Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 OC Mini-ITX review (Page 29)

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 OC Mini-ITX review

Graphics cards 1048 Page 29 of 29 Published 2015-06-04 02:25 by Hilbert Hagedoorn

Conclusion

I think I mentioned this before, but the Mini-ITX form factor fascinates me very much. It is just incredible to see how much gear and performance the manufacturers can inject into something as big as a motherboard measuring 17x17 cm and then pair it with a product like tested today. This much performance on such a small form factor simply kicks ass, it is rather amazing what Nvidia can get performance wise from that little GPU. Gigabyte on their end started improving on Nvidia's design, the end result being the OC edition of the new Mini-ITX series and man, this is pretty nice isn't it? It is not at all noisy (though you can hear it), it cools very well with a hefty cooler, it comes factory overclocked at a boost frequency of 1218 MHz already. Sure, you have three shader clusters less than the 980, but overall for gaming, at say 2560x1440, this card will make a lot of sense. Memory wise, I will leave the 3.5 vs 4 GB to debate and discuss at your own peril. In our opinion, it is a non-issue.

Maxwell GM204 GPU experience overall

Both the GeForce GTX 970 and 980 leave a very solid impression. One offers good, the other exceptional performance within its range. It’s not heaps faster than the aforementioned 780 series though we have seen a preference in performance with some games for the 900 series, Maxwell based products seem faster. With that in mind Nvidia tried to create a product series that is affordable and plays the most high-end and latest games perfectly fine at an acceptable price level. When you look at it from that point of view the Maxwell release is a successful one. This is probably the maximum that Nvidia should and can do on 28nm in terms of improved performance and power consumption versus price.

Thermals

The reference design of the GTX 970 and 980 are the very same cooling wise. The reference products are set at an offset threshold of 80 degrees C. Once the GPU gets warmer the card will clock down and lower its voltage. That wasn't good enough for Gigabyte, and even with a Mini-ITX form factor they managed a lower heat wattage. They have been able to make a product this small, that still cools better than the reference cooler. It is a serious cooler that offers more cooling performance than the GM204 really needs. That shows in gaming, you can expect it to hover at 65 to 70 Degrees C with hefty games with this GeForce GTX 970. Remember, that is factory overclocked cooling performance for you.

Cooling versus noise levels

With this cooling we can’t complain, period. It is way more cooling compared to what this GPU really needs. Expect sound pressure values in the 42 dBA range at max under load and warm circumstances. That's measured 75 CM away from the PC. You can slightly hear the card while using the PC, so it is a normal noise level, but not silent. For those that require sheer silence like yours truly, you probably need to divert away from small form factor PCs. In IDLE or normal desktop PC usage, you will not be able to hear this card.

Performance

A nice advantage for the cards is that they now come standard with 4 GB of DDR5 graphics memory, albeit 3.5 GB is actually used at full speed. This means gaming sweetness at even the higher resolutions. Your games play perfectly at up-to WQHD at 2560x1440, including the hottest and latest titles like GTA-5 and Witcher III. The GeForce GTX 970 is a great Full HD to WQHD card that certainly offers a nice chunk of performance at these resolutions. Overall you can play all the modern and latest games with nice AA levels and excellent image quality, the PC gaming way. The GTX 980 I would recommend with Ultra HD, especially with DSR and MFAA you'll be able to play games quite well. The GeForce GTX 970 I'd call a very solid WQHD card, e.g. it is great for gaming up-to 2560x1440 and actually truly perfect for Full HD gaming.

Tweaking

Man oh man, these cards still overclock. Depending on how much your board will take and allow, with voltage tweaking you’ll pass roughly the 1300 MHz range (dynamic boost). We ended up at a stable 1325~1375 MHz, which is very nice. But again, our overclock is not a guarantee for your results. The memory is clocked standard at 7.0 GHz, you'll fairly easily achieve 7.5 GHz and we even reached 8.0 GHz stable. This is Hynix memory though, so my recommendation stands at roughly 7.5 GHz overclocked for maximum stability. Overall you’ll see a nice gain in extra gaming performance.

Pricing

The GeForce GTX 970 is priced fairly overall:

Effective for launch, the new lineup looks like this, GTX 970: $329 / 299 EUR (ex VAT). Retail prices vary and can be lower, depending on the market conditions etc. There are no other changes to any other products.

Final Words

I seriously dig small form factors, powerful tiny PCs that hold say a Z97 Mini-ITX or Micro ATX motherboard paired with a CPU as powerful as a Core i7 4790K. Pop in 16GB memory and a card like shown today, and the sky is the limit at this very small form factor. With small form factors however does comes one complication, airflow. We recommend an AIO liquid cooler on the CPU and at least one airflow intake fan and a fan for exhasut to create airflow. Super power components like shown today simply create heat, you need to adjust your build to that. Noise wise this product is fine really, and obviously performance wise for a build this size great. Board partners like Gigabyte have advanced on the reference design and the end result is what you have been able to see today. The Mini-ITX OC card is customized, has a fantastic cooler, and comes at higher than default clocks. Next to all that the card still remains quiet enough and at cool temperature levels. I mean, look at our thermal images, did you see a red spot like anywhere? So all these facts combined make the 970 a very interesting product series. The product comes with all the feaures you want, from connectivity for your monitor to the heavy duty cooler, from low noise levels and a nice factory overclock to the sheer aesthetics. The Maxwell architecture is very sound and proves it can deliver big-time whilst remaining in line power consumption, heat and noise wise and we can only imagine what it would have been like on 14 or 20nm. The Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 Mini-ITX OC edition is petite and lovely and value for money wise this card is the way to go if you are in the mood to build a small form factor PC. We have no doubt that if you opt for this product you'll be a happy savvy puppy. It is looking good on all levels, it is a little beast for Full HD and WQHD gaming combined with the best image quality settings. In the 300 EURO bracket the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 Mini-ITX OC graphics card comes highly recommended by Guru3D.com

Conclusion

Conclusion

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