R9 280X vs OC'ed 7970 (Watercooled)

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surjerrylee

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Nov 19, 2013
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Hey guys, I just bought a Sapphire 7970 (non-GHz edition) for $240. Currently, the Sapphire R9 280X Toxic edition is on sale for $300. I'm wondering if it's worth the $60 upgrade. From what I've read the R9 series will overclock until it reaches its thermal limit. I keep hearing the R9 280X is simply a "rebranded" version of the 7970GHz Edition. I've seen benchmark tests and the two are almost identical in performance, but would I be better sticking with the 7970, watercooling, then overclocking it?

On one hand, if I get the R9 280X, it already comes with a great cooling system, so water cooling isn't really necessary, but I suppose I could get even better performance if I did. On the other hand, I could keep the 7970, watercool and overclock it. The question is, would the difference in performance justify the $60 jump?

My build is:
Motherboard - GIGABYTE GA-Z87X-UD3H LGA 1150 Intel Z87
CPU - i7 4770K
RAM - G. Skill Sniper Series 2x 4GB 1866MHz
SSD - Not sure yet
HDD - 2x 1TB Seagate HDD in RAID 0
PSU - Corsair TX 750W
WCS - XSPC Raystorm D5 Photon AX240 (with the addition of GPU depending on the GPU verdict)
Case - Corsair Carbide 500R

I will be gaming in 1080P for a long time. Maybe 2+ years, which is why I'm deciding to not buy the R9 290. If you guys recommend watercooling the R9 280x or the 7970, which waterblock would you pick and why? And which radiator/fan combo and why?
 
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akensai
You may want to note that the R9 series has full Mantle support ready where the 7970, 7870, 7770 and all their intermediates can support it but will require a bios flash on the GPU.

As of now we can't be sure what Mantle will bring to the table but it looks very promising. I'd suggest the R9 series for it but it's really anyone's guess since nobody has seen how Mantle works yet.
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benjii

benjii

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Oct 29, 2010
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First off, the 290 has the best performance/value ratio out there. If it were me, I'd buy the 290 and watercool it. However, in your case it really comes down to whether or not you want to watercool it. Taking watercooling out of the equation, there is really no point buying a 280x over a 7970 as they are the same GPU, just a few different components and a different PCB.

I don't know how much a of a watercooling setup you already have, assuming you have one already to go. Buying a 7970 and a waterblock would be more expensive than just buying a 280x air cooled. Also, while the 7970 watercooled would have better performance than a 280x air cooled, it wouldn't be mind blowing.

So I suggest you pick the cheapest option unless you're really intent on watercooling.
 
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surjerrylee

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Nov 19, 2013
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My reasoning for not getting the R9 290 is simply because I'll be gaming on a 1080P monitor/tv for a long time. It may be years before I decide to switch to a higher resolution and at that time, I will be able to afford a better graphics card at a lower price point. The 7970, as far as I know, can handle anything you throw at it at 1080P resolutions.
 
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akensai

akensai

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Nov 17, 2013
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You may want to note that the R9 series has full Mantle support ready where the 7970, 7870, 7770 and all their intermediates can support it but will require a bios flash on the GPU.

As of now we can't be sure what Mantle will bring to the table but it looks very promising. I'd suggest the R9 series for it but it's really anyone's guess since nobody has seen how Mantle works yet.
 
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