Manufacturer: Gigabyte Price: $ 230 US Author: Steve Date: 09/13/2012

[ Introduction ]

Today we are checking out Nvidia’s new GeForce GTX 660 graphics card based on the GK106 architecture. Just last month we saw the arrival of the latest GK104 based graphics card known as the GTX 660 Ti and now it is time to take a look at the non-Ti version... Last month Nvidia released their most affordable graphics card yet based on the GK104 architecture. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti was introduced with an MSRP of $299, making it $100 cheaper than the GTX 670 and $200 cheaper than the GTX 680. Yet despite the discounted price the GeForce GTX 660 Ti shared many of the same specifications as the more expensive GTX 670. The key difference could be found when comparing the memory subsystem, as the GTX 660 Ti used a cut down 192-bit wide bus opposed to the fully fledged 256-bit bus of the GTX 670 and GTX 680 cards. Depending on the game and the quality settings used the impact this smaller memory bus had on performance varied. However overall we found that the GTX 660 Ti was just 13% slower, which was impressive given it cost a little over 30% less. When compared to the AMD competition the GeForce GTX 660 Ti was 11% faster than the Radeon HD 7870 at 1920x1200. This would be a problem for AMD as the GTX 660 Ti was priced to compete with the 7870. Having launched at $349 in March the 7870 was quickly discounted to $299 and last month the price was again reduced, this time to $249. This means although we found the GeForce GTX 660 Ti to be 11% faster than the Radeon HD 7870, the new AMD pricing also means that it is 20% more expensive. By swiftly adjusting their pricing AMD has helped to neutralize the threat posed by the new GTX 660 Ti. Yet AMD didn’t stop with the 7870, as they reduced the price of the Radeon HD 7950 from $349 to $319, while the 7850 was axed from $239 to $209. This means in the sub $250 price range AMD still has the market pretty well stitched up. That being the case, Nvidia is getting ready to fire their next shot as they prepare to send a non-Ti version of the GTX 660 hurtling AMD’s way. Known simply as the GeForce GTX 660, this new graphics card is based on the new GK106 architecture and although this means it will be quite different from the Ti version, it is a 28nm part. The GK106 architecture still features all the key innovations first introduced in the flagship GeForce GTX 680, such as the SMX architecture and GPU Boost. When compared to the GTX 660 Ti this new non-Ti version has been cut down to size, featuring a much lighter core configuration which will no doubt have a negative impact on performance. The upshot of all this of course is a lower price...

Table of Contents >>> Introduction <<< Test System Specs & 3Dmark 11 Benchmarks: Aliens vs. Predator, Metro 2033 Benchmarks: Battlefield 3, Modern Warfare 3 Benchmarks: Crysis 2, Dragon Age II Benchmarks: Deus Ex, Hard Reset Benchmarks: DiRT 3, Showdown Benchmarks: The Witcher 2, The Elder Scrolls V Benchmarks: Alan Wake, King Arthur II Benchmarks: Just Cause 2, Max Payne 3 Power Consumption & Temperatures Overclocking Performance Conclusion Next Page ->

Rusco

Posted on: 09/13/2012 11:21 PM VERY NICE performance for the price!

thunderstruk

Posted on: 09/16/2012 11:01 PM Gigabyte managed to release this for $230 so I grabbed one, can't wait for it to arrive Good bye GTX 460.

tiger

Posted on: 09/23/2012 07:56 PM Thanks for the great review. A really impressive piece of hardware and Nvidia is finally getting the power consumption in place. Although it would be nice to see how the 660GTX handles Batman Arkham games with physx enabled. Maybe you can add it to the review if you have time.