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Thread: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

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    AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    Hi guys,

    I've been reading around and I've heard a few stories about when the non-reference coolers will arrive for the R9 290(X)'s

    Originally it was suggested the end of November,

    Hardforum suggest the 2nd week in December (having talked to AMD and AIB board manufacturers)

    Overclockers are suggesting that they will appear sometime in January (having talked to an AIB board manufacturer)

    I was hoping to get a custom cooled R9 290 for my new build and have everything ready for the Christmas holidays


    Other alternatives would be to go reference cooled AMD R9 290

    or to sacrifice a sound card, and replace a 256GB 840 Pro for a 250GB 840 Evo and get a Nvidia GTX 780

    Could anyone please offer any advice?

    Thanks

    mrsqueezy

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    tbh i would go with the Gtx 780, wwhich OC'd matched Titan performance as the Drivers favour the 780. But if you will be playing Battlefield and games that are AMD sponsored then stick with the AMD and wait it out for the Non-reference coolers as the Reference ones tend to get veryyy hot.

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    Thanks for the advice - I'm going to go EVGA GTX 780 ACX SC, I really liked the idea of the R9 290 but I'm not prepared to wait until January for the custom coolers to appear.

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    OK, before I give you any graphics advice, is this for your system in your profile, or are you doing a new build? Because I'm sure you're aware that any card more powerful than your existing GTX260 is likely to be horribly bottlenecked by a Core 2 Duo....

    As to the graphics, I'd be tempted to get a reference 290 now, see what you think of the noise, then add an aftermarket cooler yourself if you're not happy with it. There's a few guides online for which coolers fit and how to mount them, and it'll probably still be cheaper than getting the GTX780....

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    Thanks scaryjim for the input,

    Its for a new build - There's about £60 in it - The EVGA 780 ACX SC will be OC'd further for that as well.

    Im planning to get the 3XS Z87 Vengeance 780 (with a few tweaks)
    - In my forum post to Scan - they recommend waiting for the R9 290 with custom coolers or going nVidia now.

    I would've held on if the custom coolers were going to appear at the end of November/ start of December but the likelihood is very slim from the sounds of things...

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    Yeah, the 290/X definitely need the partner cards released ASAP - I get the feeling that AMD might have been waiting for partner overclocked 780 Tis to come out so they can work out where the performance/pricing bar needs to be - obviously they'd love to beat the best OCed 780 Tis if they can.

    From Hexus' reviews, the 780 Ti in OC form (from Gigabyte and EVGA) holds about a 20% lead over the 290X, which means AMD now havce a target level of OC performance on the custom cooled versions. I've heard rumours of > 20% overclocks on a well cooled 290X (hell, Hexus got their stock cooled one to 20% on memory and 12.5% on core clock), so there's a definite possibility that custom OC 290Xes could beat custom OC 780 Tis.

    If you desperately need to buy now, and you really care about noise/temperature, then the 780 SC ACX looks a reasonable bet - the Hexus review gave it Titan beating performance and it's now only just over £400. At that point it's a reasonable alternative to the 290X, let alone the 290. tbh though, I'd hold off for a week or two at least, since we're not at the end of November yet so it's not entirely surprising that we've not seen the custom Hawaii cards yet....

    EDIT:

    Quote Originally Posted by mrsqueezy View Post
    ... There's about £60 in it ...
    That's a surprise, given the difference in price on Scan's website between the cheapest 290 in stock and the EVGA 780 SC ACX is almost £90. I'd be inclined to ask Scan where that extra £30 is going if you get the 290...

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    Quote Originally Posted by scaryjim View Post
    That's a surprise, given the difference in price on Scan's website between the cheapest 290 in stock and the EVGA 780 SC ACX is almost £90. I'd be inclined to ask Scan where that extra £30 is going if you get the 290...
    Well spotted - I was guessing a little bit on the price (I used the standard price and guessed how much the custom cooler would add) - they've not actually "approved" the R9 290 for use in their 3xs systems yet - Which I've been bugging them about.

    I'll hold off until the end of the week and see what black friday brings...

    The politics is doing my head in a little bit - I love the competition and understand that AMD need to prove their loyalty to enthusiast and ultra-high end pc market... But the R9 290 could have had the high end market sewn up before Christmas if done right.

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    Re: AMD R9 290 - non-reference coolers

    Nobody really knows when the non-reference 290's, i wouldn't say anytime before January personally, but we'll see

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