GTX 980Ti | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Thu, 30 Mar 2023 15:08:43 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png GTX 980Ti | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 NVIDIA VR performance featuring ASUS https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/jon-martindale/nvidia-vr-performance-featuring-asus/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/jon-martindale/nvidia-vr-performance-featuring-asus/#respond Sat, 23 Apr 2016 13:32:51 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=288978 Despite a few supply issues, the past two weeks have seen the commercial launch of two high-end virtual reality headsets from Oculus VR and HTC/Valve, so understandably there's a lot of buzz about the topic. Part of that buzz is whether you have a system that is capable of powering a VR set up, which …

The post NVIDIA VR performance featuring ASUS first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Despite a few supply issues, the past two weeks have seen the commercial launch of two high-end virtual reality headsets from Oculus VR and HTC/Valve, so understandably there's a lot of buzz about the topic. Part of that buzz is whether you have a system that is capable of powering a VR set up, which requires quite a hefty PC.

We recently ran some tests with Sapphire cards from AMD, to see how capable they were using Steam's VR Performance test and now we're getting the chance to do the same with the green camp. ASUS was kind enough to send through a number of its graphics cards, including a technically sub-part-for-VR, GTX 950. We tested the GTX950 out of interest, we know it falls outside VR recommended specifications. Not everyone can afford a GTX970!

The full list of tested GPUs was as follows:

  • ASUS ROG Matrix Platinum GTX 980TI.
  • ASUS ROG Poseidon Platinum GTX 980.
  • ASUS STRIX GTX 970 DIRECT CU II.
  • ASUS GTX 950.

To see how these fared, we made use of Valve's VR performance test, which runs a scene from the Aperture Robot Repair demo, as if you were using a VR headset.

The system that we used to test each of these cards was made up of the following:

  • CPU: Intel Core i5 4690k @ 3.5GHz.
  • Motherboard: ASUS Z97-K.
  • Memory: 16GB G.Skill RipjawsX 2,133MHz RAM.
  • Storage: 1TB Kingston SSDNOW v310 SSD.
  • PSU: Super Flower SF650 650w (Thanks OCUK).
  • OS: Windows 10.

The graphics drivers installed at the time of testing were the 364.72 WHQL certified version. It's important to note that these drivers were released after the launch of the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive headsets, whereas the previous AMD test was pre-release drivers.

IMG_5589

ASUS GTX 950.

IMG_5567 IMG_5572

ASUS STRIX GTX 970 DIRECT CU II.

IMG_5580 IMG_5574

ASUS ROG Poseidon Platinum GTX 980.

IMG_5578 IMG_5575

ASUS ROG Matrix Platinum GTX 980TI.

IMG_5582IMG_5584

Methodology

For this test we utilised the SteamVR Performance benchmark to achieve our scores and to give us an idea of how each card performs in VR conditions. However, due to the way this benchmark operates, it is important that we lay out why the results are not typical of your average graphics card performance test.

Unlike most benchmarks, which aim to achieve as high a score as possible, the first consideration for the Steam VR benchmark, is hitting a consistent frame rate of at least 90 and better yet, slightly higher. To do this, it utilises an adaptive quality setting, which means if a graphics card starts to struggle to maintain a high-FPS, the quality of the scene immediately drops to help rectify frame rate issues.

That said, the benchmark still puts out a score at the end, based on the level of fidelity (graphical quality) maintained throughout the demo and a note to let you know how often the system dropped below 90 frames per second and how often the CPU held things back. There is also a sliding scale of how “VR Ready,” your system is, from not ready, through capable, to “ready” at the green end of the spectrum.

Although most of the cards here (apart from the GTX 950) should have no problem with this benchmark, it should show what benefit you really get from owning a more powerful Nvidia GPU when it comes to virtual reality.

Steam VR Fidelity

GTXVRResults

GTX950-01 GTX970-01 GTX980-01 GTX980Ti-01

GTX 950, 970, 980 and 980Ti respectively

Much like the Sapphire/AMD GPU test we conducted at the end of last month (HERE), these Nvidia cards perform mostly as expected. Since it is a few notches below the recommended GTX 970 minimum for virtual reality, the GTX 950 really struggled. However, what is important to note, is that even though it did have a very low fidelity rating (1.1), it still only dropped below 90 frames per second for 0.1 per cent of the entire demo.

While we wouldn't go so far as to say you should buy a VR headset if all you have is a GTX 950 under the hood, a little overclocking and a powerful CPU might take you far enough to get adequate quality VR working. Just don't expect it to look that great!

In comparison, the other cards performed much more favourably. The GTX 970 put out a solid effort, sitting well into the “Ready” category of Steam's benchmark. A 6.7 fidelity rating is nothing to sniff at and it's clearly a great card to go for if you're wanting to break into virtual reality at this early stage in its life cycle.

Of course the top end cards delivered the best performance, but the GTX 980 Ti was especially impressive. It was powerful enough to never leave the very top quality setting for the demo, giving us a completely straight line result and an 11.1 fidelity rating.

FRAPS

As much as the fidelity rating from the SteamVR benchmark is useful though, it doesn't give us what we're used to seeing with 3D benchmarks: frame rate data. Getting a hold of that right now is rather difficult, as no one else has a good in-game benchmark for VR technology at the time of writing and Futuremark still has yet to release its big VR benchmark.

So to try and augment the above results, we also ran FRAPS during each run (and repeated tests three times for the average) and recorded the frame rates achieved throughout. While we do have to start the FRAPS counter manually at the start of the benchmark and the constantly fluctuating quality levels will skew results, it's the best we are able to do right now.

GTXVRREsults2

While the GTX 980Ti has proved itself an absolute powerhouse here, stealing the show with super-high frame rates despite having the highest quality rating of the bunch, the rest of the results are more as expected. While the quality rating of the visuals goes up with more powerful cards, frame rates stay relatively constant, which is what you want to see from your VR system.

These cards are showing you the best visuals they can, whilst maintaining very strong frame rates.

What's most important to take home from these results though, is that none of the cards ever dipped below 100 frames per second. That provides a solid 10+ frame buffer between the absolute minimum that comfortable, consumer VR demands and shows that all of these cards are pretty VR capable.

Closing thoughts

As much as you might look at the results we managed here today and conclude that the GTX 980Ti is the real choice for serious VR enthusiasts, it isn't the only choice, not by a long shot. The GTX 980 also performed fantastically and the 970 too was very capable and either would be a fine choice for a VR capable rig.

The GTX 950 was the most surprising of the bunch. It may have been restricted to a pretty abysmal quality rating and your games won't look particularly good in VR because of it, but it is at least able to get the job done and maintain decent frame rates. That does mean if you are currently running a system with one of those in, you could conceivably consider buying a VR headset now and upgrading your GPU later.

IMG_5586

In reality, if you are considering the £500 cost of a RIFT, or the even pricier £750+ purchase price of the VIVE, you probably have a VR ready system, or at least enough spare cash that a heftier GPU upgrade would be possible. If money is no object, of course the 980Ti is the obvious choice, but don't forget its cheaper cousins, as they are very VR capable.

Special thanks to ASUS UK for sending us all of these cards.

Look out for more detailed VR reviews and performance coverage as we gain access to new hardware and software in the coming weeks.

KitGuru Says: Nvidia has done a great job of getting its top-end range of cards ready for virtual reality, but the mid-range wasn't neglected which is great to see. Intensively visual VR games are going to be more than the GTX 950 can handle, but it's impressive to see it hold up decent frame rates in this simple test.

When it comes to VR though, we'd really not recommend being ‘cheap'. If you can afford it, aim for a GTX 970 at least as the last thing you want is to end up feeling nauseous in a game, or dealing with substandard image quality. There is little point in stepping into virtual reality if it ends up looking terrible. 

The post NVIDIA VR performance featuring ASUS first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/jon-martindale/nvidia-vr-performance-featuring-asus/feed/ 0
Hitman PC game analysis https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/hitman-pc-game-analysis/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/hitman-pc-game-analysis/#comments Mon, 28 Mar 2016 12:46:57 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=287841 Hitman has been one of Square Enix's staple franchises over the years but this time around, they are handling Agent 47 a little differently. Rather than launching a full game, we are getting ‘episodes' which are due to be released on a monthly basis. However, this is also one of the first triple-A titles to …

The post Hitman PC game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Hitman has been one of Square Enix's staple franchises over the years but this time around, they are handling Agent 47 a little differently.

Rather than launching a full game, we are getting ‘episodes' which are due to be released on a monthly basis.

However, this is also one of the first triple-A titles to launch with DirectX 12 support which is quite exciting, so let's dive in and see just how well it runs. 

20160327115735_1 20160327115738_1

Click images to enlarge. 

Our first point of call is this graphics options menu, which isn't quite as comprehensive as the one you will find in The Division but most of the bases are covered with options for FXAA or SMAA, texture quality, SSAO, shadow resolution and you can even switch between the DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 APIs.

Hitman Hitman Paris

The game itself is fairly impressive as far as visuals go. There are some muddy textures here and there but that is to be expected of a third person game since everything is designed for you to look at from a distance.

Hitman crowd screenshot 1 Hitman crowd 2

Where this game really shines is in level design, even the tutorial levels are well thought out with plenty of crowds and assassination options. These crowds will have an effect on frame rate though so that is worth remembering.

Hitman Hair textures

One area where the game is let down is hair quality, it just doesn't really look up to par with the rest of the game.

I have managed to play through all of the levels available in the first episode of Hitman right now and I haven't encountered any crashes graphical glitches like shadow flicker but I have encountered issues with cut scenes freezing or not playing at all.

Today, I will be benchmarking Hitman on a system featuring an Intel Core i7 6700K, 16GB of G.Skill DDR4 RAM, a 1TB Samsung EVO SSD and an Asus Maximus VIII Hero motherboard. For graphics cards, I will be using a reference GTX 980Ti, an MSI GTX 970 4G, a Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X, an XFX R9 390X Ghost Edition and finally, the newest addition to the collection, an R9 Fury X. None of the cards are overclocked in our tests.

GTX 980Ti GTX 970 GPU Z Fury X GPU Z

R9 390 GPU Z R9 290 GPU Z

For the release of this game both AMD and Nvidia launched updated drivers. On the Nvidia side, we are running driver version 364.51 and for AMD, we are using Crimson Software version 16.3. Our results were collected using the in-game benchmarking tool but I will also be discussing the real-world gameplay experience in the text below.

Hitman 1080p

Hitman 1440p

DirectX11 performance is fairly solid across the board while the GTX 980Ti remains king in our 1080p tests, the Fury X wasn't too far behind and closed the gap at 1440p. The R9 390x and R9 290x also pull in excellent performance numbers across the board, pushing the GTX 970 right down to the bottom of our charts.

I would disregard the minimum frame rates displayed from the benchmark tool. As you can see, all of the cards were brought down to 12 or 13 frames per second, with some falling into the single digits, it definitely seems like a bug with the benchmark itself and it is not the only one I came across.

You may have noticed at this point that there is no graph for DirectX 12 performance. Believe me, I'm just as disappointed as you are, unfortunately, I ran into complications with the DirectX 12 version of the game. For starters, it was capped at 60 frames per second for some of our GPUs and then uncapped for others despite not changing any settings.

On top of that, I faced some freezing and crashing issues while attempting to benchmark DirectX 12 with Nvidia GPUs. However, the experience was a bit smoother on the AMD side of things.

While the benchmark's minimum frame rates may be a bit over exaggerated, I can tell you that this game does suffer from random frame rate dips into the 40's and 30's at times in both DirectX 11 and 12. This tends to happen in more crowded zones and it seems to affect both Nvidia and AMD GPUs though I will admit that AMD's side seemed to handle crowded areas better overall.

This could be down to the fact that this is an AMD ‘Gaming Evolved' title but nonetheless, it was an interesting observation.

Performance issues aside, Hitman is a fairly enjoyable experience. While these slight performance problems are present they don't last long enough to truly ruin the gameplay itself, which remains fun throughout the entire first episode.

The gameplay itself is as fun as always. Levels are designed to be like a sandbox, filled with multiple ways for you to get your target and take them out. There are also challenge modes to see how many ways you can complete a mission, which adds some replay value.

That said, if you are in it for the story then the whole experience is quite short. I was done with the first episode, which contains the tutorials and the first proper level of the game in around three hours. By the time you start getting into the really good stuff the game ends, which is a shame.

There will be more content releases on a monthly basis throughout the year so there is plenty more to come. On top of that, what you can play right now is really fun but I am not entirely convinced that an episodic format really works for a game like Hitman.

KitGuru Says: While Hitman does have its share of performance issues, the gameplay is solid- it is just a shame that there isn't enough of it for the time being. 

The post Hitman PC game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/hitman-pc-game-analysis/feed/ 6
Tom Clancy’s The Division PC game analysis https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/tom-clancys-the-division-pc-game-analysis/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/tom-clancys-the-division-pc-game-analysis/#comments Sat, 12 Mar 2016 09:53:15 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=286344 Tom Clancy's The Division is finally out after a few years of hype building at events like E3 and even a few beta tests. The ambitious open-world game has some high system requirements on PC but does the game live up to them? Today we will be analysing the PC version of The Division to see …

The post Tom Clancy’s The Division PC game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Tom Clancy's The Division is finally out after a few years of hype building at events like E3 and even a few beta tests. The ambitious open-world game has some high system requirements on PC but does the game live up to them? Today we will be analysing the PC version of The Division to see just how well it runs. 

First, let's take a look at the graphics options menu:

The Division Graphics Menu 1 The Division Graphics Menu 2 The Division Graphics Menu 3

The Division was developed by Ubisoft Massive and as you can see from the screenshots above, a lot of detail has gone into the PC version. There is three full pages of different sliders, effects and toggles for you to play around with, covering everything from distance scaling, view distance, world details and lighting to standard options like textures and anti-aliasing.

Honestly, I am very impressed with the sheer amount of options available in the PC version. You will find more to mess around with here than you will in many other open-world games on PC. However, it is worth mentioning that this is a Nvidia GameWorks title, so some options likely won't work as well on AMD graphics cards. For our benchmarks today, GameWorks effects will be switched off.

The Division Screenshot 5

The graphics look good too. However, the depth of field effects can come off a little too strong, making some parts of the world come off as blurry at times. This is likely intentional as textures can often suffer when looked at up-close in 3rd person games as they are designed to be viewed with the camera at a distance. You can fix this by moving the focus/soften slider from its 70% default to 100% though this will impact frame rate.

The Division Screenshot 6 The Division Screenshot 2

The New York setting is fantastic as well, with a ton of attention to detail placed throughout the map, which is apparently built on a 1:1 scale too – this really helps build a sense of scale when you are walking around the world. At launch, you get access to Manhattan island but apparently the map will be expanded in future paid expansions.

That said, the launch map is not small by any means, there is so much to explore here. I have put around five hours into the game myself and I've barely begun to scratch the surface.

The Division Screenshot 3

The game looks great but none of that matters if it doesn't run well. Today, I will be benchmarking Tom Clancy's The Division on a system featuring an Intel Core i7 6700K, 16GB of G.Skill DDR4 RAM, a 1TB Samsung EVO SSD and an Asus Maximus VIII Hero motherboard. For graphics cards, I will be using a reference GTX 980Ti, an MSI GTX 970 4G, a Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X and an XFX R9 390X Ghost Edition. None of the cards are overclocked in our tests.

GTX 970 GPU Z GTX 980Ti GPU Z R9 290 GPU Z R9 390 GPU Z

For this game's launch, Nvidia did release a Game Ready driver which was later pulled due to widespread issues. At the time of writing, Nvidia has released BETA driver 364.51 which we will be using for our tests today. This is a non-WHQL certified driver and needs to be obtained directly from the GeForce website. On the AMD side, we will be using Radeon Software version 16.3.

The Division 1080p Results

The Division 1440p Results

Performance isn't great at Ultra settings. While the benchmark shows fairly high average frame rates, I found that during regular gameplay, performance would often dip below 60 while walking around the streets of New York at 1080p on all cards with the exception of the GTX 980Ti, which was able to hold things above 60 frames per second more often than not even at 1440p.

Given that Ultra performance isn't all it's cracked up to be, I tried turning things down a notch to the high preset and re-benching the GTX 970, R9 390x and the R9 290:

600x600xThe-Division-High-Settings.png.pagespeed.ic.hOD3ey2RlN

As you can see, settling for the High preset rather than ultra brings a huge boost in performance. Honestly, the game doesn't look all that different on this preset either, so I would definitely recommend going with this setting instead for a much smoother experience at 1080p.

The game had a couple of issues on launch day like distracting texture pop-in and some poor anti-aliasing in some areas but a 600MB patch was added to the game overnight and that seems to have fixed a lot of these problems. Performance hasn't improved but you will encounter less graphical issues in the game. That said, these problems do seem to persist in the game's in-built benchmarking tool for whatever reason so Ubisoft would do well to take a look at that.

Now let's talk about the actual gameplay a little bit. During the multi-year build-up to this game's launch, we didn't really know what to expect but now it is pretty clear. The Division is a first person action RPG, almost like Diablo. You will go through missions with friends, fight a lot of enemies, level up and grind for rare gear that will give you higher DPS. You will even get to see your damage numbers get higher as you go, which is always satisfying.

You could also compare The Division to Destiny, which wouldn't be an incorrect comparison to make. I have sunk 300 hours into Destiny on the Xbox One since its launch and there are a lot of similarities between it and The Division but there are some key differences as well. Ubisoft's game features what I think is a much better open-world, there is an actual story to be told here and the base upgrading and crafting mechanics really help The Division stand out.

It also doesn't hurt that The Division is actually available on PC and can run higher than 30 frames per second, neither of which apply to Destiny.

If you don't like the repetitive gameplay of titles like Diablo, Destiny or even many MMOs, then The Division might not be for you. However, if you love leveling up, collecting new gear, taking on challenging missions and watching your damage numbers climb higher, then this game is well worth a shot. It might not be perfect but it is undoubtedly fun.

Discuss on our Facebook page, over HERE.

KitGuru Says: The Division is an excellent game in my eyes and one that I can see myself putting a lot of hours into. It is quite demanding on PC systems, which seems to be a running trend with Ubisoft titles as of late but getting 60 frames per second is easily achievable even on mid-range GPUs, making for a smooth, fun experience. 

The post Tom Clancy’s The Division PC game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/tom-clancys-the-division-pc-game-analysis/feed/ 3
GALAX launches GTX 980Ti HOF GOC edition GPU https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/galax-launches-gtx-980ti-hof-goc-edition-gpu/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/galax-launches-gtx-980ti-hof-goc-edition-gpu/#comments Thu, 10 Mar 2016 20:50:20 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=286612 We have seen plenty of variants of the GTX 980Ti over the last 9 months or so but today GALAX has launched one that really caught our eye. Today marks the launch of the GALAX GTX 980Ti HOF GOC, an all white GTX 980Ti complete with a modified PCB and 14+3 phase power design which …

The post GALAX launches GTX 980Ti HOF GOC edition GPU first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
We have seen plenty of variants of the GTX 980Ti over the last 9 months or so but today GALAX has launched one that really caught our eye. Today marks the launch of the GALAX GTX 980Ti HOF GOC, an all white GTX 980Ti complete with a modified PCB and 14+3 phase power design which should position it as one of the fastest 980Tis around.

Right now, as videocardz points out, the only other 980Ti to offer a 14+3 phase power design is the EVGA Kingpin edition. MSI's own Lightning Edition card comes close with a 12+3+1 power phase design.

7

4

The GALAX 980Ti HOF GOC edition comes with three 8pin power connectors and is equipped with a dual-fan cooler. The cooler features a slightly wider design, allowing for two larger fans and five heat pipes to help dissipate heat at a more efficient rate.

Finally, this card also comes with a hefty overclock right out of the box with a 1203 MHz base core clock, which boosts up to 1304 MHz. Obviously a card like this is built with overclocking in mind so you could probably push it even further.

KitGuru Says: That is quite the impressive card that GALAX has come out with. Are any of you big into GPU overclocking? What do you think of this card? 

The post GALAX launches GTX 980Ti HOF GOC edition GPU first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/galax-launches-gtx-980ti-hof-goc-edition-gpu/feed/ 12
Far Cry: Primal PC game analysis https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/far-cry-primal-pc-game-analysis/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/far-cry-primal-pc-game-analysis/#comments Sat, 05 Mar 2016 11:41:51 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=285965 Ubisoft has been attempting to boost its efforts on the PC over the last year or so, even going as far as to push PC versions of certain titles back to give developers extra time to ensure it is up to standard. This was the case with Far Cry: Primal, which launched on the PC …

The post Far Cry: Primal PC game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Ubisoft has been attempting to boost its efforts on the PC over the last year or so, even going as far as to push PC versions of certain titles back to give developers extra time to ensure it is up to standard. This was the case with Far Cry: Primal, which launched on the PC this week. But how does the game run? Has Ubisoft managed to turn things around? 

As always, our first point of call is the options menu to see exactly what we get to play around with visually and check for any major omissions.

Options Menu 1 Options Menu 2

Options Menu 3

Click images to enlarge.

In the video settings menu you get most of the options you would expect. Here you can change your resolution, adjust colour settings, pick a graphics preset and launch the in-game benchmarking tool. There is an advanced settings menu that lets you adjust VSync but more importantly, this is where you go to set your field of view. The default is 65 but most PC gamers will feel more comfortable with 90-100.

In the quality settings menu you can adjust everything you would expect though the anti-aliasing options are a bit simplistic. You only get FXAA or SMAA and while both of these options work well, it would be nice to be able to make finer adjustments such as 2x AA or 4x AA.

Another big change worth mentioning is that Far Cry: Primal is not a Nvidia GameWorks title, so theoretically both Nvidia and AMD GPUs should be on equal footing. This does mean we lose some of the Nvidia effects though, such as PCSS shadows, HBAO+ ambient occlusion and Nvidia's fur textures.

Far Cry Primal2016-3-3-23-1-16 Far Cry Primal2016-3-3-22-55-16

The world itself is gorgeous. While Primal may not be a huge leap over Far Cry 4 in terms of graphics, the sheer amount of detail found in the environments and textures is nothing short of impressive.

Today, I will be running Far Cry: Primal on a system using an Intel Core i7 6700K, 16GB of G.Skill DDR4 RAM, a 1TB Samsung 850 Pro SSD and an Asus Maximus VIII Hero motherboard. For graphics cards, I will be benchmarking a reference GTX 980Ti, an MSI GTX 970 4G, a Sapphire Vapor-X R9 290 and an XFX R9 390x Ghost Edition. None of the cards were overclocked for this test and we used the latest drivers from both AMD and Nvidia.

GTX 980Ti GPU Z GTX 970 GPU Z

R9 390 GPU Z R9 290 GPU Z

We used the in-game benchmarking tool to collect these results. Having played around five hours of the game myself beforehand, I found the tool to deliver accurate results. The benchmark was run using the Ultra graphics preset with motion blur switched off.

Far Cry 1080p

Far Cry 1440p

As you can see, Far Cry Primal is a very demanding game at its highest settings. The GTX 980Ti only just manages to average 60 frames per second at 2560×1440 and even at 1080p, the results are slightly lower than what you might expect from a £550 graphics card. While the R9 390x was able to average 60 frames per second at 1080p, the GTX 970 and R9 290 fell just short.

60fps settings

I went ahead and did some further tinkering with graphics options to see if I could manage a 60 frames per second minimum at 1080p on the R9 390x, R9 290 and GTX 970 while still maintaining high image details. Using the settings you see above, you can see that lowering a couple of settings like Shadows and Post Processing effects can deliver significant gains in frame rate:

Far Cry 60 fps

I did also try to achieve 60 frames per second at 1440p on these cards with a mix of high and medium settings but that just wasn't possible. Those looking to play at high details at high resolutions will need a beefier graphics card.

Some reports out there are saying that Far Cry: Primal runs worse than Far Cry 4 despite it using the same engine. While that may be true, I must admit that Primal offers a much smoother ‘day one' experience for single GPU users. Back when Far Cry 4 came out the game had frame rate hitching and stuttering issues that are not present here in Primal. I have also yet to encounter any major bugs out in the open-world.

That said, those of you with an SLI or CrossFire setup may want to steer clear for the time being as Primal's dual-GPU performance is broken according to many people. This also rules out the possibility of smooth frame rates at 4K for the time being.

We had the chance to test SLI on a system using an Intel Core i7 5960x, 32GB of RAM and three Titan X graphics cards in SLI. While we found two-way SLI performance to work well at 4K, adding the third GPU caused frame rates to cut in half. Right now, the quick workaround for this on three-way SLI systems is to just dedicate the third GPU to PhysX duties in the Nvidia control panel and stick with two-way SLI.

Far Cry Primal2016-3-5-10-43-41

Now let's talk a little bit about gameplay. There has been this perception that Far Cry: Primal is just a reskinned Far Cry 4 and while that may seem true if you look at the map layout comparison, I can honestly say that the 10,000 BC setting and new beast master mechanics really help to freshen up the series. It doesn't quite feel brand new but it is enough to not feel like a total rehash.

Far Cry Primal2016-3-5-10-42-40

The core gameplay is relatively similar to other Ubisoft titles, with tons of side quests and secondary content on offer. However, there has been a tighter focus on story this time around and I actually found it to be quite engaging. If you have 20 hours or so to kill, then this game can deliver that and then some.

KitGuru Says: Far Cry: Primal has succeeded in freshening up the series a bit with its new setting and Beast Master mechanics. However, it is also a very demanding game that requires a fair bit of tinkering to keep above 60 frames per second, even on powerful GPUs like the GTX 980Ti. Ubisoft are improving on their PC efforts but it is clear that some extra work could be done to optimize the Dunia engine a bit better. 

The post Far Cry: Primal PC game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/far-cry-primal-pc-game-analysis/feed/ 8
Overclockers UK is having a sale on the GTX 980Ti https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/overclockers-uk-is-having-a-sale-on-the-gtx-980ti/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/overclockers-uk-is-having-a-sale-on-the-gtx-980ti/#comments Sat, 13 Feb 2016 09:00:49 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=284031 If you are shopping around for a new graphics card this weekend or more specifically, if you are shopping around for a GTX 980Ti, then Overclockers UK has a pretty good deal running for the next couple of days. They are having a sale on the reference OCUK GTX980Ti, bringing the price down to the …

The post Overclockers UK is having a sale on the GTX 980Ti first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
If you are shopping around for a new graphics card this weekend or more specifically, if you are shopping around for a GTX 980Ti, then Overclockers UK has a pretty good deal running for the next couple of days. They are having a sale on the reference OCUK GTX980Ti, bringing the price down to the £500 mark.

This particular GTX 980Ti normally goes for £529.99 but until 9 AM GMT on Monday morning, you can grab one for £499.99.

GeForce_GTX_980Ti_3Qtr

 

Ever since its launch, the GTX 980Ti has impressed us with its solid performance. You can find our review of the reference GTX 980Ti, HERE. 

KitGuru Says: If you are shopping around for a GTX 980Ti this weekend then this deal is worth taking a look at. Are any of you planning on picking up a new graphics card soon? I actually use the OCUK GTX 980Ti in my own rig and I must say, it's a very nice card indeed. 

The post Overclockers UK is having a sale on the GTX 980Ti first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/overclockers-uk-is-having-a-sale-on-the-gtx-980ti/feed/ 5
Quantum Break is coming to PC too, has high recommended specs https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/quantum-break-is-coming-to-pc-too-has-high-recommended-specs/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/quantum-break-is-coming-to-pc-too-has-high-recommended-specs/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2016 16:01:33 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=283732 Back when Microsoft first launched the Xbox One, it also announced Quantum Break, a high-budget action game set to launch exclusively on the console. After some delays, the game is finally coming out on the 5th of April but Microsoft has also just made the surprise announcement that the game will land on the PC …

The post Quantum Break is coming to PC too, has high recommended specs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Back when Microsoft first launched the Xbox One, it also announced Quantum Break, a high-budget action game set to launch exclusively on the console. After some delays, the game is finally coming out on the 5th of April but Microsoft has also just made the surprise announcement that the game will land on the PC at the same time, with full DirectX 12 support though Microsoft is recommending that you have a GTX 980Ti to play it.

Those who pre-order Quantum Break digitally on Xbox One will also get the PC version for free, so Microsoft is finally treating the PC like its second gaming platform. However, there is a catch, the game is exclusive to the Windows 10 Store.

quantum-break-time-stop

Since the game is coming to the PC, it also comes with some minimum and recommended system requirements. To run the game you will need to at the very least have a system running Windows 10 64-bit, 8GB of RAM, an Intel Core i5-46460 or AMD FX-6300 CPU and a Nvidia GTX 760 or Radeon R7 260x graphics card.

The recommended system requirements might just be the highest we've seen in a game so far, though. Those wanting to crank up all of the settings will want to have an Intel Core i7-4790 or AMD equivalent, 16GB of RAM and a GTX 980Ti or AMD R9 Fury X.

KitGuru Says: Quantum Break has always seemed like an intriguing game and I am glad to see Microsoft bringing more exclusives to the PC. However, those are some pretty high recommended system requirements for a game so perhaps Microsoft should clarify that a bit more. 

The post Quantum Break is coming to PC too, has high recommended specs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/quantum-break-is-coming-to-pc-too-has-high-recommended-specs/feed/ 12
EVGA launches GTX 980Ti VR Edition https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/evga-launches-gtx-980ti-vr-edition/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/evga-launches-gtx-980ti-vr-edition/#comments Wed, 10 Feb 2016 22:00:09 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=283539 EVGA's previously announced GTX 980Ti ‘VR Edition' has finally arrived following on from its debut at CES. The card arrives just in time for the first wave of virtual reality headsets, like the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive, which will be hitting the market over the next couple of months. So what comes with …

The post EVGA launches GTX 980Ti VR Edition first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
EVGA's previously announced GTX 980Ti ‘VR Edition' has finally arrived following on from its debut at CES. The card arrives just in time for the first wave of virtual reality headsets, like the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive, which will be hitting the market over the next couple of months. So what comes with a GTX 980Ti VR Edition? Well aside from the graphics card itself, you will be getting a 5.25″ drive bay designed to make it easier for you to hook up a headset directly to the GPU.

The drive bay comes with two USB 3.1 ports and an HDMI 2.0 port, which connects directly to a mini-HDMI port on the GPU internally for less external wires dangling around. The only problem with this is that the Oculus Rift requires another USB Port but most cases should have extra front panel connections for that.

EVGA

VR Bay

The GPU itself is a version of EVGA's ACX 2.0 card, with 6GB of GDDR5 memory along with the highly rated dual-fan cooler. The card is clocked at 1000MHz base with a boost up to 1076MHz though do keep in mind that Nvidia's Maxwell  architecture tends to be pretty good for overclocking so you should be able to get even more performance out of it with some manual tweaking.

European pricing and availability information is expected to arrive soon.

KitGuru Says: EVGA's VR connection bay is a pretty good idea and it should be easy for most to find space for particularly if they no longer use an optical disk drive in their system. What do you guys think of EVGA's GTX 980Ti VR Edition? 

The post EVGA launches GTX 980Ti VR Edition first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/evga-launches-gtx-980ti-vr-edition/feed/ 3
Rise of the Tomb Raider PC Game analysis https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/rise-of-the-tomb-raider-pc-game-analysis/ https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/rise-of-the-tomb-raider-pc-game-analysis/#comments Fri, 29 Jan 2016 15:20:50 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=282374 Back in 2013, the Tomb Raider reboot impressed us all on the PC side with its graphical features- the game even went on to become one of our ‘go to‘ benchmarks for GPU reviews. Now, after a brief stint as a Xbox exclusive, the sequel ‘Rise of the Tomb Raider' has landed on the PC …

The post Rise of the Tomb Raider PC Game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Back in 2013, the Tomb Raider reboot impressed us all on the PC side with its graphical features- the game even went on to become one of our ‘go to‘ benchmarks for GPU reviews. Now, after a brief stint as a Xbox exclusive, the sequel ‘Rise of the Tomb Raider' has landed on the PC but does the port live up to the same standard as the original? Let's find out! 

2016-01-29_00001

2016-01-29_000042016-01-29_00005

Right off the bat, Rise of the Tomb Raider offers an impressive graphics options suite. In the display options menu, you can crank the refresh rate all the way up and switch between FXAA, SMAA, SMAA x2 and SMAA x4.

In the graphics options menu, you have preset options all of the way up to ‘Very High' with separate sliders for things like textures, shadows and ambient occlusion. Everything that you would expect is present but there are three options that are worth talking about in a bit more detail.

2016-01-28_00008

First off, the ‘Level of Detail' slider controls how complex the geometry of the world is, making for more realistic environments and shapes for buildings, cliffs and rocks. ‘Dynamic Foliage' is another important setting as this controls how the objects in the world react to weather effects, so if you want all of the plant life in the world to react realistically to the weather, this is the setting to go to.

2016-01-29_00006 2016-01-29_00018

Finally, we come up to ‘Pure Hair', which replaces TressFX from the original 2013 Tomb Raider. Back then, TressFX was the setting that would hurt your framerate the most so for these tests today, I will be running benchmarks with Pure Hair ON and OFF to show the difference in performance. You can see the graphical difference in the two screenshots above. Pure Hair is ON in the left and OFF in the right.

I tested Rise of the Tomb Raider on a system featuring an Intel Core i7 5820K, 16GB of Crucial Ballistix 2400MHz RAM, an Asus X99A motherboard and a Samsung 950 Evo 1TB SSD. I don't review graphics cards for KitGuru but for the purposes of these tests the hardware team have sent me an MSI GTX 970 4G, an XFX R9 390x Ghost Edition and a Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X to go along with my own Reference GTX 980Ti.

On the Nvidia side, I used driver version 361.75 and for the AMD cards, I used Radeon Software version 16.1. It is worth noting that Nvidia's driver contains specific optimizations for Rise of the Tomb Raider while AMD has yet to release their own driver update for this game at the time of writing. None of the graphics cards in this test were overclocked.

Rise of the Tomb Raider does not have its own inbuilt benchmark tool so for this test, I ran through the opening of the game featuring Lara scaling up a mountain until an avalanche hits. I chose this scene in particular as it does a great job of showing off the game's weather effects, lighting, shadows and textures while also being easy to repeat due to its cinematic nature. I have played quite a bit further than this and can confirm that it is one of the more graphically intense parts of the game.

As you can see in the options menu screenshots above, I am running a slightly modified version of the ‘Very High' preset for this benchmark, with SMAA on but Motion Blur switched off.

1080p results:

Tomb Raider 1080p Pure Hair ON

Tomb Raider 1080p Pure Hair OFF

1440p results:

Tomb Raider 1440p Pure Hair ON

Tomb Raider 1440p Pure Hair OFF

As you can see, Rise of the Tomb Raider is a demanding game both with Pure Hair switched on and off. On average, turning on Pure Hair will cost you around five frames per second but minimum frame rates don't tend to take much of a hit so even on the R9 290, you should be able to hold above 30 frames per second at 1440p.

2016-01-28_00011

While Rise of the Tomb Raider is demanding, I would argue that it has every right to be as right now it is one of, if not the best-looking game on PC in terms of graphics even without being completely ‘maxed out'.

2016-01-28_00002

Both indoor and outdoor scenes feature some of the best lighting and shadows I have seen in a game for a long time and you can tell that a lot of effort has also been put into the character animations and textures. However, do keep in mind that this is a third-person game, designed with the camera placed at a specific distance from textures. If you angle the camera to be right up against a rock or an object, then you will start to see some blur.

The game is pretty but I haven't just spent all of my time admiring Lara's hair or staring off into the horizon. I have spent around 14 hours in Rise of the Tomb Raider and I am happy to say that it is an improvement over the original in terms of exploration.

There are a lot more secrets and hidden tombs to be found in this game. However, you will find some early on that you can't access without having a specific tool so you may find yourself fast traveling around a bit to go back to tombs you had to miss along the way.

It is also worth noting that if the controls are what put you off of the 2013 Tomb Raider reboot, then you may not find much of an improvement here. Lara still handles pretty much exactly the same- which can be a bit ‘janky' at times. There is also still a large focus on cinematic sequences and quick-time events though not quite to the same extent.

Overall, if you enjoyed the 2013 Tomb Raider, then I am confident that you will enjoy this sequel. The story is longer, the tombs are better and there is an actual world to explore here this time around.

KitGuru Says: Rise of the Tomb Raider is an excellent showcase for just what PC hardware is capable of graphically. On top of that, Crystal Dynamics has done an excellent job designing a more explorable world this time around. Have any of you tried out Rise of the Tomb Raider yet? How is the game running for you? 

The post Rise of the Tomb Raider PC Game analysis first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/gaming/matthew-wilson/rise-of-the-tomb-raider-pc-game-analysis/feed/ 15
EVGA to launch GTX 980Ti ‘VR Edition’ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/evga-to-launch-gtx-980ti-vr-edition/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/evga-to-launch-gtx-980ti-vr-edition/#comments Sat, 09 Jan 2016 16:45:51 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=280212 EVGA came to CES this year armed with a new GTX 980TI to show off. This time, EVGA is gearing up to launch a ‘VR Edition' GPU, featuring the tried and true ACX cooler along with some extras aimed specifically at those looking to upgrade their rig for virtual reality headsets launching this year. So …

The post EVGA to launch GTX 980Ti ‘VR Edition’ first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
EVGA came to CES this year armed with a new GTX 980TI to show off. This time, EVGA is gearing up to launch a ‘VR Edition' GPU, featuring the tried and true ACX cooler along with some extras aimed specifically at those looking to upgrade their rig for virtual reality headsets launching this year.

So what is different about the ‘VR Edition' 980Ti? Well, it comes with a dedicated mini HDMI port that hooks up to a 5.25″ drive bay attachment, which features an HDMI output along with two USB 3.0 ports for hooking up a virtual reality headset. Though the Oculus Rift will actually require an additional USB 3.0 port as well as a USB 2.0 port to set up properly.

1-1080.3950051372

Image source: Computerbase.de

At the moment, the GTX 980TI VR Edition is expected to launch with EVGA's ACX 2.0 cooler but there will be a second reference design version as well. Right now, there is no information on pricing or availability, though we would guess that EVGA will be planning to push this out around the time the new virtual reality headsets from Oculus and HTC start shipping, if not a bit before.

KitGuru Says: While the Oculus Rift is more expensive than many anticipated, there are still likely quite a few people looking to upgrade in time for VR. Are any of you planning on adopting virtual reality this year? Will you be grabbing a new GPU for the occasion? 

 

The post EVGA to launch GTX 980Ti ‘VR Edition’ first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/evga-to-launch-gtx-980ti-vr-edition/feed/ 6
Asus to launch 20th Anniversary Gold Edition GTX 980Ti https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/asus-to-launch-20th-anniversary-gold-edition-gtx-980ti/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/asus-to-launch-20th-anniversary-gold-edition-gtx-980ti/#comments Wed, 25 Nov 2015 23:24:33 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=276319 Asus is turning 20 this year and in order to celebrate the occasion, it is launching a 20th Anniversary Gold Edition graphics card, more specifically, a GTX 980Ti. Asus has gained a lot of experience with GPUs over the years, with several excellent custom cooler designs under its belt. This GTX 980Ti will use the …

The post Asus to launch 20th Anniversary Gold Edition GTX 980Ti first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Asus is turning 20 this year and in order to celebrate the occasion, it is launching a 20th Anniversary Gold Edition graphics card, more specifically, a GTX 980Ti. Asus has gained a lot of experience with GPUs over the years, with several excellent custom cooler designs under its belt. This GTX 980Ti will use the same cooler featured on the GTX 980Ti Matrix Platinum, with two fans for air cooling and a backplate.

As with other GTX 980Tis, this card will feature 6GB of VRAM, 2816 Cuda cores and a 384-bit memory interface. The core has an out of the box overclock of 1266MHz and a boost clock of 1367MHz, making this one of the fastest after market solutions available.

GOLD20TH-GTX980TI-P-6G-GAMING_image2

As you can see from the image, the card is quite a looker, well in my own opinion at least. This is a limited edition release, so it is only really meant for big fans of Asus, the pricing will also reflect that. The 20th Anniversary Asus GTX 980Ti will be available within the next couple of weeks for £719.99. In the box, you'll get the card, and a golden 20th anniversary mouse pad to match.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Asus has released some great after market graphics cards over the years. Do any of you own any limited edition hardware? 

The post Asus to launch 20th Anniversary Gold Edition GTX 980Ti first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/asus-to-launch-20th-anniversary-gold-edition-gtx-980ti/feed/ 1
GeForce and Radeon SLI support tested in Ashes of Singularity https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/geforce-and-radeon-sli-support-tested-in-ashes-of-singularity/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/geforce-and-radeon-sli-support-tested-in-ashes-of-singularity/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2015 23:00:14 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=273124 Over the last year, we have been hearing a lot about DirectX 12 and now we are finally starting to see just what the new API can bring to the table. So far, DirectX 12 performance has been measured with Ashes of Singularity on both AMD and Nvidia GPUs, but what happens when you put …

The post GeForce and Radeon SLI support tested in Ashes of Singularity first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Over the last year, we have been hearing a lot about DirectX 12 and now we are finally starting to see just what the new API can bring to the table. So far, DirectX 12 performance has been measured with Ashes of Singularity on both AMD and Nvidia GPUs, but what happens when you put them both together in SLI? In a recent update to the early access title, support for multi-GPUs was added, allowing you to pair an AMD GPU with an Nvidia one or vice versa.

Mantle-final-CFX2-660x350

For those who don't know, Ashes of Singularity is an Early Access RTS title on Steam using DirectX 12. The latest build allows for multi-GPU Explicit Multi-Adapter functionality, one of the API's two multi-GPU modes. This new function allows inherently different graphics cards to work together efficiently, meaning different architectures, integrated GPUs and cards from entirely different makers can work together to pump out frames.

Anandtech was the first to test out multi-GPU Explicit Multi-Adapter functionality in its own tests, pairing up a GTX 980Ti, Titan X, R9 Fury X, an R9 Fury and mixing them up in different configurations:

78164
Click images to enlarge. Source: Anandtech.

The site even worked out the performance gain percentages:

78165

Explicit Multi-GPU support is a new addition to DirectX 12 and so far, it seems to be working fairly well. The full report is really worth taking a look at and goes in to much more depth than we could get in to in this news story. This is just the first application of this new technology as well, hopefully we will see things get better with time.

KitGuru Says: This level of multi-GPU support is exciting to see fully up and running. It holds up quite well too judging by the numbers. It will be interesting to see if Nvidia and AMD begin to actively support this technology at all going forward. 

The post GeForce and Radeon SLI support tested in Ashes of Singularity first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/geforce-and-radeon-sli-support-tested-in-ashes-of-singularity/feed/ 8
Corsair posts benchmarks for upcoming MSI Seahawk watercooled GPU https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/corsair-posts-benchmarks-for-upcoming-msi-seahawk-watercooled-gpu/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/corsair-posts-benchmarks-for-upcoming-msi-seahawk-watercooled-gpu/#comments Thu, 08 Oct 2015 22:00:09 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=271316 Corsair and MSI recently revealed that they would be teaming up to launch the GTX 980Ti Seahawk edition, featuring an all-in-one liquid cooler for better temperatures, quieter operation and a higher out of the box overclock. Now potential buyers can get a look at what that extra performance will get them, as Corsair has posted …

The post Corsair posts benchmarks for upcoming MSI Seahawk watercooled GPU first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Corsair and MSI recently revealed that they would be teaming up to launch the GTX 980Ti Seahawk edition, featuring an all-in-one liquid cooler for better temperatures, quieter operation and a higher out of the box overclock. Now potential buyers can get a look at what that extra performance will get them, as Corsair has posted its own benchmarks and temperature graphs for the GPU.

In a blog post on the Corsair website, the company shows that the H55 all-in-one cooler is quite capable of keeping temperatures down on the GTX 980Ti, with things sitting at just above the 50C mark, ensuring that the card won't hit a throttle point with achievable overclocks.

73x-e1442482327496

As far as games go, Corsair threw together a system featuring an Intel Core i7 6700K running at 4.6GHz, 16GB of DDR4 RAM a 480GB SSD and an ASUS Z170 Deluxe motherboard. The benchmarks show that at out of the box clock speeds, the Corsair Hydro cooled GTX 980Ti should give users a 15% performance boost over a reference design card:

hgfx-gta5

As the report shows, there is room to push the GPU even further as far as overclocking is concerned, though results can vary on a per card basis due to the silicon lottery. Either way, the Corsair Hydro cooled MSI Seahawk GTX 980Ti is shaping up to be quite the contender, it will be interesting to see how it stacks up to EVGA's own GTX 980Ti Hybrid card.

KitGuru Says: Nvidia's Maxwell chips are extremely good overclockers and watercooling one should yield even higher performance numbers. Keep an eye out for reviews though, as they will help verify these results. Are any of you shopping around for a GTX 980Ti? Would you buy a pre watercooled one? 

The post Corsair posts benchmarks for upcoming MSI Seahawk watercooled GPU first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/corsair-posts-benchmarks-for-upcoming-msi-seahawk-watercooled-gpu/feed/ 4
MSI and Corsair team up to launch GTX 980TI Sea Hawk https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/msi-and-corsair-team-up-to-launch-gtx-980ti-sea-hawk/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/msi-and-corsair-team-up-to-launch-gtx-980ti-sea-hawk/#comments Thu, 17 Sep 2015 09:32:48 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=268204 MSI and Corsair have teamed up to launch the GTX 980Ti Sea Hawk, combining the best of air and liquid cooling. The new GPU was officially announced at the Tokyo Game Show this week, combining MSI's expertise in graphics cards with Corsair's highly rated closed loop liquid coolers. The GTX 980Ti Sea Hawk uses a …

The post MSI and Corsair team up to launch GTX 980TI Sea Hawk first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
MSI and Corsair have teamed up to launch the GTX 980Ti Sea Hawk, combining the best of air and liquid cooling. The new GPU was officially announced at the Tokyo Game Show this week, combining MSI's expertise in graphics cards with Corsair's highly rated closed loop liquid coolers.

The GTX 980Ti Sea Hawk uses a blower style cooling shroud, which takes care of the VRM chips, while the Corsair H55 cools the core directly, using its micro-fin copper base for efficient heat transfer to the high-speed circulation pump. The closed loop system also comes with an easy to install, low-profile 120mm radiator, along with a quiet 120mm fan.

73x

The liquid cooling should help users achieve higher overclocks than they typically would on air cooling alone. The GTX 980Ti Sea Hawk comes with a base clock of 1190 MHz and can boost up to 1291 MHz, though you will be able to use MSI Afterburner to push this even further.

In all, this 980Ti should run around 30% cooler and quieter than a reference model while also being around 20% faster. UK pricing and availability is expected to be announced soon.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Custom water cooling a graphics card can be a scary process to some, so it's good to see GPU companies making it easier for users to take advantage of liquid cooling with closed loop systems. What do you guys think of the MSI GTX 980Ti Sea Hawk? 

The post MSI and Corsair team up to launch GTX 980TI Sea Hawk first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/msi-and-corsair-team-up-to-launch-gtx-980ti-sea-hawk/feed/ 1
OCUK is cutting GTX 980Ti prices across the board https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/ocuk-is-cutting-gtx-980ti-prices-across-the-board/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/ocuk-is-cutting-gtx-980ti-prices-across-the-board/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2015 13:24:03 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=256109 Last night, we got wind of some market rumours suggesting that Nvidia was considering cutting down the price of the GTX 980Ti a bit in light of the release of AMD's Fury X. Now today, Overclockers UK has announced a slew of deals on GTX 980Ti graphics cards, with models starting at £509.99, rather than …

The post OCUK is cutting GTX 980Ti prices across the board first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Last night, we got wind of some market rumours suggesting that Nvidia was considering cutting down the price of the GTX 980Ti a bit in light of the release of AMD's Fury X. Now today, Overclockers UK has announced a slew of deals on GTX 980Ti graphics cards, with models starting at £509.99, rather than £550.

Reference model cards start at £509.99 from the likes of Zotac, Manli and Inno3D. It is worth pointing out that Zotac's 980Ti comes with a five year warranty, which is great for longevity. For some reason EVGA's reference board costs a full £600 but there is a decent price on EVGA's Superclocked 980Ti with the ACX 2.0 cooler, which sits at £539.99.

AS7V0259

All of these deals are currently exclusive to Overclockers UK. Inno3D's Herculez GTX 980Ti is the cheapest, costing £524.99. Considering reference boards were going for around £50 higher than that just last week, this is a pretty good deal on a custom cooled solution.

You can see OCUK's full list of exclusive deals, HERE. Most of the models appear to be in stock for the time being, although these deals are limited. Some cards though, like the Asus Strix model, won't be arriving for a couple of weeks.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: The GTX 980Ti is a great card, particularly for those looking to game at higher resolutions. It looks like we are going to see some good competition between Nvidia and AMD over the next few months. Are any of you planning to upgrade soon? Any of you decided between a Fury X or a 980Ti? 

The post OCUK is cutting GTX 980Ti prices across the board first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/ocuk-is-cutting-gtx-980ti-prices-across-the-board/feed/ 8
Zotac reveals AMP! Omega GTX 980Ti at Computex https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/zotac-reveals-amp-omega-gtx-980ti-at-computex/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/zotac-reveals-amp-omega-gtx-980ti-at-computex/#respond Wed, 03 Jun 2015 18:35:25 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=252622 Nvidia launched its new flagship gaming GPU on Sunday evening, the GTX 980Ti. We have already reviewed the reference model directly from Nvidia and now we are starting to see custom cooled solutions from board partners pop up. At Computex 2015, Zotac is showing off a couple of new GTX 980Ti models with the beastly …

The post Zotac reveals AMP! Omega GTX 980Ti at Computex first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Nvidia launched its new flagship gaming GPU on Sunday evening, the GTX 980Ti. We have already reviewed the reference model directly from Nvidia and now we are starting to see custom cooled solutions from board partners pop up. At Computex 2015, Zotac is showing off a couple of new GTX 980Ti models with the beastly AMP! cooler equipped.

While roaming the show floor, our very own Leo Waldock managed to spot two custom-cooled GTX 980Tis, one known as the AMP! Omega and the other known as the ArcticStorm.

GX8_DvPHjLnBfgUbvVP0IRTuKvTse2SWz1LqXrk3Wo8,m_0H0_43RuVKNm11r19ZMmhSs4Q2uEdV6yK5mQrB4rI

LWwBVOs8ajrZgfRzJytbUbMyLAYrViJiJgAlpwJx9lw,vIQdMXkLfOTawKFbv1WbmOGfnVEpa1wN823At1Kia-c,WRfufqC9KcI3f1upKlTvjP1Iyg350rE1u54lKIeRetk

Zotac's ArctisStorm model comes with a backplate and a hybrid cooling system that allows for easy connection to a custom watercooling loop. On the AMP! side of things, it also comes equipped with a backplate but sticks to air cooling only.

Prices and release date were not announced but we expect to see more and more Nvidia partners launch custom GTX 980Ti graphics cards over the next few weeks. Prices will vary from £550 to £650 from the looks of it. If you want to pick up a GTX 980Ti already, then Overclockers UK has them available for pre-order.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: We have reviewed Zotac's GTX 900-series graphics cards in the past, with the AMP! cooler often performing very well. Do any of you have experience with Zotac GPUs? Are you thinking about grabbing a GTX 980Ti at all? 

The post Zotac reveals AMP! Omega GTX 980Ti at Computex first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/graphic-cards/matthew-wilson/zotac-reveals-amp-omega-gtx-980ti-at-computex/feed/ 0