Gigabyte GTX 1060 G1 Gaming 6G – Review

The GIGABYTE GTX 1060 G1 Gaming features GIGABYTE’s WINDFORCE cooling solution and in particular the WINDFORCE 2X because of the two fans we see here. Each 90mm fan has protruding streaks to cut down on noise levels.

Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 Architecture

The Nvidia GTX 1060 based on GP106 chipset, but with 2 Graphics Processing Clusters (GPCs) disabled, the video memory controllers remain. With the new architecture GP106 – GTX 1060 fully replaces the predecessor GTX960.

Model:	GTX 1060	GTX 960
GPU Chipet	GP106	GM206
Codename	Pascal	Maxwell
Process	16nm	28nm
CUDA CORES	1280	1024
TEXTURE UNITS	80	64
ROPS	64	32
CORE CLOCK	1506MHZ	1127MHZ
BOOST CLOCK	1708MHZ	1178MHZ
MEMORY BUS WIDTH	192-BIT	128-BIT
MEMORY SPEED	8GHZ	7GHZ
MEMORY BANDWIDTH	256GB/S	112GB/S
MEMORY SIZE	6GB GDDR5	2GB GDDR5
TDP	120W	120W

The memory for GTX 1060 doesn’t get GDDR5X, instead the card gets 6GB of GDDR5 running at 8Gbps. This delivers a total memory bandwidth of 256GB/sec. The GTX 1060 is rated at 120W TDP same as its predecessor.

Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 GPU Boost 3.0

Pascal also upgraded a new version of GPU Boost 3.0. The Nvidia GPU Boost 3.0 adjust the clockspeed for all voltage points  at the same time. It limits the highest stable overclock to the lowest point on the voltage/frequency curve. Each point on the curve can be adjusted individually. This means the weakest points can be overclocked to a lower degree while the strongest points can be more significantly higher clock speed. However, if your cooling system is good and you can maintain at the high point of the clock speed while playing high demand game. It’s same as temperature protection on the hardware when the core temperature reach the chipset recommendation limit and the GPU will automatically lower down the clock speed and voltage to prevent damage.

We’ll start with a product unboxing in the photo-shoot.

The Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1060 G1 GAMING has default clock frequencies of 1809 MHz (boost) / 1594 MHz (base) in gaming mode and 1847 MHz (boost) / 1620 MHz (base) in OC mode. The video memory has reference clocked 6GB GDDR5 / 8008 MHz effective data-rate on the memory. With the help of XTREME ENGINE software by pressing a button the card will go into OC mode and gets a 38 MHz overclock. That OC mode requires you to have the software active at all times, hence we will not use it. We test the graphics card at its default out of the box and thus BIOS settings.

In the box you’ll find:
– A User Guide and Quick Installation Guide
– Driver DVD

A closer look at Gigabyte GTX 1060 G1 Gaming

Gigabyte has redesigned their WINDFORCE cooling technology and adding RGB lighting for the Geforce 100 series. We were impressed with the component and the build quality. The next image shows the back plate.

GIGABYTE has used a large black backplate on their GTX 1060 G1 Gaming to improve their cooling on the PCB.

The WindForce 2x  cooler has two 11-blade 90mm dust-proof cooling fans (Power Logic PLD08010S12H) that are optimized for silent air flow. Gigabyte calls these 3D Active fans and claim that the raised triangle shaped edges help increase the airflow by up to 23% over a traditional smooth fan blade surface. The fans help dissipate the heat from two aluminum finned cooling arrays that are interwoven with two copper composite heatpipes that make direct contact with the GPU.

Display connectivity options include a DVI port, an HDMI port, and three DisplayPorts.

The card has a 120 Watt rated TDP, 75 Watts is delivered through the PCIe slot and another 45 Watts through the single 8-pin PEG (PCI Express graphics) power connector. [Notice: Gigabyte recommends a 500W or greater power supply for your gaming system]

The GIGABYTE logo is illuminated by RGB LEDs. GIGABYTE’s EXTREME ENGINE software is what you can use to play around with the lighting. If you’ve played around with LEDs on cards before then you know the drill. You can get it to pulse, flash, breath and other funky effects. [Feature video below]

Pictured below are the front and back, showing the disassembled board.

Let’s move on to take a closer look at the components on the PCB which are hiding under the cooler. On the left, we have the I/O back panel containing the five digital video outputs, followed by the graphics processor at the middle surrounded by six pieces of Samsung GDDR5 memory chips. The right side of the PCB sports a number of voltage regulation components (MOSFETs) and controllers. The card features a 6+1 phase power design that helps keep the MOSFET working at a lower temperature to provide stable voltage output for superior overclocking.

Another cool feature is the aerospace-grade PCB coating, which Gigabyte claims protect inside out with the thoroughly-applied aerospace-grade PCB coating to make it highly resistant to moisture, dust, and corrosive contaminants. The stylish metal back plate further strengthens the structure while giving the card a sleek, clean look.

 

Specifications
	Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1060 G1 Gaming
Graphics Core	GP106
Process Node	16nm FinFET
CUDA Cores	1280 CUDA Cores
Base Clock	1594 MHz / 1620Mhz OC Mode
Boost Clock	1809 MHz / 1847Mhz OC Mode
VRAM	6 GB GDDR5
Bus Interface	192-bit bus
Power Connector	Single 8-Pin Power
TDP	150W
Display Outputs	3x Display Port 1.4
	1x HDMI 2.0
	1x DVI
Launch Price	$495 SGD – 3 Years limited warranty

GPUZ

System Configure
Processor	Intel Xeon E5-2683 v4 -16 Cores/ 32Threads
Ram	Crucial 16GB Kit (8GBx2) DDR4 2133 ECC
Motherboard	AsRock X99 Extreme 6
Power Supply	Power PC & Cooling 850W Gold
OS	Windows 10 Professional Build 14936
Driver	372.90

Benchmark – Default settings 1080P

3DMark

3DMark includes everything you need to benchmark your hardware in one software.

Ashes of the Singularity

Ashes of the Singularity takes place in a post-technological singularity universe in which humans have begun to colonize the stars.

Valley Benchmark