Multi-GPU setups for games. Who was first Nvidia or AMD?
Hello good people,
today I do a blog post about multiple graphic cards for gaming. Using multiple graphic cards in gaming became a possible option in the recent 10 years.
In this blog post, I want to give you an overview about the pros and cons. Answer the question which technology was the first? Nvidia SLI or AMD Crossfire? And at last, what might be the future of multiple GPU setups.
Image Source: here
Pros?
Well, I think the pros are pretty obvious. You can get a higher FPS count by adding the second GPU. In games that are tuned well for the individual Interfaces you can even get as high as 2x the FPS. But that solely depends on the gaming title. Another advantage is, a possible update path for older GPUs. For example, if you bought a midrange GPU a few years ago, there is a good chance that a second midrange GPU can give you the way to play current games again on the high to ultra settings. In my experience, lower tier GPUs are not really worth for a SLI/Crossfire configuration. And 2x high end tier GPUs is very expensive. And to be honest that is basically it for the advantages.Cons?
There are quite a few disadvantages. The first problem is the game support. Not every game supports multiple GPUs. Moreover, the technology is, even in 2017, not yet perfect. There are still some modern titles where you can experience mirco-stutters. And additionally, there is still the problem with the VRAM. At the current state the VRAM is not doubled by adding a second GPU. That might change in the future ( Cough DX12) but today you are limited by the small VRAM of old GPUs. Another problem with multi GPUs is the power consumptions. It is not only that it is doubled, but also that in most cases the gamer needs to buy a new power supply as well. The costs of this power supply, the additional power draw over a year and GPU itself sums up to the point where you could just buy a new single GPU.Which technology was the first? Nvidia SLI or AMD Crossfire?
Well..I don't know who of u know ....but neither Nvidia nor AMD (ATI back in the days) did came up with the idea of this type of interface. It was
Image Source: here
And for all you younger gamers out there that are too young to remember... This was the company that basically built the Titan X of the old days. They came up with the concept that they called SLI. And how you might recognize now... This company was bought by Nvidia and they overtook the tech of them. ATI followed soon and was bought by AMD later on.What might be the future of multiple GPU setups?
Well... that is difficult to answer. With the last generation of GPU the manufacturer stopped to support multi (more than 3) GPUs. The basic setup atm is 2 GPUs. There are some speculations that soon the limitation of the VRAM on multiple GPUs might disappear. But I doubt that this will be a huge jump because in 2017, the amount of VRAM is not longer that huge of a limitation like it was 3 years ago.
So I hope you liked this small course in the world of multiple GPUs. I myself stopped to think about setting up a multi GPU setup in the next few years. What about you? Do you have one? Would you buy one? Would love some Comments and Resteems.
