GTX 960 4GB vs GTX 970

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

I was thinking of getting the GTX 960 EVGA SSC 4GB for $226.99, but people were saying that the 4GB version of this card is a waste of money and it wont be able to handle some newer games like Fallout 4 and other games coming in the future. Some people said to get a GTX 970 instead, but it is about $100 more, is it worth it, or should I just get the 960? And is that whole issue with the VRAM still bad with it only having 3.5GB, or is that fixed? And would that even be an issue, or does that not make it worth spending more? Please help as best as you can, thanks.

mudpuppet · Nov 3, 2015

The "issue" was that is was botched marketing as there are 4GB or VRAM but how its used blah blah is where it's split and people got upset. Personally, I went with an EVGA 970 anyway, and got the FTW edition from an openbox at Amazon for 300$. I've had no issues with it, love the card, and if there WAS an issue I know I can send it back to Amazon and get a new one in about 2 days (yay prime!). Keep in mind it's almost Black Friday in the states and Cyber Monday follows it. If you think you can wait a few weeks, you might get a deal on a card.

"The GeForce GTX 970 is equipped with 4GB of dedicated graphics memory. However the 970 has a different configuration of SMs than the 980, and fewer crossbar resources to the memory system. To optimally manage memory traffic in this configuration, we segment graphics memory into a 3.5GB section and a 0.5GB section. The GPU has higher priority access to the 3.5GB section. When a game needs less than 3.5GB of video memory per draw command then it will only access the first partition, and 3rd party applications that measure memory usage will report 3.5GB of memory in use on GTX 970, but may report more for GTX 980 if there is more memory used by other commands. When a game requires more than 3.5GB of memory then we use both segments." ~http://wccftech.com/nvidia-geforce-gtx-970-memory-issue-fully-explained/

JUICEhunter · Nov 3, 2015

Don't worry about VRAM, I have a 780ti (OC 1200mhz) with 3gb and it outperforms the 970/390. Speed of a GPU is something people overlook a lot.

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

The 970 is far superior hands down.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_960_Gaming/29.html
Nearly 60% faster, the 970 actually out performs 960 SLI.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

mudpuppet :

The "issue" was that is was botched marketing as there are 4GB or VRAM but how its used blah blah is where it's split and people got upset. Personally, I went with an EVGA 970 anyway, and got the FTW edition from an openbox at Amazon for 300$. I've had no issues with it, love the card, and if there WAS an issue I know I can send it back to Amazon and get a new one in about 2 days (yay prime!). Keep in mind it's almost Black Friday in the states and Cyber Monday follows it. If you think you can wait a few weeks, you might get a deal on a card.

"The GeForce GTX 970 is equipped with 4GB of dedicated graphics memory. However the 970 has a different configuration of SMs than the 980, and fewer crossbar resources to the memory system. To optimally manage memory traffic in this configuration, we segment graphics memory into a 3.5GB section and a 0.5GB section. The GPU has higher priority access to the 3.5GB section. When a game needs less than 3.5GB of video memory per draw command then it will only access the first partition, and 3rd party applications that measure memory usage will report 3.5GB of memory in use on GTX 970, but may report more for GTX 980 if there is more memory used by other commands. When a game requires more than 3.5GB of memory then we use both segments." ~http://wccftech.com/nvidia-geforce-gtx-970-memory-issue-fully-explained/

Oh ok so that whole "issue" really doesn't matter then? So you think it is worth getting it over the 960 4GB?

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

The whole segmented Vram was blown out of proportion. It very rarely comes into play, as the card avoids using that Vram until the very last, and it is still plenty fast enough compared to system memory.
The card performs as benchmarked, that did not change with the "news" of the segmented Vram. The 970 is an absolutely amazing card.
If you still are concerned (as some users always are) you can look at the R9 390, as it performs on par with the 970 at 1080p, and better at higher resolutions.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

I went through all of these, compared each one and I think I came up with a good decision, the EVGA SSC ACX 2.0+ for $314.99 on amazon seems like the best for the money, what do you guys think?

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

The EVGA model is a solid choice, but I personally recommend the MSI Gaming. Slightly higher quality, cooler, and quieter.
EVGA's 970 slipped a little with their acoustics this time around.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

The EVGA is a bit cheaper than the Twin Frozr V, and the core clock is a bit faster too, also I am not going to be OCing so I don't need a card that is capable of doing that. Should I go with the SSC or the one you said?

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

If you dont plan to OC, and dont mind the noise (I say noise, but its still fairly quiet) the SSC will be just fine.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

Gam3r01 :

When you say noise, how loud do you mean? Like an old laptop starting up or like a light buzzing sound?

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

It runs at 40 dBA, which is not loud by any means, but it is a whirring sound that can be heard across a room.
If you dont have a headset, you may be bothered. If you do have a headset, you will never hear it.
The MSI for example, runs at 30dBA, which is over 4 times quieter.

Overall, if you have some other source of noise in the room, you will never be bothered by it. Note: These are load levels, under less load, or idle it will be much quieter.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

Gam3r01 :

I usually have a headset on or earbuds, and my house is pretty noisy, door is open and outside my window can get pretty loud too, even when closed, I saw that the Asus STRIX and MSI Twin Frozr V both have the feature that the fans don't spin until a certain temp. and those two are the quietest and coolest (temp. wise) is that right? As long as the noise from the EVGA doesn't damage it or anything like that, I am sure I won't mind it.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

I might honestly just spend the extra money for the Asus STRIX or MSI Twin Frozr V because they stay cool and quiet like you said, I am sure they will perform all very good in games too.

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

All 3 are good brands, MSI has zero Frozr, and ASUS has a similar feature under 60C the fans are off.
Since you have buds, and/or a headset on the noise is not an issue. Especially with outside noise.

The noise is not damaging by any means, the ACX2.0 fans simply run louder.

The MSI card also has a one button software OC button, that sets its clock speeds higher than stock within the gaming software it comes with.

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

Gam3r01 :

So out of the 3, which do you recommend I go with? I am thinking between the MSI and Asus because I like their features.

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

I personally recommend the MSI, as it is a great OCer, but for you, whichever is cheaper (Both MSI and ASUS extremely quality cards)

Yankees1207 · Nov 3, 2015

Ok thank you for your help, since I am not OCing, I will go with the Asus.

mudpuppet · Nov 3, 2015

You know you're the second person today who has said the ACX runs loud/er, but i honest to god can't hear a thing from mine while gaming, and that was before I had any kind of noise canceling headset.

Id suggest looking at the used cards on amazona s well and look at the warehouse deald. Thats where I got my FTW for 300$ a few months back.

Gam3r01 · Nov 3, 2015

I try to specify louder lol, its not like a box fan running in your pc.

GTX 960 4GB vs GTX 970

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