Index
A closer look at Phoenix GS
Gainward went with a new Phoenix cooler design and we welcome it. We remember the great Phantom cooler which was used for top of the line cards in the GTX 980 series and some previous generations. The Phantom cooler performed well and was famous for the removable fan feature, as shown in the image below. However its 2.5 slot width was drawback for some users.
The fans of the Phantom cooler can be removed without removing the heatsink or messing with the wiring.
The new Phoenix cooler is shown in the image below. We’re talking about a two-slot cooler with a large heatsink and three fans on top. The two-slot cooler provides users the flexibility for choosing smaller computer cases, or it can be perfect for enthusiasts who want to use the card in three-way or four-way SLI setups.
The Phoenix cooler relies on two 8.5cm and one 7.5cm (middle) fan for good cooling.
Gainward added a bit of value to the GTX 980 Ti with a custom design and generous factory overclock. If you prefer an Nvidia reference design, you can find it also in Gainward’s portfolio. Next image shows Gainward GTX 980 Ti.
We missed the backplate on the GTX 980 Phantom card. The backplate is not used for the reference GTX 980 Ti too, but the GTX 980 Ti Phoenix GS card comes with it. It is not that much important for the cooling but the backplate adds much to the overall image of the card.