Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review: feat. Gigabyte
Written by
Matthew Lambert
August 20, 2015 | 13:56
Tags: #best-gtx-950 #gm206 #gtx-950 #maxwell
Companies: #gigabyte #nvidia
1 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review: feat. Gigabyte2 — Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB Review — The Card3 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Test Setup4 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Alien: Isolation Performance5 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Battlefield 4 Performance6 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Crysis 3 Performance7 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Grand Theft Auto V Performance8 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor Performance9 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Performance10 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Unigine Valley 1.0 Performance11 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Power and Thermals12 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Overclocking13 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Performance Analysis14 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Conclusion
Using MSI Afterburner, we set the power limit to 118 percent and the temperature limit to 95°C and got to work.
We were able to add 210MHz to the base clock, taking it to 1,312MHz. In turn, this gave us a boost clock of 1,489MHz, and the card had no issues boosting past that, hovering around the 1,550MHz mark when under sustained load. We’ve seen GTX 960s exceed 1.5GHz before, so this is hardly a surprise, but it’s great to see that the excellent overclocking potential remains intact – going by the base clock, this is a 19 percent overclock.
The Samsung memory chips were happy all the way up to 7.8GHz, which is an 18 percent improvement over stock. At this speed, the card’s total memory bandwidth increases from 105.6GB/sec to 124.8GB/sec.
- AMD Radeon R9 290X 4GB
- Palit GeForce GTX 960 Super JetStream 2GB
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB (OC)
- Sapphire Radeon R9 380 Nitro 4GB
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB
- Sapphire Radeon R7 370 Nitro 4GB
-
-
59
-
71
-
-
-
43
-
52
-
-
-
42
-
50
-
-
-
39
-
47
-
-
-
36
-
44
-
-
-
31
-
36
-
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Frames Per Second
-
Minimum
-
Average
- AMD Radeon R9 290X 4GB
- Sapphire Radeon R9 380 Nitro 4GB
- Sapphire Radeon R7 370 Nitro 4GB
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB (OC)
- Palit GeForce GTX 960 Super JetStream 2GB
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB
-
-
62
-
83
-
-
-
43
-
60
-
-
-
32
-
43
-
-
-
23
-
33
-
-
-
22
-
31
-
-
-
19
-
28
-
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Frames Per Second
-
Minimum
-
Average
- Sapphire Radeon R9 390 Nitro 8GB
- Palit GeForce GTX 960 Super JetStream 2GB
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB (OC)
- Sapphire Radeon R9 380 Nitro 4GB
- Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB
- Sapphire Radeon R7 370 Nitro 4GB
-
-
2408
-
-
-
1801
-
-
-
1670
-
-
-
1620
-
-
-
1437
-
-
-
1022
-
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
Score (higher is better)
-
Score
1 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review: feat. Gigabyte2 — Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 OC 2GB Review — The Card3 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Test Setup4 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Alien: Isolation Performance5 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Battlefield 4 Performance6 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Crysis 3 Performance7 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Grand Theft Auto V Performance8 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor Performance9 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Performance10 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Unigine Valley 1.0 Performance11 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Power and Thermals12 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Overclocking13 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Performance Analysis14 — Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 Review — Conclusion
MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G Video Card Review
Today, we will get a chance to see a budget gaming card from NVIDA – the GTX 950. MSI put their own twist on the GTX 950 by adding their Twin Frozr V cooler, beefed up components, and some factory overclocking out of the box making it superior to the reference cards. Get comfortable as we go through the specifications and performance of the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G!
Specifications and Features
Below is a list of specifications sourced from the MSI website.
Out of the gate, we know this is a PCIe 3.0 card as all the new ones are these days, right? The GTX 950 Gaming 2G comes with 2048 MB (2GB) of GDDR5 resting on a 128-bit bus running at 1653 MHz (6610 GDDR5). It has a total of 768 CUDA cores/shaders, 48 Texture units and 32 ROPs rounding out the back end. Core clocks come in at the ‘gaming mode’ speed of 1102 MHz base with a minimum boost of 1279 MHz. Testing showed an actual stable boost at 1366 MHz throughout. The card is SLI compatible (2-way), and has a total of five outputs that can support four displays – 1x DL DVI-I, 1x HDMI (v1.4a/2.0), and 3x DisplayPorts (v1.2). There is full support for DX12 and Open GL v4.5. The MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G requires a single six pin PCIe connector, has a TDP of 90W, and recommends at least a 350W power supply.
MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G Specifcations | |
Graphics Engine | NVIDIA Geforce GTX 950 |
Bus Standard | PCI Express x16 3.0 |
Memory Type | GDDR5 |
Memory Size (MB) | 2048 |
Memory Interface | 128 bit |
Core Clock (MHz) | 1317 MHz / 1127 MHz (OC Mode) 1279 MHz / 1102 MHz (Gaming Mode) 1190 MHz / 1026 MHz (Silent Mode) |
Memory Clock (MHz) | 6650 (OC Mode) / 6610 |
Maximum Displays Outputs (DVI/HDMI/DP)
|
4 1 (Dual-link DVI-I), Max Res: 2560 x 1600 @60 Hz. 1 (HDMI version 1.4a/2.0) Max Res: 4096×2160 @24 Hz (1.4a), 3840×2160 @60 Hz 3 DP (version 1.2) Max Resolution: 4096×2160 @60 Hz |
Multi-GPU Technology | SLI, 2-way |
Power consumption (W) / Recommended Power Supply (W) / Power Connectors | 90W / 350W / 6-pin x1 |
HDCP / HDMI / DL-DVI Support | Yes (all three) |
Accessories | 1x DVI to VGA Dongle |
DirectX / OpenGL Version Support | DX12 / Open GL 4. 5 |
Card Dimensions (mm) | 270 x 137 x 37mm (10.6″ x 5.6″ x 1.45″) |
Weight | 602g (1.32 lbs) |
Some of the major features on the GTX 950 Gaming 2G are listed below and starting out with the cooler, MSI’s Twin Frozr V (TFV). Since the early days, the Twin Frozr name has been pretty synonymous with the terms cooler and quieter. The version on the GTX 950 Gaming 2G is a bit different than the version on the MSI GTX 980 Ti Gaming 6G I reviewed a few weeks ago. This version is a bit cut down and has two nickel plated copper heatpipes (heatpipes/copper touches the core) that snake through the fin array. This TFV uses the same Torx fans found on its bigger brother. The Torx fan blade setup is said to take in more air and disperse it better through the aluminum heatsink fins. Another feature on the TFV is the heatsink actually has small deflectors in it to focus more airflow to the heatpipes, which should improve efficiency. Last, but not least, on the cooling side of things is the Zero Fan technology. This allows for complete silence below 60° C which covers low load situations like web browsing, media playback, and basic computing functions. Once the card hits 60° C the fans spin up and do their thing keeping the 950 Gaming 2G quiet and cool.
A lot of AIB’s cards take the AMD/NVIDIA reference design and improve upon it. MSI has done so here with the GTX 950 Gaming 2G. They use their Military Class 4 components, which consist of Hi-C Caps (small footprint and more efficient), Super Ferrite Chokes (lower temps, higher current capacity, and improvements in power efficiency), and solid caps with a 10-year lifespan (provides lower ESR) making this card a more robust solution than the reference design.
Lastly, MSI offers a small footprint application named MSI Gaming App that allows you to overclock with the touch of a button, or run silent with that same button. If your MSI card happens to have an LED on it, the MSI Gaming App can also control it. Overall I like the simplicity of it for quick one touch overclocking to squeeze out a little more performance from your MSI-based card.
TWIN FROZR V – COOLER, QUIETER, BETTER GAMINGWith every new generation of GPUs comes more performance. With every new generation of MSI Twin Frozr, we give you less noise and heat! We’ve listened to all your requests and the new Twin Frozr V is smaller, features stronger fans, generates less noise, keeps your graphics card and its components cooler and matches perfectly with your MSI GAMING motherboard including some funky LED lighting. We’ve spent 18 months on the development of the Twin Frozr V, including field testing in gaming cafés to ensure the cards have the quality and stability to give you the FPS you need! |
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TORX FanTraditional Fan Blade Maximizes downwards airflow and air dispersion to the massive heat sink below them. Dispersion Fan Blade Intake more airflow to maximize air dissipation to heat sink. |
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AIRFLOW CONTROLEnhanced dissipation efficiency |
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ZERO FROZRSmart cooling, stay quiet. |
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MILITARY CLASS COMPONENTSOne of the deciding factors in performance is the quality of the components used. That is why MSI only uses MIL-STD-810G certified components for its Gaming cards because only these components have proven to be able to withstand the torturous circumstances of extreme gaming and overclocking. HI-C CAP SUPER FERRITE CHOKES SOLID CAP |
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GAMING APPThe MSI Gaming App allows for one-click performance profiles that unlock extra performance for gaming or keep your card silent during light use. It also features the EyeRest tab, giving you easy access to image quality improving technology. The LED control tab gives you full control over your MSI GAMING LED lights to set the mood. OC Mode Gaming Mode (Default) Silent Mode |
GPU-Z
Below is our gratuitous screenshot of GPU-Z to confirm what the card is made of. We see its 32 ROPs, 64 TMUs, with a Pixel fillrate of 35.3 GPixel/s and Texture Fillrate of 70.5 GTexel/s. The memory IC is Samsung according to GPU-Z (and my pictures below). The 2048 MB total memory is on that same 128-bit bus. GPU core clocks come in at 1102 (1279 boost) and 1653 MHz on the GDDR5 memory.
GPUz v8.5
Photo Op – Meet the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G
Retail Packaging and Accessories
Below you will find a slideshow that covers the retail packaging and the included accessories. Being in the MSI Gaming line, we are pretty familiar, intimate even, with the black and red theme this grouping of hardware covers. The really cool looking red MSI dragon makes itself known on the left hand side of the front. Meanwhile, the card name and some high-level features are listed on the right side. Flipping the box around to the back side shows more features, specifications, and system requirements. There isn’t too much to see on the sides and bottom really – just some S/N information and details on the side, and many languages on the bottom!
When opening the retail packaging, there is a small box on top that contains the included accessories (DVI to VGA dongle, driver disk, and quick start/installation guide). Not a bounty of goods, but plenty to get up and running.
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The Card
Next up are some clickable hardware pictures for the nerd in all of us. We first notice that the card is full length – at least the Twin Frozr V cooler is (and betting the PCB is too!). Anyway, the TFV cooler sports the black Torx fans with the MSI dragon on one hub and the MSI name on the other, and again being from their gaming line, it continues with the black and red theme. When looking at the back of the card, we see the usual bits, sans memory ICs since it uses 2GB, and some blank area. It seems like this card is a prime candidate for some PCB shrinkage for ITX type builds, no?
MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G – Front |
Back |
With a Twist… |
One More Time |
A Closer Look
Time to zoom in a bit and look at a few particulars. We start with the required 6-pin PCIe power. The board uses 90W according to the specifications, so the 6-pin (75W) plus the power from the PCIe slot itself (75W) is plenty – including overclocking. One thing I like about the way the plug is oriented is that the clip from the power lead is on the PCB side, not the cooler side. That helps with getting it on and off.
6 pin PCIe Connector Required
We mentioned the outputs earlier, and here they are! It has 1x DL DVI-I, 3x DisplayPorts, and 1 HDMI. The card supports up to four displays at once.
Outputs
In taking off the TFV heatsink, you can clearly see the direct contact of the two copper heat pipes on the core, which is mounted to what appears to be an aluminum heatsink and fin array. It was easy to take the cooler off with only four screws. You will note a good application of TIM from the factory as well. In looking at the GTX 950 Gaming 2G without the heatsink, we see a fairly sparse board, particularly on the right hand side there. As I said, prime candidate for a smaller form factor here. From the second picture, we see some of the Military Class 4 parts as well as the memory ICs.
Bottom of the Heatsink |
Main Heatsink Removed |
Below is a shot of the GM206-250-A1 core, and one of the Samsung Memory ICs. They are rated to run at 7000 Mbps according to its spec sheet. Hopefully we see some solid overclocking out of these (as we tend to).
GM206-250-A1 Core |
Samsung DDR5 – K4G41325FC-HC28 |
Monitoring/Overclocking Software – MSI Afterburner
Below is MSI Afterburner version 4.1.1 using the Red Cyborg theme that I found. MSI AB monitors a slew of things on the GPU from temperatures to fan speeds, to memory usage. Other items not GPU related, such as CPU activity and system memory usage can also be monitored. You can also use it to overclock the GPU core and memory speeds as well as save profiles to make it easy to recall settings once you find a stable clock. Tried and true here folks, just a different skin I chose to display to keep you on your toes!
MSI Afterburner v4.1.1 – Red Cyborg Skin
Performance and Benchmarks
Test System
- Intel i7 6770K @ 4.2 GHz, 1.3 V
- Gigabyte Z170X Gaming 7
- GSKill RipJaws 4 2 x 4 GB 3000 MHz CL15-15-15-35-2T
- 240 GB OCZ Vertex 3 SSD
- Seasonic 1000 W PSU
- MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G @ 1102/1279 MHz (1366 MHz actual boost) core / 1653 MHz Memory, and Overclocked @ 1205/1382 MHz (1469 MHz actual boost) core / 1804 MHz Memory
- Windows 7 64 bit Operating System
- NVIDIA 355.65
Other cards used for comparison are as follows (links are to their reviews):
- ASUS GTX 960 Strix
- ASUS ROG Striker Platinum GTX 960
- HIS R9 280 IceQ X2
Benchmarking Method/Settings
Note all testing below uses 1920×1080 screen resolution (settings also carry over to 2560 x 1440 and Surround/Eyefinity testing if applicable).
- All Synthetic benchmarks were at their default settings. 3DMark 11 = Performance Level, 3DMark Fire Strike = Extreme default setting.
- Unigine Valley Benchmark v1.0 – 1080p, DX11, Ultra Quality, 8x AA, Full Screen
- Unigine Heaven (HWbot) – Extreme setting
- Crysis 3 – Very High settings with 8xMSAA/16xAF (2nd level when you procure and use the Crossbow to get across the level and kill the Helicopter)
- Metro:LL – DX11, Very High, 16xAF, Motion Blur – Normal, SSAA Enabled, DX11 Tessellation – Very High, Advanced PhysX – Disabled, Scene D6
- Battlefield 4 – Default Ultra setting (Tashgar level – ‘on rails’ car scene)
- Bioshock: Infinite – Ultra DX11, DDOF (through Steam – option # 2, then option #1 assuming your are at 1080p)
- Batman: Arkham Origin – 8xMSAA, Geometry Details/Dynamic Shadows/DOF/Ambient Occlusion: DX11 Advanced, Hardware PhysX: OFF, the rest On or High
- Grid 2 – 8xMSAA, Ultra defaults + Soft Ambient Occlusion: ON
- Final Fantasy XIV:ARR – Default Maximum setting
- Dirt: Rally – 1080p, 8x MSAA, everything on Ultra that can be, enable Advanced Blending
- Grand Theft Auto V – 1080p, high settings.
- Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor – 1080p, everything Ultra that can be (Lighting quality High), FXAA and Camera + Object Blur, DOF/OIT/Tessellation enabled.
- More detail is in our article: Overclockers.com GPU Testing Procedures
Synthetic Benchmarks
Please note that the results below are across different systems and drivers so the results are NOT directly comparable as apples to apples in these graphs. We appreciate your patience while we move to the new benchmarks and gather data sets.
First in our synthetic benchmarks is our soon to be retired 3DMark Vantage. Here the GTX 950 Gaming 2G scored 29,584. This puts it behind the more expensive and faster cards in the lineup. With some overclocking, it managed to fall just short of the highly overclocked GTX 960 Strix.
In 3DMark 11, it scored 9,202 actually matching another highly overclocked card in the ASUS GTX 760 ROG Striker Platinum.
3Dmark Vantage and 3DMark 11
Getting into benchmarks that are a bit more modern, we first look at 3DMark Fire Strike. In this benchmark, the MSI GTX 950 gaming 2G scored 6,010 falling a bit more than 12% behind the GTX 960 Strix and less than 2% behind the GTX 760 ROG, so a solid showing here, specifically against that 760.
In the tessellation heavy Unigine Heaven (extreme setting), it scored 1,671.2, and being around 10%-15% behind the ‘faster’ cards as we would expect.
3Dmark Fire Strike and Unigine Heaven
Gaming Benchmarks
Moving on to games, in Bioshock: Infinite the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G managed to reach 67.2 FPS at the settings we use, which are pretty high. This puts it a mere 1.5 FPS behind the GTX 760, and about 1 FPS ahead of the overclocked HIS R9 280.
Moving on the Batman: Arkham Origins, the 950 pulled out 56 FPS and was beat out across the board by the rest of the cards. The FPS were still plenty playable here though so no worries there.
The last game on this graph is Grid 2. Again we see FPS above 60 reaching an average of 69.6. This result had it less than 2 FPS behind the GTX 760, but well behind the GTX 960 and R9 280.
Bioshock: Infinite, Batman: Arkham Origins, and Grid 2
Moving on to our GPU crushers, Crysis 3 is first and the GTX 950 chugged along at 21.7 FPS. This was only 1 FPS or so behind the rest, and not really playable at our Ultra settings. Some things will need to be turned down to reach that 30+ FPS magical number for smooth game play.
In Metro: Last Light, we see the GTX 950 Gaming 2G almost hitting that 30 FPS value coming in at 27.7 FPS (overclocked it hit 30 FPS!). This was slightly behind the rest of the cards in the lineup who were also right below or right above the 30 FPS line.
Finally, my game, Battlefield 4, the GTX 950 reaches a very playable 45.3 FPS in this title.
The real GPU killers aside, for a 1080p budget range card, we are seeing some really solid performance on a lot of big titles.
Crysis 3, Metro: Last Light, and Battlefield 4
In the Final Fantasy XIV: A Real Reborn benchmark rendered a total of 9,948 frames.
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
New Gaming Benchmarks
It has been a while since we have updated our GPU benching suite and with the change in platform to Skylake, we decided it was time to remove some old and bring in some fresh ones! With that, we have dropped 3DMark Vantage. It was a good run for it, but with modern high-end cards, it is really CPU limited and is not showing a lot of difference between them because of this. We replaced Vantage with Unigine Valley. We also decided to switch which 3DMark Fire Strike test we run, and upped that to the Extreme setting which should be more GPU heavy than the regular version we ran.
As far as games go, we chose to remove those that really do not stress out the GPU too much so Bioshock: Infinite, Grid 2, and Batman: Arkham Origins are being retired. Their replacements are going to be Dirt: Rally, Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, and Grand Theft Auto V.
I am currently in the process of re-running a few GPUs I have against the new platform and games. So for now, I put the results in a simple table below until we have other cards to compare against.
Benchmark | Stock | O/C |
Unigine Valley | 32.0 | 34.8 |
3DMark Fire Strike (Extm) | 3,009 | 3,202 |
Dirt: Rally | 18.11 | 19.59 |
Grand Theft Auto V | 40.32 | 43.37 |
ME: Shadow of Mordor | 33.12 | 35.77 |
Pushing the Limits
For the pushing the limits section I used 3DMark Fire Strike Extreme. We didn’t have any voltage control with MSI AB, so we had to settle on what it could do with the stock voltage. And in the end, it wasn’t bad at all. The core managed to hit 1290 MHz (1555 MHz actual boost) throughout the test, while I was able to get the memory to 1853 MHz. I may have been able to squeak out a little more on the memory, but the core was tapped out for sure as scores would drop due to instability (even though the bench would finish) and it was causing artifacts. It did not hit the power limit in this testing as I would have guessed since we are unable to adjust voltage at this time.
PTL
Cooling and Power Consumption
Temperatures were VERY well in control with the TFV cooler and incredibly quiet too. Idle temperatures were 32° C in a 22° C ambient room, and of course the Zero Fan feature was in full effect and the fans were stopped, making the card dead silent. After looping Heaven for 15 minutes, the card peaked at 64° C… BARELY above the 60° C no fan threshold. The fan ran at 37%, so even then it was whisper quiet. I couldn’t hear them over the three Yate Loons I have on the radiator running at less than 1K RPM. Impressive!
Temperatures
For power consumption, MSI states this is a 90W card. Total system consumption (peak) hit 201W at the wall. A quality 350W power supply would easily run this card and an overclocked Intel CPU, no doubt about it.
Power Consumption
Conclusion
The addition of the GTX 950 to NVIDIA’s product stack really fills out that budget/mid-range gap they had between the ‘old’ GTX 750 Ti ($119) and the GTX 960 ($199). The GTX 750 Ti performance was significantly lower while the GTX 960 was higher overall, but perhaps not enough to justify its price (that is up to you to decide).
MSI then stepped in and put its own twist on the reference design with its Military Class 4 components and the Twin Frozr V cooler to keep things cool and quiet. In the end, we have a solid performing card at 1080p and lower. While it won’t max out AAA titles in some cases, the performance is fitting for its price (MSRP of $159.99) among new cards.
MSI’s price for the card is $169. 99 at newegg.com, or $159.99 after MIR. A $10 premium for more robust parts and a better cooler is worth it to me, and performance is where I feel it should be for the price. Looking at its competition by price, in particular the R9 270x/270 and where they land performance and price wise (the GTX 950 Gaming 2G beats those two cards and is priced the same or less), we have a winner in that $150-$160 price bracket.
What does this mean? Click to Find Out!
– Joe Shields (Earthdog)
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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 Video Card Roundup — ASUS, EVGA and Zotac — Page 7 of 8
By Nathan Kirsch •
Overclocked GeForce GTX 950 Performance, Noise, Heat and Power
When it comes to overclocking performance we used EVGA Precision X 16 to overclock the three NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 cards by ASUS, EVGA and Zotac. We did not increase the voltage on the cards and left that alone. We did increase the power target to 128% on each card and then overclocked the core and memory as far as we could on each model before becoming unstable when gaming.
GPU base clock (MHz) |
GPU boost clock (MHz) |
Memory speed (MHz) |
Gaming GPU clock (MHz) |
GPU clock offset (MHz) |
Memory clock offset (MHz) |
|
ASUS GeForce GTX 950 STRIX 2GB | 1285 | 1475 | 8112 | 1537.7 | +120 | +750 |
EVGA GeForce GTX 950 FTW 2GB | 1293 | 1495 | 7812 | 1544. 9 | +90 | +600 |
Zotac GeForce GTX 950 AMP! 2GB | 1303 | 1505 | 8420 | 1542.5 | +100 | +700 |
All of the cards turned out to be great overclockers and surprisingly the peak core clock was basically the on all three cards as there was just 7 MHz difference between them. The ‘best’ overclocker in terms of getting the highest clock offset was the ASUS GeForce GTX 950 STRIX 2GB, but keep in mind that it was the slowest clocked card to begin with. We averaged 1542 MHz on the three cards for the peak boost clock when gaming! We saw the greatest difference with regards to overclocking on the 2GB of GDDR5 memory as there was a 600 MHz difference between the fastest and slowest clocked cards of the group. We were shocked by this as all three cards are using identical GDDR5 memory chips by Samsung with the model number K4G41325FC-HC28. These memory chips are rated at 0.28ns (7000MBps) with 1.5V of power, so it appears that some of the companies might be binning them tighter than others or it was just random luck.
ASUS GeForce GTX 950 STRIX 2GB Idle and Load:
EVGA GeForce GTX 950 FTW 2GB Idle and Load:
Zotac GeForce GTX 950 AMP! Edition 2GB Idle and Load:
Battlefield 4
When it comes to overclocking performance the performance gaps between the cards are wider than stock with the Zotac GeForce GTX 950 Amp! still in the lead, but the ASUS GeForce GTX 950 STRIX is less than 1 FPS behind and the EVGA GeForce GTX 950 FTW is just shy of 2 FPS behind. By overclocking each of the cards we were able to get about a 11-16% performance boost from the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 cards!
On synthetic benchmarks like 3DMark Fire Strike the GPU test score showed some nice gains were to be had from overclocking.
Even though we didn’t increase the core voltage the GTX950 cards used about 10-19 Watts more power, so that overclock will increase the peak power consumption by 4 to 8 percent.
Stock Gaming Temp (C) |
OC Gaming Temp (C) |
Stock Fan Noise (dB) |
OC Fan Noise (dB) |
Stock Fan Noise (RPM) |
OC Fan Noise (RPM) |
|
ASUS GeForce GTX 950 STRIX 2GB | 68 | 71 | 39.5 | 40.0 | 1266 | 1288 |
EVGA GeForce GTX 950 FTW 2GB | 71 | 73 | 39. 1 | 39.3 | 833 | 902 |
Zotac GeForce GTX 950 AMP! 2GB | 68 | 70 | 45.2 | 47.3 | 1692 | 1865 |
When overclocking the temperature went up by 2-3C on each card and the noise levels also increase ever so slightly. The EVGA GeForce GTX 950 FTW 2GB video card had the highest temperature, but was the quietest card of the group of three GTX 950 cards. The Zotac GeForce GTX 950 AMP! Edition card was the coolest of the card when overclocked, but the fans are running faster than the others and it makes more noise to get the better GPU temperatures.
Questions or comments?
View this thread in our forums!
EVGA GTX 950 SSC ACX 2.0, GTX 950 goes Super SuperClocked! — Page 3 of 8
Mark Taliaferro
November 15, 2015
Hardware, NVIDIA, Reviews & Articles, Video Cards/Graphics Cards
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Let’s Talk Overclocking
Overclocking changed when Maxwell GPUs hit the market. Let’s talk overclocking and the differences between pre-Maxwell and now.
With previous generations of GPUs before Maxwell, OCing was pretty simple. Pour voltage and cooling on the core and up the clock until a program like Riva Tuner reported artifacts. Then you backed down the OC until the artifacts went away, tried decreasing voltage a little, kept an eye on thermals and if thermals weren’t a problem and no artifacts showed up, you had a good OC.
Maxwell changed the OCing scene for GPUs with its Power Target Control, and now excess power can hinder your overclock, so there’s a little added complexity. GPUs have pre-set frequencies; clocks that are set by NVIDIA and/or the manufacturer. Those clocks tick away just like the hands on a normal clock at predictable and precise ticks.
Generally, clock cycles are measured in Hz. Hertz can be described as cycles per second. So a monitor with a refresh rate of 120Hz refreshes 120 times a second. GPUs operate faster, and a GPU that has a stock clock of 1700MHz polls at 1. 7 billion times a second. One MHz being 1 million Hertz makes sense. Overclocking a GPU specifically means increasing the stock core clock to above the factory preset, often requiring and increased voltage to gain stability. To keep stability, the GPU needs a stable core and has to meet TDP or Thermal Design Power.
Nvidia and AMD both perform tests on their GPUs, and they call those tests “binning”. Manufacturers test cores to find a good, high operating frequency that provides a balance between longevity and speed, opting towards the longevity side. With overclocking, we opt to move to the speed side of the equation and accept the fact that we are decreasing the lifespan of the core of the GPU by exceeding factory clocks and voltages. In general, a little OCing for tests or benchmarking runs, followed by dropping back to factory speeds, isn’t going to reduce the longevity of a GPU much. The continued use of an overclocked GPU, or any other device, will decrease its lifespan.
Why does my GPU crap out at certain high overclocks?
There are varying schools of what constitutes instability, but in the benchmarking and hardware review world there’s only one definition. If you find a single artifact during post overclock testing it’s an unstable overclock. What causes these artifacts? As you increase the speed of the core, you also have to increase core voltage. You will quickly find that adding more voltage does no good, and the core will go unstable anyway. At the point where a voltage increase is no longer effective, and or you get artifacts, you have exceeded the speed at which the core can operate in a normal manner.
Now you’re not just increasing voltage directly to the core like attaching a couple of wires to a battery. The power comes out of your PC’s power supply, then it goes to the GPU’s VRM, or voltage regulator module. The VRM is a composite beast. Each VRM is composed of a cooling system, fans, heatsinks, capacitors, chokes and MOSFETs, and the end design is to clean the incoming power to a flat level voltage that changes as little as possible.
You will see both motherboard and GPU manufacturers talking about high quality VRMs. Low quality VRMs can’t accept much more voltage than stock without contaminating the voltage to your GPU/CPU, and as soon as that happens the core goes unstable. High quality VRMs can withstand a little excess voltage, giving us OCing headroom. That higher quality VRM setup can only tolerate so much additional voltage, and exceeding that will pollute the voltage and again, the core craps out. In some cases, even if the VRMs hold up, you will exceed the operating limits of the core, and yet again the GPU craps out.
How Maxwell changes the OC’ing game.
You may have guessed by this point that manufacturers can limit the OC on a GPU by choosing VRMs that will only allow so much headroom before polluting the voltage. They can also design a cooling solution that will trigger a thermal limit and shutdown or throttle the GPU. Along comes Maxwell, and the VRMs and TDP still come into play, but a new layer of protection is added: Power Target Control. The TDP on the GTX 950 FTW is 125W and EVGA Precision allows an increase of 28% for this card, so the maximum TDP voltage is 160W. That’s the total pool of voltage the GPU can consume. Some card manufacturers will limit that to 110%, so do your GPU research if you intend to max the overclock.
Now the crux of the Maxwell overclocking: you start out overclocking much the same way as in days gone by. Increase the core clock without increasing the voltage, keeping in mind that GPU boost will ignore the OC and still boost the GPU. Once you reach a speed where artifacts appear, increase the Power Target Control (done in percentages), re-test for artifacts, then rinse and repeat. Voltage increases are only going to be so effective, and pouring on the voltage can increase the temperature and cause throttling. That’s what you need to monitor for: watch your performance and if increasing the voltage and core clock causes a decrease in performance, back your OC/voltage down. Why you ask? Because the card is throttling to protect the core and reduce temperatures.
In summary, Maxwell’s voltage isn’t as important and can hurt your OC. All you need to do is OC like normal, increase PTC and monitor for a performance decrease. Once you have that decrease, you know you just went past the OC wall. Kick in OC Scanner to keep a heads up on temps and performance, and in no time you will have a satisfying, geek-bragging OC.
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Tags ACX 2.0+ EVGA EVGA GTX 950 EVGA GTX 950 SSC EVGA GTX 950 SSC ACX 2.0 GTX 950 SSC
Previous Daily Roundup: 2015-11-14
Next Daily Roundup: 2015-11-15
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Valve is an interesting company that seems to try to be a lot of things at the same time. Games company, software hub/store and hardware company. Valve is all of these.
When it comes to hardware the company has had mixed success. I think many of us remember the Steam Machines. These compact computers running SteamOS, a Linux based OS, were supposed to make Windows PC’s obsolete for gaming. They didn’t succeed. Valve also released a specific controller, the Steam Controller, which also did not exactly set the world on fire.
In hindsight though both these products have paved the way for the product I am testing today, the Steam Deck, Valves attempt to compete with the Nintendo Switch in the handheld market.
Nvidia GTX 950 Review — IGN
IGN Review
By Josh Norem
Updated: Aug 17, 2021 12:00 am
Posted: Aug 20, 2015 1:00 pm
[Update 8/20/15 1:00pm PT: Added overclocking data from Asus’s included software.]Today Nvidia has launched its «sweet spot» GPU, the GTX 950. Aimed at budget gamers who want to play at 1080p, it uses a slightly neutered version of the GTX 960’s GM206 to bring down its asking price to $160. (Some aftermarket cards will go for more; the Asus card we tested is $170.)This of course means you won’t be able to play with your graphics settings as high on the GTX 960—but before you dismiss the 950, know that the Maxwell architecture in this particular GPU has been utilized to reduce latency. (That’s a first.) Nvidia’s also launching a suite of sharing and recording features that let you easily stream to Twitch, save gaming footage, edit clips and upload them to YouTube, and invite other players to watch or play your game. For budget gamers who lean more toward prioritizing cash over graphics, the 950 definitely delivers solid bang for your buck.
Meet the Asus Strix GTX 950
You can check out the GTX 950’s full specs in the table below, but in a nutshell, it’s a 2GB dual-slot card that sports 768 CUDA cores and comes clocked at 1,024MHz with a boost clock of 1,188 in its stock configuration. (The Asus card we tested is clocked a bit higher, though, with a base clock of 1,165MHz and a boost clock of 1,355MHz.) It’s also shorter than the GTX 960 by a few inches, has just one six-pin PCIe power connector, and features three DisplayPorts, one DVI output, and an HDMI 2.0 port. The 950 also supports SLI.
Nvidia has tweaked the rendering pipeline in this particular GPU to reduce latency. The company says it made the optimizations in response to requests from professional MOBA players; as an example of the improvements, it showed a demo where the measurable latency of a mouse-click in DOTA 2 was decreased from 80ms on the GTX 650 to 45ms on the GTX 950.
Nvidia optimized its rendering pipeline with MOBA players in mind.
The Benchmarks
To test the Asus Strix GTX 950, we slotted it into our GPU testing rig that features an Asus Z97 motherboard, Intel Core i7-4790K CPU, and 16GB of Corsair memory. We compared the GTX 950 with the one card above it in the product stack, the $200 GTX 960, as well as the $120 GTX 750 Ti, the GTX 650 (no longer for sale), and the $150 Radeon R7 370.
Nvidia GTX 650 | Nvidia GTX 750 Ti | Asus Strix GTX 950 | Nvidia GTX 960 | Radeon R7 370 | |
Driver | 355. 65 | 355.65 | 355.65 | 355.65 | 15.7.1 |
3DMark | 2139 | 4,573 | 6,050 | 6,882 | 4,179 |
Heaven 4.0 (fps) | 13.5 | 28.4 | 35.5 | 40.2 | 21.7 |
Batman: Arkham Origins (fps) | 31 | 50 | 62 | 73 | 42 |
Hitman: Absolution (fps) | 16.39 | 28.84 | 36.05 | 38.6 | 28.84 |
Metro: Last Light (fps) | 9 | 19. 67 | 26.33 | 31 | 12.33 |
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (fps) | 12.8 | 31.72 | 40.84 | 46.39 | 31.74 |
Tomb Raider (fps) | 4 | 19 | 26.8 | 31.8 | 18 |
All tests run at 1920x1080p resolution with Ultra settings and 4XAA enabled.
When examining our benchmark chart, keep in mind we enabled 4XAA. As a result, the 950 only hit 60fps once in our benchmarks, but it still was over 30fps in most; disabling AA would easily allow the card to make any game playable at Ultra settings in 1080p. That’s pretty awesome for $160 (our Asus Strix GTX 950 is an overclocked $170 model, but we don’t anticipate too much variance between it and the stock version), particularly since it beat the similarly priced AMD Radeon R7 370. The 950 is even a decent upgrade over the Maxwell-based GTX 750 Ti, and it simply destroys the much older GTX 650 in every benchmark.
Overclocking
Our final overclock using Asus’s software was just shy of 1.5GHz.
Like previous Maxwell GPUs we’ve tested, we found that the GTX 950 overclocks nicely. Even though the Asus Strix comes clocked higher than the stock card, it’s still noteworthy that it ran at 1,441MHz right out of the box without us having to do anything. We were then able to nudge it up even higher—we got our 950 to 1,483MHz using Asus’s included software and 1,518MHz using EVGA’s software before experiencing issues. At those clock speeds, the card never got hotter than 70°C, which is noteworthy since the higher overclock was done during a heatwave where our testing environment (a.k.a. apartment) was 90°F.
Bonus Features
The 950’s release also marks the launch of new sharing options in Nvidia’s GeForce Experience software. There’s a new in-game overlay that you can toggle on-and-off that offers four tabs: Instant Replay, Record, Broadcast, and Stream. Some of these features used to be available through ShadowPlay, but they’ve now been rolled into this one section of GeForce Experience.
- Instant Replay: An always-on DVR for your games that will automatically record the last 20 minutes of whatever you are playing.
- Record: This will let you manually stop and start recording your gameplay.
- Broadcast: This lets you stream your gameplay to Twitch with just one click.
- Stream: This is all-new, and lets you invite a friend to watch your game or play a game for you via a PC-to-PC link. If it’s a co-op game, they can also easily also join you as a second player (even if the game only supports local co-op). Voice chat is built into this feature, eliminating the need for another service to talk with your friend.
The onscreen overlay is easily toggled on-and-off with a key combination.
Unfortunately, we weren’t able to test Share during our review of the 950, as it wasn’t yet ready. Nvidia says it should be available in the next few weeks as a public beta. We did see a press demo of it though, and it looked mighty slick, especially the co-op functions. You just click “invite” and your buddy gets the notice immediately in his or her email client. Joining the game is also a one-click affair. (If you’re familiar with the PlayStation 4’s Share Play feature, this is pretty much the same, including the 60-minute time limit per session. You don’t need to subscribe to any additional services, though.) You can also record clips and send them to YouTube, and the best part is you can edit them in the Share interface, trimming their size just by moving sliders for “start” and “stop.” It’s really cool, and gamers should dig it.
GameStream Co-OpSystem Requirements |
|
Host PC | |
GPU | GeForce GTX 650 or higher graphics card
(Desktop only, notebook support coming soon) |
GPU Driver | 355. 60 or higher |
CPU | Intel i3-2100 3.1GHz or higher |
System Memory | 4 GB or higher |
OS | Windows 7, 8 or 10 |
Router | Minimum: 802.11 a/g router Recommended: 802.11n 5GHz router or Ethernet |
Network | Recommended upstream bandwidth: 7Mbps |
Games | DirectX 9 or higher games running in fullscreen mode |
Guest PC | |
GPU | No minimum requirement |
CPU | Intel i3-2100 3.1GHz or higher |
System Memory | 4 GB or higher |
Software | Chrome 44 |
OS | Windows 7, 8 or 10 |
Router | Minimum: 802. 11 a/g router Recommended: 802.11n 5GHz router or Ethernet |
Network | Recommended downstream bandwidth: 7Mbps |
Overall, the Asus Strix GTX 950 is a solid GPU and one of the fastest mid-range cards we’ve tested. It’s cool, quiet, and overclocks like crazy—and when you throw in GeForce Experience’s new sharing features you have a pretty sweet total package for gamers on a budget. For now, this is the card to get at the $150-ish price point, but rumor has it that AMD will respond to this aggression. However, a faster card from Team Red won’t be enough, as the battle has now officially moved to two fronts—hardware and software. AMD will need the total package to dislodge Nvidia from this market segment.
Nvidia GTX 950 Review
amazing
Nvidia’s new mid-range GTX 950 video card cranks up the pressure on AMD.
Josh Norem
90,000 acceleration, characteristics of the program and configuration — ABC Import
Content of the article:
- Empitations
- Accelerator Parameters
- Positioning
- Procedure for increasing the speed of
- Real indicators
- Owner reviews
- Conclusion
As part of this review, overclocking the GTX 9 will be described in stages50. This video card belongs to a series of entry-level devices. It provided at the time of release a sufficient level of performance for the implementation of most tasks. Not so much time has passed since its start of sales, and this accelerator continues to be relevant. Its main technical specifications will also be given and a program for overclocking it will be considered.
Equipment
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Before we describe the GTX 950 overclocking process, let’s look at a typical shipping list for such a device. The accelerator package included the following main components:
To operate a graphics subsystem based on such a video card in the nominal mode, the above list is sufficient. If you plan to increase performance by increasing the clock frequency and voltage, then you need to download and install a special program for these purposes. In some cases, you may also need a utility to update the accelerator BIOS system.
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Particular requirements are placed on the components of a personal computer. First of all, the motherboard must be in ATX format and be based on solid capacitors.
Another important point is the capacity of the power supply. If 400 W is enough before increasing the speed of work, then after performing such an operation, the total power consumption of the PC can reach 500-550 W. Therefore, the power of the power supply in this case must be appropriate.
It will also be useful to install additional fans on the case of the system unit. After overclocking the graphics adapter, the heat dissipation of the computer increases significantly. Therefore, additional cooling elements in this case will certainly not be superfluous.
Accelerator parameters
Also, before overclocking from MSI GTX 950 or any other manufacturer, let’s determine its technical characteristics in the nominal mode. It is based on them that it is necessary to increase the speed of the graphics subsystem of a personal computer.
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The main parameters of the described series of devices are as follows:
Positioning
Initially, this accelerator model belongs to entry-level devices. Their performance is significantly higher than integrated video cards, but significantly lower than mid-range accelerators. And overclocking the GTX 950 does not allow it to significantly close the gap with more productive devices. Therefore, in any case, it will refer to entry-level discrete adapters.
Program
It is recommended to overclock ASUS GTX 950 or any other device using the AFTERBURNER program from MSI. This is a universal utility that can be used to increase the performance of both NVidia and AMD devices.
There are three main controls in its interface. One of them controls the processor frequency. The second regulator is designed to adjust the voltage on it. The third sets the memory frequency. It is by changing these three parameters that the speed of the PC graphics subsystem is increased.
There is also a separate button for checking the stability of the accelerator — Stress Test. After pressing it, a comprehensive check of the adapter is carried out, then, based on its results, a verdict is issued regarding the correct and reliable operation of the video card.
Procedure for increasing the speed of work
Overclocking NVidia GeForce GTX 950 consists of the following main steps:
Actually, this completes the overclocking operation.
Real performance after speed increase
GTX 9 overclocked in tests50 allows you to increase the clock frequency of the chip from 1024-1188 MHz to 1230-1280 MHz. That is, the increase is not so big. In this case, the voltage automatically rises to the maximum possible 1.3 V. Also, the memory subsystem operates at the limit of its capabilities. Its frequency in this mode is 7000-7200 MHz.
Implementation feasibility
Now let’s see if it makes sense to overclock the NVidia GTX 950. As noted earlier, this does not allow to achieve a cardinal speed increase. That is, reducing the difference of 30-40 percent from mid-range devices in this way will certainly not work. At the same time, the load on the components of a personal computer increases significantly. The same fully applies to the heat dissipation of the computing system.
In the best of circumstances, the 10% gap can only be reduced. In most cases, we are talking about 5-7%. If the lack of performance falls within this range, then you can try to compensate for it. In all other cases, it does not make sense to make an additional load on the main elements of the PC.
Owner reviews
In most cases, overclocking the GeForce GTX 950 is impractical. It does not allow to radically solve the problem with the lack of speed of work. This increases the power consumption and the load on the main components of the personal computer. That is, the degree of their wear increases, and because of this, the PC system unit can break down much faster. Therefore, resorting to this operation is necessary only as a last resort.
And experts advise updating the graphics accelerator model if there is a lack of performance. At the same time, sell a rather old video card, report a small amount and buy a device of the middle price range of the last replenishment. This will make it much easier and more reliable to solve the problem with insufficient adapter speed.
Conclusion
This review described the GTX 950 overclocking algorithm. It’s not that easy to increase the speed of the graphics subsystem based on such an adapter. Initially, it belonged to a series of budget devices by the manufacturer. Therefore, an impressive increase in performance in this case certainly cannot be achieved.
Experience shows that in the best case, the increase in speed will be 10 percent. According to the test results, this increases the rate by 5-10 frames per second in the most resource-intensive applications and games. That is, to achieve a significant improvement in the quality of the output image certainly will not work.
The only case where such an operation is justified is if there is a slight lack of performance. For example, you need at least 60-65 frames per second, and the adapter outputs 55-57. If you increase the frequency of the processor and RAM along with the voltage, then the missing difference can be compensated and it is quite comfortable to play after that. In all other cases, such an operation does not make much sense.
Source
MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G Review
The modern graphics adapter market is constantly evolving. Manufacturers try every year to present solutions that confidently push previous models out of the market and give gamers a new level of performance. The GeForce GTX 950 was conceived as the successor to the famous GeForce GTX 650. The new product boasts a threefold increase in performance, twice the amount of video memory, support for DirectX 12 and improved power consumption.
one.
Features MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G
1.1. Specifications
1.2. Packing and complete set
1.3. Design and construction
1.4. Test bench configuration
1.5. Overclocking and testing
1.6. Comparison with GTX 750, 750 Ti and 960
1.7.
conclusions
1.7.1. Benefits:
1.7.2. Disadvantages:
1.8. Prices in online stores
In the segment of NVIDIA video cards, there was a noticeable gap in the Maxwell generation for a long time, namely between the GTX 750 line (first generation) and GTX 960 (second generation). The difference between the overclocked GTX 750 Ti and the regular GTX 960 was about an order of magnitude, both in terms of performance and cost. Despite the fact that these models are excellent solutions for the money and have no headroom for the coming years, NVIDIA wisely decided to fill the gap with such an intermediate, balanced solution, which became the GeForce GTX 950. The MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G graphics card received enhanced power circuits and efficient air cooling of the TwinFrozr series.
Specifications
Model name | MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G |
Graphics chip | GM206 |
Process | 28 nm |
Number of stream processors | 768 pieces |
Number of texture units and render units | 48 / 32 |
Core Clock / Boost | 1127 / 1317 MHz |
Video memory size | 2 GB |
Memory bus | 128 |
Memory type | GDDR5 |
Memory frequency | 6650 MHz |
Video outputs | DVI, HDMI, 3 x DisplayPort |
Declared power level | 90W |
Power supply | 6-pin |
Size | 270x137x37 mm |
Compared to the older MSI GTX 960 Gaming 2G, some parameters of the new product have changed, but not very significantly. So, the number of stream processors has decreased from 1024 to 768, the number of texture units — from 64 to 48. The operating frequencies of the core and the memory frequency have changed slightly. The latter decreased by 360 MHz — from 7010 to 6650 MHz. On the other hand, the energy appetites of the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G have become more modest. The declared power level “lost weight” from 120 to 90 W, and additional power is now supplied via a six-pin connector.
Packaging and Contents
MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G comes in a neat box with manufacturer’s logo. The back side contains service information, and also illustrates the key technologies that MSI has applied in its solution. First of all, open the cardboard folder and find:
- documentation package
- CD with software and driver
- DVI to VGA 9 adapter0008
As you can see, everything you need is available. Under the folder, the video card itself is very securely packed, which is in the arms of a soft material designed to protect it during transportation.
Design and construction
MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G’s illuminated logo will delight fans of translucent cases or open stands. For complete happiness, perhaps only blood-red illumination around the perimeter is missing, although without it the card becomes a real decoration of any system. We dreamed and that’s enough — let’s leave the backlight as a wish for the future and move on to more practical aspects.
A video card 27 centimeters long takes up 2 slots and should easily fit into classic cases, although exceptions are possible here. In some older cases, in particular those made by ASUS, HDDs installed in the upper bays can interfere. Feel free to take measurements before buying.
MSI’s line of Gaming accelerators is always equipped with TwinFrozr cooling systems, in our case, the latest, fifth generation. The radiator is made of a large number of nickel-plated plates and covers the entire length of the board. Not without the usual heat pipes that help distribute heat across the peripheral plates. There are a couple of them here, the diameter of both is 6 mm. All this is blown by two 100-mm fans with a unique shape of Torx blades.
The MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G cooler is almost silent, especially in a spacious case. Moreover, as long as you are not playing games and the temperature of the card does not rise above the bar of 60 degrees, the cooling fans do not work at all.
The interface panel has a full set of connectors for every taste:
- 1xDVI (Dual-Link/HDMI)
- 1×HDMI 2.0
- 3×DisplayPort 1.2
Test bench configuration
- Intel Core i7-6700K processor (4 cores, 4.0-4.2 GHz)
- CPU cooler be quiet! Shadow Rock Slim (up to 160W)
- MSI Z170A Gaming M3 motherboard (Intel 1151)
- 2×4 GB HyperX Fury RAM (DDR4, 2400 MHz)
- MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G graphics card (2 GB)
- WD Red hard drive (4 TB, 7200 rpm)
- HyperX Savage SSD (240GB)
- be quiet! Pure Power L8 630W CM (630W, 80PLUS Bronze)
Overclocking and testing
After installing the video card, you need to connect power to it via the 6-pin connector.
The manufacturer recommends using power supplies from 350 W. In case your PSU is rather old, most likely you will not have a separate cable to power the video card. In this case, an adapter from two Molex to 6pin comes to the rescue. For the sake of interest, we connected the card to a 300 W power supply via an adapter and the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G worked quietly even after overclocking. The video card’s modest energy appetites are its definite plus.
Drivers and software must be installed before operation. Everything can be found on the included disc or downloaded from the MSI website. So, the gentleman’s set will look like this:
- NVIDIA video driver version 358.87 (the latest at the time of writing)
- NVIDIA GeForce Experience
- MSI Gaming App
- MSI Afterburner
The driver is required for the correct operation of all functions of the video card and its fine tuning. NVIDIA GeForce Experience is a software package that allows you to optimize gaming performance, record video of the game process and control the backlight of the video card. As for the latter, you can choose one of several backlight presets and adjust its brightness, and if you use a closed case, turn it off completely to save energy.
MSI Gaming App is a useful utility that allows you to select one of three profiles for the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G.
- Silent (1190 MHz / 1026 MHz / 6610 MHz)
- Gaming (1279 MHz / 1102 MHz / 6610 MHz)
- Overclocking mode (1317 MHz / 1127 MHz / 6650 MHz)
Thus, we smoothly transition from silent operation at base frequencies in silent mode to maximum factory overclocking, followed by activation of the cooling system in overclocking mode. MSI Gaming App allows you to closely monitor game fps, GPU core temperature, and temporarily activate the cooling system at full power to quickly blow the graphics card. Also, taking care of your eyesight, you can choose warmer white profiles in the application.
MSI Afterburner is not a required installation software, but makes sense for enthusiasts and those who want to get the most out of the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G. With this program, you can manage the overclocking parameters of the video card, power supply and the operation of the cooling system. I would like to note right away that if you are not confident in your abilities, in no case do not increase the voltage and do not use the “Apply overclocking at system startup” item.
Our MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G managed to overclock to a frequency of 1287/1477 MHz for the core and 7016 MHz for memory without increasing the supply voltage. The increase in clock frequency compared to the nominal amounted to 160 MHz (12%) for the core and 366 MHz (5.5%) for the memory. A good result, given the already existing factory overclocking. Also, do not forget about the potential of the card — if you increase the voltage, you can squeeze much more out of it. But let’s see what the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G can do in a safe environment.
Video card tested in Unigine Valley graphics benchmark (Extreme HD mode) and games with built-in benchmarks Tomb Raider (graphic settings «Excellent»), Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor («High»), Total War: Rome II (» Ultra») and Sniper Elite 3 («Ultra») at a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels.
Game or benchmark / graphics settings | Rated frequencies | Acceleration | Growth, % |
Unigine Valley, Extreme HD | 32 | 37 | 16 |
Tomb Raider, Excellent | 79 | 88 | 11 |
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, High | 63 | 69 | 10 |
Total War: Rome II, Ultra | 57 | 67 | 18 |
Sniper Elite 3, Ultra | 82 | 91 | 11 |
Testing showed that all benchmarks and games received a decent increase in frame rate, sometimes exceeding the overclocking level. In games, the increase in frames was from 6 to 10 FPS. Of course, after overcoming the mark of 60 frames, such an increase will be slightly noticeable to the eye, but the result itself is good. The most notable improvements were demonstrated by the Unigine Valley benchmark and Total War: Rome II.
It is worth noting the excellent performance of the cooling system. The coolers started working after the card passed the temperature threshold of 60°C. True, I found out about this only from the graphs on the screen, no additional noise was heard even in an open case. At the same time, the fan speed was about 750-850 rpm, and the temperature did not rise above 65-67 ° C even after long gaming battles.
Compared to GTX 750, 750 Ti and 960
It’s time to see how the MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G compares to its closest relatives. The following video cards were used for testing:
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 (1 GB)
- MSI GTX 750 Ti Gaming
- MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G
- MSI GTX 960 Gaming 2G
We measured in the same games and benchmarks and got very unexpected results, which can be found in the following table.
Game or benchmark / graphics settings | GTX 750 | GTX 750 Ti | GTX 950 (Rated) | GTX 950 (Overclocking) | GTX 960 (Rated) | GTX 960 (Overclocking) |
Unigine Valley, Extreme HD | 17 | 22 | 32 | 37 | 35 | 39 |
Tomb Raider, Excellent | 49 | 57 | 79 | 88 | 90 | 99 |
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, High | 38 | 46 | 63 | 69 | 70 | 77 |
Total War: Rome II, Ultra | 36 | 41 | 57 | 67 | 65 | 72 |
Sniper Elite 3, Ultra | 49 | 59 | 82 | 91 | 91 | 101 |
As you can see, MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G turned out to be on average 42% more productive than the previous generation — the overclocked GTX 750 Ti, but at the same time, on average, 11% weaker than the adult GTX 960.
But how dramatically the situation changes after overclocking our test subject — MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G not only catches up, but also slightly surpasses the older model operating at base frequencies. True, here it is worth considering that measurements of 9We played the 60th model about half a year ago and with new drivers this card could score a little more points in the tests.
Conclusions
The MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G definitely tops the sub-$200 price range. This video card fits perfectly into the modern realities of our market, being the most balanced solution for your money, allowing you to enjoy all modern games without denying yourself graphics settings at FullHD resolution. MSI GTX 9The 50 Gaming 2G has excellent overclocking potential, a very quiet and efficient cooling system, and modest power requirements. At the same time, the capabilities of this video card are very close to the older and more expensive GTX 960.
Advantages:
Faults:
- significant none
Prices in online stores
It is possible to display similar models if this one is not in the catalog for your region.
[socialmart]
[freemarket model=»MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G»]
[ava model=»MSI GTX 950 Gaming 2G»]
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 Review. Benchmarks and specs
The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 graphics card (GPU) is position 188 in our performance ranking. Manufacturer: NVIDIA. Running NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 with a minimum clock speed of 1024 MHz. The graphics chip is equipped with an acceleration system and can operate in turbo mode or when overclocked at a frequency of 1188 MHz. The RAM size is 2 GB GB with a clock speed of 6.6 GB/s and a bandwidth of 105.6 GB/s.
The power consumption of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 is 90 Watt and the process technology is only 28 nm. Below you will find key compatibility, sizing, technology, and gaming performance test results. You can also leave comments if you have any questions.
Let’s take a closer look at the most important characteristics of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950. To get an idea of which video card is better, we recommend using the comparison service.
4.2
From 151
Hitesti Grade
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General information
A basic set of information will help you find out the release date of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 graphics card and its purpose (laptops or PCs), as well as the price at the time of release and the average current cost. This data also includes the architecture used by the manufacturer and the video processor code name.
Performance Rating Position: | 242 | |||
Value for money: | 13. 60 | |||
Architecture: | Maxwell | |||
Code name: | GM206 | |||
Type: | Desktop | |||
Release date: | 20 August 2015 (6 years ago) | |||
Starting price: | $159 | |||
Current price: | $181 (1.1x MSRP) | |||
Value for money: | 24.57 | |||
GPU Code Name: | GM206 | |||
Market segment: | Desktop |
Specifications
This is important information that determines all the power characteristics of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 video card. The smaller the chip manufacturing process, the better (in modern realities). The clock frequency of the core is responsible for its speed (direct correlation), while signal processing is carried out by transistors (the more transistors, the faster the calculations are performed, for example, in cryptocurrency mining).
Conveyors: | 768 | |||
Core Clock: | 1024MHz | |||
Acceleration: | 1188 MHz | |||
Number of transistors: | 2,940 million | |||
Process: | 28 nm | |||
Power consumption (TDP): | 90 Watt | |||
Number of texels processed in 1 second: | 49.2 billion/sec | |||
Floating point: | 1.825 gflops | |||
CUDA Cores: | 768 | |||
Pipelines / CUDA cores: | 768 | |||
Acceleration speed: | 1188 MHz | |||
Number of transistors: | 2,940 million | |||
Estimated heat output: | 90 Watt |
Dimensions, connectors and compatibility
Today there are many form factors of PC cases and laptop sizes, so it is extremely important to know the length of the video card and its connection types (except for laptop versions). This will help make the upgrade process easier, as Not all cases can accommodate modern video cards.
Interface: | PCIe 3.0 x16 | |||
Length: | 7.938″ (20.2 cm) | |||
Additional power: | 1x 6-pins | |||
SLI options: | + | |||
Recommended system power (PSU): | 350 Watt | |||
Tire support: | PCI Express 3.0 | |||
Height: | 4.376″ (11.1 cm) |
Memory (Frequency and Overclocking)
Internal memory is used to store data during calculations. Modern games and professional graphics applications place high demands on the amount and speed of memory. The higher this parameter, the more powerful and faster the video card. Memory type, size and bandwidth for NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 + overclocking capability in turbo mode.
Memory type: | GDDR5 | |||
Maximum RAM amount: | 2GB | |||
Memory bus width: | 128 Bit | |||
Memory frequency: | 6.6 GB/s | |||
Memory bandwidth: | 105.6 GB/s | |||
Shared memory: | — |
Port and display support
As a rule, all modern video cards have several types of connections and additional ports, for example HDMI and DVI . Knowing these features is very important in order to avoid problems connecting a video card to a monitor or other peripherals.
Display connections: | Dual Link DVI-I, HDMI 2.0, 3x DisplayPort 1.2 | |||
G-SYNC support: | + | |||
Multi monitor support: | 4 displays | |||
HDCP: | + | |||
Maximum VGA resolution: | 2048×1536 | |||
Audio input for HDMI: | Internal | |||
HDMI: | + |
Technologies
Each graphics card manufacturer complements its products with proprietary technologies that are used both in games and in the workflow. Below is a list of features that will be useful to you.
3D Vision: | + | |||
GPU Boost: | 2.0 | |||
CUDA: | + | |||
GeForce Experience: | + | |||
Surround: | + | |||
Adaptive Vertical Sync: | + | |||
GameStream: | + | |||
GeForce ShadowPlay: | + | |||
GameWorks: | + |
API Support
All NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 supported APIs are listed below. This is a minor factor that does not greatly affect the overall performance.
DirectX: | 12 (12_1) | |||
OpenGL: | 4. 5 | |||
Vulkan: | 1.1.126 | |||
Shader Model: | 6.4 | |||
OpenCL: | 1.2 |
General gaming performance
All tests are based on FPS. Let’s take a look at where the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 ranks in the gaming performance test (the calculation was made in accordance with the recommendations of the game developer for system requirements; it may differ from real situations).
Select games
Horizon Zero DawnDeath StrandingF1 2020Gears TacticsDoom EternalHunt ShowdownEscape from TarkovHearthstoneRed Dead Redemption 2Star Wars Jedi Fallen OrderNeed for Speed HeatCall of Duty Modern Warfare 2019GRID 2019Ghost Recon BreakpointFIFA 20Borderlands 3ControlF1 2019League of LegendsTotal War: Three KingdomsRage 2Anno 1800The Division 2Dirt Rally 2.0AnthemMetro ExodusFar Cry New DawnApex LegendsJust Cause 4Darksiders IIIFarming Simulator 19Battlefield VFallout 76Hitman 2Call of Duty Black Ops 4Assassin´s Creed OdysseyForza Horizon 4FIFA 19Shadow of the Tomb RaiderStrange BrigadeF1 2018Monster Hunter WorldThe Crew 2Far Cry 5World of Tanks enCoreX-Plane 11. 11Kingdom Come: DeliveranceFinal Fantasy XV BenchmarkFortniteStar Wars Battlefront 2Need for Speed PaybackCall of Duty WWIIAssassin´s Creed OriginsWolfenstein II: The New ColossusDestiny 2ELEXThe Evil Survival 2Middle-earth:8 Shadow of WarFIFA EvolvedF1 2017Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds (2017)Team Fortress 2Dirt 4Rocket LeaguePreyMass Effect AndromedaGhost Recon WildlandsFor HonorResident Evil 7Dishonored 2Call of Duty Infinite WarfareTitanfall 2Farming Simulator 17Civilization VIBattlefield 1Mafia 3Deus Ex Mankind Divid edMirror’s Edge CatalystOverwatchDoomAshes of the SingularityHitman 2016The DivisionFar Cry PrimalXCOM 2Rise of the Tomb RaiderRainbow Six SiegeAssassin’s Creed SyndicateStar Wars BattlefrontFallout 4Call of Duty: Black Ops 3Anno 2205World of WarshipsDota 2 RebornThe Witcher 3Dirt RallyGTA VDragon Age: InquisitionFar Cry 4Assassin’s Creed UnityCall of Duty: Advanced WarfareAlien: IsolationMiddle-earth: Shadow of MordorSims 4Wolfenstein: The New OrderThe Elder Scrolls OnlineThiefX-Plane 10. 25Battlefield 4Total War: Rome IICompany of Heroes 2Metro: Last LightBioShock InfiniteStarCraft II: Heart of the SwarmSimCityTomb RaiderCrysis 3Hitman: AbsolutionCall of Duty: Black Ops 2World of Tanks v8Border 2Counter-Strike: GODirt ShowdownDiablo IIIMass Effect 3The Elder Scrolls V: SkyrimBattlefield 3Deus Ex Human RevolutionStarCraft 2Metro 2033Stalker: Call of PripyatGTA IV — Grand Theft AutoLeft 4 DeadTrackmania Nations ForeverCall of Duty 4 — Modern WarfareSupreme Commander — FA BenchCrysi s — GPU BenchmarkWorld in Conflict — BenchmarkHalf Life 2 — Lost Coast BenchmarkWorld of WarcraftDoom 3Quake 3 Arena — TimedemoHalo InfiniteFarming Simulator 22Battlefield 2042Forza Horizon 5Riders RepublicGuardians of the GalaxyBack 4 BloodDeathloopF1 2021Days GoneResident Evil VillageHitman 3Cyberpunk 2077Assassin´s Creed ValhallaDirt 5Watch Dogs LegionMafia Definitive EditionCyberpunk 2077 1.5 GRID LegendsDying Light 2Rainbow Six ExtractionGod of War
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Horizon Zero Dawn (2020)
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Death Stranding (2020)
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F1 2020 (2020)
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Gears Tactics (2020)
low
1280×720
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Doom Eternal (2020)
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Description | |
5 | Stutter — The performance of this video card with this game has not yet been studied enough. Based on interpolated information from graphics cards of a similar performance level, the game is likely to stutter and display low frame rates. |
May Stutter — The performance of this video card with this game has not yet been studied enough. Based on interpolated information from graphics cards of a similar performance level, the game is likely to stutter and display low frame rates. | |
30 | Fluent — According to all known benchmarks with the specified graphic settings, this game is expected to run at 25 fps or more |
40 | Fluent — According to all known benchmarks with the specified graphics settings, this game is expected to run at 35fps or more |
60 | Fluent — According to all known benchmarks with the specified graphics settings, this game is expected to run at 58 fps or more |
May Run Fluently — The performance of this video card with this game has not yet been sufficiently studied. Based on interpolated information from graphics cards of a similar performance level, the game is likely to show smooth frame rates. | |
? | Uncertain — testing this video card in this game showed unexpected results. A slower card could deliver higher and more consistent frame rates while running the same reference scene. |
Uncertain — The performance of this video card in this game has not yet been studied enough. It is not possible to reliably interpolate data based on the performance of similar cards in the same category. | |
The value in the fields reflects the average frame rate across the entire database. To get individual results, hover over a value. |
AMD equivalent
AMD Radeon HD 7970
Compare
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 in benchmark results
Benchmarks help you determine performance in standard NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950 benchmarks. We’ve compiled a list of the world’s best-known benchmarks so you can get accurate results for each one (see description). Pre-testing the graphics card is especially important when there are high loads, so that the user can see how the graphics processor copes with calculations and data processing.
Overall performance in benchmarks
NVIDIA Quadro M3000M
24.87%
AMD Radeon RX 560X Mobile
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
NVIDIA GRID M60-2Q
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670
24.33%
Unlike Ice Storm, 3DMark’s Cloud Gate test uses more resource intensive scenes. The better the final score, the faster your graphics card. Processing is done with DirectX 10.
NVIDIA Quadro M2200
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
AMD Radeon RX 560 Mobile
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M
This is an advanced graphics card benchmark. When using DirectX 11 for processing, typical testing time is 15 minutes. The higher the score, the faster the graphics card.
AMD Radeon R9 M395
AMD Radeon HD 7970
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
AMD Radeon R7 370
AMD Radeon RX 560X Mobile
Complex graphic scenes require all the graphics card resources. They use the entire RAM and computing power. The test’s results can be viewed below.
AMD Radeon HD 7870XT
AMD Radeon RX 560X Mobile
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 880M
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile
This benchmark analyzes the gaming power of a graphics card using Direct X 11 (multithreading, tessellation, shader calculations).
NVIDIA Quadro P2000 Mobile
NVIDIA Quadro P2000
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
AMD Radeon RX 560 Mobile
NVIDIA Quadro M3000M
Passmark is an excellent benchmark that is updated regularly and shows relevant graphics card performance information.
AMD Radeon Pro 5300M
NVIDIA Quadro M3000M
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
NVIDIA GRID M60-2Q
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670
This test gives the best estimate of GPU performance. It provides highly accurate results.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M
NVIDIA Quadro K4200
4.2
From 151
Hitesti Grade
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Review NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
Compare NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
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NVIDIA GeForce MX330
AMD Radeon HD 7970
AMD Radeon RX 560
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti
AMD Radeon R9 270X
AMD Radeon RX 550
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 3 GB
AMD Radeon Sky 500
NVIDIA Quadro P2000 Max-Q
AMD Radeon R9280
ASUS GTX950-2G video card review — ITC.ua
Video card manufacturers have recently begun offering models of the GeForce GTX 950 series that do not require additional power. At the same time, devices are still equipped with 2 GB of memory and have the recommended clock speeds. What is the secret of the improved efficiency of such versions? We will try to figure this out using the ASUS GTX950-2G as an example.
We help
Classic GeForce GTX 950 has a claimed TDP of 90W and is equipped with one 6-pin connector for additional power supply. The PCI Express x16 2.0/3.0 slot can provide up to 75W. Accordingly, a 90-watt adapter needs to partially gain power through a dedicated 12 V line. Intrigue? There is little. The first thing that comes to mind in this case is reduced clock speeds. But no, for the announced models, at least the recommended base 1024 MHz for the chip and 6612 MHz for memory chips are declared.
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ASUS GTX950-2G also has almost standard values. Base 1026 MHz for a chip with an average auto-overclocking up to 1190 MHz. All GeForce GTX 950 graphics cards are equipped with 2 GB of GDDR5 and this version is no exception. Chips operate at the prescribed 6612 MHz.
Zmist
- 1 Delivery set
- 2 Design and layout
- 3 In use
- 4 Overclocking
- 5 Performance and power consumption
Package contents
Video card comes in a compact box. The package includes only a small manual, a disk with drivers and software, as well as an invitation coupon, reminiscent of a joint promotion with Wargaming, which allows you to get 15 days of premium access and the cruiser Diana in the World Of Warships game. The bonus is relevant only for new players who do not yet have an account in the game.
Design and layout
The graphics card is not nominally a ROG or STRIX gaming series. The adapter is designed quite simply and concisely. The top of the video card is covered by a white plastic shroud.
In its marketing brochures, the manufacturer seems to hint that the video card is made in the same style with some ASUS motherboards based on Intel Z170. But this is definitely not a dogma, the adapter will look fine and work great with other platforms.
An original cooler is used to cool the video card. The radiator block is made from a single piece of aluminum with a complex profile shape. Additional heat pipes in this case are not involved. Obviously, this design reduces the cost of the adapter. Let’s see how the cooler handles heat dissipation.
The radiator is blown from above by a pair of 80 mm axial fans.
ASUS GTX950-2G uses the same PCB as other OEM GTX 9 versions50. Of the visible differences in the layout — a decrease in the channels of the power stabilizer. Instead of a 4-phase circuit, a 3-phase one is used here. Also immediately noticeable is the lack of a connector for connecting the power supply. It is clear that the board is unified, but the gaping void formed in the former place of the connector looks somehow sloppy.
The video card uses well-known Samsung K4G41325FC-HC28 memory chips, which are nominally designed for operating frequencies up to 7000 MHz.
No surprises on the reverse side of the PCB. Protective plate not included. In the absence of a power connector, there are expectedly no 12 V line supply indicators on the board.
Adapter length 210 mm. This is a very compact video card, so there will be no problems with installation in the case.
The interface panel has three video outputs — DVI-I, DisplayPort 1.2 and HDMI 2.0. Almost half of the plug is occupied by a grille with large cells to remove heated air.
In operation
During system operation, even at rest, the video card cooling fans do not stop.
The rotation speed in this mode is about 1000-1100 rpm, while the GPU warms up to 28-30C.
Under load, the chip temperature rose to 69 degrees, and to keep the temperature at that level, the fans accelerated to almost 1400 rpm. It should be noted that the noise level is very low even under load. In addition, with an increase in speed, the sounds of CO work increase very slightly.
Peak 1215 MHz for the GPU — the consequences of energy restrictions. Versions of adapters with additional power have a more aggressive GPU Boost algorithm. Typically, setting the base clock to 1024MHz will boost the GTX 950 processor to 1270-1280MHz. It is also worth noting that according to the GPU-Z readings, the GM206 supply voltage in this case is 1.125 V, which is noticeably lower than usual (1.185-1.2 V).
Overclocking
Hardly the owner of the economic version of GeForce GTX 950 will be seriously interested in overclocking, but we wanted to satisfy curiosity and try to squeeze some more fps out of the video card.
It is curious that the Power Limit parameter can be nominally increased to 116%, but remembering that PCI-Express x16 will not give out more than 75 W in any case, you should not count on much.
Experimentally, it was possible to increase the base clock frequency of the chip to 1226 MHz (+19.5%). The result is slightly below average for the GTX 950, but in general it does not stand out from the statistics. Much more interesting is the actual operating frequency under load. Regular versions of GTX 950 with base 1230-1280 MHz at the peak take 1480-1530 MHz. In this case, with similar starting positions, the graphics processor accelerated noticeably more modestly.
GPU worked in the range of 1330-1412 MHz. In this case, the frequency changed markedly depending on the nature of the load. GPU Boost technology allows you to accelerate the chip to certain values, while the frequency «ceiling» depends not only on the temperature of the GPU, but also on the overall power consumption of the video card. In this case, it is important not to go beyond 75 W, because the auto-overclocking mechanism dynamically adjusts the adapter’s parameters in order to keep within this thermal package.
GeForce GTX 950 without additional power is not the best option if you expect to boost your adapter as much as possible. The reduced TDP will become a limiter for the high frequencies of the chip, and you actually cannot influence the final result explicitly. Yes, the base frequency can be increased almost to the level of conventional models, but the GPU will not automatically accelerate as actively. As for the memory chips, the examined copy of ASUS GTX950-2G was pleasantly pleased in this regard. Chips were accelerated to 8212 MHz (+24%).
Performance and power consumption
We have already tested different versions of the GeForce GTX 950 several times, so the capabilities of the adapters in this line are already well known. In this case, it was interesting to evaluate how the less aggressive GPU Boost algorithm in economical GTX 950 models will affect their performance.
As you can see, in normal mode ASUS GTX950-2G is minimally inferior to GeForce GTX 950 with additional power supply. However, it should be recalled here that the reference GTX 9 adapters50 are not actually presented on the market, and therefore the results presented on the diagrams are the indicators of the original ASUS STRIX series adapter after reducing the frequencies to the recommended ones by NVIDIA. Anyway, we see that the performance degradation is very small, 3-5% on average. The nature of this effect is obvious — peak 1212 MHz under load, instead of 1270-1280 MHz.
Overclocking a video card brings a performance boost of 10-15%, that is, it is definitely not useless, even when it comes to boosting the economical version of GeForce GTX 950. Another thing is that, of course, the performance is noticeably lower than that of overclocked versions with additional power. Therefore, if you are focusing on maximum performance, a version that does not have such severe restrictions in terms of TDP is more suitable for this.
What is the highlight of modifications that do not require additional power supply? Actually, in improved economy. In practice, a system with a classic GeForce GTX 950 and the frequencies recommended for reference models consumed about 170-175 watts during high gaming load. After replacing the video card with ASUS GTX950-2G power consumption dropped to 150-155 W, all other things being equal. The actual difference in power consumption is about 20 watts, which is not that much in the desktop ecosystem, although this can play a role for compact PCs.
4.5
ITC.UA score
Pros:
Good performance in its class; no additional power connection required; excellent memory overclocking potential; low level of CO noise; excellent energy efficiency
Cons:
The overclocking of the chip is not as efficient as in the case of the standard GTX 950; simplified radiator
Output:
ASUS GTX950-2G is an economical model of a generally successful series of graphics adapters. Similar versions of the GeForce GTX 950 are the fastest graphics cards on the market that do not require additional power. Performance is slightly lower than stock GTX 950 due to less aggressive GPU dynamic acceleration. However, the difference is minimal, often within 5%. At the same time, the video card consumes less power, reducing the power requirements of the power supply. Such versions of video cards will be of interest primarily when assembling compact PCs, when maximum efficiency is important. You should definitely not consider such adapters as an opportunity to save money. The cost of energy-efficient models is practically the same as that of the classic versions of the GeForce GTX 950.
Specifications
Overview of the video card nVidia GeForce GTX 950
The GeForce GTX 950 is a mid-range video card released by Nvidia. This graphics adapter is positioned as a solution for games in the genre of Moba, MMORPG or other non-demanding multiplayer projects. The video card provides very good performance at a low price and is able to run all modern games, albeit at medium graphics settings.
Specifications GTX 950
768 universal streaming chips are responsible for the performance of the video adapter, which is not too impressive. The base frequency of the graphics chip is 1024MHz, the maximum frequency depends solely on the manufacturer of the GTX 950. The video card also has 48 texture units and 32 rasterization units.
The device is equipped with two gigabytes of video memory, operating at a frequency of 6600MHz. The bus width is quite low — 128 bits, which can cause problems with uneven loading of textures in computer games, and in general the amount of memory is not very impressive.
With support for modern APIs, the GeForce GTX 950 is doing just fine. The video card will allow you to run games that require DirectX 12, OpenGL 4.5 or Vulcan 1.0 without any difficulties. The presence of support for Quda and OpenCL will allow you to work in specialized applications for video editing or creating graphics. The Nvenc hardware encoder can be a great help for streamers and let’s play enthusiasts. Using Nvenc will offload CPU resources while capturing video from computer games.
The latest feature of the graphics card is support for NVIDIA’s proprietary technology — SLI, which allows you to combine two identical video cards into one common system, which allows you to almost double the performance in computer games. Although with such a large amount of video memory and a small bus, the SLI technology does not make much sense, it will not be possible to get a tangible increase in performance.
Video card manufacturers
Other than Nvidia, GeForce GTX 9 video card50 are produced by other manufacturers such as ASUS, MSI, Gigabyte, Palit, Inno3D and EVGA. Video cards from third-party manufacturers often differ in terms of cooling system, component base and factory overclocking (most often for the better, but not always).
Asus GeForce GTX 950
The graphics card version differs only in the design of the cooling system and a slight increase in the base frequency of the graphics chip. The rest of the video adapter has not undergone major changes.
MSI GeForce GTX 950 GAMING
MSI’s GTX 950 is called «Gaming» for a reason. The video card already from the factory has quite good overclocking, which makes it a little more powerful compared to other versions. The frequency of turbo boost and video memory has undergone changes.
Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950
Gigabyte has released a very compact version of the video card, perfect for small system units. The graphics adapter is about 30 percent shorter than its counterparts, while the technical characteristics of the device were not affected, and the GPU itself received a slight increase in clock speed.
Palit GeForce GTX 950
The version of the video card from Palit differs only in appearance, the factory overclocking has not been changed. It’s pretty rare that Palit doesn’t degrade the graphics card.
Comparison with other graphics cards
When compared with previous generations of video adapters, the performance of the GTX 950 can be compared with the Nvidia GeForce GTX 760. The devices have approximately the same characteristics and power, although the memory bus width on the GTX 760 is 256 bits.
From AMD, the Radeon HD 7850, HD 7870, R7 265 and R7 270 can compete with the GTX 950. Even the most integrated solutions in Intel processors can only provide half the performance of the GTX 950.
Testing the GTX 950 in benchmarks and games
The video card was tested paired with an i7 6700k and two sticks of 8 gigabytes of RAM each.
3DMark Vantage
In the popular 3D Mark Vantage program, the video card averages 30200 points, which is a very good result. GTX 950 beats the R9 270 by about 1000 points.
BattleField 4
In this game, at maximum graphics settings, the average fps is 35-37, which is clearly not enough for dynamic gameplay. The situation is aggravated by constant drawdowns below 30 frames per second. For comfortable gameplay, you will have to lower the settings to medium-high.
Crysis 3
Crysis 3 is a very heavy game that can stress any graphics card, the GeForce GTX 950 didn’t stand a chance. Although the video card was able to deliver 20 fps at maximum settings in FullHD resolution. To get a smoother picture, you will have to lower the settings in the game quite well.
Grand Theft Auto 5
GTA 5 runs very well on Nvidia GTX 950. The game can be played at almost maximum graphics settings (there is not enough video memory for full maximum settings) and get 40-50 fps in the most loaded scenes. It is possible that the power of the graphics chip itself will be enough for fully maximum settings, but the small amount of memory does not allow checking this.
Dota 2
Dota 2 and other similar projects — this is exactly what this video card was created for. The game runs great, even at the highest graphics settings we managed to get over 80 frames per second. With undemanding GTX 9 multiplayer projects50 copes perfectly, in heavy games you will have to lower the graphic settings.
Conclusion
In general, the video card fully justified all the expectations placed on it. For a small price, you get a good device that can provide access to all possible tasks.
For fans of Moba and other multiplayer games, the Nvidia GeForce GTX 950 is an excellent choice.
GeForce GTX 950M [in 12 benchmarks]
NVIDIA
GeForce GTX 950M
- PCIe 3.0 x8 interface
- Core Clock 914 + Boost
- Video memory size 4 GB
- Memory type DDR3 or GDDR5
- Memory frequency 1000 or 2500 MHz
- Maximum resolution
Description
NVIDIA started GeForce GTX 950M sales 12 March 2015. This is Maxwell architecture notebook card based on 28 nm manufacturing process and primarily aimed at gamers. It has 4 GB of DDR3 or GDDR5 memory at 2.5 GHz, and coupled with a 128-bit interface, this creates a bandwidth of 32 or 80 Gb / s.
In terms of compatibility, this is a PCIe 3.0 x8 card. Power consumption — 75 W.
It provides poor performance in tests and games at the level of
8.79%
from the leader, which is the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Ti.
GeForce GTX
950M
or
GeForce RTX
3090 Ti
General information
Information about the type (desktop or laptop) and architecture of the GeForce GTX 950M, as well as when sales started and cost at that time.
place in the performance rating | 439 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Popularity | 97 |
Number of stream processors | 640 | of 18432 (AD102) |
Number of pipelines1573 |
Compatibility and dimensions
Information on GeForce GTX 950M compatibility with other computer components. Useful for example when choosing the configuration of a future computer or to upgrade an existing one. For laptop video cards, this is the estimated size of the laptop, the bus and the connection connector, if the video card is connected through the connector, and not soldered on the motherboard.
Notebook size |
GameStream | + | |
GeForce ShadowPlay | + | |
GPU Boost | 2.0 | |
GameWorks | + | |
CUDA | + |
Benchmark tests
These are the results of GeForce GTX 950M rendering performance tests in non-gaming benchmarks. The overall score is set from 0 to 100, where 100 corresponds to the fastest video card at the moment.
Overall benchmark performance
This is our overall performance rating. We regularly improve our algorithms, but if you find any inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in the comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.
GTX 950M
8.79
- Passmark
- 3DMark Vantage Performance
- 3DMark 11 Performance GPU
- 3DMark Cloud Gate GPU
- 3DMark Fire Strike Score
- 3DMark Fire Strike Graphics
- GeekBench 5 OpenCL
- 3DMark Ice Storm GPU
- GeekBench 5 Vulcan
- GeekBench 5 CUDA
- Unigine Heaven 3.0
- Octane Render OctaneBench
Passmark
This is a very common benchmark included in the Passmark PerformanceTest package. He gives the graphics card a thorough evaluation, running four separate tests for Direct3D versions 9, 10, 11, and 12 (the latter being done at 4K resolution whenever possible), and a few more tests using DirectCompute.
Benchmark coverage: 26%
GTX 950M
2596
3DMark Vantage Performance
3DMark Vantage is an outdated DirectX 10 benchmark. It loads the graphics card with two scenes, one of which is a girl running away from some kind of military base located in a sea cave, and the other is a space fleet attacking defenseless planet. Support for 3DMark Vantage was discontinued in April 2017 and it is now recommended to use the Time Spy benchmark instead.
Benchmark coverage: 17%
GTX 950M
15710
3DMark 11 Performance GPU
3DMark 11 is Futuremark’s legacy DirectX 11 benchmark. He used four tests based on two scenes: one is several submarines exploring a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All tests make extensive use of volumetric lighting and tessellation and, despite being run at 1280×720, are relatively heavy. Support for 3DMark 11 ended in January 2020 and is now being replaced by Time Spy.
Benchmark coverage: 17%
GTX 950M
4367
3DMark Cloud Gate GPU
Cloud Gate is a legacy DirectX 11 feature level 10 benchmark used to test home PCs and low-end laptops. It displays several scenes of some strange teleportation device launching spaceships into the unknown at a fixed resolution of 1280×720. As with the Ice Storm benchmark, it was deprecated in January 2020 and 3DMark Night Raid is now recommended instead.
Benchmark coverage: 14%
GTX 950M
21356
3DMark Fire Strike Score
Benchmark coverage: 14%
GTX 950M
2838
3DMark Fire Strike Graphics
Fire Strike is a DirectX 11 benchmark for gaming PCs. It features two separate tests showing a fight between a humanoid and a fiery creature that appears to be made of lava. Using resolution 1920×1080, Fire Strike shows quite realistic graphics and is quite demanding on hardware.
Benchmark coverage: 14%
GTX 950M
3200
GeekBench 5 OpenCL
Geekbench 5 is a widely used benchmark for graphics cards that combines 11 different test scenarios. All of these scenarios are based on the direct use of the processing power of the GPU, without the use of 3D rendering. This option uses the Khronos Group’s OpenCL API.
Benchmark coverage: 9%
GTX 950M
9985
3DMark Ice Storm GPU
Ice Storm Graphics is an obsolete benchmark, part of the 3DMark package. Ice Storm has been used to measure the performance of entry-level laptops and Windows-based tablets. It uses DirectX 11 feature level 9 to render a battle between two space fleets near a frozen planet at 1280×720 resolution. Support for Ice Storm ended in January 2020, now the developers recommend using Night Raid instead.
Benchmark coverage: 8%
GTX 950M
198867
GeekBench 5 Vulkan
Geekbench 5 is a widely used benchmark for graphics cards that combines 11 different test scenarios. All of these scenarios are based on the direct use of the processing power of the GPU, without the use of 3D rendering. This option uses the Vulkan API from AMD and the Khronos Group.
Benchmark coverage: 5%
GTX 950M
8779
GeekBench 5 CUDA
Geekbench 5 is a widely used benchmark for graphics cards that combines 11 different test scenarios. All of these scenarios are based on the direct use of the processing power of the GPU, without the use of 3D rendering. This option uses NVIDIA’s CUDA API.
Benchmark coverage: 5%
GTX 950M
9777
Unigine Heaven 3.0
This is an old DirectX 11 based benchmark using the Unigine 3D game engine from the Russian company of the same name. It depicts a medieval fantasy city spread over several floating islands. Version 3.0 was released in 2012 and was replaced by Heaven 4.0 in 2013, which introduced several minor improvements, including a newer version of the Unigine engine.
Benchmark coverage: 5%
GTX 950M
42
Octane Render OctaneBench
This is a dedicated benchmark for measuring graphics card performance in OctaneRender, which is a realistic GPU rendering engine created by OTOY Inc. , available either as a standalone program or as a plug-in for 3DS Max, Cinema 4D and many other applications. It renders four different static scenes and then compares the render times to the reference card, which is the GeForce GTX 9 at the moment.80. This benchmark does not measure gaming performance and is intended for professional 3D artists.
Benchmark coverage: 4%
GTX 950M
25
Mining hashrates
GeForce GTX 950M performance in cryptocurrency mining. Usually the result is measured in mhash / s — the number of millions of solutions generated by the video card in one second.
Bitcoin / BTC (SHA256) | 140 Mh/s | |
Ethereum / ETH (DaggerHashimoto) | 2.5 Mh/s |
Game tests
FPS in popular games on the GeForce GTX 950M, as well as compliance with system requirements. Remember that the official requirements of the developers do not always match the data of real tests.
Medium FPS
High Preset
Ultra Preset
High Preset
Ultra Preset
High Preset
Ultra Preset
Cyberpunk 2077 | 9−10 |
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey | 23 | |
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 9-10 | |
Battlefield 5 | 31 | |
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 9-10 | |
Cyberpunk 2077 | 9-10 | |
Far Cry 5 | 23 | |
Far Cry New Dawn | 22 | |
Forza Horizon 4 | 9-10 | |
Hitman 3 | 9-10 | |
Horizon Zero Dawn | 9-10 | |
Red Dead Redemption 2 | 9-10 | |
Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 19 | |
Watch Dogs: Legion | 9-10 |
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey | 19 | |
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 9-10 | |
Battlefield 5 | 26 | |
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 9-10 | |
Cyberpunk 2077 | 9-10 | |
Far Cry 5 | 21 | |
Far Cry New Dawn | 20 | |
Forza Horizon 4 | 9-10 | |
Hitman 3 | 9-10 | |
Horizon Zero Dawn | 9-10 | |
Metro Exodus | 5 | |
Red Dead Redemption 2 | 9-10 | |
Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 15 | |
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 19 | |
Watch Dogs: Legion | 9-10 |
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey | 11 | |
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 9-10 | |
Battlefield 5 | 20 | |
Cyberpunk 2077 | 9-10 | |
Far Cry 5 | 19 | |
Far Cry New Dawn | 19 | |
Forza Horizon 4 | 9-10 | |
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 11 | |
Watch Dogs: Legion | 9-10 |
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 9-10 | |
Hitman 3 | 9-10 | |
Horizon Zero Dawn | 9-10 | |
Metro Exodus | 9-10 | |
Red Dead Redemption 2 | 9-10 | |
Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 9-10 | |
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 9-10 |
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey | 9-10 | |
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 9-10 | |
Battlefield 5 | 9-10 | |
Cyberpunk 2077 | 9-10 | |
Far Cry 5 | 12 | |
Far Cry New Dawn | 9-10 | |
Forza Horizon 4 | 9-10 | |
Watch Dogs: Legion | 9-10 |
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 9-10 | |
Hitman 3 | 9-10 | |
Horizon Zero Dawn | 9-10 | |
Metro Exodus | 9-10 | |
Red Dead Redemption 2 | 9-10 | |
Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 9-10 | |
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 9-10 |
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey | 9-10 | |
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 9-10 | |
Battlefield 5 | 9-10 | |
Cyberpunk 2077 | 9-10 | |
Far Cry 5 | 6 | |
Far Cry New Dawn | 9-10 | |
Forza Horizon 4 | 9-10 | |
Watch Dogs: Legion | 9-10 |
Relative performance
Overall GeForce GTX 950M performance compared to its closest competitors in notebook graphics cards.
AMD Radeon R9 M390
104.89
Intel Iris Plus Graphics 655
104.44
AMD Radeon HD 6990M
100.91
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
100
NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M SLI
99.32
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M
98.86
Intel Iris Graphics 550
97.61
AMD competitor
We believe that the nearest equivalent to GeForce GTX 950M from AMD is Radeon HD 6990M, which is faster by 1% and higher by 2 positions in our rating, on average.
Radeon HD
6990M
Compare
Here are some of AMD’s closest competitors to the GeForce GTX 950M:
AMD Radeon RX 480 (mobile)
105.92
AMD Radeon R9 M390
104. 89
AMD Radeon HD 6990M
100.91
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
100
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000)
96.59
AMD Radeon R9 M470
88.17
AMD Radeon HD 6970M
87.49
Other video cards
Here we recommend several video cards that are more or less similar in performance to the reviewed one.
GeForce GT
750M SLI
Compare
GeForce GTX
850M
Compare
iris
Graphics 550
Compare
Radeon RX
Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000)
Compare
Iris Plus
Graphics 655
Compare
Radeon RX
540
Compare
Recommended Processors
According to our statistics, these processors are most often used with the GeForce GTX 950M.
Core i5
7200U
20.2%
Core i5
6300HQ
12.5%
Core i7
6700HQ
10.5%
Core i5
6200U
7%
Core i7
6500U
5.7%
Core i7
7500U
4.3%
Core i7
4720HQ
4.3%
Core i5
4210H
2.2%
Core i5
4200H
2.1%
Core i5
5200U
1.