Should I go with a 980 or a 980Ti?

[Jason099]

I’m currently stuck and can't make a decision between these two cards. The reasons that keeps making me want the 980Ti mainly is because of how much more powerful it is over the 980 (not sure how much more but I keep reading it’s quite a bit). Also the fact that it is 200$ more over the 980 in Canada, which is still affordable given the performance gains I’m reading.

I will be gaming on a 1080p monitor at 144hz; I will probably not go 1440p or 4k anytime soon. I understand 980Ti is considered overkill for 1080p currently but the way I look at it is that, in a few years time the 980Ti will become a norm for 1080p.

I’m very keen on saving energy and running my build as cool as possible so I have a few questions on power consumption and how hot the cards get. Say the 980 is running a graphically intensive game like Witcher 3 on the highest settings possible. Now comparing that to the 980Ti in the same situation running Witcher 3 on the highest setting possible, which out of the two cards would run cooler? Which one would consume more power? Since the 980Ti is a stronger card, would it run cooler than the 980 in this scenario (running Witcher 3 at highest)? Or does the 980Ti run hotter for being more powerful?

Thanks in advance if anyone could answer these questions I have. Hopefully I can make a decision soon!

 

[Jason099]

Any advice? :S

 

[Luminary]

If you're sure you'll stick with 1080p the GTX 980 really should be all you need for the next few years.

As far as heat both cards are quite efficient and neither would significantly outperform the other at 1080p. Obviously under stress you'll get higher temps, but within the specified parameters they would be neck and neck.

I recommend getting the GTX 980 and either using the money you save to improve other areas of your rig or start saving up for the new Pascal line of GPU's coming out at the end of next year.

 

[17seconds]

Here is a look at the difference in the Witcher 3, which is a worst case scenario in terms of performance.

Nvidia Turbo Boost manages clock speeds through a set Temperature Limit. Either of these cards will seek to attain and remain at its target temperature by adjusting clock speeds and voltages to generate heat or cool down accordingly. The temperature target for the GTX 980 is 80c, and for the GTX 980 Ti it's 84c.

1) The GTX 980 Ti will run a few degrees hotter, 2) You shouldn't worry too much about temperatures since these cards are designed to run at a set Temp Limit.

http://www.techpowerup.com/mobile/reviews/Gigabyte/GTX_980_Ti_Waterforce/18.html

 

[monsta]

Go for the 980ti, I'm really happy with mine , it plays anything I throw at it with all the eye candy turned up

 

[Reaper_7799]

If you seriously plan on keeping the card for quite a few years, I would probably do the 980 ti in case we get more games like gtav, w3, crysis3, AC syndicate...those kind that hog fps if you max out AA and everything, which is needed at 1080P...plus it gives you the option of upgrading to 1440P and keeping everything ultra if you wanted to in the future.

If you have a card now and can wait till next years cards come out, that would be the best thing to do but if this is brand new build and you're keeping for longevity, spend the extra for the TI, it's definitely worth it.