Multi GPU comparabilities : "HELP"

[noob101]

Hi, I am going to buy a CPU and MoBo bundle however the MoBo states that it is crosfire compatible and not SLI however a trusted source ( human friend) said that it is SLI compatible. The MoBo is "

Asus Z97-K Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard"

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-605-AS

 

I am going to run it with two 580's in SLI, the question is WILL IT WORK IN SLI???????? 

Thanks in advance! 

 

 

[noob101]

Hi, I am going to buy a CPU and MoBo bundle however the MoBo states that it is crosfire compatible and not SLI however a trusted source ( human friend) said that it is SLI compatible. The MoBo is "

Asus Z97-K Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard"

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-605-AS

 

I am going to run it with two 580's in SLI, the question is WILL IT WORK IN SLI???????? 

Thanks in advance! 

 

Correction when I say " the MoBo states that it is crosfire compatible and not SLI"  I mean it does not mention ANYTHING about SLI

[TeddyMcSwag]

I don't know about this board in particular, but often when mobos say that they only can SLI/CrossFire, it's because they only include a bridge for that multi GPU technology. Once again, I'm not sure about this board.

[Gaddafi]

According to the official ASUS spec sheet, it would appear as though it's not. The MoBo's that are compatible have both SLI and Crossfire listed, but the Z97k only shows Crossfire.

http://www.asus.com/us/site/motherboards/Z97/comparison/

[Clyne]

It's not recommend to run crossfire or sli because one pci express slot runs at x16 and the other is x4, they won't perform well as x8 and x16 because your mobo severely limited to run in x4 electrical and speed mode. 

[Gaddafi]

It's not recommend to run crossfire or sli because one pci express slot runs at x16 and the other is x4, they won't perform well as x8 and x16 because your mobo severely limited to run in x4 electrical and speed mode. 

Yeah I was going to add that the reason SLI probably isn't enabled/on-board is because the Z97-k only has 1 x16 slot whereas only MoBos with at LEAST 2 x16 slots support SLI

[Clyne]

Yeah I was going to add that the reason SLI probably isn't enabled/on-board is because the Z97-k only has 1 x16 slot whereas only MoBos with at LEAST 2 x16 slots support SLI

The mobo has two pci express x16 slot, but one runs at x16 speed and another x4 speed. DId you read the specs on the website he gave?

[Sauron]

The reason this board (and every board ever made) is certified for crossfire is that the cfx certification is free of charge for the producer and doesn't have particular requirements other than any two pcie slots. SLI on the other hand does not only require a licensing fee, but is also very picky about interfaces and which actual cards you're running. In other words, it *might* work, but it's a safe assumption it won't.

 

 

It's not recommend to run crossfire or sli because one pci express slot runs at x16 and the other is x4, they won't perform well as x8 and x16 because your mobo severely limited to run in x4 electrical and speed mode. 

 

this is a very good point, I'm not sure how much it would really affect performance (if I recall correctly it was about 20%ish less performance in crossfire 7970s which is still acceptable although not optimal). @Bubblewhale do you have more precise figures by any chance? I'm pretty curious about this too (I'm considering wether crossfire R9 290s on 16x/4x makes any sense).

[Gaddafi]

The mobo has two pci express x16 slot, but one runs at x16 speed and another x4 speed. DId you read the specs on the website he gave?

 

No but I read the specs on the official Asus website.

 

We're both right, I guess. According to the site the Z97-K/CSM MoBo has 1 PCIe x16 slot and 1 PCIe x4 slot that is a x16 size.

[Clyne]

The reason this board (and every board ever made) is certified for crossfire is that the cfx certification is free of charge for the producer and doesn't have particular requirements other than any two pcie slots. SLI on the other hand does not only require a licensing fee, but is also very picky about interfaces and which actual cards you're running. In other words, it *might* work, but it's a safe assumption it won't.

 

 

 

this is a very good point, I'm not sure how much it would really affect performance (if I recall correctly it was about 20%ish less performance in crossfire 7970s which is still acceptable although not optimal). @Bubblewhale do you have more precise figures by any chance? I'm pretty curious about this too (I'm considering wether crossfire R9 290s on 16x/4x makes any sense).

Not good at all, it you want to crossfire, ether go to pci express x16 3.0 x16/x8 or x10, you can go with pci express 2.0 but it won't make any difference with 3.0 if you have x16 and x8 or x10.

[noob101]

THX, everyone for the help. As the GPU's are being given to me as a hand-me down / un-used, I will be taking a risk and using them in SLI. If worst comes to show then I will only use one of them.