Nvidia disables PhysX when ATI card is present

GenL · September 28th, 2009, 05:33 PM

It's in your pm, LordJuanlo.

LordJuanlo · September 28th, 2009, 05:58 PM

Thanks, will report in a couple of days as soon as I get the nVidia card

Pat · September 28th, 2009, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LordJuanlo

Could I test it GenL?, I will get the GTS 250 in a couple of days and could provide performance numbers using full Batman game. Windows 7 64bit

I tested it with PhysX=high (190.03) and got 60-61fps (ATI Tray tools report) ingame and in benchmark. Framerate drops when level changes to 55fps

The same results on 185.62. Mirrors Edge is also 60fps+ in any location, UT3 PhysX mod also 60fps+. Cryostasis (SM4.0, everything on/high) is about 25-50fps (avg 35fps), the same in Darkest of Days.

The 190.xx+ drivers gives <5% performance 'boost' comparing to 185.62. All tests were done on my setup:
Sapphire Toxic 4890 (990/1160MHz) + Palit 9600GSO 512 (48sp,512MB DDR3 128bit, 680/1745/1050MHz), core i7 920 at 3.33GHz, 1680x1050.

Your GTS250 will probably do more in Cryostasis and Darkest of Days. Post your FluidMark (1.1.1) result when you get the card

(my 9600 can reach 8-8.1k o3Marks)

LordJuanlo · September 28th, 2009, 08:17 PM

So the performance boost looks minor, thank you very much for those numbers. I hope to get the card by wednesday, I'll post my results here

GenL · September 28th, 2009, 10:00 PM

Seems like during last 1-4 days many hardware news sites finally discovered this thread and published a quote from email in the first post. So, after 2 months this is actually a "news" for someone...

Anyway, i found an interesting article here.
I thought only GeForce cards are being blocked, but now i'm not sure. Is it possibly some kind of error in benchmarks, or maybe 8.x versions are very different from 9.x when it comes to Ageia PPUs?

Rents · September 28th, 2009, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GenL

I thought only GeForce cards are being blocked, but now i'm not sure. Is it possibly some kind of error in benchmarks, or maybe 8.x versions are very different from 9.x when it comes to Ageia PPUs?

Maybe it's a hardware limitation on the oldest Ageia's PPUs. NV says than in order to actually PhysX work fine needs at least a series 8, 9, 200 GPU with a minium of 256 MB and 32 SPs.

In relation on the "discover" of this thread, i'm find it when i was looking to a solution for this block. Around 9/2.

In the last couple of days a thread was created in HardOCP and then in their news section appears this "notice". I think yesterday it was published in the news section of Guru3D.com also.

GenL · September 28th, 2009, 10:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rents

Maybe it's a hardware limitation on the oldest Ageia's PPUs. NV says than in order to actually PhysX work fine needs at least a series 8, 9, 200 GPU with a minium of 256 MB and 32 SPs.

From what i see inside that article, the guy is just trying out different "System Software" packages with PhysX FluidMark.
If everything is correctly done there, i'd say that System Software 9.x series works worse than 8.x series for Ageia PPU.

Too bad there are no results of the same set with GeForce card instead of Radeon...

Rents · September 28th, 2009, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GenL

Too bad there are no results of the same set with GeForce card instead of Radeon...

yeap... also, he doesn't gave any technical specs of the Ageia PPU used on the test.

Here i found the other sites i'm talk about:

http://www.hardocp.com/news/2009/09/..._card_present/
http://www.guru3d.com/news/nvidia-di...rd-is-present/

Quote:

Small advise to NVIDIA, PhysX will be a lost cause unless you guys get ATI onboard as well. This certainly isn't helping.

Absolutely truth.

brunner · September 28th, 2009, 10:43 PM

Can I help?

I currently have a 280GTX SLI + 9800 GT for PhysX. I've put in an order for 2 5870s and should receive them sometimes this week. Hopefully, I"ll be able to keep using PhysX on the 9800. It would suck to have to play Batman without PhysX.

Pat · September 28th, 2009, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rents

Maybe it's a hardware limitation on the oldest Ageia's PPUs. NV says than in order to actually PhysX work fine needs at least a series 8, 9, 200 GPU with a minium of 256 MB and 32 SPs.

They couldn't get it work (Physx 9.x on Ageia PPU) because they didn't RTFM

Nvidia says:

"Runtime upgrade ONLY for AGEIA PhysX processors users. (New AGEIA PhysX processors installations should install older PhysX system software such as version 8.09.04 – prior to installing this update)"

...so I think following this advice wouldn't be so stupid and could lead to better results in FluidMark. I don't think Ageia PPU is blocked like GeForce because it doesn't use nVidia drivers just PhysX software which was never blocked, I mean you can use any version of PhysX package from 6.x to 9.x with old/unlocked nVidia drivers (if you use geforce not Ageia PPU) and still use hardware PhysX. But I will not argue since I have no PPU card to test.