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What Does GTX Stand For? All About GTX Graphics Cards

Today raytracing is the big craze among hardcore gamers. It’s no surprise, as it adds a new layer of realism to gaming. However, raytracing is not the first major technology in gaming; with each breakthrough comes the hardware to make it all possible.

GTX stands for Giga Texel Shader eXtreme. The moniker marked a new transition in the performance of Nvidia graphics cards. This established Nvidia as an increasingly relevant player in the graphic card market. GTX cards are great value for money, while RTX remain the relatively premium option.

The new RTX cards have since become the most sought-after graphics cards on the market. So does that mean that the GTX platform is obsolete? That is a difficult question to answer. To understand why, let’s take a closer look at the GTX platform and how it differs from the RTX range. 

What Does GTX Stand For? 

GTX 1080ti

GTX stands for Giga Texel Shader eXtreme. A texel is a “texture pixel.” When your graphics card renders a frame, texels are the individual texture pixels that get mapped onto the polygons and, by extension, 3D objects in the scene. That process is called texture mapping.

For the most part, the GTX series of graphics cards represented a leap in general performance. Before “GTX,” NVidia’s hi-performance graphics cards got branded as “GT,” or Giga Texel.

The importance of texture mapping and the number of texels in an image are arguably more impactful to graphic fidelity than any environmental effects (lighting, etc.) 

What are the Features of GTX Cards?

Each generation of graphical hardware brings something to the table. With most, it is just a matter of “more.” They are similar to previous models, except the numbers are bigger. However, occasionally hardware offers brand-new features that change everything.

So, was the GTX platform a game-changer? 

It packed a punch, particularly regarding rendering power for the time. The new DirectX API was a game changer by itself. But the GTX didn’t change the way games were played. So it wasn’t a revolution. Instead, it was a giant leap in the evolution of gaming and graphics cards. 

Let’s look at the features that come with most GTX graphics cards:

Kepler GPU Architecture

The new Kepler GPU was designed with the DirectX 11 API in mind, introducing several new features unavailable on previous versions of DirectX.

The Kepler GPUs were marketed as being twice as fast as their predecessors while boasting better efficiency. NVidia claimed that GTX cards made better use of each watt.

NVIDIA Adaptive Vertical Sync

Frames-per-second is the most important benchmark for most gamers. Unfortunately, higher framerates also mean screen tearing. Every gamer has seen the ugly, distracting tearing while running a game at maximum fps. 

To address the issue, you need a feature called V-sinc. However, this could contribute to stuttered frames at a lower frame rate. 

Nvidia’s adaptive vertical sync resolves the problem by activating at high framerates and automatically deactivating at low framerates.

NVIDIA Surround with Up to Four Monitors

At first, you may ask why anyone would want or need multiple desktop monitors. One reason is that you can play games across three monitors for an ultra-wide screen experience at 5760 x 1080. 

Furthermore, a multi-screen desktop can improve the workflow of creatives like designers, musicians, and digital artists. But that extra horizontal resolution requires a lot of GPU power.

We mentioned up to four screens at once, but playing across four screens doesn’t make sense for gaming. However, it makes sense if you run background apps on which you need to keep an eye, like your emails or day planner.

FXAA and TXAA

One of the more frustrating experiences in gaming is jagged edges. These edges are the result of the way that monitors get made, or more specifically, the square pixels that they use. 

Fortunately, a technology called antialiasing can rectify the problem. However, there are different antialiasing techniques. The GTX series introduced FXAA and TXAA. The latter addressed many of the issues with pre-existing antialiasing.

NVIDIA 3D Vision® Ready2

The idea of 3D gaming was prevalent in the early 2010s. It was a market in which Nvidia pushed for hardware dominance. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a fad that quickly fell to the wayside in favor of overall fidelity. 

The Nvidia 3D vision of today utilizes more advanced technology, which includes new and improved 3D glasses. In addition, the technology claims sharp, crystal clear, immersive experiences. But, unfortunately, it remains a niche market.

NVIDIA PhysX® Technology

PhysX is the most overlooked feature modern Nvidia cards offer. The computational power simulates interactions between in-game objects, including the player character. These physical interactions make games feel more visceral. 

Without PhysX, or similar hardware/software, a game will feel more static, and player actions won’t impact the game world. 

Can GTX Do Ray Tracing? 

Strictly speaking, no, ray tracing requires purpose-built hardware. However, thanks to dedicated hardware, the RTX range is made to excel at ray tracing. 

That said, new software upgrades allow the GTX 1060 and up to render a downscaled software raytracing. As a result, results may vary depending on the game you intend to play.

The result is a sloppy implementation of raytracing at best. Therefore, we don’t recommend using these features on GTX cards.

GTX vs. RTX: Which is Better?

RTX vs GTX Season One Episode Two

Though GTX and RTX are both high quality graphics cards, the answer may be straightforward. RTX cards are newer and more powerful; they are the best. 

Objectively, that is true, but things become less apparent when we look at value for money. You can get your hands on the top-of-the-range GTX cards and run them in an SLI configuration. 

Excluding raytracing, such a setup should manage the most graphically demanding games today at a fraction of the cost of an RTX 4080.

It all comes down to your preferences and what you want from your gaming PC.