First GTX 670 review(s) up (tt & oc.net) * TT OC review added*

[skipsneeky2]

When that gtx670 comes out,let the f5 wars begin.

Every other generation i was able to walk into a store shortly after release and pick up a new card,either it being the 8800gts g92 or the gtx280 heck,i got this card about a week prior to everyone else,someone at frys made a booboo stocking and selling me this,i waited a week for drivers,and a gtx295....I hope they can supply the gtx670 well.

 

[RussianSensation]

LOL i know,when the gtx680 came out,i was already thinking of selling off my 7970 in a hurry mostly cause i hated the drivers and that i knew if i wanted to get rid of it,no one will be paying me more then $400 for it.

That's a dangerous thing to say around these parts. Did you have driver crashes, errors, or just don't like CCC?

 

[skipsneeky2]

That's a dangerous thing to say around these parts. Did you have driver crashes, errors, or just don't like CCC?

LOL errors,random stability issues but CCC was fine.

Never had a card go to sleep on me with the pc when i put a dvd into the dvd rom tray of my tower...maybe a defective card but stuff like that left a nasty taste in my mouth.

My gaming pc doubles up as a htpc of sorts and when me and the gf can't watch a movie when the freaking thing falls asleep,then houston has problems.

GF wanted me to destroy it,i opted to sell it so i won that round.:awe:

 

[RussianSensation]

Hmmm,was gonna grab a 680,think im going to get this though.you gonna grab one Russian?

Ya, you might as well wait until May 10th to see how 670 performs. You can always wait in queue line for the 680 if 670 isn't satisfactory. :biggrin:

I enjoy playing with new hardware but I am not hardcore enough to justify $400-500 for console ports at my resolution.

I realize there is overclocking, but still.

I also like to run some distributed computing projects from time to time and GK104 is not great for that since NV gimped its DP performance. OTOH, I don't think my PSU will handle total system power with an HD7970 @ 1200mhz. So if I go for 7970 I might have to spend $500+$100 on new PSU. $600 for that setup is a lot imho since it looks like GTX670 will come very close to that performance for $400-430....but it has 1/24th single precision in double precision mode!!

 

[skipsneeky2]

Like the 8800gts g92 card i purchased to fully max out BF2 in late 2007,i would hope a gtx670 can do ultra 1080p with 2x msaa in BF3,a 7970 can do it.

BF2 and BF3 are like the only real fps shooters besides BC2 i could justify buying such cards for so its a worthy purchase.

 

[stag3]

yea i dont see how this hurts amd much, if anything there's no point getting a gtx680 as this is right there also

 

[RussianSensation]

yea i dont see how this hurts amd much, if anything there's no point getting a gtx680 as this is right there also

Ya, but if GTX670 makes 680 poor value, it makes 7950 and 7970 irrelevant automatically and makes $350 HD7870 look completely out of place. Also, it's worse for AMD since NV is making $ selling GK104 at $400 or $500. Imagine that they were selling GTX470 and 480 for $350 and $500 respectively, despite more complex power circuitry and 520-530mm^2 die sizes.

AMD's $400 7950 is about to be obsoleted and that means an inevitable price drop to $350, which trickles down to the rest of the lineup, i.e., 7870 to $299.

But then AMD's lineup looks staggered:

7950 = $350
7870 = $300
7850 = $250

I think they might drop HD7970 to $420-430 and launch factory pre-overclocked 7970 "Ghz" editions so that the can maintain $500 pricing. Given how Rory Read has stated they are predators now, the last thing AMD will want to do is drop prices but with 670 they might have no choice.

 

[RussianSensation]

Like the 8800gts g92 card i purchased to fully max out BF2 in late 2007,i would hope a gtx670 can do ultra 1080p with 2x msaa in BF3,a 7970 can do it.

BF2 and BF3 are like the only real fps shooters besides BC2 i could justify buying such cards for so its a worthy purchase.

You mean multiplayer shooters?

I think just overall there isn't a killer demanding PC game for 1080P on the horizon. Maybe GTAV sometime later. I made a quick list of some games for PC and I am just not seeing why I need to drop $400-500 yet. Of course a lot of enthusiasts upgrade because they want to, which is cool! The majority of big games aren't launching until the fall. That gives plenty of time for prices to fall and for price wars to get heated as TSMC's production improves and perhaps AMD launches "Ghz" 7970 editions.

1. Diablo III – May 15, 2012
2. Max Payne 3 – May 29, 2012
3. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier – June 12, 2012
4. Brothers in Arms: Furious 4 – Q2 2012
5. Sid Meier's Civilization V: Gods & Kings – June 19, 2012
6. Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition – August 24, 2012
7. Darksiders II – August 2012
8. Far Cry 3 – September 4, 2012
9. Borderlands 2 – September 18, 2012
10. Tom Raider – Q3 2012
11. F1 2012 – September 2012
12. Dishonored – September 25, 2012
13. BioShock Infinite – October 16, 2012
14. Medal of Honor: Warfighter – October 23, 2012
15. Assassin’s Creed III – October 30, 2012

 

[Don Karnage]

Max Payne 3.....

 

[blastingcap]

Ya, but if GTX670 makes 680 poor value, it makes 7950 and 7970 irrelevant automatically and makes $350 HD7870 look completely out of place. Also, it's worse for AMD since NV is making $ selling GK104 at $400 or $500. Imagine that they were selling GTX470 and 480 for $350 and $500 respectively, despite more complex power circuitry and 520-530mm^2 die sizes.

AMD's $400 7950 is about to be obsoleted and that means an inevitable price drop to $350, which trickles down to the rest of the lineup, i.e., 7870 to $299.

But then AMD's lineup looks staggered:

7950 = $350
7870 = $300
7850 = $250

I think they might drop HD7970 to $420-430 and launch factory pre-overclocked 7970 "Ghz" editions so that the can maintain $500 pricing. Given how Rory Read has stated they are predators now, the last thing AMD will want to do is drop prices but with 670 they might have no choice.

Stock vs stock I expect 670 to be about 5-15% faster than 7950, which means at the higher end of that range, it would be only ~5% slower than a 7970. Yields on 28nm have apparently improved to the point where AMD is launching the 1000+GHz 7970 so the stock vs stock comparison is going to change soon.

I would expect something like this to result:

680 - $500
7970 Ghz edition - $450
7970 original + Three for Free - $430
670 - $400 (perhaps higher due to price gouging)
7950 900Hz edition - $350
7950 original + Three for Free - $330
7950 900Hz edition w/ 1.5GB if they ever make it - $320
7870 - $280
7850 - $240

The last two mainly due to the lengthy delay re: the 660; it's not that easy to compete with gtx 580/570 with their higher power/noise/heat against 7870/7850

 

[aaksheytalwar]

Amd should launch a 7970 sku at 1125 1575 since most do that much at stock volts. Launch it at $500-550, will take over the 680 hands down. And launch Oced units at 1200 1650 which will make the 680 second tier, launch them at 600 bucks

 

[Zanovar]

Ya, you might as well wait until May 10th to see how 670 performs. You can always wait in queue line for the 680 if 670 isn't satisfactory. :biggrin:

I enjoy playing with new hardware but I am not hardcore enough to justify $400-500 for console ports at my resolution.

I realize there is overclocking, but still.

I also like to run some distributed computing projects from time to time and GK104 is not great for that since NV gimped its DP performance. OTOH, I don't think my PSU will handle total system power with an HD7970 @ 1200mhz. So if I go for 7970 I might have to spend $500+$100 on new PSU. $600 for that setup is a lot imho since it looks like GTX670 will come very close to that performance for $400-430....but it has 1/24th single precision in double precision mode!!

Tbh kinda wish i still had my 7970 OC,it wasnt the greatst clocker and sounded bad coil/cap whine/scream/click/cicada on meth ,but coming from a 5850 at 55% to keep under 85c it was amazing fan noise/temps wise,(important to me)670/680 for me this round it seems though roll on the 10th.

 

[maddie]

I answered the question = having 2 CF or SLI connectors has nothing to do with any GPU specific limitation the precludes mid-range cards from having 2 CF / SLI connectors just like high-end cards do. It mostly relates to:

1) How NV or AMD wants to position the product in their product stack at the time of release. If they want to position the card to support dual or Tri-fire SLI/CF they'll just redesign the PCB to support that for a particular GPU;
2) If AIB wants to create a custom PCB with more than 1 CF/SLI connector.

Here is HD6850 with 2 cross fire connectors.

Answered.

Thanks for the info.

 

[RussianSensation]

Tbh kinda wish i still had my 7970 OC,it wasnt the greatst clocker and sounded bad coil/cap whine/scream/click/cicada on meth ,but coming from a 5850 at 55% to keep under 85c it was amazing fan noise/temps wise,(important to me)670/680 for me this round it seems though roll on the 10th.

$50 for Accelero Xtreme

950mhz 5850 > 5870. That's still a very very fast card; although it does falter if you need tessellation.

Answered.

Thanks for the info.

You are welcome maddie

Stock vs stock I expect 670 to be about 5-15% faster than 7950, which means at the higher end of that range, it would be only ~5% slower than a 7970.

Looks like after market cooling is going to be amazing for GK104. Remember how GPU Boost drops every increment above 70*C, 75/80/85*C? That means if you keep the card cooler, it will GPU Boost higher.

There is another user who got a Gigabyte GTX670 OC Windforce and his card hit 1335mhz with overclocking.

Core Clock +185 (gfx score 10744): http://3dmark.com/3dm11/3356922 - Boosts to about 1335 Core.

Reviews of after market GTX680s were also getting 1350mhz clocks. Since most of the guys on our forum purchased reference cards, many people assumed that 680 tops out at 1230-1250 or so. It goes higher but it needs better cooling than reference design. That means $429 GTX670 will likely hit 1300mhz no problem at which point it should beat an overclocked 7950.

As a side note, GTX670's stock clocks are 915mhz. 1335mhz GPU Boost = 46% GPU overclock. NV and AMD are both low balling this generation. I've never seen such conservative stock clocks in any GPU generation before. :biggrin:

I mean in that 32 page Overclock.net thread, people are posting their 3dMark 11 scores of reference overclocked 680s and they still cannot beat the overclocked 670 by Gigabyte......

 

[3DVagabond]

*snip*

Here is HD6850 with 2 cross fire connectors.

The powercolor hd 6870 pcs++ also had 2 crossfire connectors.

link TechPowerUp

I'm sure that nVidia realized some time ago that the GK104 was going to be their top chip this generation. Even if it was originally intended as mid range that plan would have gone out with GK100 and they would have beefed up the card as much as possible.

 

[Silverforce11]

@Russian:
Exactly. Reference 680 will have poorer OC or dynamic turbo results simply because its competing vs custom pcb with better circuitry and beefier cooling. The dynamic turbo factors in current and temps to determine boost clock.

These custom 670 will obsolete the 680, until there's custom 680, no doubts about it. Also if reference 670 go for ~$399, it will have to force a drop on 7870. But that depends on supply, if its just another paper launch.

AMD is planning to replace their reference 7970 to 1ghz edition soon. IF so they would have to up the 7950 speeds as well.

I can still see a market for 7970 @ $429, 7950 @ 350-375 depends on if they up its reference clocks. 7870 has to drop to $299. 7850 can stay at $249 since there's no pressure down there.

 

[tviceman]

As a side note, GTX670's stock clocks are 915mhz. 1335mhz GPU Boost = 46% GPU overclock. NV and AMD are both low balling this generation. I've never seen such conservative stock clocks in any GPU generation before. :biggrin:

I mean in that 32 page Overclock.net thread, people are posting their 3dMark 11 scores of reference overclocked 680s and they still cannot beat the overclocked 670 by Gigabyte......

Yeah I saw that as well. I think it shows just how much the memory bandwidth is holding back the gtx680. From what I've read, 7000mhz is the absolute fastest GDDR5 ram available and if Nvidia refreshes GK104 this winter to compliment their inevitable gtx700 lineup, they will absolutely need the vram running significantly higher than 6000mhz if they want the clock probable core clock bumps with an A3 GK104 to scale well.

 

[Silverforce11]

So the lack of perfect scaling on the gtx680 OC so far is a memory bandwidth bottleneck you think?

 

[toyota]

So the lack of perfect scaling on the gtx680 OC so far is a memory bandwidth bottleneck you think?

seems that way. if you think about the gtx680 is actually pretty slow considering it has TWICE the shading power of the gtx580.

 

[3DVagabond]

Ya, but if GTX670 makes 680 poor value, it makes 7950 and 7970 irrelevant automatically and makes $350 HD7870 look completely out of place. Also, it's worse for AMD since NV is making $ selling GK104 at $400 or $500. Imagine that they were selling GTX470 and 480 for $350 and $500 respectively, despite more complex power circuitry and 520-530mm^2 die sizes.

AMD's $400 7950 is about to be obsoleted and that means an inevitable price drop to $350, which trickles down to the rest of the lineup, i.e., 7870 to $299.

But then AMD's lineup looks staggered:

7950 = $350
7870 = $300
7850 = $250

I think they might drop HD7970 to $420-430 and launch factory pre-overclocked 7970 "Ghz" editions so that the can maintain $500 pricing. Given how Rory Read has stated they are predators now, the last thing AMD will want to do is drop prices but with 670 they might have no choice.

They're going to up the reference clocks on the 7970. They'll get a fresh set of reviews with updated drivers, and if they do it right (something you can't count on from AMD), it will be faster OoB than the 680.

As they are right now, without changes, I'd still take a 7970 over a 670 at ~$50 more and over the 680 for ~$50 less. (There's this app called Luxrender that would make all the difference for me.) The card is a more versatile, better rounded product. The 680 gets the nod on power usage. I realize that nVidia's marketing machine will make the public believe that the 670 is a better card. Look what's happening already. They'll likely offer retailers bigger margins, too.

The 7870 is already overpriced compared to AMD's own current offerings. Without any nVidia comp the price needs to come down to $299 already. Who knows what they'll decide.

Add to all of this, we have no 680/690 availability. We have no idea what 670 supplies will be like. There might be buttloads of binned 680 chips. There might not be many at all though. It depends on what's causing the shortage, defective chips or limited wafer starts.
I realize that if someone really, really wants to they can find one. I realize in countries where there's a $100-$150 price premium for the 680 over the 7970 they can be found. This doesn't change anything about the overall lack of availability. When the largest market on the planet has virtually none available there's supply issues.

Luxrender benches:

 

[skipsneeky2]

You mean multiplayer shooters?

I think just overall there isn't a killer demanding PC game for 1080P on the horizon. Maybe GTAV sometime later. I made a quick list of some games for PC and I am just not seeing why I need to drop $400-500 yet. Of course a lot of enthusiasts upgrade because they want to, which is cool! The majority of big games aren't launching until the fall. That gives plenty of time for prices to fall and for price wars to get heated as TSMC's production improves and perhaps AMD launches "Ghz" 7970 editions.

1. Diablo III – May 15, 2012
2. Max Payne 3 – May 29, 2012
3. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier – June 12, 2012
4. Brothers in Arms: Furious 4 – Q2 2012
5. Sid Meier's Civilization V: Gods & Kings – June 19, 2012
6. Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition – August 24, 2012
7. Darksiders II – August 2012
8. Far Cry 3 – September 4, 2012
9. Borderlands 2 – September 18, 2012
10. Tom Raider – Q3 2012
11. F1 2012 – September 2012
12. Dishonored – September 25, 2012
13. BioShock Infinite – October 16, 2012
14. Medal of Honor: Warfighter – October 23, 2012
15. Assassin’s Creed III – October 30, 2012

Medal of honor is a title i may be interested in,the one that came out after BC2 was a real downer and i only got it for the BF3 beta deal,i hope that isn't the case with warfighter.

Gonna purchase Skyrim soon and perhaps Diablo 3,both being non fps and the first in their genre to grab my interest.

Bioshock 1 i never finished,then i still need 2 before inifinite,those are sweet games,but yeah waiting is a good idea,maybe by fall we could have $350 gtx670s before rebates.:biggrin:

 

[blastingcap]

$50 for Accelero Xtreme

950mhz 5850 > 5870. That's still a very very fast card; although it does falter if you need tessellation.



You are welcome maddie



Looks like after market cooling is going to be amazing for GK104. Remember how GPU Boost drops every increment above 70*C, 75/80/85*C? That means if you keep the card cooler, it will GPU Boost higher.

There is another user who got a Gigabyte GTX670 OC Windforce and his card hit 1335mhz with overclocking.

Core Clock +185 (gfx score 10744): http://3dmark.com/3dm11/3356922 - Boosts to about 1335 Core.

Reviews of after market GTX680s were also getting 1350mhz clocks. Since most of the guys on our forum purchased reference cards, many people assumed that 680 tops out at 1230-1250 or so. It goes higher but it needs better cooling than reference design. That means $429 GTX670 will likely hit 1300mhz no problem at which point it should beat an overclocked 7950.

As a side note, GTX670's stock clocks are 915mhz. 1335mhz GPU Boost = 46% GPU overclock. NV and AMD are both low balling this generation. I've never seen such conservative stock clocks in any GPU generation before. :biggrin:

I mean in that 32 page Overclock.net thread, people are posting their 3dMark 11 scores of reference overclocked 680s and they still cannot beat the overclocked 670 by Gigabyte......

I don't think AMD/NV intentionally lowballed. I think that at the time they had to set reference clocks, 28nm was not mature enough to support higher clocks, especially in AMD's case as they came out over four months ago. In-between the time they set clocks and the launches, TSMC's 28nm process improved, and it may continue to improve.

 

[Zanovar]

Damn,these cards need some voltage control for the user.(software)grrrr

 

[3DVagabond]

$50 for Accelero Xtreme

950mhz 5850 > 5870. That's still a very very fast card; although it does falter if you need tessellation.



You are welcome maddie



Looks like after market cooling is going to be amazing for GK104. Remember how GPU Boost drops every increment above 70*C, 75/80/85*C? That means if you keep the card cooler, it will GPU Boost higher.

There is another user who got a Gigabyte GTX670 OC Windforce and his card hit 1335mhz with overclocking.

Core Clock +185 (gfx score 10744): http://3dmark.com/3dm11/3356922 - Boosts to about 1335 Core.

Reviews of after market GTX680s were also getting 1350mhz clocks. Since most of the guys on our forum purchased reference cards, many people assumed that 680 tops out at 1230-1250 or so. It goes higher but it needs better cooling than reference design. That means $429 GTX670 will likely hit 1300mhz no problem at which point it should beat an overclocked 7950.

As a side note, GTX670's stock clocks are 915mhz. 1335mhz GPU Boost = 46% GPU overclock. NV and AMD are both low balling this generation. I've never seen such conservative stock clocks in any GPU generation before. :biggrin:

I mean in that 32 page Overclock.net thread, people are posting their 3dMark 11 scores of reference overclocked 680s and they still cannot beat the overclocked 670 by Gigabyte......

With GPU boost the card doesn't have to be "long term stable" like it does with a fulltime O/C. This allows for higher boost clocks than you could have with O/C'ing.

 

[blastingcap]

GPU Boost is a more elegant way of solving the overclocking-vs-TDP balance. So is adaptive vsync, the framerate/stutter vs. image quality problem. AMD would do well to follow suit.