Consider this your reference for Radeon R9 280X comparisons. We’re deliberately not including a group picture in the introduction because, as we receive more third-party boards, we'll update today's piece with them, making comparisons easier. To this end, the benchmark and measurement results are split into different categories and mostly presented as tables.

We're also taking your feedback into account and including specifications that don't appear in every manufacturer's technical specifications, but still matter for installation, and might consequently be an important factor in your buying decision. The videos are back too, in addition to fan speed and temperature diagrams as well.
A run-down of each card's differentiators, including BIOS tweaks and a picture gallery of each board, round out this new story format. For the first time, we’re combining a round-up, single-card reviews, and picture galleries into one handy, continually updated package.
Graphics Cards Overview
| Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC | ![]() |
| Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC Update: Added: 10/21/2013 | ![]() |
| Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC | ![]() |
| HIS R9 280X IceQ X² | ![]() |
| MSI R9 280X Gaming OC | ![]() |
| Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC | ![]() |
| Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC | ![]() |
Technical Specifications Overview Table
All of the AMD Radeon R9 280X graphics cards feature the same 28 nm Tahiti XT2 processor from AMD with 2048 shaders and a 384-bit memory bus. The differences between cards comes down to the detailed technical specifications.
| Model | GPU Clock MHz (Boost) | Memory Clock MHz | Memory Bandwidth GB/s | Pixel Fillrate GPixel/s | Texture Fillrate GTexel/s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asus R9 280X DirectCUII OC | 1070 | 1600 | 307.2 | 34.2 | 137.0 |
| Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC | 1100 | 1500 | 288.0 | 35.2 | 140.8 |
| Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC | 1100 | 1500 | 288.0 | 35.2 | 140.8 |
| HIS R9 280X IceQ X² | 1050 | 1500 | 288.0 | 33.6 | 134.4 |
| MSI R9 280X Gaming OC | 1050 | 1500 | 288.0 | 33.6 | 134.4 |
| Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC | 1150 | 1600 | 307.2 | 36.8 | 147.2 |
| Sapphire R9 280X VaporX OC | 1070 | 1550 | 297.6 | 34.2 | 137.0 |
Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC
Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC

Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC

HIS R9 280X X²
MSI R9 280X Gaming OC (New BIOS)
Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC

Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC
A Note about the Dimensions
The dimensions reported here aren’t necessarily identical to those claimed by each manufacturer's technical specifications, but they represent the results of our measurements shown in the diagram. We do not include the height of the PCIe power cable plugs, which needs to be added depending on the specific plug and cable used.

| Model | Length L | Height H | Depth D1 | Depth D2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC | 287 mm | 139 mm | 38 mm | 3 mm |
| Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC | 265 mm | 112 mm | 36 mm | 5 mm |
| Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC | 270 mm | 112 mm | 37 mm | 4 mm |
| HIS R9 280X IceQ X² | 297 mm | 130 mm | 34 mm | 3 mm |
| MSI R9 280X Gaming OC | 268 mm | 120 mm | 34 mm | 3 mm |
| Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC | 301 mm | 112 mm | 34 mm | 5 mm |
| Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC | 280 mm | 122 mm | 44 mm | 5 mm |
Graphics Card Weight
A graphics card’s weight can be interesting to know in case you need additional support, or if you're planning to build a CrossFire-based configuration that doesn't break the motherboard.

| Model | Weight (Graphics Card Only) |
|---|---|
| Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC | 1074 g |
| Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC | 779 g |
| Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC | 794 g |
| HIS R9 280X IceQ X² | 963 g |
| MSI R9 280X Gaming OC | 769 g |
| Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC | 1092 g |
| Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC | 1052 g |
A Note about the Temperatures
We measured the temperatures by running Unigine Heaven's benchmark mode in a loop. This should simulate the most taxing gaming workload that AMD's Radeon R9 280X will encounter. Depending on the title, the temperatures you see will likely be somewhat lower.
| Model | Idle | Full Gaming Load |
|---|---|---|
| Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC | 32°C | 75°C |
| Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC | 34 °C | 74 °C |
| Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X | 28°C 30°C | 63°C 73°C (new BIOS) |
| HIS R9 280X IceQ X² | 31°C | 69°C |
| MSI R9 280X Gaming OC | 34°C 34°C | >90°C throttling (VRM) 72°C |
| Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC | 33 °C | 72°C |
| Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC | 32°C | 80°C |
Temperature Diagram
The temperature curve in the diagram is influenced by each Radeon R9 280X’s cooler, fans, and the fan profile in the card’s BIOS. We’re also collecting data for cards with available or announced firmware updates.
Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC

Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC

Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC

HIS R9 280X X²

MSI R9 280X Gaming OC (new BIOS)

Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC

Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC

Noise
We measure the Radeon R9 280X’s noise level in different usage scenarios, for which we use a studio microphone with the same calibration found in our PC audio reviews. The mic is positioned perpendicular to the middle of the graphics card at a distance of 50 cm.
| Model | Idle | Moderate Load | Full Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC | 30.4 dB(A) | 36.8 dB(A) | 40.8 dB(A) |
| Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC | 30.4 dB(A) | 42.3 dB(A) | 47.4 dB(A) |
| Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X | 31.4 dB(A) | 42.8 dB(A) 38.3 dB(A) Modified | 47.9 dB(A) 42.7 dB(A) Modified |
| HIS R9 280X IceQ X² | 30.5 dB(A) | 37.2 dB(A) | 41.7 dBA |
| MSI R9 280X Gaming OC | 30.8 dB(A) 30.8 dB(A) | 35.2 dB(A) 41.5 dB(A) New BIOS | 39.2 dB(A) Throttling 52.9 dB(A) New BIOS |
| Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC | 32.2 dB(A) | 43.4 dB(A) | 48.8 dB(A) |
| Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC | 32.7 dB(A) | 46.1 dB(A) | 56.8 dB(A) |
Fan RPM
The number of fans, fan diameter, and fan rotational speed all play big roles in determining each card’s noise level. We’re showing the curve for every board separately to keep things from getting cluttered. Diagrams for cards that have received a BIOS update sport more than one curve.
Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC

Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC

Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC

HIS R9 280X X²

MSI R9 280X Gaming OC (new BIOS)

Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC

Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC

A Note about the Videos
The videos show each Radeon R9 280X running Unigine Heaven's benchmark mode in a loop, which is about as demanding as a gaming load should get. This is the same loop that’s used for the temperature and fan RPM measurements.
Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC
Club3D R9 280X royalKing OC
Gigabyte R9 280X WindForce 3X OC
HIS R9 280X IceQ X²
MSI R9 280X Gaming OC (new BIOS)
Sapphire R9 280X Toxic OC
Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC
| Brief Technical Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Model | Asus R9 280X DirectCU II OC |
| PCIe Power Connectors | 1 x 8-pin, 1 x 6-pin |
| Connectors | 1 x DVI-I (dual-link + analog) 1 x DVI-D (dual-link) 1 x HDMI 1 x DisplayPort (full-size) |
| Form Factor | Two slots |
| Dual BIOS | Yes |
Picture Gallery: Front and Back
Picture Gallery: Sides
Picture Gallery: Connectors
| Brief Technical Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Model | Sapphire R9 280X Vapor-X OC |
| PCIe Power Connectors | 2 x 8-pin |
| Connectors | 1 x DVI-I (dual-link + analog) 1 x DVI-D (dual-link) 1 x HDMI 1 x DisplayPort (full-size) |
| Form Factor | Three slots |
| Dual BIOS | Yes |



























































