Introduction

We have with us for review the ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB OC graphics card. In case you missed it, given its rather low-profile launch in January, the RTX 3080 12 GB is a new high-end SKU by NVIDIA designed to fill the gap between the original RTX 3080 and RTX 3080 Ti, so the company could better compete with the Radeon RX 6800 XT, or mainly be in a position to strike the $999 MSRP (Fantasyland pricing). The new 12 GB version of the RTX 3080 also brings with it the low-hash-rate (LHR) mining performance limiter NVIDIA is putting on all new releases to deter miners from snatching up these cards. The RTX 3080 ROG STRIX OC is a premium custom-design offering by ASUS that offers all of the visual bling, overclocking headroom, and other overclocker-relevant goodies you'd expect from spending top dollar.

The GeForce RTX 3080 "Ampere" launched back in 2020 with 10 GB of memory across a 320-bit memory interface even though the GA102 silicon it's based on supports a wider 384-bit interface, which was maxed out with the RTX 3090. The high-end graphics card landscape unexpectedly changed with the AMD Radeon RX 6800 series, and the RX 6900 XT based on the RDNA 2 architecture restored competition to the high-end, causing NVIDIA to launch several SKUs to try and restore its price-performance supremacy, again when looking at MSRP only. During all this, retail scalping and the crypto-currency mining boom have destroyed the MSRP and predictable pricing.



The RTX 3080 12 GB isn't just the usual RTX 3080 with 20% more memory. In order to expand the VRAM size from 10 GB to 12 GB, they had to up the number of memory chips from 10 to 12. The additional memory chips have to be connected to the GPU, which increases the bus width, to 384-bit, and, thus, overall memory bandwidth. NVIDIA has also taken the opportunity to add a little more muscle. The RTX 3080 12 GB is endowed with 8,960 CUDA cores across 70 streaming multiprocessors, whereas the original RTX 3080 has 8,704 across 68. This also marks proportionate increases in Tensor cores (280 vs. 272) and RT cores (70 vs. 68). ROPS has remained constant, at 96. All this, however, comes at a significant increase of the typical-board power, which is now rated at 350 W; the RTX 3080 only consumes 250 W.

The ASUS GeForce RTX 3080 12 GB STRIX OC in this review increases the power limit even further, to 390 W. It features a board design that's nearly identical to that of ROG STRIX cards based on the RTX 3080 Ti and RTX 3090, since they're all based on the GA102 silicon. The company's latest-generation DirectCU III cooling solution capable of taming the RTX 3090 is used here. The VRM setup is carried over, too—an impressive 18+4 phase configuration. The cooler features elaborate RGB LED illumination, and goodies, such as external ARGB headers and 4-pin PWM case-fan headers, let you synchronize your cooling and lighting with the card. It also comes with factory-overclocked speeds of 1860 MHz, compared to 1710 MHz NVIDIA-reference, and a software-enabled OC mode driving it up to 1890 MHz with one click. In this review, we take the card for a spin. Official pricing guidance is not available, but we're currently seeing the card listed for around $1700.

Packaging

The Card

The 12 GB ASUS RTX 3080 STRIX OC looks identical to its RTX 3080 Ti STRIX and RTX 3090 STRIX siblings—these are all super-sexy designs. On the back, you'll find a metal backplate designed for some through-airflow.


Dimensions of the card are 32.5 x 14.5 cm, and it weighs 1783 g.


Installation requires three slots in your system.


Display connectivity options include two HDMI 2.0 and three DisplayPort 1.4 ports.


The card has three 8-pin power inputs. This configuration is rated for up to 525 W of power draw.


Two fan headers near the back of the card can be used to connect case fans to the graphics card. These fans will now run in sync with the graphics card fans—stopped when idle and at increasing speed depending on the GPU temperature. Since the graphics card is the primary heat source in most computers, this makes a lot of sense and keeps noise levels down.


The GeForce RTX 3080 does not support SLI. Here, you see the BIOS switch, which lets you toggle between the default (Performance) BIOS and "quiet" BIOS that runs the fans quieter, at slower speeds with higher temperature.

Teardown

ASUS designed a huge heatsink, which does a great job keeping the card cool. Seven heatpipes quickly move any heat away from the GPU core and to a large array of fins, where it is dissipated in the airflow of the three fans. This is the same cooler as on the ASUS GeForce RTX 3090 STRIX OC.


Once the main heatsink is removed, a metal reinforcement frame becomes visible. It prevents sagging and provides some extra cooling for the VRMs.


The backplate is one of the thickest I ever had in my hands and protects the card against damage during installation and handling. There are also several thermal pads, which reduce temperatures a little bit.

High-resolution PCB Pictures

These pictures are for the convenience of volt modders and people who would like to see all the finer details on the PCB. Feel free to link back to us and use these in your articles, videos or forum posts.



High-res versions are also available (front, back).

Circuit Board (PCB) Analysis

The GPU VRM is 18-phase, controlled by two Monolithic Power Systems MP2888A controllers.


For GPU voltage, Infineon TDA21570 DrMOS are used, which are rated for 70 A.


Memory voltage uses a 4-phase design and is generated by a UPI uP9628P controller


OnSemi NCP303151 DrMOS are used for memory voltage. These are capable of up to 50 A.


The GDDR6X memory chips are made by Micron and carry the model number D8BWW, which decodes to MT61K256M32JE-19G:T. They are specified to run at 1188 MHz (19 Gbps GDDR6X effective).


NVIDIA's GA102 graphics processor is the company's second Ampere architecture chip, the first one targeted at GeForce gamers. It is produced on a 8 nanometer process at Samsung and has a transistor count of 28 billion with a die size of 628 mm².