Early Verdict
MSI’s GTX 960 Gaming 2G is the clear choice if silent operation is your top priority, but if top performance and low power consumption are more important there are other options that will suit your needs better.
Pros
- +
Cool operation, rarely reaching 65° • Silent operation, even at load
Cons
- -
Power draw • Size • Price
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Introduction
Back in January, Nvidia launched the GTX 960. When it was first announced, many people criticized the small 128-bit memory bus, and 2GB of GDDR5, complaining that these specs won’t deliver the performance needed for today’s games. We’ve already tested three versions of GTX 960 and have proven it is a very capable GPU for FHD gaming, but each one offers a somewhat different set of features and benefits. Some are overclocked. Some have larger heatsinks than others. Some have a single 6-pin power connector, others have 8-pins. Some are tailored to be more silent than anything else. MSI has opted to combine all four of those benefits into a single option to try and stick out among the competition.
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Kevin Carbotte is a contributing writer for Tom's Hardware who primarily covers VR and AR hardware. He has been writing for us for more than four years.