Physx + ATI 5870 question

[corei5]

Hello, I have 5870 as my main GPU but i wanted to know how to set another card but as physx for some games like nfs shift, etc. how does it work? without unplugging my 5870 so i can also have a better graphics along with the physx.

 

[dirkpitt45]

What kind of cpu do you have?

PhysX doesn't add anything to the game, its all marketing by Nvidia. All it does is offload the physics stuff from your cpu to your gpu. So if you have a modern quad or tri core, there is no point in physX for everyday use/gaming.

There was a thread a couple days ago all about it, http://www.techist.com/forums/f76/psu-gtx-480-a-229249/ around page 2 and onwards.

 

[Apokalipse]

I don't think it's worth it

Basically you would have to get a second card from Nvidia and use it as a dedicated PhysX card.
If you did, probably the best card to do it with would be the GT 240 (in terms of cost, performance and power consumption)
And you would also have to use a hacked driver to enable it while you have an ATI card.
http://www.techist.com/forums/f78/hybrid-physx-mod-v1-03-a-229483/

 

[Oreo]

What kind of cpu do you have?

PhysX doesn't add anything to the game, its all marketing by Nvidia. All it does is offload the physics stuff from your cpu to your gpu. So if you have a modern quad or tri core, there is no point in physX for everyday use/gaming.

There was a thread a couple days ago all about it, http://www.techist.com/forums/f76/psu-gtx-480-a-229249/ around page 2 and onwards.

Oh god that thread. I dont even want to look at it anymore, i gave up after a while.

All i'll say is whether a cpu is powerful enough to do it or not.. very few games if any will let you use PhysX without an nVidia card.

If you think physx looks good, go for it. If you don't, well, don't

 

[james.wired]

Lots of people do this...I don't see what the problem is. If you want PhysX but prefer an ATi card as your main (or already have one) then go for it. Pick up a GTS 250, or even a 240 could do it. Would be cool to try atually

 

[RichM499]

What kind of cpu do you have?

PhysX doesn't add anything to the game, its all marketing by Nvidia. All it does is offload the physics stuff from your cpu to your gpu. So if you have a modern quad or tri core, there is no point in physX for everyday use/gaming.

There was a thread a couple days ago all about it, http://www.techist.com/forums/f76/psu-gtx-480-a-229249/ around page 2 and onwards.

PhysX does actually add some special partical effects, and effects for destruction of certain items in the game.

I'm not sure if it's just the game designers themselves throwing Nvidia a handout by disabling certain features when PhysX isn't enabled, but games like Sacred 2 show a big difference in spell effects when you're using a PhysX video card.

There are many neat little goodies that are enabled when using a PhysX video card.


YouTube - Sacred 2 Physx on/off

 

[dirkpitt45]

So sacred 2, anyone play that game anymore?

So there's one example, probably funded by nvidia, I'm still convinced Phyx does anything.

 

[Oreo]

So sacred 2, anyone play that game anymore?

So there's one example, probably funded by nvidia, I'm still convinced Phyx does anything.

Well it does do something the proof is in the pudding. You can see what it does.

What you mean is, whether it does anything a CPU can't do. Probably not, but like you say, nvidia will pay for these 'special' features to be PhysX only. So if you want them, you don't really have any choice but to get an Nvidia card.

 

[RichM499]

So sacred 2, anyone play that game anymore?

So there's one example, probably funded by nvidia, I'm still convinced Phyx does anything.

Also, I thought I'd note. I still play Sacred 2 with my buddies. It's an excellent hack n' slash game. There are tons of enemies to play with, lots of ways to customize your character (spell casting warrior, melee mage, etc), and there are thousands of rare / unique items to find in the game that make it really fun. Just collecting sets is tedious, but once you get a set of specific armor it makes you feel good because you look better, and you have nice stats.


I'm rambling now, but I just wanted to mention that many people still play the game. In Closed Net, there are always people occupying servers.

Mirror's Edge also uses physx. Some of the banners and flags that you can destroy don't even show up in the game without physx enabled video card. There are many other games that also use this, but like I said I don't know if the game developers add 1 or 2 extra little things and disable them when an Nvidia card isn't found. I would suspect that this is the case, because ATI and Nvidia are pretty close in terms of high-end gaming performance. It's a **** of a marketing scheme, but I don't think it's really going to work out so well in the long run. It was a nice try though.