Review: gigabyte gtx 960 windforce

Technical characteristics

GIGABYTE GTX 960 WINDFORCE 2GB TESTS
Chipset	GeForce GTX 960
PCB format	ATX
Core frequency	GPU Base Clock: 1216 MHz GPU Boost Clock: 1279 MHz
Digital and analog resolution	4096 x 2160 and 2048 x 1536
Memory Clock	7200 MHz
Process technology	28 nm
Memory size	2048 MB GDDR5
BUS memory	128 bit
BUS card	PCI-E 3.0
DirectX and OpenGL	Yes and OC Guru II.
I / O	DVI output: x 1 (DVI-I), HDMI output: x 1 (HDMI 2.0) Display Port: x 3
Dimensions	42 x 257 x 129 mm.
Warranty	3 years.

Gigabyte GTX960 Windforce

Gigabyte maintains the format of other previous generations with a sober, elegant and strong box. On the cover we see the model of the motherboard, while on the back we have all the technical characteristics and new specifications of the card. Its interior is completed with exceptional shockproof packaging. Your bundle is made up of:

GTX 960 Windforce X2 graphics card.Two molex thieves to PCI Express.Instruction manual.CD with drivers and software.

The Gigabyte GTX 960 has compact dimensions of 257 x 129 x 42 mm not as long as the Gaming G1 version and a standard weight for such a card. The design is more than sober and efficient, the only one that we can get is that it lacks a backplate.

The 28nm GTX960 graphics chip clock runs at a serial speed of 1216 MHz while Boost goes up to 1279 MHz, it has 1024 CUDA Cores with 64 TMUs and 32 ROPs, 128-bit bus and 2GB of memory with a speed of 7200 mhz. Fully compatible with OpenGL 4.4 and AMD's most advanced DirectX 12 and Mantle graphics engines.

Special mention to its new 90mm Dual Fan Windforce X2 heatsink and three thick copper heatpipes. As you can see in the images, each blade has a more aerodynamic design that improves air flow and prevents vibrations when turning. Another great improvement is a semi-passive 0dB system, but… What does this mean? That when the graphics card is idle or in desktop mode they remain off while if the temperature rises per charge of the graphics card they begin to work maintaining an optimal curvature.

On the side we have the name of the heatsink… What power do I need? For its optimal operation it is necessary to connect two 6-pin PCI Express connections, with a quality source (80 PLUS GOLD) of 500W will be more than enough.

We have all the graphic interface connections of the moment, it is made up of:

DVI output: x 1 (DVI-I), HDMI output: x 1 (HDMI 2.0) Display Port: x 3

It incorporates Gigabyte Flex technology that can automatically detect all connected monitors and achieve multi-screen games from up to 4 monitors at the same time on a single graphics card. This will allow us to have an improved experience and greater organizational flexibility in our day to day.

To open the graphics card we must remove the 4 screws located on the back of the graphics chip. We find that the thermal paste is well applied and the heatsink contains 3 copper heatpipes. As expected Gigabyte has used Ultra Durable components throughout the GTX9x0 series… What improvements do we find compared to other assemblers? A drop in temperature in the processor, a PCB with double copper, better overclocking capacity (it has 2 PCI Express connections), a decrease in unbearable electrical noise, 6 power phases and the excellent memories of Samsung K4G41325FC-HC28 512 mb each soldered module .

Test bench and tests

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Intel i7 4770k
Base plate:	Asus Z97 PRO GAMER
Memory:	8GB G.Skills Trident X.
Heatsink	Raijintek Triton
HDD	Samsung 840 EVO 250GB.
Graphic card	Gigabyte GTX960 Windforce
Power supply	Antec HCP-850W
Box	Dimastech Mini White Milk

To evaluate the performance of the graphics card we have used the following applications:

3DMark11.3DMark Vantage.Crysis Last Light.Metro 2033.Tomb Raider.Battlefield 4.

All our tests have been carried out with a resolution of 1920px x 1080px and with 4xAA filters.

What are we looking for in the tests?

First the best possible image quality. The most important value for us is the average FPS (Frames per second), the higher the number of FPS, the more fluid the game will be. To slightly differentiate the quality, we leave you a table to assess the quality in FPS:

WE RECOMMEND YOU MSI GTX960 improves your clocks with its GamingAPP application

FRAMES BY SECONDS
Frames for Seconds. (FPS)	Gameplay
Less than 30 FPS	Limited
30 - 40 FPS	Playable
40 - 60 FPS	Good
Greater than 60 FPS	Fairly Good or Excellent

Let's not fool ourselves; there are games that can have an average of 100 FPS. It may be because the game is quite old and does not require excessive graphic resources or that the graphics is the most powerful on the market, or we have GPU systems for thousands of euros. But the reality is different, and games like Crysis 3 and Metro Last Light are very demanding and do not usually give high scores.

GIGABYTE GTX960 WINDFORCE TESTS
3Dmark Vantage	P38128
3DMark11 Performance	P10522
Crysis 3	38 FPS
Metro Last Light	52 FPS
tomb Raider	80 FPS
Battlefield 4	55 FPS

Below are the results obtained from consumption and temperatures at rest and at the highest level of the entire equipment.

Final words and conclusion

The Gigabyte GTX 960 Windforce is a true marvel both for its aesthetic design and the components used. You have compact dimensions of 257 x 129 cm and very interesting frequencies that go up to 1279 MHz with Boost, it incorporates 2Gb of GDDR5 memory, 1024 CUDA Cores with 64 TMUs and 32 ROPs, Ultra Durable components and a 128 bit bus.

The cooling is extraordinary thanks to its new Windforce X2 90mm fan system with blade technology to prevent turbulence and its 0dB system that starts its fans when working in 3D by applications or games. The temperatures obtained are a luxury with 35ºC at rest and 67ºC at full capacity. In consumption it is a lighter, the whole system demands 82W at rest while in full performance it goes up to 238W.

Regarding performance, we have obtained P10522 in 3DMARK11 and in leading games such as Tomb Raider 80 FPS or Battlefield 4 in Full HD resolution and 4xAA an average of 55 FPS.

In short, if you are looking for a quality graphics card, with good components and reliable, the Gigabyte GTX960 Windforce is one of the best possible candidates. Its store price ranges from € 225.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ ULTRA DURABLE DESIGN AND COMPONENTS.	- A BACKPLATE IS MISSING.
+ ANTI-VIBRATION COOLING AND 0dB SYSTEM.
+ GIGABYTE FLEX AND GURU II.
+ GOOD PERFORMANCE.
+ OVERCLOCK CAPACITY.
+ 3 YEARS WARRANTY.