MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G OC Graphics Card Review

[signoff icon=”dollar”]

Price / Where to Buy:

US – Approx.: $207 – [easyazon_link identifier=”B00SAYDRP8″ locale=”US” tag=”back2gaming-20″]MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G on Amazon[/easyazon_link] / [easyazon_link identifier=”B00SAYDRP8″ locale=”CA” tag=”back2032-20″]Amazon.ca[/easyazon_link]

[/signoff]

[section label=”Introduction”]

The Maxwell architecture is NVIDIA’s greatest achievement as of late given its efficiency compared to the last generation. While it doesn’t serve as a great leap in terms of performance, many people are still convinced by the excellent performance-per-watt ratio. Both the GTX 980 and GTX 970 have been largely in-demand primarily for the efficiency but the Maxwell-based GTX GPUs also introduced some new features including NVIDIA Voxel Global Illumination (VXGI), Multi-Frame sampled AA (MFAA), and Dynamic Super Resolution (DSR). Maxwell GPUs also support Microsoft’s upcoming DirectX 12 API.

[section label=”About GTX 960″]

About GeForce GTX 960

The GTX 960 is, to be very concise, a GTX 980 split in half as the table below indicates. Whatever made the GTX 980 a great card has been cut in half, castrated and reduced to make the GTX 960. That means its still the same 28nm Maxwell GPU featuring the same number of transistors but bears the GM206 name whereas the GTX980 and GTX970 bear the GM204 GPU.

[table style=”table-striped”]

Model	GeForce GTX 980	GeForce GTX 970	GeForce GTX 960
GPU	GM204	GM204	GM206
CUDA cores	2048	1664	1024
Texture Units	128	104	64
ROP	64	64	32
Memory Bus	256-bit	256-bit	128-bit
Memory Size	4 GB GDDR5	4 GB GDDR5	2 GB GDDR5
Memory Bandwidth	224 GB/s	224 GB/s	112 GB/s

[/table]

As indicated, the GTX 960 will feature 1024 CUDA cores running with a reference base clock of 1126Mhz and a Boost clock of 1178Mhz. At launch, only a 2GB GTX 960 is available and no word on any other memory capacity model yet. The memory runs at a reference 1753Mhz wired to a 128-bit bus. That last part may sound a bit underwhelming but thanks to delta color compression which enables the GM206 to better utilize its available memory bandwidth (148.8GB/sec effective in GTX 960 vs 144.2GB/sec in GTX 660).

The GTX 960 is aimed squarely at 1080p gamers and the launch price places the GTX 960 at the sweet spot at which most mainstream gamers currently sit with a SRP of $199. AIB partners and their custom boards are expected to hover just below $230 but still, this is lower than the GTX 760’s launch price of $250.

[section label=”Features”]

Features

The new Maxwell graphics cards introduces some new features to NVIDIA cards as mentioned earlier with the main highlights being VXGI and DSR amongst other things.

VXGI or Voxel Global Illumination improves 3D scenes by introducing more realistic lighting to 3D scenes by introducing voxels or volume pixels which makes light interaction of 3D objects have a more dynamic and photo-realistic feel.

DSR or Dynamic Super Resolution is another new featured, integrated via the GeForce Experience application, which add downsampling capabilities to the GTX 900 series graphics cards which lets users of other monitor sizes experience larger resolutions in their monitors without needing say a 4K UltraHD screen or a 1440p monitor. Dynamic Super Resolution works by rendering in the desired resolution and then downscaling the image and applying a filter to the native monitor resolution for an improved image quality of the scene being rendered.

In contrast to DSR, NVIDIA also introduces MFAA or Multi-Frame Sampled Anti-Aliasing. This AA technique basically is a faster implementation of MSAA which should see 4xMSAA quality at the performance hit of only 2xMSAA. Implementation is in its early stages but is promising nonetheless. MFAA can be set via the GeForce Experience app.

As expected given the earlier announcements, DirectX12 is in the works and the new GTX 900 series graphics cards fully support the DX12 API alongside its many new feature offerings including better CPU utilization and overhead reduction, improved multi-core utilization and efficiency, and plenty more features for developers to use.

All of these features complement the already existing feature set that NVIDIA offers including GeForce Experience and ShadowPlay, etc.

[section label=”About MSI GTX 960 GAMING”]

About the MSI GTX 960 GAMING OC

MSI has announced multiple variants for its GeForce GTX 960 line up and the flaghsip of that segment is the GTX 960 GAMING 2G. The MSI GAMING series is one of MSI’s focus series and brandishes the company’s famed Dragon Army branding which boasts a unified design for all same-generation products which all focus on gamers and enthusiasts.

The MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G boasts the 5th rendition of the TwinFrozr cooler, aptly dubbed the TwinFrozr V. Design-wise, the GTX 960 GAMING 2G bears the same cooler used on the GTX 970 GAMING and GTX 980 GAMING from MSI, with the detachable cooler shroud, donning a red and black color scheme.

The MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G OC comes factory overclocked with a 1190Mhz core clock and a boost clock of 1253Mhz. The memory clock remains untouched at 1753Mhz. MSI bakes in 3 standard profiles for the GTX 960 GAMING including an OC Mode where the clock gets another bump with a 1216/1279Mhz Core/Boost clocks profile.

Official product page

[section label=”Product Gallery”]

Product Gallery

[section label=”Overclocking”]

Overclocking

Overclocking any graphics card is pretty straightforward nowadays provided you know what to do and given that most companies also have their own overclocking software, makes it so much more approachable. We use the latest MSI Afterburner software for this test.

UPDATE: MSI has sent an updated BIOS that bumps up the clock on their out-of-box OC. As seen in their product page, this is now the default configuration for this graphics card.

[one_half]

[/one_half][one_half_last]

[/one_half_last]

One of the main promises of the Maxwell GPUs is greater overclocking. As the stock clocks already demonstrate, we have pretty high frequencies in stock already and we’re able to flex that around more using an overclocking tool like MSI Afterburner. All of our units are retail samples off the shelves and aren’t cherry picked so our OC’s should be more comparable to what’s achievable in most cases.

For our MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G, we managed to bring the card to a stable 1366Mhz base clock which soars up to 1429Mhz boost and the memory to an excellent 2053Mhz. Those are really nice numbers to see and we’ll see just how those figures perform in a later article focusing on OC performance. For now we’ll leave them here for reference. Note that we do not touch voltage for these OCs and we can still get higher clocks because of the lower temps we get at these clocks already. Bumping up the power limit % also gives a higher boost frequency also so that improves performance when a good cooler is attached to your GTX 960. The clocks shown up top is our game-stable OC and while we did get to push the card past 1400Mhz base clock, it was only benchmark stable and flakes on most games.

[section label=”Performance Testing 1080P”]

PERFORMANCE

Test Setup Processor: Intel Core i7 3770K 4.4Ghz
Motherboard: MSI Z77 Mpower
Memory: Kingston HyperX Beast DDR3-2400 16GB
Storage: Kingston HyperX FURY 240GB
PSU: Seasonic P1000
Cooling: Custom loop (XSPC Raystorm block, XSPC D5 Dual Bayres, BlackIce Stealth GT 240 rad)
Monitor: LG 42UB820T UltraHD TV
VGA: MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G

We test our graphics card with a full-level playthrough of our selected game or the games’ built-in benchmark tool. We record the run with Fraps. Game settings are indicated in the charts. Resolutions are shown in the charts. Unlike our standard benchmarks, we’ll save OC results for another article or update as needed as we still collect data.

FullHD (1920×1080)

[tabs] [tab title=”Battlefield 4″]

Battlefield 4 is one of the hottest titles of 2013 and continues to prove itself a worthy game. Based on DICE’s Frostbite Engine 3, this game’s lush details and visuals are just stunning but can really stress any modern GPU. Level tested is the escape from Baku with wide open space and collapsing building showing what the Frostbite 3 engine can do.

[/tab] [tab title=”Crysis 3″]

The most visually intense game to ever been made. Prophet is back to take on the Ceph and Cell after a long sleep and the world isn’t what it was when before he got frozen. CryEngine 3 is behind this beautiful beast that will put a lot of systems to their knees. The opening level shows off the particle and water rendering of the engine.

[/tab] [tab title=”DOTA 2″]

The most popular game on Steam and the biggest competition in eSports; DOTA 2 is powered by the Source engine. The game is fairly light on low to medium settings but maxed out with heavy action on screen especially during clashes can really stress some systsems.

We use the built-in timedemo and benchmarking tool. DOTA2 only shows average FPS so we will be reflecting that in this test. Our timedemo features a heavy clash in the bottom lane for the maximum real-world system load the game can generate. With the recent visual update, DOTA2 has received some graphic makeover that adds a bit of hit for the system and all our date are updated to reflect this.

[/tab] [tab title=”Batman: Arkham Origins”]

Batman: Arkham Origins is the prequel to the highly successful Arkham series of Batman games from RockSteady. Rocking Unreal Engine 3, the game has superb detail and puts a decent load on modern systems.

[/tab] [/tabs] [section label=”Performance Testing 1440p”]

2560×1440

[tabs] [tab title=”Battlefield 4″]

Battlefield 4 is one of the hottest titles of 2013 and continues to prove itself a worthy game. Based on DICE’s Frostbite Engine 3, this game’s lush details and visuals are just stunning but can really stress any modern GPU. Level tested is the escape from Baku with wide open space and collapsing building showing what the Frostbite 3 engine can do.

[/tab] [tab title=”Crysis 3″]

The most visually intense game to ever been made. Prophet is back to take on the Ceph and Cell after a long sleep and the world isn’t what it was when before he got frozen. CryEngine 3 is behind this beautiful beast that will put a lot of systems to their knees. The opening level shows off the particle and water rendering of the engine.

[/tab] [tab title=”DOTA 2″]

The most popular game on Steam and the biggest competition in eSports; DOTA 2 is powered by the Source engine. The game is fairly light on low to medium settings but maxed out with heavy action on screen especially during clashes can really stress some systsems.

We use the built-in timedemo and benchmarking tool. DOTA2 only shows average FPS so we will be reflecting that in this test. Our timedemo features a heavy clash in the bottom lane for the maximum real-world system load the game can generate.

[/tab] [tab title=”Batman: Arkham Origins”]

Batman: Arkham Origins is the prequel to the highly successful Arkham series of Batman games from RockSteady. Rocking Unreal Engine 3, the game has superb detail and puts a decent load on modern systems.

[/tab] [/tabs] [section label=”Temps & Power Consumption”]

TEMPERATURE & POWER CONSUMPTION

To measure both power consumption and heat, we stress the video card and record the peak values for heat and wattage. We use default values on the cards and stress test them using a mix of Kombustor Dx11 Burn-In Test with Post-FX.

[one_half]

[/one_half][one_half_last]

[/one_half_last]

NVIDIA’s Maxwell GPUs are the pinnacle of efficiency when it comes to existing GPUs in the market right now and the 2nd-gen Maxwells baked into the GTX900 series are certainly the most impressive we’ve seen to date. The GTX 960 continues the great trend in power efficiency, bringing with it better temps and power draw.

The MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G manages to handle its heat well with only under 40% fan speed cruising at just under 900RPM with the GPU hovering at 66*C fully loaded in Kombustor burn-in test. Power draw is at a cozy 180w which high-up in our charts of total system draw for fully loaded GPUs.

[section label=”Conclusion”]

CONCLUSION

MSI has created a formula for creating their gaming products to set it apart from what could be a battle of looks and pricing in the GPU space. The MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G punches in hard in the GTX 960 battle. Let’s break down the score for more details:

Performance. NVIDIA tags the GTX 960 for a sweet spot position namely the 1080p market with its 1080p@60FPS campaign. We try and fit our benchmarks to the most active games that set a benchmark for today so Battlefield 4 and DOTA2 are up in there with performance definitely well in the playable range. BF4 does hover below 60FPS with in-game settings set to Ultra with 4xMSAA enabled. A few touches down AA should improve performance overall though.

Build Quality. MSI has been doing an astounding job with their products as of late which is really creeping up close to ASUS’ level of quality. A solid design, excellent feature set and high-quality materials make the GTX 960 GAMING 2G an excellent piece of tech and the 3-year warranty is a sure sign that MSI is serious about the quality of their product.

Functionality. The GTX 960 is a good mid-range card with power draw perfect for an everyday gaming PC and also an HTPC. That said, the MSI GTX 960 GAMING though does make it a challenge of putting itself inside an SFF chassis but if it can be accommodated then its a surely a good base to build a budget gaming rig around on.

Bundle. No game bundle, no door signs, no sticker. What’s up MSI? What’s NVIDIA? Average score for you.

Value. Pricing is where the MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G gets confusing. Right now local pricing puts it at around Php 13,000 directly competing with ASUS’ Strix GTX 960. Both cards have their own merits but the MSI variant has a beefier cooler and a larger PCB for those that’s into that. Otherwise, both the cards should be in the same performance league and OC capacity. The lack of a backplate makes the MSI GTX 960 GAMING a bit underwhelming though and MSI’s choice to not include one for the entire GTX 900 GAMING series is quite disappointing given the price. In some online etailers, prices do fall around the normal launch price for the GTX 960 at around $219 with some even posting $199 after rebate. For local PH shores though, you’re stuck with a Php 13k price tag until price drops occur in a few months.

Overall, the MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G is a well-made card. It may not pop in terms of performance out of the box but the ability to OC the card further with the integrated profile and the beefy cooler make it an interesting choice for anyone looking to push what their $240 budget can stretch to.

The GTX 960 promises good 1080p gaming and while we didn’t see consistent numbers even in NVIDIA-optimize titles like Batman: Arkham Origins, pumping up the screen to 1440p still sees lower drops vs. those we see in AMD cards in these titles so a few tweaks with GeForce Experience or the in-game details could get the card really flowing in the the 1080@60FPS range for many titles.

The power draw is really where its at and if you are really mostly gaming in the 1080p resolution or heavily focused on MOBAs with a touch of AAA games here and then, the GTX 960 is surely a top choice for you.

UPDATE: With the new BIOS, we get a decent clock bump enough to match the ASUS GTX 960 Strix. While it doesn’t equate to revolutionary performance, it does bring the MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G to a higher level of out of box performance to compete heavily with its rival and is a good show of how effective the new cooler works hand in hand with the 2nd-gen Maxwell GPUs to offer cooler temps for higher, more effective boost clocks.

[signoff icon=”dollar”]

Price / Where to Buy:

US – Approx.: $207 – [easyazon_link identifier=”B00SAYDRP8″ locale=”US” tag=”back2gaming-20″]MSI GTX 960 GAMING 2G on Amazon[/easyazon_link] / [easyazon_link identifier=”B00SAYDRP8″ locale=”CA” tag=”back2032-20″]Amazon.ca[/easyazon_link]

[/signoff]

MSI backs the GTX 960 GAMING 2G with a 3 year warranty. We give it our B2G Silver Award.

[section label=”Award”]