This
GPU is great. noise levels are very minimum, runs very cool with the
stock fan, looks good, and most impressively, is built like a tank. so
by this point you should already know that this GPU is huge step-up from
the last generation in almost every aspect, but the thing I wanted to
mention, which I believe many people have not tried, is that it can
survive being ran over by a car. So even though it wasn't intended to be
used as a speed bump, it sure can handle being used as one. Short
version of the story: USPS still suck, they placed the box right in
front of my garage door which is open to a street and a parking area
(apartment building compound, with many garage doors side-by-side.
absolutely not a safe place) instead of walking a few extra steps to the
front door. the box was placed exactly along the tire path, and very
close to the garage door that it can't be seen when you're in the car
opening the garage with the remote. My sister drove out that morning,
ran over the box, making her climbing point exactly at the PCI-e pins.
Fortunately, the whole thing works perfectly, so thank you Nvidia for
the great packaging and the way overly designed GPU case. As for USPS, I
wish you would just go out of business already.
MSI
with their Gaming series has always occupied a great space of getting
the GPU you want, at a price you can afford with proper cooling, serving
as a nice middle ground between the highest-end offerings that come
pre-mounted with water blocks, and the low-end, rear exhaust blower
cards. Compared to other cards with the same GPU, this card is
affordable and reliable enough for a decent overclock, while still
staying cool enough to stay under my personal target of 60C. I upgraded
to this card from the GTX 970 version, and let me say, this card is a
MONSTER. From the hefty back plate, to the giant fans on the front, this
card is going to take up a lot of space in your PC, especially if you
have anything other than a Full ATX tower. All of that PCB isn't just
for show, as this GPU can take any game you want, any at all, and run
them perfectly at 1080p; right now, today, there will be no compromises
when it comes to graphical settings. If there is an Ultra preset for the
game, this card will hit that target and go beyond, even keeping a
smooth 60 fps while super-sampling to a 2x resolution scale or better.
With MSI's Gaming App or MSI Afterburner, you can control the clock
speeds for both the VRAM and the GPU, and the fan speeds to find the
ideal balance between graphical performance, noise, and temperature.
Also, if you're the type that love the "gaming" red and black
aesthetics, this card is pleasing to the eye, and even comes with
customisable RGB lighting. All in all, if you're looking to buy a GTX
1080, you've got the money to spend, but this is the air-cooled card
that's going to get you the best value for those dollars.
