Product Info | User Reviews | Article Images | Image Gallery | Comments | Forum Thread
Introduction
Ever since it was announced earlier this summer, NVIDIA’s SLI (scaleable link interface) technology has been turning heads. The concept is simple, by pairing two PCI Express variants of GeForce 6600 GT/6800 GT/6800 Ultra cards together you’ll get nearly double the performance. The cards work in concert with one another, with the work split among the cards horizontally across the screen. One card takes the upper portion while the second card takes the lower segment.
It’s important to note that the screen isn’t necessarily split exactly in half. Since scene complexity can vary from the top of the screen to the bottom (say for instance a scene with thick jungle foliage on the bottom of the screen and a clear blue sky up top) dynamic load-balancing algorithms are used to ensure that the work is split optimally between both cards.
The real beauty of SLI from a cost-conscious perspective is that your system can be upgraded in stages. You can buy one card now, and later, when more demanding games are released or your budget allows, drop in a second card of the same type and card manufacturer for up to a 1.5x performance increase (the actual amount will vary depending on the settings used and the game itself). Then, when the next generation cards come out, the entire process can be repeated again, ensuring you get the maximum life out of your SLI motherboard. The idea of adding a second card to nearly double performance is enticing to many gamers but the million dollar question has been when will it become available?
Today NVIDIA takes one step closer to bringing SLI to reality with the announcement of their SLI certification program.
We first described the process in our nForce4 Ultra preview article last month, but basically NVIDIA and its partners are working hard to ensure that the SLI-capable parts work well with each other. According to the NVIDIA press release: “The NVIDIA SLI certification process includes complex testing and analysis to ensure electrical, mechanical, and thermal compatibility. For PC system integrators, NVIDIA will check thermal measurements and ensure additional shock, power, and vibration tests are conducted on multiple components, including hard drives, fans, and power supplies. For application developers who wish to tune their applications to run best under SLI configurations, NVIDIA is providing performance tools and a complete SLI development system that allow their content to take advantage of additional detail levels and resolutions not previously available to single GPU systems.”
Hardware components (motherboards and graphics cards) that are installed by do-it-yourselfers to make a potential SLI system will be labeled under the “NVIDIA SLI Ready” logo, while complete fully-configured SLI systems end user’s can purchase at retail will fall under the “NVIDIA SLI” logo. These systems will boast full SLI support out-of-the-box with all the proper hardware and software pre-installed by the manufacturer. NVIDIA has already lined up the following system builders:
ABS
Alienware Corporation
Atelco
Cyberpower
EID
Falcon Northwest Computer Systems
iBuypower
IHDE
ISM
Network Technical
NTT
Olidata
Overdrive PC
Paradigit
Polywell
Scan
Topnotch
Velocity Micro
VoodooPC
The following motherboard manufacturers have also signed on (so far) with nForce4 SLI products in the pipeline:
ABIT Computer Corporation
ASUS
DFI
EPoX Computer Co. Ltd.
Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd
Iwill Corporation
MSI Computer Corporation
We’ve heard that ASUS and MSI will likely be first out of the gates with nForce4 SLI motherboards, with the others to follow at the beginning of next year. The first motherboards should be hitting retail at the end of this month.
On the graphics side, it’s no surprise to see that all of NVIDIA’s biggest partners have signed on:
Aopen America, Inc
ASUS Computer International
BFG Technologies, Inc.
eVGA.com Corporation
Gainward Co. Ltd.
Jaton
Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd
Leadtek Research Inc.
MSI Computer Corporation
Palit Microsystems, Inc.
Peach
PNY Technologies, Inc.
XFX
SLI capable graphics cards have been shipping for some time now in the form of the PCI Express GeForce 6800 GT, while allocation of GeForce 6800 Ultra and 6600 GT is expected to pick up in anticipation of SLI making its retail debut. The US branch offices of many of the aforementioned companies have received their first shipments of GeForce 6600 GT cards and we should have the first wave of board reviews going up later this month.
Summary
Today’s announcement brings consumers one step closer to getting their hands on SLI technology. By establishing a certification process, NVIDIA can ensure that the underlying hardware has been designed and tested to work properly with SLI.
NVIDIA plans to establish a special SLI section on their nZone website with a list of all compatible hardware that end user’s can use as a resource to determine which components have NVIDIA’s official seal of approval, meanwhile, the Average Joe can just look for the NVIDIA SLI logo when he’s shopping at his local retailer or specialty computer shop. We’ve heard that technically SLI should work with cards of the same type, regardless of manufacturer (say for instance, combining a Leadtek GeForce 6800 GT with an ASUS 6800 GT), but it’s possible that NVIDIA may include special hooks inside their driver that prevent consumers from cross-combining manufacturers to make certain that everything works properly with SLI upon launch.
In any case, if you’re looking to setup an SLI system, NVIDIA’s certification and logo program has just made things easier. When purchasing intended hardware, just look for the proper logo and update to the latest official NVIDIA driver (currently ForceWare 66.93) and you should be good to go. Now we just need the SLI motherboards to ship!
Batman: Arkham City PC Review Batman: Arkham City is the sequel to 2009’s smash-hit action game Batman: Arkham Asylum. As the name suggests, you will be reprising your role as the Caped Crusader and going against an even larger 'prison' filled with Gotham's criminals and villains. A textbook example on how to do a proper sequel, Arkham City takes what worked in the original, excised or improved upon what didn’t, and elevated everything to an even greater scope. The PC version suffered from a few months of delay, but in that time, Rocksteady worked closely to NVIDIA to implement some familiar technologies from the last game, such as PhysX and 3D Vision, along with new DirectX 11 optimizations. But how well was the whole package executed? Read on to find out!
Saints Row: The Third PC Review Saints Row is one of most unique series of games to build upon the open-world action template forged by Grand Theft Auto, and has met with plenty of critical and commercial success since it began on consoles back in 2006. This latest iteration, titled Saints Row: The Third promises the most outlandish fun and freedom of customization of them all, and in a much more PC-friendly package than its predecessor. Does it live up to those expectations and, more importantly, is it worth the price of admission? Find out in Will's latest review!
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim PC Review The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is Bethesda Softworks’ latest offering in their series of epic fantasy RPGs, as well as one of the most highly-anticipated PC titles of 2011. As the Dovahkiin, or Dragonborn, prepare to take the fight to the mythical beasts that have returned to the realm after centuries of slumber, all the while exploring a huge and highly-detailed open world.
The PC version of the game promises enhanced graphical fidelity, standard RPG trimmings such as hotkeys and quick-save, as well as unbridled mod support, something we’ll all be thankful for once they release that SDK. Skyrim has already sold millions of copies and set records for play-time on Steam... Find out why in today's review, which happens to be one of the biggest and most in-depth articles on the subject out there!
L.A. Noire Complete Edition PC Review L.A. Noire, as the name clearly states, is a video game built on the tropes of one of the greatest periods of American cinema: film noir. Developed by the now defunct Australian developer Team Bondi and published by Rockstar Games, this title has been out on consoles for a full six months before finally making its way to the PC. This “Complete Edition” of the game features improved graphics, keyboard/mouse controls, and every bit of previously-released DLC for free. But was it truly worth the wait? Read on and find out!
Intel Core i7-3960X Sandy Bridge-E Performance Review
Today marks the launch date for Intel’s Sandy Bridge-E line of processors, a new family of high-end Core i7 products based on the LGA 2011 platform. This new socket is poised to replace the existing LGA 1366 specification used by the more powerful Nehalem and Westmere parts from the past couple years, specifically Bloomfield and Gulftown, the Core i7-9xx+ line of CPUs.
With 6 cores, 15MB of cache, and support for quad-channel DDR3-1600 memory, the Core i7-3960X sounds like quite a catch. Want to know more about it and how it performs? Read on!
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Xbox 360 Review
The self-appointed "most anticipated game in history" launched worldwide this past Tuesday. Why, it's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, of course (of course), what else? Unsurprisingly, the military FPS debate between this and Battlefield 3 rages on, but now that both have been released, surely we can take a look and objectively evaluate them both? Luke's taken the Xbox version of MW3 for a spin this week, so to find out what he thinks of it in today's review!
Stronghold 3 Review
The latest sequel in the long-running real-time strategy franchise from FireFly Studios, Stronghold 3 is all about building your dream castle and defending it against sieging enemies. Almost exactly one decade after the first game was released, this new title promises a return to the classic and well-received gameplay that has been strayed so far from in more recent iterations. Does it live up to those expectations? Will (AKA Synchronous Failure) tells us all about it in his first official FiringSquad review, so read on!
Battlefield 3 PC Review - Single-player Impressions
One of the most highly-anticipated PC games of the year is upon us; Battlefield 3 is now available in North America! EA/DICE have finally delivered a sequel to the core Battlefield franchise, a proper follow-up to BF2. Having played through the game's single-player campaign already, ahead of the multiplayer festivities kicking off around midnight, I figured I'd share my impressions ASAP. Is it really a worthy addition to the core Battlefield series, or just another bullet point on the back of the box? Read on and find out!
Wrecked: Revenge Revisited Supersonic Software Interview
Following up on our hands-on preview from earlier this month, here's an interview with Supersonic Software, creators of Wrecked: Revenge Revisited. The game's coming out on XBLA and PSN in a matter of weeks, but for now, Luke chats with the developer about its predecessors Mashed and Micro Machines, how difficult it can be to get an indie game published, the closure of Codemasters' Guildford branch, and more!
Orcs Must Die! PC Review Orcs Must Die! is the first release from an independent developer named Robot Entertainment. Fans of classic real-time strategy games may have heard that name before, as the outfit is comprised of many veterans from Ensemble Studios, creators of the Age of Empires series.
Equal parts action and strategy, this is a tower defense game that not only puts you in command, but on the front lines of combat, as well. Slaughter thousands of orcs, ogres and other vile creatures of fantasy that invade your fortresses through 24 levels of the story-based campaign. With high levels of replayability thanks to its scoring and leaderboard functionality, multiple difficulty levels, and various styles of play, it sounds a steal at only $15. Does it deliver on all that’s promised, though? Read on and find out!
Digg
Del.icio.us
Reddit
SU
furl
