Just looking for a cheap SLI MB and came across this MB
I know it's old but it has all i need,8x 8x SLI isn't a problem since there isn't much difference from 16x 16x.Has anyone purchased this MB before or know any problems with this board or having a Q6600 on this board.

local store Centre Com Online

NewEgg
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-N650SLI-DS4L LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards

nForce 680-series motherboards have trouble overclocking quad core CPUs, and the 650s are even worse. Why do you need SLi? Are you considering purchasing another 8600GT? That would be a waste of money. Also you need to consider what resolution you run games at. SLi usually only shows a performance improvement at 1680x1050 and above, and two 8600GTs will be so unpowered I doubt you'll see even that.

I have to agree with Reflux here, you're better off buying a single 8800 series instead of 2 8600s. Doing the math here, you're 2 8600gt's are about the same price as one 8800gt and for 50 dollars or so more you can get a 8800GTS 512mb.

So long as he's not buying two 8600GTs at the same time, I think it makes plenty of sense. I have two 7600GTs in SLI because I already had an SLI motherboard, got a 7600GT cheap as an upgrade from my 6800GT. Then, since 8800s were all the rage, I found another 7600GT at a price I couldn't pass up. It all cost me way less than an 8x00 card. Since he's already got an 8600GT, I think tacking another on makes a lot more sense than getting another 8800-series, especially since even though the price might be warranted, it's always easier to justify spending $100 than $200 at one point in time.

Sorry to bicker, but I don't know anything about the motherboard, hope somebody can help you out

I see what your saying Sexy Pants, but from the research i've done, the DS4 is a 100 bucks,

plus the cost of another XFX Geforce 8600gt is 87.99.

So for the price of the motherboard and the video card, he could keep his current board and spend the money on a better card and see a much better performance improvement over 2 marginal cards.

Thanks Sk8....the P31 board the OP has now is perfectly adequate for a budget system, and keeping it means he doesn't have to go through the hassle of replacing his motherboard. Buying an 8800GT is by far the easiest and most cost-effective upgrade. It will easily outperform 8600GT SLi, and all he needs to do is drop it straight into his system.

Well i heard this is a Excellent card ,XpertVision 9600GT.It's $187 at my local store and it's much cheaper then the XFX 8800GT and the 9600GT gets 13144 3DMark06 score at 1280x1024 so it's pretty well done.
What do you guy's think?

The 9600gt will be an improvement over what you've got definitely. But i don't see how its cheaper, the XFX 8800gt is 179.99 on newegg. Also i found the evga 9600gt on newegg for $149.99

as for what to get, the 9600gt is a newer core and is only 50 mhz faster, but it only has about half of the stream processors that the 8800GT does, which will effect performance.

but honestly, its all up to you.

The 9600GT performs surprisingly well for a card with only 64 stream processors; so well in fact that in a review I read the other day, the reviewer said that it must be 'magic'.

If you can stretch to an 8800GT, go for it, but if not the 9600GT will still kick arse.

Check these prices out,The XFX 8800GT AlphaDog is $288
CentreCom Online - Notebooks & Computers
Then you'll see what i mean by "Much cheaper"

Even the 8800gts 320mb are only 145 bucks on Newegg right now. I have one of those and it runs most anything on very good settings. It's very cheap, and it's an 8800gts. Or, the 512mb edition is $224. Really, I think that's the best choice, the 320mb edition. Or put two of them in your rig to make it a beast

Quote: Originally Posted by xplod Check these prices out,The XFX 8800GT AlphaDog is $288 CentreCom Online - Notebooks & Computers Then you'll see what i mean by "Much cheaper"

then i guess you live in Aussie? Then i guess the choice is up to you then. if the 9600gt is the most cost effective route, then go for it. Its still a great card.

Quote: Originally Posted by skidro892007 Even the 8800gts 320mb are only 145 bucks on Newegg right now. I have one of those and it runs most anything on very good settings. It's very cheap, and it's an 8800gts. Or, the 512mb edition is $224. Really, I think that's the best choice, the 320mb edition. Or put two of them in your rig to make it a beast

Nope, the 320/640mb GTSs are older cores, and get pretty soundly beaten by the newer 8800 GT and 512mb GTS, which have 112 and 128 stream processors respectively and higher clocks. The 9600GT is a little faster than the 320mb GTS, mainly due to its 512mb of memory.

SLi with a 320mb GTS is a waste of time because the frame buffer is so small, and would really limit performance at SLi-friendly resolutions of 1680x1050 and above.

Also i would like to ask is XpertVision/Palit the same company?
There 9600GT's have the same design and specs but the Palit is more expensive.

I'm not sure if they're the same company but their card designs are always the same. So just get the cheapest. Their 9600GT is rather good I believe, it's pre-overclocked, has a decent cooler and also a DisplayPort connector.

Does anyone know the dimensions for this card i can't seem to find them anywhere...

Instead of posting another thread i just decided to post it here but...
If you screw a heatsink on too tight will the metal bracket thing on the socket 775 stop it from putting the pressure on the CPU?

Here's a pic if you don't know what i mean
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/A...mages/p4_1.jpg
The metal thing that says FoxConn on it.

Hmmm, It shouldn't but then again, I wouldn't tight it down too much, you might crack the pcb instead.
Just apply a good thermal paste such as Artic Silver 5, the size of a rice grain or maybe slightly bigger, like a cooked rice grain in the center of the cpu. then mount your cooler, and don't over tighten it.

What cooler do you have?

I'm currently using a Thermaltake Silent tower
Overclocker Cafe - Thermaltake Silent Tower Cooler Review
It has a pretty bad mounting system...
But i was just wondering if the heatsink puts alot of pressure onto the CPU

Get an Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro, a Tuniq Tower or a ThermalRight 120E. They're about the only HSFs worth considering, especially if you have a quad core.