NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti Roundup: ASUS, EVGA, Gigabyte & MSI
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Just Cause 2 (DX10)
Just Cause 2 has quickly become known as one of the best-looking games on the market and while it doesn’t include DX11 support, it uses the full stable of DX10 features to deliver a truly awe-inspiring visual experience. For this benchmark we used the car chase scene directly following the Casino Assault level. This scene includes perfectly scripted events, some of the most GPU-strenuous effects and lasts a little less than four minutes. We chose to not use the in-game benchmarking tool due to its inaccuracy when it comes to depicting actual gameplay performance.
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
Just Cause 2 (DX10)
Just Cause 2 has quickly become known as one of the best-looking games on the market and while it doesn’t include DX11 support, it uses the full stable of DX10 features to deliver a truly awe-inspiring visual experience. For this benchmark we used the car chase scene directly following the Casino Assault level. This scene includes perfectly scripted events, some of the most GPU-strenuous effects and lasts a little less than four minutes. We chose to not use the in-game benchmarking tool due to its inaccuracy when it comes to depicting actual gameplay performance.
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
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Lost Planet 2 (DX11)
Lost Planet is a game that was originally released on consoles but in its port over to the PC, it gained some highly impressive DX11 features. For this benchmark, we forgo the two built-in tools and instead use a 2 minute gameplay sequence from the second level in the first chapter. The reason we use this level is because it makes use of three elements that are seen throughout the game world: jungles, water and open terrain.
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
Lost Planet 2 (DX11)
Lost Planet is a game that was originally released on consoles but in its port over to the PC, it gained some highly impressive DX11 features. For this benchmark, we forgo the two built-in tools and instead use a 2 minute gameplay sequence from the second level in the first chapter. The reason we use this level is because it makes use of three elements that are seen throughout the game world: jungles, water and open terrain.
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
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Metro 2033 (DX11)
There has been a lot of buzz about Metro 2033 which has mostly centered on its amazing graphics coupled with absolutely brutal framerates on even the best GPUs on the market. For this test we use a walkthrough and combat scene from The Bridge level which starts at the beginning of the level and lasts for about 3 minutes of walking, running and combat. Famerates are measured with FRAPS and Advanced PhysX is turned off.
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
Metro 2033 (DX11)
There has been a lot of buzz about Metro 2033 which has mostly centered on its amazing graphics coupled with absolutely brutal framerates on even the best GPUs on the market. For this test we use a walkthrough and combat scene from The Bridge level which starts at the beginning of the level and lasts for about 3 minutes of walking, running and combat. Famerates are measured with FRAPS and Advanced PhysX is turned off.
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
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Unigine: Heaven v2.0 (DX11)
Unigine’s Heaven benchmark is currently the de-facto standard when it comes to simple, straightforward DX11 performance estimates. While it is considered a synthetic benchmark by many, it is important to remember that no less than four games based on this engine will be released within the next year or so. In this test we will be using a standard benchmark run with and without tessellation enabled at three resolutions,
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
Unigine: Heaven v2.0 (DX11)
Unigine’s Heaven benchmark is currently the de-facto standard when it comes to simple, straightforward DX11 performance estimates. While it is considered a synthetic benchmark by many, it is important to remember that no less than four games based on this engine will be released within the next year or so. In this test we will be using a standard benchmark run with and without tessellation enabled at three resolutions,
1680 x 1050
1920 x 1200
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Core Temperature & Acoustics / Power Consumption
For all temperature testing, the cards were placed on an open test bench with a single 120mm 1200RPM fan placed ~8” away from the heatsink. The ambient temperature was kept at a constant 22°C (+/- 0.5°C). If the ambient temperatures rose above 23°C at any time throughout the test, all benchmarking was stopped. For this test we use the 3DMark Batch Size test at it highest triangle count with 4xAA and 16xAF enabled and looped it for one hour to determine the peak load temperature as measured by GPU-Z.
For Idle tests, we let the system idle at the Windows 7 desktop for 15 minutes and recorded the peak temperature.
While all of the cards in this roundup have overclocked cores, not once did we see any of them showing higher than reference temperatures. In fact, both Gigabyte and MSI's heatsinks provided some downright great results with the Cyclone II heatsink flexing its serious cooling muscles throughout the test. ASUS's DirectCu design was good but the fan speed never ramped up to the point where lower temperatures could be achieved while EVGA's card retains the stock heatsink so its numbers were very much in-line with what we expected.
In terms of acoustical footprints we can say that the cards from MSI and Gigabyte were clear winners here since one has more than enough heatsink mass while the other has a massive fan that doesn't need to spin up all than much. EVGA's card is also quite quiet but it did tend to reach a slightly higher RPM range than the reference design. Meanwhile, ASUS' card wasn't audible over the system fans but it did idle at a point higher than the rest of the cards featured here.
For this test we hooked up our power supply to a UPM power meter that will log the power consumption of the whole system twice every second. In order to stress the GPU as much as possible we once again use the Batch Render test in 3DMark06 and let it run for 30 minutes to determine the peak power consumption while letting the card sit at a stable Windows desktop for 30 minutes to determine the peak idle power consumption. We have also included several other tests as well.
Please note that after extensive testing, we have found that simply plugging in a power meter to a wall outlet or UPS will NOT give you accurate power consumption numbers due to slight changes in the input voltage. Thus we use a Tripp-Lite 1800W line conditioner between the 120V outlet and the power meter.
Power consumption numbers for all of these cards was understandably higher than the reference clock version but some like the ASUS Ultimate easily outstripped higher performing products like the GTX 460 SE. Meanwhile, the MSI Cyclone was able to hold higher efficiency numbers possibly due to its lower temperatures.
Core Temperature & Acoustics
For all temperature testing, the cards were placed on an open test bench with a single 120mm 1200RPM fan placed ~8” away from the heatsink. The ambient temperature was kept at a constant 22°C (+/- 0.5°C). If the ambient temperatures rose above 23°C at any time throughout the test, all benchmarking was stopped. For this test we use the 3DMark Batch Size test at it highest triangle count with 4xAA and 16xAF enabled and looped it for one hour to determine the peak load temperature as measured by GPU-Z.
For Idle tests, we let the system idle at the Windows 7 desktop for 15 minutes and recorded the peak temperature.
While all of the cards in this roundup have overclocked cores, not once did we see any of them showing higher than reference temperatures. In fact, both Gigabyte and MSI's heatsinks provided some downright great results with the Cyclone II heatsink flexing its serious cooling muscles throughout the test. ASUS's DirectCu design was good but the fan speed never ramped up to the point where lower temperatures could be achieved while EVGA's card retains the stock heatsink so its numbers were very much in-line with what we expected.
In terms of acoustical footprints we can say that the cards from MSI and Gigabyte were clear winners here since one has more than enough heatsink mass while the other has a massive fan that doesn't need to spin up all than much. EVGA's card is also quite quiet but it did tend to reach a slightly higher RPM range than the reference design. Meanwhile, ASUS' card wasn't audible over the system fans but it did idle at a point higher than the rest of the cards featured here.
System Power Consumption
For this test we hooked up our power supply to a UPM power meter that will log the power consumption of the whole system twice every second. In order to stress the GPU as much as possible we once again use the Batch Render test in 3DMark06 and let it run for 30 minutes to determine the peak power consumption while letting the card sit at a stable Windows desktop for 30 minutes to determine the peak idle power consumption. We have also included several other tests as well.
Please note that after extensive testing, we have found that simply plugging in a power meter to a wall outlet or UPS will NOT give you accurate power consumption numbers due to slight changes in the input voltage. Thus we use a Tripp-Lite 1800W line conditioner between the 120V outlet and the power meter.
Power consumption numbers for all of these cards was understandably higher than the reference clock version but some like the ASUS Ultimate easily outstripped higher performing products like the GTX 460 SE. Meanwhile, the MSI Cyclone was able to hold higher efficiency numbers possibly due to its lower temperatures.
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Overclocking Results
In order to overclock these cards, we used the software which each comes with; ASUS’ SmartDoctor, EVGA’s Precision, Gigabyte’s OC Guru and MSI’s AfterBurner.
While many of these offer the option to increase voltage, we are going to explore overclocking without increasing the default voltage. Note that some cards have a slightly higher than reference voltage.
ASUS GTX 550 Ti Ultimate
Core Speed: 1109Mhz
Memory Speed: 4504Mhz (QDR)
EVGA GTX 550 Ti FPB
Core Speed: 1050Mhz
Memory Speed: 4544Mhz (QDR)
Gigabyte GTX 550 Ti OC
Core Speed: 1022Mhz
Memory Speed: 4412Mhz (QDR)
MSI GTX 550 Ti Cyclone II OC
Core Speed: 1066Mhz
Memory Speed: 4508Mhz (QDR)
Overclocking Results
In order to overclock these cards, we used the software which each comes with; ASUS’ SmartDoctor, EVGA’s Precision, Gigabyte’s OC Guru and MSI’s AfterBurner.
While many of these offer the option to increase voltage, we are going to explore overclocking without increasing the default voltage. Note that some cards have a slightly higher than reference voltage.
ASUS GTX 550 Ti Ultimate
Core Speed: 1109Mhz
Memory Speed: 4504Mhz (QDR)
EVGA GTX 550 Ti FPB
Core Speed: 1050Mhz
Memory Speed: 4544Mhz (QDR)
Gigabyte GTX 550 Ti OC
Core Speed: 1022Mhz
Memory Speed: 4412Mhz (QDR)
MSI GTX 550 Ti Cyclone II OC
Core Speed: 1066Mhz
Memory Speed: 4508Mhz (QDR)
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Conclusions
To read our full review of the reference card, CLICK HERE.
Our review of the reference GTX 550 Ti shone some light upon NVIDIA's new card and our opinions about its positioning within the current market. Truth be told, our initial response was one of disappointment but these retail-bound products have allowed us to look at things in a slightly different light.
Value is quickly becoming a new cornerstone of this industry and it seems like NVIDIA’s board partners have taken this to heart as they went about designing their GTX 550 Ti cards. In our opinion, some of the manufacturers featured in this roundup have done a good job in bridging the gap between the GTX 550 Ti and the GTX 460 series. Unfortunately, we'd still recommend you take a close look at AMD's HD 6850 before taking the plunge with any of these products.
ASUS GTX 550 Ti 1GB Ultimate
Based on our past experiences, the reintroduction of ASUS’ Ultimate series had some extremely high expectations to live up to and the GTX 550 Ti version delivered. Its high clock speeds allowed for performance which almost equaled that of the GTX 460 SE and came relatively close to the GTX 460 768MB. There was even some overclocking juice left in the tank.
Pricing naturally takes a bit of a back seat when it comes to Ultimate-branded cards but we find $20 a completely acceptable premium to pay for this GTX 550. It brings a laundry list of features to the table while pushing framerates to levels we wish the reference card achieved. As such, it wins our Dam Good Award.
EVGA GTX 550 Ti 1GB FPB
We have to applaud what EVGA did with this card. Instead of sticking with the reference version’s clock speeds ad calling it a day, they took the time and effort to implement measures that ensure slightly higher performance without increasing the asking price. Add to this EVGA’s award winning customer service and their innovative new warranty plan and you have a recipe for success in the $150 market.
Basically, the FPB makes any other reference-clocked card that’s released at NVIDIA’s MSRP look overpriced by comparison and we’re more than happy to accept that.
Gigabyte GTX 550 Ti 1GB OC
Gigabyte’s OC Edition has us sitting on the fence. On one hand, we love the near-silence of its massive fan, good performance results and excellent temperatures.
The flip side of the coin had Gigabyte unable to provide us with a price and the heatsink assembly felt…well…kinda cheap. Its shroud is attached to the fin array by a trio of very thin plastic straps which flex back and forth whenever the card is touched. Yes, we’re nit picking but when you have the high quality heatsinks of MSI and ASUS sitting alongside this card, every minor detail counts.
The real question mark here is price. If Gigabyte can get this card out there for the same price as EVGA’s FPB then it will represent a great value for your money. However, any higher than that and you’d be better off with the MSI Cyclone II or EVGA FPB.
MSI GTX 550 Ti 1GB Cyclone II OC
Over the last year or so MSI has been highly aggressive when it came to pricing their graphics cards and the Cyclone II OC continues this trend. In the past it used to be next to impossible to find a card with a decent custom cooler for anywhere close to the cost of a reference edition. Yet here we are staring at a GTX 550 Ti with a high end heatsink, upgraded components and a clock speed bump for a mere $5 more than NVIDIA’s base MSRP. That’s a winning combination in our books.
Conclusions
To read our full review of the reference card, CLICK HERE.
Our review of the reference GTX 550 Ti shone some light upon NVIDIA's new card and our opinions about its positioning within the current market. Truth be told, our initial response was one of disappointment but these retail-bound products have allowed us to look at things in a slightly different light.
Value is quickly becoming a new cornerstone of this industry and it seems like NVIDIA’s board partners have taken this to heart as they went about designing their GTX 550 Ti cards. In our opinion, some of the manufacturers featured in this roundup have done a good job in bridging the gap between the GTX 550 Ti and the GTX 460 series. Unfortunately, we'd still recommend you take a close look at AMD's HD 6850 before taking the plunge with any of these products.
ASUS GTX 550 Ti 1GB Ultimate
Based on our past experiences, the reintroduction of ASUS’ Ultimate series had some extremely high expectations to live up to and the GTX 550 Ti version delivered. Its high clock speeds allowed for performance which almost equaled that of the GTX 460 SE and came relatively close to the GTX 460 768MB. There was even some overclocking juice left in the tank.
Pricing naturally takes a bit of a back seat when it comes to Ultimate-branded cards but we find $20 a completely acceptable premium to pay for this GTX 550. It brings a laundry list of features to the table while pushing framerates to levels we wish the reference card achieved. As such, it wins our Dam Good Award.
EVGA GTX 550 Ti 1GB FPB
We have to applaud what EVGA did with this card. Instead of sticking with the reference version’s clock speeds ad calling it a day, they took the time and effort to implement measures that ensure slightly higher performance without increasing the asking price. Add to this EVGA’s award winning customer service and their innovative new warranty plan and you have a recipe for success in the $150 market.
Basically, the FPB makes any other reference-clocked card that’s released at NVIDIA’s MSRP look overpriced by comparison and we’re more than happy to accept that.
Gigabyte GTX 550 Ti 1GB OC
Gigabyte’s OC Edition has us sitting on the fence. On one hand, we love the near-silence of its massive fan, good performance results and excellent temperatures.
The flip side of the coin had Gigabyte unable to provide us with a price and the heatsink assembly felt…well…kinda cheap. Its shroud is attached to the fin array by a trio of very thin plastic straps which flex back and forth whenever the card is touched. Yes, we’re nit picking but when you have the high quality heatsinks of MSI and ASUS sitting alongside this card, every minor detail counts.
The real question mark here is price. If Gigabyte can get this card out there for the same price as EVGA’s FPB then it will represent a great value for your money. However, any higher than that and you’d be better off with the MSI Cyclone II or EVGA FPB.
MSI GTX 550 Ti 1GB Cyclone II OC
Over the last year or so MSI has been highly aggressive when it came to pricing their graphics cards and the Cyclone II OC continues this trend. In the past it used to be next to impossible to find a card with a decent custom cooler for anywhere close to the cost of a reference edition. Yet here we are staring at a GTX 550 Ti with a high end heatsink, upgraded components and a clock speed bump for a mere $5 more than NVIDIA’s base MSRP. That’s a winning combination in our books.
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