Powering 8800gt in sli

[RedFox911]

Hey guys, Im looking to get another xfx 8800gt so i can run in sli. My question is can my power supply handle it? I have a thermaltake thoughpower 750w With 4 12 v rails and can take a max of 60A. The nvidia web site recommends this psu for sli but i just wanted a second opinion.

Please check out my specs and see if it could power all of that.


Thanks!

 

[mailpup]

If Nvidia certifies it for SLI, it would be good enough for me.

 

[RedFox911]

Ok thanks, i did some other reaseach also and i am pretty shure it will work fine.

Im gunna go pick up the second one tommorow

 

[pdyckman@comcas]

That's enough amperage for that application. Not all 'certified for SLI' PSU's will work on any gual GFX config. Main thing is the amperage to the 12 volt section.

 

[sghiznaneck]

Although I agree with the above comments, Running in SLI REALLY taxes a system (particularly the gpu's) when running apps that utilize all the features the card is capable of. I'd up that puppy to a 1,000 watt dual rail 12 volt psu. Remember, the minimum specs that a manufacturer states for running one of those cards are with a majority of the 3D apps set to either off or application controlled. It may work for less 3D intensive games, but when playing something like Call of Duty 4, Bioshock or Crysis, you'll receive the NVIDIA message that the card isn't receiving enough power, and that is a bad thing since it can shut down the cards. The best approach is to up the power so that you have enough head room to run the gpu's without bogging down the processor/gpu's.

 

[Daveskater]

sghiznaneck makes a good point. You don't want to under-power your system.

What resolution do you game at? SLI isn't really noticeable if you're at resolutions under 1900 x 1200 etc, anything including and above that is where you'll see the real benefits.

 

[RedFox911]

That's enough amperage for that application. Not all 'certified for SLI' PSU's will work on any gual GFX config. Main thing is the amperage to the 12 volt section.

Ya i know, im not just gunna get it because it says sli ready. thanks though

 

[RedFox911]

Although I agree with the above comments, Running in SLI REALLY taxes a system (particularly the gpu's) when running apps that utilize all the features the card is capable of. I'd up that puppy to a 1,000 watt dual rail 12 volt psu. Remember, the minimum specs that a manufacturer states for running one of those cards are with a majority of the 3D apps set to either off or application controlled. It may work for less 3D intensive games, but when playing something like Call of Duty 4, Bioshock or Crysis, you'll receive the NVIDIA message that the card isn't receiving enough power, and that is a bad thing since it can shut down the cards. The best approach is to up the power so that you have enough head room to run the gpu's without bogging down the processor/gpu's.

thank you, you might have just changed my mind.

 

[RedFox911]

sghiznaneck makes a good point. You don't want to under-power your system.

What resolution do you game at? SLI isn't really noticeable if you're at resolutions under 1900 x 1200 etc, anything including and above that is where you'll see the real benefits.

I play at 1680 by 1050. I would not really want sli if i was playing at 1440 by 900. Its just that in reviews that ive read such as

http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=702&p=2
http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=3&id=2408&pg=2

and in many others, you obviously see a large increase of fps, even just at 1600 by 1200 or 1680 by 1050. No i do not play at 1900 by 1200 but those differences in frame rates are pretty nice.

Ive also seen so many people in different forums that run sli with just 750 watt.

1000 watt would really tic up the energy bill in my house but if i have to go there eventually then i will i guess.

I have 2 choices i either go out and buy a new 8800gt, or i go out and buy a new raptor hdd and 4 gigs of 800mhz ram. The only problem with 800mhz ram is that when installed my system will just freeze and restart after about 40 seconds, i also tried changing the timings/ voltages but still havn't gotten a good combination.

Also here is my psu specs

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/1738/psuwu1.jpg

 

[kpo6969]

Hey guys, Im looking to get another xfx 8800gt so i can run in sli. My question is can my power supply handle it? I have a thermaltake thoughpower 750w With 4 12 v rails and can take a max of 60A. The nvidia web site recommends this psu for sli but i just wanted a second opinion.

Please check out my specs and see if it could power all of that.


Thanks!

Yes

http://www.guru3d.com/article/Videocards/468/3/

A single GeForce 8800 GT requires you to have a 450 Watt power supply unit at minimum if you use it in a high-end system. That power supply needs to have (in total) at least 26 Amps available on the 12 volts rails.
A second GeForce 8800 GT installed on this system requires you to have a 500 Watt power supply unit at minimum if you use it in a high-end system. That power supply needs to have (in total) at least 36 Amps available on the 12 volts rails.