980Ti - FTW or Strix

[vong]

Looking to upgrade from a 780Ti to a 980Ti in preparation for the new Asus PG348Q coming out and want to know which of the 2 980ti's in the title I should get. I'm not looking to get crazy overclocks (hence not wanting a classified), the Strix has a higher clock out of the box but I like EVGA cards (brand loyalty I guess). Card will be watercooled, looked at the EVGA Hydrocopper too but that's just the standard card although it's cheaper than getting a card and adding a waterblock and backplate to it which is like just under $200au.

 

Price in Au dollars:

- EVGA FTW $1149

- EVGA Hydrocopper $1249

- Strix $1149

- EK waterblock $159

- Ek Backplate $45

[ThatOneRussian]

strix imo. its slightly faster i believe

[JebKerman]

the FTW does not have a full cover block (it is not a reference PCB if that's what you thought), for that I'd suggest the SC or SC+ (or the hydrocopper)

 

actually I'd Imagine the hydrocopper's warranty would be the most robust one as you won't have breached the warranty by putting it in a custom loop.

[JerkyMcDilerino]

Both of them are really good. Just pick one that you can afford, and like it since both of them design to overclock and push it to limit. 

[vong]

the FTW does not have a full cover block (it is not a reference PCB if that's what you thought), for that I'd suggest the SC or SC+ (or the hydrocopper)

 

actually I'd Imagine the hydrocopper's warranty would be the most robust one as you won't have breached the warranty by putting it in a custom loop.

 

Oh, didn't realise that. The SC is cheaper but the boost clock is weak, my 780Ti has a higher one out of the box. I know those don't really matter much but I think a higher speed out the box means it'll be better at overclocking.

 

Both of them are really good. Just pick one that you can afford, and like it since both of them design to overclock and push it to limit. 

 

Looks like the Strix is the winner. Can't really say they're affordable haha I remember when people were complaining about Titan prices a few years ago and people are buying 980Ti's like it's no ones business.

[JebKerman]

Oh, didn't realise that. The SC is cheaper but the boost clock is weak, my 780Ti has a higher one out of the box. I know those don't really matter much but I think a higher speed out the box means it'll be better at overclocking.

not really, my card (970 FTW+) was clocked really high out of the box, and I could barely get anything out of it, without causing instability issues

[vong]

Are the voltages still locked by Nvidia or did they have a change of heart?

[JebKerman]

Are the voltages still locked by Nvidia or did they have a change of heart?

well you can still push them a fair way with software (EVGA Precision X lets me add 0.087V if i want), and not so far it becomes degrading, if you want to really push the boundaries you have to mess with the GPU BIOS

[AngryGoldfish]

If you're water cooling, it doesn't matter that much which model you go for. Personally I suggest the EVGA as they offer superior support and aren't as picky about cards that have had their stock coolers removed. The Gigabyte G1 Gaming seems to have consistently higher overclocks so I would also consider them. I believe Gigabyte may be a little more strict with their binning process, especially for the price. Realistically, however, any of them will suffice. Just go with one that has the best water block and manufacturer customer support. I'm not sure LTT's forum will have enough experience with water cooling to know the differences or be able to offer an educated opinion. OCN might be better as they have more users water cooling. Sometimes blocks are rushed out and don't perfectly cool the card, or sometimes the card isn't as well suited for water cooling as another.

 

edit: And don't worry about the stock speeds. We're talking 1-2 FPS difference between GPU's. It really isn't worth factoring in to your decision. Whatever one card has over another can be achieved on your own with a very small overclock. Virtually all 980ti's will hit 1450/7200Mhz under water. You'd have to have an absolute pig to not hit that. Applying the block, draining your loop and refilling will take longer than finding an overclock like that. Your card might even boost that high once you remove thermal throttling as a drawback. That's without any overclocks at all. All you have to do then is add 100-200Mhz on the memory and you have a more powerful 980ti than any other on the market.

[vong]

If you're water cooling, it doesn't matter that much which model you go for. Personally I suggest the EVGA as they offer superior support and aren't as picky about cards that have had their stock coolers removed. The Gigabyte G1 Gaming seems to have consistently higher overclocks so I would also consider them. I believe Gigabyte may be a little more strict with their binning process, especially for the price. Realistically, however, any of them will suffice. Just go with one that has the best water block and manufacturer customer support. I'm not sure LTT's forum will have enough experience with water cooling to know the differences or be able to offer an educated opinion. OCN might be better as they have more users water cooling. Sometimes blocks are rushed out and don't perfectly cool the card, or sometimes the card isn't as well suited for water cooling as another.

 

edit: And don't worry about the stock speeds. We're talking 1-2 FPS difference between GPU's. It really isn't worth factoring in to your decision. Whatever one card has over another can be achieved on your own with a very small overclock. Virtually all 980ti's will hit 1450/7200Mhz under water. You'd have to have an absolute pig to not hit that. Applying the block, draining your loop and refilling will take longer than finding an overclock like that. Your card might even boost that high once you remove thermal throttling as a drawback. That's without any overclocks at all. All you have to do then is add 100-200Mhz on the memory and you have a more powerful 980ti than any other on the market.

 

If that's the case then I'll just grab the MSI Gaming or a Hydrocopper.

[AngryGoldfish]

If that's the case then I'll just grab the MSI Gaming or a Hydrocopper.

 

 

If you are happy with around 1450/7200Mhz (stellar performance at those clock rates), any 980ti with a good water block will do fine. You can achieve those clocks on virtually any 980ti even with air cooling. Add a water block and you're almost guaranteed it. I have seen a couple 980ti's struggle to get 1450Mhz, but many if not all of those were air cooled. Water cooling inherently adds around 13-26Mhz additional boost, sometimes more, due to the lower temperatures on the core, memory modules and VRM. No overclock is 100% guaranteed, but 1450/7200Mhz is a highly realistic expectation if you're water cooling. Many would hope for much, much higher. 1550/8200Mhz is not uncommon from experienced overclockers with water cooling. That's winning the silicon lottery by a mile. For the most part that kind of overclock is purely for e-peen and benchmarking. At 1440p, a reference 980ti is enough. A 980ti at 1450/7200Mhz is almost unnecessary bar a few titles like GTA V and The Witcher 3.