GTX1060 vs RX480

[time]

So within a couple of weeks of each other, AMD releases a strong midrange graphics card that uses about half the power of its previous generation, while NVidia releases a strong midrange card that matches what used to be a premium card - the GTX980.

Reviews suggest that the Nvidia GTX1060 is stronger than the AMD RX480, although as usual it depends on the game or benchmark.

Demand is very strong. Expected pricing is supposed to be US$220 for the RX480 and US$250 for the GTX1060. In Oz, the GTX1060 is selling for between US$300 and US$350 - assuming you can actually find one. That's a typical sticker price of AU$500 for the GTX1060, with the RX480 coming in at AU$450.

Unfortunately, I need to buy one or two right now.

I'd appreciate any and all comments.

 

[Stereodude]

It's a tough call if you're interested in performance. The RX480 looks like it might have the edge with DX12 and Vulkan based games. The 1060 seems to be faster with DX11 stuff. The RX480 uses more power and runs hotter. I'd suggest an AIB for either over a reference / FE card.

 

[ddrueding]

So far this seems to be a pretty good cover of the two:

[video=youtube_share;mF4S5ZaXdgE]https://youtu.be/mF4S5ZaXdgE[/video]

 

[DrunkenBastard]

I've been running two 8GB RX 480s (XFX blower style) for about two weeks, at 4k with Crossfire compatible games they crank along nicely. About 300,000 ppd each when F@H. If you have the PCI slot spacing you may want to get something with larger fans to reduce fan noise.

The 1060 reportedly does about 350,000 ppd. Be aware SLI is disabled on the 1060s (Nvidia probably protecting sales of the 1080 at $599)

 

[Stereodude]

I've been running two 8GB RX 480s (XFX blower style) for about two weeks, at 4k with Crossfire compatible games they crank along nicely. About 300,000 ppd each when F@H. If you have the PCI slot spacing you may want to get something with larger fans to reduce fan noise.

Why?!?!?

SLI or Crossfire on midrange cards makes no sense. You've got $500 into that and it isn't any faster than a $500 card, and has a lot of potential drawbacks besides the power consumption. Things like games that don't support or play nice with it, high frame latency, etc.

 

[ddrueding]

I'm pretty sure I'm done with SLI for these reasons. NVidia has made it clear that they are trying to get away from supporting multiple card setups as much as possible. There are those new card/vendor agnostic systems, but I don't see them being that big a thing either.

 

[Mercutio]

SLI has never made much sense to me. For ever game where it's godly, there's been some other one where it doesn't work or they actually tell you to shut it off because it causes problems. I understand if you live your life in nothing but AAA-rated FPSes but one big card makes a lot more sense for a lot more use cases.

Maybe if you're using them for compute cores or something?

 

[ddrueding]

The only time I've felt the need is when they don't offer a card big enough. One Titan X wasn't enough, so I used two. One 1080 is totally enough, so I won't be bothering.

 

[Stereodude]

Yep, SLI or CF makes sense if one of the top of the line cards can't get you where you want to be. So, if you've got a 1080 and need more oomph, go SLI... At the midrange point a higher end single card makes way more sense than SLI/CF.

 

[DrunkenBastard]

Why?!?!?

SLI or Crossfire on midrange cards makes no sense. You've got $500 into that and it isn't any faster than a $500 card, and has a lot of potential drawbacks besides the power consumption. Things like games that don't support or play nice with it, high frame latency, etc.

There were several reasons I chose the two RX 480s:

1. Folding performance per $. ~300,000 ppd for $250. They seem to be averaging around 320,000 ppd each.
2. Availability. Two were available on launch day to add to cart and checkout. Availability of 1070s and 1080s have been sporadic at best (RX 480s as well).
3. Better potential performance with DX 12 games in the future.

Yes, in an ideal world I could have walked into a store and picked up a 1080 for $700, but I didn't have that much to spend even if I could have found one in stock.

 

[Stereodude]

I'm biding my time and waiting for an AIB 1070 and AIB 480. I'll buy when there's ample availability and the prices get sane.

 

[CougTek]

If Linux is in the landscape, you're much better with NVidia according to what I read. AMD's Linux driver leave a lot to desire.

AMD's RX 480 reference cooler seems to be lacking too. AIB heatsinks will be better, but I haven't seen one in stock yet here. If you plan to overclock, forget it with the reference cooler. The GTX 1060 is better executed in that regard too.

I hoped the RX 480 would be a better value than the GTX 1060, because AMD needs a winner. It's not a bad card by any mean. The GTX 1060 is simply a bit better overall for not much more money. Both sell well though.

 

[time]

I managed to nab a Gainward GTX1060 for US$295. I'll take that as a win, considering the RX480 alternatives were selling for >US$300.

It's a reference design, but I really don't care. At least it will fit - I noticed that some of the partner cards are alarmingly tall to accommodate large diameter axial fans.

 

[Handruin]

SLI has never made much sense to me. For ever game where it's godly, there's been some other one where it doesn't work or they actually tell you to shut it off because it causes problems. I understand if you live your life in nothing but AAA-rated FPSes but one big card makes a lot more sense for a lot more use cases.

Maybe if you're using them for compute cores or something?

I've played many of the games in my steam library and I've not had issues with SLI enabled for any that I remember. I've never had a game ask me to disable it either. I don't live my life in AAA rated FPSs but it was tough to find a single card at the time that could drive a 4K monitor and even with the 2 x 980s it's still tough. A single GTX1080 won't drive a 4K panel to my satisfaction so I'd likely go SLI again if I were in the market. I'm hopeful that I can hold out to a 1080Ti (or equivalent) whenever it comes out and upgrade to that as a single card assuming it can handle it all.

Edit - I've had more issues with games not properly supporting 4K (4096 x 2160) than anything to do with SLI.

 

[sechs]

As far as I can tell, the 1060 is generally 5 to 10% better and 10 to 20% more expensive than the RX 480. Seems like it may be worth it for some people, but not for others.

I feel like Nvidia blew it on pricing. They could have easily buried AMD with a better card at the same price point.

 

[Stereodude]

They could have easily buried AMD with a better card at the same price point.

They've proven able to bury AMD with a worse performing card at a higher price point. The 970 sold better than the cheaper better performing AMD cards it went against.

 

[Handruin]

They've proven able to bury AMD with a worse performing card at a higher price point. The 970 sold better than the cheaper better performing AMD cards it went against.

Which AMD card(s) are you referring to?

 

[Stereodude]

Which AMD card(s) are you referring to?

I was thinking of the R9 390. It wasn't power efficient, but it wasn't slow.

 

[time]

Can anyone nominate games that measurably benefit from an i7 over an i5? Assuming a GTX1060 for graphics, of course.

I'm not talking overclocking, so we're probably comparing i5 @3.3-3.9GHz with i7 @3.4-4.0GHz.

 

[Stereodude]

As far as I've read, most games don't benefit from the hyperthreading in the i7, but there might be a few that do.

 

[Mercutio]

Games that have intense simulation components but no physics engine benefit from more cycles and/or more threads. Dwarf Fortress or a contemporary Civilization or SimCity game, maybe?

 

[CougTek]

It dates a bit, but if you take a look at these graphs and those from the following page, the only game that shows a significant variance between different CPUs is GRID: Autosport with a mid-range graphic card. Even then, the trend isn't clear (i7 at top and bottom of the graph, with i5 in the middle).

Purely for gaming, take the i5.

 

[Handruin]

I agree with the others that most games do not benefit from extra cores. There may be some cases like in games like Minecraft, Starcraft, or MOBA style games that have to do more calculations than 3D rendering but even a decent i5 handles those just fine.