Difference between manufacturers (R9 290 gigabyte vs.others)

[Goule]

Hi guys,

 

well, my title explains my concern by itself put i was also curious about how are we supposed to compare same gpu from different manufacturer when the online review are pretty much always from one brand only?

 

I'm thinking of buying a Radeon R9 290 from Gigabyte.  Do you know if this one is quieter and cooler, cause it has 3 fans on it?  Is the performances the same than the other R9 290?  Does it have the same software for fan control, temperature control, etc...?

 

Thanks

[LemonSpice]

Hi guys,

 

well, my title explains my concern by itself put i was also curious about how are we supposed to compare same gpu from different manufacturer when the online review are pretty much always from one brand only?

 

I'm thinking of buying a Radeon R9 290 from Gigabyte.  Do you know if this one is quieter and cooler, cause it has 3 fans on it?  Is the performances the same than the other R9 290?  Does it have the same software for fan control, temperature control, etc...?

 

Thanks

sapphire is some of the best along with gigabyte adn some msi lightning

[Sumsar]

Hi guys,

well, my title explains my concern by itself put i was also curious about how are we supposed to compare same gpu from different manufacturer when the online review are pretty much always from one brand only?

I'm thinking of buying a Radeon R9 290 from Gigabyte. Do you know if this one is quieter and cooler, cause it has 3 fans on it? Is the performances the same than the other R9 290? Does it have the same software for fan control, temperature control, etc...?

Thanks

I have heard some AWFUL things about the Gigabyte 290. There's some guy on here who has RMA'ed his Gigabyte 290 8 times. You're better off by getting a 290 from almost any other manufacturer.

And this guys 290 performed worse after he used it for 2 weeks.

[Sumsar]

I have heard some AWFUL things about the Gigabyte 290. There's some guy on here who has RMA'ed his Gigabyte 290 8 times. You're better off by getting a 290 from almost any other manufacturer.

And this guys 290 performed worse after he used it for 2 weeks.

Edit: if you are going to buy a cheap 290 that performs like a fucking champ. Take a look at the Powercolor PCS+

[anthonyc813]

I love XFX. Never had a problem and life time warranty

[Goule]

thanks sumsar

 

oh and i just noticed the 600W needed, that's HUGE.  That means i have to change my psu for a 1200W.  I don't think so...

[-rascal-]

600W is for the whole system. You could power a R9-290X and system with a 500-550W, though 550W-600W is ideal if you plan to overclock your system.

500W-550W has been the standard suggested PSU ratings for a long time now for systems with a single powerful graphics card.

You dont need 1200W for two R9-290X. A 750W - 850W would be just fine. 1200W would be enough for three or four R9-290X`s.

Total system power draw with two R9-290X -- 675W

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1075

[xAcid9]

Tomshardware used a 1000watt PSU to powerup a system with 2x R9-295x2. That's 4x R9-290x.

 

 

We previously measured the gaming power consumption of two AMD Radeon R9 295X2 graphics cards at 450 W, but other sites arrived at different numbers. We put our measurements to the test with a 1000 W PSU in a sweltering 30 degree Celsius environment!

We literally turned up the heat to make things more interesting. Using a hot-box with a brutal ambient temperature of 30 degrees Celsius, we took our quad CrossFire setup through its paces with a 1000 W 80 Plus Bronze certified power supply unit. You might assume we'd need a beefier power source, but our launch article measurements indicate that the total power consumption of these two graphics cards plus the benchmarking system should be about 1000 W. This PSU should be able to handle the load without any trouble.

 

 

Sauce: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-r9-295x2-1000w-psu,3907.html

 

[Goule]

My PSU is a more than 5 yo Corsair HX620W.  I just don't feel confortable buying a R9 290 anymore.  That's sad cause for this price, i'll have to go with a GTX760 or something....

[SkilledRebuilds]

While I can't speak for ALL Gigabyte 290's, but I'm on my 7th RMA from Gigabyte for this 290 I bought at launch. (Meaning I've had SIX replacement cards & Had both ELP/Hynix Memory over these 'replacements')

Had a GB-7950, which I loved, so I went with them for my 290 - HUGE ISSUES on every card they have since supplied me. Like they don't even test or give a fuck.

Swapped out so much hardware on my end (thanks to work for supplying me with other hardware ) to nail it down to is it me or them?.... it's them.

 

Again.. Can't speak for all.

+1 is Their RMA process has been quite fast each time 25-28 days return on average.

-1 is No matter what they send back, their always fucked.

 

Have been using 2x Sapphire 270x in the meantime in the same rig, zero issues.

[xAcid9]

^ Is it the same problem everytime? What was it?

[SkilledRebuilds]

^ Is it the same problem everytime? What was it?

Scanlines or Bsod (or both, and other issues like FULL hardlocking) upon booting Windows (tested using 13.11 up to latest drivers) <-- thats a LOT of driver sets I had to test.

6 of 7 cards was a powertune issue, IMO

 

History lesson - Cards prior to the 290 series had P-states like 300/150 Idle, 500/1250(Multimonitor/Blurray) and the performance clock (eg) 1040/1250mhz

Now they are 'dynamic and variable' and this dynamic/adaptive use is the cause.

Whenever the cards had limited heat (60*c even) it would start acting funky and produce scanlines and artifacts on the desktop to the point of a HARDLOCK sys-crash (not the same as AMD flicker,)

 

You can disable powertune/powerplay via MSI afterburner and force locked clocks, but thats not ideal, as it tends to lead to really hot idle temps even when watching video (fans spin up causing more noise too)

^This also initiated after boot, Being MSI on startup,....so I may not have even got to this point at some stages.

 

50/50 chance of cold boots actually getting into windows.

If the Driver crash's due to the card, I HAVE to re-install the drivers (using DDU) and use either 13.11/13.12 or 14.4/14.11.2 are the only ones that work (seldomly)

 

Note - from the get-go, out of the box, this is ALL unacceptable, the store I bought it originally from has been great though, and really do show 'dem feels' for me.

The first ""Replacement"" was worse than the original issues, I lasted less than 24 hours before sending it back in, had to work or it'd be sooner.

 

Worse and worse as time goes on (some cards lasted a day, produced more scanlines/bsod's) and some cards didn't even like to play games.

 

I swapped out much hardware, costing me more money, and also had work help me out too, I've tested EACH card at work, same thing.

 

So my next card will not be Gigabyte branded. (Pity cos my 7950 was the Tits, and a main factor why I chose Gigabyte)