Just six months after the Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 catapulted straight to the highest of our best graphics card rankings, we’ve now received the RTX 2060 Super. As you could have already seen in my Nvidia RTX Super primer article, Nvidia’s new Super playing cards are type of like their extra conventional Ti variants, but additionally not. Instead, one of the best ways to think about them (in all probability) is like supercharged ray tracing machines, providing you with a bit extra oomph for all that lifelike lighting and shadow gubbins they’re able to with out essentially having to resort to Nvidia’s upscaling/performance-boosting DLSS tech to make up the shortfall.
The RTX 2060 Super is, after all, costlier than its non-Super sibling consequently, coming in at £379 / $399 versus £310 / $349, however in case you’ve ever needed to a card that provides RTX 2070 ranges of energy with out breaking the £400 / $400 mark, this could possibly be simply the factor you’ve been on the lookout for. Here’s wot I believe.
Of all of the RTX Super playing cards, the RTX 2060 Super undoubtedly seems like probably the most engaging improve of the lot. Instead of sticking with 6GB of GDDR6 reminiscence just like the common RTX 2060, the Super model now packs 8GB of the stuff, placing it on a degree taking part in subject with each the common RTX 2070 and all the remainder of its different Super siblings. It’s additionally received extra CUDA cores than the bottom RTX 2060 (2176 vs 1920), a sooner base clock velocity (1470MHz vs 1365MHz) and a bigger 256-bit reminiscence interface, permitting it to churn by means of an enormous 448GB of information per second (once more, similar to the RTX 2070 et al) in comparison with its earlier restrict of 336GB/s.
You may nearly say, the truth is, that it’s successfully an RTX 2070 in cheaper (and significantly chrome-ier) RTX 2060 Super clothes. That would possibly sound like a little bit of naff deal on paper, however let’s not overlook that even the most cost effective RTX 2070 nonetheless prices £470 / $480 at time of writing, with many going for lots extra, typically ranging between £500-600 / $500-600.
To get that sort of energy for simply £380 / $400? Now that’s compelling, though I ought to be aware that AMD’s upcoming Radeon RX 5700 Navi GPU can also be set to sit down someplace between the RTX 2060 and RTX 2070 for even much less at $379. Unfortunately, you’ll have to attend till it launches on Sunday July seventh earlier than I can inform you precisely the way it compares to Nvidia’s new Super card, however evidently, it’s undoubtedly one to observe if what you’re about to learn beneath sounds prefer it is likely to be proper up your avenue.
But sufficient preamble. Let’s discuss numbers. Compared to its non-Super sibling, the RTX 2060 Super undoubtedly provides fairly the step up throughout each decision going. After placing it by means of my graphics benchmarking suite, I typically discovered it gave me a lift of round 10fps at 1080p, and between 5-10fps at 1440p and 4K. At all three resolutions, that’s like having the ability to bump up the standard settings one other notch whereas nonetheless getting the identical beautiful, clean efficiency as you probably did earlier than.
That’s a reasonably respectable bump on paper, however you’re solely prone to see or really feel the distinction in case you’re taking part in at 1440p or above. After all, the common RTX 2060 was already able to doing just about 60fps+ in every part from Shadow of the Tomb Raider to Total War: Three Kingdoms at 1080p, so except you’ve received a 1920×1080 monitor with a excessive refresh fee, you’re unlikely to get the advantage of all these additional frames.
Just just like the common RTX 2060, the RTX 2060 Super solely wants a single 8-pin energy connector.
Really, although, the RTX 2060 was all the time meant to be extra of a 1440p card than a 1080p machine, so that is what I’m going to give attention to most for the remainder of this evaluate. And boy howdy does it ship some good high quality of life enhancements. As hinted only a minute in the past, the RTX 2060 Super successfully permits you to nudge that high quality degree up a notch at 1440p, providing you with even higher efficiency on the higher finish of the graphics scale.
In Shadow of the Tomb Raider, as an example, I noticed a mean of 52fps wandering across the busy sq. of Cozumel’s Day of the Dead pageant on Highest with the highest SMAAx4 anti-aliasing enabled, which is sort of a bit smoother than the typical of 46fps I noticed on the common RTX 2060. The RTX 2060 can nonetheless hit 60fps on Highest once you drop its AA all the way down to SMAAT x2, all advised, averaging 66fps, however the RTX 2060 Super can as soon as once more carry that common all the way in which as much as 72fps.
It’s additionally much less prone to drop beneath 30fps once you activate the Tomb Raider’s ray tracing assist, too. You’ll nonetheless solely get the perfect outcomes at 1080p right here, however whereas the RTX 2060 solely managed a mean of 39fps (with lows of 24fps) with on Highest with SMAA x4 and Ultra ray tracing switched on within the game’s inside benchmark, the RTX Super bumped that common as much as 44fps and solely dipped all the way down to 29fps. Yes, it’s nonetheless not fairly the ‘Wow! Amazing!’ sort of efficiency enhance you might need been hoping for, however I’ll be going into extra element about its ray tracing efficiency in a separate article as soon as I’ve had a bit extra time to look it at extra intently.
After all, it’s these little bumps that may typically make all of the distinction in robust, intensive games. Take Final Fantasy XV, for instance. It’s fully unplayable on Highest at 1440p with all of Nvidia’s fancy results enabled on the common RTX 2060, with body charges caught between 26-30fps as I used to be sauntered up and down the plush hills of Duscae. The RTX 2060 Super, however, nudged it as much as 33-40fps, making it eminently extra playable throughout the board. The similar goes for once I solely had TurfEffects and HairWorks turned on, too. While nonetheless nearly playable on the 35fps-odd mark on the RTX 2060, I’d a lot fairly take the typical of 46fps supplied by the RTX 2060 Super (which, by the way, can also be a fraction nippier than what the RTX 2070 managed on the identical settings).
You additionally get precisely the identical ports because the RTX 2060, too.
The similar goes for Monster Hunter: World, too. Whereas I noticed a spread of 41-50fps out within the Ancient Forest on Highest at 1440p with the RTX 2060, the Super pushed that every one the way in which as much as 47-57fps, which is fairly good going contemplating the RTX 2070 is simply a teensy bit sooner at 51-63fps.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey’s Ultra High setting was additionally rather more inside attain with the RTX 2060 Super, the place it reached a powerful common of 54fps – precisely the identical because the RTX 2070. By comparability, the common RTX 2060 solely managed 47fps. It was an identical scenario in Total War: Three Kingdoms as properly. While the RTX 2060 managed a playable however typically uneven common of 44fps with the odd low of 39fps in its battle benchmark on Ultra at 1440p, the RTX 2060 Super bumped that common as much as a smoother 50fps with lows of 45fps. The RTX 2070 was nonetheless one other 5fps forward right here, all advised, however once more, that’s actually not unhealthy contemplating the distinction in value.
The RTX 2060 Super tamed The Witcher III’s 1440p Ultra settings with ease, too, by no means dipping beneath 63fps even in its densest White Orchard forests. Admittedly, that’s not fairly as nippy because the RTX 2070’s low of 71fps, but it surely’s nonetheless a bit bit extra comforting than the RTX 2060’s occasional 1440p potholes of 54fps.
The RTX 2060 Super’s crowning achievement, nevertheless, is lastly hitting a mean of 61fps in Metro Exodus’ tremendous robust Ultra benchmark. Only at 1080p, thoughts (at 1440p, you’re nonetheless a mean of 49fps on Ultra), however that’s nonetheless a complete 10fps forward of the common RTX 2060 in each instances, and simply 5fps-odd behind the RTX 2070. Add within the benchmark’s High ray tracing setting as properly, and also you’re just about precisely the identical sort of gaps throughout all three playing cards once more, with the RTX 2060 Super managing a mean of 46fps on Medium at 1440p in comparison with the RTX 2060’s 36fps common. Much like Tomb Raider, although, I’ll be doing a separate ray tracing investigation into all these playing cards at a later date (particularly now I’ve lastly received an RTX 2070 again in for testing after months with out one), so be careful for that very quickly.
The RTX 2060 Super is precisely the identical dimension as its non-Super sibling as properly.
Of course, till I understand how AMD’s Radeon RX 5700’s efficiency stacks up by the use of comparability, it might be silly to say, ‘Oh yes, you should absolutely go out and buy the RTX 2060 Super right now just because it’s successfully a less expensive strategy to get nigh-on an identical speeds to the RTX 2070 for a heck of quite a bit much less cash.’ I imply, don’t get me flawed. It’s undoubtedly a mighty tempting little bit of package for £379 / $399, particularly in case you’re after top-notch 1440p efficiency in any respect the best graphics settings. Plus, Nvidia’s new RTX Super bundle deal means you additionally get free copies of Control and Wolfenstein: YoungBlood with it, too, each of that are two extra confirmed ray tracing games that will help you showcase its fancy RTX tech.
The ball, then, may be very a lot in AMD’s courtroom, and I’ll have an interest to see whether or not it may well match as much as Nvidia’s cheekiest of gazumping techniques. In the imply time, although, we are able to a minimum of reply two questions: is it higher than the RTX 2060? Absolutely. Is it price spending one other £70 / $60 on? Almost definitely in case you’ve been lusting after the RTX 2070 whereas crying tears of jealousy over an absence of funds in your checking account.
However, additionally it is price remembering that the £250 / $280 Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti remains to be extremely good worth for cash if all you need is one thing for top-notch 1080p gaming and very succesful 1440p efficiency – simply take a look at my RTX 2060 vs GTX 1660 Ti comparability piece to see how shut it comes at each resolutions. Sure, the GTX 1660 Ti isn’t actually match for any of this ray tracing malarkey (see my GTX ray tracing outcomes for more information), however except you’re useless eager on having the perfect shadows and reflections and so on, the GTX 1660 Ti remains to be a mighty fantastic GPU for the cash.
The RTX 2060 Super does provide a worthy improve over the GTX 1660 Ti, however I’d solely suggest spending one other hundred-odd quid on it in case you’re completely useless set on taking advantage of its RTX tech. Otherwise, you’ll in all probability be simply as joyful saving your self a bit of money and going with the 1660 Ti as an alternative.
