Question RX 580 vs GTX 1060: Power Consumption/Electricity Costs

[yannickjoshua]

I'm currently trying to decide which card to buy. I've watched multiple benchmarking videos and the differences aren't really significant. I guess the RX 580 is slightly better, but what bothers me is the power consumption of this card. It's said to be at least 65 watt higher than the GTX 1060.

I still live at home and I'll be using my PC for about 10-12 hours a day, mostly learning to use Unity and to code (and later on to learn using Blender and maybe even the Unreal engine) because I'm trying to become an indie game developer. Besides that, I'll occassionally be playing games. I'm assuming that with a setup that includes the RX 580, I'll be consuming quite a bit more power than I would with the GTX 1060. I don't want to bother my parents by drastically raising their electricity bill, I'd prefer the costs to be as low as possible. So the NVidia card has the advantage when it comes to this aspect.

I've also recently heard of undervolting. Obviously the GTX 1060 will still be more power efficient if I it's possible to undervolt both cards, but I was wondering if undervolting can noticeably lower the power consumption or if it's more about lowering the temperatures?

What do you think is the best option? Do you think the difference in power consumption and the yearly electricity costs won't be that significant?
Also found this Tom's HW article from years ago: https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/power-consumption-graphics-cards,2849-13.html#3

 

[WildCard999]

Neither, the GTX 1660 6gb for $220 is a better performer then both and is worth the extra $20-$30. As for the electricity cost I don't think undervolting is going to make much of a difference as it's a pretty low powered card. Maybe throw your parents like $25-50 a month?

 

[Ralston18]

How much does your electrical service provider charge per kilowatt hour?

Many links available to help you understand power consumption and corresponding costs.

For example:

https://www.firstchoicepower.com/th...-much-energy-do-your-computer-and-router-use/

You can probably easily save a corresponding amount by just turning off lights and appliances when not in use.

 

[yannickjoshua]

Neither, the GTX 1660 6gb for $220 is a better performer then both and is worth the extra $20-$30. As for the electricity cost I don't think undervolting is going to make much of a difference as it's a pretty low powered card. Maybe throw your parents like $25-50 a month?

Ah, I forgot to say that I'll be buying a used card off of eBay or another marketplace website. I can get the RX 580 for €147 and the GTX 1060 for €158. I've seen the benchmarking videos in which it is clear that the GTX 1660 is really just a rebranded 1060, but with a slightly lower TDP. To me, that's not worth the extra money. I can actually get a GTX 1070 for €220 off of eBay, but I'm trying to remain within a certain price range.

Anyway, I've been looking around on YouTube and certain forums and I read that some people manage to undervolt their RX 580 to the point where it used only 140 watt. I don't know if they actually measured the power consumption after undervolting it, so that's kind of why I came here to ask you guys if it's possible to significantly reduce the power draw like some people claim...

I could pay my parents a small amount of money, but if I can save that €50 for game developing purposes or to upgrade other PC components, then I'd rather save that money.

How much does your electrical service provider charge per kilowatt hour?

Many links available to help you understand power consumption and corresponding costs.

For example:

https://www.firstchoicepower.com/th...-much-energy-do-your-computer-and-router-use/

You can probably easily save a corresponding amount by just turning off lights and appliances when not in use.

I'll definitely be looking into how much our provider charges us and I'll check out that link, but regardless of how much we're charged, do you think the difference in TDP between these two cards will be noticeable when the electricity bill gets delivered on our door mat at the end of the year? I used one of those 'power consumption calculator' websites to see what kind of PSU I would need for my setup, but I've already been told that those website exaggerate the numbers, so yeah... I'm not sure what to do. My heart says choose the RX 580, my mind says to keep the TDP in mind.

 

[WildCard999]

Ah, I forgot to say that I'll be buying a used card off of eBay or another marketplace website. I can get the RX 580 for €147 and the GTX 1060 for €158. I've seen the benchmarking videos in which it is clear that the GTX 1660 is really just a rebranded 1060, but with a slightly lower TDP. To me, that's not worth the extra money. I can actually get a GTX 1070 for €220 off of eBay, but I'm trying to remain within a certain price range.

Anyway, I've been looking around on YouTube and certain forums and I read that some people manage to undervolt their RX 580 to the point where it used only 140 watt. I don't know if they actually measured the power consumption after undervolting it, so that's kind of why I came here to ask you guys if it's possible to significantly reduce the power draw like some people claim...

I could pay my parents a small amount of money, but if I can save that €50 for game developing purposes or to upgrade other PC components, then I'd rather save that money.

I'll definitely be looking into how much our provider charges us and I'll check out that link, but regardless of how much we're charged, do you think the difference in TDP between these two cards will be noticeable when the electricity bill gets delivered on our door mat at the end of the year? I used one of those 'power consumption calculator' websites to see what kind of PSU I would need for my setup, but I've already been told that those website exaggerate the numbers, so yeah... I'm not sure what to do. My heart says choose the RX 580, my mind says to keep the TDP in mind.

I would just pay a little bit more for the 1060 6gb.

 

[yannickjoshua]

I would just pay a little bit more for the 1060 6gb.

Thanks for voicing your opinion, I appreciate it
Are there any particular reasons (besides the lower TDP) why you would choose the 1060 over the 580? I'm glad that NVidia cards can make use of Freesync software now, because otherwise I would've never considered the 1060 an option.

 

[WildCard999]

Thanks for voicing your opinion, I appreciate it
Are there any particular reasons (besides the lower TDP) why you would choose the 1060 over the 580? I'm glad that NVidia cards can make use of Freesync software now, because otherwise I would've never considered the 1060 an option.

Cooler temps and I still play a few games that utilize Nvidia PhysX. Only reason I got a RX 580 was because I snagged one brand new for $160.