GTX 1080 users: 1440p 144Hz GSync performance?

Hello all,

I am currently in the process of upgrading my gaming PC and thinking about making the jump to 1440p and buying a GTX 1080 & 144Hz G-Sync display. I mainly play online FPS games (mostly BF1 lately) and want to ensure I have a setup fast enough to take advantage of a 144Hz G-Sync display with max or near max graphics settings. Is 1440p with these settings a realistic expectation for a single GTX 1080, or would I be better off waiting for a GTX 1080 Ti whenever it releases?

I would personally prefer to stick with a single GPU. The last time I messed with SLI was back when the 8800GTX was released and SLI support was still hit or miss. I understand that SLI support has come a LONG way since then, but I'd rather just stick with one single powerful card whenever possible.

 

No. Wait for the GTX 1080Ti. The 1080 doesn't have nearly enough power to get anywhere close to 144hz at 1440p with the settings maxed out. I could be wrong since I'm playing on 3440x1440p which is about 30% higher resolution, but other than simple games like Overwatch, I don't think any game breaks into the hundreds when maxed out. I think I get 85~ FPS in BF1 maxed out. 60~ FPS in Rainbow 6: Siege. This is with the card overclocked to 2.1k on the core and just 10500 on the memory.

 

Well I'm getting those framerates easily in 1080p, but seeing as in some games I still need to dial some stuff down, even in 1080p, I really doubt that in 1440p you'll be able to pull it off with even a single GPU.

It's funny how they nerfed SLI, yet Monitor manufacturers are slapping us around the face with high res high Hz monitors no single GPU can pull.

 

1440@144fps is hard to get on max settings. However If you lower some video settings from ultra to high, its very possible. There many settings in game that visually do very little but can cost up to 30fps.

1st of all, if you willing to run low MSAA (x2 or none), you will get lots of frames comparing to x4/x8. There other very costly settings that might not do much visually, but cost lots of frames. Finding and disabling them will get you stable 144fps.
I play BF4 on 1440@96 fps stable on my gtx970. Some settings on medium, but most are on high. So I am pretty sure you can get up to 144fps without sacrificing much with gtx1080.

As you know, the beauty of Gsync or freesync is having smooth image with fps drops (110-160). If you want to run games stable on 144fps, you don't need Gsync. You just use Vsync(triple buffer preferably) or other way to cap fps and eliminate tearing.
I rather fear for CPU once we get to 144fps area. You can just lower some settings to offload GPU and get 144fps, but it's much more difficult with CPU. In most cases CPU load is static and there no options in game to offload it. So if your CPU hitting its limits before reaching 144fps, there nothing you can do, but overclock it further to get more performance. You can test your current CPU fps limit by running game on lowest settings. Problem is, you have to spend a lot to get better CPU, and its just not gonna worth it.
So again, that's where Gsync shines, it keeps game smooth no matter if your CPU and GPU drops the frames.

And yes, do whatever is possible to stick with Single GPU. SLI/Crossfire only good for benchmarking, and not working properly "in real life".

 

1080 is not enough for 1440p/144hz/max settings. And nobody exactly buys a 600-700 dollars card to go economic on game settings or lower msaa or use cheap fxaa.
Best bet is 1080p 144hz monitor, that's what I'm doing.

 

Thanks for the replies everyone. I was hoping that the GTX 1080 could reliably handle 1440p 144Hz with GSync , but after reading I will have to sacrifice settings, I may go for a 1080P 144Hz GSync display instead. I am looking for high framerates with all the eye candy. I also understand that 1080p will be CPU limited in some games. I will be upgrading from my current Xeon & x58 combo after Ryzen releases to help alleviate these issues.

It also upsets me to hear that SLI support is still iffy after all this time. Personally, benchmarks don't matter very much to me. It's fun to watch your new rig crush your previous bench records, but real world performance in gaming is what I'm after.

 

your old X5675 will never hold fps around 144 in bf1.

beside of that a gtx 1080 is a sweet choice fpr 1440p gaming.

 

First of all nice name you have second I have an 1080p 144 HHz monitor combined with an gtx 1070 and must say it realy is an joy in games I guess the Gtx 1080 will perform higher on frame rates but hey at that point I found it overkill at time of purchase Good luck tho with your new system !

 

If you tweak a few key settings you can increase FPS by quite a lot, like draw/foliage distance, AA, shadows. Its possible to make these tweaks with very close to no noticeable difference to the overall appearance of said game. Some settings are just absolute performance hogs.

Honestly your going to have to do this regardless of what single card you have. But yeah if you are wanting as close to 144 fps as possible at max/almost maxed settings, I'd just wait for the 1080ti... may as well, will be soon. The 1080 does perform very well at 1440 though, esp. with tweaks.

 

The 1080 is unfortunately not sufficient for 1440p/144Hz gaming with all graphical goodies kept intact. I dont think the 1080Ti will be quite enough either so I suppose it's up to Volta.

I personally have given up on 144fps and aim to get as close to 100 as possible. It's a good trade-off between fps/gfx quality/G-sync smoothness. If we take The Division for example, I had to lower a few settings so that my FPS would stay around 90.

Trust me when I say that I long for the 1080Ti

 

Sweet choice for what target? 50-60fps on 1440p max settings?
OP is asking for 144fps (or close to that) on 1440p and simply that's not possible with a single GTX1080.

And you're wrong. BF1 on DX12 is VERY CPU intensive. He needs a modern i7 with a good clock speed to for 120fps+

 

thats exactly what im saying, and you even quoted that :3eyes:

 

I have a 1440p 165hz monitor, with a watercooled/overclocked 1080. In bf1, with all settings on ultra, i get 100-120fps in game. It rarely ever falls below that, and usually hovers around 110fps. This is of course online multiplayer.

I am very happy with the 1080; coupled with gsync, u can max all games at 1440p and stil have a very smooth experience.

 

DX12? I doubt.

 

Dx12 isnt even viable in bf1, comes with no improvements.

My 980 Ti could handle 1440p pretty well in bf1 at high settings, 80-120fps.

 

dx11

 

you dont need 144 fps on a 144hz Gsync monitor. Thats the point of Gsync.

I play BF1 with 1080GTX and Gsync.

My setting are on ultra but no AA (dont like it)
I cap my frames to 140. and my frames is between 100-140... perfect for a Gsync monitor.

 

My performance in 1440p, max, without MSAA/TXAA/SSAA with 2GHz GTX1080:
20FPS in Watch Dogs 2
45FPS in Deus Ex: HR (sometimes gets even lower)
30FPS in GTA V (scenes with a lot of grass)
45FPS in Ghost Recon Wildlands (as low as 30FPS in cars)
50FPS in Rainbow Six Siege (2x MSAA)
55-60FPS in Witcher 3 (framedrops to 30-40FPS when camera gets closer to Gerald)


Good luck getting over 100.

 

My guess is there is something very wrong with your system. Have you considered either reinstalling OS or at least running DDU and reinstalling your drivers?

Watch Dogs 2 - I get ~80fps at 1440p with some AA and a fairly stable 60fps at 4K without AA
GTA V - I think I have most settings maxed except AA and run a solid 100-110 fps at 1440p
Witcher 3 - Ultra settings but Hairworks off and get 75-90fps
Deus Ex - I must check my settings but I got ~80fps after some tweaking

 

No, there is nothing wrong with my system. That level of performance is consistent across every high-end system I have ever seen. Remember, I am talking about max details . I will never turn details down, unless it is disturbing (like motion blur).