Asus GTX 960 review

[SlickR12345]

http://hexus.net/tech/reviews/graphics/79726-asus-strix-gtx-960-directcu-ii/

Gamers awaiting an affordable GeForce graphics card based on the latest Maxwell architecture will have been anticipating a future-proof x60-series part that raises the bar for mid-range performance.
If that sounds like you, the GeForce GTX 960, priced from £159.99, isn't the card you've been pining for. The latest addition to Nvidia's 900-series stable represents a small performance gain over previous-generation GTX 760, and with a meagre 2GB frame buffer allied to a narrow 128-bit bus, there are genuine concerns over GTX 960's longevity.

One of the first reviews I've found, its on a custom Asus card. As expected this card is a giant disappointment and failure. In many games SLOWER than the GTX 760 it supposedly replaces.


Toms hardware review: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/nvidia-geforce-gtx-960,4038-12.html

As performance purists, it’s rare that we recommend a graphics card based on features. But if power usage matters to you, the GeForce GTX 960 is the right choice. If you record a lot of your online exploits, Nvidia’s ShadowPlay recorder is the best option out there. And if the GeForce MFAA implementation suits your fancy, it’s a great way to increase anti-aliasing quality without sacrificing frame rates. None of those options change the competitive landscape like the GeForce GTX 970’s disruptive price tag. But they do make the GeForce GTX 960 a lot more interesting up against AMD's Radeon R9 285.

What a joke.


We already have two GTX 960 threads and we don't need a separate thread for one review.

-Rvenger

 

[monstercameron]

http://hexus.net/tech/reviews/graphics/79726-asus-strix-gtx-960-directcu-ii/

One of the first reviews I've found, its on a custom Asus card. As expected this card is a giant disappointment and failure. In many games SLOWER than the GTX 760 it supposedly replaces.


Toms hardware review: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/nvidia-geforce-gtx-960,4038-12.html
What a joke.

but it uses less power, you can save a few cents a month.

 

[Ketchup]

Well, it looks close enough to be a 760 performer, with lower power consumption and lower noise under load. The launch price is also lower than the 760 is currently, so while the performance isn't that exciting, I think it will end up being a good seller for Nvidia.

 

[amenx]

Why not change the thread title to be 960 reviews to gather them all in one place. Not that I think the 960s have anything special for them .

Other reviews:

KFA2 GeForce GTX 960 EXOC

MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming Edition

GeForce GTX 960 2-Way SLI | ASUS STRIX

 

[kawi6rr]

but it uses less power, you can save a few cents a month.

Good one! I laughed pretty hard at this one, thanks.

 

[Insomniator]

Well, it looks close enough to be a 760 performer, with lower power consumption and lower noise under load. The launch price is also lower than the 760 is currently, so while the performance isn't that exciting, I think it will end up being a good seller for Nvidia.

It won't be a good seller because of those reasons though. It will be a good seller because its Nvidia's midrange that will be on Best Buy's shelves for $250. The card could perform worse and it would still be a good seller, though I wonder who buys these cards without doing actual research first.

 

[Ken g6]

Looks very similar to the R9 285. Both have inferior RAM, inferior bandwidth, and cost more than the similar R9 280 without noticeably improving on it.

 

[RussianSensation]

but it uses less power, you can save a few cents a month.

I posted most of my thoughts on this card here:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=37103184&postcount=44

I'll stick to my viewpoint:

- Budget gamer --> HD7950/R9 280 for $140-150
- Gamer who wants to keep his card for > 2 years, enjoy high resolution textures and get 37-47% more performance at 1080P --> after-market R9 290 4GB for $240-260.

BTW, look at the standing of 290/290X vs. 970/780Ti/980 at 1440-4K. Looks like the gap is narrowing even more with 290X > 970/780Ti now that TPU added more recent titles. Looking forward to NV drivers are better myth being spread online though. :sneaky:

Big respect to Hexus for calling it how it is that 2GB of VRAM is a huge risk factor. Will mentally add it to my list of unbiased/unpaid reviewers. :thumbsup:

I love the argument that 960 will be awesome because you can just use a crappy 300W PSU with it. That's not happening because your system would be 76-80% loaded!

---

Breaking news -- Team Green purchase justifications uncovered!

1. Step one - write down all key metrics used to judge videocards:

- Absolute performance
- VRAM
- Performance/mm2
- Performance/watt
- Power usage
- Price/performance
- Overclocking
- Compute

2. Step two - find any one of those metrics where a particular NV card is better and promote it by picking and choosing to justify why it's superior, since it's well better based on some metric, surely!

460 - overclocking!
480/580 - performance above all!
970 - price/performance!
980 - absolute performance and compute
960 - perf/watt!

3. Step three - if AMD card is superior in any major metric, downplay its importance. If longevity is concerned, ignore the past 8800GT 256MB, 8800 GTS 320MB, 470/480/570/580 VRAM bottlenecks, since well who keeps their card for more than 2 years!

4. Step four - if AMD card is better in most metrics, focus on intangibles like features and drivers.

970 winning card for price/performance, but with 960 price/performance vs. 290 no longer matters. News at 11!

 

[realibrad]

I posted most of my thoughts on this card here:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=37103184&postcount=44

I'll stick to my viewpoint:

- Budget gamer --> HD7950/R9 280 for $140-150
- Gamer who wants to keep his card for > 2 years, enjoy high resolution textures and get 37-47% more performance at 1080P --> after-market R9 290 4GB for $240-270.

BTW, look at the standing of 290/290X vs. 970/780Ti/980 at 1440-4K. Looks like the gap is narrowing even more with 290X > 970/780Ti now that TPU added more recent titles. Looking forward to NV drivers are better myth being spread online though. :sneaky:

Big respect to Hexus for calling it how it is that 2GB of VRAM is a huge risk factor. Will mentally add it to my list of unbiased/unpaid reviewers. :thumbsup:

The 960 will still sell though. Its the 280 with lower powers and the Nvidia premium.

I dont see this card being viable for very long. The market has been beefing up specs and 2gb just wont be enough for very long. That being said, I dont see Nvidia caring, because they are not pushing themselves as AMD is not forcing them too.

Lets hope AMD can make Nvidia get into gear, because the 980, 970 and now 960 are cards that dont push pref, as much as they could.

 

[SteveGrabowski]

This works out well for Nvidia. By the time all the big game releases for the holiday 2015 season are out and people see how bad their 2GB gimp card chokes on them, they can shell out $400 for their GTX 980 rebranded as a GTX 1070.