Anyone interested in Nvidia's GeForce GTS 450 has a keen eye for value. But many enthusiasts still want the best performance they can afford. In today’s test, six factory-overclocked models challenge a standard-speed card in performance and value.
A month has passed since we first put the spotlight on Nvidia’s GTS 450, comparing it to everything from the Radeon HD 4850 to the GeForce GTX 460. While the basic reference card wasn’t much of an upgrade from last year’s competing parts, its combination of low price and middling performance made it a worthy contender for new, low-cost gaming builds.
Several manufacturers were already prepared at launch to take this part to a higher level of performance, and today we examine a few examples of those efforts.

We invited all major manufacturers to show of their best parts, and six took us up on the offer. Before we move on to individual package descriptions, here’s a brief look at specification differences.
| Asus ENGTS450 TOP/DI/1GD5 | ECS Black GTS 450 | Gigabyte GTS 450 GV-N450OC-1GI | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPU Clock | 925 MHz | 850 MHz | 830 MHz |
| Shader Clock | 1850 MHz | 1700 MHz | 1660 MHz |
| DRAM Rate | GDDR5-4000 | GDDR5-4000 | GDDR5-3608 |
| DVI | One Dual-Link | Two Dual-Link | Two Dual-Link |
| HDMI | Full HDMI | Mini HDMI | Mini HDMI |
| DisplayPort | None | None | None |
| VGA | One 15-Pin | By Adapter | By Adapter |
| Output Adapters | None | DVI to HDMI DVI-I to VGA | Mini to Full HDMI DVI-I to VGA |
| Length | 9.3" | 8.5" | 9.1" |
| Height | 4.9" | 5.4" | 4.5" |
| Total Thickness | 1.4" | 2.4" | 1.4" |
| Cooler Thickness | 1.3" | 2.2" | 1.3" |
| Weight | 19 Ounces | 23 Ounces | 20 Ounces |
| PCB Version | Custom | P1060 V1.0 | 3rd-party Reference |
| VRM | Four Phases | Four Phases | Four Phases |
| Warranty | Three Years | Three Years | Three Years |
| MSI N450GTS Cyclone 1GD5/OC | Sparkle Calibre GTS 450 1024 MB | Zotac GTS 450 ZT-40502-10L | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GPU Clock | 850 MHz | 850 MHz | 875 MHz |
| Shader Clock | 1700 MHz | 1700 MHz | 1750 MHz |
| DRAM Rate | GDDR5-4000 | GDDR5-3800 | GDDR5-4000 |
| DVI | Two Dual-Link | Two Dual-Link | Two Dual-Link |
| HDMI | Mini HDMI | Mini HDMI | Full HDMI |
| DisplayPort | None | None | Full-Size |
| VGA | By Adapter | By Adapter | By Adapter |
| Output Adapters | DVI to HDMI DVI-I to VGA | HDMI Cable DVI-I to VGA | DVI-I to VGA |
| Length | 8.3" | 8.5" | 7.5" |
| Height | 5.1" | 5.4" | 4.4" |
| Total Thickness | 1.3" | 2.2" | 1.6" |
| Cooler Thickness | 1.2" | 2.0" | 1.4" |
| Weight | 14 Ounces | 22 Ounces | 15 Ounces |
| PCB Version | P1060-000(B) | Nvidia P1060 | Custom |
| VRM | Four Phases | Four Phases | Three Phases |
| Warranty | Three Years | Three Years | Lifetime |
- Tweaking GeForce GTS 450's Value
- Asus ENGTS450 DirectCU TOP/DI/1GD5
- Asus Overclocking Utilities
- ECS Black GTS 450
- Gigabyte GV-N450-1GI
- MSI N450GTS Cyclone 1GD5/OC
- MSI Overclocking Utilities
- Sparkle Calibre X450G
- Zotac Amp Edition ZT-40502-10L
- Zotac Overclocking Utilities
- Test Settings
- Benchmark Results: 3DMark Vantage
- Benchmark Results: Alien Vs. Predator
- Benchmark Results: Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
- Benchmark Results: Crysis
- Benchmark Results: DiRT 2
- Benchmark Results: S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call Of Pripyat
- Relative Performance, Heat, And Power
- Efficiency, Price, And Performance Value
- Conclusion
BUT I WANT ONE NOW!! >
I was hoping a GTX460 and an HD5770/5830 reference cards/price would also be included. It would have helped those considering to cards in a somewhat expanded range of choices to make a more meaningful decision.
Love to see a price drop....hoping to buy
Exactly. If there is no noise tests the we can just assume they are loud. Really loud.
bah .. i can find 2 X gts450 for the price of a GTX460 ... personnaly ill build a SLI GTS450 rig before a GTX460 or 470 .. sure you can add another GTX later, but you will need to put more money again and again
we need some ATI cards 5770 5750 to compare with because at this price point
it had better beat them
Also, like others have noted, 5750/5770 should be included in testing. They are in the price range afterall.
Cause' this is Nvidia - it's all about bang for your buck.
I believe only the 768 model is getting a drop from what I heard.
I am thinking drop on Friday the 22nd, because that is when the NDA on 68xx performance expires.
There is also supposed to be an Nvidia launch of a GTX 485 soon, wouldn't surprise me if they do it soon to steal some of AMD's thunder because... in reality, the 68xx series performs about the same as the 58xx, but costs much less. It is not until the 69xx series comes out that you ill see some whup ass performance... So it makes sense to kill AMD at the top around the same time if they can't kill AMD in the mainstream with a new product (only a price drop on the 460).