A few days ago we reviewed the Asus ROG RTX Strix 2070 OC, the low-end of the current Turing line-up. Now, we are going to take a closer look at the Asus ROG RTX Strix 2080 OC, the second-fastest Turing GPU and only second to the RTX 2080 Ti. At the time of writing, the GPU sold for around 950 Euros (~$1083) in Europe, and US prices were not yet available. In other words: It was around 300 Euros (~$342) more expensive than the RTX 2070 but still a whopping 500 Euros (~$570) cheaper than the 2080 Ti. At 1,450 Euros (~$1653) the latter is even more expensive than the Nvidia Titan X when it was first launched.

Asus ROG provided us with an ROG RTX Strix 2080 OC sample. It is one of the fastest GPUs currently available. It is overclocked by default and offers an impressive gaming performance. Its massive cooler is not only capable of keeping it cool under sustained load but was also pleasantly quiet.

External displays can be attached via 2x DisplayPort 1.4, 2x HDMI 2.0b, or USB-C for VR devices. Internally, two 8-pin connectors are required, and both the RTX 2080 and RTX 2080 Ti support dual GPUs via the newer so-called NVLink connector, the successor to SLI.

The Asus ROG RTX Strix 2080 OC runs faster than Nvidia’s Founders Edition. With a turbo boost of 1,890 MHz in OC mode it clocked 90 MHz higher. Two other modes can be selected with Asus GPU Tweak: a Silent mode (1,830 MHz) and a Gaming mode (1,860 MHz). The modes also modify the power target, from 110% in OC mode to 100% in Gaming mode and 90% in Silent mode. As it sits right in-between OC and Silent mode we decided to run all of our tests and benchmark in Gaming mode.

In addition to these three presets you can obviously also manipulate clock speeds manually.

A special feature is the ROG RTX Strix 2080 OC’s dual BIOS featuring a Performance mode and a Quiet mode. The fans are always on in Performance mode, resulting in higher noise emissions when idle. In return, temperatures were lower. In Quiet mode the fan is off until a temperature threshold of 55 °C is reached. We ran all of our tests and benchmarks in Performance mode.

Since we ran the GPU in Performance mode the fans were always on, and as a result the GPU was always audible. When idle, the fans ran at 23% or 800-900 RPM. Under load in Gaming mode, they ramped up to 51% and became very noticeable. Thanks to its three axial fans the noise emitted was much more pleasant than on previous generations with radial fans.

Given the higher power target in OC mode the GPU got slightly warmer as well, and the fans ran at around 2,000 RPM. Accordingly, they have plenty of wiggle room (45%) for those dreaded hot summer days.

The highest temperature we were able to measure was just 67 °C. Keep in mind though that we used an open case during our tests. A closed case is going to require adequate ventilation to keep the GPU cool and prevent heat accumulation.

At just 67 °C at an increased power target of 125% Asus chose the right cooler for the job.

Power consumption in Gaming mode was slightly higher than for the Founders Edition (240 vs. 225 W). In OC mode and the associated increased power target HWinFo reported an average of 264 W under load. Increasing the power target to 125% resulted in an average power consumption of 291 W with short peaks above 300 W.

Using a calibrated Metrahit Energy power meter we also determined whole-system power consumption. When idle, the power meter read 99 W. When gaming, it read 380 W. Both measurements were taken without the monitor. The game chosen for this test was The Witcher 3 in 1080p (High preset).