In order to showcase its new nForce 4 SLI chipset, nVidia has released information which demonstrates how much, in nVidia's favor, SLI has tipped the performance scales. The top systems listed on FutureMark's 3DMark05 performance league tables are all based on NVIDIA SLI technology. NVIDIA SLI-powered systems currently hold the top 20 positions on the 3DMark05 Hall of Fame.
Many users are quick to claim that SLI is a gimmick setup which involves two, top of the line graphics boards working in unison. Very few people will be willing to invest the amount of money needed to obtain an SLI system, especially when considering the very small number of games that actually support it. Others will claim that such an investment, when new boards are expected by fall this year, would be foolish as we are not quite sure of the difference in performance between current and next generation chips. nVidia cannot really deny any of those claims but it doesn't really want to. The fact remains that it is currently the king of the benchmarks and that counts for something.
Although ATI is always eager to stress that one-on-one, its products perform just as well, if not better, than its rivals, it is apparent that the lack of 3DMark Top 20 spots for its products is having an effect. The recently organised gathering of overclockers in Texas, in an attempt to make a dent in nVidia's benchmark supremacy and its subsequent failure to produce the goods is a sign that although they are just numbers, 3DMark scores do mean something to the companies.
Taking the top spot on the 3DMark05 Hall of Fame is an NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Series SLI-powered system scoring a record-setting 12,280 marks, using an NVIDIA nForce 4 SLI-based motherboard. For the full Hall of Fame results, follow the download tab above.
