Test Setup And Benchmarks
We've almost completely eliminated mechanical storage in the lab, and instead lean on solid-state drives to alleviate I/O-related bottlenecks. Samsung sent all of our offices 256 GB 840 Pros, so we standardize on these exceptional SSDs.
Naturally, discrete graphics cards require a substantial amount of stable power, so XFX sent along its PRO850W 80 PLUS Bronze-certified power supply. This modular PSU employs a single +12 V rail rated for 70 A. XFX claims that this unit provides 850 W of continuous power (not peak) at 50 degrees Celsius (notably higher than the inside of most enclosures).
The Radeon R9 270 is being tested against three other Pitcairn/Curacao boards: the Radeon HD 7850, Radeon HD 7870, and Radeon R9 270X. We're also including a Bonaire-based Radeon R7 260X to gauge the spread betwen the 270 and the next model down (once the 7850 disappears, that is). Nvidia's portfolio is represented by the GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost and GeForce GTX 660.
| Header Cell - Column 0 | Test System |
|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Core i5-2550K (Sandy Bridge), Overclocked to 4.2 GHz @ 1.3 V |
| Motherboard | Asus P8Z77-V LX LGA 1155, Chipset: Intel Z77M |
| Networking | On-Board Gigabit LAN controller |
| Memory | Corsair Performance Memory, 4 x 4 GB, 1866 MT/s, CL 9-9-9-24-1T |
| Graphics | Reference Radeon HD 7850 1GB860 MHz GPU, 1 GB GDDR5 at 1200 MHz (4800 MT/s)Reference Radeon HD 78701000 MHz GPU, 2 GB GDDR5 at 1200 MHz (4800 MT/s)Sapphire Dual-X R9 270945 MHz GPU, 2 GB GDDR5 at 1400 MHz (5300 MT/s)*GPU downclocked to reference 925 MHz specification for benchmarking*Reference Radeon R9 270X1050 MHz GPU, 2 GB GDDR5 at 1400 MHz (5300 MT/s)Reference Nvidia GeForce GTX 650 Ti Boost980/1033 MHz GPU, 2 GB GDDR5 at 1502 MHz (6008 MT/s)Reference Nvidia GeForce GTX 660980/1033 MHz GPU, 2 GB GDDR5 at 1502 MHz (6008 MT/s) |
| Hard Drive | Samsung 840 Pro, 256 GB SSD, SATA 6Gb/s |
| Power | XFX PRO850W, ATX12V, EPS12V |
| Software and Drivers | |
| Operating System | Microsoft Windows 8 Pro x64 |
| DirectX | DirectX 11 |
| Graphics Drivers | AMD Catalyst 13.11 Beta 9.2, Nvidia GeForce 331.65 WHQL |
| Benchmark Configuration | |
|---|---|
| 3D Games | |
| Metro: Last Light | Version 1.0.0.0, DirectX 10, Built-in Benchmark |
| Call Of Duty: Ghosts | Version 1.6.89.06, Version 1.5.26.05, 25-Sec. Fraps |
| Tomb Raider | Version 1.04, Custom THG Benchmark, 60-Sec. Fraps |
| Battlefield 4 | Version 1.2, Direct X 11, Built-in Benchmark, 60-Sec. Fraps |
| BioShock Infinite | Version 1.0.1441711, Built-in Benchmark, Fraps |
| Company Of Heroes 2 | Version 3.0.0.9804, Built-in Benchmark, Fraps |