Sparkle GTX 560 Ti Super OC retro test shows how factory overclocks once challenged GTX 570
ComputerBase has published a retro look at its 2011 review of the Sparkle Calibre GTX 560 Ti Super OC, a heavily factory-overclocked version of NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 560 Ti. In that original test, the card did more than just top the standard GTX 560 Ti. It also edged past the GeForce GTX 570 by 2% on average, making it the fastest GTX 560 Ti in the outlet’s chart at the time.
Sparkle got there with clocks far above NVIDIA’s reference spec. The GPU core was pushed to 1,000 MHz from the stock 823 MHz, while memory increased to 2,400 MHz from 2,004 MHz (yes, back then when custom cards were allowed to have OC’ed memory). The card also used an Arctic Cooling TwinTurbo Pro cooler with a triple-slot design, dual 85 mm fans, 1 GB of GDDR5 memory, and two 6-pin power connectors.
Source: Hardware.fr
ComputerBase reported the Sparkle model was about 20% faster than the reference GTX 560 Ti , but total system power draw under load climbed to 419 W, versus 356 W for the reference card. Load noise was still relatively controlled at 51 dB(A), but idle acoustics were poor because the fan control was described as underdeveloped. Overclocking headroom was also close to zero, because the board was already near its limit out of the box.
Source: ComputerBase
The retrospective is a useful reminder of how aggressive board partner overclocks used to be, but it also misses an obvious modern comparison. A test against GeForce RTX 5060 Ti would have made the article more useful in 2026, because it would show just how far the mainstream segment has moved since the Fermi era.
According to the Fire Strike database, GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB lands around 40,925 points, while the GeForce GTX 560 Ti results sit roughly in the 3,100 to 3,800 range depending on the system, so it’s just about 10x faster.
Source: ComputerBase
