Review: Palit GTX 680 Jetstream 2GB

Nvidia launched their consumer GeForce Kepler architecture, the GTX 680, somewhere around May and who knew that Palit was fast enough to push out a non-reference GTX 680 design that's integrated into their Jetstream series. Do you like the sound of an overhauled 6-phase PWM and sexy blue LED lighting? Read to see what Palit has to offer.


At first glance, you'll notice that the Jetstream version is slim enough to squeeze within two slots and gives power users the option to go 4-way SLi as long as you have a motherboard that's big enough. The triple fan cooler setup allows for maximum airflow and live up to the chinese word "feng" imprinted on its box. A lot of wind in that only means less hotspots and chances of overheating. The black and gold scheme is thankfully not too flashy.



Instead of the usual 6 + 6 pin on reference designs, this one uses a 8 + 6 pin PCIe power connector so make sure you've got the right PSU capacity or your excitement could turtle all the way down.



As always the I/O features HDMI/DP ports and dual DVI connection.This card is potentially able to handle up to 3 screens at 1920 x 1200 @ 60Hz, with some slight hampering due to the small 2GB memory size. I'd recommend the 4GB version should you ever decide to have that much screens at one time, or simply get two cards. Better still two cards with 4GB each.

with that much heat control, Palit has taken the liberty of factory overclocking it by an extra 80 - 100 MHZ on the core and 75 MHz with the memory. For a single-card with a 27-inch screen, you are as good as gold.

Inside the box, you'll receive the 6-pin to 8-pin splitter(good for those who have run out of power outlets in your PSU), a HDMI to DVI-D converter, and a DVI to analog VGA dongle(what world do VGA users live in?).

Upon booting up the PC after installing the card, the three fans produce almost no noise at all. If you're wondering why we're making a mention, it's because there have been cases where cards vent out heat by increasing the fan speed to a point where you can't hear a your friend whom you're skyping. With the Jetstream integration this isn't the case. Moreover, the fans purr in a soothing hum when the graphics intensive games begin.

Since Diablo III was the latest game to hit our desk, we took the 680 GTX for a spin with it. Settings were all set to max, with the FPS limit unchecked to allow the card as much room to perform as possible. In the screenshot below, you'll clearly see that the performance is nothing short of impressive.









Here's another sample famerate from Star Wars: The Old Republic


Temperature wise I'm not going to bore you with figures and numbers but hit right on the head - you won't feel much heat with three fans doing all the work. Of course additional variables like proper ventilation of your casing and such will go a long way into bringing the heat down. However for the 680 GTX Jetstream, you wont be able to feel a thing.

Conclusion

The one thing we love about the Palit Jetstream series is how they're able to bring you a 680 GTX with great cooling and still match price with a normal reference 680 GTX card. If you are the kind who wants a really good graphics processor but don't have the extra energy to work out a proper cooling system, this would be the ideal card to get. Furthermore, you're also getting a slightly over-clocked GPU. That's always a good thing.