NVIDIA's 790i Arrives: SLI Rides Again
by Kris Boughton on March 18, 2008 9:00 AM EST- Posted in
- CPUs
First Thoughts
Our experience with 790i thus far has been overwhelmingly positive. It's clear to us that NVIDIA's decision to take the extra time needed to fully prepare the board and BIOS for retail release will end up paying dividends in the end. Many of the problems we experienced with early 780i boards are thankfully missing. The effort placed in providing good Auto values for overclocking has also been extremely helpful. Gamers that are looking to buy a system that is capable of practically overclocking itself should seriously consider the nForce 790i.
Without a doubt, one of the best reasons for buying any NVIDIA-based motherboard is and continues to be the support for SLI graphics configurations. Today's 8800GTS 512MB (G92) prices are low enough to make SLI-enabled gaming systems appear (Ed: almost) mainstream. A quick price check at many major online retailers shows such cards for as little as $249 each - and sometimes significantly less with a mail-in rebate. It was not long ago that the very mention of the price of an SLI system would make your wallet cower in fear; G92 has definitely changed that for the better. NVIDIA tells us they are committed to providing sufficient product at launch, so expect to see 790i hit the shelves almost immediately. For those that are moving up from 680i/780i, don't forget to buy some DDR3. After that, it's an almost seamless transplant moving system components over from one board to the other.
One thing we were happy to see was the improved memory performance at higher frequencies made possible by NVIDIA's latest BIOS. We were experiencing dismal read and copy speeds when using any FSB in excess of 475 FSB. NVIDIA BIOS engineers quickly went to work following a discussion we had detailing our findings and within two days we had our response. The fix provided the performance we initial expected to come from DDR3-2000 memory speeds and the new benchmark results showed the 790i to be devilishly fast afterall. This makes the E8400 with a 9x multiplier a rather good choice when it comes to selecting a CPU. Five-hundread megaHertz and a 9x multi yields a final CPU speed of just under 4.5GHz (or you can go 500x8.5 for an easy 4.25GHz) - a great place to be when it comes to maximizing the hidden potential of any 45nm dual-core microprocessor. If anything, this should be another testament to the importance of selecting a CPU with a higher multiplier. True, while the more modestly price E8200 can certainly be tempting (assuming you can find a seller willing to give you a fair price), you will most likely end up kicking yourself for not going with the E8400 or something with a higher multiplier.
We try to keep in close contact with all of the major vendors, NVIDIA included. You can be certain we will continue to do whatever we can to help improve 790i and future platforms. The nForce 790i SPP is already light years ahead of 780i - 45nm CPU overclocking support is significantly improved and DDR3 memory speeds up around 2.0GHz are wicked fast. DDR3 memory should continue to gain in popularity as prices continue to drop and DDR2 begins to make an exit from the market. Some of the better modules are really starting to shine; the Crucial Ballistix we were offered for review were able to reach speeds in excess of 2.0GHz with no more than 1.9V on the 790i.
You may also want to keep a lookout for the introduction of a few new ESA-enabled components over the coming weeks. We have just received word that OCZ plans to offer a 1000W PSU with ESA-provided real-time current, voltage, and efficiency monitoring. Knowing your PSU is operating well within rated specifications is one less thing to worry about when pushing your system to the limits.
This is first enthusiast level chipset from NVIDIA for the Intel platform that we refuse to refer to as a duck in the labs. You see, just like a duck, the 680i/780i based motherboards seem to wake up in a different world every day. All indications at this point are that NVIDIA finally got their act completely together with the 790i. True, it might not have the same heritage as the Intel X48, but NVIDIA has finally put together a compelling platform that we would not hesitate to use as our main system without the condition of "gaming" being its primary purpose in life.
While this platform will surely satisfy most enthusiasts with its enticing performance, there is one caveat that will relegate it to a select few users. Pricing on these boards is expected to be in the $350 to $400 range. Combine that with the cost of 4GB of DDR3-1800+ memory and you can see why most people will cower at the thought of an upgrade at this time. In the end, it simply comes down to a decision as to whether you want the overall fastest platform available for Intel's latest processor series or you like to eat on a regular basis. Some of us could stand to lose a few pounds….
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ATWindsor - Wednesday, March 19, 2008 - link
I couldn't agree more, features is all well and good, but only if things works and are stable. No wonder people find it daunting to build a computer, even when you have done it several times you risk going into som "trap" with things not working the way it should, more focus on this in reviews please.AtW
theYipster - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
I agree with Lopri in every regard. AT needs to stop masquerading these technical showcase articles as reviews. In addition to what Lopri already mentioned, I would add that AT failed to a) address the long standing concerns held throughout the enthusiast community over nForce product quality (regarding the paragraph on PWM design... very undwerwhelming considering that it doesn't offer support to its claim) and b) failed to provide a fair assessment of the value proposition these boards provide. The article states that the 790i provides a noticeable step up in performance over previous generations, and that owners of previous boards would find upgrading worthwhile. This is a bold claim, as such an upgrade would cost nearly $1000 (when factoring in new DDR3 RAM) and would not even include a new CPU or graphics card. Yes, the NB runs a bit cooler and can OC a bit farther, but how and why is that worth $1000, even to the enthusiast who can afford it easily? Lets also consider the grander scheme of things. What worth is it for someone who enjoys the latest and greatest to spend $350 on a board when Nehalem will change all the rules in less than a year. At least previous generations (as well as Intel's X38) provide some shelf life.In any case, Overclock3d.net has a very informative review of the Striker II Extreme which covers almost everything Lopri mentioned.
ssiu - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
"The EVGA 790i Ultra also handled our QX9770 sample with relative ease. We were able to benchmark and play games without incident at 400MHz FSB, our mark of excellence when it comes to quad-core overclocking."That is a low standard of excellence for a high-end chip. The Q9300/Q9450 overclockers are going to cry.
greylica - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
Mwahaha, some will say :" Now we can finnaly play crysis ! "
Well done, 66 fps...
n0nsense - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
We can for a very long time.I do it with 1920x1200 at all Med + 4AA
I have the 680i (P5N32-E SLI) + E6300@2.8GHz (not the maximum, but lower fan speed = less noise) + 4GB OCZ ReaperX @ 800MHz 4-4-3-12 1T and single reference design 8800GT from ASUS at stock clock (the only modified sing, is stock cooler replaced with Arctic Cooling Accelero S1 which reduced card temp by 25C)
As you can see MB - year old, CPU 1.5 years old.
I can't tell you the exact fps, but it's completely smooth playing.
I expect next generation to bring same smooth play at all very high + all filterings for existing games.
BTW, where 9800x2 in SLI tests on this 790i ?
SpaceRanger - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
When do you think nVidia will be putting out these boards for AMD CPU's. The only thing I see for AMD CPU's are boards that support CROSSFIRE, but not SLI.ap90033 - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
It just costs to MUCH. I got 8 GIGS DDR2 800 an E8400 and a Single 8800GTS 512 meg, and I have the CPU Running at 3.6 (I am looking to try 3.8 maybe) and I can play any game maxed except Crysis. I can play it at high at 1024x768. I looked at SLI but its to danged expensive, I had 1220$ to spend and decided to get the most performance for the money. I wish they would quit going up in price on these motherboards, hey Nvidia, you do know I can get a GREAT Overclockers motherboard with good features (NO SLI OF COURSE) for $80 right? Why would I pay $250+ more for the board, another $200+ more for DDR3 Ram, and another $250 for another 8800GTS just so "some" games would run 15% faster? Are you nuts??? 10-15% but it costs like $800 MORE???? I think Ill save my $800 or so and use it on my next video card upgrade, my next CPU upgrade, and the next video card upgrade after that! LOLkrnmastersgt - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
Because this isn't meant at the people that want the best price/performance, this is for the uber-high end user, the extreme benchmarker/extreme gamer, of course by your logic SLI and CrossFire are stupid wastes of money since the performance doesnt scale linearly, but this is meant for enthusiasts and therefore you shouldn't compare it with something like a P35 board.crimson117 - Tuesday, March 18, 2008 - link
As an example, I was helping configure a Dell for a home office user, non-gamer, no video editing, etc, but he was fairly well-off money-wise. While picking options, at one point I said something about some component being "plenty for most users" and he replied (in a nice way) "I'm not most users"; so we went with the upgraded version even though the price performance, especially for his usage pattern, didn't make fiscal sense.The moral is there are people out there who get satisfaction over having the absolute best no matter the price.
Relatedly, an experiment found that people perceive $90 wine as tasting better than $10 wine, even when it was secretly http://www.news.com/8301-13580_3-9849949-39.html">the same exact wine.