New GPU - R9x 290x / 280x

[Kezotar]

Current GPU is doing a great job, basically I run all the games I play at 60+ FPS. (Obviously dips in games such as "WoW" but there's more of a CPU issue, L4D2, SimCity, Skyrim, Diablo 3.. A few more, but not that demanding games...

What I want is to replace my GPU.. It's a bit noisy and can get high temps. In addition at Rifts it lacks of performance, so I'd like to have a bit more of a powerful GPU. So my question would be either r9 280x / r9 290x. I wont be going for the 780 ti just because of the reason that I'm paying a worse ratio for the FPS/GPU power vs AMD.

Rest of PC
- i7 4930K
- 16 GB DDR3 RAM (4/8 slots taken)
- ASUS P9X79
- Current GPU - GTX 480 2 GB. "MSI". ( Driver "320.49" )
- 850 PSU ( 1 x R9 280x now, and one more if I need more Power later? Or 1x R9 290x and be done with it? )

-------------------


If it wouldn't be for the "HEAT" issues, I could overclock the card a bit more as my games don't really require that much more power, I could've open the GPU, clean the heat sink and apply new paste. I got both the NOCTUAs thermal compound and the Silver one. Temp are really high, but it doesn't affect the FPS unless it hits the 3 digits. When it does "With a OC" it just turns it off and I get a short lag spike.

Currently - 76c - 1 % load. It hits 90-95c at max load. Remember that the 480 was a powerful card that could take a lot of heat. But it's done what it's done. Still keeping me at HIGH FPS at mostly max settings for current games after a few years is just a beast!


" I do stream as well, therefor a better GPU wouldn't be too bad.

*BTW - TOXIC or VAPOR-X. I will be overclocking the GPU heavily, so I'd love to have a unlocked one.


Thanks

[Swampmoose]

Have you considered the 290? Performance is barely behind the 290x, and around $100 less. 280x falls quite a bit behind both.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/R9_290/26.html

[Lilfrier]

I don't think you have much of a choice here. They don't have the non-reference 290 or 290X on the market yet, so you'd have to look at the 280X to get an aftermarket cooler. The Vapor-X 280X is out of stock and $440 right now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202045

The TOXIC edition is another $30 ($470), but it's sold out right now as well.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202044

Right now, the Sapphire solutions just aren't there. This is the whole 280X line Newegg carries: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...on%20R9%20280X

Sapphire's only offered card is the $420 Dual-X, while Gigabyte's Windforce (with a 3-fan setup) is the same price. ASUS has its overclocked DirectCU II at $420 as well, though you'd have to go with Sapphire or XFX if you want the bundled Battelfield 4, it seems like.

As for the 290X, my dad just got a reference one. He said it's not AS LOUD as a hair dryer, but it's close, and my sister said it sounds like it's going to explode (I haven't been by to hear it myself). Anandtech also tested the 290, and it's significantly louder than the 290X, to the extent that they couldn't recommend such a loud card (they said it's about twice as loud as a GTX 780). So unless you want to wait for a non-reference 290X cooler (and the prices of the 290X have shot up to $600-630 of late), a 280X is probably better for you than a 290. If you play with headphones on and plenty of noise to block out a 290's noise, then I'd wait to see what you can get for a non-reference 290--maybe the superior fans will mean it's quiet enough to live with.

[Kezotar]

Have you considered the 290? Performance is barely behind the 290x, and around $100 less. 280x falls quite a bit behind both.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/R9_290/26.html

It really is cheaper. It seems like a whoppin' price decrease of 1200r in Norway... That's about 210 Bucks. That is the one with the aftermarket cooler. But you can't OC the 290? Right? That means you're losing something.. But, then we gotta compare that OC with the price of 200 dollars. I can imagine a OC increase of 15-20% performance at MOST.

[Swampmoose]

It really is cheaper. It seems like a whoppin' price decrease of 1200r in Norway... That's about 210 Bucks. That is the one with the aftermarket cooler. But you can't OC the 290? Right? That means you're losing something.. But, then we gotta compare that OC with the price of 200 dollars. I can imagine a OC increase of 15-20% performance at MOST.

Sure you can. Here, check this link out for some overclocked, vs non overclocked results.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/gra...-290-review/10

[Kezotar]

I don't think you have much of a choice here. They don't have the non-reference 290 or 290X on the market yet, so you'd have to look at the 280X to get an aftermarket cooler. The Vapor-X 280X is out of stock and $440 right now:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202045

The TOXIC edition is another $30 ($470), but it's sold out right now as well.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202044

Right now, the Sapphire solutions just aren't there. This is the whole 280X line Newegg carries: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...on%20R9%20280X

Sapphire's only offered card is the $420 Dual-X, while Gigabyte's Windforce (with a 3-fan setup) is the same price. ASUS has its overclocked DirectCU II at $420 as well, though you'd have to go with Sapphire or XFX if you want the bundled Battelfield 4, it seems like.

I live in Norway so they're all stocked. NVIDIA fanboys in the country. But I'm not in a hurry to buy a new GPU. As I said, things run smoothly at ultra settings, I just want something to replace my old GPU. I can wait for January for the "aftermarket" cards.

I was looking into " http://www.komplett.no/sapphire-rade...b-gddr5/805736 " .. Price is a bit.. High.. But, I imagine it running pretty good.

But these are more affordable..
" http://www.komplett.no/sapphire-rade...b-gddr5/798665 "
" http://www.komplett.no/sapphire-rade...b-gddr5/798674 "

Current rate " 6,13 KR = 1 Dollar ".

- - - Updated - - -

Sure you can. Here, check this link out for some overclocked, vs non overclocked results.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/gra...-290-review/10

Oh, I thought that it was the only feature left out from the "X" and non "X". I thought they were identical apart for OC.. Interesting. But what is it that sets the "X" 100/200 $ more expensiver? You wouldn't happen to have a price / performance ratio? And if the 290 "non X" can handle the games at ultra setting without FPS issues, meaning that as long as it gets 60 FPS I'm satisfied. I don't see too much of a difference at FPS higher than that.

If the card is really just 5-10% behind a 290x and if it can really overclock well, I could imagine
" http://www.komplett.no/sapphire-rade...b-gddr5/805735 " would do extremely well.

[Lilfrier]

I don't know, I feel that if you are coming from a GTX 480, a 280X should be good for you. It's all a matter of what you're willing to spend on, so if you have the extra money and can live with that price tag for the performance, more power to you. I personally don't care for $600 (the going rate of a 290X on Newegg, on the low-end) for my card, and like I mentioned above, my dad said it's a REALLY loud card.

[Swampmoose]

Oh, I thought that it was the only feature left out from the "X" and non "X". I thought they were identical apart for OC.. Interesting. But what is it that sets the "X" 100/200 $ more expensiver? You wouldn't happen to have a price / performance ratio? And if the 290 "non X" can handle the games at ultra setting without FPS issues, meaning that as long as it gets 60 FPS I'm satisfied. I don't see too much of a difference at FPS higher than that.

Nah, it's not like Intel chips where K is unlocked and non K is locked. X is just supposed to be the stronger of the two cards, however in this case, the non-X version is so good, the only reason to get the X version is if you have the extra money and just want to say you have the fastest card AMD makes. Otherwise, 290 is a much better value.

I can look for some price/performance numbers for you.

Edit:
This is a little bit hard to decipher exact price/performance values, but you can see that price jumps up from 290 to 290x however, performance increases are minimal.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...ew,3107-8.html

Here's a better one. Much higher performance/dollar than 290x. Not as good as the 280x but it also blows the 280x out of the water.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/R9_290/28.html

I don't know, I feel that if you are coming from a GTX 480, a 280X should be good for you. It's all a matter of what you're willing to spend on, so if you have the extra money and can live with that price tag for the performance, more power to you. I personally don't care for $600 (the going rate of a 290X on Newegg, on the low-end) for my card, and like I mentioned above, my dad said it's a REALLY loud card.

The reference cards are obnoxious. Any aftermarket cooling design is ok.

[Kezotar]

I don't know, I feel that if you are coming from a GTX 480, a 280X should be good for you. It's all a matter of what you're willing to spend on, so if you have the extra money and can live with that price tag for the performance, more power to you. I personally don't care for $600 (the going rate of a 290X on Newegg, on the low-end) for my card, and like I mentioned above, my dad said it's a REALLY loud card.

A bit wrong mate. It's not just about the money. If I can run the game at 60 FPS at ultra settings. Why should I throw more money to it when something for say, 300 bucks can do the same as something for 600 bucks? I'm not into throwing money at stuff just to go from say.. 60 FPS to 80 FPS.. Or even from 80 FPS to 100...

[Lilfrier]

Here's the review I was talking about, by the way: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7481/t...-290-review/15

They have the 290 has hotter, louder, and more power-hungry under load than the 290X, so that might be something to consider. If you're OK with it and want to save 1,300 Norwegian currencies (I don't know what it's called, or how it translates to USD), here is that same TRI-X cooler on a R9 290:

http://www.komplett.no/sapphire-rade...b-gddr5/805735

[Kezotar]

Nah, it's not like Intel chips where K is unlocked and non K is locked. X is just supposed to be the stronger of the two cards, however in this case, the non-X version is so good, the only reason to get the X version is if you have the extra money and just want to say you have the fastest card AMD makes. Otherwise, 290 is a much better value.

I can look for some price/performance numbers for you.

Yeah, that was the thing that made me think that way .

Awesome, thanks man. I'm not gonna throw more money than needed. I'm not running 3 monitors at some sick resolution. I'm using two monitors, one for gaming, so the game always runs at 1920x1080 and one for other stuff. I can already feel that a 290 will handle my needs. I just have to wait for it with a "aftermarket"/non reference cooler.

- - - Updated - - -

Here's the review I was talking about, by the way: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7481/t...-290-review/15

They have the 290 has hotter, louder, and more power-hungry under load than the 290X, so that might be something to consider. If you're OK with it and want to save 1,300 Norwegian currencies (I don't know what it's called, or how it translates to USD), here is that same TRI-X cooler on a R9 290:

http://www.komplett.no/sapphire-rade...b-gddr5/805735

First thing I had to say was that " looking from my old 480 since it was also listed there, a 10-15 power draw more than it can't be that sick. I've had this 480 warm up my room without any heaters. That card really is a efficient card, not did it only give me hardcore settings for gaming but it also warmed my room for the same price, I swear I had to have my window open a few times, and yes that's in winter! "

Yeah, but it's really a minimal thing, and in addition, I'm waiting for the "non-reference" cards, meaning that it probably is solved " the heat issue ".. Although a good thing to have in mind, you're right. Thanks

[Lilfrier]

A bit wrong mate. It's not just about the money. If I can run the game at 60 FPS at ultra settings. Why should I throw more money to it when something for say, 300 bucks can do the same as something for 600 bucks? I'm not into throwing money at stuff just to go from say.. 60 FPS to 80 FPS.. Or even from 80 FPS to 100...

Well, I figured that, I just wouldn't think that the games you listed woudl have trouble on a 280X. If your GTX 480 is handling what you play at 60 FPS, I'm sure a 280X would as well. The issue woudl just be one of future-proofing, which is where my point of "what do you want to spend?" kicks in. I don't know what you play on for a resolution, but here's the 280X review so you can get some numbers at different resolutions and for different games: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7400/t...-feat-asus-xfx

You're pretty-much set up to 1080p, but it starts getting into the high 40's up above 1080p on the 280X. Then again, if you look at the 290's review (http://www.anandtech.com/show/7481/t...9-290-review/8), it drops under 60 FPS over 1080p as well in some cases, and the 290X is only a few FPS higher than it.

Personally, I'd still go 280X, since I wont' game over 1080p. If you want to do so yourself, I think the 290 with a non-reference cooler is probably better than a bunch more money for a few FPS on the 290X, which will start to struggle to hit 60 FPS about the same time the 290 will.

[Kezotar]

Well, I figured that, I just wouldn't think that the games you listed woudl have trouble on a 280X. If your GTX 480 is handling what you play at 60 FPS, I'm sure a 280X would as well. The issue woudl just be one of future-proofing, which is where my point of "what do you want to spend?" kicks in. I don't know what you play on for a resolution, but here's the 280X review so you can get some numbers at different resolutions and for different games: http://www.anandtech.com/show/7400/t...-feat-asus-xfx

You're pretty-much set up to 1080p, but it starts getting into the high 40's up above 1080p on the 280X. Then again, if you look at the 290's review (http://www.anandtech.com/show/7481/t...9-290-review/8), it drops under 60 FPS over 1080p as well in some cases, and the 290X is only a few FPS higher than it.

Personally, I'd still go 280X, since I wont' game over 1080p. If you want to do so yourself, I think the 290 with a non-reference cooler is probably better than a bunch more money for a few FPS on the 290X, which will start to struggle to hit 60 FPS about the same time the 290 will.

Exactly, the 280X I would like because of a much quieter and cooler card. It probably would also add a bit performance increase in games such as RIFT. Only reason I don't play it is because I hit 30-40 FPS. Kills me.

Yeah, but " Future Proofing ". I have no doubt spending say 2600 KR for one 280x and then buy one more, when performance is low. 1. It probably dropped in price, but let's use the same price. 2x 2600 = 5200 KR. " I know, issues with CF, but hey. Life isn't perfect. ". That is 5200 KR for two 280x. I don't doubt a second that those two OCed will crush a 290/x OCed with even water.
280x - 2600 kr
290x - 5200 kr
290 - 3900 kr ( 6,13 kr = 1 usd )

"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSmHJK9dP1I" Two of those cards really do a amazing job.

As you can see, the 280x or the 290 non "x" would be ideal. Although the 290x seems to just have a too high of a price.
Yeah exactly, it's either the 290 or the 280x. The 290x has a bad price, although much better than Nvidia, but compared to 290/280x.

[Lilfrier]

Yeah, I agree completely, which is why I wondered about asking about 290X vs. 280X, but it makes sense that you thought that the "X" meant overclockable, since that's how Intel does it with the "K." But man, that 290X price is atypical. That comes out to almost $850, while the 290X is more around $600-630 on Newegg in the U.S. The 290 is $636 there, and $530 here, making the price gap about $100 smaller. The 280X there, we see it at $425, which is actually right in-line with the $400-430 prices in the U.S. I don't know if there's just a massive shortage that is causing the 290 and 290X to have overly-inflated prices or what, but it definitely lends itself to going 280X, then getting a second in a couple of years or so.

By the way, I'm jealous. Newegg doesn't show ANY non-reference 290/290X cards right now, and maybe that's why those TRI-X cards are so costly. The reference 290 is only 3.400 kr, and the non-reference 290X is as low as 4.200 kr. The fact that the masses don't seem to be able to get the aftermarket stuff yet might be why you're having to spend so much now, so if you think that something closer to those reference prices on the 290 and 290X is enough to sway you from the 280X, you could wait a little to see if the non-reference cards drop as they become more-widely available.

Either way, good luck with what you get.

[Kezotar]

Yeah, I agree completely, which is why I wondered about asking about 290X vs. 280X, but it makes sense that you thought that the "X" meant overclockable, since that's how Intel does it with the "K." But man, that 290X price is atypical. That comes out to almost $850, while the 290X is more around $600-630 on Newegg in the U.S. The 290 is $636 there, and $530 here, making the price gap about $100 smaller. The 280X there, we see it at $425, which is actually right in-line with the $400-430 prices in the U.S. I don't know if there's just a massive shortage that is causing the 290 and 290X to have overly-inflated prices or what, but it definitely lends itself to going 280X, then getting a second in a couple of years or so.

By the way, I'm jealous. Newegg doesn't show ANY non-reference 290/290X cards right now, and maybe that's why those TRI-X cards are so costly. The reference 290 is only 3.400 kr, and the non-reference 290X is as low as 4.200 kr. The fact that the masses don't seem to be able to get the aftermarket stuff yet might be why you're having to spend so much now, so if you think that something closer to those reference prices on the 290 and 290X is enough to sway you from the 280X, you could wait a little to see if the non-reference cards drop as they become more-widely available.

Either way, good luck with what you get.

Thanks, I think I'm going for the 280x. But it can't hurt to wait a bit