How We Tested Nvidia’s GeForce GTX Titan X
We recently standardized our testing platform across Tom’s Hardware editors and offices, locking down consistent specifications for 2015. As such, all of today’s benchmarks are run on an Intel Core i7-5930K processor complemented by 16GB of DDR4-2400 memory. Stepping up to 500GB SSDs helps accommodate large benchmark suites, while our 850W power supply offers ample headroom to test even AMD’s Radeon R9 295X2.
Nvidia’s graphics cards are tested using driver build 347.84, while AMD’s are measured on the 14.12 Omega update posted in December of 2014. A few days before this review was scheduled to go live, AMD let us know it would introduce a FreeSync-enabled driver on March 19th, which also included long-overdue CrossFire profiles for Evolve and Far Cry 4. After spot-testing our other benchmarks to confirm their accuracy, we re-tested Far Cry using the upcoming build.
This was a more prominent issue back when AMD launched its Radeon R9 290X, but we continue to pre-heat graphics cards with benchmark runs prior to recording our actual results. This is done to avoid non-representative clock rates on both companies’ hardware.
Test System
CPU | Intel Core i7-5930K (Haswell-E), 3.5/3.7GHz, Six Cores, LGA 2011-v3, 15MB Shared L3 Cache, Hyper-Threading enabled | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Motherboard | MSI X99S Xpower AC (LGA 2011-v3), Intel X99 Express, BIOS v1.6 | ||||
Memory | Crucial Ballistix DDR4-2400, 4 x 4GB, 1200MHz, CL 16-16-16-39 2T | ||||
Graphics | Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan X1002MHz GPU, 12GB GDDR5 at 1753MHz (7012 MT/s)Nvidia GeForce GTX 9801126MHz GPU, 4GB GDDR5 at 1753MHz (7012MT/s)Nvidia GeForce GTX 780 Ti875MHz GPU, 3GB GDDR5 at 1753MHz (7012MT/s)Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan837MHz GPU, 6GB GDDR5 at 1502MHz (6008MT/s)AMD Radeon R9 295X21018MHz GPU, 2 x 4GB GDDR5 at 1250MHz (5000MT/s)AMD Radeon R9 290X1000MHz GPU, 4GB GDDR5 at 1250MHz (5000MT/s) | ||||
SSD | Crucial MX200, 500GB SSD, SATA 6Gb/s | ||||
Power | Be Quiet! Dark Power Pro 10, 850W, ATX12V, EPS12V |
Software And Drivers
Operating System | Microsoft Windows 8 Pro x64 |
---|---|
DirectX | DirectX 11 |
Graphics Drivers | All GeForce Cards: Nvidia 347.25 Beta DriverAll Radeon Cards: AMD Catalyst Omega 14.12 |
Benchmarks
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor | Built-in benchmark, Ultra preset | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Battlefield 4 | Custom THG Benchmark, Ultra preset | ||||
Metro Last Light | Built-in benchmark, Very High preset, 16x AF, Normal motion blur | ||||
Thief | Version 1.7, Built-in benchmark, Very High preset | ||||
Tomb Raider | Version 1.01.748.0, Built-in benchmark, Ultimate preset | ||||
Far Cry 4 | Version 1.9.0, Custom THG benchmark, 60-sec Fraps, Ultra preset |