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SAPPHIRE TRI-X r9 290 vs MSI R9 290X

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  • Graphics Cards
  • Graphics
Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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September 5, 2014 10:12:09 AM

Well, the title says it all...

I am looking for a graphics card upgrade and I just can't decide between the following cards:

SAPPHIRE TRI-X R9 290 4GB OC
http://www.alternate.be/SAPPHIRE/TRI-X-R9-290-4GB-OC-%2...

MSI R9 290X GAMING 4G
http://www.alternate.be/MSI/R9-290X-GAMING-4G-grafische...

What are the advantages of the 290x?
The 780ti is also in the running, but the lower VRAM and steep price make it less compelling...

This card should be very good for a heavily modded Skyrim, since that is the main reason I am upgrading. But I also play a lot Battlefield, singleplayer games like Tombraider and some strategy (RTWII,...).

Price is not really an issue, but I dont like to waste money either.

Thanks!

More about : sapphire tri 290 msi 290x

a c 150 U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:21:21 AM

The Tri X is a great card, proven to be quiet (atleast better than others), cool and good performer. MSI is no less, it produces very quiet and cool cards and this one being a bit noisy, is kept under 80C most of the times. Any of them will smoke any game on FHD. So it really comes down to the resolution, I mean, on 1080p, 80 FPS and 90 FPS doesn't really make a difference, but 35 FPS to 45 FPS on 4k or multi monitor does make a difference.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:22:53 AM

Well the 780ti beat the 290x in skyrim with mods. Tek sydicate did a benchmark on this. Just because it has 1 gb lessVRAM does not make it a lesser card. It has beat the 290x in just about every single gaming test that's been performed. Having said that the 290x is a tad cheaper but you also run into the notorious amd driver issues and potential heat although the aftermarket coolers are doing a halfway decent job cooling them.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:31:19 AM

For 100 bucks more than the price of the EVGA 780ti you can crossfire R9 290 Tri-X which is much better in 4K .
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:50:31 AM

Op has said nothing about 4k so why bring it up?
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:56:46 AM

azzazel_99 said:
Op has said nothing about 4k so why bring it up?


We're here to express opinions not to find what we don't like about other's opinions and highlight it and why I brought it up is very simple because all of these cards are designed to run on higher resolutions , while its fine to run them on 1080p but you unleash the full potential of the 290s on 4k moreover in real world terms the CFX 290 is a very strong combination on triple gaming monitor or just 1080p

Full review here : http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/radeon_r9_290_cros...
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:01:20 AM

And of course 2 cards are better than one but the. You run Into temp issues as I myself have with my 780ti's and you'll also need the power supply to drive 2 gpu's, PLENTY of case ventilation to ensure max airflow for lower temps and lets not forget the micro stuttering you can get from sli/crossfire and some games not being in coded for sli or cross fire. Single card applications are what the original poster was referring or so I thought so for that question the best single card is the 780ti.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:03:38 AM

He said money isn't a problem so it was a viable option and since money isn't an issue he can afford a good PSU and a good case also the 290 CFX is almost as expensive as an EVGA 780ti so its not out of the competition , instead of arguing with me you can just say your opinion and wait for the OPs questions just like what Meteors did.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:04:05 AM

The 780ti at 4k gaming still beat the 290x in bf4 assassins creed I believe and also in skyrim. These tests were done by tech of tomorrow. They did a few other games also but those are the only I ones I can think of off the top of my head. Yes dual gpu would be more powerful than a single 780ti but single gpu the 780ti is the top card.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:06:07 AM

Arguing yet again , I didn't say anything about the 290x and didn't say a 780ti isn't the best option for single card all what I've said is that for the price of a 780ti he can get CFX 290 ( non -X again ) and beat the 780ti anyday of the week. I'll not respond to further comments.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:06:24 AM

I would get the Sapphire tri-X OC. I have the card and play modded Skyrim with no troubles.
Best bang for the buck. The Sapphire also OC's quite well to 290x levels stable and cool in a good case.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:08:29 AM

Skyrim also likes high CPU clocks! I would recommending OCing you CPU for a bump.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:09:51 AM

Embra said:
I would get the Sapphire tri-X OC. I have the card and play modded Skyrim with no troubles.
Best bang for the buck. The Sapphire also OC's quite well to 290x levels stable and cool in a good case.


It is indeed the best bang for the buck in the top-tier cards .
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:10:44 AM

Also the 290's are still $400 per card new making a Xfire setup 800+ just for gpu's. Asus has their 780ti right now on new egg for only $588 that's only $150 more over majority of the $429 r9 290's on new egg and well worth it if you are gonna be doing 1440p or 1080p at 120hz+. Just food for thought.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:12:46 AM

Topluca the OP mentioned the 290x.
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a c 150 U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:15:09 AM

Since we've gone into this irrelevant arguement of enthusiast level GPUs, for a single GPU, R9 295X2 is the most powerful, its a dual R9 290X in one GPU. Just got a price cut and is available for $1k:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...




BUT, OP's website has prices in Euros, and how can you both fight even before knowing what resolution the OP is gaming at and if he has multi monitor setup (or wish to have) or not.
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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 11:48:33 AM

Not arguing by any means I was just stating results and asking questions. Also the 295 is not a single gpu it's a dual gpu on one PCB just like the titan z or the 690 or the 7990. Would be a solid choice if you were going dual gpu indeed especially with the price cut and would save space and cut down on the temp issues with a dual video card setup. Hard to beat the 295 at the new price point.
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September 5, 2014 1:49:22 PM

Thanks for the answers, but I see we got a little of topic :)  .

No more dual GPU for me, I am currently running hd6970 in crossfire and the trouble is just not worth it. Perhaps I might consider 2 sapphire cards (only 2 slots/card) but I would rather not.

The normal Skyrim benchmark is not really an indicator since it tells nothing about ENB performance and performance with extreme VRAM load. (I don't think the 3GB on the 780ti is large enough though, currently I have 2GB VRAM and it is not nearly enough for my current Skyrim install. ) And my CPU is already at 4.5GHZ so I am not looking to push that any further.

About the 4k: I have a tripple monitor setup but I dont really use it since I don't really see the point of running games on 3 screens. Usually I just go for 1080p, but in the future I might upgrade to a 2560x1440 monitor.

I play a lot of BF4 and I like to run with a high FPS (preferably 90+) while still having decent settings.

But with just 1080p I probably should be looking at the Sapphire card? I just don't want to be held back by graphics settings now or in the near future.

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a b U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 1:58:13 PM

I run an i5 2500k with 8gb ram and when I ran just my 780ti single before I went sli I was able to hold 90+fps on bf4 and I play a lot of bf4 and always on ultra at 1080p. Now of course depending on the map and also if you're playing on a 64man map or 48/32 or whatever your performance will vary. The 290 can hold 70-80+ on most maps but if you are wanting tops fps like I was searching for I would go either the 290x or the 780ti .Nothing less
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a c 150 U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:26:22 PM

The 290X makes sense. 290 Tri X is a wonderful card but just won't beat the 290X. Besides, MSI have one of the best coolers and they run quiet too. On 1440p, it'll manage something like 70+ FPS and on FHD, 100+ FPS, so yeah that's what you're looking for.

780 Ti is a superb card but 3GB on 2k won't cut it against the 290X.
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September 5, 2014 10:36:21 PM

Thanks for your advice, azzazel_99 and MeteorsRaining! I want to pick both for solution, but that is not possible.
The 290x it is then!
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a c 150 U Graphics card
September 5, 2014 10:43:09 PM

Glad to help :) 
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a b U Graphics card
September 6, 2014 3:19:36 AM

I believe you will be happy! Just read up on the aftermarket coolers and see which ones is best. Personally if I went with amd I think I'd go sapphire but I'm not super familiar with the brands on amd. Happy gaming!
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