GIGABYTE GeForce RTX™ 3060 WINDFORCE OC 12G

KEY FEATURE

rtx 3060 windforce, rtx 3060 oc, rtx 3060 oc 12g

NVIDIA rtx 3060 windforce Ampere Streaming Multiprocessors
2nd Generation RT Cores
3rd Generation Tensor Cores
Powered by GeForce RTX  3060
Integrated with 12GB GDDR6 192-bit memory interface
WINDFORCE 2X Cooling System with alternate spinning fans
Screen cooling
200 mm compact card size
Limited Hash Rate version

RTX 3060 windforce

CORE CLOCK

1792 MHz (Reference Card: 1777 MHz)

NVIDIA announced the GeForce RTX 3060 video cards to the public in January 2021 with availability starting February 25^th of that same year. You can check out our launch review with all the juicy details on the GeForce RTX 3060 here which includes 12GB of VRAM. NVIDIA set the MSRP of the GeForce RTX 3060 at $329 US, but custom partner models will be vary based on add-in-board partner builds and features. On our test bench for review today is the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 GAMING OC 12G  GV-N3060GAMING OC-12GD video card revision 1.0.

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 GPU is built using the Samsung 8nm process and based on the NVIDIA Ampere architecture. We have a total of 28 SM’s, 3,584 CUDA Cores, 48 ROP’s, 112 TMU’s, 28 RT Cores (2^nd gen), and 112 Tensor Cores (3^rd gen). The boost clock is set at 1777MHz. This silicon is coupled with 12GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus running at 15GHz and it provides 360GB/s of total memory bandwidth. The TDP is 170W for this midrange silicon.

GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 windforce OC 12G

The subject of today’s video card review is the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 GAMING OC 12G revision 1.0 version. The revision 1.0 version indicates that this is not a limited hash rate version. There is a revision 2.0 version which is a limited hash rate version available. This mid-range offering from GIGABYTE eschews much of that gamer aesthetic and provides a more subdued look compared to some other offerings in today’s market. RGB is still in the mix although to a much lesser degree than other cards, with a single area of illumination where the GIGABYTE text sits.

This model from GIGABYTE sits towards the middle tier of their GeForce RTX 3060 series product stack, with only the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 AORUS ELITE 12G with a 1867MHz boost and GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 VISION OC 12G with a 1837MHz boost sitting above the subject of today’s review. Moving past that we have the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 Eagle OC 12G with a 1807MHz boost clock, and its non-OC edition sibling the GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 EAGLE 12G rounding out the bottom of the pack with a reference boost clock of 1777MHz.

GIGABYTE GeForce RTX 3060 windforce OC 12G Specs

Specifications-wise, on this specific model, GIGABYTE not to stray too far from what the NVIDIA reference design calls for, with a slightly higher boost clock speed of 1837MHz versus the 1777MHz default specification.

In this instance we see GIGABYTE utilizing a triple-fan cooling system called the WINDFORCE 3X Cooling System with alternate spinning fans and a unique blade fan design with stripes and curves. The three unique 80mm fans utilize alternate spinning directions for reduced turbulence and increased air pressure. Atop of that, GIGABYTE has implemented what they are calling Screen Cooling, this is simply a pass-through for air in the rear of the card to allow for better heat dissipation. The heatsink extends well past the PCB to allow air to pass through both sides. This extends the length of the video card by quite a bit, the PCB itself is rather small.

Interestingly GIGABYTE claims to use a Graphene nano lubricant to extend the lifespan of the fans by 2.1x. This puts these fans close to the lifespan of double ball bearing fans albeit with a lower noise profile. We also see 3D Active Fan technology which allows the fans to turn off during low load or a low power game. Finally, GIGABYTE utilizes an automated production process to ensure high quality on the PCB and eliminates sharp protrusions of the solder connectors.

All of this is powered by a single 8-Pin PCIe cable, GIGABYTE recommends pairing this card with a PSU capable of at least 550 Watts.

GIGABYTE couples those fans with 3 composite copper heat pipe cooling system using what GIGABYTE calls Heat Pipes Direct Touch, in other words, the heat pipes make direct contact with the silicon die. This direct cooling implementation also manages to make direct contact with the VRAM via a large metal contact plate. Included with this model is a full metal backplate for increased rigidity. GIGABYTE has seen fit to increase the quality of the power phase design which in turn allows the MOSFET to operate at lower temperatures. Each MOSFET is designed with load balancing and an over-temperature protection design.

Gaming GPU Frequency

Before we overclock the video card, it is important that we observe and record the baseline GPU frequency one can expect from this video card. This information is important to anyone who doesn’t plan to overclock, to know what you are getting out of the video card out-of-the-box. Our process for recording the GPU frequency was to drive around in Cyberpunk 2077 at 1440p with Ultra settings while recording GPU clocks with GPU-Z.