CES 2014: further details on EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition
At CES 2014 we had the opportunity a look at the GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition. It will probably feature similarly high clock rates as the GeForce GTX 780 Ti GHz Edition Gigabyte, which has a factory overclocking of 1.085/1.150 MHz. For the first time EVGA was able to explain to us why both the standard and Classified version have such conservative clock speeds.
Manufacturers get either complete baords with GPU reference design from NVIDIA, or have to buy the GPUs individually. However, they can only be tested being already soldered on a circuit board. Consequently, EVGA first builds the complete card and then tests its. This is the same for other manufacturers, too. Probably only NVIDIA have the opportunity to test GPUs extensively before they are offered to manufacturers in varying models (GeForce GTX 780, GTX 780 Ti and Titan) and then offered in accordance with the binning (selection). Would manufacturers promise higher clock rates, but only be able to keep this promise in 50 percent, they could not sell the other 50 percent. With appropriately conservative clock speeds, almost all cards can be sold.
A further reason are some guidelines by NVIDIA. Conditions are linked to the cooling, conditions describe the temperature behavior. The goal is to guarantee the base clock, which is a bigger challenge than to guarantee a certain boost clock. Furthermore, NVIDIA is trying to avoid being the culprit when manufacturers deliver cards that do not keep the promised performance.
A few more details on GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified K|NGP|N Edition: EVGA has made some changes compared to the GeForce GTX 780 Ti Classified. The card not only features an additional 6-pin connector, but also a few optimizations in the power supply of the PLL domain that should be conducive to overclocking. EVGA builds the card only on order and tests a clock of 1,300 MHz at the standard voltage of 1.2 volts.