MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Gaming X review (Page 32)

MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Gaming X review

Graphics cards 1048 Page 32 of 32 Published 2019-03-14 14:00 by Hilbert Hagedoorn

Conclusion

Final words and verdict

Anyone that hasn't upgraded towards a bit of an affordable mainstream solution might be compelled and attracted towards the GeForce GTX 1660. If you come from the 900 series say a GTX 970, then 1660 might be a viable alternative. The cards will be a notch faster than the 1060 6GB series at roughly the same or even lower price. The 1660 non-Ti however is clearly positioned against the competitions Radeon RX 590. The basic models will start at 219 USD and we expect prices in the 199 pound and 229 EUROS range here in the EU (depending on the country). With the GTX 1060 you do get up-to-snuff with the latest Turning architecture, just not tensor and RT cores. So in the 1920x1080 and maybe even 2560x1440 most games will run fine, alongside improved power consumption. When we focus in at the AIB product then MSI has a nice offering at hand with the new GAMING X revision of the GeForce GTX 1660. This 6 GB card offers the performance once can expect and is boosting to 1860 MHz right out of the box. And that gives it, say, a 5% advantage over the reference clock specification. NVIDIA once again is not releasing a reference model. Neither will there be GPU SKU distinction with A models etc. Tweaking wise there's plenty left. We do think that all cards will match a roughly 10% OC bracket that, really, is by NVIDIA's design. As mentioned, the 6 GB of graphics memory at Full HD is sufficient.

Aesthetics

Hey MSI will be MSI with that dark design, the TwinFrozr 7 cooler, and once juiced up, it is a great looking product. It sits in the Gaming line, was made a little darker to look at with new gunmetal elements, and that works for me. The RGB lighting effects are funky to see. That LED inclusion that has been done subtly and can be configured in any manner you prefer with Mystic Light software, the choice is yours. While I will always remain skeptical about back-plates (they potentially can trap heat and thus warm up the PCB) MSI does have vents there. The flip-side is that they can look better and can protect your PCB and components from damage and, well, they can look nice as they can have a certain aesthetic appeal. I have to admit, this is looking very nice but looks are always personal, of course. So in the end, on looks, you certainly get that premium feel of detailed aesthetics and quality.

Cooling & acoustic levels

The card tops out at roughly only 60~65 Degrees C while gaming. So that's not bad at all, the acoustics I'd rate as silent, we doubt you'll ever hear the card once mounted into a chassis. In idle the fans do not spin btw. We've heard no noticeable coil whine. But I do want to note that any graphics card at a high-enough FPS can make some coil whine.

Overclocking

Much like any NVIDIA product these days, we've been able to push roughly 10 to 15% extra perf out of the card compared to the reference card. Both traditional overclocking, as well as the OC Scanner, reached roughly that level. The combination of memory, power and voltage settings will bring you a proper overclock. Once you've applied it, you get a few percent more perf. This card is memory bandwidth limited, so tweaking there can really boost your FPS.

Concluding

NVIDIA needs a mainstream graphics card that will bring the cash flow back, the GTX 1660 might just be priced right for many. But will it offer enough perf to make a substantial difference? That's more complicated to answer of a question as you think it would be. I do not find the GTX 1660 a massively faster product than the GTX 1060 but it certainly is a nice performing card. Truth be told, of the GTX 1660 Ti was priced at 219 then that would have been the proper cash-cow for NVIDIA. The reality is also that most consumers have put RTX cards on hold due to the sales price of the range, which is very steep. The GeForce GTX 1660 certainly addresses the issue of offering a more compelling product. So who is going to step up from the GTX 1000 series? Well, anyone with a GTX 1050 but not 1060. So perhaps the GeForce GTX 1660 is an interesting enough card for GeForce GTX 960/970 owners that are looking to upgrade.

The GAMING X line is a terrific product overall, really it is. The baseline performance with the factory tweak is sweet as well and it did also tweak really nicely. The product is fast enough for any day gaming up-to, the Full HD monitor resolution domain of 1920x1080. The 6 GB of graphics memory seen over 8 GB really isn't a hindrance either as long as you stick to that resolution and sure, Quad HD as well. Looking at it from a competition point of view, the card positions itself against the Radeon RX 580 and even 590 cards. Once again please let me reiterate, the Raytracing and AI feature like DLSS, of course, have been stripped away. The product as-is is good, the power consumption of the 1660 series, by the way, is really good. If you are in the market for a long overdue upgrade coming from that 900 series, this could be it. I'm included to steer you towards the 1660 Ti though, but that product only makes sense under a 299 USD/EUR price range. The product as fabbed and presented by MSI though comes very much recommended as it ticks most right boxes design wise.