Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked

Two GTX 465s at 700MHz core each; that's almost 100MHz overclock on the core. What has it done for us this time around?

Published
Updated
Manufacturer: Galaxy
15 minutes & 17 seconds read time

Introduction




Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 02


We've almost done it all with the GTX 465; looked at it in single form, overclocked, SLI form and today we'll finish the quenelle with GTX 465s in SLI overclocked. I've already mentioned that I think this card in SLI is going to be the perfect combination for people who want to go down the Surround Gaming path, but the question is, can we have the same luck with overclocking when we throw two of them together?

Overclocking is an important aspect for this setup, as we mentioned in our original single card overclocking article. The mid range nature means that if we can get some extra power out of the setup at no extra cost, the overall value of the product is obviously going to go up.

The good thing is we're also very confident with the cards we have here from Galaxy with the single card showing us speeds in excess of 700MHz on the core without any voltage adjustment. Today we've managed to find out that we'll be seeing voltage adjustment in the near future, though, which means we're going to see even more power on tap. Once we've got that little ability on our hands, I'll make sure we reexamine the GTX 465 with Voltage Adjustment. Hopefully we'll get close to that 800MHz core like we did with the GTX 470.

Today's about two GTX 465s and an overclock. Let's not delay; we'll have a quick peek at what we achieved on the cards and then get stuck into the benchmarks.

Galaxy GTX 465 in SLI




When it came to overclocking in SLI, I really wanted to achieve a 708MHz core and a 902MHz (or 3608MHz QDR) memory clock. What this would've given us was a 100MHz increase on the core and 100MHz or (400MHz QDR) increase on the memory.

Unfortunately in SLI we didn't have that much luck; under some benchmarks we could get a complete run and others would freeze up. So we rounded the numbers off to 700MHz on the core and 900MHz (or 3600MHz QDR) on the memory.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 01


Just those few MHz shaved off the top gave us a stable run. While we achieved 725MHz core in our single card test, the fact that we're now dealing with two cards close together means we're going to get a bit more heat.

Not to take anything away from the setup, though, this is an impressive overclock nonetheless. Looking above, you can see we ended with a 900MHz Core, 1400MHz Shader Clock and 3600MHz QDR memory clock.

We want to see some good performance and we've got our fingers crossed these numbers are going to give us the numbers we want to see.

Test System Setup and 3DMark Vantage


[img]99[/img]

We would like to thank the following companies for supplying and supporting us with our test system hardware and equipment: Intel, ASRock, Kingston, Western Digital, Noctua and Thermaltake.

Compared to our stock clocked 465 SLI article, nothing has changed. We've just thrown the overclocked cards in amongst the GTX 465 in SLI, GTX 470, GTX 480, GTX 470 in SLI and HD 5870.

Let's get started!


3DMark Vantage

Version and / or Patch Used: 1.0.1
Developer Homepage: http://www.futuremark.com
Product Homepage: http://www.futuremark.com/products/3dmarkvantage/
Buy It Here




3DMark Vantage is the new industry standard PC gaming performance benchmark from Futuremark, newly designed for Windows Vista and DirectX10. It includes two new graphics tests, two new CPU tests, several new feature tests, and support for the latest hardware.

3DMark Vantage is based on a completely new rendering engine, developed specifically to take full advantage of DirectX10, the new graphics API from Microsoft.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 20


Straight away we see a nice boost in performance. The setup sits only just behind the GTX 470 SLI setup, which is impressive.

Unigine Heaven Benchmark




Version and / or Patch Used: 1 and 2
Developer Homepage: http://www.unigine.com
Product Homepage: http://unigine.com/press-releases/091022-heaven_benchmark//



New benchmark grants the power to unleash the DirectX 11 potential in the gift wrapping of impressively towering graphics capabilities. It reveals the enchanting magic of floating islands with a tiny village hidden in the cloudy skies. With the interactive mode emerging experience of exploring the intricate world is ensured within reach. Through its advanced renderer, Unigine is one of the first to set precedence in showcasing the art assets with tessellation, bringing compelling visual finesse, utilizing the technology to the full extend and exhibiting the possibilities of enriching 3D gaming.

Note: If a card doesn't support DirectX 11 the benchmark will be left out, if it does it will be included along with the DirectX10 results.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 21


Another clear boost in performance with strong gains seen across the board. Again we're just trailing behind that GTX 470 SLI setup; so close, which is very impressive.

Benchmarks - CINEBENCH


CINEBENCH

Version and / or Patch Used: Release 10 and Release 11.5
Developer Homepage: http://www.maxon.net/
Product Homepage: http://www.maxon.net




CINEBENCH is a real-world test suite that assesses your computer's performace capabilities. MAXON CINEBENCH is based on MAXON's award-winning animation software, CINEMA 4D, which is used extensively by studios and production houses worldwide for 3D content creation. MAXON software has been used in blockbuster movies such as Spider-Man, Star Wars, The Chronicles of Narnia and many more.

MAXON CINEBENCH runs several tests on your computer to measure the performance of the main processor and the graphics card under real world circumstances. The benchmark application makes use of up to 16 CPUs or CPU cores and is available for Windows (32-bit and 64-Bit) and Macintosh (PPC and Intel-based).

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 22


Nothing to get excited about here; keep moving along.

Benchmarks - Resident Evil 5


Resident Evil 5

Version and / or Patch Used: Demo Benchmark
Developer Homepage: www.residentevil.com/
Product Homepage: http://www.residentevil.com/




Resident Evil 5 is a survival horror video game developed and published by Capcom. The game is the seventh installment in the Resident Evil survival horror series, and was released on September 18. Resident Evil 5 revolves around Chris Redfield and Sheva Alomar as they investigate a terrorist threat in Kijuju, a fictional town in Africa.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 23


A boost across the board at all resolutions. The performance is a bit further behind the GTX 470 setup at the lower resolution, but as we climb up the resolution table the GTX 465 SLI setup closes the gap which is impressive.

Benchmarks - BattleForge


BattleForge

Version and / or Patch Used: Auto Patched at Load
Timedemo or Level Used: Built-in Test
Developer Homepage: http://www.battleforge.com/
Product Homepage: http://www.battleforge.com/





The Gods have disappeared and the old sun has died, letting a vile twilight engulf the world of Nyn. In exchange for all treasures the mortals possessed, the evil giants agreed to forge a new sun and hurl it into the sky.

But the deal was betrayed, the treasure stolen and now the mortals flee the wrath of the giants. Under the light of a new sun the mortals stumble into a world changed and twisted by an age of twilight. The long journey home has become a conquest of survival.

Note: Supporting DirectX 11 we have seperated the graphs for NVIDIA and ATI cards. While the numbers between the two brands can be compared you have to make note that ATI based HD 5000 series cards are running DirectX 11.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 24


Again good boosts across the board. While some might feel that 100 FPS averages aren't needed, now that we're talking 120Hz monitors we're in a whole new ball park.

Benchmarks - Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X.


Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X.

Version and / or Patch Used: Benchmark Demo
Timedemo or Level Used: Built-in Test
Developer Homepage: http://www.ubi.com/UK/default.aspx
Product Homepage: http://www.hawxgame.com/





Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X is an arcade-style flight simulator video game developed by Ubisoft Romania and published by Ubisoft for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and iPhone OS.

The fundamental gameplay mechanics are similar to those of other console-based flight series. Players take on enemies with over 50 aircraft available. Each mission is at real world locations in environments created with commercial satellite data. A cockpit, first person, and third person view are selectable. The third person view gives the player an external view of both their plane and the target.

Set above the skies of a near-future world, increasingly dependent on private military companies with elite mercenaries who have a relaxed view on the law. As these non-governmental organizations gain power, global conflict erupts with one powerful PMC attacking the United States.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 25


Big gains across the board and again the GTX 460 SLI overclocked setup is right on the tail of the more expensive GTX 470 SLI setup.

Benchmarks - Darkest of Days


Darkest of Days

Version and / or Patch Used: 1.4
Timedemo or Level Used: Built-in Test
Developer Homepage: http://www.darkestofdays.com/index.php
Product Homepage: http://www.darkestofdays.com/index.php





Darkest of Days takes the player through time into historic battles in an effort to save key individuals from certain death. The battles range from Custer's Last Stand at the Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876 to fighting in Pompeii as ash and fire rain down from an erupting Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. Other locations include the battles of Antietam and Tannenberg, and a German World War II P.O.W. camp. There are different missions in every time period and the game takes about 4 hours to complete.

The game features over twenty weapons, both from the original time period as well as those brought back from the future. In addition, there are artillery weapons from different time periods to assist in battle.

Note: With the PhysX set to Medium or High Darkest of Days take advantage of the NVIDIA PhysX abilities. For that reason we will test ATI cards at the Low preset, NVIDIA based cards though will be tested at Low and High.

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Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 27


With PhysX on we're seeing some big numbers across the board. Here we're seeing the GTX 460 SLI overclocked setup manages to beat out the GTX 470 one at the highest resolution.

Benchmarks - Far Cry 2


Far Cry 2

Version and / or Patch Used: 1.01
Timedemo or Level Used: Ranch Long
Developer Homepage: http://www.ubi.com/
Product Homepage: http://www.farcry2.com/
Buy It Here




The Dunia Engine was built specifically for Far Cry 2 by the award-winning Ubisoft Montreal development team. It delivers the most realistic destructible environments, amazing special effects such as dynamic fire propagation and storm effects, real-time night-and-day cycle, dynamic music system, non-scripted enemy A.I. and so much more.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 28


Huge numbers across the board. Very strong high resolution performance as well; this is great news for people thinking about Surround Gaming.

Benchmarks - Batman Arkham Asylum


Batman Arkham Asylum

Version and / or Patch Used: 1.1
Timedemo or Level Used: Built-in Test
Developer Homepage: http://www.batmanarkhamasylum.com/
Product Homepage: http://www.batmanarkhamasylum.com/





Batman: Arkham Asylum exposes players to a unique, dark and atmospheric adventure that takes them to the depths of Arkham Asylum - Gotham's psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane. Gamers will move in the shadows, instigate fear amongst their enemies and confront The Joker and Gotham City's most notorious villains who have taken over the asylum.

Using a wide range of Batman's gadgets and abilities, players will become the invisible predator and attempt to foil The Joker's demented scheme.
Batman: Arkham Asylum features an original story penned exclusively for the game by famous Batman author and five-time Emmy award winner Paul Dini, whose credits include Lost season one and Batman: The Animated Series.

Note: With support for PhysX NVIDIA based cards will be tested with the technology on and off, ATI cards will be tested with the technology off due to it not being supported on their cards.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 29


Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 30


Batman AA with PhysX off acts a bit weird with the overclocked setup. Turned off, though, and we again see some very strong performance from the GTX 465 SLI setup. Unfortunately we weren't able to get that minimum at 2560 x 1600 bumped up to 30 FPS.

Benchmarks - Dark Void


Dark Void

Version and / or Patch Used: Benchmark Demo
Timedemo or Level Used: Built-in Test
Developer Homepage: http://www.airtightgames.com
Product Homepage: http://www.darkvoidgame.com/




The game's story takes place during World War II and centers around a cargo pilot named William Augustus Grey (voiced by Nolan North) who is teleported to another world while flying through the Bermuda Triangle. In this world, known as the 'Void', Will encounters an alien race as well as other humans, which are known as the Watchers and the Survivors respectively.

Will reluctantly joins the Survivors who are engaged in a feud with the alien race to satisfy his desire to return to Earth. While aiding the Survivors, Will discovers that the Void is a middle ground that connects both the Watchers homeworld and Earth. It also becomes apparent that the Watchers are supplying the Axis powers with various supplies for reasons unknown. With the help of Nikola Tesla, Will utilizes retrofited Watcher technology to combat the Watchers and eventually find a way to escape the Void.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 31


Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 32


The non PhysX numbers are acting a bit silly again. PhysX on, however, and we see strong performance gains from the setup again.

Benchmarks - High Quality AA and AF


High Quality AA and AF

Our high quality tests let us separate the men from the boys and the ladies from the girls. If the cards weren't struggling before they will start to now.


Far Cry 2

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 33


A huge performance boost here. Again, right on the tail of the GTX 470 SLI setup.


Resident Evil 5

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The same impressive gains are seen here...


Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 35


...and here.

Benchmarks - Elcomsoft Wireless Security Auditor


Elcomsoft Wireless Security Auditor

Version and / or Patch Used: 1.51
Timedemo or Level Used: Sample File
Developer Homepage: http://www.elcomsoft.com/
Product Homepage: http://www.elcomsoft.com/ewsa.html




ElcomSoft has pioneered many software innovations that have made it easier to recover passwords protecting various types of resources. For the first time in the industry, the company's patent-pending GPU acceleration makes its way into Wi-Fi password recovery, reducing the time required to recover Wi-Fi passwords up to a hundred times.

Supporting up to four NVIDIA boards such as GeForce 8, 9, and 200, as well as ATI video cards such as RADEON HD 4000 Series and up, Elcomsoft Wireless Security Auditor allows building servers with supercomputer performance at a fraction of the price.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 36


Slightly better than the standard SLI setup thanks to the overclock, but no real surprise.

Benchmarks - Badaboom


Badaboom

Version and / or Patch Used: Release 1.2.1.7
Developer Homepage: http://www.nvidia.com//
Product Homepage: http://www.badaboomit.com/




Badaboom eliminates the frustration of video conversion by providing users with speed, efficiency, quality, and a sleek interface. In a practice that used to take several hours, Badaboom converts feature-length movies in a matter of minutes while keeping the videos looking crisp and clear.

By harnessing the power of NVIDIA CUDA-enabled GPUs, Badaboom offloads the CPU to allow users to continue browsing the Internet or checking email without decreased system performance, making transcoding high-quality video fast, easy, and painless.

Note: With the requirement for a CUDA enabled graphics card to run Badaboom, this means that we can only use NVIDIA based cards for this test.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 37


Nothing new here.

Temperature Test


Temperature Tests



With the TES 1326 Infrared Thermometer literally in hand we found ourselves getting real-world temperatures from the products we test at load (3D clock speeds).

There are two places we pull temperature from - the back of the card directly behind the core and if the card is dual slot and has an exhaust point we also pull a temperate from there, as seen in the picture.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 38


We ran the card at 90% fan and the temperatures were just crazy. The GTX 465 in slot 2 is the coolest running card to date; over 10c cooler than a GTX 470 at 100% fan speed when in SLI.

Sound Test


Sound Tests



Pulling out the TES 1350A Sound Level Meter we find ourselves quickly yelling into the top of it to see how loud we can be.

After five minutes of that we get a bit more serious and place the device two CM away from the fan on the card to find the maximum noise level of the card when idle (2D mode) and in load (3D mode).

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 39


And while the setup is louder, it's not too bad. Its noise levels at 90% were still better then the GTX 470 reference cooled model when the fan is set to auto. The Galaxy cooler impressed us on the GTX 470 and it's impressing us again on the GTX 465. R & D have really done their homework.

Power Consumption Tests






Using our new PROVA Power Analyzer WM-01 or "Power Thingy" as it has become quickly known as to our readers, we are now able to find out what kind of power is being used by our test system and the associated graphics cards installed. Keep in mind; it tests the complete system (minus LCD monitor, which is plugged directly into AC wall socket).

There are a few important notes to remember though; while our maximum power is taken in 3DMark06 at the same exact point, we have seen in particular tests the power being drawn as much as 10% more. We test at the exact same stage every time; therefore tests should be very consistent and accurate.

The other thing to remember is that our test system is bare minimum - only a 7,200RPM SATA-II single hard drive is used without CD ROM or many cooling fans.

So while the system might draw 400 watts in our test system, placing it into your own PC with a number of other items, the draw is going to be higher.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 40


No surprise that when adding a second card power draw goes up, but the overclock doesn't do anything to the load wattage. The idle does manage to jump a little, though.

A high quality 650 Watt+ PSU is going to handle a setup like this with no real dramas. If you're looking at a 700 Watt+ unit, you would be laughing.

Total Performance Rating (TPR)


Total Performance Rating

The TPR graph is a combination of all our benchmarks in which NVIDIA and ATI are on an even playing field. This includes benchmarks where PhysX can be forced off like Dark Void and Batman: Arkham Asylum, but not Darkest of Days.

The TPR number is a combination of:

3DMark Vantage, Heaven Benchmark V2, CINEBENCH R11.5, Resident Evil 5, BattleForge, Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X., Far Cry 2, Batman: Arkham Asylum (PhysX Off), Dark Void (PhysX Off) and our three High Quality tests which include Far Cry 2, Resident Evil 5 and Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X.

All of the benchmark results achieved are then combined into a single number. As this graph will grow over time and cards won't be re-tested, next to each model you'll find the driver version that was used when the card was benchmarked.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 41


The overclock does wonders for performance and catapults the setup well into the 50k TPR region which puts it in the same category as the GTX 470 SLI and Sapphire HD 5970 TOXIC.

Based off our TPR number, the overclock is giving us roughly a 10% increase. The numbers would've looked even better if we didn't have those weird results in Batman AA and Dark Void. It would also look better if we counted the increases seen in the PhysX tests which were very impressive.

Total Value Rating (TVR)


Total Value Rating

The TVR graph is the TPR score divided by the price of the video card. The price of the video card is based on the list price of the model on Newegg.com. In the event the card isn't listed, it will be based on the U.S. $ MSRP given to us by the manufacturer.

In the event we can't source a price from either, the product will not receive a TVR rating. As with our TPR graph, the amount of video cards on the list will grow over time and the price of the model won't change from what it was when first reviewed. For this reason the U.S. $ price that the card is based off will be included next to the name of the model.

In the event you want to find the TVR rating yourself based on the current price, all you have to do is simply divide the TPR number by the list price.

TVR numbers are rounded to the nearest whole number; 100.3 will be 100; 100.8 will be 101 and 100.5 will be rounded down to 100.

Galaxy GeForce GTX 465 in SLI Overclocked 42


Value of course goes up. While the setup is more expensive than the GTX 480, when overclocked its performance means that the price increase is warranted. Dual card setups are never greeted with value, but this setup's not too bad at all. It's not all that far behind the GTX 470 setup which is over $100 more expensive again.

Final Thoughts




I've already said that this is going to be the setup for surround gaming. Its strong high resolution performance is impressive which is exactly what we want when it comes to looking at Surround Gaming setups.

The overclock is good; the ability to adjust voltage while not present, it's coming and would've given us the 100MHz core increase and more we wanted, but we're not complaining about this at all. With some good airflow in the case versus the open test bench structure, you shouldn't need to run the fans at a higher speed to achieve the overclock which will be present.

The Galaxy GTX 465 has had a real work out from us. With the two cards we've offered over 150 benchmarks and given you a massive feel for the model. Everyone who has asked me over the last few days what I think about the GTX 465 has been told. That is, I think it's a great model.

What helps seal the deal is the price point. Honestly, another $20 and the model would've been looked at in a completely different light. The $280 MSRP is impressive for the performance you get and people who want to get in on the latest CUDA and PhysX performance are going to appreciate it as well.

While we can't comment on the reference cooled model, we can comment on the Galaxy GTX 465 and what we have to say is that the model performs well, is priced well, scales very well, overclocks great with no voltage adjustment, performs strong at high resolutions and runs a lot cooler, quieter while drawing a lot less power than launch higher end GTX 400 series cards.

Let's hope that NVIDIA can attack the other mid range models with the same strength. They've got the potential to take back no.1 spot and for ATI who do currently hold no.1 spot, there's only one place they can go and that is down. The competition is great for everyone, though, so let's hope it stays.

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Shawn takes care of all of our video card reviews. From 2009, Shawn is also taking care of our memory reviews, and from May 2011, Shawn also takes care of our CPU, chipset and motherboard reviews. As of December 2011, Shawn is based out of Taipei, Taiwan.

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