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Five Overclocked GeForce GTX 560 Cards, Rounded-Up

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  • Geforce
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January 19, 2012 3:00:04 AM

We were foiled in our quest to find the best vendor-provided GPU cooler for Nvidia's GeForce GTX 560. But out of the ashes sprung a round-up of cards armed with those very same solutions. Which of these five GF114-based boards is right for you?

Five Overclocked GeForce GTX 560 Cards, Rounded-Up : Read more

More about : overclocked geforce gtx 560 cards rounded

January 19, 2012 3:47:40 AM

Kepler is around the corner, so are lower end AMD 7000 series parts, this was interesting but wouldn't one want to wait for a plethora of reasons.
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January 19, 2012 4:19:49 AM

The Galaxy model comes closest with its 830/1002 MHz clocks, but Zotac's AMP! edition goes all the way to 950/1100 MHz.

This dosent match with the above chart
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4
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January 19, 2012 4:43:58 AM

Are those temps for real? My 280 gtx has never idled under 40C.
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January 19, 2012 4:51:52 AM

so, basicaly if someone plays on a single monitor, there is no point going beyond a gtx 560 or a 6950 in today's games. (it slike in the "best gaming CPU chart", no point going beyond i5 2500k for gaming.
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January 19, 2012 4:52:21 AM

salad10203Are those temps for real? My 280 gtx has never idled under 40C.

Your kidding right, my overclocked 580GTX at 60% fan speed idles at 32c. Cards down clock themselves which allows them to run cooler at idle temps even if it were clocked at upwards i don't think a card would get hot unless it was being used.
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January 19, 2012 4:52:44 AM

sorry, i ment single monitor @ 1080p :p .
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Anonymous
January 19, 2012 6:37:20 AM

Im surprised they got 5 OCed GPUs to run BF3 without crashing
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January 19, 2012 6:53:22 AM

crisan_tiberiu[/nom..... (it slike in the "best gaming CPU chart", no point going beyond i5 2500k for gaming.


I have the feeling that even a i5 2500k@4ghz bottlenecks a 7970 @1080p in most newer games.
If the GPU market goes the way it does, it won't take long that even midrange cards will be bottlenecked @1080p by the cpu.


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January 19, 2012 7:04:12 AM

heh, my 4870 runs at 80c regardless of idle or load
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1
January 19, 2012 8:22:28 AM

I think there is an error on the Asus idle voltage: instead "0.192 V Idle" it should be 0.912
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3
January 19, 2012 8:49:04 AM

justme1977
crisan_tiberiu[/nom..... (it slike in the "best gaming CPU chart", no point going beyond i5 2500k for gaming.
I have the feeling that even a i5 2500k@4ghz bottlenecks a 7970 @1080p in most newer games. If the GPU market goes the way it does, it won't take long that even midrange cards will be bottlenecked @1080p by the cpu.


Not really. This is mostly game depended. Depends on how much stress each graphics engine push at cpu and gpu.
Games like Dragon Age 2 and SWTOR are gpu intensive. So a GTX570 (that I have) is being used at 1080p at 99% of its usage with a low performance nowadays Q6600 in SWTOR (used MSI after burner to monitor it).
But with games such Skyrim which cpu is more important than other games, a highly clocked sandybridge is required in order to play smoothly at 1080p.
One thing is certain for sure. The higher the resolution the more gpu power and less cpu power requires a game.
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January 19, 2012 11:00:40 AM

Hey, I have a gtx 460 and I play with tesselation and DX11 enabled in metro 2033 @1080p. It has some drops to 25 and lower, but that's never in the middle of a firefight.
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-3
January 19, 2012 11:14:54 AM

giovanni86Your kidding right, my overclocked 580GTX at 60% fan speed idles at 32c. Cards down clock themselves which allows them to run cooler at idle temps even if it were clocked at upwards i don't think a card would get hot unless it was being used.

The 280 idles higher than the 580 to the best of my knowledge, plus it's a 65nm part and the largest gaming GPU ever created.
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January 19, 2012 11:44:37 AM

would you please add Crysis 2 to all GPU benchmarks
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-4
January 19, 2012 12:41:41 PM

silverblueThe 280 idles higher than the 580 to the best of my knowledge, plus it's a 65nm part and the largest gaming GPU ever created.

That's an enormous amount of fan speed for an Idle GPU. Hope you're happy having a nice loud fan at idle. I can't imagine how loud it gets under a light load.

To the article, I don't think these comparisons are really necessary. All the cards are going to have different overclocking capabilities, which is what anyone from tom's is going to check. Hell, the worst card you guys test according to this comparison might overclock the most, and be the best card for the money on someone else's comparison.
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January 19, 2012 12:46:04 PM

Any subjective comments about the Asus cooler's noise? I'm wondering if the different fans reduce harmonic whine, or some similar effect of having two identical fans in close proximity. I have this cooler on my GTX560Ti, and I never hear it.
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January 19, 2012 12:55:47 PM

Hmm...Missing something here...Where's any EVGA??? See -> http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=E... EVGA on GTX 570/580 (-AR lines) also includes Lifetime Warranties. IMO EVGA and ASUS are the best choices for nVidia GPUs.

For a $30 savings the ASUS ENGTX560 DCII OC/2DI is worth a look. Sure if you run the fans at 100% a higher CFM fan is going to be very loud, but no one runs their fans @ 100% either.

With Apps like MSI Afterburner and others it's incredibly easy to OC any GPU. It's a balancing act between performance, temperatures, and dDA (noise). One of the big reasons for water blocks on higher end cards, etc.
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January 19, 2012 1:12:21 PM

Duh me, typo dBA...coffee hasn't kicked in yet.

BTW - I appreciate the Article, it's enlightening and offers good info. Thanks! :) 
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January 19, 2012 1:42:24 PM

payneg1The Galaxy model comes closest with its 830/1002 MHz clocks, but Zotac's AMP! edition goes all the way to 950/1100 MHz.This dosent match with the above chart


Quite right! Fixed.
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January 19, 2012 1:42:44 PM

crisan_tiberiu said:
so, basicaly if someone plays on a single monitor, there is no point going beyond a gtx 560 or a 6950 in today's games. (it slike in the "best gaming CPU chart", no point going beyond i5 2500k for gaming.


The GTX 560 is comparable to the 6870, though generally thought to be a little slower but with better OC headroom. The 6950 is much faster, and is comparable to the GTX 560 Ti.
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2
January 19, 2012 1:43:32 PM

salad10203Are those temps for real? My 280 gtx has never idled under 40C.


As the chart says, we're reporting the delta (difference) between room temperature and the GPU.
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3
January 19, 2012 1:48:06 PM

jaquithHmm...Missing something here...Where's any EVGA???


We asked them if they'd like to participate but they never sent a test sample.
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1
January 19, 2012 3:29:02 PM

I'm confused how are we running BF3 in Ultra here but the article with the GTX 560 Ti - 448 is only run on high. Even a comment in that article say that those cards can't run BF3 in Ultra but the less expesnive cards can?! I'd love to get some clarity around this because i'm debating whether the 448 core version is worth the price...
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2
January 19, 2012 3:50:37 PM

CleeveWe asked them if they'd like to participate but they never sent a test sample.


That is very frustrating. EVGA never sends anything in to be tested. Is there some sort of friction between TomsH and EVGA?

An EVGA with the lifetime warranty is my first choice when buying a GPU. They always seem to bench well against the other manufacturers in the end but it'd be nice if I didn't have to search all over creation to find those benches.
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January 19, 2012 4:05:30 PM

pacioli said:
That is very frustrating. EVGA never sends anything in to be tested. Is there some sort of friction between TomsH and EVGA?


No, absolutely not. As a matter of fact, I think they agreed to send a 560 sample, it just never showed up.
Wires probably got crossed somewhere, it's just one of those things unfortunately.
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2
January 19, 2012 5:28:10 PM

zotac are amazing!
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January 19, 2012 6:18:36 PM

Hey there's another MSI card with a dual fan design similar to the ASUS card used in this article. It runs at stock, and costs $190. Appears to be good from the reviews...
Called the MSI N560GTX-M2D1GD5
Check it out if you can. Was actually hoping that this card would feature in this review...can't find the Twin Frozr II version here in India... :( 

Edit: The card that i've mentioned here appears to run as cool as the Twin Frozr II...
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January 19, 2012 6:27:19 PM

@Cleeve, how much gap exists between the PCB and the shroud of the ASUS card? Would it be possible to squeese in a right-angled SATA connector if it covers a SATA port? (i have a microATX mobo)...
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January 19, 2012 8:21:39 PM

cleeve said:
No, absolutely not. As a matter of fact, I think they agreed to send a 560 sample, it just never showed up.
Wires probably got crossed somewhere, it's just one of those things unfortunately.


Good to hear... err read
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January 19, 2012 9:52:28 PM

silverblueThe 280 idles higher than the 580 to the best of my knowledge, plus it's a 65nm part and the largest gaming GPU ever created.


Very true, I own GTX280 my self and those that know these cards know that they are not the easiest cards to keep cool. GT200 65nm 576mm2 while the GF110 is only 520mm2. Sadly one of my gtx280's ihs isn't as even as it should be so temps are slightly higher than desired. The other idles cooler despite a 8800gt being wedged next to it for dedicated physx. Beyond that they hold up in sli rather well and openGL works just for kicks.
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January 20, 2012 4:26:59 AM

The Direct CU card has an idle voltage of .192. That is efficiency right there ;) 
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January 20, 2012 5:42:49 AM

ojas@Cleeve, how much gap exists between the PCB and the shroud of the ASUS card? Would it be possible to squeese in a right-angled SATA connector if it covers a SATA port? (i have a microATX mobo)...


I have that card. I got it for $150 on sale. I can not mess with the voltage on my mobo for some reason...so I have to work w/o that change. The reason that I got was based on this:

http://www.geforce.com/Optimize/Guides/how-to-build-a-k...:

"
Having established in our benchmarks that the GeForce GTX 560 is the first choice for High Quality Battlefield 3 gaming, but also that performance was at times just above the sweet spot, we looked around for something other than a generic GeForce GTX 560; something with a bit of extra oomph. The answer came in the form of the MSI N560GTX, a competitively priced GTX 560 that’s not factory-overclocked like other, more expensive models, but is comprised of custom components and a twin-fan cooler, allowing you to perform the overclocking yourself, quickly, easily, and safely through the use of EVGA Precision. Between the custom cooler and components, performance can be pushed towards the level of the pricier GTX 560 Ti, helping you maintain a silky smooth frame rate at all times."

And the answer for me so far is that yes...a 560 is fine. I do have an older 4 core cpu @ 2.5 and 6 gigs of ddr2 and I have a feeling that I could see a bump in FPS if I got a !5...I'd love to SLI down the road.
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January 20, 2012 5:44:53 AM

ojasHey there's another MSI card with a dual fan design similar to the ASUS card used in this article. It runs at stock, and costs $190. Appears to be good from the reviews...Called the MSI N560GTX-M2D1GD5Check it out if you can. Was actually hoping that this card would feature in this review...can't find the Twin Frozr II version here in India... Edit: The card that i've mentioned here appears to run as cool as the Twin Frozr II...


oops I was responding to this.
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January 20, 2012 5:47:12 AM

loopsoops I was responding to this.


LINK
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January 20, 2012 4:22:54 PM

FunSurfer said:
I think there is an error on the Asus idle voltage: instead "0.192 V Idle" it should be 0.912

Noticed this too. It'd be awesome if it actually did idle that low.
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January 20, 2012 6:57:02 PM

RedJaron said:
Noticed this too. It'd be awesome if it actually did idle that low.


Good eye, thx! Fixed.
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January 21, 2012 1:22:45 AM

Why are these card tested and NOT the Geforce GTX560 Ti cards and NOT the new 2GB models ?

This feels like "too little, too late" to me :/ 
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January 23, 2012 9:22:24 PM

for $50-80 less you can get a 6870...
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January 24, 2012 12:43:22 AM

esreverfor $50-80 less you can get a 6870...


Maybe you can get the cheapest 6870 for $35 less than the cheapest GTX 560.

But you can overclock a GTX 560 to get performance comparable to a Radeon HD 6950 or GeForce GTX 560 Ti. Can't do that with a 6870, so you get something for the premium.
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February 9, 2012 2:12:40 AM

opqqopoYour kidding right, my overclocked 580GTX at 60% fan speed idles at 32c. Cards down clock themselves which allows them to run cooler at idle temps even if it were clocked at upwards i don't think a card would get hot unless it was being used.


The temperatures are shown as a delta... that means the difference between the GPU temp and the ambient temp.

You need to read the charts for them to make sense. ;) 
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