ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX

~~RE III - Frankie~~ · Sep 22, 2009, 05:41 AM

Hello. I want to run a 9800GTX+ next to my HD4870 for PhysX in Games and 3DMark Vantage. I just want a decent score. Anyway I have had problems running a Nvidia card in an "old" "Crossfire" (old version) board before which cause my 8600GTS to fail working properly (I still have the card). Anyway can I chuck the 9800 in the second CrossfireX PCI Ex x16 slot without worrying that it will fry or (blow up! lol)?

Also if installing it is a NP then do I need additional software(s) to get both drivers running accordingly or is that all just straightforward stuff??

I guess I should tell you exactly what I'm running. OK. My Motherboard is the Asus P5KPL/1600 CrossfireX sweet thing. It has one PCI Ex 16 slot and one PCI Ex 16 x4 slot. Only two PCI Ex x16 slots exist on the board and the first one that goes at x16 speed runs my HD4870 graphics chip. What I want is to chuck the 9800 in the only second x4 slot to get PhysX cranked in Vantage. Am I able to complete this task or will I fry my 9800. Also I have heard of other's who have completed this task successfully, but I wasn't sure whether they have a 3rd non-CrossFireX dedicated PCI Ex slot available and used that one instead. Please help me. I have, my PC waiting for me to do really nice stuff to it.

ET3D · Sep 22, 2009, 09:35 AM

I remember reading that the latest NVIDIA drivers don't like to work with the ATI ones. Previous ones needed some massaging, but worked. (Haven't tried this myself, but I'd suggest you search for more info on this.) Apart from that you need to have Win 7 and a powerful enough PSU. Can't say about the board itself. I've seen a GeForce 9600 installed on a CrossFireX board, and it worked fine, that's all I can tell you.

Tipstaff · Sep 22, 2009, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ET3D

I remember reading that the latest NVIDIA drivers don't like to work with the ATI ones. Previous ones needed some massaging, but worked. (Haven't tried this myself, but I'd suggest you search for more info on this.) Apart from that you need to have Win 7 and a powerful enough PSU. Can't say about the board itself. I've seen a GeForce 9600 installed on a CrossFireX board, and it worked fine, that's all I can tell you.

I remember reading the same thing, but I can remember if it was a matter of using older drivers for the Nvidia card, or that you needed an older version of PhysX to get it to work.

~~RE III - Frankie~~ · Sep 22, 2009, 01:11 PM

I just read that you need two monitors first up then you have to uninstall all the graphic drivers before installing the Nvidia card next to the ATI one. Then once it's installed run the ATI drivers first, then older Nvidia ones, then you have to set to extend the desktop onto the second monitor (hence the "massaging" I guess). I guess this would proclaim some kind of stable structure for the graphics drivers to tend to in their running with eachother side by side, then after that just have one monitor going (the main one) and then install the (latest) Nvidia drivers. Info provided by members of the AMD Game CrossFireX Forums.

I think this would relevent though that they did not say whether this installation was on a CrossfireX system with just two PCI Ex slots with one of them being free for use. i'm still to work out whether it can be done on this regular system or that you need a CrossFireX system with a third non-dedicated PCI Ex slot.

Judas · Sep 22, 2009, 04:50 PM

If you track back in the modding /overclocking section i think is where i posted my thread awhile back.

heres the deal

The latest ati drivers work fine..

BUT

You can't use windows vista PERIOD...... it won't work... at all....

Windows XP is very difficult to get working

Win7 is your best bet

But you NEED a 2nd monitor.

and you need an older Nvidia driver just to get halfway somewhere.

You need to set the nvidia as primary..... enable physx mode and keep the physx panels open and then set ati as primary.... never close the control panels and hit disable and enable again on it and only hit APPLY.. not ok.

Run 3dmark vantage and see if the physx test 2 shows a massive difference (there should be WAY more planes and donuts and it should be running a hell of alot faster)

I got Physx to work with UT3 on the physx maps and it was DAMN incredible with a HD4870x2

I managed to get this working with crossfire enabled with 2x HD4870x2's however.... the relatively poor design of the asus triple fan taking up more then 2 slots was a problem..... it was running to hot and i couldn't keep it in the top or middle pci-ex 16 slots because then i couldn't install any video card in the slot below.

The conclusion i came to was simply this:

The amount of work and trial and error you have to fight through to get it working only seemed to work about half the time.... you would spend about 5-10 minutes just getting setup to run the game... and you might have to spend an additional hour trying it over and over again to get it working.

This is what really pisses me off.... nvidia "fixed" this in later drivers by fully preventing any form of physx running with any other display adapter as primary....

WHY the hell nvidia doesn't just enable physx as a slave card is beyond me.... i mean shit... there video card sales would probably increase 2 fold if not possibly more.

I think i averaged about 90fps on the 2nd plane test with physx enabled @ 1920x1080

ET3D · Sep 22, 2009, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judas

But you NEED a 2nd monitor.

Would one monitor with two video inputs work?

Judas · Sep 22, 2009, 06:24 PM

Yes.. but it's a bit of a pain in the ass when your setting up..

DJ BIG T · Sep 22, 2009, 07:49 PM

it only works for win7 not vista..

Dybdal · Oct 16, 2009, 11:29 PM

Dont know if its too late, but here is a good guide

GUIDE: How to Enable Physx on an Nvidia Card With an ATI Primary Card In Windows 7 - Overclock.net - Overclocking.net

BigBodZod · Oct 27, 2009, 04:44 PM

Does anybody know what the nVidia GPU models are that support the use of PhysX ???

I see the 9800GTX mentioned a lot, probably due to it's pricing and all, how about the 9600 models ???

How about one of the entry level 2xx series GPU's ????

Of course the purpose is to use a cost effective model for just PhysX support but I don't see much of a price difference with these models and sometimes the older units are not available.....

A Desire to Game · Oct 27, 2009, 05:01 PM

I believe all 8000's and up support PhysX. My old 8800GTS 320mb core G80 supports it.

Dybdal · Oct 27, 2009, 08:31 PM

I also think its from the 8xxx series and up.

And when you use a hd 4870, i dont think you need anything better than a geforce 9400 gt or a 9500 gt :P

But if you already have the 9800gtx+ its is more than plenty for a physx card. ;P

BigBodZod · Oct 28, 2009, 04:41 PM

Thanks for the information, when I purchased my 4870 I sold off my 9800 GTX+ card but I've been reading about using an older nVidia GPU for just PhysX support and I can't seem to find any 88xx cards any longer at Fry's.

They do have a decent amount of 98xx based GPU cards and plenty of 2xx GPU based cards, but the pricing is not much different.

Has anybody seen a list of supported GPU's anyplace ???

I will start some searching now and see what I come up with

deBelly · Oct 28, 2009, 05:50 PM

Even my 8600GT supports it (at least there is the option in drivers, I haven't actually tried it). 9600 and 9800's also support it, but the more shaders the better, so 9600GT is a bit weak with only 64 shaders.
Edit: There is a list here

BigBodZod · Oct 29, 2009, 08:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deBelly

Even my 8600GT supports it (at least there is the option in drivers, I haven't actually tried it). 9600 and 9800's also support it, but the more shaders the better, so 9600GT is a bit weak with only 64 shaders.
Edit: There is a list here

Thanks for the link, I'll check it out now...

Sep 22, 2009, 05:41 AM	#1
~~RE III - Frankie~~ Banned Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,754 Rep Power: 0	ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX Hello. I want to run a 9800GTX+ next to my HD4870 for PhysX in Games and 3DMark Vantage. I just want a decent score. Anyway I have had problems running a Nvidia card in an "old" "Crossfire" (old version) board before which cause my 8600GTS to fail working properly (I still have the card). Anyway can I chuck the 9800 in the second CrossfireX PCI Ex x16 slot without worrying that it will fry or (blow up! lol)? Also if installing it is a NP then do I need additional software(s) to get both drivers running accordingly or is that all just straightforward stuff?? I guess I should tell you exactly what I'm running. OK. My Motherboard is the Asus P5KPL/1600 CrossfireX sweet thing. It has one PCI Ex 16 slot and one PCI Ex 16 x4 slot. Only two PCI Ex x16 slots exist on the board and the first one that goes at x16 speed runs my HD4870 graphics chip. What I want is to chuck the 9800 in the only second x4 slot to get PhysX cranked in Vantage. Am I able to complete this task or will I fry my 9800. Also I have heard of other's who have completed this task successfully, but I wasn't sure whether they have a 3rd non-CrossFireX dedicated PCI Ex slot available and used that one instead. Please help me. I have, my PC waiting for me to do really nice stuff to it. Last edited by RE III - Frankie; Sep 22, 2009 at 08:04 AM.

Sep 22, 2009, 09:35 AM	#2
ET3D Hopeless Dreamer Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Dreamland, near the pool of infinite graphics cards Posts: 3,057 Rep Power: 105 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX I remember reading that the latest NVIDIA drivers don't like to work with the ATI ones. Previous ones needed some massaging, but worked. (Haven't tried this myself, but I'd suggest you search for more info on this.) Apart from that you need to have Win 7 and a powerful enough PSU. Can't say about the board itself. I've seen a GeForce 9600 installed on a CrossFireX board, and it worked fine, that's all I can tell you.

Sep 22, 2009, 01:11 PM	Thread Starter #4
~~RE III - Frankie~~ Banned Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,754 Rep Power: 0	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX I just read that you need two monitors first up then you have to uninstall all the graphic drivers before installing the Nvidia card next to the ATI one. Then once it's installed run the ATI drivers first, then older Nvidia ones, then you have to set to extend the desktop onto the second monitor (hence the "massaging" I guess). I guess this would proclaim some kind of stable structure for the graphics drivers to tend to in their running with eachother side by side, then after that just have one monitor going (the main one) and then install the (latest) Nvidia drivers. Info provided by members of the AMD Game CrossFireX Forums. I think this would relevent though that they did not say whether this installation was on a CrossfireX system with just two PCI Ex slots with one of them being free for use. i'm still to work out whether it can be done on this regular system or that you need a CrossFireX system with a third non-dedicated PCI Ex slot.

Sep 22, 2009, 07:49 PM	#8
DJ BIG T DH FaN BoY Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: ORLANDO,FL Posts: 930 Rep Power: 69 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX it only works for win7 not vista.. __________________

Oct 16, 2009, 11:29 PM	#9
Dybdal HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Aarhus, Dk Posts: 234 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX Dont know if its too late, but here is a good guide GUIDE: How to Enable Physx on an Nvidia Card With an ATI Primary Card In Windows 7 - Overclock.net - Overclocking.net __________________ Im a Danish hardwareheaven addict. Best stable overclock done:

Oct 27, 2009, 04:44 PM	#10
BigBodZod HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 73 Rep Power: 19 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX Does anybody know what the nVidia GPU models are that support the use of PhysX ??? I see the 9800GTX mentioned a lot, probably due to it's pricing and all, how about the 9600 models ??? How about one of the entry level 2xx series GPU's ???? Of course the purpose is to use a cost effective model for just PhysX support but I don't see much of a price difference with these models and sometimes the older units are not available.....

Oct 27, 2009, 05:01 PM	#11
A Desire to Game HardwareHeaven Hoosier Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Indiana Posts: 293 Rep Power: 33 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX I believe all 8000's and up support PhysX. My old 8800GTS 320mb core G80 supports it. __________________ Three is my new favorite number. (SATA III, USB 3.0, and triple channel memory)

Oct 27, 2009, 08:31 PM	#12
Dybdal HardwareHeaven Lover Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Aarhus, Dk Posts: 234 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX I also think its from the 8xxx series and up. And when you use a hd 4870, i dont think you need anything better than a geforce 9400 gt or a 9500 gt :P But if you already have the 9800gtx+ its is more than plenty for a physx card. ;P __________________ Im a Danish hardwareheaven addict. Best stable overclock done:

Oct 28, 2009, 04:41 PM	#13
BigBodZod HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 73 Rep Power: 19 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX Thanks for the information, when I purchased my 4870 I sold off my 9800 GTX+ card but I've been reading about using an older nVidia GPU for just PhysX support and I can't seem to find any 88xx cards any longer at Fry's. They do have a decent amount of 98xx based GPU cards and plenty of 2xx GPU based cards, but the pricing is not much different. Has anybody seen a list of supported GPU's anyplace ??? I will start some searching now and see what I come up with

Oct 28, 2009, 05:50 PM	#14
deBelly HardwareHeaven Addict Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Croatia Posts: 278 Rep Power: 44 System Specs	Re: ATI CrossFireX + 9800GTX+ for PhysX Even my 8600GT supports it (at least there is the option in drivers, I haven't actually tried it). 9600 and 9800's also support it, but the more shaders the better, so 9600GT is a bit weak with only 64 shaders. Edit: There is a list here Last edited by deBelly; Oct 28, 2009 at 06:13 PM.