What's the benefit of SLI for video editing

JJKizak wrote on 7/6/2006, 11:20 AM

You must get an SLI board. Then two SLI cards for the max output in parallel. But it probably won't do Vegas any good. Maybe the Invidia software to take some load away from the processor will help, don't know for sure but it works for PCIex and AGP cards with Invidia chips. The two SLI cards will probably bust your budget. I like Supermicro and Gigabyte boards, but they will also bust your budget. The X2 AMD's have come down in price at Newegg.
JJK

David Jimerson wrote on 7/6/2006, 11:33 AM

Last time I looked, there were no cheap SLi vid cards.

Yoyodyne wrote on 7/6/2006, 12:24 PM

The one advantage for Vegas with SLI is you can have two multi-headed video cards. I have Vegas on three monitors and use the "preview to secondary monitor" on the fourth. Tons of real estate and I get very good quality preview without shelling out the bucks for a Blackmagic card.

You dont even need SLI capable cards, just two PCI express 16 cards which can be had pretty reasonably. They don't even need to be the same model card, although I would recomend two cards that work off the same driver - I'm using Nvidia geforce 6800's. The great thing is how easy it is to set up - I just plugged in the cards, installed the single driver and they all worked. Windows sees 4 monitors, just drag em' where you want em' and edit away.

JohnnyRoy wrote on 7/6/2006, 12:54 PM

> What's the benefit of the new SLI video architecture for editing Video with Vegas?

None. SLI is a complete waste of money unless you are a gamer (and even then, you need to be an insanely picky gamer). I play Doom 3, Quake 4, Unreal Tournament 2004, Battlefield 1942, Half Life 2, etc on a single nVidia 6800GT and they all play great.

> Are all AMD x2 compatible boards, SLI?

No, according to NewEgg’s inventory, there are 45 motherboards that support the X2 and of those, only 15 are SLI. You would have to specifically buy an SLI motherboard and you MUST match that with an SLI compliant Power Supply (trust me on this one... been there... fried that!).

> Can you run older/cheaper video cards on SLI boards.

SLI boards are boards with dual PCI Express x16 slots. So as long as the older card is PCI Express x16 compatible (not AGP) you will be OK. Even the cheapest PCIx video card will work with these boards and there are 42 PCIx16 compatible video card at NewEgg.com between $25 - $50.

> If you are staying with old AGP video cards, what mobos should you look at?

None. There are no AMD X2 motherboards that support AGP. Besides, a new $49 PCI Express graphics card will put an old $200 AGP graphics card to shame. Just but a cheap new PCIx graphics card.

> I'm looking for a budget way to get an amd dualcore.

The cheapest AMD X2 motherboard is $49. I never understood the logic of skimping on the motherboard. I mean, an expensive motherboard is still only $190 so we’re talking a spread of only $150. It just doesn’t make sense to skimp on the motherboard. Look, you don’t want to save $50 on a motherboard only to have your PC reboot every time you do a render because of some crappy chipset that in the cheap motherboard uses. This is not the place to skimp.

IMHO, you should be buying the motherboard based on brand name and reviews like those on Tom’s Hardware. They always do comparisons in categories of expensive, midrange, and budget boards. Just buy the best budget or midrange boards that they recommend. Buy the memory that the motherboard manufacturer recommends because they actually tested it. Then get whatever peripherals you want (this is the place to skimp).

~jr

Chanimal wrote on 7/6/2006, 1:45 PM

Yes, there are AMD x2 combatable boards that use AGP--I have one. It is a Gigabyte GA-K8nsc-939 at http://www.gigabyte-usa.com/Motherboard/Products/Products_GA-K8NSC-939.htm

I had a 734 motherboard with my previous AMD and had to get a 939 socket to support the X2. The only reason I wanted to keep my AGP card was because it is a 9700 pro All in Wonder and the equivalent PCIExpress AIW card was $399.

If you don't already have a high end AGP, then go with the PCIExpress and you have lots of options.

Jay-Hancock wrote on 7/6/2006, 1:55 PM

Hopefully it's clear from the other posts, but just in case....

All because you buy an SLI board doesn't mean you actually need to run two SLI-capable video cards (or any, for that matter). If you don't care about SLI, but you like the motherboards, you can get any PCI express video card and use it. For example, if you have an NVidia-based SLI mobo, don't care about SLI, and want to run an ATI video card, that's fine. The other PCI express-16 slot can be "future use" (like for some higher-end RAID cards or whatever). Or you can just let it sit empty. No big deal.

As another post said, make darn sure you get an SLI-Ready power supply. (I think the main distinction is that they have a high wattage and a high amp capacity on the +12V lines).

busterkeaton wrote on 7/6/2006, 3:00 PM

OK, say you buy an SLI-capable motherboard, but run a cheap PCIexpress video card on it, is the power supply still critical?

Jay-Hancock wrote on 7/6/2006, 3:14 PM

The dual-core AMD chips, while less power-consuming than their current Intel competitors, do require adequate power. And this is even more true if you have lots of components (hard drives, optical drives, etc.). Personally I wouldn't recommend anything less than 500 watts (just my opinion, but I found mine wouldn't boot with a 480 watt power supply, and I only used one video card). A good SLI-ready power supply is sure to work with these motherboards, because they've been tested. It's not a good idea to skimp there.

Also, if you buy an Asus branded SLI mobo (great boards!), don't try to connect an Antec NeoPower power supply. They have a known incompatibility bug that requires mailing it to Antec for a mod. Not worth the hassle! Search this forum for power supply and you'll find loads of advice.

busterkeaton wrote on 7/6/2006, 4:30 PM

Both Intel and AMD are planning big price cuts the last week of July.

Does anyone know how long until that shows up as street prices for components themselves and for prebuilt machines?

Coursedesign wrote on 7/6/2006, 5:29 PM

AMD's cuts are scheduled for 7/23 at the wholesale level and 7/31 at the retail level, "to coincide with Intel's announcement on 7/23."

I think the Neo power supply compatibility problem has been fixed in units shipped the last few months.

I fail to see how you can make an AMD X2 computer with a single graphics card use so much power it can't boot with a correctly working 480W power supply. The AMD CPUs even include the Northbridge that's a major power sucker on intel boards, and the reviews I have seen on THG etc. don't come even close to 480W.

I wouldn't think you could get there even with an overclocked 7900GT, as long as you have enough amps for this card.

And please don't save money on the mobo, that's like getting a discount heart transplant!!!

Jay-Hancock wrote on 7/6/2006, 8:01 PM

fail to see how you can make an AMD X2 computer with a single graphics card use so much power it can't boot with a correctly working 480W power supply.

Thanks for that little kick in the butt. You're right, and especially the part about "correctly working." The power supply I had this problem with was a 480W Antec NeoPower supply, thus it was really due to the incompatibility issue, not the wattage. Duh!

farss wrote on 7/6/2006, 8:32 PM

Still I see most of the newer video cards asking for a minimum 500W PS.
Like mobos power supplies seem a silly thing to skimp on, even though opening most of them up reveals a horrible mess of bits strung together as cheaply as possible.

Bob.

Coursedesign wrote on 7/6/2006, 10:22 PM

500W? Sounds like extreme gaming cards.

What they mostly need is amps and extra connectors, as older power supplies had never anticipated such gas guzzlers.

What's nice is a quiet PS!

JJKizak wrote on 7/7/2006, 4:10 AM

I had an XFS 7900 video card that drew as much power as the whole computer, and threw out more heat to boot. (extra 24 amp power cord just for the card.)
JJK