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factory clocked 980ti worth extra money?

Slakerr

Slakerr

Slakerr

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Joined
23 Oct 2002
Posts
198
Location
Sunny Stoke
Hi I'm coming from about 8 years of using Apple hardware but I have become tired of waiting for the Mac Pro to update with decent specs.

With all my Apple hardware sold I'm going to build my self a workstation/gaming rig.

I'm looking at getting a 5820k and 980ti in a mATX case and was wondering if its worth spending the extra money on a factory clocked 980ti?
 
It's worth it getting one with a good cooler; you could consider a model with AIO water-cooling, seeing how you'll slap it into the confines of a smallish case. The Inno3D model has better availability than EVGA's, at least for time being.

The factory OC is not a factor since they all overclock very similarly anyway.
 
Not in my experience. My refrence cards clock just as high as the factory ocd models.

If your going to watercool then buy refrence if your going to sli on air buy refrence for the blower cooler and if your gonna buy one and keep on air either refrence or whichever cooler/manufacturer takes your fancy.
 
Some options are so "cheap", like Zotac Amp and Palit Jetstream, that unless you're going SLI or planning to watercool, there's no point in getting the reference (unless you like more noise and higher temps).
 
Reference it is then I think, I will be water cooling eventually.

How noisy are the reference coolers, do the fans only spin up under load?
 
Slakerr said:
Reference it is then I think, I will be water cooling eventually.

How noisy are the reference coolers, do the fans only spin up under load?
Click to expand...

Depends.

When you put a custom fan profile on (if you're worried about temps or want to get higher clocks) then it gets a bit loud. But it's not an intrusive noise so that's worth mentioning.

If you leave it be, then it will hit 84C and stay there while remaining quite quiet.
 
badbiddy said:
Depends.

When you put a custom fan profile on (if you're worried about temps or want to get higher clocks) then it gets a bit loud. But it's not an intrusive noise so that's worth mentioning.

If you leave it be, then it will hit 84C and stay there while remaining quite quiet.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I'll get a reference card and then save my pennies for water cooling bits
 
Choose a ref card that has the longest warranty and allows cooler removal. What case are you getting? I've been mighty impressed with the AIO route, something to consider if you have the room.
 
Another plus for a factory overclocked card is you won't void your warranty should it go wrong? AFAIK, no manufacturers allow over clocking under warranty, but I could be wrong so please correct me. :D
 
Hiijinx said:
Another plus for a factory overclocked card is you won't void your warranty should it go wrong? AFAIK, no manufacturers allow over clocking under warranty, but I could be wrong so please correct me. :D
Click to expand...

Since most manufacturers include an application to overclock the card I'm not sure you're right there.
 
Slakerr said:
Hi I'm coming from about 8 years of using Apple hardware but I have become tired of waiting for the Mac Pro to update with decent specs.

With all my Apple hardware sold I'm going to build my self a workstation/gaming rig.

I'm looking at getting a 5820k and 980ti in a mATX case and was wondering if its worth spending the extra money on a factory clocked 980ti?
Click to expand...


It depends whether you're going to overclock it yourself and remember that you do want a decent cooler so more than likely I'd say yes it's worth getting one as that's how you get a decent cooler but there are exceptions. For example an EVGA ACX version is available in both stock clock and various overclocked examples.
 
they cant tell u have been overclocking unless you mess with the bios
loading up afterburner doesnt void a warranty haha

yeh if you like watercooling id just pick a card that allows cooler removal and is a ref board
i wonder do people gain much in watercooling these new cards or it mostly a looks thing now?? guess i should read more threads :)
my guess is it helps more for those with more than 1 card tho
 
nashathedog said:
It depends whether you're going to overclock it yourself
Click to expand...

Exactly this.

In this type of thread this should be the first question asked.

If you are going to overclock then just get which ever cooler you like the most.

If you are not going to over clock then get a card that has a custom cooler and high clock speeds.
 
bru said:
Exactly this.

In this type of thread this should be the first question asked.

If you are going to overclock then just get which ever cooler you like the most.

If you are not going to over clock then get a card that has a custom cooler and high clock speeds.
Click to expand...

This to be honest. My Air Boss Ultra was £30 more than the reference 980Ti but the overclock is a fair bit higher than the standard clocks and the cooling and quietness makes this a great buy for me. Price has gone up £20 since then so not so good now. :D
 
Its still pointless paying for a custom cooled card (this is half the cost of the non ref cards no doubt) if hes gonna remove it eventually and go watercooled.
 
Reference usually relates to the cooler used by Nvidia on all their latest flagship cards. The metal looking shroud, beautiful but relatively noisy and inefficient compared to other options.
geforce-gtx-980-ti.jpg
 
It's much more fun (and still very easy) to OC it yourself from a lower clock.

As for reference vs non, it depends how soon you want to water cool it and how much that interim time is worth to you.
 
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