Cooling two graphics cards passively + non-SLI compatibility

[Jokoto]

I'm thinking of adding a second graphics card in my silent system. I have an Antec P180, running P5B Deluxe WiFi + E6600 with a Ninja. Currently I'm using an XFX 7600GS that is passive in stock. It is cooled only by one 120mm Nexus at 600 rpm at the front of the motherboard chamber. I might buy an Asus 7900GS or two off a buddy who is upgrading to an 8800.

Obviously I'll be changing the stock cooler to something bearable, but which way should I go? cthomson succesfully used an Aerocase Condor in a similar setup (which I followed), but an HR-03 seems good too, and more readily available. However there might not be space for the HR-03 installed the first way, with fins on top of the card, for a card in the first PCI-E slot on my board since I'm using and HR-05 on the NB. Exchanging it for the HR-05 SLI might help with space, if needed. In any case the airflow wouldn't be very good in that position anyway, as there's a dividing wall under the Ninja, and there would not be a dedicated exhaust fan nearby anyway. If I mount the HR-03 the second way, hanging under the card, won't it take up both PCI slots between the PCI-E slots? I'm not using them at the moment, but I'd like to keep my options open if possible.

The passive 7600GS would become the second graphics card, or at least that's what I'm planning. Would this setup of two different cards work nicely together? I've been told using Nvidia and ATI together certainly wouldn't work, meaning one of them wouldn't get hardware acceleration. Does anybody have experiences with driver compatibility when using two different Nvidia cards for multiple displays? I'm not aiming for SLI use here. If it doesn't work, I would have to use two 7900GS cards, slap a Condor on the primary and an HR-03 on the second... and probably speed up the fans a bit to get rid of all that heat. Not preferable.

Oh, and before someone suggests passive 8600 models: as I understand it they are a lot worse performers than a 7900GS. No Flight Simulator X with them - even a 7900GS isn't perfect, but I just can't justify buying an 8800... though if the only option here was 2x7900GS plus aftermarket coolers for both of them, an 8800 + HR-03 Plus suddenly makes sense in comparison. What should I do?

[miahallen]

I've been told using Nvidia and ATI together certainly wouldn't work, meaning one of them wouldn't get hardware acceleration. Does anybody have experiences with driver compatibility when using two different Nvidia cards for multiple displays?

Oh, and before someone suggests passive 8600 models: as I understand it they are a lot worse performers than a 7900GS. No Flight Simulator X with them

First off, while using ATI & nVidia cards in one system isn't the most elegant solution, it does work. Both will be able to use HW acceleration. Lot's of good info here, if you look for it.

Concerning the 8600 models..."a lot worse performers than a 7900GS"...not true in at all. They do not always perform better...but they outperfom the 7900GS in most modern, shader intensive games (where it really counts). Also, I believe one of the biggest bennefits of DX10 will not be visual, but performance related, and FSX is releasing a DX10 patch later this year. I'd put money on the 8600 series smacking the sh!t out of the 7900GS after that happens.

As far as my reccommendation for you...get the 8800 + HR-03 Plus, you won't regret it! Even if you do all that work on getting your 7900GS all silent and running smooth with the 7600GS supporting your secondary monitor...in 6 months you're still going to be drooling over the thought of the 8800 in your rig. There is no comparison. I run all my games at 2048x1536 with all the eye candy turned on. FSX is the only game I cannot get decent framerates with, but that does not change even when I drop down to 1024x768....the game is simple too CPU limited right now...that will change with the DX10 patch, and later a SMP patch.

[Jokoto]

Well, DX10 is irrelevant as I can't see myself ever bowing down to Vista and its limitations. Even if Bioshock becomes DX10 only, I'll just be playing it on a console then. Putting that aside, running current and some of the older games on my 1600x1200 panel (and, in the future, perhaps 1920x1200?) would be a breeze with a 8800. A 8600 wouldn't be so hot, especially with FSX. CPU-wise my E6600 should be enough.

I'll need to dig around HardOCP then. Here's hoping Forceware can be beaten to submission to drive two different cards for 4 monitors.

An HR-03 Plus is obvious, as it is the best and, for the moment, only cooler in the market that has the ability to cool those beasts with no dedicated whiny fans. I wonder if Aerocase has anything going on to upgrade their Condor for the 8800s? A heatsink like that would be much easier to install. My Asus P5B Deluxe WiFi with HR-05 on the NB and a Ninja for CPU cooling make it pretty much impossible to mount the HR-03 Plus in the position wrapping the card - I wonder if I went back to the stock heatpipe NB cooler, could it be possible then? That NB heatsink is 3 cm high; is there enough clearance between motherboard PCB and the HR-03 fins?

[Max Slowik]

Hey, I just wanted to say that most of those limitations are imposed by copyright holders that are not MS, and furthermore, that the remaining limitations are all fully present in /all/ versions of Windows.

If you're seriously against those "limitations" and running any MS software, you're being a little hypocritical. Go Ubuntu.

[Jokoto]

I tried Ubuntu six months ago when I built this machine, and it (Edgy) didn't deliver. No support for the SATA controller on the P5B at that time, and while there were workarounds, they weren't tidy. Plus there were other bugs in that release at that time... Now that I'm once again stuck in Windows, it's somewhat hard to migrate after getting settled. Besides, since I run this 24/7 I don't want to and can't dualboot - and there is software that can't be run on Wine. Too bad.

[Moogles]

[EDIT] Failed to properly read your post, ignore this.