My new PowerColor PCS+ R9 290

[Sonefiler]

I just got my Powercolor PCS+ R9 290 card from Newegg today! Something things to know about this card:

 

1. It is 11.5 inches, or 29 cm.

2. It is very thick compared to most cards.

3. Comparable to ASUS because of pure copper base and heat pipes.

4. Comparable to Sapphire because of length and fan sizes.

5. Comparable to Gigabyte because of triple-fan design.

6. XFX and MSI's gaming card have nothing on this card.

7. VERY comparable to the MSI lightning, but WAY cheaper.

8. About $510, so a reasonable price.

9. 2x Dual-link DVI, 1x HDMI, 1x Display Port

 

 

Here are some pics: 

 

Just the outer box. Looks pretty cool.

Here's the outer box taken off.

Inside the box. The GPU is in the foam, along with some manual and disk that I took out, and a 6pin->8pin converter.

Here's the GPU out of the box, but with the anti-static bag on.

This is the GPU. You can see it has 3 fans, like the Gigabyte or the Sapphire. It is also VERY long. You can use this think to measure your subway sandwiches!

Here's a side view. You can see the copper heat pipes. The GPU plate is also copper, like the ASUS. It is also substantially thicker than all the other cards. It needs one 6-pin and one 8-pin, similar to other R9 290 cards. Also, it's an open cooler design. Maybe not as good in large CrossfireX configs, but great for a single or dual graphics card setup.

Lots of questions about the thickness, so here's a pic showing the thickness.

There's also a backplate. Looks pretty cool

[Tea1337]

It's phat. How good are the temps on that thing?

[acidydragon]

How many slots does that take?

 

An uncomfortable two? Or three?

[Sonefiler]

It's phat. How good are the temps on that thing?

Well, it's basically the same as the Sapphire in everything except the PowerColor version is thicker. The sapphire is considered one of the best R9 290s. Larger heatsink, so probably cooler.

[Sonefiler]

How many slots does that take?

 

An uncomfortable two? Or three?

An uncomfortable two. But, I'm not gonna do major CrossfireX ever, although maybe 2 way later. So it'll work fine for that.

[Sonefiler]

Added a pic showing thickness.

 

EDIT: Don't want to quadruple post, already triple is bad. I also added a pic showing the backplate.

[Polyvalent]

Doesn't look half bad.  You should post results you get in overclocking and performance, I'd like to see how it stacks up.

[Ryan Leech]

Is the voltage unlocked?

[Sonefiler]

Is the voltage unlocked?

All R9 290s have unlocked voltages.

 

Doesn't look half bad.  You should post results you get in overclocking and performance, I'd like to see how it stacks up.

I will, once I get the rest of my PC.

[Brandonsr]

I have the same card, and it has been much better over my old reference 290.

 

I haven't got around to overclocking it yet, but temps and noise have been fine, so I see no problem ramping it up a little bit.

[Lord_Kitty]

Sorry to break it to you, but if it has all that, the component use won't be the highest quality. The VRM will be less beefy, it won't be a highly binned chip and you won't have quiet fans (MSI does have something, they are the quietest of the bunch).

Additionally, I don't know any card that don't have copper on the GPU. Not really a big selling point.

[VSG]

7. VERY comparable to the MSI lightning, but WAY cheaper.

 

 

Other than the stock cooler performance, this is in no way comparable to the MSI Lightning. The Powercolor PCS card is priced exactly where it should be relative to the Lightning and upcoming Matrix cards.

[xAcid9]

Better cooler than the Matrix, worth it.

[Sonefiler]

Sorry to break it to you, but if it has all that, the component use won't be the highest quality. The VRM will be less beefy, it won't be a highly binned chip and you won't have quiet fans (MSI does have something, they are the quietest of the bunch).

Additionally, I don't know any card that don't have copper on the GPU. Not really a big selling point.

"You won't have quiet fans"

This thing is quiet as batman's parents.

[harrynowl]

Just looked at HardwareCanucks (very positive) review of the 290X PCS+ card.

 

Looks like this should be one very good and very well priced card.

[Lord_Kitty]

"You won't have quiet fans"

This thing is quiet as batman's parents.

Hehe, I'm not sure to laugh or frown at that sentence.

But my point still stand. These a good reason that Asus, MSI and the rest can charge a premium for their cards. Better power delivery, longer lasting components/built to withstand worse conditions, fully custom PCB etc...

[Sonefiler]

Hehe, I'm not sure to laugh or frown at that sentence.

But my point still stand. These a good reason that Asus, MSI and the rest can charge a premium for their cards. Better power delivery, longer lasting components/built to withstand worse conditions, fully custom PCB etc...

hehehe. But, read the below quote.

 

Just looked at HardwareCanucks (very positive) review of the 290X PCS+ card.

 

Looks like this should be one very good and very well priced card.