The 7 Best GTX 1660 SUPER Graphics Cards for Your 1080p Gaming PC
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Nvidia’s original GeForce GTX 1660 always took a back seat to its more powerful and popular sister model, the GTX 1660 Ti. However, as of 2020, both the original GTX 1660 and the GTX 1660 Ti have effectively been superseded by the GTX 1660 Super.
The GTX 1660 Super (also known as GTX 1660S) is sold at about the same price point as the GTX 1660 at launch but offers nearly the same performance as the Ti.
Although the GTX 1660 Super uses the same TU116 chip as the 1660 non-Ti, the VRAM is now GDDR6 instead of GDDR5, which significantly boosts memory bandwidth and performance. This makes the Super variety an attractive option for gamers who want something more powerful than a budget GPU, but also something less costly than an upper mid-range card.
Compared to previous generations, the GTX 1660S is significantly more powerful than the GTX 1060 and AMD’s RX 590, 580, and 570, so it’s also a suitable upgrade for owners of these graphics cards.
For a quick look at performance, this is how the GTX 1660S stacks up in the 3DMark DX12 Time Spy benchmark (averages from different systems):
All games are a bit different but for the most part, this is quite representative of what you get. All in all, the GTX 1660S is a great choice for 1080p gaming. While it can’t compete with the upper mid-range GPUs at 1440p, most games will run well enough even at 1440p if you don’t mind lowering the detail settings.
Based on clock speeds, cooling capabilities, and other features, these are our top picks from the current crop of 1660 Super-based cards.
Last update on 2023-03-20 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Had the GTX 1660S been a more power-hungry and heat-generating card, a large and efficient cooling solution would be a bigger priority. Its TDP is however only 125 W, so there is hardly a need for a bulky triple-fan solution to cool this card. The MSI GTX 1660 Super Gaming X uses a tried and tested design with great-looking RGB highlights, but the ASUS Dual GeForce GTX 1660 Super Mini is also an attractive card. As a bonus, it’s usually less expensive and will fit in mini ITX gaming cases – or even an Intel NUC 9 kit.
There are other attractive options as well. Depending on the daily price fluctuations could make one of them the best choice.
The 7 Best GTX 1660 Super Graphics Cards
So, let’s have a look at some of the best GTX 1660S-based video cards from different manufacturers. Since this is a mid-range card, there won’t be any souped-up water cooled custom designs. Most manufacturers use tried and tested designs that are used for other mid-range GPUs.
With this in mind, we’ve sorted the cards based on professional reviews and user opinions. If none are available, we may look sideways at other GPUs from the same manufacturer that uses the same cooling solution. You can find links to reviews and additional information in our database entries for the specific models.
MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Super Gaming X
True to their habit, MSI offers a factory overclocked Gaming X version of the GTX 1660S. However, if you prefer to experiment yourself – or don’t want to pay extra – there’s also a non-X model available (if you manage to find one, as they appear to be a very rare breed).
The Gaming X has a boost clock of 1,830 MHz out of the box, and it is likely possible to further stretch those values using MSI’s excellent Afterburner overclocking tool. To keep performance consistent and temperatures low, MSI has equipped this card with the Twin Frozr 7 Thermal Design, which consists of two fans that cool a rather sizeable heatsink.
This identical cooling solution with RGB accents is also used on other, considerably more expensive cards. It takes up a little bit more than two PCI slots, however, so it might be a tight fit for small form factor PC builds.
Performance-wise, this card has some of the highest out-of-the-box clocks and therefore performs above average. On the downside, it’s also a bit more expensive but usually not by much. Read more about the Super Gaming X, including professional reviews, here.
- Effective cooling system
- Great OC potential
- RGB accents
- Priced a bit too close to the Ti model
ASUS Dual GeForce GTX 1660 Super Mini
The ASUS Dual GeForce GTX 1660 Super Mini is a very compact graphics card, made to fit Mini-ITX builds and even an Intel NUC 9 kit. That doesn’t mean that cooling will be insufficient, as this design is used for cards all the way up to the powerful RTX 2070S. Cooling the GTX 1660S – which is just a GTX 1660 GPU paired with GDDR6 – is not nearly as demanding, so the small format isn’t nearly as much of an issue.
Two factors speak in favor of the Asus Dual Mini 1660S, namely that this card both comes with a decent factory overclock and a price tag that is normally very reasonable. It’s unlikely to offer as much overclocking headroom as the larger MSI variety, but when the price/performance equation is considered, this Asus card may be a better choice.
- Good choice for a compact build
- Small factory overclock
- Very reasonably priced
- Not much OC headroom
Best Affordable 1660S: ASUS Phoenix GTX 1660 Super OC
Nvidia’s GTX 1660(S) chip is quite efficient and well-suited to small form factors. It’s also one of the more affordable GPUs, which makes it more likely to be used with low-key designs. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it helps keep the prices down without necessarily sacrificing much.
This card is part of Asus’ latest Phoenix lineup, which was also used for the previous-gen Pascal GTX cards. Like other cards in the series, it’s a short, single-fan card, but this one has a bit more height to it than some other “mini” GTX 1660s. Asus ships this card either with stock clocks or with a minor factory overclock (indicated by OC in the name). At 1800 MHz (instead of 1785 MHz), this is an OC of less than 1% and definitely not something you should pay extra for, in our humble opinion.
One of the more interesting features of this card is that it is dust resistant with an IPX5 rating. This does not mean that it’s fully dust-proof (an impossible achievement for a graphics card), but it does have some protection that should help ensure a long life span.
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- Good single-fan cooling
- Fits in most ITX cases
- IP5X dust resistant
- Insignificant factory OC
Best Triple-Fan Option: Gigabyte GTX 1660 Super 3X WindForce
Although the GTX 1660 Super is a relatively frugal GPU with a 125W TDP, you can never go wrong with a more effective cooler. A triple-fan card is quite bulky and won’t fit in compact PC cases, but if you have room to spare, an extra fan will improve cooling while in most cases producing less noise than dual-fan (and certainly single-fan) cards given the same load. You will also have better chances of overclocking thanks to the lower temperatures.
Gigabyte’s comprehensively tried and tested 3X WindForce design is used with a wide variety of GPUs, with the GeForce GTX 1660S being one of the least demanding chips. The fans spin in opposite directions, which allegedly helps maintain good airflow, and it’s apparent from more demanding cards that it works well enough.
All in all, the end result is a package that offers great cooling in larger cases along with excellent OC potential. The Gigabyte GTX 1660 Super 3X WindForce is available either with or without a factory overclock from the default 1785 MHz to 1860 MHz, which is the highest factory OC of all current 1660S cards.
- Highest factory OC (optional)
- Great cooling solution
- Includes backplate
- Very large for a 1660S
ASUS ROG Strix GeForce GTX 1660 Super
Compact, ITX-sized cards with one or two fans have become increasingly common in the entry-level and mid-range segment, as they usually provide sufficient cooling for today’s efficient GPUs. You can still find a number of full-size varieties, but these are usually a bit more expensive.
ROG Strix is Asus’ premium line of graphics cards and other gaming components and it includes a ROG Strix GeForce GTX 1660 Super. It’s main selling points are an efficient cooler and an optional factory overclock to 1815 MHz (boost) in the Advanced model of the card. Compared to more expensive Strix GPUs, the design of the Strix GTX 1660S is rather uninspiring and doesn’t include the RGB accents of more expensive varieties. Then again, it doesn’t come with the corresponding premium pricing.
- Slight factory OC (Advanced model)
- Competent cooler
- Reasonably priced
- Uninspiring design compared to other Strix cards
EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Super Sc Ultra
Next on our list is the EVGA GeForce GTX 1660 Super Sc Ultra, which is one of two different GTX 1660S designs from EVGA. One is a single-fan ITX-size card simply called “Black,” which is normally EVGA’s naming for cards that ship with standard clock frequencies. The other one is this card – the GTX 1660 Super Sc Ultra. This design is also available in a “Black” version with standard clocks in addition to a model overclocked to 1830 MHz (from the default 1785 MHz).
Compared to the ASUS Strix and MSI Gaming X, this card is much more compact, but the dual-fan cooler is more effective than all of the single-fan varieties in the market. On the downside, testers have found it to be somewhat noisy in gaming loads, which is why we are placing it near the bottom of our list. Of course, you can adjust the fan curves yourself and the GTX 1660 Super Sc Ultra still a great card with a tried and tested design, so this shouldn’t hold you back if it’s sold at an attractive price point.
- Good cooling capacity
- Very compact dual-fan design
- Fair price point
- Too aggressive fan curve out of the box
MSI GTX 1660 Super Ventus XS 6G
Another interesting and similarly compact alternative to single-fan alternatives is MSI’s Ventus XS 6G OC. It’s slightly bulkier overall than single-fan cards overall, but quite a bit shorter than full-size cards. In any event, it should be a good fit for most gaming machines – and not just physically.
Like most of the best GTX 1660 Super graphics cards, the Ventus is available with a factory OC. In the overclocked version, MSI has increased the boost clock to 1815 MHz, which isn’t the highest overclock from the standard 1785 MHz.
What makes this card an interesting option in our view is the competent cooling solution in spite of its small measurements. MSI has also included a backplate to improve durability.
- Two fans and factory OC
- Will fit into most builds
- Comparatively affordable
- Not as compact as other ITX options
Summary and Buyer’s Guide
With that, let’s summarize the pros and cons of these different GTX 1660 Super models.
- If you care about aesthetics as well as performance – and don’t mind paying a bit more for features such as attractive RGB lighting – then the MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Super Gaming X 6G is one of a very limited amount of choices. What might make it a tough sell is the narrow price gap between this card and entry-level Ti cards that offer better performance.
- If you want the best possible combination of an attractive price tag and good cooling performance, we will stick with our recommendation of the dual-fan ASUS GeForce GTX 1660 Dual Mini.
- For a combination of value and an easy fit in compact builds using an mITX or mATX case, the Asus Dual Mini is still a great choice, but the single-fan Asus Phoenix usually costs less and the cooling solution is still sufficient.
All of these cards use trusted designs from major manufacturers, so reliability should not be an issue unless you are exceptionally unlucky. In terms of real-world performance, the difference between the cards will be small, but you may have more success overclocking cards with additional/more efficient fans. And last but not least: Also compare the GTX 1660S with other affordable cards to see which GPU offers the best price/performance ratio today. On average, however, the 1660S is one of the top choices among the more budget-oriented mid-range GPUs as of late 2020.
These editors don’t know shit!
Why is that?
The PNY single fan cools better than the asus Phoenix, PNY is the best budget variant of the 1660 super behind gigabyte.
The mid-range segment is admittedly hard to get a grasp on when you don’t have all the cards in hand, but I tried to be as objective as possible. Where do you think it went wrong?
I think it is a well made review and I agree with your points.
Thanks!
What I wanted to see in the summary is, like the other thousands of users; “the best possible combination of an attractive price and good performance”.
Unfortunately what I got is the “best possible combination of an attractive price tag and good cooling performance”. So I need to jump to another website who has the needed summary.
In general the people are either looking for the best performance or the best budget with good/enough performance. The other conclusions are nice to have.
PS: Best cooling doesn’t mean the best performance.
Hi Rutilicus,
Thank you for the constructive criticism, this is very helpful! I will take this to heart and try to incorporate it in this and future articles.
You are absolutely right that great cooling doesn’t automatically translate to great performance. Things like VRAM and GPU ASIC quality, power limit, etc. are also key factors. Though I would still consider cooling capacity a vital condition for making the most of the other factors (and keep noise to a minimum when done right).
I agree on cooling. Good to know how it will sound when you try playing at night for example.
How about if you just want the one making less noise? I suppose the triple fan one is the best option from this list if you have the room, but which one is the runner-up?
Cheers