Inexpensive top-end model of a video card - it sounds somehow implausible, because, in fact, a representative of a High-End class a priori cannot have a low price. But this is a fact, if we are talking about a single-core Nvidia device based on the GTX 980 chipset. Overview, technical specifications and reviews will allow the buyer to get to know the new product better and draw their own conclusions about one of the best representatives of the gaming class.
Mind games
In the laboratories of Nvidia, apparently, they decided to conduct experiments, and at the same time clean up the graphics chips in the performance line. Firstly, we are talking about the labeling of 900 series products. The reader managed to notice that there is not a single model of a video card of the 800th series on the market. The fact is that video adapters with this marking took all mobile devices. Therefore, in order not to confuse buyers with performance tables, the eight-hundredth series was simply deleted from the class of discrete devices designed for personal computers.
The second step of the manufacturer was the creation of two video adapters of the same series based on two different graphic cores. The basic version of the Geforce 980 GTX is built on the GM204 chip, its modification - Nvidia GTX 980 Ti - uses the GM200 core. The very one that runs the flagship GTX Titan X. The most interesting thing is that the price of both new products is slightly different (the 980 chip costs about 500 cu, and its "older brother" 980 Ti can be purchased for 600 cu).
Specifications
A comparison of the technical characteristics of all three video cards will help to understand what is happening on the market of video adapters of the 900th series. Based on the data, it will be easier for the buyer to decide which device to give preference in the store.
- with the same manufacturing process 28 nm and with one version of the Maxwell 2.x architecture, the devices have different core sizes: 980 model - 398 mm 2 , 980 Ti and Titan - 601 mm 2 ;
- the number of transistors in the GTX 980 is 5,200 million (980 Ti and Titan have 8,000 million);
- the graphics core of the 980 model operates at a frequency of 1126 MHz in normal mode, or 1216 MHz in turbo mode; Ti and Titan models have the same performance of 1000 MHz (1075 MHz in turbo mode);
- the number of shaders for 980 models is 2048 pcs., 980 Ti - 2816 pcs., Titan - 3072 pcs.;
- texture blocks for 980 chip 128, 176 for Ti modification, Titan has 192 blocks;
- compared video adapters use the GDDR5 bus and have the same memory frequencies - 7000 MHz;
- Model 980 uses a 356 bit bus, while Ti and Titan 384 bit;
- the bandwidth of graphics adapters, respectively, the GTX 980 graphics card has 224.3 GB / s, and 980 Ti and Titan - 336.5 gigabytes per second;
- the memory capacity of the 980 model is 4 GB, 980 Ti - 6 GB, Titan - 12 GB.
External review of new items
The base length of the GTX 980 video adapter is 27 centimeters, this guarantees 100% compatibility with all existing system units in ATX format. The cooling system is borrowed from the flagship Titan and has a double structure. The contact area, made of aluminum, covers the entire surface of the printed circuit board on both sides, in contact with the graphics core and memory chips, special heat-conducting inserts.
Radiators of the cooling system are installed on top of the aluminum base. A plastic casing that has a window overlooking aluminum radiators closes the system from above. At the rear, the GTX 980 graphics card has a built-in turbofan that takes air from the system unit and drives it through the radiator plates and out through the mounting grille. On the outer end of the device there is a company inscription indicating the modification of the device. The manufacturer Nvidia provided it with green LEDs, and it glows very brightly in the process.
PCB Features
The manufacturer has something to surprise his fans. There are no power elements on the back of the circuit board, so there is nothing to bask there. All memory chips are located around the graphics core and are in excellent contact with the aluminum cooling plate. The GTX 980 chip itself is equipped with a metal frame that protects it from chips when the cooler is improperly mounted. The core power system is 4-phase, but there is another phase for memory chips. Owners of video adapters note the presence of wiring on the board for two more phases, apparently, the printed circuit board will be used to modernize and produce improved modifications. Power is controlled by the NCP PWM controller. However, users note, Nvidia's labs are still avoiding the installation of solid state tanks.
First representative
The novelty from the company Gigabyte GTX 980, the price of which attracted many buyers (30-35 thousand rubles), has the right to be called the most affordable video adapter in the High-End category. It's all about factory overclocking and a powerful cooling system. The manufacturer set the frequency of the graphics core at around 1228 MHz (1329 MHz turbo mode). The manufacturer did not touch the memory bus - 7000 MHz and so are an impressive indicator of work.
But the cooling system was completely modified by Gigabyte technologists. The impressive WINDFORCE 3X cooler, as the name implies, has three huge fans that cool the radiator system with powerful air flow. The base of the radiators is made of aluminum and is in contact with the printed circuit board around the perimeter. For balancing the temperature between the sections of the radiators, copper tubes are noted, which permeate the entire cooling system.
A decent fan of the Geforce GTX 980 graphics core allows you to seamlessly overclock to 1367 MHz. At the same time, the video card not only shows high performance, but along with stable operation does not emit extraneous noise. Testing with a 100% load of the core shows heating to 62 degrees Celsius with a comfortable hearing for the user, the fan speed is 1100 rpm.
Silent interpretation
Not stopping at the achieved result, Gigabyte announced yet another product called WATERFORCE Nvidia GTX 980. Reviews of IT professionals assure that the future for the water cooling industry, because the price of such solutions is constantly decreasing from year to year, which means it will be available to everyone to the user. Relatively silent representative of Gigabyte nothing to complain about. Complete silence is ensured by the low-speed proprietary cooler, which, together with the radiator, is displayed half a meter outside the body of the video card. The liquid runs between the devices under pressure created by the compressor, which is located on the external unit. The factory overclock of the graphic core is 1228 MHz, but, as users note, it is fictitious, since the potential of the video card is much greater (you can freely install 1400 MHz and play with pleasure).
Serious statement
But the Asus GTX 980 Ti Strix graphics card has every chance of becoming the most productive device on the market for high-end graphics adapters in the price range of up to 40,000 rubles. There are prerequisites for this: 1190 MHz for the graphics core in the basic version (1216 MHz, turbo mode) and a 384-bit bus provide excellent bandwidth of 345.6 gigabytes per second. ASUS also decided to overclock the memory bus: 7200 MHz is far from the limit for this video adapter.
The potential of the video card is provided by new PWM controllers that more efficiently control the power system from an Nvidia referent. It is worth noting that the manufacturer also installed solid-state capacitors and replaced Samsung memory modules with more efficient ones from the market leader in Hynix microchips, which are capable of operating at high frequencies with a minimum response time of 0.2 nanoseconds. Unprecedented performance will definitely bring the Asus GTX 980 chipset to the top of its glory. The SLI mode, which is supported by all devices based on the GM200 / GM204 core, allows you to improve the performance of the entire system in games so that no flagship can exceed the total performance of inexpensive devices.
Consumer market
In the high-end class, manufacturers are trying to limit the number of modifications produced under their own brand to one or two devices. As a rule, one video card is in the lower price segment, the second is in the top in terms of performance. However, the Asus GTX 980 Ti graphics card is presented on the market by five modifications. The manufacturer evenly distributed them over the entire price range from 30 to 45 thousand rubles, endowing them with the corresponding overclocking potential. As reviews and testing of devices show, all performance directly depends on the installed cooling system.
On the market, the buyer can find devices that have from one to three coolers that are installed on the same manufacturer's printed circuit boards. The system with one turbofan is borrowed from Nvidia and attracts the user with its strict appearance and low price. The middle segment is occupied by Geforce GTX 980 devices with two fans, and the upper class is blown by a triple cooler in the cooling system. Strange scheme, but it works. As analysis of sales shows, every third buyer purchases ASUS devices.
Bronze Horseman
Since the performance of a top-end device directly depends on high-quality cooling, it will be more logical to choose among new products among representatives with a decent heat sink. Copper is definitely a better conductor than aluminum - that's what MSI labs decided and released the new Nvidia GTX 980 Ti Gaming Golden Edition. Contact pad, radiator, heat-conducting tubes - all made of copper and for only 40,000 rubles.
Factory frequencies of 1076 MHz in the core and 7010 MHz in the memory bus look frivolous in relation to the overclocking that the video card demonstrates in tests. At low speeds of the cooler and when the graphic core is heated to less than 60 degrees, the video card can work stably at dispersed frequencies of 1320 MHz via the GPU and show excellent data transfer on the bus operating at 7050 MHz. This is far from the limit, because there is still potential, however, an increase in temperature from heating will then lead to a terrible howl of fans.
Hybrid system
Another novelty in the video adapter market deserves the attention of users who prefer quiet devices: the EVGA Nvidia GTX 980 graphics card. Owner reviews claim that this solution, along with high performance, works silently even with significant overclocking. However, at the first meeting, many owners note that their cooling system did not inspire confidence. The Nvidia product was modified in the EVGA laboratories in a strange way: the turbofan did not undergo any modifications, and instead of the radiator grill, a water block was placed, which was piped half a meter outside the case and circulated using a compressor installed in the video card cooling system.
Also, the manufacturer for overclocking enthusiasts presented a maintenance-free water cooling system in the form of a separate HYBRID Water Cooler unit for the GTX 980, the price of which is 6,000 rubles. Apparently, the huge overclocking potential of the video adapter (1300 MHz in the core) led EVGA technologists to the idea that many owners of noisy devices would want to enjoy the silence in the process of overclocking existing video cards.
Finally
As the review shows on the GTX 980 chipset, the performance and overclocking potential of the video adapter directly depend on the cooling system of the graphics core and memory chips. Yes, some manufacturers, such as ASUS and Gigabyte, have made minor improvements to the PCB device, but without good airflow, serious results in testing can still not be achieved. Accordingly, the buyer when choosing should already be guided not by the brand, as it was before, but by the quality of the cooling system. It is worth noting that the affordable price (35-40 thousand rubles) only contributes to this.