Rollo's 6800NU vs. 6800GT vs. 6600GT SLI Review

[nRollo]

I've added 6600GT SLI benches to the two 6800 sets (NU/GT) and more or less proved my assertion that 6600GT SLI at 2X8X is VERY fast for a <$400. rig!



A64 3800+/Asus A8N SLI/ 1GB Geil PC3500/2 Leadtek 6800 256MB or 2 reference nVidia 6800GT 256MB or 1 reference 6800GT or 2 EVGA 6600GT 128MB/SB Audigy 2
Drivers: 71.80, High Quality

Doom3 6800NU SLI vs. 6800GT vs. 6800GT vs. 6600GTSLI

12X10 2X8X = 77fps.....95fps......72fps......74fps

12X10 4X8X=57fps......83fps.......68fps......50fps

16X12 2X8X=61fps......84fps.......52fps......57fps

16X12 4X8X=42fps......67fps.......38fps.....33fps

Half Life 2

12X9 4X8X, all "High" 6800NU SLI vs. 6800GT SLI vs. 6800GT vs. 6600GT SLI

at_c17_12=58fps.....59fps.......62fps...........52fps

at_canals_ 08=88fps.....90fps.......83fps.......68fps

at_coast_05=91fps......92fps........95fps........84fps

at_prison_05=90fps......99fps........84fps......76fps

16X12 4X8X, all "High" 6800NU SLI vs 6800GT SLI vs. 6800GT vs. 6600GT SLI vs 6600GT SLI 2X8X

at_c17_12=53fps.......58fps......52fps..............35fps........43fps

at_canals_ 08=76fps.......87fps.......60fps........40fps.......56fps

at_coast_05=85fps........91fps........83fps........60fps........79fps

at_prison_05=70fps.......89fps........60fps.......43fps........62fps

19X14 4X8X, all "High" 6800GT SLI only
at_c17_12=47fps

at_canals_ 08=48fps

at_coast_05=65fps

at_prison_05=60fps



Far Cry Maximum Details

10X7 4X8X 6800NU SLI vs. 6800GT SLI vs. 6800GT vs. 6600GT SLI vs. 6600GT SLI 2X8X
Regulator=57fps.....65fps......55fps..............48fps........57fps
Research=91fps......112fps......88fps..............88fps........108fps
Training=63fps......69fps........63fps..............60fps........67fps
Volcano=91fps......109fps.......83fps..............83fps........100fps

12X10 4X8X 6800NU SLI vs. 6800GT SLI vs. 6800GT vs. 6600GT SLI vs 6600GT SLI 2X8X
Regulator=44fps......58fps......42fps..............35fps........46fps
Research=66fps.......91fps......61fps..............56fps........78fps
Training=50fps........65fps.......47fps..............43fps........55fps
Volcano=65fps........92fps......57fps..............57fps........74fps

16X12 4X8X 6800NU SLI vs 6800GT SLI vs 6800GT vs. 6600GT SLI vs 6600GT SLI 2X8X
Regulator=34fps .....48fps........31fps..............22fps........34fps
Research=50fps.......72fps.......46fps..............32fps........55fps
Training=39fps.........54fps.......36fps..............29fps........43fps
Volcano=49fps.........71fps........42fps..............38fps........54fps

3DMark 05 6800NU SLI vs. 6800GT SLI vs. 6800GT vs.6600GT SLI
6761......8555........4813......6248

3DMark 03 6800NU SLI vs 6800GT SLI vs. 6800GT vs 6600GT SLI
14275......18799......11257......13772

 

[AristoV300]

Great Post!! Overall SLI scores are not very impressive other then 3d Mark, especially the 6800GT's.

 

[ronnn]

6800gt sli must be cpu limited.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: AristoV300
Great Post!! Overall SLI scores are not very impressive other then 3d Mark, especially the 6800GT's.

Hmmm. I guess if huge gains over single card performance aren't "impressive" to you Aristo3000, I won't be able to "impress" you. My benches are pretty common for 6800GT SLI though:

Far Cry Volcano

FS got 102,93,74fps. I got 109,92,71 fps. (and I'd note that what you're comparing to, an OCd 6800GT got 95,69,50fps which is much slower)

Doom3
AT got 86, 65 fps at the two settings I benched at Doom3, I got 83 and 67fps.

HL2
AT got 104 and 85fps at HL2, I got 99 and 89fps.

I would note that both AT and FS used a A64 4000+, a slightly faster cpu than my A64 3800+. (which accounts for some of the better score in HL2, a more cpu bound game than the other two)

 

[Gamingphreek]

Excellent review Rollo. :thumbsup:

-Kevin

 

[SilverBack]

Originally posted by: AristoV300
Great Post!! Overall SLI scores are not very impressive other then 3d Mark, especially the 6800GT's.

LOL I love it when people can't read numbers

In perspective
The advantages of SLI rigs are higher frame rates at higher resolutions. At lower res's the games or benchmarks become CPU limited. Higher res's the GPU's are the bottleneck, with that said let's do some math with Rollo's figures.

I'm just comparing the 6800GT SLI VS the 6800GT

Doom 3

1280x1024 2aa 8AF SLI 95 Non-SLI 72 +31.9%
1280x1024 4aa 8AF SLI 83 Non-SLI 68 +22.1%
1600x1200 2aa 8af SLI 84 Non-SLI 52 +61.5%
1600x1200 4aa 8af SLI 67 Non-SLI 38 +76.3%

Half Life 2

1600x1200 4aa 8af
at_c17_12 SLI 58 Non-SLI 52 +11.5%
at_canals_08 SLI 87 Non-SLI 60 + 45%
at_coast_o5 SLI 91 Non-SLI 83 +9.6%
at_prison_05 SLI 89 Non-SLI 60 +48.3%

Far Cry

1280x1024 4aa 8af

Regulator SLI 58 Non-SLI 42 +38.1%
Research SLI 91 Non-SLI 61 +49.1%
Training SLI 65 Non SLI 47 +38.3%
Volcano SLI 92 Non-SLI 57 +61.4%

1600 X 1200 was in order
+54.8%
+56.5%
+50.0%
+69.0


Great numbers, even better if I'm reading this right Rollo didn't bother to adjust the core or memory speeds. 6800GTs easily match Ultra core specs and are slightly slower in memory.

Thanks for the post Rollo well done

I have a single 6800GT right now with another coming in a week or so.
It runs stably with a core of 450 and memory at 1100.
I'm hoping the second card does as well.
The only bench I have right now to compare to is the 3dMark 05 I scored 6010 with a single 6800GT at the above speed.

3DMark 6800GT Bench

an SLI set of 6800GT's OC'd will score above 10k in 3DMark 05
Great stuff.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

Originally posted by: AristoV300
Great Post!! Overall SLI scores are not very impressive other then 3d Mark, especially the 6800GT's.

Are you kidding? Look at that high res/eyecandy goodness. Granted that's a lot of money to get 1600x1200 and 4x/8x, but if you've got the money to do it... I still don't agree with the promotion of the 6600GT SLI.

 

[SilverBack]

I've added 6600GT SLI benches to the two 6800 sets (NU/GT) and more or less proved my assertion that 6600GT SLI at 2X8X is VERY fast for a <$400. rig!

Rollo after looking at your numbers I can't agree with you on that statement.
It would appear that the 6600 SLI is very near the single 6800GT scores with a few exceptions. If you were investing in an SLI rig I think the GT's are really the only way to go until the next gen parts come in.
Buy one now and then one later, the performance would be very near your 6600 SLI rig now and blow it out of the water when the second card is added.



NewEgg has the eVga 6800GT's on sale for $374

 

[SilverBack]

While I'm typing

I've read a couple of reviews comparing the 6800 Ultra's to the 6800GT's

I didn't go with the Ultra's because the return for investment with todays highend cpu's at high resolutions just isn't there. The frame rates are near enough to make no real difference at all..

 

[deadseasquirrel]

Originally posted by: SilverBack
I have a single 6800GT right now with another coming in a week or so.
It runs stably with a core of 450 and memory at 1100.
I'm hoping the second card does as well.

When running together in SLI, I have found that the 6800GTs do not clock as high as they could individually. YMMV of course. But, to protect your investment, I would step it up very slowly when going above 400/1050.

 

[SilverBack]

Well I have a couple things in my favor.

The A8N-SLI motherboard has a 4 pin molex connector to carry additional power to the PCI-E slots.

I'm water cooling both cards on a dual radiator, the current card hasn't went over 40C since I have been OC'ing it.

I have a 680W power supply that has rock steady individual rails.

Out of anybody, if it's feasable to OC both, my rig should be able to do it.

We'll see when the other card gets here

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: bunnyfubbles

Originally posted by: AristoV300
Great Post!! Overall SLI scores are not very impressive other then 3d Mark, especially the 6800GT's.

Are you kidding? Look at that high res/eyecandy goodness. Granted that's a lot of money to get 1600x1200 and 4x/8x, but if you've got the money to do it... I still don't agree with the promotion of the 6600GT SLI.

I wasn't trying to "promote" the 6600GT SLI so much as promote better understanding of it. (after all, what anyone buys doesn't matter to me one way or another, I just want them to have all the facts before they buy)

The 6600GT SLI set gets a LOT of bad feedback by people who have never used it all over the forums.

I felt it was due to the "cookie cutter" nature of most reviews, the standard "here's the three 4X8X benches" format.

At 2X8X, the 6600GT SLI showed a decisive advantage over the 6800GT at 4X8X in Far Cry, it may be the difference between playable and not at 16X12. Doom3 showed the 6600GT SLI with a nice 10% lead over a single 6800GT at 16X12 2X8X, the 4X8X setting wasn't playable with either rig.

If you take this, the lower cost, possible WMV9 acceleration, and that a person may not want to spend >$400 into consideration, the 6600GT SLI rig becomes much more attractive than the review reading critics would lead you to believe.

 

[Ben88]

With 6800gt PCI-e at around $370 I think this becomes a moot point.

 

[shimsham]

nice work rollo.

what do you use to gather the fps data? fraps run or in game?

 

[darkswordsman17]

Personally, I still see no reason to recommend a 6600GT SLI setup. Since prices and performance are about even now, if they just buy one 6800GT now, they can always get a second one later, and they'll be better off.

Also, since most 6800GTs OC to Ultra speeds without problem, it would be better with a single 6800 than trying to OC two 6600s to the same speeds as each other (since cards in SLI have to be the same speeds).

While you've shown SLI'ed 6600GTs is a viable choice, I still think its not worth it, but thats just me.

 

[deadseasquirrel]

Originally posted by: darkswordsman17
trying to OC two 6600s to the same speeds as each other (since cards in SLI have to be the same speeds).

when you overclock in SLI, it automatically overclocks BOTH cards to the SAME speed.

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: shimsham
nice work rollo.

what do you use to gather the fps data? fraps run or in game?

I used the ingame for these benches, although I have FRAPs and use it a fair amount.

 

[MisterChief]

Hey Rollo, great job and all, but do you absolutley have to post so many benchies? I mean, come on, man! We already know that SLI is very capable and worth the investment. Give it a rest! Or do you work for the unofficial "Support Nvidia" fanboy club?

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: MisterChief
Hey Rollo, great job and all, but do you absolutley have to post so many benchies? I mean, come on, man! We already know that SLI is very capable and worth the investment. Give it a rest! Or do you work for the unofficial "Support Nvidia" fanboy club?

AFAIK there are only two other places on the web you can get this information. Two.

(and the benchmarks at one of those, B3d, had issues last I looked at them)

Also, 2X8X benchmarks of the 6600GT SLI are hard to come by.

While you may not consider this information worthwhile, some people considering this technology do?

 

[nRollo]

Originally posted by: SilverBack

I've added 6600GT SLI benches to the two 6800 sets (NU/GT) and more or less proved my assertion that 6600GT SLI at 2X8X is VERY fast for a <$400. rig!

Rollo after looking at your numbers I can't agree with you on that statement.
It would appear that the 6600 SLI is very near the single 6800GT scores with a few exceptions. If you were investing in an SLI rig I think the GT's are really the only way to go until the next gen parts come in.
Buy one now and then one later, the performance would be very near your 6600 SLI rig now and blow it out of the water when the second card is added.



NewEgg has the eVga 6800GT's on sale for $374

First- thanks for compiling the performance percentage differences! Much appreciated.

In regard to this, I wasn't really trying to make a case that the 6600GT SLIs are a the way to go for everyone, and for sure not a substitute for the 6800GTs.
I just wanted to illustrate there are some settings the 6600GT SLI set does very well at, like 16X12 2X8X.

 

[SilverBack]

First- thanks for compiling the performance percentage differences! Much appreciated.

You're welcome,
I enjoyed your numbers.

I've read around the web that there isn't a performance difference between parts of the same clock speeds using an AGP or PCI-E bus.

I believe there is a tangible difference the two.
At the same clock speed the PCI-E card is 2% to 5% faster in almost everything.

On a different slant if AGEIA's PhysX takes off like I think it will, gaming will be a totally different animal in two years.
Imagine our machines in two years:

Dual video with 1GB of memory available
two to four CPU's
4+GB's of RAM

I can't wait
Uh How am I going to water cool all that ??? LOL!

My dual water water cooled system, soon to house the SLI rig

 

[SilverBack]

Originally posted by: MisterChief
Hey Rollo, great job and all, but do you absolutley have to post so many benchies? I mean, come on, man! We already know that SLI is very capable and worth the investment. Give it a rest! Or do you work for the unofficial "Support Nvidia" fanboy club?

MisterChief,
He could have included 800x600, 1024x768 and 2054x1536 lighten up

I have heard you'll be seeing ATI numbers VERY soon, ATI has second silicon working on thier next gen part. If I've been told correctly thier single card will be faster than an Ultra SLI setup at high resolutions by as much as 40%.

AND they will do SLI. ATI will be rolling out SLI cards 2nd quarter this year.

SO if you don't like LOT's of benches you better dig a hole because they are coming LOL.

 

[Emultra]

I have a 6600GT and I'm thinking about buying another one when the price goes down.

However, it's still about $290 here, like when I bought mine...that's near $600 with shipping for both cards. Ouch.

If only NewEgg shipped internationally. I don't like being left out of the real market with some actual competition...

Oh, and I now bring you the local (national) price of the latest nVidia 6800 Ultra-something card:

One thousand sixty one dollars. At its best.

 

[deadseasquirrel]

One idea is to check the For Sale--For Trade forums here on Anandtech. You might find someone in your area selling one... or maybe someone selling one that is willing to ship to you.

 

[ddogg]

Originally posted by: AristoV300
Great Post!! Overall SLI scores are not very impressive other then 3d Mark, especially the 6800GT's.

are u blind or something?? cant u see the difference in the numbers there?