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Solved Forum question

Started by King_Spider | | 18 answers
How common are black screens on the SAPPHIRE TRI-X R9 290 4GB GDDR5 OC with the newest driver?
Hi. I'm building my first pc and am stuck between the SAPPHIRE TRI-X R9 290 4GB GDDR5 OC and an overclocked GTX 780.

The 290 is about $50 cheaper and better suited for the games I'll be playing (BF4, Crysis 3), so it seems like a no brainer.

The only thing holding me back from buying one is the frequent black screen everybody seemed to be having problems with. I've googled this and done a crap ton of research, but all the responses are outdated.

Is the problem still there with the newest driver? Is it still frequent?

Would I be taking a pretty big risk by purchasing a 290 Tri-X? Should I be worried at all?

Which card will last new the longest?

The 780 is a solid card, but I'd only buy it so I won't have to deal with the black screens of the 290 (if they're still occurring).

Please help.
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August 5, 2014 5:35:01 PM

I play almost anything and everything honestly xD

I've tried battlefield 4, Murdered Soul Suspect, Thief, COD, Dark souls 2, Far Cry 3, and more with this card and so far it's tanked through all of them.

And as far as longevity I haven't seen much news for either side; so it seems that unless you get a faulty card you should be fine with either family.
August 5, 2014 4:47:16 PM

BONUS QUESTION: which of the two will most likely last me the longest? Sapphire R9 290 TRI-X? or any random GTX 780? Because this will most likely be the only time I buy PC parts. I won't be able to afford a replacement if something breaks later on. And I'll be doing some pretty hardcore gaming.
August 5, 2014 4:32:55 PM

Marco Lalvay said:
I actually just got and have been using a R9 290 Tri-x OC and it works perfectly. The only black screen i got was my own fault for trying to overclock it wrong xD I've tried the 14.4 and 12.7 beta and have had no issues here. It's a great card :3


What types of games do you play mostly?
August 5, 2014 4:29:05 PM

thanks guys. I appreciate the time. I've been reading everything. Still thoughtful though. The 290 is $430 and the GTX 780 is $460. I'm stuck. I'll just be gaming in 1080p on a single monitor, with probably another monitor for multitasking.
August 5, 2014 4:22:37 PM

Also, Amazon is amazing with return polices if it really does die like the other guy keeps fighting for. So no worries. :3
August 5, 2014 3:02:05 PM

*shrugs*

You win, mate.

Dear OP, please don't buy 290, it has issues I hear. I and other dude with this card in this thread were just lucky I guess.
August 5, 2014 2:58:40 PM

Gaidax said:
It's as if we are playing some weird who says the last word wins game here dude...

I don't really care, using 14.7 beta drivers for a month with my 290X Tri-x now. 0 issues. Complete and total 0 issues.

That's it, not gonna fight this silly war with a dude who does not even have 290 in question -_-


I have seen others post about this problem and I'm free to post a comment, you are the one who sees a war and if you don't like that other people can post comments perhaps it is not a good idea for you to stay a member?
August 5, 2014 2:48:20 PM

It's as if we are playing some weird who says the last word wins game here dude...

I don't really care, using 14.7 beta drivers for a month with my 290X Tri-x now. 0 issues. Complete and total 0 issues.

That's it, not gonna fight this silly war with a dude who does not even have 290 in question -_-
August 5, 2014 2:37:57 PM

Gaidax said:
lol, it's as if you are having some major beef with amd or something, guess we made it up that our 290s run rock solid -_-

As for that guy, his card is faulty and his supplier is trying to evade responsibility. Faulty cards happen, dude.


Which is what I kept being told about my card, strange that this "faulty" card got fixed by a driver.
August 5, 2014 2:35:25 PM

lol, it's as if you are having some major beef with amd or something, guess we made it up that our 290s run rock solid -_-

As for that guy, his card is faulty and his supplier is trying to evade responsibility. Faulty cards happen, dude.

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