Nvidia soft-launches the GeForce GTX 1060, coming later this month for $249

[Boilerhog146]

Probably more a case of PC Partner only having a single assembly line for the reference RX 480 while production is low. Cheaper to build the cards to a common spec on a single line than open a second line for 4GB cards. AMD were committed to selling the 4GB card to maintain the marketing $199 price point so repurposing some 8GB cards would be the expedient option. As soon as PC Partner has a second assembly line up and running, 4GB cards will be 4GB cards in hardware spec.

On topic:How funny is it that people here who wouldn't even consider buying a single Nvidia card are bemoaning the fact that a lack of SLI for the GTX 1060 deprives them of buying TWO. How much funnier is it that these same people who think a lack of SLI is a crime against humanity are the same people trying to convince us the DX12 revolution is HERE!*....The same DX12 API that is multi GPU aware...and negating the need for SLI and Crossfire.

* Revolution delayed in reality obviously due to developer apathy

@DBZ when PC Partner does get these 4 gig cards on assembly will they then be using slower memory chips or will they still be using Intentionally crippled ,higher spec chips, that they are using now??

 

[noc81]

You guys crack me up.. xD

What do you get for buying a 8gig rx 480..? A warranty that doesn't get voided by flashing the BIOS! It's a worthy trade off, paying an extra 40 bux to keep your warranty vs getting a 4gb card (which may still be a 4gb card) and voiding your warranty to take it to 8 gigs. You'll still be unable to tell whether it's 4gb or 8gb, unless you remove the HSF, which will void your BIOS anyways! xD

 

[Boilerhog146]

Oh yeah,your right, good point, though the only difference in the bios currently is memory amount and speeds.flashing one to the other here should not brick the card .and also should be an easy recovery should there prove to be only 4 gig on the card. .its only certain manufacturers that allow you to swap the HSF with another ,such as an aftermarket waterblock.,EVGA will allow you to remove the hsf ,and flash the Bios.with out voiding the warranty..and reviewers have voided some warranties then haven't they..physical DAMAGE is what voids a decent AIB.s warranty. not all AIB's are considered Decent.

EVGA goes even further ,at least they did.a pair of 7900 gtx SSC, put water blocks on them right off before installing them the first time, artifacting in 3D mark 06.called them up ,they said RMA, I did ,went to pick them up ,they mysteriously turned into a pair of 7950 GX2 which I then also bought the same inovatech Blackpearl WB's ,and installed them myself ,without voiding the warranty..EVGA no longer has a limited Lifetime Warranty.too bad, it set them apart from the rest,

 

[dividebyzero]

I see your point DBZ but I would be just choked if I had pulled the trigger on a pair of 8 gig cards for the extra cash ,and in Canada,especially, NFLD ,where I live 15% HST here now or something like that ,we just had a bump with our latest Budget. that's substantial,to find out a mere couple of weeks later I could have bought the 4 gig cards, flashed to the 8 gig and saved some serious cash..those who bought the 4 gig cards ,are smiling for sure..I bet the 4 gig cards are like chicken lips now.

It definitely sucks for those people who bought the 8GB version of the card, only to see those opting to save $40 with the 4GB getting a free upgrade. Reward systems generally favour those who spend the most - not the least. The other side of the coin is that its hard to begrudge the windfall that 4GB card owners are enjoying. I don't think AMD intended for the information to become public knowledge so quickly - at least not until "genuine" 4GB cards entered the marketplace. At this point in time there is absolutely no incentive to buy a $240+ version of the card until AMD basically phases out these faux-4GB models- something that probably started as soon as fully-enabled-8GB-as-4GB info became publicly disseminated. Continuing to sell these cards at $199 will absolutely kill AMD's margins.

your also saying dx12 will be the end of the sli bridge as well,the HB bridge will be the last hurrah .come strong DX12 support.does that mean we will be able to mix and match GPU's ,or in dx12 will the gpu's still have to be the same for sli/cf to work.?

Technically DX12 can be aware of, and make use of any combination of GPUs. The reality of the situation is much more complicated - hence my sarcasm and general derision aimed at those touting DX12 as the be-all-and-end-all. For multi GPU to work the developer has to devote a huge amount of coding resources to load balancing dissimilar architectures and the vast number of cards and their differing feature sets, Most developers can't get a simple DX12 patch to work without using the gaming fraternity as beta testers, so what are the chances that coding for many thousands of multi-GPU permutations from the rapidly growing numbers of DX12 capable SKUs becomes a must have feature for any except the big studios aiming at benchmarking software?

 

[Boilerhog146]

Ahh, yeah! I know I'm getting confused now.

ahh yeah,and now I know why .I am almost as confused..sounds like dx 12 is more of a nightmare for game dev's then it is a boon for gamers.be nice if they get the bugs out of it .but it sounds like an insurmountable amount of xtra work

 

[Myplane150]

So we have one 1060 that might equal the 980 for $250 to $300. This is a card with no sli support. Or, you can get a 480 that costs $230 which apparently surpassed the 980. Get two of the 480's in crossfire (supported) for $460 which is equal to the 1080 for about $250 cheaper. The crossfire makes it kinda, sorta future proof if you buy one now and another 6 months from now whereas the 1060 is 'what you see is what you get'. If all of this turns out to be true, I will definitely get the R480 x 2. Still, best to wait a couple more months before any purchase.

 

[cliffordcooley]

So we have one 1060 that might equal the 980 for $250 to $300. This is a card with no sli support.

If you want a card with greater performance than a 1060, there is a simple solution. Get the 1070 or 1080! Or purchase from the other side of the road. This bickering over SLI support of a crippled card is laughable. So not only are you getting a crippled card, you are getting two crippled cards with the added glitches of SLI. Pay for stability in a single card solution if at all possible.

 

[dividebyzero]

If you want a card with greater performance than a 1060, there is a simple solution. Get the 1070 or 1080! Or purchase from the other side of the road. This bickering over SLI support of a crippled card is laughable. So not only are you getting a crippled card, you are getting two crippled cards with the added glitches of SLI. Pay for stability in a single card solution if at all possible.

The biggest issue is the number of game developers either de-emphasizing multi GPU support and/or choosing to go with game engines that don't offer it (UE4, AnvilNext, Crystal Dynamics etc.). The huge number of upcoming titles using UE4 should give many people pause for thought regarding mGPU going forward, while many other engines simply don't require the graphics horsepower.

 

[Boilerhog146]

you can get a R480

,,,,

No ,you can't ,there's not a 4 gig or 8 gig model to be had ,in this country ,from NCIX to Newegg ,Tiger Direct ,memory express or best buy. have to check staples ,but I bet its the same sad scene,great paper launch.
,As DBZ already stated as fact the sli bridge is not required for sli or crossfire in DX12.it supports multi gpu be default ,whats needed is the graphics engines .to support it.., and to buy a couple NEW south of the border ,gets me charged another 100.00 + dollars in customs duties ,thanks to , er ah , FREE TRADE...not to mention the exchange rate right now.

 

[Burty117]

So we have one 1060 that might equal the 980 for $250 to $300.

Lets go with $250 and for this comparison we'll use the most expensive version of the 480 8GB for $240.

This is a card with no sli support.

Yes, this is true, you're about to find out why it is completely pointless.

Or, you can get a 480 that costs $230 which apparently surpassed the 980.

Well rather than any of this "apparently Surpassed" lets look at some reviews shall we?
Techspots review shows the 980 beating the 480 in every single test they ran on.
Arstechnica has the same theme, the 980 beats the 480 in performance across the board.
PCgamer also had a similar theme of the 980 wrecking house compared to the 480.

With this out the way, lets stop saying silly things like "the RX 480 is better than the 980" when it isn't. It just isn't.

Get two of the 480's in crossfire (supported) for $460 which is equal to the 1080 for about $250 cheaper

Again, you haven't even attempted to Google what you are saying to back up your claims:
TechPowerUp found 2 480's in Crossfire to be a tad slower than a single 1070.
TweakTown also found very similar results.

So why on earth would you get two 480's that will eat double the power (thus produce more heat) and you'd have to battle with crossfire support in games when you could just get a 1070?

The crossfire makes it kinda, sorta future proof

No it doesn't, If you want something that lasts quite some time you'd be looking at far more expensive GPU's.

the 1060 is 'what you see is what you get'. If all of this turns out to be true, I will definitely get the R480 x 2. Still, best to wait a couple more months before any purchase.

As always, it's best to wait and see what the 1060 is really like but just to confirm, getting two 480's is a pointless exercise when you can get a 1070 for the same money without the headache of crossfire support, extra power consumption and heat dissipation.

** I based all of this on 1080p since, if you are using a 4k screen, you will be looking at the top end cards to play games.

 

[noc81]

As for DX12 and game devs.. I blame the game devs. They have the choice of supporting newer opengl, vulcan, or dx11/12 -- yet most of them still rely on DX9. It's like the XP stalwarts that still refused to switch when Win7 came out -- there's no benefit to staying behind the times, it's just pure laziness not wanting to learn new methods and keep doing things as they always have. If the game devs wanted to have their say in DX or Ogl/Vulcan, all they have to do is participate in the existing consortiums, but in reality they just want to pass the blame to where it isn't deserved.