Radeon R9 290 4GB, SAPPHIRE or GIGABYTE ?

Jini Lera · Dec 21, 2013

Hello everyone,

I 'm new here, so please forgive any mistakes I make

I 'm creating this thread because I'm building a new (gamer's) computer in about 1-3 weeks from now (10-20 Jan, 2014) and I want to know what GPU should I buy.

I think I 'll go for a Radeon 290 4GB , but I don't know what "brand" should I buy : Sapphire or Gigabyte ? ( or even maybe ASUS or MSI ) .

My main concern is that Sapphire requires a 750W PSU, when Gigabyte only a 600W.

So, what is the difference between them? Is Sapphire's version more powerful, hence the more Watts required? I 'm confused.

Any help would be appreciated.

P.S.: I would also like to know which card is going to be " quieter " , if anyone knows.

Amdlova · Dec 21, 2013

wait for non reference cooler or buy an gtx 780.

Francisco Costa · Dec 21, 2013

You should only buy a reference cooled R9 290 if you want your PC to sound like a jet engine and to be hotter than hell. And since I don't think you want that, either wait for the non-reference cooler or buy a GTX 780 for $500

huilun02 · Dec 21, 2013

http://www.guru3d.com/news_story/sapphire_equips_r9_290_and_r9_290x_with_tri_x_triple_fan_cooler.html

Francisco Costa · Dec 21, 2013

huilun02 :

Yeah, something like this

juanjostorreshernndez · Dec 21, 2013

I think is not time to get a R9 290 yet, considering the reference cooling is garbage on the 290-290x's, AMD makes their GPU's run ~80C, which does not allow any OC'ing right now, so I would wait for aftermarket cooling.
now the GTX780 is the BEST choice, It runs cooler with higher overclocking and better efficiency.
Related to brands quality, ASUS, Gigabyte, Sapphire, MSI, all of them are good taking care about endurance, and quality

lonewolf7 · Dec 21, 2013

Radeon R9-290X - requires 33 Ampere on +12V rail and a 600W PSU minimum, regardless of brand.

I would go with ASUS. Reliable and quite also.

Jini Lera · Dec 21, 2013

First of all, thnx guys for all your answers.

Secondly, since I do not know much about GPU's, I don't know what a "reference cooled" GPU is, but trying to understand what you meant, correct me if I 'm wrong, a reference cooled GPU is one with "default settings", they come out first, and after a while, some other GPU's , with the same chip, however improved in terms of cooling, OC, and noise levels become available ( the "non-reference cooled GPUs" ).

However, when is a non-reference cooled Radeon R9 4GB going to be available for purchase, and how could I know I 'm bying one, and not a reference cooled one? ( how can a non-reference cooled GPU be identified? )

And, last but not least, I see that many of you suggest the gtx780 as a solution? But is it better than the R9 4GB?

I mean:
GTX780 vs R9 4GB
Base Clock: 954 MHz vs 947 MHz
Standard Memory Config: 3GB vs 4GB
Memory Speed: 6GHz vs 5Ghz
Max. Resolution: 4096x2160 both of them
Memory Bus: 384bit vs 512bit
and they both support: PCI Express x16 3.0, HDMI, 3D

I don't know what specs are the most important ones, but I thought (and not necessarily in that order) those were the most significant:
1. Base Clock (where they are almost equal)
2. Standard Memory Config (where the R9 is by 1GB better)
3. Memory Bus(where the R9 is better too)

Shocking777 · Dec 21, 2013

The 290 is better in terms of price. They have similiar performance, in some games the GTX 780 beats the R9 290 with 1-3 FPS and Vice Versa. And what resolution are you playing at?

The reference cooled cards are the card from AMD/Nvidia without any good cooling. To check if you buy the non reference cooler is usually shown by the product name. You could see the Sapphire one will be displayed like Tri-X OC R9 290 4GB DDR5. And you could also see by the PU itself the custom cooler will show fans while the reference one will be shown by black and red stripes with only one fan on the side.

Nefos · Dec 21, 2013

Reference design: AMD make a "golden card" with set of specs and a cooling solution that works okay. The reason they sell this card is to set a reference to the manufacturers (hence the name)
(I refer it as "golden card" not because it is the best, but other manufacturers can get the basic info from the card, like they do at DVD printing. Sorry if it is confusing, I hope you can understand it)
Non reference: Manufacturers designing the card by themselves, usually with better cooler (easiest way to spot the difference is that they have 2-3 massive fans, rather than the small red fan )sometimes even they redesign the PCB with better components and better system.
So if you plan to buy a GPU, I would advise you to get Non reference design because=it has a fancy cooler,that is look nicer and cool the card better with less noise, usually has better components in it.
780 and 290 are very similar at performance, but bear one thing in mind:
AMD cards are sold out everywhere, and their price went up. That means that wait for the non reference 290, but if its sold out, then get the 780, you will not loose any speed

lonewolf7 · Dec 21, 2013

Yes you are right on reference cooled and non reference cooled one.

If you are not planning on multi monitor setup then 3GB will be enough for any game. But 4GB VRAM will not hurt you.

And I think, if you are talking about GTX780 and R9 290 then 290 is bit faster :

http://www.hwcompare.com/16200/geforce-gtx-780-vs-radeon-r9-290/

But GTX 780Ti is bit fast than R9 290X :

http://www.hwcompare.com/16369/geforce-gtx-780-ti-vs-radeon-r9-290x/

Jini Lera · Dec 21, 2013

@Shocking777
I always play at 1920x1080 , and the probability of playing with more than 1 monitor in the future is about 0.000001%

Another thing that I forgot to mention is that I also plan on buying:
1. AMD FX 8350
2. Asus SaberTooth 990FX R2.0
3. 8GB DDR3-1600MHz RAM
and a PSU which supports all of the above.

So, R9 290 (a non-reference cooled version) or the gtx780 make a more efficient whole with my system?

Nefos · Dec 21, 2013

both will be overkill, both will be good enough. The companies says to play in 1080p in high graphics a 270x/GTX 760 is enough, for 1440p 280x/ GTX 770, and 290/780 is for ultrahighend cards, that is basically for show off and playing incredible FPS-s at Ultra details
I would choose whichever will be cheaper, available to buy or has a better bundle

Jini Lera · Dec 21, 2013

@Nefos

I 'm building a new pc, which I want to last for at least 2-3 years, and play games, if not at maximum, at least at medium settings.

Nefos · Dec 21, 2013

780/290 will be enough for futureproofing, I reckon that you will be able to play games in high details in 2-3 years, where you could play at medium with 280x/770

Jini Lera · Dec 21, 2013

@Nefos

Ok, so, 290 it is!

And as for the main subject of the thread, I 'm waiting for a non-referenced version of R9 290, right?

Oh, one more thing. should the occasion arise , will it be possible to overclock the (non-referenced version of) R9 290? Not anything "crazy" though , just basic staff

Nefos · Dec 21, 2013

yes you are, they have better cooling and better components, so you can overclock them better than the reference

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/sapphire-radeon-r9-290-r9-290x-tri-x,news-46638.html This is how a non reference desing looks like just a little help

Jini Lera · Dec 21, 2013

Ok, thnx a lot (all of you).

I have no further question for the time being

Acidfix · Sep 2, 2014

I just wanted to add in that a lot of people buy a 290 and use a 5+ year old PSU and even though it was good at the time. It might not be as great as it was for a few reasons. Let's say you have a PSU in the 650w-850w range. You have been using you're PC a lot over the last 5 year's and overtime a PSU that had a lot of stress put on it will not work as good.

I know there are some awesome PSU's that have released in the last year/half a year. I picked up the XFX XTR 750 and it is one amazing PSU. With my Gigabyte R9 290 OC Edition @ 1080 core, 4670k 4.4Ghz 8GB Kingston HyperX Ram, WD Black 1TB HDD the max wattage my PC uses is well under 600 watt's.

Battlefield 4 play's at 90FPS on Ultra 4XMSAA/16XAF/FXAA and that's not using Mantle.

Just the fact that you can pick up a Gigabyte R9 290 OC Edition for around $380 is amazing as the card is made very well. Gigabyte uses a better PCB and Components then the other's and WindForce 3 is amazing as my GPU never goes above 70C

And you will be set for the next 3 year's or so.

I'm not saying Sapphire is bad, they just are not as good as Gigabyte. The one card that come's close to Gigabyte's 290 OC Edition is the Sapphire Vapor-X and beside's the fact that it look's fugly, it take's up about 3 slot's. And I hate sandwedged GPU's.

So if you might plan on Crossfire, Gigabyte is also the better buy.

Gratz on your new 290 and have fun. Battlefield 4 is my new favorite game! Well I'm sure it's everyone's.

Radeon R9 290 4GB, SAPPHIRE or GIGABYTE ?

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