Introduction
NVIDIA’s RTX 2070 is the most balanced in terms of price:performance ratio amongst the current crop of RTX cards. With the RTX 2080 and RTX 2080 Ti still sitting on sky high prices, the RTX 2070 presents a decent entry into the RTX realm without going past the current prices of last-gen’s top cards. This makes it more ideal to people comparing RTX prices to GTX 10-series cards. For those looking to get an affordable option that still manages to flex out some decent performance and also sport overall good build quality, many brands have crafted aftermarket-cooled cards that offer both at decent prices.
About the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070
The NVIDIA RTX 2070 is the third card in the NVIDIA RTX stack initial announcement. It was released a bit later than the RTX 2080 Ti and RTX 2080 and NVIDIA has set a starting SRP of $499 for the card. The RTX 2070 Founders Edition is priced at $599. Board partners have SKUs that start at $499 which is what NVIDIA has asked but will be able to make models that can go higher in pricing.
The RTX 2070 is a change in direction in terms of the chip segment. Previous GPUs of the xx70 lineage have been cutback version of the xx80 cards sharing a similar GPU e.g. the Pascal-based GP104 are used by the GTX 1080 and GTX 1070 which is joined later on by the GTX 1070 Ti. For the RTX 2070, it uses the TU106. The TU106 is basically one-half of the TU102 powering the RTX 2080 Ti.
The RTX 2070 features 2304 CUDA cores and runs at 1410Mhz base clock and can turbo up to 1620Mhz on reference cards. NVIDIA distinguishes their self-made Founders Edition cards for the RTX 20-series with a factory OC and the RTX 2070 FE will have a boost clock of 1710Mhz. The RTX 2070 features 8GB of GDDR6 memory running at 1750Mhz wired to a 256-bit wide bus.
About the PALIT RTX 2070 DUAL
NVIDIA asked board partners to send out their $499 cards and Palit is one to really get comfy in these price ranges. The Palit RTX 2070 Dual is a 2-slot height cooler with a dual-fan cooler. This is actually the only card we have tested so far to actually be a plush 2-slot height but with new motherboard designs allowing even up to 2.5x slot to be alright, this is really nothing impressing. What’s impressive though is Palit’s cooler of choice. The 2-slot cooler promises decent cooling even compared to larger fans or wider heatsinks of the competition.
The Palit RTX 2070 Dual requires a 6-pin + 8-pin power connector and features a light bar at the side just underneath the RTX logo. The card has no backplate as well and features a more conservative design on the shroud. Palit uses a copper
As for specs, the Palit RTX 2070 EXOC features stock configuration with NVIDIA reference clocks of 1620Mhz Boost clock on top of a 1410Mhz base clock. Memory settings are also similarly untouched.
Turing Architecture
The Turing architecture is a massive shift in chip design from NVIDIA and touts a great deal of changes to allow them to introduce key fundamental technology including their RT cores which allows real-time raytracing and the Tensor cores for AI deep-learning computation.
NVIDIA may say its realtime raytracing but as they say themselves, its a tough feat to accomplish and requires immense computing power. Still, NVIDIA managed to refine their RT core technology and birth RTX. At its most simplest, the RT cores’ only function is to calculate a ray’s behavior which computationally demanding. This, added on top of CUDA cores, provides simultaneous rendering of traditional 3D scenes with RT functions handed off to the RT cores as the CUDA cores would be hampered by RT computation if fed simultaneously.
The other addition to the Turing GPU is the inclusion of NVIDIA’s deep learning Tensor Core. These specialized cores are intended for AI deep learning functions like neural net building and training. NVIDIA has demoed numerous functions utilizing deep learning like recoloring a scene, predicting pixels and enhancing artificially upscaled image quality with increased resolution. That last one is particularly what DLSS is but as of right now, there’s limited gaming application for AI deep learning but devs have been quite imaginative in experimenting with it as NVIDIA has mentioned in some conferences and talks about the RTX cards.
Product Images
Test Setup and Methodology
Processor: Intel Core i7 8700K
Motherboard: GIGABYTE Z370 AORUS GAMING 7
Memory: Corsair Vengeance RGB DDR4-3600 16GB
Storage: WD Blue SSD 1TB SATA
PSU: Seasonic Platinum 1050w
Cooling: Fractal Design Celsius S36 AIO Liquid cooler
Monitor: Viewsonic VX2475smhl-4K
VGA: PALIT RTX 2070 DUAL
For a full-hardware workout, visit https://benchmarks.ul.com for our benchmarks of choice.
For benchmarking methodology please see our game benchmark method guide.
Frame rates and frame times of a 60-second game play were recorded using FRAPS v3.5.99. The test results are the average of 3 benchmark runs. Since this is a GPU review, we benchmarked the area of the games that put heavy load on the GPU.
All our test runs are repeatable, click the links below for area and details. Read our benchmarking methodology.
- DOTA2 – Kiev Major Grand Finals Game 5: OG vs Virtus.Pro (54:05 – 55:05)
- The Witcher 3 – Woesong Bridge
- Grand Theft Auto V – Palomino Highlands
- F1 2017 – Benchmark Mode (Australia, Clear Weather, Morning)
- Battlefield V – Nordlys
- Rainbow Six: Siege – Benchmark Mode
- Shadow of the Tomb Raider
See our Youtube playlist for benchmark sequences.
Note: Some proprietary technologies of NVIDIA like PCSS, HBAO+, and HairWorks work on AMD GPU’s BUT to maintain uniformity amongst GPUs, these have been turned OFF.
DOTA 2
The most popular game on Steam and the biggest competition in eSports; DOTA 2 is powered by the Source 2 engine. The game is fairly light on low to medium settings but maxed out with heavy action on screen especially during clashes can really stress most systems especially with Reborn update. This is a game where frame times matter as responsiveness is very important in high-stakes competition.
DirectX9 (default)
Best-Looking slider setting (Ultra)
FPS_MAX 240
Vsync OFF
1920×1080
2560×1440
3840×2160
The Witcher 3 – The Wild Hunt
CD Projekt Red’s latest installment in the Witcher saga features one of the most graphically intense offering the company has to date. As Geralt of Rivia, slay monsters, beasts and men as you unravel the mysteries of your past. Vast worlds and lush sceneries make this game a visual feast and promises to make any system crawl at its highest settings.
Frame Rate: Unlimited
Nvidia HairWorks: Off
Ultra Settings
Motion Blur: Off
Blur: Off
Anti-aliasing: On
Bloom: On
Sharpening: High
Ambient Occlusion: SSAO
Depth of Field: On
Chromatic Aberration: Off
Vignetting: On
Light Shafts: On
1920×1080
2560×1440
3840×2160
F1 2017
Set as the foundation of the Formula One eSports series, F1 2017 is a hallmark installment in the F1 sim-racing series as it expands previously introduced features and creates a great, F1 career simulation experience. The game is powered by EGO Engine 3.0 and features highly detailed cars with exceptional attention to environmental effects including those that simulate road condition and car condition.
Ultra High graphics settings
HBAO+
TAA
1920×1080
2560×1440
3840×2160
Grand Theft Auto V
The fifth and most successful installment to date in the highly controversial Grand Theft Auto series brings a graphical overhaul to the PC version of GTA V which many have lauded as a superior approach in porting a console game to PC. Featuring large areas and detailing, GTA V is a highly challenging application in terms of scene complexity.
FXAA Off
MSAA 4x
TXAA Off
Very High settings
Anisotropic Filtering: 16x
Motion Blur disabled
Advanced Graphics enabled
1920×1080
2560×1440
3840×2160
Battlefield V
Powered by DICE’s Frostbite 3 engine, Battlfield V takes the game back to World War 1 where the game offers a fresh, controversial take on this historic moment. The game retains Campaign mode which looks at various characters’ stories throughout the war. Multiplayer continues some of Batttlefield’s well-known modes but with the trend shifting towards battle royale format shooters, EA has also introduced Firestorm. Battlefield V still retains wide maps as well as mechanized warfare
DirectX 12
DXR Enabled
Future Frame Rendering Off
Graphics Quality: Ultra
Anti-Aliasing: TAA High
Ambient Occlusion: HBAO
1920×1080
2560×1440
3840×2160
Temperature and Power Draw
To measure both power consumption and heat, we stress the video card and record the peak values for heat and wattage. We use default values on the cards and stress test them using 3DMark FireStrike Ultra in 20 loops to simulate gaming loads and this is where we also base our power draw.
System power draw is measured from the socket. We substract the idle power draw reading from the load power draw reading to get a good estimate of what the graphics card draws. The reading is an estimated figure and is affected by other factors like PSU efficiency. As our stress load is not a power virus that creates unrealistic and extreme workloads, we take the peak readings from these test and treat them as equivalent to gaming workloads that the products may be subject to.
Temperature
Power Draw
Conclusion
Palit has really stepped up their game and this is their entry-level RTX 2070 and given the number it put up especially in 1440p, this is definitely something to consider especially for those looking for a reference performance card. Given that it has the slimmest and lightest cooler in our bunch, the thermal performance is quite good with only the ASUS’ heavier cooled option posting up better numbers. This also translates to better power consumption. Since this is a reference clock-based card, the power draw is relatively lower than those of overclocked cards.
Build quality has significantly improved over time for Palit. Given the entry-level status of this card and despite the lack of a backplate, the black custom PCB gives a mild hint of modern premium on this card. It does take away some points but knowing Palit, this card will probably cost the least in some markets and by the time prices have levelled, costing for an RTX 2070 will have reached their equilibrium and the Palit RTX 2070 Dual will hold a lofty place in the budget area of most bordering an older GTX 1080.
The overall appeal of this card is in the brand and while right now during launch most prices will probably be at their peak but come a few months later, and if ever AMD does come out with a competing card, Palit’s RTX 2070 option will be priced competitively it’ll be very difficult for other cards vying for budget option status to really compete in its market.
Overall, the Palit RTX 2070 Dual hits many mark as it offers excellent reference RTX 2070 performance for a good price. With most of the cards here hitting past $600 at launch or Php30,000, that’s quite steep for something that performs worse than a GTX 1080 Ti. Our price estimate pegs the Palit RTX 2070 at a more reasonable price range of around $550. If you want a decently cooled card with that puts up good, reference perforamnce, the Palit RTX 2070 Dual is a great choice.
Palit backs the RTX 2070 Dual with a 2-year warranty. We give it our B2G Silver Award!