Keep Crossfire 290's or Swap for a Fury/980?

[MEC-777]

Quick background explanation:

 

Been running with two R9 290's in crossfire for a few months now. The total raw performance, when it works and in the games where it takes full advantage, is really good. Talking 100+fps in Mad Max, ultra 1440p VSR. 60-90fps in Project Cars on high settings 1440p. GTA V runs 70+fps and tickles 100fps at times on very high settings 1440p even with most of the advanced settings turned up. 

 

Paid $300 for the first 290 a year ago and $270 for the 2nd one a few months back. You might think for just shy of $600 total this is great performance, which it is, but the problem is the number of games I play that do not take advantage of CF. Fallout 4 runs well enough on a single 290, max settings 1440p, but it does dip into the 40's at times. The Wtcher 3 does see frame rate improvements with CF but results in HORRIBLE screen flicker/tearing like I've never seen before. It's so bad, I'm force to run it on a single card - which runs 50+fps average at 1440p high settings (hairworks off).

 

First world problems, I know. But honestly it kinda feels like I've spent more time messing with crossfire and dealing with related issues than I have actually playing games. 

 

Just wanted to get some outside opinions on what you guys think would be the best option. What would you do? 

 

 

Option A - Keep both 290's and just deal with it until Nvidia/AMD release their new cards next year.

 

Option B - Keep one 290 and sell the other. Save up and wait for a good deal on a 980/Fury around the Holidays.

 

Option C - Sell both 290's and use the cash to pay for a 980/Fury now. 

 

Option D - ? (other suggestions)

 

The Fury X/980Ti are simply far too expensive here in Canada and are out of the question. The Fury is borderline too expensive as it is, but there may be deals/price cuts closer to the Holidays. An OC'd 980 will easily match a stock Fury - but it all really boils down to which will have the right price at time of purchase. I prefer to stay with AMD but I'm not bias. I will go where the price is right. Also I realize I will be taking a hit on performance in the games that do use CF, but that's a small compromise I'm willing to take for better performance across ALL the games I play. Running a game at 70 vs 90 makes little to no difference since my monitor is only 60hz anyways

 

Thoughts?

 

PS. I am planning to upgrade to 1440 or 4k display sometime early next year with freesync or Gsync.   

[i_build_nanosuits]

wait, then sell and buy top end pascal.

[Arwanell]

wait another year

Pascal cards are coming

and AMD will also release a few new cards

[don_svetlio]

@App4that

[App4that]

Hmm, my crossfire brother that's a tough one. I'm really considering a 4790k and a second 390 to make my rig untouchable until I'm forced to leave 1080p kicking and screaming. (yes, and a better psu)

 

If I was you I'd hold tight until they finish working the kinks out of Crimson and wait for the first DX12 games to hit. Could make no difference and you go with one of the plans laid out, or crossfire could be huge and you're already set up to take advantage of it.

[Masada02]

Ehhhhhhh, I'd keep them and wait for the next set of cards from either company. I know it's a pain, but just spend time tweaking the profiles for each game that you play. It can really go either way though, but taking a performance hit isn't really in my vocabulary.

[MEC-777]

Hmm, my crossfire brother that's a tough one. I'm really considering a 4790k and a second 390 to make my rig untouchable until I'm forced to leave 1080p kicking and screaming. (yes, and a better psu)

 

If I was you I'd hold tight until they finish working the kinks out of Crimson and wait for the first DX12 games to hit. Could make no difference and you go with one of the plans laid out, or crossfire could be huge and you're already set up to take advantage of it.

 

Just because you have a 1080p display (like me) doesn't mean you're confined to run all your games at only 1080p. Try using VSR. It makes a significant improvement in sharpness/visual quailty and allows you to run far less AA filters as a result, giving you the same or better performance. That's right. Better visuals and performance. VSR is awesome, and I simply don't understand why more people aren't using it/don't know about it/keep thinking they're stuck running at 1080p native. You have more choices to make use of these overkill GPU's, my friends. Notice I run most of my games at 1440p with VSR.

 

I'd like to hold out, but I doubt crossfire will gain that much of an advantage within just the next year. Some games won't ever receive CF support (Fallout 4 is one of them) and I don't see any proper fixes/support for CF in games like The Witcher 3 surfacing any time soon either (that game has been out for how long?). So I don't know. Will maybe hold out another month and then see what's what...

[MEC-777]

Ehhhhhhh, I'd keep them and wait for the next set of cards from either company. I know it's a pain, but just spend time tweaking the profiles for each game that you play. It can really go either way though, but taking a performance hit isn't really in my vocabulary.

 

I'm on a 60hz panel and the Fury/980 will still easily run pretty much everything at or over 60fps. So I won't really notice the performance hit in that regard. 

[App4that]

I use the hell out of VSR, baby steps right lol?

If crossfire gets some help my prediction is it coming from DX12. Nvidia is slow to respond to requests for improvements from the SLI community and we all know AMD likes to keep to Nvidia's shadow.

And while you wait, you know two GPUs in a case looks amazing. That I miss.

[grayperview]

I just got rid of my 2 7970's (well still selling one) for a Fury, i wouldn't say its an upgrade as the 2 7970's out do perform the fury in benchmarks by 13fps in Valley, but in games the fury just about does better, given that a lot of games don't often scale at 100%.

 

Given that the 290's still sell at a good price it maybe a good time to get rid of them and get a Fury, but bare in mind overall performance will be a downgrade.

 

I like my fury though and i am happy i got it, GTA V is silky smooth (no micro stutter) Arkham knight runs at 60fps solid for me. and i can finally play the Golf club at 60fps.

[MEC-777]

I use the hell out of VSR, baby steps right lol?

If crossfire gets some help my prediction is it coming from DX12. Nvidia is slow to respond to requests for improvements from the SLI community and we all know AMD likes to keep to Nvidia's shadow.

And while you wait, you know two GPUs in a case looks amazing. That I miss.

 

VSRmasterrace.

 

Bugs the heck out of me when people ask questions like "which is better 390 or 970" and then people see they have a 1080p display and suggest the 970 because it's better at 1080p or claim both cards are overkill for 1080. YOU'RE NOT FORCED TO RUN YOUR GAMES AT 1080 ON A 1080 DISPLAY PEOPLE!!! Read about the features on these cards and what they do! Both have VSR/DSR. It works, it makes a difference and it should be taken advantage of.

 

Friend of mine just doesn't understand why I use VSR no matter how much I try to explain it. lol ugh.  

 

Anyways...

 

The thing with DX12 is it can't do anything for DX11 games, unless the devs implement it and released a patch/update. For most games I assume that would be a massive undertaking. So any DX11 games without CF support aren't going to gain it when DX12 becomes the norm. Games like Fallout 4 and TW3, I will be playing for a long time yet and they will remain without CF support. That's kind of the point I was trying to make in that regard. 

 

For sure, DX12 may see new capabilities with CF that we never saw before (pooling Vram, splitting rendering tasks more efficiently etc.). But I suspect that is some time off yet. Devs need to incorporate these new features, capabilities into their games in order to make use of it and I sincerely hope they do.

 

Given that the 290's still sell at a good price it maybe a good time to get rid of them 

 

Ah, yes. That's something I forgot to mention. 290's still hold decent value for the moment. That will only drop in the future... 

 

Assuming I can get about $250 for each (seems to be the average in Canada), I'll still need an additional $200 to grab a 980 on sale, after tax. Fury's would require $300 more, after tax. That's right, Fury's are going for about $800 after tax in Canada. And that's Cyber Monday sale prices. I've seen the MSI 980 for as low as $589 before tax, which was tempting... (about $450 USD). Would be lying if I said my cursor wasn't hovering over the "add to cart" button...

[App4that]

The 980 is a great card, but a 390x will almost catch it performance wise, I'm talking 2-3fps here. That seems to be the problem, the 970/390 seem to be the best bang for the buck and you have to go all the way to a FuryX/980ti to get a noticeable gain.

[Cheddle]

Quick background explanation:

 

Been running with two R9 290's in crossfire for a few months now. The total raw performance, when it works and in the games where it takes full advantage, is really good. Talking 100+fps in Mad Max, ultra 1440p VSR. 60-90fps in Project Cars on high settings 1440p. GTA V runs 70+fps and tickles 100fps at times on very high settings 1440p even with most of the advanced settings turned up. 

 

Paid $300 for the first 290 a year ago and $270 for the 2nd one a few months back. You might think for just shy of $600 total this is great performance, which it is, but the problem is the number of games I play that do not take advantage of CF. Fallout 4 runs well enough on a single 290, max settings 1440p, but it does dip into the 40's at times. The Wtcher 3 does see frame rate improvements with CF but results in HORRIBLE screen flicker/tearing like I've never seen before. It's so bad, I'm force to run it on a single card - which runs 50+fps average at 1440p high settings (hairworks off).

 

First world problems, I know. But honestly it kinda feels like I've spent more time messing with crossfire and dealing with related issues than I have actually playing games. 

 

Just wanted to get some outside opinions on what you guys think would be the best option. What would you do? 

 

 

Option A - Keep both 290's and just deal with it until Nvidia/AMD release their new cards next year.

 

Option B - Keep one 290 and sell the other. Save up and wait for a good deal on a 980/Fury around the Holidays.

 

Option C - Sell both 290's and use the cash to pay for a 980/Fury now. 

 

Option D - ? (other suggestions)

 

The Fury X/980Ti are simply far too expensive here in Canada and are out of the question. The Fury is borderline too expensive as it is, but there may be deals/price cuts closer to the Holidays. An OC'd 980 will easily match a stock Fury - but it all really boils down to which will have the right price at time of purchase. I prefer to stay with AMD but I'm not bias. I will go where the price is right. Also I realize I will be taking a hit on performance in the games that do use CF, but that's a small compromise I'm willing to take for better performance across ALL the games I play. Running a game at 70 vs 90 makes little to no difference since my monitor is only 60hz anyways

 

Thoughts?

 

PS. I am planning to upgrade to 1440 or 4k display sometime early next year with freesync or Gsync.   

 

I went xfire to a single 980 - im playing at 4k and it just wasnt enough... it was consistant however - I too couldnt handle the hit and miss days of xfire r9 290s - but when they worked they WORKED!

 

I now have a 980ti and although a pair of r9 290s are basically matching its power, it ALWAYS works.... no stuttering, no profile issues, no one card only...

 

my opinion is that its not worth you selling both r9 290s to move to anything except a 980ti. the second best choice is to keep them both unless you need cash, in that case sell one of them and run a single r9 290 until Pascal (and then buy a cheap 980ti haha)

 

ps.: might come accross as a fan boy, but ive played both sides, look at benchmarks, and don't make my purchases lightly.

 

pps: I don't see any reason to get a fury / furyx

[MEC-777]

The 980 is a great card, but a 390x will almost catch it performance wise, I'm talking 2-3fps here. That seems to be the problem, the 970/390 seem to be the best bang for the buck and you have to go all the way to a FuryX/980ti to get a noticeable gain.

But 980's can OC and nearly catch stock 980Ti's. A 390X cannot. So while the 980 and 390X are paired in the same bracket, technically, the 980 just leaves it once you OC (from what I've seen in benchmarks/reviews anyways). 

 

A 390X is too close to the performance I get when I OC my good 290 to 1100/1500. So that's not a practical upgrade/change - not that you were suggesting it, just saying. But a 980 could be because of it's OC prowess - if the price is right. 

 

But I get what you're saying. The step from a single 290 to a Fury/980 isn't that significant and I would have to agree. It's just that the prices of the Fury X and 980Ti are SO DAMN HIGH here in Canada, even sale prices.

 

I went xfire to a single 980 - im playing at 4k and it just wasnt enough... it was consistant however - I too couldnt handle the hit and miss days of xfire r9 290s - but when they worked they WORKED!

 

I now have a 980ti and although a pair of r9 290s are basically matching its power, it ALWAYS works.... no stuttering, no profile issues, no one card only...

 

my opinion is that its not worth you selling both r9 290s to move to anything except a 980ti. the second best choice is to keep them both unless you need cash, in that case sell one of them and run a single r9 290 until Pascal (and then buy a cheap 980ti haha)

 

ps.: might come accross as a fan boy, but ive played both sides, look at benchmarks, and don't make my purchases lightly.

 

pps: I don't see any reason to get a fury / furyx

 

Indeed, when they work, they WORK.   Just wish they worked like that in more games...

 

That's the thing. Even if I take a performance hit, overall, A) It'll still be over 60fps (and therefore not really noticed) and B ) performance will be more consistent across all games - it will simply just work without issues (far less anyways).

 

I can see one very good reason to get a Fury or Fury X; if the price is right.

 

_________________

 

Seems like most of you are suggesting to stick with the 290's for now. I think that's what I'll do, at least until the Holidays and then see what's what. Might be better deals by then... Who knows...

[App4that]

A 390x can catch a 980 overclocked, remember the scaling. But on average the 980 has the overclocking advantage, that's true.

[Najuno]

I didn´t read all comments but with the setup that you have I´d wait for Pascal and call it a day. Since you stated you live in Canada you can save up a bit and then by a top of the line card with next year´s releases.

[MEC-777]

Could have had a 980 reference today for $460 ($350 USD), but the guy sold it to his girlfriend. S'ok, she needed it more (had a 7970).

[App4that]

Could have had a 980 reference today for $460 ($350 USD), but the guy sold it to his girlfriend. S'ok, she needed it more (had a 7970).

There are the ones here for 500, I've been checking on them regularly. Very tempting.

[ivan134]

Sell one now, since I have a feeling you won't be able to get much for them after the new generation launches, start saving now and get a high end Pascal or Greenland.

[byalexandr]

Keep the 290s and wait until next year! I love my 290, even if it is reference cooled. It'd be cool to have two of them but my case and mobo won't allow for that.

[MEC-777]

There are the ones here for 500, I've been checking on them regularly. Very tempting.

 

Where are you located and where are you looking? Is that $500 CAD?

 

Checked ebay last night. I can't believe how much people are willing to spend on these things. Some are even above retail pricing which doesn't make sense. There are a few within my price range, but they all have a day or two left. Last few minutes always see the last second bid-snipers swoop in, so I'm following a few to see how high they go...  

[App4that]

Where are you located and where are you looking? Is that $500 CAD?

 

Checked ebay last night. I can't believe how much people are willing to spend on these things. Some are even above retail pricing which doesn't make sense. There are a few within my price range, but they all have a day or two left. Last few minutes always see the last second bid-snipers swoop in, so I'm following a few to see how high they go...  

It's 500us. http://linustechtips.com/main/classifieds/item/2358-brand-new-sealed-evga-gtx-980-sc-reference/

 

That's the GPU I want. As the most demanding game I play is Fallout 4. And for some reason the reference cooler just hit's me in that spot. :lol:

[xAcid9]

Either option A or B.

I prefer option B, keep the best overclocker/performer and sell the inferior and keep the money for next year totally new-gen.

 

Or D, sell both and get a 980 Ti since 980 is not that much better and the Fiji's is somewhat ROP limited until DX12-Async era.

[MEC-777]

It's 500us. http://linustechtips.com/main/classifieds/item/2358-brand-new-sealed-evga-gtx-980-sc-reference/

 

That's the GPU I want. As the most demanding game I play is Fallout 4. And for some reason the reference cooler just hit's me in that spot. :lol:

 

$500 USD = $668 CAD. Too rich for my blood. If and when the right deal comes along, I'll probably jump on it.

 

Either option A or B.

I prefer option B, keep the best overclocker/performer and sell the inferior and keep the money for next year totally new-gen.

 

Or D, sell both and get a 980 Ti since 980 is not that much better and the Fiji's is somewhat ROP limited until DX12-Async era.

 

980Ti is over $900 CAD after tax. I simply cannot justify it when it's not THAT much faster than a strong OC'd 980 for ~60% of that cost. To afford a 980, I'd have to sell both 290's (would only get maybe $250 for each). 

 

But, I am digging the idea of selling the lesser 290 and just holding tight, saving up for next spring/summer when the new GPUs (hopefully) drop from Nvidia and AMD. 

 

I'm kind of one of those people though, who change/upgrade something in their setup as often as I change my socks. I love tinkering and changing things up. So rocking a 980 for 4-6 months instead of a 290, I could totally do. 

 

Bah, I don't know. Will just think about it for a while and see. 

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. 

[MEC-777]

Well, I just ordered a Strix 980 OC for $527 CAD ($395 USD) from amazon.ca. Hope it's a good one. 

 

Now, who wants to buy my 290's!??? They're both in excellent condition.

 

Serious question; Do you guys think I would be able to get more for the reference 290 if I sold it with the Corsair HG10 bracket and H55 AIO with it? If I just sell the card alone, those water cooling parts will be useless to me anyways (the bracket is reference 290 specific) and people already stay away from the reference cards due to the heat and noise... Thoughts?

 

Thinking ebay is my best bet.