Asus ROG Strix GTX 1050 Ti review
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Not the budget card we were hoping for
TechRadar Verdict
Nvidia has wowed us all this last year with the introduction of the GTX 1060, 1070 and 1080 – cards that truly blow open the doors to more affordable mainstream high-res gaming. However, the GTX 1050 Ti feels like a missed opportunity. It fails to innovate, and you’ll feel the brunt of that decision.
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Nvidia’s transition across to the 16nm FinFET manufacturing process brought with it huge leaps for the vast majority of its GPUs. The power hungry GTX 1080 showed us that gaming wt 1440p with high refresh rates was possible off a single card, and that 4K gaming at 60fps was almost reachable too.
The GTX 1070 packed the power of a Titan into an affordable price point, and the GTX 1060 provided as much performance as last tier’s first flagship at a cost lower than a good meal out with your extended family.
It was all going so well, clocks speeds skyrocketed well past 2GHz for the first time in stock consumer history, and the progressive advancements across the processors saw CUDA core count shoot up, alongside transistors too.
Alas, it seems the mighty green giant had to stumble up somewhere, and that that somewhere is with the GTX 1050 Ti. Traditionally the X50 series has been an awe inspiring thing of beauty.
Whether that’s the 750 Ti’s powerless design, or the GTX 950’s fantastic price to performance ratio, Nvidia really pushed out those boundaries, proving time and time again you could innovate on the mid-low range just as much as the high end. So what’s so bad with the GTX 1050 Ti that it warrants such a scalding paragraph? Well, let’s find out.
Specifications
The GPU powering the heart of Asus’s ROG Strix GTX 1050 Ti comes packing a whopping 768 CUDA cores, 48 Texture Units and 32 ROPs.
Compare that to the GTX 950 and you’ll see that it also had 768 CUDA cores, 48 Texture Units, and 32 ROPs. But then that’s fair right? It’s a process shrink,; it’s not something you’d expect to change.
We’d be inclined to agree with you if it wasn’t for how Nvidia has specced the rest of its 16nm lineup. A quick glance at how the GTX 1060 evolved this generation and you’ll soon see what we mean. The number of CUDA cores increased from 1024 to 1280, forcing the transistor count to increase by 1.46 billion in the process. Compare that to the 1050 Ti with its meagre transistor increase of 0.36 billion, and you soon begin to understand why this is a problem.
1080p Performance
Take the card out of the ecosystem entirely however, and you’re greeted with a powerful GPU more than capable of tackling the latest games at 1080p Ultra settings comfortably.
In Far Cry Primal we saw average frame rates remain steady at 43 frames per second, while The Division sat at 36 fps, and our more graphically aggressive games Rise of the Tomb Raider and Total War: Attila managed 23 fps respectively.
Is it perfect? No, but if you’re on a tight budget, and are looking to upgrade a four-to-five year old card, this could be the one for you
The problem however stems when you look just slightly up the chain at the GTX 1060 3GB. The fact is, you can currently buy a compact GTX 1060 3GB from Inno3D for exactly the same price (£190/$240) as this card, and if you did, at 1080p on average your frame rates would increase by 12 -19 frames per second. That’s a huge difference, and it’s something that really puts us off recommending this card.
The memory conundrum
We know what you’re thinking though. The GTX 1050 Ti has 4GB of memory compared to the 1060’s 3GB? Surely that matters for something here? Well honestly, not that much. When testing our titles we noticed frame rates across all three major resolutions varied by 1-3 frames per second when it came to our 3- and 6GB variants of the 1060, and that’s something we can mostly dial down to the 3GB variant’s fewer CUDA cores.
And when it comes to the more memory-intensive titles out there, such as GTA V and Witcher 3, you’re likely better off investing in a more powerful processor anyway, one that comes, by default with 4GB to 8GB, or more.
Verdict
We liked
The Asus Strix GTX 1050 Ti’s aftermarket solution is a crisp reminder that you can innovate and design a graphics card that still looks classy at a respectable price point.
The dual-fan cooler is subtle and quiet, with 0dB fan technology ensuring temperatures remain low, and noise is minimal, the included backplate, and hint of RGB AURA tech that Asus is so well known for glams up an otherwise budget purchase, making this a truly solid aftermarket card.
We disliked
While it has innovated on the design front, Nvidia’s decision not to innovate aggressively on the GPU in stark contrast to last generation’s GTX 950 leaves very little to be desired.
Final verdict
If you’ve not upgraded for some time, (we’re talking pre GTX 600 series), the GTX 1050 Ti is a fantastic solution to alleviate all of your 1080p gaming woes; however, if you’ve got the cash then you should spring for the 3GB GTX 1060 variant instead.
For the time being, 3GB is more than plenty for 1080p. Anything more than that and you’re going to need far more processing power anyway.
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It just doesn’t make any sense.
Our Verdict
Other better options exist and you don’t need to look hard to find them.
For
- Super-low power draw
- Acceptable performance at 1080p
- Card looks great
Against
- Poor price-to-performance
- Incremental update on last gen
- Requires a 6-pin PCIe connector
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Need to know
GPU: GP107
Lithography: 16nm FinFET
Transistor Count: 3.3 billion
CUDA Cores: 768
Texture Units: 48
ROPs: 32
Core/Boost Clock: 1,290/1,392MHz
Memory Capacity & Type: 4GB GDDR5
Memory Bus: 128-bit
TDP: 75W
Display Connectors: DisplayPort 1.4, HDMI 2.0(b), 1x DVI
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Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1050 Ti is a rather curious concept. It follows a long line of prestigious graphics processors with its nomenclature—from the PCI powerless GTX 750 Ti, to the value-demolishing 950—yet this variant just doesn’t seem to have hit the same mark. The Asus card still requires that six-pin PCI power connector, and it doesn’t quite reach the heady heights of glorious frame-rate-to-dollar ratios that we want when it comes to price, either.
So, where shall we begin? Let’s start with the spec. Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1050 Ti comes with 768 CUDA cores, 48 texture units, and 32 ROPs. In contrast, the previous generation had 768 CUDA cores, 48 texture units, and 32 ROPs. “Well, of course, it’s a process shrink,” we hear you say, “So nothing else is bound to change.” We’d be inclined to agree, if it wasn’t for how the rest of Nvidia’s lineup has evolved this past year.
Compare the 1060 to the 960, and the number of cores has expanded from 1,024 to 1,280, with transistor count increasing by 1.46 billion in the process. The 1050 Ti, on the other hand, has a meager transistor increase of just 0.36 billion. You see where we’re coming from here? The problem is, that it shows, terribly so. And when you consider the price of the GTX 1050 Ti—even with the 4GB variant versus the 3GB GTX 1060—well, you’ve got to be asking yourself some serious questions about why you would want to sacrifice that extra processing power.
On to performance figures, then.
At 1080p, this card achieved 43fps on average in Far Cry Primal, contrasting starkly with the GTX 1060 3GB’s 61fps. In Attila, the difference was less pronounced, with the plucky underdog losing out by 13fps, but in almost all the other titles, the difference is quite large. In fact, it was so bad, it forced us to reach back into our archives to see how well the GTX 960 scored in synthetic benchmarks compared to the 1050 Ti. The answer? The 960 scored just 200 points less in Fire Strike than this new 16nm card. Ouch.
Power draw, on the other hand, is more in line with what you’d expect from a card of this caliber. Overall draw from the wall stays resolute at 216W under maximum load, and 52W at idle.
It’s not all bad
Pushing the GPU aside for a moment, let’s look at this card in isolation. Aesthetically, Asus really has nailed it with this iteration. It isn’t the triple-fan, galvanized concoction of metal and RGB LEDs that we find on cards higher up in the series, but a dual-fan solution, with a far smaller overall footprint, produced in a much more stylish manner.
Don’t get us wrong, the DCIII is great at reducing overhead temperatures, but the added length puts many folk off, and it’s simply not required on moderate cards like the 1050 Ti. The dual-fan solution looks crisp, clean, and sharp, and the added backplate adds to the premium feel. The fans are quiet—almost silent—while spinning at low loads, with 0dB fan technology included to reduce noise while idling on desktop. It’s almost as though the AIBs have been let down by the GPU.
Ultimately, if you were to evaluate this card outside of the GPU ecosystem, you’d be pleased with its performance. At 1080p, it can easily hit 30–45fps in most modern titles. However, comparing it to the GTX 1060, which is only $20-50 more in some scenarios, or even the RX 470, at just $5 more, it’s hard to justify this card’s position in the market.
We generally recommend the RX 570 Strix 4GB or the low-end GTX 1060 instead, but with the recent cryptocurrency mining craze, those cards can be very difficult to find in stock.
Right now, the price on this particular Strix model is unfortunately too high as well, but we’ve been told the price of this specific card will be dropping over the coming months.
Overall, 1050 Ti remains a viable budget option, but If you’re looking to save money by getting a 1050 Ti instead of a faster GPU, we recommend looking at one of the less expensive 1050 Ti cards, including Asus’s own 1050 Ti that’s currently on sale for $130. It has a single fan, doesn’t need a 6-pin power connection, and is only clocked a bit lower (1290MHz vs. 1392MHz). It might not be as quiet or sexy, but for budget gamers, those items shouldn’t be at the top of your list.
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Brought into the fold for his innate ability to generate static electricity at will, Zak has an unhealthy obsession with motherboards and overclocking frequencies.
Known for his acceptance of, and, poor taste in films, his favorite movies of all time are in fact, Pacific Rim, and 300: Rise of an Empire.
budget top GECID.com. Page 1
::>Video cards
>2018
> ASUS ROG STRIX-GTX1050TI-4G-GAMING
10-05-2018
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ASUS is one of the leaders in the video card market, so it can afford to experiment by releasing many modifications based on popular solutions, for example, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti. At the moment, a user who wants to purchase this video accelerator in the ASUS version has a choice of at least eleven versions, from compact budget ones to top ones, with a significantly improved cooler and a number of other interesting improvements.
One of the flagship positions in the internal hierarchy is occupied by the version that we will talk about in this review, namely ROG STRIX GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GAMING .
She got at her disposal a cooling system with a pair of heat pipes, an enhanced power subsystem, a couple of operating modes with different frequencies, and several other interesting features, which we will discuss later.
Specification
|
Model |
ASUS ROG STRIX GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GAMING (ROG STRIX-GTX1050TI-4G-GAMING) |
|
|
GPU |
NVIDIA GP107-400 |
|
|
Microarchitecture |
NVIDIA Pascal |
|
|
Technical process, nm |
14 |
|
|
Number of CUDA cores |
768 |
|
|
Number of texture units |
48 |
|
|
Number of raster blocks |
32 |
|
|
Rated / dynamic frequency of the graphics core, MHz |
Gaming mode |
1290 / 1392 |
|
«OC» mode |
1392 / 1430 |
|
|
Effective memory frequency, MHz |
7008 |
|
|
Memory size, GB |
4 |
|
|
Memory type |
GDDR5 |
|
|
Memory bus width, bit |
128 |
|
|
Memory bandwidth, GB/s |
112. |
|
|
Tire type |
PCI Express 3.0 x16 |
|
|
Image output interfaces |
2 x DVI-D |
|
|
Minimum power supply unit, W |
300 |
|
|
Optional PCIe 9 power connector0003 |
1 x 6-pin |
|
|
Dimensions from the official website (according to measurements in our test laboratory), mm |
241 x 129 x 40 (254 x 128 x 39) |
|
|
Drivers |
Latest drivers can be downloaded from the ASUS website or the GPU manufacturer’s website |
|
|
Manufacturer website |
ASUS |
|
1 Packaging and contents
The ROG STRIX GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GAMING comes in a fairly large cardboard box with excellent information content and traditional for the R series OG STRIX design.
Separately, we highlight the availability of a free 6-month premium subscription to the WTFast Gamers Private Network service. It automatically optimizes the path of game packets between the user’s computer and the game server to minimize their loss and reduce the average response time (ping).
The list of system requirements for the computer in which this graphics adapter is planned to be installed is located on one of the sides of the box. Based on the recommendations, the power supply must have a power of at least 300 W and support one 6-pin PCIe connector.
In the kit, we found standard documentation, a CD with software, a couple of cable ties and stickers on the case.
A modified set of interfaces is used to display the image:
- 2 x DVI-D;
- 1 x HDMI 2.0b;
- 1 x DisplayPort 1.4.
The maximum resolution is 7680 x 4320 at 60 Hz. The reference design includes three DisplayPort interfaces, one HDMI and one DVI.
Appearance and elemental base
The casing of the video card and the entire design are made in dark gray, which, when turned on, is slightly diluted with the proprietary ASUS AURA Sync backlight system.
As for other interesting features, we note the use of a fully automatic production process ASUS AUTO-EXTREME Technology and a reliable element base Super Alloy Power II. The power subsystem is made according to a reinforced five-phase scheme, where four phases are responsible for powering the graphics core, and one is for the video memory subsystem. It includes solid-state and tantalum-polymer capacitors, as well as chokes with a ferrite core. As a result, the manufacturer notes a decrease in operating temperatures, an increase in energy efficiency and an increase in service life.
On the opposite end, you can see a 4-pin connector for connecting a system fan, the rotation speed of which will be controlled by the video card based on the GPU temperature thanks to ASUS FanConnect technology.
The tested graphics adapter is powered by a PCI Express 3.0 x16 slot and one 6-pin PCIe connector. We note its good location, thanks to which the cooler does not make it difficult to disconnect the PCIe cable.
The reverse side of the PCB is protected by a metal base plate, which increases the rigidity of the structure. We also note the fixing screws of the cooling system, one of which is covered with a warranty sticker, so you will not be able to remove the radiator without losing the warranty.
The video accelerator is based on the NVIDIA GP107-400 GPU, which is manufactured using a 14-nm process technology. It consists of 768 CUDA cores, 48 texture units and 32 raster units. Testing was carried out in the «Gaming» mode, in which the frequency of the graphics processor corresponds to the reference 1291 MHz in nominal mode and 1392 MHz with NVIDIA GPU Boost 3.0 technology. If desired, in the GPU Tweak II utility, you can activate the “OC” profile with factory overclocking to 1392 / 1430 MHz.
As for the video memory, the card is equipped with 4 GB GDDR5 from SK Hynix, operating at a reference effective clock frequency of 7008 MHz. Data exchange between the graphics core and memory is carried out through a 128-bit bus, which is capable of passing 112.1 GB of information per second.
Cooling system
ASUS ROG STRIX-GTX1050TI-4G-GAMING with installed cooling system occupies two expansion slots and has a total length of 241 mm according to the official website (254 mm according to our test lab).
The cooler consists of an aluminum heatsink, two 8mm nickel-plated copper heatpipes with direct contact to the surface of the GPU (DirectCU II) and two axial fans with a blade diameter of 96 mm fixed on a plastic casing.
With automatic fan speed control, in maximum load mode, the graphics core heated up to 55°C at a critical rate of 97°C, and the cooler worked at only 39% of its maximum power.
According to subjective sensations, the noise was very low and did not interfere with work at all.
In the maximum fan speed mode, the GPU temperature dropped to 44°C. The noise exceeded the average level and became uncomfortable for constant use.
In the absence of load, the frequencies of the graphics core and memory were automatically reduced, allowing to reduce power consumption and heat dissipation of the video accelerator as a whole. In this mode, the temperature of the GPU did not exceed 38°C, since the fans stopped spinning altogether, and the cooling system worked in a completely passive mode. The cooler switched to active mode after the GPU temperature reached 56°C.
We found it interesting to compare the efficiency of the cooling system with the previously tested versions of the NVIDIA GeForce GTX1050 Ti:
|
Designation |
ROG STRIX GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GAMING |
ASUS Cerberus GeForce GTX 1050 Ti Advanced Edition |
ASUS Expedition GeForce GTX 1050 Ti |
|
|
Video card length |
241 |
203 |
212 |
|
|
Number of turntables |
2 |
2 |
2 |
|
|
Blade diameter, mm |
96 |
75 |
75 |
|
|
Number of heat pipes |
2 |
— |
— |
|
|
Diameter of heat pipes, mm |
8 |
— |
— |
|
|
Radiator type |
Type-setting |
One piece with fins |
One piece with fins |
|
|
Location of radiator fins / fins |
Longitudinal |
Cross |
Cross |
|
|
Radiator sections |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
|
Automatic adjustment |
Temperature, °С |
55 |
66 |
67 |
|
GPU frequency, MHz |
1519 |
1506 |
1418 |
|
|
Maximum speed |
Temperature, °С |
44 |
50 |
46 |
|
GPU frequency, MHz |
1493 |
1506 |
1430 |
|
|
Simple |
Temperature, °С |
38 |
27 |
33 |
|
GPU frequency, MHz |
139 |
139 |
139 |
|
|
technology 0dB Fan |
+ |
— |
+ |
|
The results of the cooling system of the ROG STRIX GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GAMING can be safely called excellent.
In addition, we did not notice any extraneous sounds like the squeak of throttles during testing.
PH-GTX1050TI-4G｜Video Card｜ASUS CIS
- Description
- Support
Gaming graphics card for compact computers
- Code for free cruiser Diana and a 15-day premium account in the game World of Warships (code valid from 07/31/2015 to 01/30/2017; details see www.asus.com/ event)
- Durable Double Ball Bearing Fan
- Does not require additional power supply
- Super Alloy Power II Premium Components and Auto-Extreme Manufacturing Technology
- Tweak II GPU overclocking utility with XSplit Gamecaster live streaming module
- Revolutionary Screenshot System — NVIDIA ANSEL
- Compatible with NVIDIA GameWorks technology used to create the latest PC games
Compare
Ideal for compact PCs
The ASUS Phoenix GeForce GTX 1050 Ti is a compact gaming graphics card with a high performance cooler.
It is built using premium components and comes with the exclusive GPU Tweak II overclocking utility. With a very favorable price/performance ratio, this model is ideal for competitive online games such as Overwatch, Dota 2, CS Go and League of Legend.
Interfaces
1 x DVI-D
1 x HDMI 2.0
1 Display Port
Ball Bearing Fan
Efficient Cooling
The dual ball bearing fan used in the ASUS Phoenix GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics card cooler lasts longer than traditional sleeve bearing fans, thus increasing the durability of the entire unit.
Auto-Extreme and Super Alloy Power II technologies
Quality and reliability
Modern ASUS graphics cards use selected components (Super Alloy Power II technology) for superior power efficiency, cooler operating temperatures and improved performance. The high quality of the finished device is also facilitated by a fully automated production process (Auto-Extreme technology).
*Image is for illustration purposes only.
GPU Tweak II utility with XSplit Gamecaster module
For flexible graphics tuning
Modern ASUS graphics cards are compatible with the exclusive GPU Tweak II utility, which gives you full control over your computer’s graphics subsystem. For example, the new Gaming Booster feature allows you to instantly allocate all available computing resources to a 3D application to ensure maximum performance.
XSplit Gamecaster – broadcasting and recording the game process
The package of the video card includes the XSplit Gamecaster utility for recording and broadcasting the game process in real time.
Read more
For gamers
GeForce GTX 10 series graphics cards offer exceptional performance and support for today’s gaming technologies.
State-of-the-art microarchitecture
The new Pascal microarchitecture gives this graphics card GPU outstanding performance, while supporting the latest technologies to maximize its functionality.