EVGA GeForce GTX 680 Classified Review: Pushing GTX 680 To Its Peak
by Ryan Smith on July 20, 2012 12:00 PM ESTThe Test
For our review of the GTX 680 Classified we’re using NVIDIA’s latest beta drivers, 304.79. These drives have no appreciable difference over the previous 304.42 drivers beyond some simple bug fixes.
CPU: | Intel Core i7-3960X @ 4.3GHz |
Motherboard: | EVGA X79 SLI |
Chipset Drivers: | Intel 9.2.3.1022 |
Power Supply: | Antec True Power Quattro 1200 |
Hard Disk: | Samsung 470 (256GB) |
Memory: | G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3-1867 4 x 4GB (8-10-9-26) |
Case: | Thermaltake Spedo Advance |
Monitor: |
Samsung 305T Asus PA246Q |
Video Cards: |
AMD Radeon HD 6970 AMD Radeon HD 7950 AMD Radeon HD 7970 AMD Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 EVGA GeForce GTX 680 Classified |
Video Drivers: |
NVIDIA ForceWare 304.42 Beta NVIDIA ForceWare 304.79 Beta AMD Catalyst 12.7 Beta |
OS: | Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit |
75 Comments
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Belard - Saturday, July 21, 2012 - link
Its been a few years... so I was a bit off on the price ;PI've owned 3DFx, GF2/3/4/5/7 series and ATIs 9800Pro/4670.
I paid $190 for the GF7600GT with the extra large cooler to reduce nice (Exhaust heat out the back)... and I laughed when the reviewers complained about the dual-slot being a "problem"... WTF?! Blowing heat out is better than blowing heat off the GPU and having it stay inside the case.
After than, I spent $85 on the ATI 4670 with the HIS blower... With the way PC gaming is, I don't see the value of spending a dime over $200. And considering its been 3 years since the ATI 5000 series, the 7850 should be a $150 card at the most.
Yes, I'm planning on the PS4 to replace my PC gaming and to rid me of Windows. NO PC games = Why use Windows?
RussianSensation - Saturday, July 21, 2012 - link
Console gaming has its appeals. Sitting on a nice couch in front of a 50-60 inch LED/Plasma after a long-day's of work is often more comfortable than gaming on a chair at a desk. However, that PS4 won't be $150, probably more like $400-500.Visual - Monday, July 23, 2012 - link
Eh, what does your screen have to do with the rest of the hardware?I've been playing my PC games on a couch 2m away from a 47" TV for the last 5 years, a lot of them with a wireless XBOX360 controller as well, at least when I feel the extra precision of a mouse is not needed, and always at a resolution and details settings much better than the console alternative. I only play exclusives on the actual XBOX360. There is no way in hell I will ever consider console gaming a serious option.
CeriseCogburn - Tuesday, July 24, 2012 - link
The same type of brainfart had the guy spewing nVidia has nothing below the $400 gtx670 worth buying.Thank you for adding a dose of reality.
CeriseCogburn - Sunday, July 29, 2012 - link
The 4850 has been below $100 for a long, long time. Brand new it has been $60 for a year.Now it's $40 with a special aftermarket HS
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ASUS-ATI-Radeon-HD-4850-EA...
Whatever, you're all screwy on numbers, as it makes it easy to moan and whine.
will54 - Saturday, July 21, 2012 - link
I read somewhere that the GTX 660 will be coming out in August and than they are going to focus on the 700 series. Not positive but I think I read on Toms Hardware.shin0bi272 - Sunday, July 22, 2012 - link
WTF Anand? I post a link as a reply and its instantly marked as spam? that's bull shit.poohbear - Friday, July 20, 2012 - link
why do you benchmark shogun 2 @ 1600p using Ultra Quality and then in 1200p you benchmark it @ very high quality? why did you drop the detail level exactly? makes no sense.Ryan Smith - Friday, July 20, 2012 - link
Because it was utterly unplayable at 5760x1200 at Ultra, even with 2 video cards. I'm all for bogging down a video card, but there has to be a limit.poohbear - Friday, July 20, 2012 - link
no i mean u dropped the quality when u went down to 1980x1200. why did u do that? not many people really pay attention to 5760x1200, most of us are on 1080p (according to Steam hardware survey).