ShekouDaily | September 20, 2018
Just like everything else in tech there is a new model of discrete graphics cards released every year (sometimes twice a year). This year’s new chip (Turing) is different in that it is not just an improvement in last year’s line (Pascal). It is a completely new chip design that will change how software is created to create the digital worlds and computational systems we use in our daily lives.
Calling something in tech the “fastest ever” seems all to cliché these days, after all when was the last time a technology got slower? Superlatives aside, we can safely say that the RTX Turing chip is an industry changing advance in technology that will change how games are made and look for years to come. For more information on why look at this article talking about Ray-Tracing.
The RTX 2080 and RTX 2080 Ti graphics cards however are designed to use a technology that on release day (September 20th, 2018) there are a total of 0 games available utilizing the it. The new cards are also the most expensive first-generation GPUs ever released for general use. Therefore, it’s not crazy to ask the question, is it worth it?
MyEinn got our hands on MSI’s RTX 2080 and RTX 2080ti Duke editions and ran them through a few tests to determine the answer to this exact question.
Data:
3DMark is a software designed to test the power of graphics hardware. It runs the computer and GPU through a few rendering programs at the highest possible resolution and gives a benchmark number. It is important to note that we use the same conditions and hardware (besides the GPU) when we do the benchmarks, so we can be confident the difference in results is purely GPU and not some other hardware. We also used the same version of the GPUs to be as fair as possible. For these tests we used MSI’s RTX 2080 Ti Duke, RTX 2080 Duke, GTX 1080 Ti Duke, and GTX 1080 Duke. Thanks to our partners at AMD, MSI, and KingSpec we were able to make a wicked system for the tests, here are our rig specs:
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X
MB: MSI X470 GAMING PLUS
RAM: KLEVV BOLTII 3200MHz 8GB x2
SSD: KingSpec M.2 PCIe NVMe 256GB
PSU: COOLERMASTER 650W
When we ran the 3Dmark test we came up with these numbers:
To the surprise of everyone MSI’s GTX 1080 Ti Duke outperformed the RTX 2080 in the Fire Strike test. That coupled with the GTX 1080’s very close 4th place compared to the RTX 2080 shows that the new RTX cards are not performing that much faster than the last gen cards.
3Dmark tests are fun for numbers people, but what about real-world utilization of the cards. Surely, we will see a massive improvement in gaming performance with the new GPUs? We set up a match of mega hit Fortnite Battle Royale from EPIC GAMES and graphics hog Battlefield 1 from EA to test each GPU’s FPS (frames per second) performance. For this test we had all in game settings on the highest possible.
Again, the team here at MyEinn was shocked to see the resilience of the GTX cards. Punching at above or almost equal to the much younger RTX 2080.
Value:
This brings us to the final question we have about the RXT cards, are they worth the money?
Today’s prices for each card is as follows:
MSI RTX 2080 Ti Duke 9,888 RMB
MSI RTX 2080 Duke 6,398 RMB
MSI GTX 1080 Ti Duke 5,800 RMB
MSI GTX 1080 Duke 4,200 RMB
If we do a simple analysis of the cost of the cards verse the performance, we have a clear answer. The price per 4k FPS is not in the new RTX’s favor. Of course these numbers will change when the drivers and games have time to take advantage of the new Turing chip.
Conclusion:
The RTX series of GPUs from Nvidia is an exciting moment for gamers and programmers alike. The benefits of Ray-Tracing (omg those videos!) will change how games look and feel for the next 10 years. The problem is there are 0, yes 0, games that even use ray-tracing now at release. We simply cannot use the RTX cards for what they are made to do. Buying an RTX 2080ti for 9888 RMB when two GTX 1080s (yes you can run two GPUs at the same time) cost 8400 RMB and would give you 120% better performance makes no sense. Early adapters and those of us who must have the newest tech will surely buy these cards up, everyone else should be happy to wait until the Ray-Tracing games come into the market in a year or two.
Pros:
Ray-Tracing will change how games look for years to come
They look really cool
They are the newest generation
Cons:
Games don’t use the new Ray Tracing tech
Really expensive
Drivers and games are not utilizing the full potential of the cards (yet)
This article is proudly brought to you by MyEinn, the foreigner’s tech supply company.
