NVIDIA GTX 970 OWNERS THREAD

[chef-borjan]

Whats the performance difference between an OC 970 and an OC 980? It seems difficult to find data frustratingly!

 

[Geeman1979]

No idea in percentages, although a well clocked 970 should get within reach of a stock 980 performance.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1351?vs=1355

 

[chef-borjan]

No idea in percentages, although a well clocked 970 should get within reach of a stock 980 performance.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1351?vs=1355

Thanks, yes this is widely known though.

But the point is, if you are going to buy a graphics card, you are going to OC it.

So I have an 970, but there is a cheap second hand 980 I have my eye on, wondering what the performance increase will be.

 

[Geeman1979]

Thanks, yes this is widely known though.

But the point is, if you are going to buy a graphics card, you are going to OC it.

So I have an 970, but there is a cheap second hand 980 I have my eye on, wondering what the performance increase will be.

It depends how cheap it is and whether the increase in performance is worth it to you. Bare in mind the 980 will also clock well so you're back to square one. If the 980's cheap enough then it's worth buying.

 

[andybird123]

Whats the performance difference between an OC 970 and an OC 980? It seems difficult to find data frustratingly!

you need to find a review of the 970 (that includes OC) and then find a 980 review on the same site (that also includes OC)

like this
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/gigabyte_geforce_gtx_970_g1_gaming_review,26.html
and this
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/gigabyte_geforce_gtx_980_g1_gaming_review,26.html

it looks like about 10%+ difference, though the 980 in that review did also OC a bit more than the 970, so say 10% clock for clock and then if your lucky and you get ones that OC's more then add that on top again

 

[humbug]

Yes overclock! The KFA2 I linked will boost well over 1300MHz so it's not something you need to worry about anyhow.

The Gigabyte should be quiet yes, although any card you'll hear whilst under load.

My Gigabyte Windforce boosts to 1350Mhz out of the box (Even tho it states 1250 on the box) it clocks to 1550Mhz without touching volts and power play. (Or maybe more, thats as far as i dare take it)
Its also very cool and quiet, even at 1550Mhz

No guarantee another will do this tho, its a lottery.

 

[humbug]

Thanks, yes this is widely known though.

But the point is, if you are going to buy a graphics card, you are going to OC it.

So I have an 970, but there is a cheap second hand 980 I have my eye on, wondering what the performance increase will be.

Its about <15%, personally thats not worth it for me, buying used you don't know what sort of life its had, potential problems with warranty or the card.

At the end of the day the 980 is not (Faster enough) to notice much of a difference from the 970 which in its self is a very capable card.

 

[JonSmith]

I bought one with the reference (short) PCB. Do note that the cooling on these aren't as good however I can still clock mine to 1400 core without the fans going mental. It was cheaper, smaller and only needs 2x 6 pin however.

 

[humbug]

I bought one with the reference (short) PCB. Do note that the cooling on these aren't as good however I can still clock mine to 1400 core without the fans going mental. It was cheaper, smaller and only needs 2x 6 pin however.

Out of interest what do you run it at 24/7?

 

[JonSmith]

It's set to 1340-ish, which is what it ends up running at in benchmarks (Heaven and 3d mark I've tested it). Gaming it boosts up to 1400 no problem (inc ES:O BF4, War Thunder) even when at 100% load.

The problem is the power limit of 106% causes it to power throttle in low CPU usage scenarios, if I BIOS modded it to increase the power limit it wouldn't do this but I'd need 70% fan speed to keep it cool in any case.

It's this one here:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-071-ZT

 

[humbug]

It's set to 1340-ish, which is what it ends up running at in benchmarks (Heaven and 3d mark I've tested it). Gaming it boosts up to 1400 no problem (inc ES:O BF4, War Thunder) even when at 100% load.

The problem is the power limit of 106% causes it to power throttle in low CPU usage scenarios, if I BIOS modded it to increase the power limit it wouldn't do this but I'd need 70% fan speed to keep it cool in any case.

It's this one here:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-071-ZT

so it boosts higher than what you set?

I set mine to what you see in my sig and thats what it runs at constantly if 99 or 100%, in World Of Warships its between 1114Mhz and that ^^^ mostly 1114Mhz as i have V-Sync on.

i have never seen it go above the 1450Mhz i set if thats what i set.

 

[Ian Evey]

People say zoltac?

Isn't that an anti depressant?

I think you meant Zotac

 

[lawrence281]

Isn't that an anti depressant?

I think you meant Zotac

Yep, typo

Is there much of a danger to OC a gpu..and may someone link me a guide. Want to check if its really worth the effort for the hardly noticeable performance difference lol

 

[Ian Evey]

Is there much of a danger to OC a gpu..and may someone link me a guide. Want to check if its really worth the effort for the hardly noticeable performance difference lol

If you use Msi Afterburner and move the sliders up then yes it's easy, There is a danger of going too high on the overclock but normally you just get a driver crash and after a reboot Msi defaults back to stock speeds.

As with most things though you could be the unlucky one out of 10,000 to kill your card.

 

[lawrence281]

If you use Msi Afterburner and move the sliders up then yes it's easy, There is a danger of going too high on the overclock but normally you just get a driver crash and after a reboot Msi defaults back to stock speeds.

As with most things though you could be the unlucky one out of 10,000 to kill your card.

http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/msi-afterburner-beta-download.html

This the correct thing?

 

[Ian Evey]

http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/msi-afterburner-beta-download.html

This the correct thing?

Bit late with my reply but yeah that's all you need.

 

[Geeman1979]

Is there much of a danger to OC a gpu..and may someone link me a guide. Want to check if its really worth the effort for the hardly noticeable performance difference lol

You won't damage the card. AB won't allow enough voltage to kill it.

 

[JAMIE_CORTEZ]

So the question i have as a prospective 970 buyer.

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-010-GX&tool=3&page=4

For the Coil Whine policy

or

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-009-GX&groupid=701&catid=1914&subcat=1010

For teh unlocked voltage, is it likely to make a significant difference?

 

[tommybhoy]

It probably won't make a significant difference over any other 970.

Grab one on offer, they all clock well so no need to go mental on price.

 

[stulid]

So the question i have as a prospective 970 buyer.

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-010-GX&tool=3&page=4

For the Coil Whine policy

or

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-009-GX&groupid=701&catid=1914&subcat=1010

For teh unlocked voltage, is it likely to make a significant difference?

Whats the system specs you have? what PSU and what case etc.

Do you want to overclock a lot or do you just want a card that is solid, quiet and does a good job as I can list a few that are cheaper and will do an excellent job.