Ray tracing is the new big thing. Graphics enthusiasts primarily focus on the fidelity and framerate at which they can run high-quality ray tracing. But is the GTX 1070 card able to do ray tracing?
There is a technical cut-off regarding hardware that can handle ray tracing. Officially, the RTX cards are Nvidia’s ray tracing graphics cards. That said, the GTX 1070 offers a lower-quality form of ray tracing that is still a huge graphical performance boost.
The question is, is the ray tracing that the GTX 1070 offers worth using? Furthermore, does it improve the graphics quality in-game? So now, let’s take a closer look at the GTX 1070 and how it implements ray tracing.
What is Ray Tracing?
Ray tracing is a technology that mimics how light interacts with objects and reflects and refracts when striking different materials.
Only when ray tracing came along did reflections accurately represent the objects in an environment. An example is when the player looks at a reflective surface, like a pane of glass.
Where logic dictates that surface should accurately reflect the player. Instead, there is only a baked-in parallax image of the environment. It can damage emersion and doesn’t improve the overall graphics experience.
Ray Tracing in Real-Time
Ray tracing offers a solution by attempting to create reflections based on complex calculations of how light works.
The idea is the technology calculates light from a light source and then calculates everything that happens to that light as it travels.
For example, if the light hits cloth, there is no reflection. However, the source should interact with cloth the way it would in real life, by diffusing.
When the same light source comes in contact with a reflective surface, it should partially or fully reflect based on the opacity of the surface. Moreover, the light should reflect at an angle inverse to the impact angle.
It’s complicated, giving one a better idea of the power required to do such calculations and render the results in real-time.
Ray tracing can also calculate shadows, ambient occlusion, and more.
What is a GTX 1070?
A GTX 1070 is an enthusiast card from the GTX series of GPUs. Nvidia usually releases a new chipset in a few options. The 1070 and 1080 models are the top-of-the-range models.
The same applies to most Nvidia cards. Their flagship cards are identified by the number eight in the product name, and the less powerful version carries a seven instead.
To understand what a GTX 1070 is, let’s look at its history. The GeForce 10 series hit shelves in 2016. That is a lifetime when it comes to graphics cards.
The GTX 1070 had much of the same hardware as the high-end GTX 1080. The significant differences were clock speeds and VRam (video ram), which were inferior to the GTX 1080.
The series used a 16-nanometer chipset on the Pascal architecture. It ran eight gigabytes of GDDR5 video ram and launched at $379.
How Do You Enable Ray Tracing on a GTX 1070?
All you need to do is update your graphics card drivers to the latest version. The update allows you to toggle ray tracing in the Nvidia control panel.
Unfortunately, this ray tracing method requires a lot from your graphics card. The downside is that to get it all to work. You will have to run most games at lowered graphical settings.
Furthermore, the ray tracing you get using GTX cards can be low-res. That makes for a less immersive experience, and you are likely better off leaving ray tracing off.
Should You Buy an RTX Card Over a GTX Card?
The short answer is yes. The top-tier RTX cards crush even the most powerful GTX cards in performance. But that answer doesn’t fully cover the differences between RTX and GTX cards.
Graphics
Another vital factor to consider is your tolerance for lower in-game graphics. Many people aren’t bothered by what the lights are doing and want to play games.
Enthusiasts are a different story. If you are obsessed with new technologies and advances in rendering techniques, your tolerance for lower graphical settings will be low.
Price
Then there is the matter of getting bang for your buck. You could purchase one RTX 4070, or buy three GTX 1070s, run them in an SLI configuration, and have money left over.
New RTX cards cost a small fortune. But if you can afford to pay the recommended retail price, then RTX is the way to go.
To Conclude
Realistically, a GTX 1070 is still a powerful graphics card. If you are willing to forgo ray tracing, you should still get smooth frame rates on many of the latest games. Of course, you can experiment with your setting and see how well you can get ray tracing to run on your GTX configuration.
You may be disappointed with the GTX cards if ray tracing is essential. The best option for you is an RTX configuration.