GTX 1080 SLI or no?

[HungryHamster]

Hey everyone,

 

I'm trying to decide if I should get 2 EVGA GTX 1080 FTWs and run them in SLI. Money is not a big concern, but I'd rather avoid a lot of headaches from troubleshooting SLI issues.

 

Here are some lingering questions I have:

 

1. Are there still lots of issues with "microstuttering" and other gfx glitches from running a SLI setup?

 

2. Is there a fast and easy way to disable SLI and just utilize 1 card if I am having issues with a particular game? Or do I need to update drivers, restart, etc.?

 

3. Could I potentially get a GTX 1080i (when it comes out) and SLI it with a regular GTX 1080 FTW or do they have to be the exact same card?

 

I would be using them to run games on max setting with an Acer Predator X34. The benchmarks I've looked at seem to suggest it will almost double FPS at 4k resolution. Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

Thanks.

[Enderman]

Wait and get one 1080ti.

Or, if you're impatient and rich, buy a titan XP.

[MaxBunny]

5 minutes ago, HungryHamster said:

Hey everyone,

 

I'm trying to decide if I should get 2 EVGA GTX 1080 FTWs and run them in SLI.

 

[TheRandomness]

7 minutes ago, Enderman said:

Wait and get one 1080ti.

Or, if you're impatient and rich, buy a titan XP.

When a single graphics card costs more than your relatively high end PC... (Afk reviving 290)

 

@HungryHamster Please do as he says and wait for the 1080Ti. 

[HKZeroFive]

1. Yes, these issues are still present. Microstuttering, limited utilisation and driver issues are all common problems with Crossfire and SLI.

 

2. Yes, you can. However, I would avoid these issues by getting a single card... ergo, the Titan XP.

 

3. This is assuming that the GTX 1080Ti even exists. But no, you cannot SLI a GTX 1080 with any other card.

 

In all honesty, get yourself a single Titan XP and avoid all SLI issues. Should be enough to run 3440 x 1440 100Hz quite well.

[zootcake]

1080ti

[Enderman]

9 minutes ago, HKZeroFive said:

In all honesty, get yourself a single Titan XP and avoid all SLI issues. Should be enough to run 3440 x 1440 100Hz quite well.

Yeah I would do the same.

1 titan X costs the same as 2x 1080, but you get 130-150% consistent performance, rather than 100% in most games, 120-170% in games that do support SLI, having to enable SLI every time you update your drivers, more heat and noise, and other inconveniences like that.

 

Single card ftw.

[HungryHamster]

1 minute ago, Enderman said:

Yeah I would do the same.

1 titan X costs the same as 2x 1080, but you get 130-150% consistent performance, rather than 100% in most games, 120-170% in games that do support SLI, having to enable SLI every time you update your drivers, more heat and noise, and other inconveniences like that.

 

Single card ftw.

But Titan X has no fancy RGB lighting!

 

I'll consider it some more, but I think maybe I'll just get one 1080 now (I can't wait for the 1080ti to be released) and wait a year or two to upgrade when cards can actually run 4k at +100fps. Also, I'm likely missing something, but from the FPS comparison videos I have seen, GTX 1080 SLI beats the Titan X by a considerable amount at 4k resolution.

[Enderman]

6 minutes ago, HungryHamster said:

But Titan X has no fancy RGB lighting!

 

I'll consider it some more, but I think maybe I'll just get one 1080 now (I can't wait for the 1080ti to be released) and wait a year or two to upgrade when cards can actually run 4k at +100fps. Also, I'm likely missing something, but from the FPS comparison videos I have seen, GTX 1080 SLI beats the Titan X by a considerable amount at 4k resolution.

No RGB is another reason to buy the titan X over the ugly RGB 1080s

 

And no, the 1080 SLI only beats ths titan X in games that support multi-GPU.

Pretty much all 1080 SLI benchmarks are only done on those games, so you will never see the other 99.99% of games that don't support SLI.

And obviously in those games the titan X performs much better than 1080 SLI since it's basically just one 1080.

[sgloux3470]

1. Microstuttering isn't really an issue.  I have GSYNC and cap my FPS to 59 with Rivatuner.  Frametimes are perfect that way.  Most FCAT test methodology is retarded.  This would be a bigger concern if you intend to leave framerate unlocked.  Utilization is rarely an issue and is usually fixed right away. (Usually limited utilization is a CPU bottleneck, like Dying Light had for awhile.)    SLI Support has been great since I got my second 980 in April 2015.  I had a worse experience with Crossfire between 2011-2014 with limited support and slow updates.

 

2. It will work this way automatically, and you can configure it on a per game basis in the Nvidia control panel.  The only annoyance is you have to reactivate SLI after every driver update.  Just takes a few seconds in the control panel.

 

3. No.  You can mix and match different models.  I.e I have an ASUS GTX 980 and an EVGA GTX 980.  But you can't SLI a GTX 980Ti with a GTX 980 for comparison.

 

But Titan X has no fancy RGB lighting!

 

I'll consider it some more, but I think maybe I'll just get one 1080 now (I can't wait for the 1080ti to be released) and wait a year or two to upgrade when cards can actually run 4k at +100fps. Also, I'm likely missing something, but from the FPS comparison videos I have seen, GTX 1080 SLI beats the Titan X by a considerable amount at 4k resolution.

1080 SLI will be significantly faster than the Titan XP.  30-50% when overclocked.

 

[Blue_Meanie]

41 minutes ago, HungryHamster said:

Hey everyone,

 

I'm trying to decide if I should get 2 EVGA GTX 1080 FTWs and run them in SLI. Money is not a big concern, but I'd rather avoid a lot of headaches from troubleshooting SLI issues.

 

Here are some lingering questions I have:

 

1. Are there still lots of issues with "microstuttering" and other gfx glitches from running a SLI setup?

 

2. Is there a fast and easy way to disable SLI and just utilize 1 card if I am having issues with a particular game? Or do I need to update drivers, restart, etc.?

 

3. Could I potentially get a GTX 1080i (when it comes out) and SLI it with a regular GTX 1080 FTW or do they have to be the exact same card?

 

I would be using them to run games on max setting with an Acer Predator X34. The benchmarks I've looked at seem to suggest it will almost double FPS at 4k resolution. Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

Thanks.

I would say it is pointless, with one gtx 1080 you can play 4k at 60fps at high another one would let you play them at ultra. With oc a single one woud mostly allow you to play at ultra

[Keesler]

1 hour ago, HKZeroFive said:

1. Yes, these issues are still present. Microstuttering, limited utilisation and driver issues are all common problems with Crossfire and SLI.

 

2. Yes, you can. However, I would avoid these issues by getting a single card... ergo, the Titan XP.

 

3. This is assuming that the GTX 1080Ti even exists. But no, you cannot SLI a GTX 1080 with any other card.

 

In all honesty, get yourself a single Titan XP and avoid all SLI issues. Should be enough to run 3440 x 1440 100Hz quite well.

With g-sync monitor microstuttering isn't not really a problem I have the same monitor and run 2 980tis and have no issue

[HKZeroFive]

26 minutes ago, Keesler said:

With g-sync monitor microstuttering isn't not really a problem I have the same monitor and run 2 980tis and have no issue

That is true with a G-Sync monitor but the problems of improper utilisation in games and driver issues still persist.

[sun2]

Ive ran SLI for many years now. And i cant advice anyone these days to get an SLI setup. You will run into problems for sure or no support. More power and heat. No sli support in games or lag spikes in competitives games. Streaming or vr cut in half. Really depends on what game your going to play. If its like battlefield games, sure it will support it. Other games, be warned for problems. And developers have the choice these days to implent multi gpu support. So dont expect much nor any.

 

1. It can happen, myself havent got too much problems with it. But if you going to play esports games like csgo, avoid SLI.

 

2. The game will utilize 1 card if it doesnt support SLI. Check with an OSD. But you can also disable SLI in the Nvidia control panel or run per game.

 

3. No you will need to get the same cards.

 

Pity to see such nice feature to go to waste these days. But the market is too small, and there are too many problems. So go figure