NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN - Aircooling vs. Watercooling EK-FC TITAN
Category : Aircooling vs. Watercooling
With their GTX TITAN, NVIDIA have a graphics card in their portfolio that ships with a rather decend reference cooler. Nevertheless we want to find out what difference a full-cover water block can make when you put it on a mighty GTX TITAN. For this purpose EK Water Blocks shipped a EK-FC TITAN waterblock and it will be interesting to see what is going to be possible with this block strapped to a GTX TITAN.
As we already mentioned, in this article we're going to have a closer look at the
possible differences between a watercooled and an aircooled GTX TITAN. For this purpose EK Water Blocks shipped us one of their EK-FC TITAN fullcover waterblock. First of all we're going to have a
closer look at both, the water as well as the aircooler and afterwards we will
run both cards through our set of recent games with stock clocks as well as
overclocked to the coolers specific maximum. Apparently we will also show you
some temperatures.
Gainward GTX
TITAN -
Watercooling EK-FC TITANI
EK Water Blocks has a beautiful full-cover water block in it's portfolio, which is compatible with NVIDIA's GeForce GTX TITAN graphics cards that comply with reference design. The block
establishes direct contact to GPU, memory as well as VRM area. This way you can
be sure there is going to be best possible cooling whereever it's needed. The
cooler EK Water Blocks provided us with has been made from nickel plated
electrolyte copper. Above the GPU there is a thin channel structure to provide
additional surface area, where it actually makes sense to have it. On top of the
cooper block there is a plexi cover and on the
right hand side you can see a brushed stainless steel plate. Looking for threads
we find G1/4 inch one's where you can attach a vast majority of fittings. The
threads have been cut into black POM acetal, which is a rather hard plastic
material.
Nevertheless it's enough to tighten fittings by hand to achieve sufficient
sealing and you don't have to use a gripper. In fact by using a gripper you can
break the plastic. Manufacturing quality on EK products
is exceptional. These blocks are just perfectly made and the looks are
breathtaking.
GTX TITAN - Aircooling
DirectCU II
In case of the NVIDIA reference cooler for the GeForce GTX TITAN you get a construction that is built around a radial fan as well as well performing cooling block, that sits directly on top of the GPU. The cooling block for the GPU as well as the radial fan have been fit to a base plate made from aluminium. This aluminium plate is in direct contact with the memory chips as well as the VRM area and it's taking care of also keeping these parts cool. If we look at the block sitting directly on top of the GPU then we find a rather massive vapor chamber, which is basically a huge heatpipe. Other than that lots of thin fins are in touch with the base plate and these fins get fresh air from the blower-type cooler located in the back of the card. Usually hardware manufacturers use vapor chambers only on high-end products and the reason for that is obviously that they're more expensive than standard heatpipes. Other than that makers choose this technology when there is only limited space avialable.
This is definitely the case with the GTX TITAN since NVIDIA was really keen on a sleek looking design.
[pagebreak]
Test Setup
Hardware
|
Mainboard |
- ASUS Maximus V Formula (BIOS 1707)
|
| CPUs |
- Intel Core i7-3770K @ 4.0 GHz (Turbo On / HT On)
|
|
Memory |
- G.Skill Ares Dual Channel 2x8GB @ CL11-13-13-31-1T-Auto DDR3-2400 MHz
|
|
Graphic Cards (Driver) |
-
GTX TITAN - Aircooled 1.15 GPU Voltage
-
GTX TITAN - Watercooled - EK-FC TITAN 1.15 GPU Voltage
- Radiator: EK CoolStream RAD XTX 360 triple
|
| Drivers |
- NVIDIA ForceWare 331.40 Beta
|
| Games and OS |
- Windows 7 x64 Up to date
on the
- All
games were up to date on the
|
|
HDD |
- OCZ Technology Octane 512 GB SSD
|
PSU
|
- Seasonic Patinum SS-1000XP / 1000 Watts
|
[pagebreak]
3DMark - Fire Strike
| Stock Clocks |
Points |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
8'396 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
8'568 |
102.05 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
Points |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
10'175 |
121.18 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
10'311 |
122.80 % |
| |
More is better |
3DMark - Fire Strike Extreme
| Stock Clocks |
Points |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
4'271 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
4'313 |
101.64 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
Points |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
5'273 |
123.46 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
5'417 |
126.83 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Unigine Heaven 4.0 Extreme Preset
| Stock Clocks |
Points |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
1'594 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
1'633 |
102.44 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
Points |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
1'866 |
117.06 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
2'006 |
125.85 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
BattleField 4
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
68.80 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
70.76 |
102.85 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
79.60 |
111.34 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
81.30 |
118.17 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
BattleField 3
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
96.40 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
96.80 |
100.41 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
102.72 |
106.54 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
104.31 |
108.21 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Bioshock Infinite - Benchmark
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
95.55 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
105.55 |
110.46 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
110.47 |
115.61 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
118.03 |
123.53 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Crysis 3
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
31.80 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
33.60 |
105.66 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
38.17 |
120.03 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
40.83 |
128.40 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Call of Duty Black Ops 2
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
130.20 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
137.50 |
105.61 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
167..93 |
128.26 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
173.55 |
133.29 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Sleeping Dogs - Benchmark
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
62.40 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
65.50 |
104.97 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
74.20 |
118.91 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
77.80 |
124.68 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
127.20 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
129.98 |
102.18 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
130.10 |
102.27 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
133.21 |
104.72 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Metro: Last Light - Benchmark
| Stock Clocks |
fps |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
39.94 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
45.86 |
114.82 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking |
fps |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
49.68 |
124.39 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
54.14 |
135.55 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Power
Consumption
| Stock Clocks - Idle |
Watt |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
47 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
47 |
100.00 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking - Idle |
Watt |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
68 |
144.68 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
70 |
148.94 % |
| |
More is better |
| Stock Clocks - Load |
Watt |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
306 |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
318 |
103.92 % |
| |
More is better |
| Overclocking - Load |
Watt |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
324 |
105.88 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
346 |
113.07 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Temperatures
Idle
| Stock Clocks |
Idle |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
32 °C |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
27 °C |
| |
| Overclocking |
Idle |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
35 °C |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
30 °C |
| |
More is better |
Load
| Stock Clocks |
Load |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
61 °C |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
40 °C |
| |
| Overclocking |
Load |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
68 °C |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
42 °C |
| |
More is better |
Battlefield 3
| Stock Clocks |
Load |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
55 °C |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
36 °C |
| |
| Overclocking |
Load |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
59 °C |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
39 °C |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Index
| Stock Clocks |
Index |
|
Aircooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
100.00 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 837 / Mem 1502 MHz) |
105.87 % |
| |
| Overclocking |
Index |
| Aircooling
GTX TITAN (GPU 1150 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
115.92 % |
|
Watercooling GTX TITAN (GPU 1185 / Mem 1850 MHz) |
122.06 % |
| |
More is better |
[pagebreak]
Conclusion
Running the card at stock clocks shows, that when we equipped it with the
EK-FC TITAN watercooler scores were on average 5.9 percent higher than with the
aircooler. This is actually already a solid hint, that the card started to
throttle with even the powerful NVIDIA aircooler, even at stock clocks. The
smallest performance difference we found with Skyrim, where
the watercooled card was only 2.18 percent quicker. On the other
hand there is Metro Last Light where we see that the watercooled card is no
less than 14.8 percent quicker.
Once we started overclocking the card, we noticed that 1150 MHz on the GPU and
1850 MHz on the memory were maximum stable clocks to run the card aircooled. In order to show there is quite some potential still
slumbering in the GTX TITAN, when watercooled, we overclocked the
card a little bit higher. In this case we ran it at 1185 MHz GPU clocks and 1850 MHz memory clocks.
Let's discuss the results again now. In 3DMark Fire Strike Extreme we see the scores
increase by 21.1 percent in case of aircooling OC and 22.8 percent when it comes
to watercooling OC. This means there is a gap of 1.7 percent inbetween aircooling
and watercooling, which apparently comes from the higher overclocking of the
watercooled version.
One value that was especially interesting at this point was Metro Last Light. In this game the watercooled and overclocked cards gains no less than 35.5
percent, whereas the aircooled and overclocked card "only" gains 24.3 percent.
On another note we had a closer look at temperatures. There is actually nothing
much to say then the obvious. Even under full load and overclocked the
watercooled card didn't get hotter than 42°C, whereas the aircooled version ran
at 68°C.
We want to end this conclusion with a few brief thoughts. Should you really have the funds to buy a GTX TITAN graphics card, then we can definitely recommend to go for watercooling gear too. Watercooled you can run you system cooler and quieter and there is also a little more headroom to optimize frequencies. Other than that watercooling adds to the exclusivity of your system, which might definitely something you consider when buying an NVIDIA GeForce GTX TITAN graphics card.
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