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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080Ti
Date issued:
NVIDIA's dominance in high-end graphics has been so complete that the GPU giant has been able to casually choose how it lays claim to the title of world's fastest graphics card.
The launch of the GeForce GTX 1080 allowed the firm to take top spot with relative ease way back in May of 2016, and with no real threat coming from the direction of AMD, Nvidia hasn't been in a hurry to raise the bar. Knowing that it can deliver more performance for those willing to pay a premium, team green introduced a refreshed Titan X in August, offering GTX 1080-beating results for a lofty $1,200.
But Titan X was merely a stop gap and a sign of Nvidia flexing its considerable muscle. This year, there are glimmers of AMD returning to form, and with a new range of 'Vega' GPUs on the horizon, Nvidia is moving quickly to tighten its grip on the premium end of the market. GeForce GTX 1080 has seen its MSRP slashed from $699 to $499, and the void left behind is now filled by a new crown jewel: the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti.
Employing the same GP102 die as Titan X, GeForce GTX 1080 Ti is based on the current 16nm Pascal architecture and touts 3,584 shaders as well as 224 texture units. It appears to be the same GPU, yet there are subtle tweaks if you read between the lines. On the backend, the GTX 1080 Ti loses one of 12 memory controllers, resulting in a narrowing of the memory bus from 384-bits to 352, a 1GB reduction in memory capacity, and eight fewer ROPs (88 vs. 96).
Is Titan X still king, then? Not quite, as GTX 1080 Ti's seemingly weaker backend is offset by higher frequencies on all fronts. Boost clock has increased from 1,531MHz to 1,582MHz, while the 11GB GDDR5X frame buffer hums along at an effective 11Gbps, compared to 10Gbps on the Titan X.
The two cards have plenty in common, yet the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti's $699 price point is far more palatable, and while Titan X was offered exclusively as an Nvidia Founders Edition card, the GTX 1080 Ti will be made available with custom coolers from a wide range of AIC partners.
| GeForce GTX 1080 Ti | GeForce GTX Titan X | GeForce GTX 1080 | GeForce GTX 980 Ti | GeForce GTX Titan X | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Launch date | March 2017 | August 2016 | May 2016 | June 2015 | March 2015 |
| Codename | GP102 | GP102 | GP104 | GM200 | GM200 |
| Architecture | Pascal | Pascal | Pascal | Maxwell | Maxwell |
| Process (nm) | 16 | 16 | 16 | 28 | 28 |
| Transistors (bn) | 12 | 12 | 7.2 | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| Die Size (mm²) | 471 | 471 | 314 | 601 | 601 |
| Core Clock (MHz) | 1,481 | 1,417 | 1,607 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| Boost Clock (MHz) | 1,582 | 1,531 | 1,733 | 1,076 | 1,089 |
| Shaders | 3,584 | 3,584 | 2,560 | 2,816 | 3,072 |
| GFLOPS | 11,340 | 10,974 | 8,873 | 6,060 | 6144 |
| Memory Size | 11GB | 12GB | 8GB | 6GB | 12GB |
| Memory Bus | 352-bit | 384-bit | 256-bit | 384-bit | 384-bit |
| Memory Type | GDDR5X | GDDR5X | GDDR5X | GDDR5 | GDDR5 |
| Memory Clock | 11Gbps | 10Gbps | 10Gbps | 7Gbps | 7Gbps |
| Memory Bandwidth | 484 | 480 | 320 | 336 | 336 |
| Power Connector | 8-pin + 6-pin | 8-pin + 6-pin | 8-pin | 8-pin + 6-pin | 8-pin + 6-pin |
| TDP (watts) | 250 | 250 | 180 | 250 | 250 |
| Launch MSRP | $699 | $1,200 | $699 | $649 | $999 |
Perusing the comparison table suggests that real-world performance will be eerily familiar, though that shouldn't come as a surprise as both GTX 1080 Ti and Titan X are 250W GPUs powered by a 6+8-pin PCIe configuration. The big change is that Titan X performance is being offered at GeForce prices.
Good news for the performance enthusiast, yet purists may be left wanting more. Those who know their tech will be aware that GP102 in its fullest form could offer 3,840 shaders and Nvidia hasn't used this opportunity to unleash the full potential of its 16nm GPU. Whether or not a full-fat consumer GP102 card will ever see the light of day remains to be seen, but right now that level of performance is being reserved for the professional Quadro Pascal.
Best in class performance
As it stands, GTX 1080 Ti and Titan X offer practically identical performance. Benchmarks from leading review sites put the duo neck-and-neck, so while the performance bar hasn't been raised in the last six months, we can say that the most powerful GPU is now available for under $700.
The capabilities of GTX 1080 Ti are best suited to high-resolution gamers. Expect to achieve in excess of 100 frames per second at a QHD resolution, making said GPU a prime choice for a 120Hz G-Sync display.
4K60 gaming is considered the holy grail, and though the GTX 1080 Ti won't quite manage it in some games using maximum quality settings, it gets closer than any other GeForce GPU and comfortably surpasses the standard GTX 1080.
Summary
NVIDIA is beginning to take a more aggressive stance in the enthusiast space. In addition to GeForce GTX 1080 price cuts, the GPU giant has introduced the GeForce GTX 1080 Ti and offered practically the full might of the venerable Titan X at nearly half the price. These remain premium solutions, yet for anyone seeking to build an ultra-high-end gaming PC in the months ahead, the new GeForce GTX 1080 Ti stands out as the GPU of choice.
The GeForce GTX 1080 Ti graphics card will, of course, be available to purchase right here at Scan Computers.