 seconds I spent looking. With it being an nVidia chipset though your odds probably aren't great. If you can't find out for sure then go with the safer bet of nVidia.
 
Really good point Aasti. I hadn't even thought of it that way.

Csword, I think you're probably right about my chances not being good. But, I'm okay with that.

So, then, here is the multi-million dollar question that is impossible to answer and will likely turn this thread into a fanboi argument :). GTX 560 Ti or 6950? I've already read 5 comparisons and 3 reviews of each.

My head hurts.
 
ChappyEight said:
Really good point Aasti. I hadn't even thought of it that way.

Csword, I think you're probably right about my chances not being good. But, I'm okay with that.

So, then, here is the multi-million dollar question that is impossible to answer and will likely turn this thread into a fanboi argument :). GTX 560 Ti or 6950? I've already read 5 comparisons and 3 reviews of each.

My head hurts.
Click to expand...

I personally would go for the 6950 to try and unlock it to a 6970, then it will be walking all over the 560 and the 6950, but you paid much less
 
I'll second the vote for the 6950 for much the same reasons. It seems to overclock pretty well too even on the off chance it doesn't unlock.
 
Thanks again guys for the great advice. I'm going to start researching the different brands of 6950's available. I know the big boys like XFX and MSI, but in general, do you have any suggestions? Any brand I should avoid? My cars now are EVGA but obviously they're Nvidia only, so I won't be able to go with them again.

Thanks for your time.
 
XFX, Sapphire, MSI, Asus, HIS or Gigabyte.

All will perform the same, unless they have custom PCB's and non-reference coolers, but you get certain extras with certain manufacturers, with warranty, and the quality of the warranty service, being the main selling point.

XFX have great warranty service, as do Sapphire. I've not had to use the Asus warranty for video cards, but for motherboards, my experience has been awful time wise, but they have always done what was required to alleviate the issue, so it isn't that bad after the wait.

If you do end up going Nvidia, Evga, Zotac, Asus, Gigabyte or MSI are ones I would go with, for the same reasons as above
 
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