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Results: Arma III At 3840x2160

Radeon R9 290X Review: AMD's Back In Ultra-High-End Gaming
By , Igor Wallossek

Ultra HD presents us with some interesting challenges. To begin, while DisplayPort is the most logical interface between your graphics card and a tiled display, there is no way for us to use FCAT and DP for analyzing performance. The workaround is two HDMI inputs, one of which gets routed through a DVI splitter and into a capture card. But while Nvidia says this works fine, AMD is insistent that its controller doesn't support this configuration due to timing issues. That leaves us with Fraps. And of course, there’s no way for us to pick up dropped and runt frame using Fraps. So, we immediately shed the dual-GPU solutions from our charts.

What we’re left with, then, are five single-GPU boards at a dialed-down High detail preset in Arma III. The Ultra configuration we used on the previous page is simply too demanding. Even set to High, we see averages under 40 FPS at best.

Using the Quiet mode firmware, AMD’s Radeon R9 290X maintains more than 30 FPS, beating GeForce GTX Titan.

With that said, I can’t believe that anyone willing to spend $3500 on an Ultra HD screen today would compromise game settings to make a single-card gaming box playable. Calling R9 290X the best solution for a smooth experience at 3840x2160 is a red herring. In Gaming At 3840x2160: Is Your PC Ready For A 4K Display?, I concluded that you’d want at least two GeForce GTX 780s for 4K. And although the R9 290X is faster than even the $1000 Titan, I maintain that you need a pair in order to crank your settings up to where they should be.

Average frame time variance isn’t bad, but the AMD cards encounter less consistent delivery in worst-case measurements, which could manifest as more stutter when the going gets tough.

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Top Comments
  • 99 Hide
    BigMack70 , October 23, 2013 10:04 PM
    Thank goodness AMD had some sense with the pricing. Finally, at long last, Nvidia can stop raping consumers' wallets due to lack of competition.

    This is win-win-win for everyone (except maybe Nvidia).

    Hope we never have to deal with a $1000 single GPU fiasco again. Good riddance.
  • 79 Hide
    beta212 , October 23, 2013 9:09 PM
    That's incredible. Especially at high res, I wonder how they do it. But the low price alone is enough to blow the competition away. Seriously think about it, it's around half the price for higher performance!
    - AMD: We're not aiming for the ultra high end.
    I think Nvidia just got trolled.
  • 60 Hide
    anxiousinfusion , October 23, 2013 9:37 PM
    Wait the 290 X... X? is going to be $550?! Forgive me, padre for I have sinned.
Other Comments
  • 79 Hide
    beta212 , October 23, 2013 9:09 PM
    That's incredible. Especially at high res, I wonder how they do it. But the low price alone is enough to blow the competition away. Seriously think about it, it's around half the price for higher performance!
    - AMD: We're not aiming for the ultra high end.
    I think Nvidia just got trolled.
  • 29 Hide
    slomo4sho , October 23, 2013 9:12 PM
    Great price point. This card has already broken world records just a few hours after release!


  • 25 Hide
    aznguy0028 , October 23, 2013 9:19 PM
    I was thinking about hopping on the 7970ghz when it's on sale, but after seeing this, it's time to break apart the piggy bank for the 290x, what value!
  • 33 Hide
    Benthon , October 23, 2013 9:21 PM
    Like the conclusion said, you just can't argue about aesthetics and thermals at this price point/performance. Well done AMD, lets see team green's response! Go consumer!
  • 21 Hide
    tuklap , October 23, 2013 9:25 PM
    This is awesome for us ^_^
  • 23 Hide
    Shankovich , October 23, 2013 9:27 PM
    Wow, and it's pegged at 73% too. Even if nVidia's "780ti" beats the 290X, it probably won't beat a 290X running at full power. And if mantle does make some big performance boosts, nVidia is going to be in a really tight spot. Looking forward to what they'll do. In the mean time, loving this competition! We all win in the end.
  • 13 Hide
    julianbautista87 , October 23, 2013 9:31 PM
    daaaaayyyyyuuuummmm
  • 60 Hide
    anxiousinfusion , October 23, 2013 9:37 PM
    Wait the 290 X... X? is going to be $550?! Forgive me, padre for I have sinned.
  • 21 Hide
    Darkerson , October 23, 2013 9:40 PM
    Good job, AMD!
  • 21 Hide
    jkhoward , October 23, 2013 9:40 PM
    I just purchased this card from Newegg.
  • 15 Hide
    CaptainTom , October 23, 2013 9:41 PM
    Wow AMD. GG! You exceeded every possible expectation! Have fun with your GTX 780 Ti Fanboys!!!!!
  • 19 Hide
    ilysaml , October 23, 2013 9:42 PM
    Time to Upgrade my HD 6950 to 290X, and my 1080P to 2500x Monitor.
  • 37 Hide
    lt_dan_zsu , October 23, 2013 9:44 PM
    I've never been more blown away by a hardware review. Never have I seen a gpu beat another gpu at just over half the cost.
  • 11 Hide
    DarkForce_256 , October 23, 2013 9:45 PM
    So what's the deal with the 290?
  • 9 Hide
    shin0bi272 , October 23, 2013 9:51 PM
    it always tickles the hell out of me when an amd card ties or about ties an nvidia card in one game then in an nvidia physx game the amd kicks the crap out of the nvidia card... Of course if you know why that happens in metro you know its more of a fault of the coders not physx but its still funny.
  • 10 Hide
    jimmysmitty , October 23, 2013 9:58 PM
    $550 is not bad for the fact that it beats the 780 easily and even pressures the Titan.

    Most of the higher resolution gaming wins come from the larger memory bandwidth and of course more vs the 780.

    That's a good sign. Maybe NVidia will drop prices and push this to $400-$450 and I will pick one up when there is a Vapor-X version of course,
  • 2 Hide
    markbro89 , October 23, 2013 9:59 PM
    Where to buy?! Newegg still says coming soon D:
  • -7 Hide
    DarkForce_256 , October 23, 2013 10:03 PM
    So what's the deal with the 290?
  • 99 Hide
    BigMack70 , October 23, 2013 10:04 PM
    Thank goodness AMD had some sense with the pricing. Finally, at long last, Nvidia can stop raping consumers' wallets due to lack of competition.

    This is win-win-win for everyone (except maybe Nvidia).

    Hope we never have to deal with a $1000 single GPU fiasco again. Good riddance.
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