Overview of the NVidia GeForce GTX 970: description, features and reviews

High-end video game adapter GeForce GTX 970 became famous on the world stage thanks to the scandal, which was arranged by potential buyers, media and competitors. However, recently, many experts in the field of IT technologies assure that it was a usual marketing move in order to attract the most attention to the product. So this is in fact or not - it's not important, the main thing is that every user has learned about the novelty. In this article, the reader will get to know better the remarkable GeForce GTX 970 chip from Nvidia, as well as devices based on it, released under the brands of well-known manufacturers.

The essence of the problem GeForce GTX 970

The world's public manufacturer Nvidia presented a new gaming chip as GeForce GTX 970 4096Mb, which has 64 rasterization blocks and a second level cache on a graphics core with a capacity of 2 megabytes. However, the first buyers at launch of testing applications found that the amount of video memory is not 4 Gb, but 3.5 gigabytes, rasterization blocks only 56, and the L2 cache has 1.75 MB. Naturally sensing the deception, many users turned with a negative to the manufacturer.

With the amount of memory, the situation was resolved favorably: in fact, it is simply segmented into 3.5 + 0.5 GB (when the main volume is full, a spare segment is connected). But the manufacturer has written off the insufficient number of cache and ROP blocks for the error of the company's designers.

To somehow smooth out the conflict, Nvidia lowered the cost to the GeForce GTX 970 chip. As a result, only the buyer was the winner, because in the market by the criterion of price-quality in the High-End class, this video adapter occupies a leading position. Competitors from the manufacturer AMD lag far behind in this matter.

Technical characteristics of the chip

Attractive for the video card GeForce GTX 970 price (20-30 thousand rubles) unambiguously confuses all potential buyers on the market at the first acquaintance with the technical characteristics of the device. After all, when comparing with the older model of the line (we are talking about the GTX 980), the cost of which is two times higher than the video card under consideration, the chip parameters are not too different:

• The same graphic core GM204 (Maxwell) is used with the technical process of 28 nanometers;
• The same L2 cache (claimed);
• The GDDR5 memory with a 256-bit bus operating at 1750 MHz and having a capacity of 4 GB is also identical;
• Naturally, the memory bandwidth will be the same - 224 gigabytes per second.

The GeForce GTX 970 differs from the flagship GeForce GTX 980 only in the number of shader units (in the younger model there are 1664 of them, instead of 2048 pieces at the top device). Blocks of textures 104 (the GeForce GTX 980 has 128 of them). The graphics processor GeForce GTX 970 operates at a frequency of 1050 MHz (instead of 1126 MHz with the flagship).

The first introduction to the GeForce GTX 970 adapter in the factory version

The reference device from Nvidia is not available in retail, but with a special desire, the original GeForce GTX 970 graphics card can be provided by the official distributor of the manufacturer (this is used by the media and independent laboratories around the world for testing). The cost of such a copy always exceeds similar products sold in the market under other brands - this is the company's policy.

The video adapter is shipped without packaging (OEM). The appearance of the device clearly hints that the video card belongs to the High-End class: dimensions, a dual cooling system and the presence of a turbofan. It's worth noting that when inspecting the batteries in detail and after testing the GeForce GTX 970 adapter under load, many users have found that the manufacturer has installed cheap Chinese chokes for the sake of economy, which not only squeaks while working, but also gets hot. There are no questions to the cooling system, when working at nominal frequencies, the cooler coped with its task by 100%.

The best purchase in the domestic market

Asus GeForce GTX 970 Strix video adapter became the first representative of Nvidia, which hit the shelves of stores around the world. The device immediately attracted the attention of all buyers of the gaming segment not only with an affordable price (22,000 rubles), but also with decent performance. However, for this purpose in the company's laboratories the PCB of the video card has been completely modified:

• Complete replacement of all batteries, including PWM controllers, chokes and phase distributors;
• The components that are responsible for the distribution of energy are assembled and placed on the front of the GeForce GTX 970 PCB (as on budget video cards) for better cooling;
• The 8-pin power connector in the ASUS lab was turned (for easy disconnection);
• Installed memory modules Samsung, capable of operating at a nominal frequency of 2000 MHz.

Such modifications on the PCB clearly hint to the owner that the video card in the walls of ASUS is planned to be used for overclocking. But, as you know, the whole potential of the device depends directly on decent cooling.

Plagiarism or old ASUS technology

It's for sure that the manufacturer has come up with an aluminum sole installed on the bottom of the PCB in the cooling system, but this technology is used in all High-End devices based on Nvidia chips. Asus GeForce GTX 970 video adapter is equipped with the most modern and most effective cooler that the user can meet on the market.

As the users note in their reviews, the manufacturer did not regret the non-ferrous metal for the video game card. Two sections of the aluminum radiator are pierced around the perimeter by five copper tubes, which are brought together on a copper contact pad. The metal structure is mounted on the surface of the printed circuit board and pressed with screws that pull together the aluminum sole with the main system. At the top of the whole structure is mounted a cooling system casing with two huge fans. The speed of rotation of the air cooling fans GeForce GTX 970 4Gb is controlled by a microprocessor BIOS, which has special temperature sensors on the entire printed circuit board of the device.

Performance and potential for overclocking from the representative of Asus

As the owners note in their reviews, the modification of the Asus GeForce GTX 970 Strix has been invested much effort, and the claimed characteristics at the same time look very poor: the manufacturer only increased the nominal frequency of the graphics processor to 1,124 MHz (Boost 1253 MHz). Apparently, the manufacturer decided to entrust the dispersal to the future owner. And, as tests of independent laboratories show, there is a potential, and it is very high.

All without exception, users note that the overclocking of the video adapter is unlimited - it all depends only on the influx of cold air and a powerful power supply, as the Asus GeForce GTX 970 in overclocking is very gluttonous. So, many owners managed to achieve maximum air-cooling for the graphics core 1550 MHz and for memory 8000 MHz. True, the power consumption of the video adapter increases proportionally: the nominal value of 145 watts rises to 200 watts.

Zoo of video adapters GeForce GTX 970 from company Gigabyte

The Taiwanese manufacturer decided to use all its innovations and developments to create video adapters of the game class based on the graphics accelerator GTX 970, otherwise there simply is no explanation for what purpose a well-known brand represents to the market so many different novelties built on a single chip. The most affordable device is considered to be the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 ITX OC graphics card. In total for 20 000 rubles the buyer receives a High-End adapter of a game class.

Many potential buyers, however, are confused by the appearance of the gadget - it looks like a cheap budget device. The policy of the company here is quite simple: not all owners of gaming computers own large system units. It is this modification - one of the few on the market in the elite class, which can be installed without problems in a personal computer. The shortened radiator and one fan in the cooling system do not interfere with the performance and overclocking of the graphics core. The video adapter perfectly disperses up to 1200 MHz on the crystal and up to 7,700 MHz from memory, although at the same time the sensor registers the core temperature rise up to 80 degrees Celsius.

Triple blow from Gigabyte

Video adapter Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 WindForce OC is a complete antipode shortened version of the video card. Many owners jokingly note that they know exactly where the third cooler appeared in the cooling system of this device (a hint at the shortened version of the ITX OC gadget). The corporation Gigabyte when creating a radiator for heat dissipation clearly copper in production did not regret. The grids in the sections, the tubes, the core and the lower substrate for the PCB are made of copper. True, the cooling system is plastic, including fans.

As you might expect, a decent heat dissipation is a harbinger of high performance and an excellent potential for overclocking. The graphics core of the Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 chip splits perfectly to 1444 MHz (the nominal frequency is 1178 MHz). It is quite good for a device that has not been modified in the laboratories of Gigabyte.

The final version of the manufacturer

The third product - GeForce GTX 970 Gaming 4G - the manufacturer Gigabyte still decided to upgrade. As expected, the changes touched the batteries - they were assembled in one sector and placed in the back of the PCB. The manufacturer also replaced the chokes (apparently, the owners of the first two products were still heard) and made a separate phase of the power supply for the memory modules.

But the cooling system has undergone only minor improvements - in the walls of Gigabyte decided to leave a fan with a turbine to cool the chip.

The performance and overclocking potential of the graphics accelerator based on the Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 chip look a bit modest compared to the modification of WindForce (1280 MHz core is somehow not impressive). With memory, it's also better to be neat when overclocking - it heats up too quickly and displays artifacts instead of images.

The golden mean of MSI

The company's laboratories also found that noisy chokes on the PCB should be replaced. In addition, the MSI GeForce GTX 970 video adapter received a number of improvements in the power system. It should be noted that the manufacturer also increased the number of phases to 6, separating the graphics core from chips and memory modules.

All products on the market from MSI, built on the GTX 970 chip, are implemented on the same PCB, but with different cooling systems. Therefore, as users note in their reviews, it is not worth expecting a fundamental performance gap between MSI products. Orientation is recommended for the golden mean.

The video card GeForce GTX 970 Armor 2X, unlike its competitors, is equipped with a more simplified cooling system: a two-section aluminum radiator is fastened with two copper tubes that converge on the aluminum core. On top is a plastic casing with two fans. Externally, this device resembles a budget representative remotely - this video card is somehow flimsy and inexpensive. However, in the tests, everything quickly falls into place (the graphics processor splits perfectly from 1100 MHz to 1311 MHz and at the same time demonstrates stable operation).

Jubilee Representative

Based on the MSI GeForce GTX 970 platform, the manufacturer made two new video cards of the Gaming 4G series. They have the same cooling system and corresponding characteristics. Their only difference is the color: red and green. The last video adapter has the suffix "100ME" in the marking, which indicates that this video card was included in the jubilee hundred-millionth part produced at the plant.

However, most of the potential buyers are not interested in the appearance of the video adapter, but its technical characteristics. Here the manufacturer is unlikely to be able to surprise the user: the same PCB and the Twin Frozr V cooler, respectively, and the same characteristics as the Armor 2X device. The difference in price alone is very confusing to buyers - 5000 rubles for color coloring looks clearly unworthy.

MSI product with turbine

Based on the Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 chip, another interesting product of the well-known manufacturer was manufactured in the walls of the MSI plant. Externally, it strongly resembles the reference device Nvidia, but with a detailed inspection it turns out that the MSI technology printed circuit board and cooling system slightly modified. As you might expect, the changes have touched on the power elements: replaced chokes and PWM controllers. Also, the manufacturer segmented the placement of heating elements on the front of the PCB.

Factory specifications, claimed by the manufacturer of Nvidia, did not change at the plant, entrusting this procedure entirely to the user. The result of overclocking will satisfy even the most demanding owner (1450 MHz for the core and 7800 MHz for video memory). Great performance. However, as the users note in their reviews, the temperature of the graphics core reaches 80 degrees Celsius and the video card in some cases lacks power of the power supply unit (the power supply should be from 550 W or more, otherwise the system will simply reboot in overclocking).

Finally

As you can see from the review, the chip based on Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 will be delayed in the elite gaming class for a very long time. The guarantor gives him a great potential for overclocking, which is about 20-30% of the declared nominal value of the manufacturer. Many enthusiasts are pleased that the overclocking is not limited to the hardware level by the BIOS system, therefore, by improving the cooling (liquid or nitrogen), it is possible to surpass the results of testing official world laboratories.

Many potential buyers should listen not only to the opinions of experts, but also to the owners' feedback on preferences before buying a decent gaming adapter. In terms of price-performance ratio among the most productive devices with a huge potential for overclocking, the best representative is the Asus GeForce GTX 970 Strix graphics accelerator. If the cost is in the priority, then it's worth to look at the product of the manufacturer Gigabyte.