Is the 980ti Armour 2x good?

[CRAZYBIRD666]

I am looking for an upgrade from my asus strix gtx 970. I was looking at the Armour 2x 980ti (link at the end of the post) but I didn't see very much at all videos/mentions of the card online. My budget is very limited to under $900CAD. I am using it for 1080p gaming but will get a 4k monitor in the future. I read the reviews on Newegg and NCIX and people explained that the card ran really hot, at around 80C+. Just looking from some feedback on how it performs and how the heat problem can be fixed.

http://www.ncix.com/detail/msi-geforce-gtx-980-ti-23-113226-2038.htm?affiliateid=7474144

 

[RCFProd]

It's ok, but this one is much better for the price:

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB AMP! Video Card ($858.98 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $858.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-10 17:09 EST-0500

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

It's ok, but this one is much better for the price:

Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB AMP! Video Card ($858.98 @ DirectCanada)
Total: $858.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-10 17:09 EST-0500

How does it compare performance wise? With those 3 huge fans there's a lot of room for OCing but still

 

[RCFProd]

Exactly, the cooling performance and build quality of the Zotac seems better.

 

[10tacle]

I would not recommend Zotac. Terrible support. Go with EVGA. This is what you want at the under $900CA price level.... http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487141

It's also clocked higher from the factory (1102MHz vs 1051 on the core clock and 1190MHz vs. 1140 on boost....so out of the box you have a faster card for less money, and a better warranty, 3 years vs. 2 years).

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

Exactly, the cooling performance and build quality of the Zotac seems better.

I think I can scrape up the extra $10 for it. Thanks so much for the help, really appreciate it.

 

[Crapcicle]

This is faster than both those cards and Galax customer support is great. http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-HOF-V2-4GB_p_40.html 1266MHz clock and 1367MHz boost.

 

[10tacle]

This is faster than both those cards and Galax customer support is great. http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-HOF-V2-4GB_p_40.html 1266MHz clock and 1367MHz boost.

^^That's a 980 chief, not a 980Ti...

 

[Crapcicle]

This is faster than both those cards and Galax customer support is great. http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-HOF-V2-4GB_p_40.html 1266MHz clock and 1367MHz boost.

^^That's a 980 chief, not a 980Ti...

My mistake. Take your pic of these 980ti's http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-6GB_p_82.html and http://galaxstore.net/Galax-Nvidia-Geforce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-WC-WaterCooled_p_89.html

First card is 1190MHz base and 1291MHz boost
Second card is 1203MHz base and 1304MHz boost

Both still faster than the cards posted above.

 

[10tacle]

My mistake. Take your pic of these 980ti's http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-6GB_p_82.html and http://galaxstore.net/Galax-Nvidia-Geforce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-WC-WaterCooled_p_89.html

First card is 1190MHz base and 1291MHz boost
Second card is 1203MHz base and 1304MHz boost

Both still faster than the cards posted above.

Damn that first card is a good card for the price ($699US factory direct). I'm not very familiar with that brand, but impressive nonetheless. That second card is watercooled. But that 16+3 phase power design is major ownage. Impressive. Don't see any reviews of this card out there for whatever reason.

With all that said however, I would think about waiting until Nvidia's Pascal comes out (1xxx series?) in a few months.

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

This is faster than both those cards and Galax customer support is great. http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-HOF-V2-4GB_p_40.html 1266MHz clock and 1367MHz boost.

^^That's a 980 chief, not a 980Ti...

My mistake. Take your pic of these 980ti's http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-6GB_p_82.html and http://galaxstore.net/Galax-Nvidia-Geforce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-WC-WaterCooled_p_89.html

First card is 1190MHz base and 1291MHz boost
Second card is 1203MHz base and 1304MHz boost

Both still faster than the cards posted above.

Would they ship to Canada? And the USD to CAD conversion would make it cost more, plus if they do ship internationally it would cost a lot more

 

[Crapcicle]

Do you remember the old Galaxy GPUs that somehow phased out of existence? Well they didn't. They merged with another notable GPU manufacturer KFA2 and changed their name to Galax because Samsung had rights on the Galaxy name. They're known in the more OC obsessed community for their amazing OC potential. They're not well known in the American market but they are very strong in the Middle Eastern, European, and Asian markets. Currently running a Galax 970 EXOC Black edition and I overclocked it to 1300MHz core 1514MHz boost and 1953MHz memory clock. Pictures: http://imgur.com/a/1VdFf

 

[Crapcicle]

My mistake. Take your pic of these 980ti's http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-6GB_p_82.html and http://galaxstore.net/Galax-Nvidia-Geforce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-WC-WaterCooled_p_89.html

First card is 1190MHz base and 1291MHz boost
Second card is 1203MHz base and 1304MHz boost

Both still faster than the cards posted above.

Damn that first card is a good card for the price ($699US factory direct). I'm not very familiar with that brand, but impressive nonetheless. That second card is watercooled. But that 16+3 phase power design is major ownage. Impressive. Don't see any reviews of this card out there for whatever reason.

With all that said however, I would think about waiting until Nvidia's Pascal comes out (1xxx series?) in a few months.

You're willing to wait until mid to late 2016 for that line?

 

[Crapcicle]

This is faster than both those cards and Galax customer support is great. http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-HOF-V2-4GB_p_40.html 1266MHz clock and 1367MHz boost.

^^That's a 980 chief, not a 980Ti...

My mistake. Take your pic of these 980ti's http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-6GB_p_82.html and http://galaxstore.net/Galax-Nvidia-Geforce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-WC-WaterCooled_p_89.html

First card is 1190MHz base and 1291MHz boost
Second card is 1203MHz base and 1304MHz boost

Both still faster than the cards posted above.

Would they ship to Canada? And the USD to CAD conversion would make it cost more, plus if they do ship internationally it would cost a lot more

They ship internationally but they ship from the US so your shipping will not be that expensive.

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

My mistake. Take your pic of these 980ti's http://galaxstore.net/GALAX-NVIDIA-GeForce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-6GB_p_82.html and http://galaxstore.net/Galax-Nvidia-Geforce-GTX-980-Ti-HOF-WC-WaterCooled_p_89.html

First card is 1190MHz base and 1291MHz boost
Second card is 1203MHz base and 1304MHz boost

Both still faster than the cards posted above.

Damn that first card is a good card for the price ($699US factory direct). I'm not very familiar with that brand, but impressive nonetheless. That second card is watercooled. But that 16+3 phase power design is major ownage. Impressive. Don't see any reviews of this card out there for whatever reason.

With all that said however, I would think about waiting until Nvidia's Pascal comes out (1xxx series?) in a few months.

I am upgrading from a 970. Unless pascal would bring cards that are better than the 980ti and for around that same price then I would just rather get the 980ti.

 

[10tacle]

Do you remember the old Galaxy GPUs that somehow phased out of existence? Well they didn't. They merged with another notable GPU manufacturer KFA2 and changed their name to Galax because Samsung had rights on the Galaxy name. They're known in the more OC obsessed community for their amazing OC potential. They're not well known in the American market but they are very strong in the Middle Eastern, European, and Asian markets. Currently running a Galax 970 EXOC Black edition and I overclocked it to 1300MHz core 1514MHz boost and 1953MHz memory clock. Pictures: http://imgur.com/a/1VdFf

Nice. I've heard of them but just haven't known anyone who has owned one. I will have my eye on them when Pascal comes out as I'm looking for a single card solution to my SLI 970s this year (tired of not having official SLI support in more and more games lately).

 

[10tacle]

I am upgrading from a 970. Unless pascal would bring cards that are better than the 980ti and for around that same price then I would just rather get the 980ti.

It's your money. I've just been burned a few times buying a new GPU at bad timing when new cards were on the horizon (most recent being spending $500 on a GTX 680 when four months later a better performing GTX 770 was released for $400...and that was only a 680 Kepler refresh, not an entire new GPU architecture).

But I didn't get burned as bad as those who spent $700 on a 780Ti only to see a 970 equal it for half the price. I'm just throwing some ideas out there for you to think about, that's all.

 

[Crapcicle]

Do you remember the old Galaxy GPUs that somehow phased out of existence? Well they didn't. They merged with another notable GPU manufacturer KFA2 and changed their name to Galax because Samsung had rights on the Galaxy name. They're known in the more OC obsessed community for their amazing OC potential. They're not well known in the American market but they are very strong in the Middle Eastern, European, and Asian markets. Currently running a Galax 970 EXOC Black edition and I overclocked it to 1300MHz core 1514MHz boost and 1953MHz memory clock. Pictures: http://imgur.com/a/1VdFf

Nice. I've heard of them but just haven't known anyone who has owned one. I will have my eye on them when Pascal comes out as I'm looking for a single card solution to my SLI 970s this year (tired of not having official SLI support in more and more games lately).

Yeah a lot of people don't own Galax cards due to them not being a "mainstream" company here in the US. Although the people I know who bought one Galax card never go back to using any other cards and use solely Galax cards because they usually run faster, cooler, and quieter than most cards on the market and are cheaper for the amount of performance you get. And trust me, they look sick. Pics: http://i.imgur.com/SuoIg6G.jpg and http://i.imgur.com/4WtQ3AQ.jpg

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

Do you remember the old Galaxy GPUs that somehow phased out of existence? Well they didn't. They merged with another notable GPU manufacturer KFA2 and changed their name to Galax because Samsung had rights on the Galaxy name. They're known in the more OC obsessed community for their amazing OC potential. They're not well known in the American market but they are very strong in the Middle Eastern, European, and Asian markets. Currently running a Galax 970 EXOC Black edition and I overclocked it to 1300MHz core 1514MHz boost and 1953MHz memory clock. Pictures: http://imgur.com/a/1VdFf

Nice. I've heard of them but just haven't known anyone who has owned one. I will have my eye on them when Pascal comes out as I'm looking for a single card solution to my SLI 970s this year (tired of not having official SLI support in more and more games lately).

Yeah a lot of people don't own Galax cards due to them not being a "mainstream" company here in the US. Although the people I know who bought one Galax card never go back to using any other cards and use solely Galax cards because they usually run faster, cooler, and quieter than most cards on the market and are cheaper for the amount of performance you get. And trust me, they look sick. Pics: http://i.imgur.com/SuoIg6G.jpg and http://i.imgur.com/4WtQ3AQ.jpg

It's over $930CAD. I think the Zotac card mentioned before would be my best bet. That Galax card seems really good but it's just too expensive for me.

 

[Karadjgne]

There's nothing wrong with an MSI Armor2x. It's a perfectly fine running 980ti. What it isn't is the top of the line gpu. It's a mid grade gtx that doesn't have the cooling or OC potential of its bigger brother the MSI Gaming 4G. If you really aren't interested in oc or pushing a gpu to its limits then it'd be just fine. It's a 980ti and will do anything a 980ti is supposed to do, at slightly better than reference specs.

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

There's nothing wrong with an MSI Armor2x. It's a perfectly fine running 980ti. What it isn't is the top of the line gpu. It's a mid grade gtx that doesn't have the cooling or OC potential of its bigger brother the MSI Gaming 4G. If you really aren't interested in oc or pushing a gpu to its limits then it'd be just fine. It's a 980ti and will do anything a 980ti is supposed to do, at slightly better than reference specs.

I'm just not too impressed with the cooling on it. 80C+ is pretty hot, but I guess 70+ fan speed would do it well, but that zotac card has higher specs, plus a lot better cooling with the 3 fans.

 

[Karadjgne]

Not necessarily. The Asus STRIX and MSI Gaming 4G both have excellent cooling. Easily equal if not better than the Gigabyte G1 which has 3 fans. In order to fit 3 fans in the width of the gpu, the fans themselves are by necessity smaller than the dual fan designs, and rpm for rpm a larger fan will move more air than a smaller fan. It's all a marketing and design gimmick. Having 3 fans is no guarantee of better performance over 2. Having 3 fans does, however, offer greater chances at a louder card at higher rpm. 3 smaller fans have almost double the potential of increased volume over 2 larger fans at similar cfm since the smaller fans will spin faster and there's 3 vrs 2

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

Another big thing that I want to know is this: Is it worth to go from a 970 to a 980ti? I am planning to go to 4k but not in the near future. I've got enough power to handle one of those (1050w) and an i7 3770 so no possibility of throttling. I just don't know if going from a 970 to a 980ti is worth it. I have the money for the upgrade, I'm just not too sure.

 

[10tacle]

Another big thing that I want to know is this: Is it worth to go from a 970 to a 980ti? I am planning to go to 4k but not in the near future. I've got enough power to handle one of those (1050w) and an i7 3770 so no possibility of throttling. I just don't know if going from a 970 to a 980ti is worth it. I have the money for the upgrade, I'm just not too sure.

A 980Ti is for 1440p gaming at ultra settings. My 970 SLI is about 5-10% faster than a single 980Ti depending on games, and I need that power to run my games at a minimum of 60FPS. But even in a heavy GPU hitting game like Witcher 3, my minimum frame rates dip into the 50s. I try and keep games V-sync locked at 80Hz where I have my monitor overclocked for a smooth 80FPS.

If you are only gaming with a 1080p, a 980Ti is massive overkill unless you have a 144Hz G-sync monitor. If it's a standard 60Hz monitor, you are throwing money away at anything higher than 60FPS. And FYI for 4K gaming, not even SLI 980Ti will run all games at ultra settings at 60FPS.

 

[CRAZYBIRD666]

Another big thing that I want to know is this: Is it worth to go from a 970 to a 980ti? I am planning to go to 4k but not in the near future. I've got enough power to handle one of those (1050w) and an i7 3770 so no possibility of throttling. I just don't know if going from a 970 to a 980ti is worth it. I have the money for the upgrade, I'm just not too sure.

A 980Ti is for 1440p gaming at ultra settings. My 970 SLI is about 5-10% faster than a single 980Ti depending on games, and I need that power to run my games at a minimum of 60FPS. But even in a heavy GPU hitting game like Witcher 3, my minimum frame rates dip into the 50s. I try and keep games V-sync locked at 80Hz where I have my monitor overclocked for a smooth 80FPS.

If you are only gaming with a 1080p, a 980Ti is massive overkill unless you have a 144Hz G-sync monitor. If it's a standard 60Hz monitor, you are throwing money away at anything higher than 60FPS. And FYI for 4K gaming, not even SLI 980Ti will run all games at ultra settings at 60FPS.

I'm using two Samsung T.V's (1080p 60hz) But I was planning on getting a 1440p monitor, it's just that they're around $500 and that's quite a bit for a screen.