MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G evaluation: the best-value Nvidia Turing GPU to this point

MSI’s model of the Nvidia RTX 2070 is in contrast to any of the opposite reference design graphics playing cards I’ve seen from the brand new Turing GPU era. The MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G is a card retailing on the base MSRP the GeForce workforce has set for the present entry-level 20-series, and meaning we’re speaking a couple of $499 (£460) card, with a degree of efficiency that places it simply forward of the last-gen GTX 1080.

But this isn’t the primary RTX 2070 we’ve seen in reference trim. Nvidia made certain that, in contrast to both the RTX 2080 or RTX 2080 Ti launches, we bought to see base degree graphics playing cards earlier than we noticed any of the flowery, overclocked SKUs. The Palit RTX 2070 Dual was our preliminary style of the newest 20-series GPU, and whereas its value/efficiency ratio was spectacular, it was just a little missing on the cooling entrance. But then that’s what we’ve largely come to count on from the reference-clocked designs of the Nvidia Turing GPUs.

Quite a lot of the fundamental RTX playing cards have include restricted blower followers, or simply relatively low efficiency coolers, and look… effectively, low-cost. That’s regardless of the actual fact they’re something however.

The MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G isn’t like that in any respect. In truth I needed to double test the itemizing and pricing of the cardboard simply to make it possible for it truly was an MSRP, reference-clocked GPU. This is a card that appears such as you’d be glad to spend $500 {dollars} on it. Okay, glad is possibly a relative time period. I’m nonetheless of the opinion that $400 must be the very most a standard gaming GPU ought to go for, however then I’m an previous man, set in my methods, and too busy shaking my strolling stick at these damned youngsters taking part in ball on the street to vary.

The Armor 8G might not have the bling of the costlier MSI RTX 2070 Gaming Z, nevertheless it’s nonetheless bought a pair of huge followers, atop a pair of even bigger heatsinks that make it just a little wider than a regular dual-slot GPU design. This model of the RTX 2070 is huge… greater than I’d count on a reference mannequin to be.

MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G specs

In phrases of the particular specs for the cardboard you’re wanting on the similar because the Palit RTX 2070 Dual we checked out earlier. That means it’s rocking the identical TU106 GPU – which appears for all intents and functions like an RTX 2080 Ti chip sliced straight down the center – with 2,304 CUDA cores, 8GB GDDR6, and a bunch of additional RTX silicon that no-one’s going to get any use out of for an excellent lengthy whereas.

But, seeing as we’re right here, there are 288 Tensor Cores inside it, for the AI, deep studying fun-times, and 36 RT Cores to make good with the real-time hybrid ray tracing. Fingers crossed Microsoft will cease messing round with its October Update and get it out of the door correctly earlier than it has to stay one other month within the title.

It appears fairly sure that that is going to be it for the intense RTX feature-set. The RTX 2070 is the base-level of ray tracing, until Nvidia will get formidable and tries to jam the additional silicon into both the upcoming RTX 2060 and even RTX 2060 Ti.

In phrases of the clock velocity, this RTX 2070 Armor 8G is utilizing the identical 1,410MHz base clock because the Founders Edition card, however has a barely decrease enhance clock of 1,620MHz vs. the Founders’ 1,710MHz. The manufacturing facility overclocked Nvidia card, with the funky shroud, does get to make use of a selected overclocking SKU of the TU106 GPU, with the reference chip not allowed to be boosted out of the field.

That doesn’t cease you from tweaking your GPUs clocks yourselves, and doesn’t have in mind the truth that Nvidia’s GPUs don’t actually pay a complete lot of consideration to their frequency scores – our RTX 2070 Armor 8G was fortunately working between 1,770MHz and 1,845MHz in-game.

That’s a contact faster than the Palit RTX 2070 and you may see within the benchmarks what distinction that makes within the total scheme of issues.

MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G benchmarks

MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G efficiency

Basically there isn’t a complete lot of distinction between the Palit and MSI RTX 2070 playing cards in terms of total efficiency. At 4K there may be nothing between them regardless of the upper in-game GPU frequencies, however that does change down on the 1080p degree. This is the place there is a bit more house between the efficiency of the MSI Armor 8G and the Palit Dual card.

And that 1080p degree is a contact extra important than you would possibly suppose. Generally for this kind of $500 card I’d be recommending you have to be gaming at 1440p and making the most of the elevated visible constancy that step up in decision can supply. But it was solely on the 1080p degree the place the primary RTX 2070 we examined often got here up quick towards the older, cheaper GTX 1080 of the Pascal era, in any other case it was comfortably forward.

The additional little little bit of GPU efficiency contained in the chunky MSI RTX 2070, nonetheless, permits it to be quicker throughout the board in contrast with Nvidia’s last-gen hero. And that’s nonetheless with the costs roughly the identical.

And bear in mind, the GTX 1080 is quickly going to finish up being priced out of relevance as soon as inventory dwindles to the purpose the place there are only a handful floating round Amazon.

But it’s not simply the slight gaming efficiency lead that places this MSI card forward of the Palit providing. That chunkier cooler additionally comes into play, delivering a GPU that solely ever will get as much as 65°C underneath normal load. And it additionally will get MSI’s 0dB fan design too, which means they don’t spin in any respect till you hit a sure temperature. Essentially, when the GPU isn’t being taxed, the graphics card stays utterly silent.

MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G verdict

Not solely is the RTX 2070 a quicker gaming graphics card than the GTX 1080, it’s additionally a contact leaner by way of energy draw, and this MSI chiller retains it cooler than the most affordable GTX 1080s too. And there may be the, presently relatively ephemeral, spectre of real-time ray tracing and deep studying performance-boosting looming tantalising out of attain over the horizon too.

The promise of utilizing AI to enhance not solely the constancy, however the efficiency of our games, is arguably extra necessary than the primary era of real-time ray traced shadows or reflections. The Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) characteristic baked into the Turing GPUs means these Tensor Cores get to flex their muscle mass, and make games look higher on the fly as a result of the GPU is aware of how good it may possibly look.

And the actual fact you’re getting all this (or shall be getting all this at some unspecified time sooner or later) for across the similar value as a GTX 1080 is fairly nice. The reference-clocked RTX 2070 GPUs are the place it’s at within the sub-$500 graphics card market, and this MSI RTX 2070 Armor 8G is wanting like the most effective of the bunch to this point.