ASUS Introduces New High-End DirectCu II Series Graphics Cards

btarunr · Feb 2, 2011, 05:55 AM

ASUS has launched an entire range of DirectCU II-enhanced graphics cards that include the latest technologies from both AMD and NVIDIA GPU rosters. On the AMD side, ASUS offers the HD 6970 and HD 6950 graphics cards with DirectCU II while for NVIDIA, the GTX 580, GTX 570 and new GTX 560 Ti all ship with the advanced cooling technology.

Based on ASUS DirectCU, which uses copper heat pipes in direct contact with the GPU core for up to 20% cooler performance, DirectCU II adds a custom cooler that uses twin 100mm fans for a massive 600% increase in airflow on HD 6970, HD 6950, GTX 580, and GTX 570 DirectCU II cards. ASUS has also launched the GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II TOP graphics card with dual 80mm fans for the best performance in its segment through doubled air power.

The new DirectCU II graphics cards also include exclusive ASUS Super Alloy Power technology, which uses a unique alloy formula in power components such as chokes, capacitors, POSCAPs and MOSFETs to ensure a 15% performance boost, 35°C cooler operation and 2.5 times longer lifespan. In addition, ASUS overvolting utility Voltage Tweak allows gamers to realize the full potential of their PC’s graphics performance with an easy to use and intuitive user interface.

The newly-arrived GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II graphics card from ASUS uses specially-selected TOP GPUs clocked at 900MHz by default, representing a huge 80MHz overclock over reference. This indulges hardcore overclocking demands out of the box, something gamers around the world eagerly anticipate.

Product highlights

ASUS exclusive cooling technology DirectCU has pioneered the use of 100% copper heat pipes that come in direct contact with the GPU core, removing the metal shielding usually used between the core and the cooler in traditional graphics card designs. Compared to reference graphics cards, DirectCU models have shown up to 20%* lower temperatures under load.
New DirectCU II technology is an evolution of the DirectCU concept. In addition to the copper heat pipes, it includes a custom cooler fitted with two 80mm or 100mm sound-dampened fans. Unlike other graphics card cooling systems that sacrifice fan size and airflow to maintain quiet operation, the quality engineering of DirectCU II technology makes it capable of deploying two large fans that still remain quiet and unobtrusive. Testing has shown DirectCU II results in up to 600% greater airflow and up to 20%* cooler operation than respective reference designs. This massive increase in cooling translates into an immediate performance gain, as the card can take on heavier loads. Users can also overclock the hardware further thanks to higher tolerances and lower temperatures.
Super Alloy Power technology is based on proprietary research and development of a unique alloy formula in critical power delivery components. Used in chokes, capacitors, POSCAPs and MOSFETs, Super Alloy Power technology boosts graphics card performance by 15%*, lowers operating temperatures by 35°C, and lengthens lifespan by 2.5 times when compared to reference designs. With added POSCAPs providing the most efficient power supply possible, DirectCU II graphics cards gain 28%* greater stability during overclocking.
All of the new DirectCU II graphics cards cater to the needs of power users wishing to experiment with radical overclocking and performance enhancement. Each ships with exclusive overvolting utility Voltage Tweak, which allows modification of the card’s power delivery for up to 50% faster clock speeds.
The ASUS GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II TOP features specially-selected and factory overclocked cores for maximized performance at 900MHz, an 80MHz gain over generic core clock speeds, which guarantees premium overclocking experiences for gamers.

HossHuge · Feb 2, 2011, 08:41 AM

They can have their dual fan design.

I like my ghetto mod on my DirectCu I. I put in an 80mm fan. My temps never rose above 65c in Furmark

KashunatoR · Feb 2, 2011, 08:50 AM

i want thiis gtx 580 direct cu so badly. does anyone know when it is coming to europe?

Hunt3r · Feb 2, 2011, 08:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HossHuge

They can have their dual fan design.

I like my ghetto mod on my DirectCu I. I put in an 80mm fan. My temps never rose above 65c in Furmark

http://img.techpowerup.org/110202/20...2 17.20.13.jpg

Nice MOD

Lionheart · Feb 2, 2011, 08:56 AM

I got excited for a second until I realized that I saw triple slot coolers, Sigh..............

W1zzard · Feb 2, 2011, 10:11 AM

got both cards here. testing the 580 first, impressed by the noise levels

Easo · Feb 2, 2011, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W1zzard

got both cards here. testing the 580 first, impressed by the noise levels

In a bad or a good way?

W1zzard · Feb 2, 2011, 12:17 PM

"impressed" is good

HossHuge · Feb 2, 2011, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W1zzard

"impressed" is good

May I use this as a sig?

buggalugs · Feb 2, 2011, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W1zzard

"impressed" is good

I just read a review for the 6970 which said load noise is good but idle noise is worse than the stock cooler?

http://www.ocaholic.ch/xoops/html/mo...l_lang=english

W1zzard · Feb 2, 2011, 03:42 PM

i read a review that apples taste good, i must like oranges too

garyinhere · Feb 2, 2011, 03:52 PM

mmm oranges!

[H]@RD5TUFF · Feb 2, 2011, 10:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W1zzard

got both cards here. testing the 580 first, impressed by the noise levels

Can't wait for a review!

SteelSix · Feb 2, 2011, 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W1zzard

"impressed" is good

never a dull moment

buggalugs · Feb 3, 2011, 01:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by W1zzard

i read a review that apples taste good, i must like oranges too

So, the idle fan noise is good on the 580 but not on the 6970? Maybe they set the idle fanspeed slower on the 580 or something.

WarEagleAU · Feb 6, 2011, 03:57 PM

Very good but I read something along the lines of the DirectCU interferes with the VRM or something? I cant really remember so I may be totally off my rocker here. I actually like the DirectCU cards. Tried to get my nephew to get one for the 5770 instead of the MSI Cyclone he got

samster555 · Mar 19, 2011, 04:07 AM

I have a ASUS 6950 Direct CU II card. I flashed it to 6970 and lost the origional BIOS. Apparently the switch on this card controls the display ports and does not have duel BIOS. The 6970 BIOS loaded and Windows 7 loaded and the GPU-Z showed the correct shaders for the 6970 card. However I did not know that ASUS used different memory in the 6970 and my system was very unstable. I found a 6950 BIOS on this site but not the ASUS Doctor software does not detect the card. Can someone please send me or tell me where I can get the origional BIOS for this card. Thanks

Feb 2, 2011, 05:55 AM	#1
btarunr Editor & Senior Moderator Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Hyderabad, India Posts: 14,983 (7.30/day) Thanks: 788 Thanked 12,899 Times in 5,650 Posts System Specs	ASUS Introduces New High-End DirectCu II Series Graphics Cards ASUS has launched an entire range of DirectCU II-enhanced graphics cards that include the latest technologies from both AMD and NVIDIA GPU rosters. On the AMD side, ASUS offers the HD 6970 and HD 6950 graphics cards with DirectCU II while for NVIDIA, the GTX 580, GTX 570 and new GTX 560 Ti all ship with the advanced cooling technology. Based on ASUS DirectCU, which uses copper heat pipes in direct contact with the GPU core for up to 20% cooler performance, DirectCU II adds a custom cooler that uses twin 100mm fans for a massive 600% increase in airflow on HD 6970, HD 6950, GTX 580, and GTX 570 DirectCU II cards. ASUS has also launched the GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II TOP graphics card with dual 80mm fans for the best performance in its segment through doubled air power. The new DirectCU II graphics cards also include exclusive ASUS Super Alloy Power technology, which uses a unique alloy formula in power components such as chokes, capacitors, POSCAPs and MOSFETs to ensure a 15% performance boost, 35°C cooler operation and 2.5 times longer lifespan. In addition, ASUS overvolting utility Voltage Tweak allows gamers to realize the full potential of their PC’s graphics performance with an easy to use and intuitive user interface. The newly-arrived GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II graphics card from ASUS uses specially-selected TOP GPUs clocked at 900MHz by default, representing a huge 80MHz overclock over reference. This indulges hardcore overclocking demands out of the box, something gamers around the world eagerly anticipate. Product highlights ASUS exclusive cooling technology DirectCU has pioneered the use of 100% copper heat pipes that come in direct contact with the GPU core, removing the metal shielding usually used between the core and the cooler in traditional graphics card designs. Compared to reference graphics cards, DirectCU models have shown up to 20%* lower temperatures under load. New DirectCU II technology is an evolution of the DirectCU concept. In addition to the copper heat pipes, it includes a custom cooler fitted with two 80mm or 100mm sound-dampened fans. Unlike other graphics card cooling systems that sacrifice fan size and airflow to maintain quiet operation, the quality engineering of DirectCU II technology makes it capable of deploying two large fans that still remain quiet and unobtrusive. Testing has shown DirectCU II results in up to 600% greater airflow and up to 20%* cooler operation than respective reference designs. This massive increase in cooling translates into an immediate performance gain, as the card can take on heavier loads. Users can also overclock the hardware further thanks to higher tolerances and lower temperatures. Super Alloy Power technology is based on proprietary research and development of a unique alloy formula in critical power delivery components. Used in chokes, capacitors, POSCAPs and MOSFETs, Super Alloy Power technology boosts graphics card performance by 15%, lowers operating temperatures by 35°C, and lengthens lifespan by 2.5 times when compared to reference designs. With added POSCAPs providing the most efficient power supply possible, DirectCU II graphics cards gain 28% greater stability during overclocking. All of the new DirectCU II graphics cards cater to the needs of power users wishing to experiment with radical overclocking and performance enhancement. Each ships with exclusive overvolting utility Voltage Tweak, which allows modification of the card’s power delivery for up to 50% faster clock speeds. The ASUS GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II TOP features specially-selected and factory overclocked cores for maximized performance at 900MHz, an 80MHz gain over generic core clock speeds, which guarantees premium overclocking experiences for gamers.

System Name:	Blackbox
Processor:	Intel Core i7-950
Motherboard:	Intel Extreme Series DX58OG
Cooling:	Xigmatek Aegir SD128264 with IC Diamond 24 Thermal Compound
Memory:	12GB ADATA Premier (3x 4GB) DDR3-1333 MHz
Video Card:	Palit GeForce GTX 680 JetStream 2GB outfitted with IC Diamond 24 TIM
Hard Disk:	Samsung 840 Series 250GB, Random 8 TB storage
Optical Drive:	HT-LG DVD-RW
CRT/LCD Model:	ViewSonic VX2450wm-LED
Case:	Cooler Master CM690 Window
Sound Card:	Creative SB Recon3D
PSU:	Corsair HX850W
Software:	Windows 8 Pro 64-bit

Feb 2, 2011, 08:41 AM	#2
HossHuge Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Taiwan Posts: 1,810 (1.01/day) Thanks: 513 Thanked 448 Times in 301 Posts System Specs	They can have their dual fan design. I like my ghetto mod on my DirectCu I. I put in an 80mm fan. My temps never rose above 65c in Furmark __________________ But they are useless. They can only give you answers. ~Pablo Picasso, about computers

Processor:	AMD FX-8120 @4.6Ghz /w Turbo-Core
Motherboard:	ASRock 970 Extreme4
Cooling:	JPower 1366-Ultra
Memory:	Kingston HyperX 2x4GB@1600mhz
Video Card:	Galaxy GTX660 GC + Sparkle GT610 PhysX
Hard Disk:	TEAM Xtreem S1 90G SSD + WD Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB
Optical Drive:	MSI BD-ROM
CRT/LCD Model:	Envision P2271WHL3 (Nvidia Surround 57601080) & Benq W1000+
Case:	SuperFlower SF-800
Sound Card:	Creative SB X-Fi Xtreme Audio/Logitech X-540 speakers / Coolermaster Sirus 5.1 headset
PSU:	Enermax Pro82+ 625W
Software:	7 64bit

Processor:	intel i7 920 d0 4.3 ghz
Motherboard:	asus rampage II extreme
Cooling:	noctua nh d14
Memory:	corsair xms series 1600mhz cl7
Video Card:	MSI gtx 680 @1267/7000
Hard Disk:	256gb samsung 840 pro + 2x 1tb WD caviar black sata 3
Optical Drive:	lg
CRT/LCD Model:	samsung s27a950 @ 120hz
Case:	thermaltake armor+
Sound Card:	asus xonar dx
PSU:	corsair ax1200
Software:	windows 7 ultimate 64 bit

Feb 2, 2011, 08:50 AM	#3
KashunatoR Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Romania Posts: 86 (0.09/day) Thanks: 10 Thanked 5 Times in 5 Posts System Specs	i want thiis gtx 580 direct cu so badly. does anyone know when it is coming to europe?

System Name:	"I2I3 Overclocking Team"
Processor:	Phenom II x6 1090T 3.2
Motherboard:	ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO
Cooling:	Stoock
Memory:	G.SKILLl Ripjaws 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1600
Video Card:	Geforce 9800gx2 EVGA
Hard Disk:	Sansung 500GB
Optical Drive:	LG
CRT/LCD Model:	LG
Case:	Box motherboard
Software:	Windows 7
Benchmarks:	Hunt3r

Feb 2, 2011, 08:56 AM	#5
Lionheart Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Sydney Posts: 3,415 (1.85/day) Thanks: 2,483 Thanked 740 Times in 527 Posts System Specs	I got excited for a second until I realized that I saw triple slot coolers, Sigh.............. __________________ A STATE OF TRANCE

System Name:	I'm Thirsty!
Processor:	i7 970 @ 4Ghz Hyperthreading On
Motherboard:	ASUS X58 Rampage II Extreme Motherboard
Cooling:	Noctua D14 \|\| 3x200m 1x 230mm 4x 140mm 2x 120mm fans
Memory:	12GB G-Skill Sniper Running @ 1600Mhz 9,9,9,24
Video Card:	HIS HD7950 3GB Overclocked @ 1000Mhz / 1400Mhz
Hard Disk:	Corsair FS3 120GB SSD \|\| 2TB WD Black Caviar HDD
Optical Drive:	LG 10x speed Blu-ray Burner (I never use it)
CRT/LCD Model:	27inch LG Flatron E2742 1920x1080
Case:	Coolermaster HAF X Full Tower Case
Sound Card:	SupremeFX X-Fi Sound Card
PSU:	Corsair HX1000W Modular PSU
Software:	Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
Benchmarks:	Gaming \|\| HD Movies \|\| Music \|\| Pictures \|\| Net

Feb 2, 2011, 10:11 AM	#6
W1zzard Benevolent Dictator Join Date: May 2004 Location: Stuttgart, Germany Posts: 13,770 (4.18/day) Thanks: 184 Thanked 10,218 Times in 3,161 Posts System Specs	got both cards here. testing the 580 first, impressed by the noise levels

Processor:	Intel Core i7-2600K @ 3.4 GHz
Motherboard:	ASUS P8Z68-V Pro
Memory:	3x 2048 MB Mushkin DDR3
Video Card:	ASUS GeForce GTX 670 Direct CU II TOP
Hard Disk:	Crucial C300 128 GB, WD6400AAKS 640 GB, WD15EADS 1.5 TB
Optical Drive:	BenQ DW1640
CRT/LCD Model:	Dell U3011 30", 2560x1600 + 19" 1280x1024
Case:	NZXT H2
Sound Card:	On-board Realtek HD
PSU:	Kingwin Absolute Platinum 550 W
Software:	Windows 7 64-bit

System Name:	Emperor's blessed One \\MSI CX620
Processor:	AMD Phenom II x4 920 @ 3.22 \\Core i5-430m
Motherboard:	MSI K9A2 Neo-F \\
Cooling:	Asus Triton 88, 2 x 120 mm \\
Memory:	4 x 2 GB A-Data DDR2-800 5-5-5-18 \\2 x 2 GB DDR3-1066
Video Card:	XFX Radeon 6870 Black Edition \\ATI Radeon HD5470 1GB DDR3&Intel GMA HD
Hard Disk:	Samsung F1 750 GB, Samsung F3 1 TB \\500 GB 5400RPM
Optical Drive:	LITE-ON DVD+-RW 22X SAW \\DVD+RW
CRT/LCD Model:	Samsung 2253LW \\15.6" 1366x768
Case:	Compucase 6A21BS-UG black \\
Sound Card:	Realtek integrated 7.1 , 5.1 Logitech X-530 output \\Pioneer SE-M280 ouput
PSU:	CHIEFTEC CFT-600-14-CS 600W \\
Software:	Windows 7 x64 \\Windows 7 x64
Benchmarks:	None and probably never... Though Heaven benchmark is beautiful xD

Feb 2, 2011, 12:17 PM	#8
W1zzard Benevolent Dictator Join Date: May 2004 Location: Stuttgart, Germany Posts: 13,770 (4.18/day) Thanks: 184 Thanked 10,218 Times in 3,161 Posts System Specs	"impressed" is good

Processor:	Intel i7 3770K
Motherboard:	Asus P8Z77-V Deluxe
Cooling:	Thermalright Ultra Extreme 120
Memory:	Corsair Dominator 1866Mhz 2X4GB
Video Card:	Msi 680 Lightning
Hard Disk:	Intel 520 240Gb/Samsung F3 1TB
Optical Drive:	Pioneer Blu-Ray 206BK
CRT/LCD Model:	Samsung S23A950D
Case:	Gigabyte 3D Aurora 570
Sound Card:	Onboard Realtek
PSU:	Corsair AX850
Software:	Windows 7 x64

Feb 2, 2011, 03:42 PM	#11
W1zzard Benevolent Dictator Join Date: May 2004 Location: Stuttgart, Germany Posts: 13,770 (4.18/day) Thanks: 184 Thanked 10,218 Times in 3,161 Posts System Specs	i read a review that apples taste good, i must like oranges too

Feb 2, 2011, 03:52 PM	#12
garyinhere Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: I'm roomates with Corey Feldman Posts: 1,253 (1.03/day) Thanks: 926 Thanked 785 Times in 446 Posts System Specs	mmm oranges! __________________ "We can do no great things, only small things with great love" ~Mother Theresa “I was offered pay and turned it down, so I can always claim I won't be bought.” -cadaveca “If AMD wants me to do a FX review, they need to send me a chip. I don't exactly work for free.” -cadaveca

Processor:	W3520 Xeon
Motherboard:	Asus Sabertooth X58
Cooling:	Cool it Vantage
Memory:	6gb Dominators
Video Card:	GTX 460
Hard Disk:	60Gb Vertex II 500Gb storage
Optical Drive:	LG Super Multi Blue
CRT/LCD Model:	LG 42LH40 42" 1080P
Case:	932 HAF
Sound Card:	Voices in my head
PSU:	Raidmax730/
Software:	Win7Pro64
Benchmarks:	Pretty High one's. but it's not a contest/ I just read them for the articles.

System Name:	White Boy
Processor:	Core i7 3770k @4.6 Ghz
Motherboard:	ASUS P8Z77-I Deluxe
Cooling:	CORSAIR H100
Memory:	CORSAIR Vengeance 16GB @ 2177
Video Card:	EVGA GTX 680 CLASSIEFIED @ 1250 Core
Hard Disk:	2 Samsung 830 256 GB (Raid 0) 1 Hitachi 4 TB
Optical Drive:	none
CRT/LCD Model:	1 Dell 30U11 30"
Case:	BIT FENIX Prodigy
Sound Card:	none
PSU:	SeaSonic X750 Gold 750W Modular
Software:	Windows Pro 7 64 bit \|\| Ubuntu 64 Bit
Benchmarks:	2017 Unigine Heaven :: P37239 3D Mark Vantage

Feb 6, 2011, 03:57 PM	#16
WarEagleAU Bird of Prey Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Gurley, AL Posts: 9,994 (3.98/day) Thanks: 3,810 Thanked 557 Times in 521 Posts System Specs	Very good but I read something along the lines of the DirectCU interferes with the VRM or something? I cant really remember so I may be totally off my rocker here. I actually like the DirectCU cards. Tried to get my nephew to get one for the 5770 instead of the MSI Cyclone he got __________________ =-TheEagle-= http://www.heatware.com/eval.php?id=62454 “You crazy? Surfing any website without an antivirus is like freaking with a dirty woman without protection” -OzzmanFloyd120 - Edited for content and clarity

System Name:	Boddha Getta
Processor:	AMD FX 6100 @ 4.432Ghz @1.401V
Motherboard:	ASUS M5A99X EVO AMD 990X AMD SB950
Cooling:	Custom Water. EK 240MM Kit, Supreme HSF - Runs 35C
Memory:	2 x 4GB Corsair Vengeance White LP @ 1.35V
Video Card:	XFX Radeon HD 6870 900/1050 (no OC yet)
Hard Disk:	WD Caviar Black 1.0TB, WD Caviar Green 1.0TB, WD 160GB
Optical Drive:	Samung SH22SL 22X Lightscribe DVD+/-R/RW LG BDRE Reader/Burner Lite ON Max Burner for burning Xbox
CRT/LCD Model:	Asus VH222/S 22: (21.5" Viewable) 1920x1080p HDMI LCD Monitor
Case:	NZXT White Phantom
Sound Card:	Onboard Realtek 5.1
PSU:	NZXT Hale 90 Gold Cert 750W Modular PSU
Software:	Windows 7 Pro 64 bit.
Benchmarks:	5.9 Windows Index rating 3D06 - 17472

Mar 19, 2011, 04:07 AM	#17
samster555 Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 2 (0.00/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	ASUS 6950 Direct CU II Origional Bios I have a ASUS 6950 Direct CU II card. I flashed it to 6970 and lost the origional BIOS. Apparently the switch on this card controls the display ports and does not have duel BIOS. The 6970 BIOS loaded and Windows 7 loaded and the GPU-Z showed the correct shaders for the 6970 card. However I did not know that ASUS used different memory in the 6970 and my system was very unstable. I found a 6950 BIOS on this site but not the ASUS Doctor software does not detect the card. Can someone please send me or tell me where I can get the origional BIOS for this card. Thanks

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