Cheap cards asus geforce gtx 780. Computer resource U SM
Announcement GeForce GTX 780 became a real treat for those who were going to get a top-end video card with GPU from NVIDIA. Based on a slightly simplified version of the GK110 processor, the flagship of the GeForce GTX 700 graphics line is only slightly inferior to the GeForce GTX TITAN, but it costs significantly less. The opportunity to save significantly with minimal loss in performance is a tempting prospect for demanding but calculating gamers. This is well understood by the manufacturers of video cards, which are ready to do much to attract the attention of picky users. Let's take a closer look at the capabilities of the forced version of the GeForce GTX 780 from a well-known Taiwanese manufacturer - ASUS GTX 780 DirectCu II OC.
The OC index used in the device name is a sure sign that we are dealing with a forced version of a video card. In this case, the manufacturer was not too zealous. The base frequency of the GPU has been increased from 863 to 889 MHz. At the same time, the average value of the dynamic acceleration of the chip was increased from 902 to 941 MHz. 3 GB of GDDR5 memory runs at the recommended 6008 MHz, which, coupled with a 384-bit bus, provides a bandwidth of 288.4 GB / s.
Recall that the version of the GK110 chip in the case of the GeForce GTX 780 is not so lightweight. The GPU retained 2304 computational units, and also has 192 texture units and 48 rasterization units, while for the GPU in the version for GeForce GTX TITAN it has 2688 CUDA calculators, 224 TMUs and also 48 ROPs. As we could have seen before, such a shortage can be fully compensated for by increasing the GPU clock speed, but more on that later.
The name of the ASUS graphics card speaks volumes about the DirectCu II cooling system used for this adapter. This series of coolers includes many different options, but it is obvious that the GeForce GTX 780 needs a special design - after all, the video card has a TDP of 250 W. And the very fact that we are talking about a top-level device requires some non-standard solutions from the manufacturer, because the refresher cooler turned out to be very good at work, moreover, it is very effective. Let's see what ASUS will surprise you this time.
The manufacturer draws attention to the fact that the dissipation area of the radiator in this case is more than doubled in comparison with that of the reference model. Of course, direct comparison is not entirely correct here, because the cooler of the stock model contains an evaporation chamber. However, the cooler from ASUS is also far from trivial. The DirectCu II modification used for the original GeForce GTX 780 includes a whole set of nickel-plated heatpipes that make direct contact with the GPU die.
In general, this is a familiar feature of DirectCu coolers, but in this case one of the heat pipes has an impressive diameter of 10 mm. In addition, the design includes two 8-milliliter tubes and another pair of 6 mm in diameter.
The existing "pipeline" is arranged in such a way as to maximize the transfer of heat from the source to the radiator cassette.
In this case, the stacked block of aluminum plates is blown by a pair of 100 mm fans, which also have certain nuances. One of them is made using CoolTech Fan technology. In the central part, the location of the blades is typical for models of the centrifugal type, which in this case makes it possible to increase the blowing area, as well as the air volumes discharged outside the system unit through the grill in the mounting panel. On the outer radius, we have a blade shape characteristic of axial fans.
This hybrid model allows some of the advantages of both types of fans to be taken advantage of. For the first time, we came across a similar development by ASUS during a review, where the manufacturer managed to create a powerful adapter within a compact size.
Obviously, the very idea of a hybrid cooler turned out to be quite successful, so the manufacturer adopted it and uses it even for top-end devices.
The second fan also has a diameter of 100 mm, but it differs from the usual axial models by significantly increased dimensions of the blades, which make it possible to generate a significant air flow.
The original printed circuit board is used for the video card. A more powerful power subsystem is wired on the PCB, built according to a 10-phase scheme (8 + 2) and controlled by a digital controller DIGI + VRM (ASP1212). The power switches are additionally cooled by an aluminum finned radiator.
On the reverse side, the board is covered with a metal perforated plate. It is not used to cool the components, but serves to protect against mechanical damage, and also increases the strength of the structure. In addition, such aluminum plates complement the external appearance of the adapter.
To connect additional power, there are two connectors on the upper edge - 6- and 8-pin. At the same time, the connectors themselves are deployed with latches outward, which maximally simplifies the connection of power cables. Traditionally for video cards of this level from ASUS, they are equipped with power supply indicators. The LEDs next to the connectors are green if the cable is plugged in, or red if you forgot to do so.
The power supply recommendations do not differ from those indicated by NVIDIA for systems with a GeForce GTX 780. We are talking about models from 600 W and above, capable of providing up to 38 A.
The presence of a pair of connectors for connecting SLI bridges indicates that the video card can work in a multi-adapter configuration, and combinations of 3/4-Way SLI are possible.
The length of the video card is almost 285 mm. Of course, this adapter is not at all a record holder in terms of dimensions, nevertheless, before buying it will be useful to make sure that the video card will fit into the case without any problems, and the basket with drives will not become a hindrance. Note that ASUS GTX 780 DirectCU II OC will take two expansion slots, and not three, like many top ASUS solutions of previous generations. This is an important nuance, especially if you plan to use multiple video cards in your system.
The set with the video card offers a user manual, a CD with drivers, as well as an SLI bridge for combining a pair of video cards (usually supplied with motherboards) and an adapter from a pair of 6-pin additional power connectors to one 8-pin one.
Cooler efficiency
We already have a general idea of the performance of the GeForce GTX 780 in general, so we wanted to quickly check the efficiency of the cooling system. We evaluated the cooler's capabilities in an open test bench, while the room temperature at the time of testing was 23 ° C. DirectCU II in the used incarnation cooled the GPU to 29 degrees, with the fan speed at 1150 rpm.
Under gaming load, the fan speed increased to 1630, which was enough to keep the GPU temperature at 63 C.
As you can see in the diagram, the peak value of the frequency to which the GPU is automatically overclocked under load, in this case, is 992 MHz. In the case of the GeForcu GTX 780 test sample, despite the lower base value, the chip could accelerate up to 1006 MHz, but this did not happen so often. Under high load, the temperature of the chip in the reference model on an open bench easily reached 80 degrees. Taking into account the fact that with the second version of GPU Boost the GPU clock speed is strongly dependent on temperature, in such cases the built-in auto-overclocking mechanism begins to actively adjust the processor clock speed, reducing it from the peak 1006 MHz to 940-960 MHz. At the same time, the large margin of safety of the cooling system used for the ASUS video card allows it to pass even heavy resource-intensive tests at the maximum specified GPU frequency - 992 MHz.
Overclocking
More than a modest factory increase in the base frequency of the GPU is conducive to independent experiments. By changing the Power Limit parameter to 110%, as well as slightly increasing the chip supply voltage, we managed to increase the processor frequency to 1075 MHz. At the same time, under load, the GPU dynamically accelerated up to 1189 MHz.
A spurt of 20% should provide a good performance boost. Besides, the memory "went" pretty well too - from 6008 MHz to 7096 MHz. Let's see how this will affect the quantitative increase in frames / s in games.
In our testing conditions, additional overclocking increased GPU heating by only one degree - up to 63 C. Probably in a closed case the situation will not be so optimistic, and the temperature values will be higher.
Performance
On average, the performance of the forced version of the ASUS video card turned out to be slightly higher than that of the reference model. Despite the fact that the peak value of dynamic auto-overclocking here is even slightly lower than that of the reference GTX 780, the efficient cooling system allows the GPU to operate at the maximum available frequency even under serious load. Therefore, here we see a characteristic pattern - the higher the load on the video card in a single test stage, the greater the difference in performance. However, if we talk about absolute figures, then the difference is not so great ~ 1–2%.
Serious overclocking speeds up the graphics card noticeably. GeForce GTX TITAN in the basic version is left behind in all cases without exception, while the gap between the forced GTX 780 sometimes reaches a rather impressive 10-15% in synthetics and a more modest 2-10% in games. GeForce GTX TITAN can also accelerate, but recall that these models are provided so far only in their original form with a reference CO. As practice shows, this imposes certain restrictions that have already been removed for the GeForce GTX 780.
Outcomes
According to ASUS, the flagship of the GeForce GTX 700 series of discrete video cards turned out to be very successful. ASUS GTX780 DirectCU II OC Based on the original PCB with a reinforced power supply subsystem. The exclusive version of the cooler copes with cooling the GK110 much better than the reference model. At the same time, high-quality components allow you to count on a serious afterburner. In our opinion, the manufacturer was somewhat modest, indicating the base frequency values for this adapter. The potential of the hardware platform in this case is ready for much larger gaming loads. Whoever has a desire can be convinced of this by their own experience. We checked, and as a result - “ Editor's Choice: Best Quality».
GeForce GTX 780 is not a cheap pleasure, besides, the recommended price of the original version from ASUS is higher than that of the reference models (~ $ 750). One, for owners of monitors of impressive diagonals who do not intend to give up the maximum quality of graphics due to high resolution, the cost of a video card with a GK110 chip will be justified. In addition, the minimum overclocking makes it easy to overtake the GeForce GTX TITAN, and the ability to have the fastest single-chip video card is also worth something.
Liked
Efficient Dual Slot DirectCu II Cooling System
High performance
3 GB memory
Very good overclocking potential
Did not like
- High price
The device for testing is provided by ASUS, www.asus.ua
| Cooling system | active |
| GPU frequencies, MHz | 889-941 |
| Memory frequencies, MHz | 6008 |
| Memory bus, bit | 384 |
| Output connectors | 2xDVI Dual-link (1xDVI-I and 1xDVI-D), 1xHDMI, 1xDisplay Port |
| Dimensions, mm | 287 × 147.3 × 40.6 |
| Low profile | — |
| Additional food | 1 × 6-pin, 1 × 8-pin |
| DirectX support | DirectX 11.1 |
| Miscellaneous |
Pros: Effective dual-slot DirectCu II cooling system, high performance, 3 GB memory, very good overclocking potential.
ASUS GTX780-DC2OC-3GD5Notify when on sale
However, in addition to the usual comprehensive study of the product and its testing, we will conduct tests to assess the dependence of the performance of the GeForce GTX 780 Ti on the overclocking of the video memory, since today there is a good reason for this. Which one, you will learn from the material.
1. Review of the video card ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC 3 GB (GTX780TI-DC2OC-3GD5)
technical characteristics and recommended costTechnical characteristics and cost of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC video card are shown in the table in comparison with the reference options NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 and AMD Radeon R9 290X.
packaging and equipment
The box in which the video card appeared on store shelves is decorated in the usual ASUS style. On its front side, James "Logan" also known as Wolverine left marks with his adamantium claws, and to the left of these marks is a photo of the video card cooling system.
The back of the box lists the outputs of the video card, and briefly describes its key features and system requirements. A black box made of thick cardboard is inserted inside the colored shell. In its center, sandwiched with expanded polyethylene, is the video card, and on top is a flat box with accessories.
The ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC package includes an adapter cable for connecting additional power, a brief instruction for installing a video card and drivers, a CD with drivers and a utility for overclocking, as well as two sets of stickers for the video card cooling casing with instructions ...
Unfortunately, there are no adapters for video outputs and games.
The product is manufactured in China. The situation with the price is quite interesting, because abroad ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC costs 699 US dollars, which fully corresponds to the cost of the reference GeForce GTX 780 Ti, and is noticeably lower than the prices for the original versions of this model from competitors. In Russia, at the time of writing this article, such a video card could be bought for 26,500 rubles. The graphics card comes with a three-year warranty.
PCB design and features
ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC looks not quite familiar from the point of view that the embossed casing of the cooling system, covering the entire front side, has no color design and looks too strict in the results. One might even say, without a twist.
However, this is not a minus at all, as one might assume, but a plus, since the video card comes with two sets of color overlays, with which the user can independently choose one or another color scheme for the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC.
If you are closer to a strict look without colored inserts, then you can not glue anything at all. We add that the dimensions of the video card are 287x133x40 mm, that is, it is 20 mm longer and 33 mm higher than the reference version of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti.
The video outputs installed on the video card in full compliance with the standard (DVI-I and DVI-D (both Dual-Link), HDMI version 1.4a and DisplayPort version 1.2) are closed with plastic caps to protect them from dust and other external influences.
Since the cooling system turned out to be noticeably higher than the printed circuit board and would have blocked the connectors for combining video cards in various variations of SLI modes, ASUS engineers had to resort to bringing these connectors up on an additional textolite platform.
It doesn't look very aesthetically pleasing, frankly speaking, but on the other hand, there shouldn't be any inconveniences when connecting the connecting bridges. As for the connectors for additional power supply, there are two of them, and both of them are eight-pin. The maximum declared power that can be supplied to the video card is 375 watts. At the same time, the power of the recommended power supply for a system with one ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC has not changed and is equal to 600 watts. We add that the power connectors are equipped with red and green LEDs.
Despite its massiveness, the cooling system is attached to the video card with only four screws around the perimeter of the GPU, so it was not difficult to remove it.
In order to “strip” the video card further, it is necessary to unscrew the rear metal plate with a stiffener, as well as a small aluminum radiator with VRM elements. As a result, you can examine the printed circuit board in detail.
Like all high-performance graphics cards from ASUS, the new GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC is built on the ASUS Super Alloy Power concept. This concept, thanks to the use of high quality components and proprietary PCB design, ensures high energy efficiency and durability. Specifically, on this model of the video card, a 15 percent increase in energy efficiency, a 30 percent reduction in electrical noise and interference, as well as a 2.5 times increased service life, including at very high loads, are declared.
The power system is built according to a ten-phase scheme, eight of which are on the graphics processor, and two more on video memory and power circuits.
Solid-state tantalum capacitors (including those on the reverse side of the board) and ferrite chokes are designed to provide stability of operation at high loads.
The controller Digi + VRM ASP1212 is responsible for power management of the GPU:
The GK110-425-B1 GPU was manufactured in Taiwan using a 28nm process technology in the 44th week of 2013 (late October - early November).
Its base frequency in 3D mode has been increased to 954 MHz, or 8.9%. This is the most modest factory overclock of all five original GeForce GTX 780 Ti versions we tested. In forced mode, the frequency can be increased up to 1020 MHz. According to monitoring data, the GPU voltage in 3D mode was 1.175 V, and when switching to 2D it dropped to 0.887 V (at 324 MHz). The ASIC quality of our GPU was 69.0%.
The ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC has three gigabytes of GDDR5 video memory with 12 SK Hynix chips (H5GQ2H24AFR-R2C marking).
The theoretical effective operating frequency of such microcircuits is 7000 MHz, at which the video card memory functions. That is, once again, there was no factory overclocking of video memory. The memory bandwidth with 384-bit bus width is 336 GB / sec.
ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC specifications will show us the latest version of the GPU-Z utility.
As almost always before, we supplement the review of ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC with a link to its BIOS, and proceed to study the DirectCU II cooling system.
cooling system - efficiency and noise level
The video card is equipped with an air cooling system DirectCU II, which, according to ASUS marketers, promises to be 20% more efficient and three times quieter than the reference cooler GeForce GTX 780 Ti.
This is a large and massive cooler consisting of an aluminum heatsink on heat pipes with direct contact technology and a pair of fans with a metal shroud.
In total, the cooler uses five heat pipes. One of them has a diameter of 10 mm, two - 8 mm and two more - 6 mm. Moreover, judging by the imprint of the GPU crystal on the base of the cooler, only three central out of five heat pipes are in contact with the core.
The two outermost six-millimeter tubes receive their share of the heat flux only through the side walls of adjacent tubes.
We note the high-quality assembly of the radiator and the use of soldering at all points of contact between heat pipes and plates.
The diameter of the fan impellers is 95 mm, and the most interesting of them is built using CoolTech technology, which combines the principles of a radial fan and a turbine.
Exactly the same fans from Everflow are installed on the cooling system. ASUS Radeon R9 290 DirectCU II which we tested not so long ago. We add that the fan speed is controlled by the PWM method in the range from 1000 to 3050 rpm.
On the reverse side of the video card, there is a protective plate with an insulating film and perforation. According to the developers, it also helps to cool the video card (apparently due to natural convection through the holes).
The power circuits are cooled by a small aluminum heatsink through thermal spacers.
To check the temperature regime of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC video card, we used five test cycles of the highly resource-intensive game Aliens vs. Predator (2010) at maximum graphics quality at 2560x1440 pixels with 16x anisotropic filtering and 4x MSAA anti-aliasing:
To monitor temperatures and all other parameters, we used MSI Afterburner version 3.0.0 beta 19 and GPU-Z utility version 0.7.7. All tests were carried out in a closed case of the system unit, the configuration of which you can see in the next section of the article, at an average room temperature of about 25 degrees Celsius.
With automatic adjustment of the fan speed of the cooler, the GPU warmed up to 79 degrees Celsius, and the speed of the fans themselves reached 1980 rpm.
Auto mode
This is not a record result among the original GeForce GTX 780 Ti, but quite worthy to call the cooling system efficient. At a maximum of 3050 RPM, the peak GPU temperature dropped by 9 degrees Celsius.
Maximum speed
As for the temperatures of VRM elements, in the first case they were limited to 72 degrees Celsius, and in the second (at maximum speed), they did not exceed 67 degrees Celsius.
The measurement of the noise level of the video card cooling systems was carried out using an electronic sound level meter CENTER-321 after 1 am in a completely closed room with an area of about 20 m² with double-glazed windows. The noise level was measured outside the case of the system unit, when the source of noise in the room was only the cooling system and its fans. The sound level meter, fixed on a tripod, was always located strictly at one point at a distance of exactly 150 mm from the fan / turbine rotor of the cooler. The motherboard, into which a video card with a cooling system installed on it was inserted, was placed at the very corner of the table on a polyurethane foam substrate. The lower limit of measurements of the sound level meter is 29.8 dBA, and the subjectively comfortable (not to be confused with low) noise level when measuring from such a distance is about 36 dBA. The fan speed was varied over the entire range of their operation using a special precise controller by changing the supply voltage with a step of 0.5 V.
In the graph and in the table with the noise level of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC cooling system, we have included the measurement results of all previously tested original GeForce GTX 780 Ti: ZOTAC GeForce GTX 780 Ti AMP! Edition, MSI GeForce GTX 780 Ti Gaming, Inno3D iChill GeForce GTX 780 Ti HerculeZ X3 Ultra, Palit GeForce GTX 780 Ti JetStream and Gainward GeForce GTX 780 Ti Phantom. The reference NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti with AMD Radeon R9 290X have not been forgotten either. The vertical dashed lines of the corresponding color mark the upper limits of the speed of cooling systems with their automatic PWM control. Let's see the results.
Interestingly, the noise level curve of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC almost exactly repeats the noise level curve of the MSI GeForce GTX 780 Ti Gaming video card, but the noise level of the ASUS cooler in the automatic mode of the fans is, alas, higher. Their speed reaches 1980 rpm, while at the MSI only about 1500 rpm. Compared to the GeForce GTX 780 Ti from other manufacturers, the ASUS cooling system turned out to be noisier than the Inno3D and ZOTAC coolers, but quieter than Palit and Gainward, as well as two coolers from NVIDIA and AMD reference video cards. That is, ASUS DirectCU II can be called a strong average in terms of noise level. We add that the whirring, crackling or sound of fan electric motors was not recorded in the entire range of their operation. In 2D mode, with a fan speed of no higher than 1000 rpm, the video card is completely inaudible.
overclocking potential
Despite the most modest factory overclocking of the core among the original ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC, our video card overclocked very weakly on the GPU - without loss of stability and the appearance of image distortions, the frequency was raised by only 40 MHz. Raising the core voltage for further overclocking did not help, simply because it actually does not work. For this, enthusiasts have to adjust the BIOS, which is unacceptable for our case, so they had to stop at a modest +40 MHz.
At the same time, the video memory frequency of ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC was immediately raised by 1000 effective megahertz, which is a record among all GeForce GTX 780 Ti tested by us. Thus, the frequencies of the video card after overclocking were 994-1060 / 8000 MHz.
During the subsequent check of the temperature regime of the overclocked video card, it turned out that the graphics processor warmed up to 83 degrees Celsius, and the fan speed increased to 2120 rpm.
And since we overclocked the video memory on the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC so well, then in testing we will check the effect of overclocking the video memory on the GeForce GTX 780 Ti on performance. Let's move on to the testing method now.
2. Test configuration, tools and testing methodology
Performance testing of video cards was carried out on a system with the following configuration:
Motherboard: Intel Siler DX79SR (Intel X79 Express, LGA 2011, BIOS 0594 dated 06/08/2013);
CPU: Intel Core i7-3970X Extreme Edition 3.5 / 4.0 GHz(Sandy Bridge-E, C2, 1.1 V, 6x256 KB L2, 15 MB L3);
CPU cooling system: Phanteks PH-TC14PЕ (2xCorsair AF140, 900 rpm);
Thermal interface: ARCTIC MX-4;
Video Cards:
ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II 3 GB 954-1020 / 7000 MHz and 954-1020 / 8000 MHz;
Gainward GeForce GTX 780 Ti Phantom 3 GB 980-1046 / 7000 MHz;
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3 GB 876-928 / 7000 MHz;
MSI Radeon R9 290X Lightning 4GB 1080/5000 MHz;
AMD Radeon R9 290X 4 GB 1000/5000 MHz;
RAM: DDR3 4x8 GB G.SKILL TridentX F3-2133C9Q-32GTX(XMP 2133 MHz, 9-11-11-31, 1.6 V);
System disk: SSD 256 GB Crucial m4 (SATA-III, CT256M4SSD2, BIOS v0009);
Disk for programs and games: Western Digital VelociRaptor (SATA-II, 300 GB, 10,000 rpm, 16 MB, NCQ) in a Scythe Quiet Drive 3.5 "box;
Archive disk: Samsung Ecogreen F4 HD204UI (SATA-II, 2 TB, 5400 rpm, 32 MB, NCQ);
Sound Card: Auzen X-Fi HomeTheater HD;
Case: Antec Twelve Hundred (front wall - three Noiseblocker NB-Multiframe S-Series MF12-S2 at 1020 rpm; back - two Noiseblocker NB-BlackSilentPRO PL-1 at 1020 rpm; top - standard 200 mm fan at 400 rpm);
Control and monitoring panel: Zalman ZM-MFC3;
PSU: Corsair AX1200i (1200W), 120mm fan
Monitor: 27 "Samsung S27A850D (DVI-I, 2560x1440, 60 Hz).
First of all, we will compare the original ASUS graphics card with the reference versions of NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti and AMD Radeon R9 290X at nominal frequencies and without manual fan speed adjustments.
In addition, two original video cards were included in the testing: Gainward GeForce GTX 780 Ti Phantom, as one of the fastest single-processor video cards at nominal frequencies of 980-1033 / 6008 MHz, and MSI Radeon R9 290X Lightning at 1080/5000 MHz.
Let's add that the "Power Limit" value on all video cards was set to the maximum.
To reduce the dependence of the performance of video cards on the platform speed, a 32-nm six-core processor with a multiplier of 48, a reference frequency of 100 MHz and an activated Load-Line Calibration function was overclocked to 4.8 GHz when the voltage in the motherboard BIOS was raised to 1.38 V.
Hyper-Threading Technology is activated. At the same time, 32 GB of RAM operated at a frequency of 2.133 GHz with timings 9-11-11-20_CR1 at a voltage of 1.6125 V.
Testing, which began on March 29, 2014, was conducted under the operating system Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate x64 SP1 with all critical updates as of the specified date and with the following drivers installed:
motherboard chipset Intel Chipset Drivers - 9.4.4.1006 WHQL from 21.09.2013;
DirectX End-User Runtimes libraries, released on November 30, 2010;
drivers for video cards on AMD graphics processors - AMD Catalyst 14.3 Beta v1.0 dated 03/17/2014;
video card drivers on NVIDIA GPUs - GeForce 335.23 WHQL.
The performance of the video cards was tested in two resolutions: 1920x1080 and 2560x1440 pixels. Two modes of graphics quality were used for the tests: "Quality + AF16x" - the quality of textures in the drivers by default with anisotropic filtering at 16x level, and "Quality + AF16x + MSAA 4x (8x)" with anisotropic filtering at 16x level and full-screen anti-aliasing. 4x or 8x, in cases where the average frames per second remained high enough for comfortable gaming. In some games, due to the specifics of the game engines, other anti-aliasing algorithms were used, which will be indicated later in the methodology and in the diagrams. Anisotropic filtering and full-screen anti-aliasing were enabled directly in the game settings. If these settings were absent in games, then the parameters were changed in the control panel of Catalyst or GeForce drivers. Vertical sync was also forcibly disabled there. Apart from the above, no additional changes were made to the driver settings.
The video cards were tested in two graphics tests and fourteen games, updated to the latest versions as of the date of the start of preparation of the material:
3DMark (2013)(DirectX 9/11) - version 1.2.250.0, testing in the scenes "Cloud Gate", "Fire Strike" and "Fire Strike Extreme";
Unigine Valley Bench(DirectX 11) - version 1.0, maximum quality settings, AF16x and (or) MSAA 4x, resolution 1920x1080;
(DirectX 11) - version 1.1.0, built-in test (battle at Sekigahara) at maximum graphics quality settings and using one of the MSAA 8x modes;
Sniper elite v2 benchmark(DirectX 11) - version 1.05, used Adrenaline Sniper Elite V2 Benchmark Tool v1.0.0.2 BETA maximum graphics quality settings ("Ultra"), Advanced Shadows: HIGH, Ambient Occlusion: ON, Stereo 3D: OFF, Supersampling: OFF, double sequential test run;
Sleeping dogs(DirectX 11) - version 1.5, used Adrenaline Action Benchmark Tool v1.0.2.1, maximum graphics quality settings for all items, Hi-Res Textures pack installed, FPS Limiter and V-Sync disabled, double sequential test run with total anti-aliasing at "Normal" and "Extreme" levels;
Hitman: Absolution(DirectX 11) - version 1.0.447.0, built-in test with graphics quality settings at "Ultra" level, tessellation, FXAA and global illumination are enabled.
Crysis 3(DirectX 11) - version 1.2.0.1000, all graphics quality settings to maximum, blur degree - medium, glare enabled, modes with FXAA and MSAA4x anti-aliasing, double sequential pass of the scripted scene from the beginning of the "Swamp" mission lasting 110 seconds;
Tomb Raider (2013)(DirectX 11) - version 1.1.748.0, Adrenaline Action Benchmark Tool used, quality settings at Ultra level, V-Sync disabled, modes with FXAA and 2xSSAA anti-aliasing, TressFX technology enabled, double sequential pass of the test built into the game;
BioShock Infinite(DirectX 11) - version 1.1.25.5165, Adrenaline Action Benchmark Tool with "Ultra" and "Ultra + DOF" quality settings, double run of the test built into the game;
Metro: Last Light(DirectX 11) - version 1.0.0.15, built-in game test was used, graphics quality and tessellation settings were set to "Very High", Advanced PhysX technology was enabled, tests with and without SSAA anti-aliasing, double sequential scene pass "D6".
GRID 2(DirectX 11) - version 1.0.85.8679, the built-in game test was used, graphics quality settings to the maximum level for all positions, tests with and without MSAA8x anti-aliasing, eight cars on the Chicago track;
Company of Heroes 2(DirectX 11) - version 3.0.0.13106, double sequential run of the test built into the game with the maximum settings for graphics quality and physical effects;
Total War: Rome II(DirectX 11) - version 1.11.0.0, quality settings at “Extreme” level, V-Sync disabled, SSAA anti-aliasing enabled, double sequential pass of the test built into the game;
Batman: arkham origins(DirectX 11) - version 1.0 (update 8), quality settings at “Ultra” level, V-Sync disabled, all effects enabled, all “DX11 Enhanced” functions enabled, Hardware Accelerated PhysX = Normal, double sequential pass of the test built into the game ;
Battlefield 4(DirectX 11) - version 111433, all graphics quality settings to "Ultra", double sequential pass of the scripted scene from the beginning of the "TASHGAR" mission lasting 110 seconds;
Thief(DirectX 11) - version 1.3 build 4118.5, graphics quality settings to the maximum level, Paralax Occlusion Mapping and Tessellation technologies are activated, double sequential pass of the benchmark built into the game.
If the games implemented the ability to fix the minimum number of frames per second, then it was also reflected in the diagrams. Each test was carried out twice, the best of the two obtained values was taken as the final result, but only if the difference between them did not exceed 1%. If the deviations of the test runs exceeded 1%, then the testing was repeated at least one more time in order to obtain a reliable result.
3. Results of performance tests and their analysis
In the diagrams, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti results are displayed in light green, AMD Radeon R9 290X and MSI Radeon R9 290X Lightning - in traditional red, and the results of two original GeForce GTX 780 Ti from Gainward and ASUS - in dark turquoise. To highlight the results of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC graphics card overclocked from memory, we marked them on the diagram with an even darker shade of turquoise. Since we have already analyzed all the other results in the two previous articles, today we focus exclusively on the benefits of overclocking the video memory of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC card.3DMark (2013)
In the first semi-synthetic 3DMark test (2013), overclocking the memory on the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC at 1000 MHz or 14.3% brings only 2.2% of the performance plus, and in the least resource-intensive Cloud Gate test, 100 points or less 0.3%.
Unigine Valley Bench
The situation in the Unigine Valley test is no better.
In the anti-aliasing mode, the performance from the gigahertz overclocking of the video memory increased by only 2.3%, and without the use of MSAA, the difference is completely difficult to see.
Total War: SHOGUN 2 - Fall of the Samurai
There is little sense from overclocking the video memory in the "samurai" test.
Only 1.3-2.1% can increase the performance of ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC in anti-aliasing modes, overclocking the memory to an impressive 1000 MHz. In fact, this is expressed in 1 average frame per second, which is impossible to notice during the game.
Sniper elite v2 benchmark
A slightly more noticeable difference can be found in the test of the game Sniper Elite V2.
For example, in a resolution of 2560x1440 pixels using anti-aliasing, overclocking of video memory brings ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC an additional 3.5% performance. In addition, we note a much more noticeable increase in the minimum FPS in each of the test modes.
Sleeping dogs
Sleeping Dogs does not stand out from the general trend. Unfortunately, overclocking video memory affects the performance of a top-end single-processor video card to the very minimum extent.
Hitman: Absolution
The difference is even less noticeable in Hitman: Absolution.
Crysis 3
But in Crysis 3, on the contrary, the performance gain can be seen in almost all graphics quality modes.
“The maximum performance gain was noted by us at 2560x1440 pixels with anti-aliasing and is 6.3%, a record since the beginning of the analysis!” - sounds promising enough, doesn't it? But in reality, this is only 2 FPS in average and minimum frames per second.
Tomb Raider (2013)
Much more modest performance gain in the game Tomb Raider (2013).
Between 1.1 and 4.3% of the performance comes from the extra gigahertz of memory in this game.
BioShock Infinite
Little sense from good overclocking of video memory and in the game BioShock Infinite.
Metro: Last Light
Metro: Last Light was more responsive to overclocking video memory, moreover, as with the use of "Advanced PhysX" technology ...
... and without it.
We recorded the maximum performance gain at 2560x1440 pixels with anti-aliasing - 5.9%.
GRID 2
You can drive GRID 2 on a GeForce GTX 780 Ti without overclocking the video memory, because even an additional gigahertz will bring you no more than 3.4% performance plus.
Company of Heroes 2
About the same reacted to the increase in the memory frequency and the game Company of Heroes 2.
Total War: Rome II
Finally, we got to the game where overclocking the video memory on the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC bore fruit: 
We can observe the performance gain in Total War: Rome II in all modes without exception, and here it turned out to be noticeably higher than in all previous games: from 6.7 to 8.3%. This, of course, is not proportional to the increase in the memory frequency (by 14.3%), but it is already noticeably better than anything that we have seen before.
Batman: arkham origins
However, we did not have to rejoice for a long time. Already in Batman: Arkham Origins, everything is back to square one.
Interestingly, the maximum performance gain in this game was recorded in the "lightest" graphics mode - at a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels without using anti-aliasing.
Battlefield 4
The increased memory frequency was minimally useful in the game Battlefield 4.
Gigahertz GDDR5 brought only 2.5-3.4% additional performance.
Thief
Finally, in the game Thief, the new ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC also turned out to be indifferent to the increase in the video memory frequency.
Let's supplement the constructed diagrams with a summary table with test results with the final average and minimum FPS values for each video card.
Next, let's move on to pivot charts.
4. Summary charts
Since the main topic of today's testing was the dependence of the performance of the GeForce GTX 780 Ti on the video memory frequency, then this pair of summary diagrams will open this section.
As we already noted during testing, Total War: Rome II responded best to overclocking the video memory of the GeForce GTX 780 Ti. In addition, one cannot fail to note the general tendency when in modes with anti-aliasing the performance increases more noticeably than without it, which, however, is quite logical. And if, on average, in all gaming tests without AA, performance increased from 2.0 to 2.1%, then when anti-aliasing was activated, the percentage increased to 2.5-3.7%. In simple terms, in current games, overclocking the memory on the GeForce GTX 780 Ti is very, very little sense.
Since today we have such uninteresting summary diagrams on the main topic of testing, let's supplement them with two more pairs. In the first, we will compare the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC and the reference GeForce GTX 780 Ti in terms of performance.
On average, the ASUS graphics card outperforms the regular version of the GTX 780 Ti by 4.5-5.1% at a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, and by 4.1-5.3% at a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. Previous original versions of the GeForce GTX 780 Ti, which have a higher core frequency, boast slightly higher performance compared to the reference version.
By the way, how exactly other versions of the GeForce GTX 780 Ti outperform the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC, we will tell us its comparison with the Gainward GeForce GTX 780 Ti Phantom on the next pair of summary diagrams.
Minor, to tell the truth. Only 1.3-2.3% at a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and 2.1-2.7% at a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. In games, it is impossible to see and feel such a difference, believe me.
5. Power consumption
The energy consumption of the system with different video cards was measured using the Zalman ZM-MFC3 multifunctional panel, which shows the system consumption "from the wall" as a whole (excluding the monitor). The measurement was carried out in 2D mode, during normal work in Microsoft Word or "Internet surfing", as well as in 3D mode. In the latter case, the load was created using four consecutive cycles of the opening scene of the “Swamp” level from the Crysis 3 game at 2560x1440 pixels at maximum graphics quality settings, but without using MSAA anti-aliasing.Let's compare the power consumption of the systems with the graphics cards we tested today.
Interestingly, despite a more modest factory overclocking of the GPU, a system with an ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC graphics card consumes 13 watts more power than a configuration with a Gainward GeForce GTX 780 Ti Phantom. Besides, in 2D mode, the difference in power consumption was 17 watts, not in favor of ASUS. Overclocking the video memory by 1000 MHz increased the power consumption of the system as a whole by only 4 W at the peak of the load. A 600 watt PSU will still be sufficient for any of the configurations tested today.
6. Results of seven tested GeForce GTX 780 Ti
Since today's ASUS graphics card is most likely the last of the original GeForce GTX 780 Ti models that came to us for tests, we decided to take stock of all seven tested video cards. First of all, we summarized the ASIC quality of the graphics processors of these video cards, their nominal frequencies (including the actual ones according to the monitoring data), as well as the frequencies during overclocking. The best results are highlighted in red, the worst in blue, and the video cards are listed in the table in chronological order as we tested them.
The "high-quality" crystal (77.8%) was found in the reference version NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti, which we tested first. In the nominal operating mode, the fastest video card is the MSI GeForce GTX 780 Ti Gaming, the GPU frequency of which can be increased up to 1163 MHz. The fastest memory is installed on ZOTAC and Inno3D products, but, as we have seen today, this fact affects performance to the smallest extent. When overclocking on the core, the best result was achieved on the ZOTAC video card, although the maximum frequency increase (240 MHz) was recorded on the reference version of the video card. At the same time, according to the monitoring data, the maximum frequency was on the Inno3D video card. Well, the memory is the best overclocked in the heroine of today's article - ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC.
Further, we summarized the results of tests of the temperature regime of video cards and measurements of the noise level of their cooling systems at maximum speed and automatic regulation into one diagram. In each block of the diagram, the results are arranged from top to bottom in ascending order of maximum GPU temperature.
In both modes, the Inno3D video card turned out to be the best, which is not surprising given its amazingly efficient cooling system. ZOTAC and Palit follow, but the latter is too noisy. MSI and ASUS products are about the same in terms of efficiency, but the MSI graphics card is quieter. Gainward and NVIDIA took the last places on this list.
The following diagram will tell us how efficient and noisy video cards are when overclocked. True, here we have to make a reservation that when overclocking the reference version of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti, the fan speed was manually set to 85% or 3530 rpm, while for MSI we had to fix the fan speed at 65% or 1920 rpm to ensure stability. ... Here's the comparison we made.
The leader is still the same: the Inno3D video card comes with a wide margin from the pursuer in the person of ZOTAC both in temperature and in noise level. On the third place is the video card Palit, but it is overclocked weaker than Inno3D and ZOTAC, and is much more noisy. Next comes MSI with manual fan speed control, and then a couple of Gainward and NVIDIA. Only the last place during overclocking was taken by the ASUS video card, but it is still quieter than Gainward, NVIDIA or Palit.
If in the foreseeable future we still manage to test elite products MSI Lightning, EVGA Classified K | NGP | N Edition and ASUS (represented by MATRIX-GTX780TI-P-3GD5), as well as take Gigabyte for tests, then the pivot table and diagrams will be mandatory supplemented by their results. Let's summarize.
Conclusion
Already the sixth original GeForce GTX 780 Ti - ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC - is quite an interesting product, even if it does not claim to be the best of the fastest single-processor video cards based on NVIDIA GPUs. We noted its shortcomings during testing - a relatively noisy cooling system, a modest factory overclocking of the core and low overclocking potential. The rest of the video card turned out to be quite successful, combining a highly efficient cooling system, an original printed circuit board with a reinforced power system, informative and reliable packaging, as well as a varied approach to appearance. Separately, we note the cost of ASUS GeForce GTX 780 Ti DirectCU II OC, which is lower than the price of other original GeForce GTX 780 Ti (primarily in foreign online stores). Well, in the context of the testing carried out, we note once again that overclocking the memory on the GeForce GTX 780 Ti affects the performance of the video card to the very minimum extent.We thank ASUS and personally Vlad Zakharov,
for the video card provided for testing.
It is the most productive in the 7th series of video cards from NVIDIA. The company managed to create a really "top" product, which is significantly different from the "junior" models. Of course, first of all, we are talking about the used graphics processor.
The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760/770 uses a modified version of the NVIDIA GK104 chip, while the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 is based on the most powerful GPU at the moment - the NVIDIA GK110. In other words, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 is more comparable with NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN than with other models from the 7th series. Moreover, as we have already been able to see in practice, the difference in performance between the "reference" NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 and NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN is not so big, which cannot be said about the cost. Based on this, many manufacturers have relied on the flagship of the 7th series, and not on the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN.
ASUS was one of the first to offer the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 with a modified design on the market, and immediately introduced its overclocked version called.
ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU 2 OS Features
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ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS (ASUS GTX780-DC2OC-3GD5) |
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Graphics core |
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 (GK110) |
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Number of universal shader processors |
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Supported APIs and Technologies |
DirectX 11.1 (Shader Model 5.0), OpenGL 4.3, NVIDIA GPU Boost 2.0, NVIDIA TXAA, NVIDIA FXAA, NVIDIA Adaptive Vertical Sync, NVIDIA Surround, NVIDIA PhysX, NVIDIA 3D Vision, 3-way NVIDIA SLI, NVIDIA CUDA |
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Core frequency, MHz |
889 (941 with GPU Boost 2.0) |
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Memory frequency (effective), MHz |
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Memory capacity, GB |
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Memory bus, bit |
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Memory type |
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Maximum resolution |
Digital - up to 4096x2160 Analog - up to 2048x1536 |
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1 x DisplayPort |
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Supports HDCP and HD video decoding |
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Dimensions, mm |
287 x 147 x 41 |
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Drivers |
The latest drivers can be downloaded from the ASUS website or the GPU manufacturer's website |
|
Products webpage |
Packaging and delivery set
The video card comes in a large colorful packaging with an abundance of printing. On the front panel features of the device are marked, the main of which is the proprietary design of the cooling system called "Direct CU II".
Direct CU II technology allows the heatpipes to directly contact the GPU cover. As a result, the heat transfer rate increases and the efficiency of the entire cooler increases. According to the manufacturer, the heating of the video processor is reduced by 20% and the noise from the operation of the fans is noticeably reduced in comparison with the "reference" cooling system.
At the bottom of the box, other advantages of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS are noted:
- OC Edition- some parameters were factory overclocked on the video card. That is, the user immediately gets a faster version than the reference version.
- 3 GB GDDR5 Memory- 3 GB fast GDDR5 video memory is used.
- DIGI + VRM Super Alloy Power- a proprietary concept of building a power subsystem. This technology provides for the use of a digital PWM controller and high-quality elements in the power supply circuits of the GPU and video memory. All this allows to reduce voltage ripple by 30%, to increase energy efficiency by 15% and to extend the service life by 2.5 times in comparison with the “reference” product.
- ASUS GPU Tweak- a utility with which you can easily optimize the parameters of a video card, as well as monitor its main indicators.
Even this small list is enough to understand that we have a "top" model aimed at gamers, overclockers and other computer enthusiasts.
Inside the package is a black hardboard box that protects the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS from possible damage.
In addition to the video card itself, the package includes:
- user guide;
- CD with driver and utilities;
- NVIDIA SLI bridge;
- power adapter cable from two 6-pin to one 8-pin connector.
This package can be called optimal for a video card of this class. Note the presence of a power adapter cable, which can be useful if your unit does not have an 8-pin PCI-E connector. Also, owners of outdated monitors with an analog connector should pay attention to the fact that there is no DVI-to-VGA adapter included in the package.
Appearance
Despite its high performance, the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS graphics card cannot be called too bulky. Its length is 287 mm, which is only 20 mm more than the "reference" analogue of NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780. The height of the graphics adapter has also increased - 147 mm versus 111 mm for the reference version. First of all, the changes in dimensions are associated with the installation of a fundamentally different cooling system, which we will consider in more detail a little later.
The width of the novelty is 41 mm, so that only two slots for expansion cards will be covered in the computer.
On the back side of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS is closed with a metal base plate. The manufacturer also installed a stiffener, which will help to avoid sagging of the rear edge of the video card.
For displaying images on ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS, the following set of interfaces is provided:
- 1 x DVI-I;
- 1 x DVI-D;
- 1 x HDMI;
- 1 x DisplayPort.
The following resolutions are supported:
- digital - up to 4096x2160;
- analog - up to 2048x1536.
Graphics card circuit board
ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780
In the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS, the manufacturer used an "unreferenced" PCB design. The main changes were made to the power unit. In particular, the number of phases has been increased from six to eight in the GPU power subsystem. Two phases are still used to power the memory.
In accordance with the proprietary concept of Super Alloy Power, only a high-quality element base was used in the production of the video accelerator in question: solid-state and tantalum capacitors, as well as chokes with ferrite cores. The power section of each phase consists of three "mosfets": two NTMFS4937N and one NTMFS4955N.
Instead of the NCP4206 PWM controller, a proprietary DIGI + VRM chip labeled ASP1212 is installed. This chip is often found on "top" products from ASUS, which indicates its high reliability and functionality. It is equipped with support for modern energy-saving technologies (including switching off the power phases during idle time) and a communication protocol between the program and VID-values of voltages. Great opportunities open up for overclockers, because according to the specification, the ASP1212 allows you to raise the voltage up to 2.3 V.
Additional power for ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS is provided through two connectors located on the side of the video card: one 6-pin and one 8-pin. That is, taking into account the power consumption through the PCI Express x16 slot, the tested sample can theoretically supply up to 300 W of power. Recall that the TDP of NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 is announced at 250 watts.
We also want to draw your attention to the convenient location of the connectors for additional power supply. Special cuts are made in the PCB, which simplifies the process of connecting / disconnecting PCI-E connectors. It's nice that ASUS specialists paid attention to even such nuances.
There are four LEDs under the connectors that signal the level of power consumption of the video card.
Naturally, a device of this level supports SLI mode. Thanks to the presence of two connectors, a very powerful gaming configuration can be created, combining two to four video accelerators.
Since all significant elements and assemblies are located on the front side, the reverse part of the printed circuit board is practically unremarkable, although there are some peculiarities here too. They mainly touched on the overclocking capabilities of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS video card and will primarily be of interest to overclockers.
At the edge of the board there are points for measuring and changing three voltages - GPU / memory / PLL. With their help, you can instrumentally (for example, with an external multimeter) determine the values of the required voltages, as well as make their hardware modification (voltmod). To activate the last option, you need to close the corresponding contacts.
Below are the conclusions with which the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS is connected to the branded motherboard from the ROG series. In this case, extreme overclocking of the video card and voltage monitoring can be carried out using the motherboard.
The ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS is based on the NVIDIA GK110 (Kepler) graphics chip, manufactured using a 28-nm process technology, which consists of 2304 universal shader pipelines (or CUDA cores in NVIDIA terminology) and includes 48 rasterization units and 192 texture units. The graphics core operates at 889 MHz versus 863 MHz for the reference design card. The speed of operation in turbo mode has also been increased: for the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS it is 941 MHz, while in the usual NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 it is 902 MHz.
The memory of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS video card, the total volume of which is 3 GB, is recruited using 12 K4G20325FD-FC03 chips (256 MB each) manufactured by Samsung. According to the documentation, the voltage can vary from 1.455 to 1.545 V. Data exchange is carried out via a 384-bit bus, the bandwidth of which reaches 288.4 GB / s.
Cooling system
As mentioned above, the cooling system on the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS is significantly different from the reference version. Instead of a "reference" turbine and evaporation chamber, a large radiator with heat pipes is installed here, which is blown by two fans.
Structurally, the cooler's radiator is one integral section with fins of different sizes. According to the proprietary Direct CU II technology, the heat pipes are in direct contact with the GPU surface. The advantage of this method is obvious - faster heat dissipation from the GPU.
In total, this cooler uses five copper heat pipes: two with a diameter of 6 mm, two with a diameter of 8 mm, and one with a diameter of 10 mm. Moreover, the thickest ones are in the center, and the thinner ones are on the sides. This design was chosen for a reason, because it is the tubes with a diameter of 8 and 10 mm that are in direct contact with the video core.
There are no complaints about the quality of the radiator. For greater rigidity and reliability of the structure, the manufacturer used a copper base with grooves, to which heat pipes are soldered.
The radiator fins are also soldered to the copper pipes.
Another element of the passive part of the cooling system is a small aluminum radiator that covers the power supply transistors. Considering the great overclocking capabilities, it will not be superfluous at all.
But the memory chips lack any radiators, which is a little strange. After all, raising the frequency and hardware voltmod can significantly affect their heating.
The active part of the cooling system is represented by two fans with impeller diameters of 97 and 95 mm. Structurally, they are slightly different from each other. The first one combines the features of a classic fan and a turbine. You can clearly see how the angle of "attack" of the blades changes - the closer to the center of the fan, the larger it is. Thus, a multidirectional air flow is provided, due to which heat removal from the plates is improved, as we have already seen in the review of the ASUS GeForce GTX 670 DirectCU Mini OC video card.
The second fan has a more standard look. This is due to the fact that in addition to the main heatsink, it additionally cools the elements of the power subsystem of the graphics adapter. This means that most of the air flow is directed exactly perpendicular to the PCB board.
The top of the cooler is closed with a plastic casing, which also takes part in the distribution of air flows from the fans.
As you can see, ASUS engineers did a pretty good job on the design of the cooling system. Now let's see how all these technical solutions work in practice. To monitor the performance of the video card, the complete ASUS GPU Tweak utility was used.
In automatic mode under continuous maximum load, the temperature of the graphics core did not exceed 80 ° C, which is a good result for a product of this level. The fans were running at 69% of their capacity, while they were not audible against the background of other components of the computer.
In the maximum fan speed mode, the GPU temperature dropped to 76 ° C. To some, this result may not seem very significant, but another factor should be taken into account - noise. At maximum revs it was quite comfortable and according to the auditory sensations it can be described as "average". Also, do not forget that we are dealing with an overclocked version of a video card. For comparison, the "reference" turbine of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 model runs much louder at maximum speed, while the graphics processor heats up to 71 ° C. Obviously, the cooler of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS solution, in terms of performance / noise, is a much better cooling option.
In the absence of load, the frequencies of the graphics core and memory are automatically reduced, which leads to less power consumption and heat dissipation. The fans in this mode rotate at a speed that is only 37% of the maximum speed. At the same time, practically no noise is emitted, and the GPU temperature does not exceed 37 ° C.
Based on the results of these tests, we can say with confidence that the cooling system of the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS video card is a worthy replacement for the standard turbine. This cooler does its job perfectly, providing a low GPU temperature with a relatively low noise level.
Testing
As you would expect, the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS graphics card with a slight factory overclocked performance showed a higher level of performance compared to a graphics accelerator based on NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 of the "reference" design. Its advantage averaged 5%, which can be regarded as a good result, corresponding to the level of factory optimization of its parameters. Although in especially heavy graphics modes, such an increase is unlikely to be noticeable.
But another fact is extremely interesting. The ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS graphics card lagged behind the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN by the same 5% on average, which is insignificant considering the difference in cost.
If we consider the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS in comparison with the single-chip competitive flagship - AMD Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition, then the advantage of the new product is noticeable to the naked eye. True, here the difference in price is not on her side. So, a modified Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition will cost the user about $ 200-250 less.
Overclocking
Armed with the proprietary ASUS GPU Tweak utility and increasing the GPU supply voltage to 1087 mV (nominal is 1075 mV), we managed to overclock the graphics core of the video card to 1088 MHz (+ 22.4% relative to the nominal ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS and +26, 1% relative to "reference"). The effective memory frequency was 6970 MHz (+ 16% relative to the "reference").
Despite the factory overclocking, the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS graphics card still has quite a lot of overclocking potential. You can estimate the performance gain due to manual optimization using the following table:
|
Test package |
Standard frequencies |
Optimized graphics card |
Increase in productivity,% |
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Performance score |
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Performance score |
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Unigine Heaven Benchmark 4.0, DirectX 11, Ultra Quality, AA4x, Fps |
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Sniper Elite V2 Benchmark, DirectX 11, Maximum Quality, Fps |
1920x1080, AA4x / AF16x |
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5760x1080, NoAA / AF4x, Multi monitor |
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Borderlands 2 Benchmark, DirectX 11, Maximum Quality, AF16x, Fps |
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Crysis 2 v1.9 Benchmark, DirectX 11, AA4x, Extreme Quality, fps |
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5760x1080, Multi monitor |
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Batman Arkham City Benchmark, DirectX 11, FXAA-Hi, Tesselation-Hi, Extreme Quality, fps |
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5760x1080, Multi monitor |
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Colin McRae: DiRT 3, DirectX 11, Very High Quality, MSAA8x, fps |
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Metro 2033 Benchmark, DirectX 11, Maximum Quality, AA4x / AF4x, fps |
5760x1080, Multi monitor |
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Thanks to manual overclocking, we managed to achieve an additional 13% performance increase, which allowed the ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS to even slightly outperform the NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN, which is just an excellent result.
Conclusions about the video card
Summing up, we can safely say that among the flagships from NVIDIA, it is the GeForce GTX 780 model, and not the GeForce GTX TITAN, that will be very popular among users. Tested graphics card ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS is a very good confirmation of these words. Indeed, in terms of performance in nominal it is practically not inferior to NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN, but it costs much less. In addition, the new product from ASUS has advantages over other models of NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780. Firstly, it is factory overclocked, and secondly, a completely redesigned PCB design and cooling system. The cooler installed here copes with cooling the GPU just as well as the reference turbine, but it works much quieter. Even at the maximum speed of rotation of the blades, the noise from them does not rise above average.
I also liked the fact that ASUS GeForce GTX 780 DirectCU II OS has a high overclocking potential, despite the applied factory optimization of parameters .. We easily managed to speed up the new product by 22%, thereby gaining a 13% increase in gaming applications. And this can be considered an excellent result, especially since such manipulations did not affect the noise produced.
The company did not forget about the enthusiasts. On the back side of the board there are contacts with which you can implement a hardware voltmod. There are also points for measuring the main voltages with a multimeter. All this will make life easier for extreme overclockers and make it easier to achieve the desired result.
Dignity
- high quality element base;
- reinforced eight-phase power supply system of the graphics core;
- efficient and quiet cooling system; , Scythe, Sea sonic electronics and Western digital for the equipment provided for the test bench.
- All 1080p games run at their highest settings.
For example, on my computer (3770k (4.4GHz), 8Gb) with ultra settings, all possible settings at max. BF3: 120-155 fps, BF4: 100-130, ArchAge: 99-140, WoT: 89-120.
At the same time, the temperature does not rise above 70 degrees.
- Not found. Perhaps for now.
The feeling that the card is redundant for full HD does not leave. Perhaps 770 would be enough.
But I took it for GTA5, in the fall it will be clear whether I miscalculated or not.
The card is audible under load. But it's not critical, compared to the GTX470, it's just a sample of silence.
Zalman Z9 Plus case, the thermocouple practically lies on the backplate of the video card next to the power connectors. So the temperature is 40-42 degrees. at room 25.
I think in a simpler case the temperature would be higher.
The card almost fit right next to it - about 3mm was left to the basket. Keep in mind.
16 2
- Asus. 3-year warranty. Good overclocking potential thanks to redesigned power supply and its own board.
- Bends (Very heavy) The bottom corner had to be screwed through with a self-tapping screw from the basket with hard drives. Asus does not learn from its mistakes with the 670gtx ... With such massive cooling, you need to let the frame around the board and bring it to the mounting bar monolithically, then it will not bend and the cooler second greedy looks ugly. Memory without cooling radiators. Strange video card turned out (Raw) The Chinese were in a hurry to see ...
Nevertheless, we have a stable 1215 core frequency and 6500 memory in overclocking. I didn’t drive the memory anymore because it’s scary that it will get very hot, although in the reviews people drive up to 7100))) In Furmarke at ultra 80 FPS))) Very good result. Noisy I will write the card under load, noisy who would not say anything, but thanks to its cooling from thick pipes it keeps the temperature of 75-80 degrees when the coolers are calmed down to 50% And you can not hear it at all. But the ears are not comfortable. The new cooler howls like a wolf ... In general, I am satisfied with the purchase, but I had to put my hands on it. And even without Core i 7. Useless purchase.
Complain Did the review help? 79 64
- I am delighted !!! Relatively small, eats not much, cold, chases well, but about Power I can only write with a capital letter!)) All I found on the Internet - a slider to the right to the end without overclocking, drawdowns will appear - overclocking will definitely eliminate
- took 04/30/2014 for 18490 r oO
Guys, this is ... (you can't describe XD without a mat) Personally, my opinion is that taking the top one is stupid, taking the middle one is also stupid. Optimally before the top, which is inferior to the top 2-5fps and 30-50% of the cost. Taking into account the overclocking, this VK will be enough for you for a long time!
Complain Did the review help? 17 16
- Silence. Both in idle and in load. No whistle, squeak, etc.
Productive. Acceptable overclocking.
- I did not quite understand the location of the cooling pipes.
Apparently the engineers at the ACS decided that the motherboards were freezing and brought all the pipes closer to the motherboard.
The price could be lower.
Overclocking 1241 chips, 7200 memory.
There are no artifacts.
I left it at 1100/7000.
Temperature maximum 71 C, windows open, outside 30 C. FurMark swallowed.
I am satisfied with the purchase. Long thought between 770 and 780, settled on this one.
Works in tandem with 3570K.
Asik 71.6
Since we are talking about an accelerator based on the Nvidia GPU, it is reasonable to pay attention to the application again. Nvidia Geforce Experience, which is part of the drivers and is designed to help owners of such accelerators. Owners of 3D accelerators will come across this program one way or another when installing drivers.
So that the user of this family of video cards does not bother with questions about which settings to set in each game in order to get the best quality / performance ratio, Nvidia specialists have worked out the optimal sets of options (settings) for games.
The utility independently scans the Windows registry for already installed games, as well as folders with popular gaming systems Steam, Origin, etc., creating a list of games for a specific user. Then the utility scans the PC configuration to find the optimal settings for your specific conditions. In the end, the program sets the optimal settings in those games that this version already "knows".
Moreover, even in games for which there are currently no settings in the database for a specific PC configuration, the program will try to select the settings as close as possible in terms of comfort, for which there is a special button to start the optimization process.
Geforce Experience also monitors the latest driver versions, constantly checks for updates and informs the user about new (even beta) versions. If necessary, the driver is downloaded using the utility itself, and installed from it.
And we're back to examining a card based on Geforce GTX 780.
Fee
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The card has 3072 MB of GDDR5 SDRAM located in 12 chips on the front side of the PCB. The card requires additional power supply, and two connectors: one with six contacts, the second with eight. About the cooling system.
We carried out a study of the temperature regime using the EVGA PrecisionX utility (by A. Nikolaychuk AKA Unwinder) and received the following results: Packaging.
Installation and driversTest bench configuration:
VSync is disabled. Test results: performance comparisonAs a toolkit, we used:
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