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Couple of tech questions
Hello all,
I have had my computer for almost 7 years so as you can imagine it is not that great of a system. In about 2 weeks i am going to finally get a new pc. I just had a couple of questions about some technology and how it relates to gaming. Also please keep in mind i do not have a large income and it will probably be another 5 + years before i buy another one.
1) quad core vs dual core? Is the quad core processor at a lower speed going to perform better now or in the near future than a dual core processor that has a higher speed? I had read on a post that some of the new games are utilizing this technology but not well yet. So is it better for me to save some money and go with a nice dual core or fork out the dough because the quad core will be worth it in the long run?
2) Dual video cards and SLI and crossfire? Kinda the same deal as question 1. Are games using this technology right now? will 2 video cards of lower quality perform better than one of higher quality? For example 2 nvidia 8500 gt's or 1 nvidia 8600gt or 8800 gt? I would also love to hear any opinions of crossfire vs sli.
thanks for any info and hope u are all having fun,
Cen
Comments
1. Dual core is fine for todays games, as companies produce more titles that utilise the extra cores then quads and beyond will come into their own. So short answer is that a dual core at the moment would likely be the better choice but for better future proofing then a quad is better.
2. SLi is an odd thing right now and I have found that with a really good card, 8800GTX for example you don't really notice any difference in performance, certainly not enough to justify the extra expense.
3. I have only put together a small number of crossfire systems for people and as a whole they perform at a reasonable level. However, ATI cards have many more compatibility problems than Nvidia and ATI's drivers on some of the range completely suck.
1. Dual-cores are currently faster for most games. It'll be around 2 years before quad-cores become mainstream.
2. SLI/Crossfire are supported by most graphics intensive and newer games. Also budget cards in SLI/Crossfire is slower than a higher-end card. The lowest range gaming card you should get for Nvidia is the 9600gt or 8800gs. For ATI it's the 3850.
Um just an observation. If you are not going to be purchasing a new pc for quiet a while, i presume your going to buy a descent one now. Rregardless, you would do very well to wait until mid june.. i knwo its a while... but both Nvidia and ATI are releasing their new cards and both, more spesifically ATI's, promise to be very hard hitters. Just a thought.
Ya ATI is making a pretty bold claim that the 4870 will outperform the 3870x2. If it does then it will be the most powerful single card solution. Also nVidia is releasing the 9900 cards based on the G200 architecture. There hasn't been much conjecture on how well they perform.
Excactly. The Nvidia cards are actually going to be named the GTX280. They decied to change the naming sceme. Regardless, if ATI's card holds up, it will be a monster, furthermore they are pricing it somewhere in the low to mid 200's making as cheap as Nvidias mid range cards.
If you are going to keep the computer for 7 years, then you might want to think about quad core. But if you are planning to use it only for a few years, then a dual core should be more cost effective solution.
2) Two cards working in SLI mode can't use their processing power anywhere near optimally. So one fast card is faster than two slow cards using SLI. Buy SLI system only if the fastest single graphic card on market isn't fast enough for you. Or you can buy a single graphic card when you buy a computer, and if you some time later (like 1/2 - 1 years) decide you want a small upgrade, you can then buy another similar card much cheaper and start using SLI.