The 3000 series has been unveiled! Nvidia Geforce RTX 3080 is undoubtedly a phenomenal leap from the 2080ti for all those not wanting to compromise frame rates for resolution. In fact it packs new groundbreaking technology for the hardcore gamer according to Nvidia. And truthfully it is an explosive GPU. Before jumping into the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Specs Review and analysis, let’s take a closer look at the Specifications and see what’s new…
RTX 3080 Specs
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 upgraded most of the core counts of the 2080 astonishingly, so that the promised performance can be delivered.
- 8704 Nvidia CUDA
- 1.71 GHz boost clock
- 1.44 GHz base clock
- 10 GB GDDR6X memory @ 19 Gbps
- 2nd Generation RT cores-68
- 3rd Generation Tensor cores-272
- Ampere Nvidia architecture
- Nvidia DLSS
- PCI Express Gen 4
- VR
- 7680×4320(8K) maximum resolution
- HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a standard display connectors
- 4 monitor support
- 2x PCIe 8-pin power connectors
RTX 3080 vs 2080: Hardware, Benchmark
Feels appropriate to kickoff Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Specs Review from outside to the inside. The 2080ti was a well built graphics unit with good cooling conditions already. The engineers has taken it into another level with the 3080.There is a fan on either side of the card. It slightly makes you think of a air conditioner exhaust system although the mechanism isn’t exactly the same.
But the bottom fan pulls fresh air into the unit and the other fan exhausts the warm air. Some experts argue that this feature could negatively affect the CPU cooling. Although many have already said that no such thing was detected.
This new cooling system helps maintain the maximum RTX 3080 temperature at 93 C. This is the value on paper, recorded at the maximum possible configurations. The airflow is optimal and helps maintain a good cool temperature.
And the connector comes different too. The 8 pin connector has been replaced with a 12-pin single power connector. Some cable management issues are anticipated here. Although manufacturers have taken the initiative to construct single cables for 12 pin connectors.
The Turing architecture used for the 2000 series has been abandoned, and is replaced with the brand new Ampere architecture. The RTX 3080 has 28.3 billion transistors in comparison to 13.6 of the 2080 founders edition. But in a smaller area. Overall has improved ray tracing abilities and other hardware enhancements. We will attempt not to be too technical here, rather point out the improvements as fundamentally as possible.
The RTX 3080 has 30 TFLOPS. As experts highlight about 20 TFLOPS are assigned for graphics and games and 10 for calculations and other coding. Also the new dual airflow has given a redesign to the card. In other words, a new look. Nvidia believes the noise levels will considerably drop after this. Of course it is a bit heavier and lengthy than the 2080ti and there’s no RGB.
Additionally, Nvidia has dropped the USB-C VirtualLink port found in the 2080. We have listed the other connectors in the specs. However there are flipsides for every advancement. And in this case it’s none other than the power. Nvidia suggests at least a PSU of 750 W as RTX 3080 draws 320 for itself. Understandably so given the hardware advancements for improved performance.
Memory upgrades
This is a fact worth mentioning in Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Specs Review. Yes the VRAM is 10GB and at first impression it may seem more than sufficient. But just in a second we will mention how many game developers have initiated the inclusion of DLSS+RTX.
Therefore it might occur to one that maybe it would have been nice to have a couple of extra GB. As 4K gaming keeps moving forward and people are even talking about 8K, along with CPU upgrades. It might not be a bad idea for the RTX 3080ti to pack in some more VRAM.
Benchmark
The 3080 scored 22,350 User Benchmarks while the 2080ti managed only 187,055 User Benchmarks. Lighting effects, Multi-rendering were performed by an increase in frame rates at almost 200 more than the 2080ti. It is the same with the peak values. Better texture detail, better reflection handling. The average bench for the RTX 3080 stands out at 237% while for the 2080ti it is 178%.
Truth to be told the performance leap surpasses 20% from the 2080ti. The doubled CUDA cores, more bandwidth, faster VRAM are the contributors here. In gaming these hardware upgrades account for almost 50% performance leap than the 2080ti. Which means more FPS at 4K with maxed out graphic settings.
Technological advancements
A vital part of Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Specs Review. We are already aware that the RTX ability surpasses that of 2080. And along comes DLSS AI acceleration. Stands for Deep Learning Super Sampling, and Tensor core AI processors do the job. 272 of them to be precise. We know that resolution is a contributing factor for higher frame rates and vice versa.
DLSS allows you to generate beautiful images with sharp tracing at higher frame rates without compromising on resolution. Hence the talk of 8K gaming started raising its head. Nvidia addresses a feature called the Supercomputer Performance. They use the power of Nvidia’s supercomputers to improve the AI model. Using the game ready drivers this updated model is delivered to your RTX GPU. Then the tensor cores use the TFLOPS, in the case of 3080 about 20 to run the DLSS AI network in real-time.
You are allowed to choose several image quality modes with DLSS. That way you can balance quality and performance equally. This is done by the game’s internal rendering resolution. Full HD to 4K is enabled by Performance mode while 1440p to 8K is enabled using Ultra-performance mode. Fundamentally speaking this is mere upscaling using DLSS although the native game settings are lower.
And of course the Ray-Tracing is upgraded to bring more realistic effects into the game. Now with 68 cores, that is 48 higher than the 2080. Even the most visually intense, highly textured games are cinematic quality rendered and very life-like. And as far as most gamers are concerned this is the outstanding fact of the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Review.
Gaming-The real deal
Nvidia for the sole purpose of pushing the limits of RTX 3080 to the absolute maximum, configured the rest with the best. i9-10900K,64 GB RAM, 4K at highest settings. RTX is on with DLSS and ray tracing. Minecraft reached close to 80 FPS under these conditions. But the good news is that you don’t need to go as high-end as this. A good CPU such as the intel i5-9600K and a 16 GB RAM kit would still be enough to output most of the RTX 3080.
Experts have tested the RTX 3080 with the i7-7700K,32GB RAM, 512 SSD for frame rates between the resolution of 1440p-4K. As expected most of the benchmark games exceeded 100 FPS mark at 1440p resolution. And it was either maximum or ultra graphic settings. Some of the games tested were COD:Warzone, Metro Exodus, Shadow of the tomb raider, Fortnite. Even with RTX+DLSS most games maintained higher FPS relative to the RTX 2080. Metro Exodus reached 65+ FPS with both DLSS+RTX.
At highest configurations
Most experts tested this card with the best possible configurations so that there are no limiting factors for the performance. When rigged with the i9-9900K some games performed even better at 1440p. Games like Far cry 5, Shadow of the tomb raider exceeded 140 FPS at ultra-settings. And some others like the Forza Horizon and Final Fantasy XIV exceeded 170 FPS at ultra-settings.
4K Gaming
Well here we are at the peak of RTX 3080 performance. Even at i7-7700K with the help of 32GB RAM, the performance was steady and unwavering. At most instances the FPS was greater than or equal to 60. Only at times when the action was too much it would drop briefly for split seconds.
Shadow of the tomb raider, COD:Warzone, Destiny 2, Fortnite all exceeded 60 FPS at 4K resolution with maximum enabled graphic settings. In fact Warzone maxed out at 85 FPS! With the RTX 2080 most of these games wouldn’t go further than 40 FPS with the same graphic settings. Also Forza Horizon 4 reached 145 FPS and Far cry 5 reached 105 FPS at ultra graphic settings.
With Battlefield V and Control the RTX 3080 reached 80+ FPS at 4K with RTX+DLSS at ultra-settings. Both these games have major ray tracing effects and DLSS settings. Ambient colors, reflections are all part of it. Also COD: Warzone maxed out at 77 FPS with 4K resolution at ultra settings although DLSS is unavailable here. Games like Fortnite feel more organic and life-like with RTX enabled. And it maintains 54 FPS with DLSS and RTX at maximum settings.
These numbers will slightly drop if all the settings are turned ultra, but still you can promise yourself an incredible gaming experience. If you don’t enable RT and still use DLSS though, a rise in frame rates is definite. Therefore DLSS is truly an amazing feature for performance uncompromised on resolution.
Some games with DLSS+RTX
- Wolfenstein: Young blood
- Metro Exodus
- Minecraft
- Control
- Fortnite
- Battlefield V
- Shadow of the tomb raider
Additionally there are many games to be released soon with DLSS and RTX. Like COD: Black ops cold war, Cyberpunk 2077, Watch dogs: Legion.
RTX 3080 Price
This is the turning point for RTX 3080 vs 2080ti. The 2080 ti which began 4K gaming is priced at $1,199. But the RTX 3080 which offers much value is only $699 which is way more affordable.
Final thoughts
As you have read the RTX 3080 is an absolute phenomenal leap from the 2000 series. With the DLSS and RTX amplified, you couldn’t have asked for more naturality in games. I know that our sole purpose is gaming, but this is a clear winner for high end GPU oriented tasks too. Like modeling 3D figures, Scientific modelling, high resolution Video encoding. Last but not least this can be the king of all things 4K streaming. Let’s finalize Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Specs Review.
Needless to say, make sure you are equipped with a 4K, G-sync monitor with at least 144 Hz to get the maximum out of the RTX 3080. Perhaps something like the Asus rog swift. And a faster SSD something like the Samsung 970 Evo plus. Most importantly a well functioning cooling system like the cooler master hyper LED 212.
CPU is a slight bottleneck issue here, but I’m pretty sure anything above i5-9600K will suffice. Put together with the right motherboard and a 750W PSU you are diving headlong into an enchanted, addictive mode of gaming that you’ve never experienced before!
