NVIDIA Unveils The Titan X At GDC 2015

People weren't happy with paper launches - so now everything is hidden behind NDA until cards are in shops ready to be sold.

This sounds made up to me. Do you have a source for this information? Companies thrive on creating hype before the product actually launches, and the geeks thrive on it as well.
 
They made it clear there will be no backplate because they believe it will block airflow to memory chips. 980 does not have memory chips on the back.

Where? Do you have a link?

Seems strange, considering the fact that show cards that were displayed at the event were missing screws, and some not tightened all the way, which would indicate a backplate was taken off.

That has got to be the stupidest thing I have heard about memory chips, a backplate designed for them would cool them even better passively vs. not have one at all. WTF?
 
Where? Do you have a link?

Seems strange, considering the fact that show cards that were displayed at the event were missing screws, and some not tightened all the way, which would indicate a backplate was taken off.

That has got to be the stupidest thing I have heard about memory chips, a backplate designed for them would cool them even better passively vs. not have one at all. WTF?

The TitanX I held at GDC did not have a backplate. Easy enough to fix, but not what you would expect from a 4-figure product...
 
Where? Do you have a link?

Seems strange, considering the fact that show cards that were displayed at the event were missing screws, and some not tightened all the way, which would indicate a backplate was taken off.

That has got to be the stupidest thing I have heard about memory chips, a backplate designed for them would cool them even better passively vs. not have one at all. WTF?

A backplate could also work a heat-storage with SLI...trading/trapping heat.
 
A very interesting backplate test has already been done on GTX 980s:

http://www.babeltechreviews.com/gtx-980-sli-backplate-thermals-hands-nvidias-lighted-sli-bridges/

The results conclude that in "sandwiched" SLI, removing the small portion of the bottom cards backplate (you'll notice reference GTX 980s have a small area in the bottom right that is easily removable) allowed the top card to operate 2 degrees C cooler, BUT with significantly lower fan RPMs. It had no effect on the bottom cards temp.

Removing that section in single card and/or spaced SLI had no effect.

Summary section from article for those too lazy to read the entire thing:

"What? There are only two degrees Centigrade difference by removing the backplate over leaving it on? Well, the difference is day and night as far as fan noise goes. With the bottom card’s backplate removed, it is able to allow sufficient air to keep the top card breathing and below the critical 91C for most of the time. In contrast, with the backplate left in place, the fans ramp up and down as the top card struggles to keep its temperatures below 91C where the GPU begins to throttle. Ideally, one would leave a space between the cards, but some motherboards do not offer this option and removing a GTX 980 backplate is a decent option to providing sufficient airflow."
 
A backplate could also work a heat-storage with SLI...trading/trapping heat.

No more "trading" than no backplate... especially when the backplate is designed with removable portions to not affect sandwiched SLI. I.E. see the post above mine.
Trapping heat? Not really when you look at temps and realize that backplates offer more heat dissipation than having nothing. More surface area = more gooder.
 
Still for so much money they could at least throw optional backplate for esthetic reasons as option to users :)
 
Backplates are overrated.

I agree - aesthetically they look much better - but, if anything - they cause more problems than they solve in my experience. Most egregious were the EVGA GTX 680 FTW+ cards. Lost like 5C in temps with no backplates in 4-way SLI sandwich.

Let it be optional for those that want to go single card.
 
No more "trading" than no backplate... especially when the backplate is designed with removable portions to not affect sandwiched SLI. I.E. see the post above mine.
Trapping heat? Not really when you look at temps and realize that backplates offer more heat dissipation than having nothing. More surface area = more gooder.

Actually metal dissapates IR (HEAT) better than PCB, so you are mistaken...physcs can be hard :p

Also this:
A very interesting backplate test has already been done on GTX 980s:

http://www.babeltechreviews.com/gtx-980-sli-backplate-thermals-hands-nvidias-lighted-sli-bridges/

The results conclude that in "sandwiched" SLI, removing the small portion of the bottom cards backplate (you'll notice reference GTX 980s have a small area in the bottom right that is easily removable) allowed the top card to operate 2 degrees C cooler, BUT with significantly lower fan RPMs. It had no effect on the bottom cards temp.

Removing that section in single card and/or spaced SLI had no effect.

Summary section from article for those too lazy to read the entire thing:

"What? There are only two degrees Centigrade difference by removing the backplate over leaving it on? Well, the difference is day and night as far as fan noise goes. With the bottom card’s backplate removed, it is able to allow sufficient air to keep the top card breathing and below the critical 91C for most of the time. In contrast, with the backplate left in place, the fans ramp up and down as the top card struggles to keep its temperatures below 91C where the GPU begins to throttle. Ideally, one would leave a space between the cards, but some motherboards do not offer this option and removing a GTX 980 backplate is a decent option to providing sufficient airflow."

I guess I was right
 
Still for so much money they could at least throw optional backplate for esthetic reasons as option to users :)

Why should I pay for people more intereseted in LED's and looks than pure performance?
Ass an EXTRA cost..fine...but don't ask me to pay for useless backplates, just because they look "purdy", thanks.
 
I'm a looks guy. I spiffed up both my 980s with aftermarket backplates:



I run spaced SLI (2 x slots) so these backplates have no effect on temps. Sadly, I had to remove the top one because it won't fit X99 boards (the raised backplate interferes with the plastic shroud over the I/O ports on my Rampage V Extreme).

But they sure looked cool. If I go with a pair of Titans, I will also try to backplate them
 
I'm a looks guy. I spiffed up both my 980s with aftermarket backplates:



I run spaced SLI (2 x slots) so these backplates have no effect on temps. Sadly, I had to remove the top one because it won't fit X99 boards (the raised backplate interferes with the plastic shroud over the I/O ports on my Rampage V Extreme).

But they sure looked cool. If I go with a pair of Titans, I will also try to backplate them

I have looked 4 times at my GK110 since it got into my case under the table (chekcking/cleaning for dust).
The next time I will see it, will be when it gets upgraded.
I couldn't care less for how it looks as long at the performance is as tested.

And you would sacrifice performance over looks? :eek:
 
well, as i stated, those 2 x backplates had 0 effect on my temps at a given fan speed, so i didnt sacrifice anything. And my case has a huge side window....

so yeah, i wouldn't care if each one ran 1 degree C hotter at a given fan RPM or not.

But it sounds like the Titans are gonna come naked and it will be up to aftermarket guys to pretty them up :)
 
A backplate could also work a heat-storage with SLI...trading/trapping heat.

Thats downright silly. Majority of people do not run SLI, so a single card solution will always be the most widely used. The point is they should give you an option to remove the backplate if you decided to. Not just remove it altogether. If a 970/980 has one, it is asinine to remove it from a more expensive card such as a Titan.
 
Thats downright silly. Majority of people do not run SLI, so a single card solution will always be the most widely used. The point is they should give you an option to remove the backplate if you decided to. Not just remove it altogether. If a 970/980 has one, it is asinine to remove it from a more expensive card such as a Titan.
As already mentioned the 980 does not have memory on the back of the card...
 
Actually metal dissapates IR (HEAT) better than PCB, so you are mistaken...physcs can be hard :p

Also this:


I guess I was right


So you agree with me? Cool...
I guess reading is hard for some.
 
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Assuming a 980 Ti does get released, does anyone care to guess how long after the Titan X?
 
I was under the impression that at least one other card was also being released at the same time as the Titan X.
 
Tuesday can't get here fast enough! I look forward to some thorough reviews and hopefully some reviewers provide OC results for more than just 1-2 games like usual. So who thinks this thing will have unlocked voltage? I'm betting it might.
 
The real question is, will Nvidia cut down the 980Ti?
If so, no buy for me and I'll go for a Titan X.

Rumor has it the 980ti will be cut down. I think they took note the Titan users were pissed when the 780ti hit.
 
The real question is, will Nvidia cut down the 980Ti?
If so, no buy for me and I'll go for a Titan X.

Why would you care if it's cut down or not cut down? Like that matters. It's all about the performance and the price. Were you buying Quadro parts your entire life and now you're just getting back into gaming?? :p
 
The bigger issue is: Will Titan X coil-whine like the rest of the Maxwell family?

The 980s seemed to have a lot less incidences of coil whine, although given how much the 970 outsells the 980 it could very well just be a sample size issue.

That being said, the 980 had a reference PCB, while the 970 didn't. I can't prove this but I suspect that may have played a role in the 970's coil whine.
 
Yeah, but it was pretty limited. Best Buy retail/website or on NewEgg - "not for individual sale."

Same with 980 reference designed cooler, and past 780/780TI models...I dont see your point. There are lots of models sold on certain sites that amazon or newegg doesnt carry.
 
Yes but that was the only 970 to have a "reference PCB" so to speak. All "non-nVidia brand" 970s used either the AIB partner's own design, or a few like MSI and Inno3D used the 980 reference PCB for some of their 970 products.

Not to mention it was released 2 months later than all other 970s.
The reason brands make their own adjustment to the PCB is to make their product stand out. They have to change them to market them in one way or the other. In the end it makes minimal difference to the performance. For example my reference 980s cooler is as good, if not better than aftermarket coolers of certain models.
 
You're missing the point, which is there was no 970 reference board for AIB partners to adjust. They either borrowed from a previous model (GTX 670), made their own custom PCB, or used the reference 980 PCB.

I'm simply speculating the coil whine might be related to the lack of a reference board for the 970, so there's less guidance for AIB partners when designing or recycling the PCB.
 
Same with 980 reference designed cooler, and past 780/780TI models...I dont see your point. There are lots of models sold on certain sites that amazon or newegg doesnt carry.

I'm only here to make one point: GTX 970 reference is a rare bird compared to any of those other models you mentioned. 780/780 Ti/980 reference could be had (or bought now) pretty much anywhere. That is all. The 970 reference is not so easy to procure.

I couldn't care less about the coil whine argument that you're having - but I just wanted to make sure you were pointing out the 970 reference as some kind of rebuttal because, if anything, it's barely a released card. You either have to A) pay significantly more for it than any other 970 or b) buy it as part of a package of parts you do not want. Not the case with the reference coolers that you mentioned as other examples.
 
Any updates/rumors about the 8 gig variants of the 970 and 980's being announced at GDC?

I've been holding off on purchasing a 900 series card after i heard of these rumors. Also there is so much talk about "cut down" cards and because i've been so out of the loop my guess is that a cut down card is basically just a card the uses the same architecture of say, a flagship card, but intentional gimped performance?
 
Honestly if you've held out this long, I'd just wait until either the cut down, much cheaper GM200 part ("980 Ti") or the 390X drops and take it from there.
 
The only thing that has me tempted is the standard $999 price (which we all know will be gouged at launch and for a while thereafter) and, more importantly, the 12GB of buffer that will ensure the card could serve even as an '8K' desktop/light-use card many years down the road.

Of course, the more powerful my video card, the more tempted I'll be to upgrade to 4K prematurely, since the 2412M I have already is pretty much overkill with a 970, and I'm honestly quite content at 1200p. I can run stuff in 1680x1050 tiled windows comfortably with pretty much every bell and whistle enabled.
 
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