The video RAM information guide

[Zoomv]

BF4 is fine. AC:Unity probably not very well. Arma 3 should be fine. FC4 I haven't touched, I don't know. But as I do suggest, if you can afford it, the higher vRAM model is always a good idea.

so is the 25$ premium worth it?

[RyGuy99]

I find it funny; I wrote the guide and due to my writing it I'm learning more. I love tech.

Welcome to any topic/subject ever.

[D2ultima]

Welcome to any topic/subject ever.

Ha, I don't know about that. Many people get annoyed and won't accept information contrary to what they think.

 

so is the 25$ premium worth it?

$25 for extra 2GB of vRAM? And the rest of the GPU is the same? I'd say that's pretty decent. Usually the difference between 2GB and 4GB versions is closer to $50+

[D2ultima]

Added a section for Windows 10 and issues with vRAM there.

 

Any and all feedback on that matter is valued, thank you.

[PixelWhip]

Thank you for all the info in this post. I have a MSI GTX 970 4GB. So I should hold off upgrading to Win 10 for the time being?

[D2ultima]

Thank you for all the info in this post. I have a MSI GTX 970 4GB. So I should hold off upgrading to Win 10 for the time being?

I am not on windows 10, so I cannot tell you 100%, but I personally think everybody who is even halfway worried about program/hardware stability should wait a couple months. If I get more information about the vRAM stealing drivers or what, I'll update it here. As of right now, nobody seems to be reporting things like this.

[EvilWiffles]

Misleading title. Was hoping for RAM guide, not VRAM guide.

[D2ultima]

Misleading title. Was hoping for RAM guide, not VRAM guide.

"The video RAM information guide"

 

Wat.

[EvilWiffles]

"The video RAM information guide"

 

Wat.

 

I take it back!

[gendalf]

my 660ti in gpu-z never shows above 15xx , does this mean that the last 512 are not unlocked or not working ? I've run a 'Video Memory stress Test' program to load the memory and forced it to use 1800mb, the program showed that it uses just above 1800mb but gpu-z was still showing 15xx numbers, while VMT haven't shown any memory problems..

[D2ultima]

my 660ti in gpu-z never shows above 15xx , does this mean that the last 512 are not unlocked or not working ? I've run a 'Video Memory stress Test' program to load the memory and forced it to use 1800mb, the program showed that it uses just above 1800mb but gpu-z was still showing 15xx numbers, while VMT haven't shown any memory problems..

This one I'm not certain about. I don't know of any video memory stress test programs either.

 

Do you happen to be on Windows 10? I never got confirmation if the vRAM being stolen by nVidia drivers went away, and if it did not, then 1792MB of vRAM is what you would have on a 2GB card, so the video memory stress test would be correct.

[gendalf]

D2ultima,

win8.1x64, gpu-z 0.8.6

afaik 660ti is built by 1536+512 scheme, where 512 works through slower bus or something. My problem is that gpu-z never shows past 15xx numbers, so my question is do these extra 512 exist and work properly, while gpu-z just can't see it, or what; how can I check it?

Here's the tool that I've used to load vram (but in games gpu-z doesn't show past 15xx vram usage neither): http://nvworld.ru/utilities/vmt/

[D2ultima]

D2ultima,

win8.1x64, gpu-z 0.8.6

afaik 660ti is built by 1536+512 scheme, where 512 works through slower bus or something. My problem is that gpu-z never shows past 15xx numbers, so my question is do these extra 512 exist and work properly, while gpu-z just can't see it, or what; how can I check it?

Here's the tool that I've used to load vram (but in games gpu-z doesn't show past 15xx vram usage neither): http://nvworld.ru/utilities/vmt/

I see. In that case, I am not certain. I know your card has extra memory... the CUDA memory checker app from the ramgate time would help, if you can still find it somewhere. I think that'd be the best way to see.

 

It's possible GPU-Z isn't seeing the extra bit as it's not connected the way it should (I've heard of users claiming their card can't go above 1.5GB before; that might explain things). But the card's design should both allow for it, and have it be faster than the 970's issue, and I don't believe it slows down the rest of the card so badly when accessed either, though I don't have the cards, nor any tools to check, sadly.

[gendalf]

idk what app you're talking about.

[D2ultima]

idk what app you're talking about.

The program could be found HERE (triggers download link)

[gendalf]

ok it shows over 1900mb, and the speed drops to ~40-60 in the last 500

[D2ultima]

ok it shows over 1900mb, and the speed drops to ~40-60 in the last 500

Then it's working as intended, and your RAM is fully available. GPU-Z probably can't read the last 512MB is all. Note that overclocking the memory on the 660Ti will help the final 512MB's speed.

[FlufflesMcBob]

Fantastic guide

[FlufflesMcBob]

Fantastic guide I don't Know how this posted twice, I thought these forums had measures against that. Fantastic guide again?

[D2ultima]

Fantastic guide

Thanks!

 

Fantastic guide I don't Know how this posted twice, I thought these forums had measures against that. Fantastic guide again?

LOL

[mata-pombos]

Would you recommend the 4gb model of the 380/960 or do you think it´s not worth the extra money.

I think it´s a matter of price difference, 30$ or less i would take the 4gb...

[D2ultima]

Would you recommend the 4gb model of the 380/960 or do you think it´s not worth the extra money.

I think it´s a matter of price difference, 30$ or less i would take the 4gb...

It's already in the guide. ALWAYS take the higher vRAM. I don't even think a 2GB card is a realistic choice to play a lot of newer AAA games anymore, even. The games have no need whatsoever to be using so much vRAM, but they do. I would say take it however you see it, but I don't think it's more than a $30 difference anyway.

[ValkyrieStar]

Noticed you mentioned about the 660Ti's Bus Width and Memory Size. I looked a bit deeper into this myself recently, and found something kinda interesting.

The memory controller in the GK104 chip is made up of 4x 64bit controllers. This works differently to the 1GB on the 550Ti. I've attached a diagram to explain.

[D2ultima]

Noticed you mentioned about the 660Ti's Bus Width and Memory Size. I looked a bit deeper into this myself recently, and found something kinda interesting.

The memory controller in the GK104 chip is made up of 4x 64bit controllers. This works differently to the 1GB on the 550Ti. I've attached a diagram to explain.

This is good, I always wondered why people complained more about their 550Ti cards with respect to memory. I never saw that the 550Ti was different than the 660Ti/660/etc, but Linus did mention that they used mismatched memory chips in the past. Thanks! I'll add it to the guide... somewhere. Do you know of any other chips that use the same mismatching that the 550Ti does?

 

Edit: I'm silly, and they explained the difference right in the article I linked. I just didn't think it was much different. I'll still add the photo for better clarification though.

[ValkyrieStar]

This is good, I always wondered why people complained more about their 550Ti cards with respect to memory. I never saw that the 550Ti was different than the 660Ti/660/etc, but Linus did mention that they used mismatched memory chips in the past. Thanks! I'll add it to the guide... somewhere. Do you know of any other chips that use the same mismatching that the 550Ti does?

 

Edit: I'm silly, and they explained the difference right in the article I linked. I just didn't think it was much different. I'll still add the photo for better clarification though.

 

Other cards that have similar odd configurations:

 

GTS 450 (OEM version) - 1GB @ 192bit

GTX 460 v2 - 1GB @ 192bit

GTX 550 Ti - 1GB @ 192bit

GTX 555 - 1GB @ 192bit

GTX 560 SE - 1GB @ 192bit

GT 645 - 1GB @ 192bit (GT not the GTX)

GTX 650 Ti Boost - 1GB or 2GB @ 192bit

GTX 660 Ti - 2GB @ 192bit

GTX 970 - 4GB @ 224bit

 

I'm not sure which method each card uses, but it's one of the two. Either a higher chip with disabled controllers having memory re-routed through one other controller to maintain the same memory amount, or having different density chips.

I'll get on with making a video about how this affects performance (mainly in the case of theGTX 970 - to try and clear up some misconceptions people have about it).