3 GB 1060 vs 970

R

rbarr110

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jan 8, 2003
Messages
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So I have an opportunity to get a 1060 for next to nothing. However, it is the 3 GB version of the 1060. I am currently using a GTX 970.

I am not on a 4k display, but do have a 1440 monitor. Is it worth swapping out the 970 for an essentially free 3 GB 1060?

Thanks
 
Techpowerup has the 1060 3GB 3% faster then the 970 and 12% slower then the 1060 6GB at 2560x res.
 
For free, yes.

Tiny bit faster, 30-40W less, latest and greatest stuff.
 
I think the 970 has like 3.5 and 512mb of junk ram ;) But all things aside that 30-40w and a new card will but you some longevity with the hardware potentially, and a bonus 3% boost is not to bad for close to no cost :)
 
If it's really almost free - sure. Other than that - their performance difference is quite small and paying something more like a 50$ difference is probably not worth it (where you got 50fps with a 970 you may get 55 with a 1060 - probably not noticeable in most cases).
 
Yes. Do it. The 1060 is as fast as a 980, in some cases faster. It would be an upgrade. Another option would be to Sell the 1060 3GB once you get it & the 970 and buy a 1060 6GB.
 
Krenum said:
Yes. Do it. The 1060 is as fast as a 980, in some cases faster. It would be an upgrade. Another option would be to Sell the 1060 3GB once you get it & the 970 and buy a 1060 6GB.
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See post # 2 above. A 1060 3gb is little more than a sidegrade from a 970 and has less vram to boot.
 
misterbobby said:
See post # 2 above. A 1060 3gb is little more than a sidegrade from a 970 and has less vram to boot.
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3% faster excluding overclock, probably 5-10% with overclock and like OP said, it's free, so yes it would be an upgrade.



3GB vs 6gb 1440p


As you can see from the video above, it's about 2-3% slower than the 6gb version.
 
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Krenum said:
3% faster excluding overclock, probably 5-10% with overclock and like OP said, it's free, so yes it would be an upgrade.



3GB vs 6gb 1440p


As you can see from the video above, it's about 2-3% slower than the 6gb version.
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Oh so we're overclocking the 1060 but not overclocking the 970? The 970 has more overclocking headroom so really if you want to play that game then it's even less of an "upgrade"...
 
misterbobby said:
Oh so we're overclocking the 1060 but not overclocking the 970? The 970 has more overclocking headroom so really if you want to play that game then it's even less of an "upgrade"...
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Not playing any game. The Digital Foundry video clearly states "Reference Clocks", You would have known that had you watched the video.

Here is are some OC comparisons for you, more can be found if you're willing to do the research.





 
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And that is a 6 gig card in that video. Again it was already shown on techpowerup that the 3 gig 1060 is only 3% faster than the 970. It is little more than a sidegrade just like I said whether you want to accept it or not.
 
misterbobby said:
And that is a 6 gig card in that video. Again it was already shown on techpowerup that the 3 gig 1060 is only 3% faster than the 970. It is little more than a sidegrade just like I said whether you want to accept it or not.
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Seeing how the 1060 is faster and can calculate faster than the 970 & is basically free like OP stated. Yes, it would be an upgrade. We can talk all day long about a 500MB difference in VRAM, it doesn't matter, fact is Pascal architecture is faster than Maxwell in calculations per second.
 
Krenum said:
Seeing how the 1060 is faster and can calculate faster than the 970 & is basically free like OP stated. Yes, it would be an upgrade. We can talk all day long about a 500MB difference in VRAM, it doesn't matter, fact is Pascal architecture is faster than Maxwell in calculations per second.
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Don't forget that the 1060 3 GB version only has 1152 shaders, versus the 1280 shaders of the 1060 6 GB version. Any comparisons using the 6 GB version have a 10% advantage over the 3 GB version.
 
Yes the card was free for me. Since it was free, and granted only marginal differences in performance, I went ahead and installed it.
 
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