AMD R9 290X Review

[looz]

Btw, to those who insist that the 95c degrees is safe and doesn't affect the lifetime of the card:
http://www.techpowerup.com/159346/x...-warranty-with-new-radeon-graphics-cards.html

 

[Tripp]

they tried to be nvidia and this is the result. it really is a shame because now they will still be behind nvidia till 2014, that's already 3/4 of a year behind.

how did they try to be nvidia?they have done their own thing like amd always do

 

[barnsley]

Btw, to those who insist that the 95c degrees is safe and doesn't affect the lifetime of the card:
http://www.techpowerup.com/159346/x...-warranty-with-new-radeon-graphics-cards.html

Why did you link old news that has basically nothing to do with the temperatures of the current card?

 

[SeekaX]

how did they try to be nvidia?they have done their own thing like amd always do

with the cooler. the titan cooler is pretty popular and with the reference cooler only release they tried to show that they can do a nice reference cooler as well. didn't work out.

 

[Tripp]

with the cooler. the titan cooler is pretty popular and with the reference cooler only release they tried to show that they can do a nice reference cooler as well. didn't work out.

and how much do you think that adds to the cost of the card (the titan cooler that is), my guess is a pretty penny to be honest. amd have just pulled themselves out of the red an into the black, gk110 has been around for quite a while people seem to forget that it was supposed to be a 680, and also that amd's hawaii chip is supposed to run at 95c.amd have managed to make a whole new chip and sell it at a decent price, the cost of adding a titan like cooler wouldnt of helped them in the slightest.reference model cards usually get put underwater so the cooler is not that big a thing, you couldnt get a 780 at launch for £450 and that's a fact.

 

[Zoot]

Btw, to those who insist that the 95c degrees is safe and doesn't affect the lifetime of the card:
http://www.techpowerup.com/159346/x...-warranty-with-new-radeon-graphics-cards.html

If 95C is what it's designed for, 95C is what it's designed for.

All high end GPUs are hot and power hungry, you're not going to be getting acceptable framerates at 4K and have the core sitting at room temperature pulling hardly anything from the wall, it just doesn't work like that.

Even the Titan and the GTX 780 (stock versions) run quite hot too, as does the 690 or the 7990 aswell.

 

[SeekaX]

and how much do you think that adds to the cost of the card (the titan cooler that is), my guess is a pretty penny to be honest. amd have just pulled themselves out of the red an into the black, gk110 has been around for quite a while people seem to forget that it was supposed to be a 680, and also that amd's hawaii chip is supposed to run at 95c.amd have managed to make a whole new chip and sell it at a decent price, the cost of adding a titan like cooler wouldnt of helped them in the slightest.reference model cards usually get put underwater so the cooler is not that big a thing, you couldnt get a 780 at launch for £450 and that's a fact.

and you seem to forget that if the 680 would have released as intended AMD would be history by now.
It's not about the reference cooler sucking, it's about AMD making the release reference cooler only. there is no reason i can think of for that other than trying to make their cooler popular.
i don't care if the GPU is made to run at 95c, hotter temps mean that the card will die sooner. you can run a 780 at 95c as well, just because you can doesn't mean you should.
the 780 wasn't 450 quid at launch but that was half a year ago, i bet you that if the 290x would have released at the same time it wouldn't have been 450 quid either, i remember the 7970 launch. AMD can't release their card at a higher price because else nobody would buy it because the 780 currently is the better buy, even for 30 quid more and that is a fact as well.

 

[NeverBackDown]

and you seem to forget that if the 680 would have released as intended AMD would be history by now.
It's not about the reference cooler sucking, it's about AMD making the release reference cooler only. there is no reason i can think of for that other than trying to make their cooler popular.
i don't care if the GPU is made to run at 95c, hotter temps mean that the card will die sooner. you can run a 780 at 95c as well, just because you can doesn't mean you should.
the 780 wasn't 450 quid at launch but that was half a year ago, i bet you that if the 290x would have released at the same time it wouldn't have been 450 quid either, i remember the 7970 launch. AMD can't release their card at a higher price because else nobody would buy it because the 780 currently is the better buy, even for 30 quid more and that is a fact as well.

Not true.. If it is DESIGNED to run at 95C then the engineers will make sure it runs at 95C without to much voltage leakage; therefore keeping the intended life of the card the same.
Common knowledge but just to help prove it...
Link

 

[barnsley]

780 currently is the better buy, even for 30 quid more and that is a fact as well.

In terms of temperature and asthetics, yes (espeically with that butt ugly cooler on it, GG AMD). In terms of gaming at high res for example, no. Legit reviews found that it performs better than an overclocked 780 at 4k resolution. For 4k gaming on a single card I'd go for the 290x (normally I'd probably go for a 690/7990). Although arguably if you can afford a 4k monitor you can probably afford noise cancelling headphones .

 

[Zoot]

AMD can't release their card at a higher price because else nobody would buy it because the 780 currently is the better buy, even for 30 quid more and that is a fact as well.

That's an opinion, not a fact.

Also based on the large demand for the 290X it seems there's a lot of people who either don't care or are willing to deal with the temperature and noise fore the performance it gives.
http://www.fudzilla.com/home/item/32945-radeon-r9-290x-sells-out-on-newegg

 

[looz]

4K might be relevant in 3 years.

 

[NeverBackDown]

That's an opinion, not a fact.

Also based on the large demand for the 290X it seems there's a lot of people who either don't care or are willing to deal with the temperature and noise fore the performance it gives.
http://www.fudzilla.com/home/item/32945-radeon-r9-290x-sells-out-on-newegg

I have seen a few reviews showing the 290x beating a titan let alone a 780.. so depends on where you go to for reviews.

 

[Tripp]

and you seem to forget that if the 680 would have released as intended AMD would be history by now.
It's not about the reference cooler sucking, it's about AMD making the release reference cooler only. there is no reason i can think of for that other than trying to make their cooler popular.
i don't care if the GPU is made to run at 95c, hotter temps mean that the card will die sooner. you can run a 780 at 95c as well, just because you can doesn't mean you should.
the 780 wasn't 450 quid at launch but that was half a year ago, i bet you that if the 290x would have released at the same time it wouldn't have been 450 quid either, i remember the 7970 launch. AMD can't release their card at a higher price because else nobody would buy it because the 780 currently is the better buy, even for 30 quid more and that is a fact as well.

i think you missed what i was trying to get across

 

[SieB]

The card isn't even that loud though, sure it's not as quiet as a 780 but it's not that loud at all.

It's only slightly louder than a 7970 and lets not forget it's a reference cooler.
When aftermarket coolers come out for the 290x not only will it be quieter but it's also gonna be cooler. Not that temps matter that much, as others have said the card is made to run at 95c.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7457/the-radeon-r9-290x-review/19

 

[SeekaX]

In terms of temperature and asthetics, yes (espeically with that butt ugly cooler on it, GG AMD). In terms of gaming at high res for example, no. Legit reviews found that it performs better than an overclocked 780 at 4k resolution. For 4k gaming on a single card I'd go for the 290x (normally I'd probably go for a 690/7990). Although arguably if you can afford a 4k monitor you can probably afford noise cancelling headphones .

why the hell do people keep riding the god damn 4k train, it's utterly irrelevant, that's like buying a car for it's diving capabilities. not relevant for the foreseeable future.
temps are worse, aesthetics are worse and no aftermarket coolers which allow the 780 to blast the 290x, someone who pays 450 quid for a card can't tell me he can't find those extra 30 quid for a better card.

 

[looz]

But even at 95c the card has to throttle the frequency.

 

[NeverBackDown]

The card isn't even that loud though, sure it's not as quiet as a 780 but it's not that loud at all.

It's only slightly louder than a 7970 and lets not forget it's a reference cooler.
When aftermarket coolers come out for the 290x not only will it be quieter but it's also gonna be cooler. Not that temps matter that much, as others have said the card is made to run at 95c.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/7457/the-radeon-r9-290x-review/19

Also the fact that EK already has waterblocks for them.

 

[Silver Sparrow]

amd have just pulled themselves out of the red an into the black, gk110 has been around for quite a while people seem to forget that it was supposed to be a 680,

Off topic but... any links to information that this may have been the case? I can't fathom why nVidia would release a high grade, supercomputer/workstation architecture for us puny high-end mainstream users. Makes zero financial or business sense.

The Titan was simply nVidia's method of swinging their c**ks about AMD with hardware not up to grade for either workstation or industry orders, i.e Quadro and the Titan Supercomputer. Also they knew AMD couldn't respond quickly (10 months!), nice one nVidia. However gk110 for 680 grade GPU hmm... talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

 

[NeverBackDown]

So a gk110 a 680? Yet originally a 660ti was made as a 680 and then they realized the 7xxx series was too fast so they upped up their game. I highly doubt all these sudden "GK110 was supposed to be a 680! AMD is lucky!" comments are real.. fanboy talk...

Why can't people just have a constructive conversation?

 

[Tripp]

Off topic but... any links to information that this may have been the case? I can't fathom why nVidia would release a high grade, supercomputer/workstation architecture for us puny high-end mainstream users. Makes zero financial or business sense.

The Titan was simply nVidia's method of swinging their c**ks about AMD with hardware not up to grade for either workstation or industry orders, i.e Quadro and the Titan Supercomputer. Also they knew AMD couldn't respond quickly (10 months!), nice one nVidia. However gk110 for 680 grade GPU hmm... talk about shooting yourself in the foot.

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/384835/amd-back-in-the-black-but-no-thanks-to-the-pc