GTX980 differences?

[henrikfraannk]

Hi everyone

 

I am thinking of building my own rig, which should include a GTX 980. But since im quite new to PC (usually a mac fan, needs has changed), i need to understand why there are so many different versions and manufactures of the GTX 980.

 

I need a card that has a great quality. I don't know if there is any difference in built quality? I thought the reference card would be the best solution, but since I am from Denmark, the closest thing to a reference card is a Gainward GeForce GTX980. But since it says gainward, i wouldn't think it is a nvidia, and therefor not the same quality? What am i missing here?

 

The card i am looking for, should give me a great value in quality/price. It will be water-cooled (NZXT Kraken), so fans and look would probably mean nothing to me.

 

I have been looking at MSI (cheapest), Gainward, ZOTAC, eVGA and Asus(most expensive). Is there other differences than the cooling and the look?

 

I am new to this forum, so please be over me, if the question already has been asked.

 

Thanks!

[samcool55]

Well as you said, exept cooling and looks, there's indeed not much different about the cards itself, maybe an overclock, but that's about it.

But what is also a thing to keep in mind is the services of the companies. There are some amazing stories about EVGA so if you can, go for that.

[zlolslavez]

Some may differ in clock speed, and if a certain card cools better it would have even better clock speeds as well, also warranty may differ.

If there isn't a huge price difference, I would pick up EVGA's card, if so MSI's card.

[MLGNOSCOPEHEADSHOTGETREKT]

MSI Twin Frozer Vis the best at cooling.Period.Download MSI afterburner and overclock +30% with 1 click.

Asus Direct CUII worst overclocking but most quiet but since your watercooing it don't really matter

ZOTAX AMP OMEGA EXTREME is FRGGIN SEXY AS HELL WITH DEM CARBON FIBER LAYERING.Also reaches MSI level of performance but dose not have the overlcloks of the MSI version because no afterburner.Also is a HUGE 3 slot monster.

Zotac Small one is quiet.Can't overclock a lot but overclocks better then Asus.

Gainward get a brand name instead

Gigabyte Windforce 3x has high power usage with higher overclocks then the MSI Twin frozer V but the MSI one maintains the power efficiency

EVGA performs in the middle of Asus Direct CUII and MSI Twin Frozer V

Also get a Corsair G10 Cooler Instead.

 

I would recommend a 290X instead but that's just me

[henrikfraannk]

Thank's for the fast reply!!

 

Maybe i am missing something, but i still need an answer to this.. Why is there a difference in performance? If you removed all coolings and put on the same cooling to every card, and flashed it to the same "stock" firmware (if there is one so), wouldn't they have exact same performance?

 

Since i am water-cooling i remove all stock cooling, shouldn't i be able to achieve the same results on every card? Or what am i missing? If not, i would of course like to know which one i could achieve most!

 

Thanks!

[samcool55]

Performance will be exacly the same, every 980 has exacly the same chip. It's like a cpu you place on different motherboards, the motherboard won't change anything about the cpu itself, it's just what it is.

[DGPC]

This is essentially just a matter of brand loyalty. Most people here will have started their PC careers just buying what looks good and, depending on their experience, will either learn to love/hate that certain manufacture. Personally, having the first-hand experience with big deals like DOA products and smaller issues like fan noise makes me a bit more confident in my purchasing decisions, though most of this is statistically moot and is no indication of what experience you will have with them. All in all, any trusted brand should do you good (with most differential factors concerning services and not the hardware itself) and if it doesn't, hey, you just gained some experience so you can be at the other end of one of these threads some day 

[failblox]

Thank's for the fast reply!!

 

Maybe i am missing something, but i still need an answer to this.. Why is there a difference in performance? If you removed all coolings and put on the same cooling to every card, and flashed it to the same "stock" firmware (if there is one so), wouldn't they have exact same performance?

 

Since i am water-cooling i remove all stock cooling, shouldn't i be able to achieve the same results on every card? Or what am i missing? If not, i would of course like to know which one i could achieve most!

 

Thanks!

Technically, yes, if you do that they should have the exact same performance.

 

However, some cards have custom-designed PCBs and power delivery systems that deliver, surprisingly, better and more reliable power that allows for more reliable and higher overclocking. If you're watercooling you should look into getting a GPU with a reference PCB, or make sure that whatever company you're ordering your watercooling parts from has a special cooler for that specific manufacturer that made your GPU cause otherwise it might not fit (I'm not sure how informed you are on watercooling).

[DildorTheDecent]

 

Maybe i am missing something, but i still need an answer to this.. Why is there a difference in performance? If you removed all coolings and put on the same cooling to every card, and flashed it to the same "stock" firmware (if there is one so), wouldn't they have exact same performance?

Technically yes they would. 

Since i am water-cooling i remove all cooling, shouldn't i be able to achieve the same results on every card? Or what am i missing? If not, i would of course like to know which one i could achieve most!

Silicon lottery: how well x chip does compared to y chip. 

Binning: x chip may be rated for higher clock speeds than y chip.

Right now the best 980 available is the GTX 980 Classified OR the GTX 980 HOF. The GTX 980 Classified K|NGP|N is better than the standard Classified card, but they're out of stock on EVGA.com But they carry a heavy premium over the rest. 

[DGPC]

Thank's for the fast reply!!

 

Maybe i am missing something, but i still need an answer to this.. Why is there a difference in performance? If you removed all coolings and put on the same cooling to every card, and flashed it to the same "stock" firmware (if there is one so), wouldn't they have exact same performance?

 

Since i am water-cooling i remove all stock cooling, shouldn't i be able to achieve the same results on every card? Or what am i missing? If not, i would of course like to know which one i could achieve most!

 

Thanks!

Might be wrong, but since the manufacture takes the cooling into their own hands, they become more confident in overclocking and are able to use it as a value ad, though most things they do are achievable with most cards yourself. Performance wise, the overclocking ability of a card is in much ways luck of the draw, as with CPUs. Some "extreme" cards will be "binned", or sorted through, to guarantee a certain level of overclocking performance. 

 

EDIT: the addition of custom power delivery is probably a big deal too