ASUS ROG STRIX GEFORCE GTX 1080 TI OC
ASUS is known for charging a hefty premium for the OC variant of its ROG Strix cards, and this one comes at an eyewatering $1,539.
Price aside, the ROG Strix GeForce GTX 1080 Ti OC is quite an impressive specimen. There are several usability improvements over the Founders Edition model – for instance, you get your DVI-D port back, even though NVIDIA removed it on its reference design. There are also two HDMI ports available, which makes it easier to use with a VR headset and monitor.
One interesting feature is something ASUS calls FanConnect II. This takes the form of two 4-pin headers at the front of the card, which you can connect to your case fans to allow them to adjust their speeds according to the GPU temperature instead of the CPU.
More importantly however, the cooling solution has been beefed up significantly, the better to accommodate the relatively high factory overclocked speeds in OC Mode. The cooler has been completely redesigned here, and we’re happy to see ASUS nally ditch the inefficient design that put the heatpipes in direct contact with the GPU.
This time, the six heatpipes draw heat away from the GPU via a nickel-plated copper plate, and ASUS claims this design effectively doubles the contact area with the GPU for better heat transfer. ASUS calls this MaxContact Technology, so while the copper plate isn’t visibly larger, the company says the surface is much atter, which is how it maximizes the contact area.
The large heatsink also increases the surface area available for heat dissipation, but its sheer thickness means that you’ll need a 2.5-slot allowance for it. Still, the same goes for most of its other competitors, so this is pretty much par for the course on 1080 Ti custom cards. A diecast plate sits on top of the memory chips and MOSFETs, complete with thermal pads to provide some passive cooling capacity. The heatsink also features L-shaped ns to provide more contact area with these pads, although you may have to sacrifice some degree of airflow compared to straight fins.