Gtx 570 sli vs gtx 670

[sparkplug49]

Okay so I built my rig about a year ago and its performing well but since then I've added a display so I now run a 2560x1600 and a 1680x1050 off of my gtx 570 zotac. As a result it has upped the idle temp to around 50 and playing total war even on low settings sends the temp through the roof. I'm working on better cooling too but to be able to play a game like total war at 2560x1600 would my better bet (cost benefit wise) be to go with another gtx 570 (making it sli) or to just one 670?

Other specs:
i7 2600k
GA-Z68X-UD4-B3 Z68
SSD + HD
8gb ram (4gbx2)

 

[bigcyco1]

at that res you want a 7970GHZ or GTX 670

 

[bigcyco1]

Wait i need to know something is your 570 a 2gb vram or no

 

[geofelt]

Okay so I built my rig about a year ago and its performing well but since then I've added a display so I now run a 2560x1600 and a 1680x1050 off of my gtx 570 zotac. As a result it has upped the idle temp to around 50 and playing total war even on low settings sends the temp through the roof. I'm working on better cooling too but to be able to play a game like total war at 2560x1600 would my better bet (cost benefit wise) be to go with another gtx 570 (making it sli) or to just one 670?

Other specs:
i7 2600k
GA-Z68X-UD4-B3 Z68
SSD + HD
8gb ram (4gbx2)

I see no reason why adding a second monitor should have increased your idle temperatures.
Perhaps your cpu cooler has come loose. Is it the stock Intel pushpin cooler?

Regardless, adding a second card in sli will aggravate your cooling problems.
And... do you have the requisite 800w psu?

I think the simplest thing to do is to sell the GTX570 which is still a good card and replace it with a GTX680 superclocked.
I think just a GTX670 may not be a sufficiently large jump in capability to keep you from being disappointed.

The newer 28nm GTX6xxx cards run cooler needing less power.

Graphics cards do run hot, but they are built to do so. If they get hot, they will downclock to protect themselves.
So long as your performance is OK maybe you should not worry so much about the temperatures.

 

[bigcyco1]

I see no reason why adding a second monitor should have increased your idle temperatures.
Perhaps your cpu cooler has come loose. Is it the stock Intel pushpin cooler?

Regardless, adding a second card in sli will aggravate your cooling problems.
And... do you have the requisite 800w psu?

I think the simplest thing to do is to sell the GTX570 which is still a good card and replace it with a GTX680 superclocked.
I think just a GTX670 may not be a sufficiently large jump in capability to keep you from being disappointed.

The newer 28nm GTX6xxx cards run cooler needing less power.

Graphics cards do run hot, but they are built to do so. If they get hot, they will downclock to protect themselves.
So long as your performance is OK maybe you should not worry so much about the temperatures.

You might be right but for the price i think hes better off with a 670 not just any 670 i am talking about either 670 Top if willing to wait i am sure you can order one from Asus or the MSI GTX 670 PE/OC card, which is pretty dam close to equal a GTX 680. The difference with the 7970 Ghz is more like 1-2%, i.e. EXACTLY the same performance. There's no way I could recommend someone to buy a 680 for roughly a 7% performance gain which is going to cost them 100 bucks for that.

 

[geofelt]

You might be right but for the price i think hes better off with a 670 not just any 670 i am talking about either 670 Top if willing to wait i am sure you can order one from Asus or the MSI GTX 670 PE/OC card, which is pretty dam close to equal a GTX 680. The difference with the 7970 Ghz is more like 1-2%, i.e. EXACTLY the same performance. There's no way I could recommend someone to buy a 680 for roughly a 7% performance gain which is going to cost them 100 bucks for that.

True enougn, particularly as to value.
But, iA GTX670 is not as a big jump, and one will always wonder if THE top card would have better. I guess it is a matter of how immportant $100 is to the OP.

 

[bigcyco1]

True enougn, particularly as to value.
But, iA GTX670 is not as a big jump, and one will always wonder if THE top card would have better. I guess it is a matter of how immportant $100 is to the OP.

Agreed

 

[hapkido]

I see no reason why adding a second monitor should have increased your idle temperatures.
Perhaps your cpu cooler has come loose. Is it the stock Intel pushpin cooler?

He's referring to GPU temp, not CPU.

The GPU needs to use more power to drive multiple displays -- specifically a higher idle memory clock.

 

[pezonator]

At that resolution I would go for a 7970 Ghz, especially if you want to turn all the eye candy up. I would never recommend GTX 5XX in SLI, been there, done that and moved on and much happier.

If you really want Nvidia, then the ASUS 670 TOP DCII is your best bet.

 

[geofelt]

He's referring to GPU temp, not CPU.

The GPU needs to use more power to drive multiple displays -- specifically a higher idle memory clock.

A reasonable theory.

I have found no diffference in my temperatures, regardless of using one or two monitors. Either at idle, when the graphics card is loafing, or at full out when gaming on one.

 

[sparkplug49]

Wait i need to know something is your 570 a 2gb vram or no

No its a 1280MB

 

[hapkido]

A reasonable theory.

I have found no diffference in my temperatures, regardless of using one or two monitors. Either at idle, when the graphics card is loafing, or at full out when gaming on one.

I don't notice a difference in temperature either, but I'm bet if you check your idle clock speeds, they're higher with 2 monitors than 1.

I have 5850s in crossfire with two monitors. If the primary card is idling (157Mhz core, 300Mhz memory), my screen flickers. The driver corrects this by increasing the idle clocks to 400Mhz core, 900Mhz memory on both cards. At those settings, I did notice my cards idling about 10C higher. I did some researching and experimenting and settled on a custom profile where the primary idles at 157Mhz core, 1000Mhz memory, and the secondary idles at 157Mhz core, 300Mhz memory. No screen flicker, less heat, less power usage.

Of course Nvidia cards may be different, and newer AMD cards may handle this better, but in my specific situation, I found a higher idle memory clock was needed to drive the additional display.

 

[sparkplug49]

He's referring to GPU temp, not CPU.

The GPU needs to use more power to drive multiple displays -- specifically a higher idle memory clock.

Yeah its my gpu temp not my CPU, I've got an awesome Zalman cooler and with the i7 its hard to even come close to pushing limits. But the GPU idles at about 53 degrees or so.

 

[sparkplug49]

Okay so it looks like a the SLI is out. Between the 670 and 680, I dont keep up as well as I should with product rollouts, is either one of them due to be updated / replaced any time soon?

 

[Guest]

any card in your performance segment has been released so i would not expect any pricing difference for awhile.

i'd suggest considering one of the non reference designs bigcyco referred to (asus TOP or MSI PE/OC) and then sell the 570 for around ~$200. depending on the venue (craigs list, ebay, word of mouth) you may get more and it will go fast.

 

[bigcyco1]

No its a 1280MB

http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd7970_vaporx_ghz/


The silent & deadly SAPPHIRE Vapor-X ^


http://www.techpowerup.com/159003/ASUS-Radeon-HD-7970-DirectCu-II-Graphics-Card-Pictured.html


asus monster direct cu II ^


http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_670_Direct_Cu_II/

^"ASUS GeForce GTX 670 Direct CU II TOP 2GB The amd assassin missing in action."


http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_670_Power_Edition/

^MSI GTX 670 Power Edition Twin Frozr IV The Breezy Beast! those are my recommendations

 

[metalman89]

Okay so I built my rig about a year ago and its performing well but since then I've added a display so I now run a 2560x1600 and a 1680x1050 off of my gtx 570 zotac. As a result it has upped the idle temp to around 50 and playing total war even on low settings sends the temp through the roof. I'm working on better cooling too but to be able to play a game like total war at 2560x1600 would my better bet (cost benefit wise) be to go with another gtx 570 (making it sli) or to just one 670?

Other specs:
i7 2600k
GA-Z68X-UD4-B3 Z68
SSD + HD
8gb ram (4gbx2)

Haven't read the rest of the thread yet but was too excited! You are the first member to have listed the exact same configuration as me. I just installed a second EVGA GTX 570 HD 2.5 GB card and am running them as SLI. I had the same issue you did, Although I was running my secondary monitor through the igfx motherboard HDMI connector. That config however gave me troubles all the time. They just didn't like each other. Running both monitors through one card pegged the core clock and I could swear that my previous GTX 460 SLI setup BOTH cards downclocked with dual monitors even if both monitors were plugged into the same card. Now with GTX 570 SLI and Dual Monitors, one card STILL stays pegged always. I swear the 460 setup one would throttle to 405 the other to 51 but nVidia insists that is uncorrectable....whatever. She runs hot. I have a Mickey Mouse engineered side intake fan made from a way overpowered 120mm CPU fan. It wasn't mounted with a standard square frame so I ... ahem ... superglued the hi-perf. fan into a gutted 120mm fan. To combat the intake whining I chopped the fan and braces out of another whimpy 120mm fan to use as a spacer. It's like a wind tunnel now, blows a HURRICANE of cool air onto both my 570's and causes so much positive pressure I can feel warm air coming out of all the cracks in my case! BUT with MSI's afterburner running a moderate fan boost I can play for hours and both cards stay below 65~°C although it does rather sound like a 747. I'll continue reading the thread. I am hoping to find a couple of water blocks for them. Good Luck!

So yeah,
i7 2600K @4.3ghz 1.3V
GA-Z68XP-UD4 rev. 1.3
16GB ADATA XMP1600 DDR3 (4x4)
3 ssd's + 1 HDD

Other specs:
i7 2600k
GA-Z68X-UD4-B3 Z68
SSD + HD
8gb ram