GTX 580 SLI vs GTX 670 SLI for 3D work/Gaming

[EvanJbesser]

As the title suggests I'm torn between the two for a balanced video card that can give me good frames on games like Arma 2 OA and Shogun 2, but also decent render times and computing power. I've done my research and have come to the conclusion that the 580 is great for CUDA and open GL as well as decent for games, but the 670 is a monster for games with quantity over quality. I want to be using things like fumefx, 3ds max, vray, zbrush. I know for a fact that 3ds max uses CUDA technology and I really need that boost for my rendering which the 580 is adept in, but at the same time I hear the 670 has 30% more performance in games. My question is will the 670 with its crippled computing power still give me decent render times in SLI?

 

[rolli59]

The GTX670 should not be any worse at rendering since both are based on the Fermi Architecture.

 

[maxh22]

As the title suggests I'm torn between the two for a balanced video card that can give me good frames on games like Arma 2 OA and Shogun 2, but also decent render times and computing power. I've done my research and have come to the conclusion that the 580 is great for CUDA and open GL as well as decent for games, but the 670 is a monster for games with quantity over quality. I want to be using things like fumefx, 3ds max, vray, zbrush. I know for a fact that 3ds max uses CUDA technology and I really need that boost for my rendering which the 580 is adept in, but at the same time I hear the 670 has 30% more performance in games. My question is will the 670 with its crippled computing power still give me decent render times in SLI?

The gtx 670 has 1344 cuda cores, the gtx 580 has 512.

The Gtx 670 takes less power and is better than the 580, heck even the 660ti is better than the 580!

 

[EvanJbesser]

Well for outright gaming the 670 hands down beats the 580, but just because it has less cores doesn't mean its cuda performance is worse. It has better quality cuda cores.

Also I'm pretty sure the 670 has a Kepler architecture...

 

[maxh22]

Well for outright gaming the 670 hands down beats the 580, but just because it has less cores doesn't mean its cuda performance is worse. It has better quality cuda cores.

Also I'm pretty sure the 670 has a Kepler architecture...

yeah the 600 series cards are all based on the kepler architecture.

 

[renz496]

Well for outright gaming the 670 hands down beats the 580, but just because it has less cores doesn't mean its cuda performance is worse. It has better quality cuda cores.

Also I'm pretty sure the 670 has a Kepler architecture...

its not about 'better' quality cores but with kepler nvidia change how their cuda cores work in order to tackle down the power consumption problem they had with fermi. if you don't use any application that does not involving compute performance GTX670 will do just fine.

 

[EvanJbesser]

its not about 'better' quality cores but with kepler nvidia change how their cuda cores work in order to tackle down the power consumption problem they had with fermi. if you don't use any application that does not involving compute performance GTX670 will do just fine.

Well I will be simulating physics and particle effects which I am sure depend on computing power, my question is will SLI gtx 670's kind of cancel out the tuned down cuda cores? Is 2688 kepler cuda cores enough to justify using it for some computing and rendering?

 

[renz496]

maybe you should make your own research before deciding which card to get. does your application benefit from DP or SP stuff only? in theory GTX670 should have decent SP but then again GK104 was purely design with gaming in mind so even in theory it should perform decently but in real world it might not

 

[EvanJbesser]

Well after some research I found out that the gtx 580 outperforms the gtx 680 by about 30-40% in renders and CUDA applications. I think I'll go with sli gtx 580's since they are a good middleground between performance in gaming and performance in CUDA applications and rendering.

 

[ryecola]

also the new 6xx gpus arnt compatable with vray RT, personally thats a huge deal breaker for me. despite all thier other advantages.