AM3 Mobo SLI?

[Zak_M]

Hi, I'm going to be building a rig in the future and I want to go with AMD for the Processor, and Nvidia for the Graphics Cards. I noticed that it says on this Mobo by MSI, that SLI runs at x8 on each PCIe 2.0 slot.
I'm planning on putting GTX 460 1GB cards in SLI on here, and I was wondering if I would take any performance hits? I think I read somewhere that they would still run in x16 mode, as both slots are x16, or something like that.

Here's the mobo in question: Newegg.ca - MSI NF750-G55 AM3 NVIDIA nForce 750a SLI HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard

I also noticed this ASUS board says it runs Dual Cards in x16 mode: Newegg.ca - ASUS M4N98TD EVO AM3 NVIDIA nForce 980a SLI ATX AMD Motherboard

What one should I get, would going with the MSI change anything performance wise? thanks for your input!

[martin_metal_88]

a 460 wont be bottlenecked by a 8X PCI-e but for this one I would go with the asus. the 750I on the MSI is like 2 years old chipset.

[_dangtx_]

welcome dude. both nv chipsets are old by todays standards. if you really want one, at least wait for a super special on either. hope to see more out of the box amd sli mobos in the future. dim hope.

8x will make somewhat of a difference on high end cards and especially at very high resolutions, which you wont be running :)

[DkRk]

If you're handy, perhaps you'd want to investigate the SLI-Hack option? Just throwing it out. It would allow you to pick an AMD chipset like an 890 or a cheap 790FX, both of which would offer better performance and goodies for similar prices as either of the nVidia ones.

Naturally, it won't be as plug and play as a 750a, or 980a, but it is worth a look if you do wish to use AMD. However, I think you'd be better served with an Intel P55 solution, as you'll get a modern chipset, and SLI support from many boards, like this bundle here:

NCIX.com - Buy NCIX Gaming Bundle Deal Intel Core i5 760 Quad Core & MSI P55A-G55 CrossFire DDR3 USB3 Motherboard - i5 760 + MSI P55A-G55 In Canada.

If you're still taking a while to get things rolling, perhaps see what Intel's 'Sandy Bridge' has to offer for you, as well; it may also bring down prices of current Intel kit further.

[Zak_M]

bump.

[Zak_M]

Originally Posted by DokkRokken

If you're handy, perhaps you'd want to investigate the SLI-Hack option? Just throwing it out. It would allow you to pick an AMD chipset like an 890 or a cheap 790FX, both of which would offer better performance and goodies for similar prices as either of the nVidia ones.

Naturally, it won't be as plug and play as a 750a, or 980a, but it is worth a look if you do wish to use AMD. However, I think you'd be better served with an Intel P55 solution, as you'll get a modern chipset, and SLI support from many boards, like this bundle here:

NCIX.com - Buy NCIX Gaming Bundle Deal Intel Core i5 760 Quad Core & MSI P55A-G55 CrossFire DDR3 USB3 Motherboard - i5 760 + MSI P55A-G55 In Canada.

If you're still taking a while to get things rolling, perhaps see what Intel's 'Sandy Bridge' has to offer for you, as well; it may also bring down prices of current Intel kit further.

Yes, I'm looking to hold off until about spring, so I'm merely weighing my options right now, I'm trying to keep the price for just the computer, no peripherals under $1000.

[_dangtx_]

oops, forgot about the driver thing. seems its working with a certain degree of success, especially if you use windows 7 ;)

you can fInd killer amd boarDs in the 100-150 dollar segment. 870a,880,890 from giga. just watch the slot speeds

[jibz]

NCIX.com - Buy ASUS M4N98 Evo ATX AM3 NVIDIA NF980A DDR3 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 2PCI Sound GBLAN 1394 Motherboard - M4N98TD EVO In Canada.

I'm running GTX 460 1gb SLI on this guy with a phenom II 965.

28k vantage score at 4ghz core CPU. 900mhz each GPU.

[martin_metal_88]

Originally Posted by DokkRokken

NCIX.com - Buy NCIX Gaming Bundle Deal Intel Core i5 760 Quad Core & MSI P55A-G55 CrossFire DDR3 USB3 Motherboard - i5 760 + MSI P55A-G55 In Canada.

This board does not officially support sli. It will do it via driver hack but not natively. the GD65 will do it natively. I seriously don't know why NCIX never changed the description after more than a year...

[DkRk]

Originally Posted by martin_metal_88

This board does not officially support sli. It will do it via driver hack but not natively. the GD65 will do it natively. I seriously don't know why NCIX never changed the description after more than a year...

Oops, that's my bad. I was thinking of the G65.