Saturday, March 7th 2015

GIGABYTE Announces a Pair of GeForce GTX 960 4GB Graphics Cards

by
btarunr
 Discuss (21 Comments)
GIGABYTE rolled out a pair of GeForce GTX 960 graphics cards with 4 GB of onboard memory, the N960WF2OC-4GD (WindForce 2X), and the N960G1 GAMING-4GD (G1.Gaming). The N960WF2OC-4GD features a compact twin-fan WindForce 2X cooling solution, and offers a minor factory-overclock of 1241 MHz core with 1304 MHz GPU Boost (compared to reference speeds of 1216/1279 MHz.) The N960G1 GAMING-4GD, on the other hand, features the company's top of the line WindForce 3X cooling solution, which takes advantage of its meaty heatsink to keep the fans off until a temperature threshold is reached, with the 120W TDP GPU. This card serves up 1266 MHz core, and 1304 MHz GPU Boost. Both cards feature 4 GB of GDDR5 memory, across a 128-bit wide memory bus, clocked at 7.00 GHz (GDDR5-effective).

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21 Comments on GIGABYTE Announces a Pair of GeForce GTX 960 4GB Graphics Cards

#1
Nabarun
Does the cheaper one come with a backplate?
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#2
Daemmon
NabarunDoes the cheaper one come with a backplate?
Most likely no. I currently have the WFx2 and comes with no backplate. Of course I have the 2GB version.
The G1 Gaming comes with a backplate, again on the 2GB version.

From the outside/front it seems like 2GB and 4GB versions are identical.

---

On other thoughts, I wonder what the price on this thing will be. And if the 4GB is going to be segmented like the 970.
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#3
RejZoR
Pointless product. That's like sticking 1500 HP engine into a normal hatchback that is not designed to utilize all that power. Same is for this VRAM size. The GPU simply isn't designed to make proper use of it when it comes to performance. GPU can't even keep up when you'd cram so much stuff into the VRAM anyway...
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#4
Daemmon
RejZoRPointless product. That's like sticking 1500 HP engine into a normal hatchback that is not designed to utilize all that power. Same is for this VRAM size. The GPU simply isn't designed to make proper use of it when it comes to performance. GPU can't even keep up when you'd cram so much stuff into the VRAM anyway...
Welp, I'm on the same page as you. I don't think this GPU needs 4gb, 3gb? maybe... but still, it's a decent GPU that you can put right between 760 and 770, and 285 / 280x .

The price tag isn't horrible either, 199$ for the WFx2, and for comparison a 280x are rolling around 240-260$.

New tech vs old tech and +performance for noise/temp/power/money. I think nVidia's current pricing on 960 is competitive, 970? not at all.
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#5
rruff
RejZoRPointless product. That's like sticking 1500 HP engine into a normal hatchback that is not designed to utilize all that power. Same is for this VRAM size. The GPU simply isn't designed to make proper use of it when it comes to performance. GPU can't even keep up when you'd cram so much stuff into the VRAM anyway...
I would agree that a single card has no need for 4GB. But... if you SLI two of these the 4GB would be most welcome. If the SLI implementation is good you'd get >970 performance. But then you can buy a 970 for only 50% more than a 960, so it makes no sense at all.

At the end of the day, it's all about selling. Lot's of buyers have no clue about how to evaluate a card's performance.
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#6
rruff
DaemmonI think nVidia's current pricing on 960 is competitive, 970? not at all.
Wut? 970 is very competitive.
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#7
Daemmon
rruffWut? 970 is very competitive.
Price wise? No, you can buy a 290x currently with the price of it according to Newegg.
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#8
rruff
DaemmonPrice wise? No, you can buy a 290x currently with the price of it according to Newegg.
290x is cheap precisely because the 970 exists. The 970 is very competitive. They sold like crazy last fall for little discount, and forced AMD to lower their prices. Don't know what has been happening since the scandal, but I'd pick a 970 over a 290x any day unless I wanted to pair them.
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#9
Daemmon
rruff290x is cheap precisely because the 970 exists. The 970 is very competitive. They sold like crazy last fall for little discount, and forced AMD to lower their prices. Don't know what has been happening since the scandal, but I'd pick a 970 over a 290x any day unless I wanted to pair them.
I'm not saying the 970 is a bad card. It's a pretty good one, and Maxwell truly shines. Honestly I don't care about the scandal and still think the 9xx series are amazing, but still, with the money of a 970 I'd buy a good quality 290x (Tri-X or Vapor-X).

The choice tho, depends on a lot of factors such as case size, current PSU, extra usage (CUDA), and where you live... in my case a 280 was around the same price of a 960, and the 280x was... A LOT more. Picking the 960 for a poor guy like me was easy.
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#10
Nabarun
No Backplate = no purchase. Period. It costs less than a fvcking US Dollar. If you're gonna be an @ss about it then expect some r@mming up there matey! #Asus (for no 4GB Version yet) #MSI (for being m0r0ns).
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#11
rruff
Daemmonin my case a 280 was around the same price of a 960, and the 280x was... A LOT more. Picking the 960 for a poor guy like me was easy.
In the US you'd pick a 280 over the 960 as easily as the 290x over the 970. Price vs FPS. But Nvidia tends to have other advantages.
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#12
Nabarun
rruffIn the US you'd pick a 280 over the 960 as easily as the 290x over the 970. Price vs FPS. But Nvidia tends to have other advantages.
PLEASE give a sh1t about non-American Lives.

But Nvidia tends to have other advantages.
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#13
Daemmon
NabarunNo Backplate = no purchase. Period. It costs less than a fvcking US Dollar. If you're gonna be an @ss about it then expect some r@mming up there matey! #Asus (for no 4GB Version yet) #MSI (for being m0r0ns).
You really want a backplate? If so, go for the G1, that one has a backplate.

I'd suggest you to pick one without a backplate, but hey, if that's your preference :)

An active/current example of problems with backplates : www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/gpu-backplate-gets-too-hot.210444/
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#14
DeadSkull
Whats the point of a 4Gb 960 when its still slower then 3 year old GTX 680 or 7970??!?!?!
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#15
Daemmon
DeadSkullWhats the point of a 4Gb 960 when its still slower then 3 year old GTX 680 or 7970??!?!?!
What's the point on comparing a 200$ GPU with a 300$ GPU that you probably won't be able to get new.
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#16
rtwjunkie
PC Gaming Enthusiast
RejZoRPointless product. That's like sticking 1500 HP engine into a normal hatchback that is not designed to utilize all that power. Same is for this VRAM size. The GPU simply isn't designed to make proper use of it when it comes to performance. GPU can't even keep up when you'd cram so much stuff into the VRAM anyway...
Didn't W1zzard's testing show that despite the small bus and the GM206 core, it kept up with or beat GTX 780's in most of the games? And I know the 780 would have Loved another GB of VRAM. I ddon't know, I think there will be alot of situations, whether it's high AA or tons of Skyrim mods where this card could actually use the 4GB.

@Daemmon, No it will not be segmented from what I've seen. This is an entirely different chip than the GM204.
Posted on Reply
#17
Daemmon
rtwjunkieDidn't W1zzard's testing show that despite the small bus and the GM206 core, it kept up with or beat GTX 780's in most of the games? And I know the 780 would have Loved another GB of VRAM. I ddon't know, I think there will be alot of situations, whether it's high AA or tons of Skyrim mods where this card could actually use the 4GB.

@Daemmon, No it will not be segmented from what I've seen. This is an entirely different chip than the GM204.
Not the 780, the 770. Beat it in a couple of games, and performed slightly worse on others. Currently if you stay at 1080p (which is probably the highest you should use with this card) only SoW on Ultra (with HD textures) and Skyrim (heavily modded, all maxed) can give you slight issues.

There were a couple of games (like FC4) that the 960 was 2-3 fps below the 780. Anyway, the results are extremely weird as always when benchmarking games. In games like DA:I @ 1080p the 960 beat the 280x for 2-3 fps. In games like AC:Unity the 280x got around 9 extra FPS.
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#18
rruff
DaemmonNot the 780, the 770.
Yep, in spite of the all the negative buzz about the 128-bit vram bus and 2GB, the 960 is very well balanced, and the price is in line with the competition. It's basically 2x a GTX 750 and 1/2 a GTX 980 in spec, performance, and price (actually a lot better than the 980 in FPS/$ but about the same as the 750).
DaemmonAnyway, the results are extremely weird as always when benchmarking games. In games like DA:I @ 1080p the 960 beat the 280x for 2-3 fps. In games like AC:Unity the 280x got around 9 extra FPS.
A big problem with those tests is that they often use the same settings for every card. Usually what you really want to know is... what are the best settings you can run that give good frame rates? They don't have time to tweak and optimize each card.
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#19
Daemmon
rruffA big problem with those tests is that they often use the same settings for every card. Usually what you really want to know is... what are the best settings you can run that give good frame rates? They don't have time to tweak and optimize each card.
Yeah, I do understand tho. They have to be able to compare them head to head on a similar scenario. On real life scenarios you normally get some extra, and depending how you like to play you adjust your options. Some prefer stable 60fps on highest graphics possible, others just prefer all at ultra and pray to the FPSGod.

I do not understand the negative buzz on the 960, it is a very good card for 200$. I think people still guide themselves too much on paper specs and not on real world performance.
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#20
rruff
DaemmonI do not understand the negative buzz on the 960
Seemed like many were hoping for it to be closer to the 970 in performance for a good price. Plus Nvidia really did cut it close with the bandwidth and ram amount. I'm impressed with how *balanced* it is. It's like all the processor and memory specs will max out simultaneously, with settings that are typical for the card. Sure, 3GB and 192-bit would be nice, but the situations where that would make a significant difference are few. So might as well save the money.

It'll probably be my next upgrade if they get cheap. Next BF maybe? A lot depends on AMD and whether they put on some pressure.
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#21
Nabarun
DaemmonYou really want a backplate? If so, go for the G1, that one has a backplate.

I'd suggest you to pick one without a backplate, but hey, if that's your preference :)

An active/current example of problems with backplates : www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/gpu-backplate-gets-too-hot.210444/
Sorry for the delay in answering. From what I have understood after reading EVERY post on that thread, I can safely say that THIS card (GTX 960) doesn't remotely come close to having those "issues". I just want the backplate for the looks (and the rigidity bit too, but that's just bonus). The ones with backplate are QUITE costlier over here, but that's usually because they also come with a *bit* of an OC and better/more fans etc. All I'm saying is that ALL cards (except may be the ones with memory on the back or other heat issues) - particularly the ones from Nvidia which are cool anyway should have backplates irrespective of whether they come with factory OC.
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