I think I'd be embarrassed to have quad cards. It would make me uncomfortable. I feel guilty considering dual SLI when others run one card seemingly well.
Have the nice 24" just need some cards that can push high res without too many hiccups. And it seems that GTX and GT both have strong arguments. Although there seems to be a fan speed issue with the GT's. I'd be installing aftermarket cooling so that is a moot point anyways but worth noting.
I don't have to spend $1500 but I can spend UP TO $1500. Obviously I want to spend as little as possible but I realize that isn't going to work if I want to run high to ultra settings on games @ 1920 x 1200 with DX9/10.
I'm glad you posted your thoughts on how you can't justify a purchase like that. It's something I was worried about and it contributed to the discussion.
I can justify it because spending $1500 on video cards and watercooling is something I can afford and something that I want. Do I need...
I don't think it's that mysterious.
My opinion is that Nvidia felt that a single slot cooler looks better (which it does), can perform at least some level of cooling, and the overall impression by the potential customer and the reviewers are positive. Let's face it, the 8800GT looks slick...
lol. That thought doesn't leave my mind.
But all other builds I've done involved sacrificing/skimping on my video cards to save a buck, so this time I'm serious about spending some money to get something that I'm happy with for at least 2 months at which point I'll consider the newer SLI...
Let's say you just built a new gaming rig. It's an overclocked Q6600 on a 680i chipset with 4GB of memory and you want to use a 24" Dell display @ 1920 x 1200. You love Crysis and other graphic intensive games. But you can't use your new setup until you get some video cards! (It's rough)...