No SLI for Conroe...

[sbrehm72255]

I saw this over at Extreme Overclocking this evening and found it a bit strange. So if you're thinking about getting a new Intel Conroe and want to run a SLi setup, you might want to rethink it again. At least for now anyway till something changes.

"Well, not Nvidia SLI anyway.

As reported on XS forum: http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=96756&highlight=conroe


Quote:
Originally Posted by Nvidia
Nvidia will not enable SLI support for Intel chipsets. Intel chipsets do not provide enough bandwidth to support SLI.

Sean Cleveland
Technical Marketing Manager
Platform Product Reviews
NVIDIA Corporation


So this basically means if you want Conroe, and fast graphics - you will have to switch to ATI and get Crossfire, which is supported natively on the 975X chipset.

In the same thread it says that Nvidia will be offering no Conroe support even on a different chipset.

(Before anyone mentions hacked drivers apparently these haven't worked since NForce4)

Interesting...

http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/showthread.php?t=217698

 

[Rob Williams]

Those links don't work. I don't understand why they can do SLi on Intel now.. but not when Conroe come out. Also.. how is it possible for there to be enough bandwidth for two ATI cards, yet not two nvidia cards.

I am a tad confused.

 

[werty316]

Yeah I wonder what nVidia's intentions are; it doesn't make sense.

 

[sbrehm72255]

Links should work now............

 

[madmat]

If I was Intel I'd cut nVidia's license to make Intel chipsets completely until they agreed to support the Intel chipsets in forceware drivers. It looks like nVidia doesn't realize that they're screwing with the largest PC hardware mfg in the world.

If I was the CEO of nVidia I wouldn't be teasing the Intel grizzly, he might find out how bad it sucks to get mauled.

 

[Tech-Daddy]

I think, that Nvidia has some insight int oConroe that we do not... and the initial test results that were overhyped (that I steadfastly opposed the technique), and some of the resultant independant analysis and testing that I have read on the net point to the Conroe not being the panecea that Intel supporters were hoping for.

If the chip is memory constrained, and is showing issues with info that is larger than it's 4MB L2 cache do not run efficiently, then NVidia has every right to protect it's Intellectual Property. It has no legal justification to put it's name on a technology that it thinks may damage it's performance reputation. Intel benefitted from Nvidia's support by getting itself into the entusiast market and having a dual video card solution that it was sorely lacking. It needed NVidia to keep pace on product offerings with AMD.

If NVidia Sees something in the Intel portfolio (and you can bet that NVidia has exposure to Intel's CPU's to develope boards with) that scares it... it scares me too!

I want Intel to succed, but I'll be damned if I support another marketing led P4 *Netburst* debacle...

Just my opinion.

 

[madmat]

I doubt it, nVidia just flatly refuses to allow SLI on any chipset that they don't make. The reasons they give are flatly BS, they just don't want to lose sales.

There are guys that have hacked the drivers to include SLI on the intel chipsets and it blows the nV chipset out of the water, if everyone had a choice do you think they'd choose to buy the lesser performing option? Hell no they'd go with Intel and that'd hurt nVidia's bottom line. I will cop to being an nVidia fan but I personally detest their business practices.

 

[Tech-Daddy]

I may have misread the post.... I took the post to mean that NVidia who has done SLI on previous ittterations of motherboards for Intel, would *not* support the Conroe with an SLI Compatable chipset.
Apologies if I misread...

 

[madmat]

As far as I'm given to understand Conroe is socket 775 and should work with the 975 chipset. That kind of tells me that nVidia is slinging BS to make excuses for what amounts to a monopoly on SLI chipsets.

 

[Buck-O]

I think there is alot more going on here, aside from just nVidia being a bunch of cock holes.

I think we need to look at the picture much larger then we are now.
For starters, nVidia, i think its fare to say, is the sole reason for AMD's market share int eh CPU world that they have now. They vertaintly would not be where they are today if they had continued to cater to the likes of companies like VIA.

With that sort of direct partnership with nVidia and AMD. It no wonder that nVidia stance on intel CPU's has changed. As im sure AMD has had some influence on their decision making. In a "you scratch mine, ill scratch yours" type of deal.

With that said, nVidia had to do alot of nitpicking with Intel to make th nForce chipset that is currently avliable for them. Even though this actually helped Intel in many ways. And really what is probibly the biggest determining factor, is that Intel saddled up with ATi to get its Crossfire technology, long before they ever approached nVidia for SLi, i think in a way assuming that nVidia would just make a chipset for the Conroe becuase its "teh new hotness". To of course which nVidia replied "get lotted".

Of course nVidia wants SLi to be exclusive to its brand. Why do you think they bought ULI? But i think Intel has long burned its bridges with nVida given some of the past comments they have made about nVidias video hardware, and their partnership with AMD, and direct refusal to let nVidia make chipsets for some of their processoers. And now Intel expect them to hand over the sechematics to its bread and butter? I dont think so.

I really wouldent doubt, that if in the next couple of years, we start to see motherboard specific video card, and processor combinations. The two Big Greens vs. Big Red and Big Blue. Mark my words, this si what it will come to. And 30+ years of computer inovations in the way of hardware compatibility, will be flushed down the drain in a single product cycle. Thanks marketing...thenks alot.

 

[madmat]

nVidia bought ULi to screw ATI which was using ULi southbridges on their chipset. Intel has had an SLI solution long before Crossfire was even on record so to say that Intel approached ATI about Crossfire before hitting nVidia up about SLI is just wishful thinking.

Like I said earlier it comes down to being a monopoly, a mini one true but a monopoly nonetheless. ATI has given it's blessings to non-ATI chipsets doing Crossfire mainly, I believe, because they know that there are better chipsets than theirs out there. I think nVidia is doing the opposite for the same reasons. If they allow SLI on chipsets other than theirs and those chipsets prove to spank theirs then there will be a movement away from their chipsets and that will hurt their bottom line.