Should I SLi ?

[rgbinns 31]

I am in the process of building a new system and I am looking now at the graphics cards.But first before going for the latest Nvidia 560t or 570 I wonder if I got another Palit GF GTX 460 SONIC PCI-E 2.0 2GB to match the one I have and set them up as Sli would that give me good performance?I am getting a Intel i52500k with 8gig of ram and a 850watt power supply.Any advice on the subject would be gratefully received

[dazz 69]

I'm testing SLI now. It will not improve framerates in complex scenery (CPU limited scenario), but might / should help run higher levels of antialiasing.So far I've had no success though.

[rgbinns 31]

I have heard that FSX doesn't utilize SLI is that correct?

[rgbinns 31]

OK I have read Dario Iriberri post just below and that gave me a answer. I still may set up SLI in case the next flightsim makes use of it.

[Jonahbird 8]

If you are planning to use 3 screens set by nVidia Control you will need to SLi. I use 2 x GTX460s that way.

[dazz 69]

If you are planning to use 3 screens set by nVidia Control you will need to SLi. I use 2 x GTX460s that way.

True this.Jonah, do your cards ever go beyond 50% usage in the VC and DX9 please? what do you mainly fly?

[Jonahbird 8]

Hi Dario At the moment, Dario, I don't know! But I will find out later. I'm not much of a fan of operating statistics. I don't even look at frame rates any more. 'Smooth' is my target - and I certainly get that. What's the best tool to get the answers you want? Currently I am learning to fly the iFly737, but am delayed by CPFlight. Next week they will be producing a new driver to correct a 'delay ' fault with its MCP. Previously I was flying PMDG's 747-400X but was p....d off by the cost of the MCP driver. I won't be bothering with their new 737. I have invested in a lot of hardware and I do like it all to work. My GA prefernce is Carenado's Skylane. Best regardsFrank PS I really must find out how you guys append your specs. I like your layout. Your specs are impressive.

[dazz 69]

To edit your signature, click on your user name at the top right corner and click on "My settings": Then pick "Signature" in the left menu: Don't worry about the test Jonah. I don't want you to go installing things you don't need. Thanks anyway, and hope you can get your driver soon!

[Jonahbird 8]

Thanks for that guidance, Dario. I'm working on it - as you can see! Meanwhile, I have these tools already: CPUZ64, CPUID HWMonitor, GPU -Z.0.4.9, PCWizard2010, prime95, RealTemp, Fraps,FSXMark11.Will any of these get the info you want?My close friend (and fellow FS enthusiast) is the computer expert, and he installed these. He is on holiday just now so I can't get his help.

[dazz 69]

yes Frank, GPU-Z can do it :) Select the card you want in the dropdown menu at the bottom, and go to the "Sensors" tab. The GPU usage % is "GPU load" For the test to be meaningfull it needs to be done in a way that the GPU is being pushed hard in FSX (in the middle of nowhere, flying over the sea away from big airports) with water maxed out and major thunderstorm and flying through the cloudsAlso with "Preview DirectX 10" disabled and in the virtual cockpit of the iFly 737 for example, since it must have 3D gauges. The idea is to see if SLI works at more than 50% (otherwise it's like a single card) in a VC with 3D gauges with DX9. It doesn't for me Switching to spot view should make both cards work almost at full tilt under those conditions, if they do in outside views but don't in the VC, then you would be getting the same results I do

[Jonahbird 8]

Hi Dario By coincidence, my friend Ted is on holiday in Mallorca just now. I'd like to do this when he returns. He knows so much more about it than I do. I will write again in about 2 weeks.

[dazz 69]

No worries Frank.Here's the thread I started to discuss the matter in case you want to join us there somedayNice rig by the way

[ramrunner800 10]

I am running a GTX590, which has two processors in SLI. When I first installed I used the FSMark11 benchmark, and tested the card with 1 GPU disabled, and with SLI enabled. I found that with 1 GPU enabled, I was getting about 40 FPS, and when I enabled SLI (all other settings remained the same), I dropped to about 30 FPS. In my experience, SLI is not just not utilized by FSX, you will actually see a significant negative impact by using SLI. If you're going to run a single monitor, I wouldn't recommend SLI. However, I do run SLI, because I use 3 monitors, and it works just fine. I get smooth flights, running tons of addons, pretty intense areas like Aerosoft's Megacities, and lots of traffic.

[Jazz+Funk 1]

Hi Dario By coincidence, my friend Ted is on holiday in Mallorca just now. I'd like to do this when he returns. He knows so much more about it than I do. I will write again in about 2 weeks.

Hi Frank, Next time we get together, we can try some of this testing out Ted.