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A question about Quad GPU's


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A question about Quad GPU's
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macsforever
 
 
2006-03-17, 14:10

Okay, so I know some Alienware PC's have Quad GPU's. Lets say a computer has Quad 256mb GPU's. Is that gonna run as fast as one 1GB GPU?. Or does Quad GPU's only mean you can plug in like 8 moniters? Does it actually make the graphics that much better, even though the moniter is only plugged into one of the cards?

How does it work, and if you're using one moniter, is there any advantage?

Thanks
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chucker
 
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2006-03-17, 14:21

First of all, the amount of RAM does not directly relate to the performance of a GPU. A 256 MB GPU is likely to be faster at certain things than a 128 MB GPU, but that's not necessarily the case. At some point, the additional RAM will simply not come to use and be superfluous.

The purpose of having four GPUs is not to have four times the RAM, but to have four sets of chips, all processing in parallel.
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macsforever
 
 
2006-03-17, 14:44

But in other words, when you have a moniter plugged into one of the cards, all 4 of them are working, right?
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turbulentfurball
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2006-03-17, 15:03

Quote:
Originally Posted by macgeek2005
But in other words, when you have a moniter plugged into one of the cards, all 4 of them are working, right?
Yes. It's like having a dual core processor, except it's 4 GPUs. And it's overkill. I suspect one of it's main benefits is the blagging potential.

Last edited by turbulentfurball : 2006-03-17 at 15:12.
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torifile
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2006-03-17, 15:41

And, no, quad GPUs won't let you play Call of Duty 2 in VPC. (Just messing with you, macgeek. Keep up your change for the better.)
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rollercoaster375
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2006-03-17, 15:43

The purpose is to let you play CoD2 on a 30" Cinema Display
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Banana
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2006-03-17, 15:46

Are you sure about this?

If chucker says 4 gpus allows for more parallel processing, (which presumably leads to a higher framerate as the job is distriibuted and thus easier to do), wouldn't it help bring otherwise intensive games down to acceptable level of play?

Or is it really good only for a 90" LCD?
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rollercoaster375
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2006-03-17, 15:57

Quote:
Originally Posted by Banana
Are you sure about this?

If chucker says 4 gpus allows for more parallel processing, (which presumably leads to a higher framerate as the job is distriibuted and thus easier to do), wouldn't it help bring otherwise intensive games down to acceptable level of play?

Or is it really good only for a 90" LCD?
A 7900GTX can handle any game at acceptable framerates, but when you get into massive resolutions, the proccessing is harder, and hence, more GPUs are needed.
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Banana
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2006-03-17, 16:19

So more gpus=more resolutions, not framerate then?
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rminkler
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2006-03-17, 16:43

I think the way this works is that with multiple GPUs working in SLI mode (and not just plugged in willy nilly) the screen is divided, and each GPU renders a piece. So either you could run a larger screen (higher resolution) at the same framerate as if you had one GPU on a smaller screen, or you could run the smaller screen at a significantly higher framerate. So it works both ways.
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rollercoaster375
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2006-03-17, 17:16

Quote:
Originally Posted by Banana
So more gpus=more resolutions, not framerate then?
Both... Resolution is an increase of the task requires of the GPU, hence it takes longer. As mentioned previously in this thread, SLi has two modes: every other frame, and split frame. In every-other frame mode, each GPU has more time to proccess each frame, so the resolution can be increased. The other mode has each GPU proccessing a smaller task, so the framerate is increased.
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macsforever
 
 
2006-03-17, 17:23

So, can I hope for Dual Radeon X1900XTX's as a BTO option in the Mac Pro?
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chucker
 
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2006-03-17, 18:01

Hardly. SLI and CrossFire are mostly interesting for high-end gaming setups, not for professional work.
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rollercoaster375
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2006-03-17, 18:33

Quote:
Originally Posted by chucker
Hardly. SLI and CrossFire are mostly interesting for high-end gaming setups, not for professional work.
That's not to say the Mobo won't be SLI or Crossfire ready... I can't imagine that adds too much expense.
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v.noir
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2006-03-20, 10:33

But will there be the software support? Who can say!
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Gargoyle
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2006-03-20, 11:13

Quad and even to some extend dual cards are not needed quite yet.

I mostly play CSS on my PC. Running at 1280x1024 I get a good 45-75 FPS (I always have v.sync on). If I change the quality settings I don't really see that much improvement... I still see my refresh limit (75) and I still get slowdowns (when looking through trees and smoke or at a lot of action).

Why? Because of the physics even my dual core P4 3.0Ghz cannot keep up!

It won't be long now before physics chips enter the mainstream market. Check out the fluid videos from http://www.ageia.com/ The new unreal engine 3 will have support for their physics chip!

Hopefully people will use this not just as a way to add a shedload more eye candy, but to actually improve gameplay. Eg, shooting out the glass on a really huge tank of water so that your enemies get washed over by the water!

PS. Ohh I see they have added the Airtight video too. Worth watching.

OK, I have given up keeping this sig up to date. Lets just say I'm the guy that installs every latest version as soon as its available!

Last edited by Gargoyle : 2006-03-20 at 11:20.
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