GTX 970 SC ACX SLI has arrived from amazon.... but....

[x3sphere]

There is no 970 reference cooler. And when the 980 is oced to around 1500, the 980 reference cooler is ad loud as the 290x according to one review I saw.

PCPer said it nearly hit 44 dbA, OC'd to 1483 MHz, not bad at all considering that's a massive overclock.

So... yeah, that's as loud as the 290X in quiet mode, which is tolerable. It was when you enabled Uber mode on he 290X it sounded like a hair dryer (50 dbA+).

 

[gamingarena23]

The 980 cooler has no vapor chamber so its not as good as the Titan cooler. Of course the 980 uses way less power though. And again there is no 970 reference cooler.

Oh i had no idea that there is no reference 970 cooler my bad.

I just swapped my titans for 980's and they run around 5-10c cooler and are even quieter then my Titans at 70% you can't hear them inside the case if you have at least 2-3 Case fans.

 

[misterbobby]

Oh i had no idea that there is no reference 970 cooler my bad.

You are wrong about 980 cooler it's exact same cooler as on Ti and Titan black improved version of original Titan cooler.

I just swapped my titans for 980's and they run around 5-10c cooler and are even quieter then my Titans at 70% you cant hear them inside the case if you have at least 2-3 Case fans.

NO its NOT the exact same cooler. They made it look the same so people like you would think it was but AGAIN it does not have the vapor chamber like on the Titan.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_980/5.html

The heatsink no longer uses a vapor-chamber base, which, while it helps NVIDIA reduce cost, also reduces thermal capacity slightly.

 

[x3sphere]

Indeed, they got rid of the vapor chamber. When it comes down to it the cooler still seems to perform very well though. When you are overclocking, it's still quieter than a heavily OC'd 780 Ti. Somewhat disappointing though as it (presumably) could have been even quieter had they kept the vapor chamber, oh well.

 

[gamingarena23]

NO its NOT the exact same cooler. They made it look the same so people like you would think it was but AGAIN it does not have the vapor chamber like on the Titan.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/NVIDIA/GeForce_GTX_980/5.html

The heatsink no longer uses a vapor-chamber base, which, while it helps NVIDIA reduce cost, also reduces thermal capacity slightly.

Oh sorry cause people like me "retards" got fooled, yeah they fooled me all-right, you got it that's reason i got 980's cause of same cooler as Titan...

well even if does not use vapor-chamber the card runs cooler and quieter then Titan so whatever they did this card don't need it

 

[misterbobby]

Yeah i saw that well even if does not use vapor-chamber the card runs cooler and quieter then Titan so whatever they did this card don't need it

Well perhaps the fact that its uses way less power than the Titan/780 Ti means that even without the vapor chamber it runs fine. The 980 should run right up to 80 C though as that is how its designed to operate. Much like the 780 Ti goes to 83.

 

[MorgothPl]

According to tests, acx 1.0 is about 10db louder than MSI or Asus cards. Don't know how loud is acx 2.0, as according to some shops, they will be aviable next week, but if it's not improved, then I ain't getting EVGA this round.

 

[Flogger23m]

Well, shit. Time to contact Amazon or eVGA. eVGA may be the better route since Amazon is likely out of stock and you'd be waiting quite a while for a replacement.

Amazon is better. They'll respond more quickly and he'll get new replacements. EVGA will send him refurbs; although as it is release day maybe he will get lucky and get new ones.

 

[limitedaccess]

According to tests, acx 1.0 is about 10db louder than MSI or Asus cards. Don't know how loud is acx 2.0, as according to some shops, they will be aviable next week, but if it's not improved, then I ain't getting EVGA this round.

There are already reviews using the ACX 2.0 cooler. While the fan is supposedly better than the ACX 1.0 it doesn't address the fundamental issue.

The problem with the ACX cooler on the 970 is the actual heatsink is the same variant they used on the GTX 760 which has 3 direct contact heatpipes. However despite GM204s larger die the same problem persists (you can see this in reviews where they disable the card) where only 2 of the 3 heatpipes actually contact the GPU die, and one of those 2 heatpipes is shared with the VRMs.

Except I think good will towards EVGAs service seems to lead to very little actual criticism regarding this very obvious design flaw.

For example both heatsinks use 3 direct contact heatpipes, spot the difference -

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/EVGA/GTX_970_SC_ACX_Cooler/4.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GTX_970_STRIX_OC/4.html

 

[Flogger23m]

There are already reviews using the ACX 2.0 cooler. While the fan is supposedly better than the ACX 1.0 it doesn't address the fundamental issue.

The problem with the ACX cooler on the 970 is the actual heatsink is the same variant they used on the GTX 760 which has 3 direct contact heatpipes. However despite GM204s larger die the same problem persists (you can see this in reviews where they disable the card) where only 2 of the 3 heatpipes actually contact the GPU die, and one of those 2 heatpipes is shared with the VRMs.

Except I think good will towards EVGAs service seems to lead to very little actual criticism regarding this very obvious design flaw.

For example both heatsinks use 3 direct contact heatpipes, spot the difference -

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/EVGA/GTX_970_SC_ACX_Cooler/4.html
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GTX_970_STRIX_OC/4.html

So in short, ACX 2.0 = cooler/less noise but still not as good as the offerings by MSI, ASUS ect.?

I am trying to decide between EVGA and MSI. Waiting to see the price of the three fan Gigabyte. Seems to cool better than the MSI, but how is it noise wise?

 

[misterbobby]

Plus EVGA just slaps that cooler on there where MSI and others actually improve some of the components.

EDIT: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2014/09/19/nvidia-geforce-gtx-970-review/13

What may be a distraction, however, is noise from the power circuitry. As we said, EVGA doesn't use any upgraded components for its power phases, whereas ASUS and MSI both use higher end parts. It also has only four power phases for the GPU compared to six in the other two cards, which puts more strain and load on the invidiual elements of each pahse.

The result, sadly, is a relatively low volume but still irritating buzzing noise every time the card is put under load (i.e. when gaming). In a quiet case positioned on the floor, or when using headphones, it won't bother you, but if your case is next to you on your desk then that may not be the case. No power noise was heard from the ASUS or MSI cards.

 

[hnic]

^^after reading that review, it really made me feel better about cancelling my 970 SC order from Amazon after realizing it still had the previous gen ACX1 cooler on it. It was on the verge of shipping! Now I'm happily waiting on my MSI 970 4G to arrive sometime next week.

 

[misterbobby]

^^after reading that review, it really made me feel better about cancelling my 970 SC order from Amazon after realizing it still had the previous gen ACX1 cooler on it. It was on the verge of shipping! Now I'm happily waiting on my MSI 970 4G to arrive sometime next week.

The "gaming" or the other dual fan version? I was going to get the gaming but out of stock at lunch today so went with the other one.

 

[GoldenTiger]

It literally says ACX 1.0 in the Amazon listing...

It didn't make ANY mention of acx 1.0 at the time I placed my order. None, literally, at all.... I looked to see if it specified ACX 2.0 and saw no mention of a version number at that point. The listing was later edited by amazon.

 

[hnic]

The "gaming" or the other dual fan version? I was going to get the gaming but out of stock at lunch today so went with the other one.

I believe it is the gaming edition, whichever version has the Twin Frozr V (red/black colors) cooling on it.

It didn't make ANY mention of acx 1.0 at the time I placed my order. None, literally, at all.... I looked to see if it specified ACX 2.0 and saw no mention of a version number at that point. The listing was later edited by amazon.

Yep, it was only until they officially launched and I was able to compare the part #s on the EVGA site with the one listed by Amazon did I realize that. Otherwise, there was no other indication as to what ACX version the early birds were getting. I don't think we were in the wrong to assume that EVGA would ship out these new cards with the new ACX2 they were hyping up days before release. I feel like they are just getting rid of excess inventory of older cooling solutions for this launch and charging a premium for sub-standard parts compared to competitors like ASUS and MSI.

 

[mls1995]

This thread makes me happy I went with the gtx 980 with the titan cooler

 

[limitedaccess]

This thread makes me happy I went with the gtx 980 with the titan cooler

They might be using a different heatsink and board design on 980s though. The EVGA ACX GTX 770 and higher had a different heatsink than the 760.

So in short, ACX 2.0 = cooler/less noise but still not as good as the offerings by MSI, ASUS ect.?

I am trying to decide between EVGA and MSI. Waiting to see the price of the three fan Gigabyte. Seems to cool better than the MSI, but how is it noise wise?

Both guru3d and Tom's have reviews of the Gigabyte G1 along with thermal imaging (so you can see other component temperatures. The design is "beefy" though. Even the MSI Gaming for example went backwards in some ways (lost the support frame/rod? not sure if the card will flex or not without, might be non issue) while Gigabyte tacked everything on including a backplate and extra ports (although the Gigabyte actually might have support now as well).

I believe it's however currently the most expensive 970 version.

PCpartspicker has listings now for the new cards - http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=186&sort=a8
so you can use it as resource now

 

[Dayaks]

How are the OCs in SLI? Anyone do this yet? I am going back and forth between one or two 980s.

I have a bad taste in my mouth from trifire. Sure it's faster, but the frames had to be 50% higher to feel as smooth to me. (A single card at 40 FPS felt like trifire at 60-70 FPS). Then all the hassle like Farcry, a popular game played like shit a year after launch.

 

[MorgothPl]

Pricewise, in EU, the ACX 1.0 (non OCed version) goes for 317 euro, ACX 2.0 will be aviable next week, and they go for 345 euro. MSI Gaming/Strix go for 350 euro and gigabyte is 355 euro.

Seems this round, the "superior service" of EVGA will loose in my case with the advantages of MSI. I want the so called 'hybrid" cooling - same as in Strix, MSI fans don't spin when card is cooler than 60C. it also has improved VRM design (though it will pull 20W more than other solutions from wall)

 

[Comixbooks]

I hope my blower isn't dysfunctional =) I usually run at like 50% or so 30% speed is default in
Precision X.

 

[rinaldo00]

Dell UP2414Q (3840x2160 60hz IPS panel) .

I play a lot of RTS and it is important to read the text in the game, like Anno 2070, and all ready at 2560 x 1600 the font sizes in some games are too small. What do you do about that?

 

[GoldenTiger]

I play a lot of RTS and it is important to read the text in the game, like Anno 2070, and all ready at 2560 x 1600 the font sizes in some games are too small. What do you do about that?

Every game I've tried so far has had a completely readable UI or one that scales... I have not played Anno 2070 ever, though.

 

[toddw]

Oh great I was one of the first to jump when they came live on Newegg, I got the exact same model, nice to know I can at best look forward to ACX 1.0 and at worst also have one of the fans acting up. Ugh.

 

[Flogger23m]

Plus EVGA just slaps that cooler on there where MSI and others actually improve some of the components.

EDIT: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2014/09/19/nvidia-geforce-gtx-970-review/13

What may be a distraction, however, is noise from the power circuitry. As we said, EVGA doesn't use any upgraded components for its power phases, whereas ASUS and MSI both use higher end parts. It also has only four power phases for the GPU compared to six in the other two cards, which puts more strain and load on the invidiual elements of each pahse.

The result, sadly, is a relatively low volume but still irritating buzzing noise every time the card is put under load (i.e. when gaming). In a quiet case positioned on the floor, or when using headphones, it won't bother you, but if your case is next to you on your desk then that may not be the case. No power noise was heard from the ASUS or MSI cards.

Nice review directly comparing them. Looks like the Gigabyte is the best model, although it is more expensive.

I will likely go with the MSI Gaming (one with the red cooler). I assume the cooler quality is better than the regular MSI one?

Gaming:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127832&cm_re=GTX_970-_-14-127-832-_-Product

Looks like newegg took down the other MSI version.

 

[misterbobby]

Nice review directly comparing them. Looks like the Gigabyte is the best model, although it is more expensive.

I will likely go with the MSI Gaming (one with the red cooler). I assume the cooler quality is better than the regular MSI one?

Gaming:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127832&cm_re=GTX_970-_-14-127-832-_-Product

Looks like newegg took down the other MSI version.

Gigabyte? That was not even in the review so a bit confused.

The other MSI is still there but for some reason it and a couple other cards are not there anymore in general search. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127833

 

[Ocellaris]

No problems with my GTX 970 ACX, I really can't even push it with anything I have installed. I was playing GW2 with max setting and the card was running 1341 Boost Clock and never went above 55C or 1400 RPM fan speed.

 

[Lord_Exodia]

Dell UP2414Q (3840x2160 60hz IPS panel) .

Just finished half an hour of BF4 @ 8224mhz mem + 1400-1430mhz core clock (fluctuated due to bumping against power limit), I was amazed at how smooth the dips were and rare they were... (Little Snip Here)

Can't wait to uncork this thing with a modded BIOS... it literally was dipping itself down to 1.162-1.175v a lot of the time and downclocking a little on its own because of the power limit. Peak temp was 71c and average load was around 66-67 the whole time. I've run a 780 for a long time before and briefly ran an 1175mhz 780 Ti and can confidently say the framerate dips and minimums appear to be much better than the kepler cards (Little Snip Here)

I was actually concerned about this. Your post shows that this isn't a big problem for you. I like to mod bioses and up my voltage once vga bios flashing is available for the new cards too. I had this in my mind when I went with the GTX 980s because they have a higher TDP wall I thought that this may assist with overclocking come the time I want to bump my voltage and push the cards to the max stable I can.

I'm going to try messing around with my GTX 980 cards once they come in on Monday to see if they do the same.

GTX 680s started throttling back based on temperatures too e.g. 70c or 80c etc... Do you notice any of that going on. Have you tried a more aggressive fan profile to see if it throttles less?

Edit: an easy was to test this is to Change the settings in the Nvidia control panel for "Power Management Mode" to Prefer Maximum Performance. This will keep the card from throttling in game due to GPU Boost leaving only a temp throttling or TDP wall issue. Bumping your fan profile to keep the temps down will help determine which scenario it truly is.

1. TDP Wall
2. Temp throttling

 

[xp3nd4bl3]

So what's the verdict with putting two of these non-blower cards together in SLI with no slot to space them out? Obviously seems like a bad idea in theory, but in practice is it no big deal?

 

[Ocellaris]

So what's the verdict with putting two of these non-blower cards together in SLI with no slot to space them out? Obviously seems like a bad idea in theory, but in practice is it no big deal?

It is and has always been a bad idea to run cards in SLI or Crossfire without an extra slot for space between them. Even blower cards and run into issues when the top cards can't get enough air because the bottom card is so close to it. I can't think of a single time this has worked out well for people.

 

[xp3nd4bl3]

It is and has always been a bad idea to run cards in SLI or Crossfire without an extra slot for space between them. Even blower cards and run into issues when the top cards can't get enough air because the bottom card is so close to it. I can't think of a single time this has worked out well for people.

Hmmm... I've had good luck with the high end blower coolers in SLI/Tri-SLI. Sure, the bottom card is always coolest but the top/middle cards are usually manageable. I guess my real question is how much WORSE are the non-blower cards in SLI.

With my mATX system a slot of space is not an option.

 

[new2019]

Thats good you got your self a hell of a setup.