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R390 vs R390X vs GTX 970 (all MSI)

ArcticFrenzy

ArcticFrenzy

ArcticFrenzy

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Joined
25 Aug 2013
Posts
113
ok this is a few questions, but power to price wise whats better the 970 or AMD'd new R390.

question 2 is the R390X compared to the regular version worth the extra money

and last question is how loud are all 3 cards (if known)
 
Pretty much every answer is subjective, how loud compared to what? is worth the money well to some yes, to you maybe not? Power wise again both play better in diff games there are loads of reviews on Google and youtube for that :)
 
Bought the 390 yesterday. The card is built to a very high standard. It's also very quiet.

The fans spin up to approx 45% at 60c and I can't here it. Card never goes over 73c while benching with an overclock. Usually about 68c in games.

Another thing I noticed was that the last card I had was a Gigabyte gtx 960 4gb that has the silent idle fan feature but you would lose that if you use a custom fan profile. This card and I think all msi cards keep that feature so I have the fans come on at 45c instead.

I prefer Nvidia cards but I couldn't bring myself to buying a gtx 970 due to the vram being a little short. I haven't had an AMD card for a while in my own rig but this card has performed great. No regrets buying this card.
 
I really wanna get a 390, but I'm conflicted about whether or not to wait it out for the supposed (basically confirmed) new GPU architecture/ "Arctic Islands" that's coming out next year most likely.

I'm guessing that they will launch this time next year, a single year after the launch of the 3xx series?

If so, what's the re-sell value like on a card that is a year or so old? I'm guessing around ~£50 less than what you paid for it?
 
Was looking at the 390 but then got offered a 390X via a supplier at work for less than the 390 retail so jumped on the x version. Can't fault the card, the fans will remain off on the MSI card I have until it hits 65c at which point they spin enough to get them to a lower idle temp and them turn off. If you are browsing, doing work, watching video etc, the fans barely ever come on (as long as the case has plenty air flow)

Fans full pelt are loud (You can run a 10 second burst from the msi gaming app to cool the cards - runs then at full speed) but the card has never hit a temp where the fans are audible in my system at all and that's after 5 hours of Hitman Absolution with everything set at Max.

I jumped to this from a 7870 Black Edition and there is a huge performance difference. As people say though, the price of the 970 over the 390, I would go with the ATi card. Can't say I have had any issues with mine at all with the official drivers from the ATi site.
 
Winky_The_Winking_Turtle said:
I really wanna get a 390, but I'm conflicted about whether or not to wait it out for the supposed (basically confirmed) new GPU architecture/ "Arctic Islands" that's coming out next year most likely.

I'm guessing that they will launch this time next year, a single year after the launch of the 3xx series?

If so, what's the re-sell value like on a card that is a year or so old? I'm guessing around ~£50 less than what you paid for it?
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I paid £320 for my Powercolor PCS+ 290 about 18 Months ago, its now worth about £180 and thats actually gone up a little since the 390/X release because its known to have the same basic chip as the 390, the benchmarks have been redone on much newer drivers which shows just how fast they actually are.

The MSI Gaming 390 is a very nice 8GB card and £270, expect to lose about £70 on it at 1 year old.
 
Lokken86 said:
Where's that guy that said his 970's do 1500mhZ and would wipe the floor with the 390 gone.
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:D Why should I have gone anywhere, you saying "rubbish" doesn't make it any less true you know. :D Everyone and their cat told you the 970s DO hit 1500 MHz no sweat and WILL wipe the floor with any old 290/390 especially at 1080p, where these cards still have enough grunt to be relevant to begin with. Then there's the issue that they do that while still consuming measurably less power.
 
After watching that review I am very tempted by the 390. For the price it seems pretty great for 1080p. But I game at 1440p and want something to max everything out....which I don't think this will do.

So I'm a bit conflicted :D.

It certainly seems like the best one to buy at that price point. Impressive stuff.
 
mururoa said:
:D Why should I have gone anywhere, you saying "rubbish" doesn't make it any less true you know. :D Everyone and their cat told you the 970s DO hit 1500 MHz no sweat and WILL wipe the floor with any old 290/390 especially at 1080p, where these cards still have enough grunt to be relevant to begin with. Then there's the issue that they do that while still consuming measurably less power.
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Yea except not when the 390 is also overclocked, or above 1080p....
 
A reference GTX 970 doesn't even need to be tuned up to beat a custom 390 at 1080p; replace it with a custom GTX 970 and the gap widens; throw in a modest overclock and there's no comparison. At 1440p a reference GTX 970 trails 390 by 2% and we all know what happens when factoring in the variables mentioned above (not that it matters, since these cards are not comfortable at higher resolutions anyway).

perfrel_1920.gif
 
mururoa said:
A reference GTX 970 doesn't even need to be tuned up to beat a custom 390 at 1080p; replace it with a custom GTX 970 and the gap widens; throw in a modest overclock and there's no comparison. At 1440p a reference GTX 970 trails 390 by 2% and we all know what happens when factoring in the variables mentioned above (not that it matters, since these cards are not comfortable at higher resolutions anyway).

perfrel_1920.gif
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Oh you mean because project cars and wolfenstein are so vasty superior on nvidia that it makes a 970 look better. But you take them out the equation and youl find things look much different.

Even with those games its 1% lol. My bad 3%...
 
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Lokken86 said:
Oh you mean because project cars and wolfenstein are so vasty superior on nvidia that it makes a 970 look better. But you take them out the equation and youl find things look much different.

Even with those games its 1% lol. My bad 3%...
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Okay then. Doesn't look like they make a world of difference for Fury X though.

perfrel_1920.gif


In the Powercolor review the performance they gained by overclocking was 7,2%, just about enough to beat a stock reference GTX 970.
 
lol @ BS chart that tests games like wow that inflate the percentage in nvidia's favour, go through the games tested the 390 wins in most.
 
Really happy with my 390 gaming , even at 3440*1440

Stutters a little in Dirt Rally after about 3 hrs, but think that's more about my bad case cooling etc rather than the card itself
 
mururoa said:
Okay then. Doesn't look like they make a world of difference for Fury X though.

perfrel_1920.gif


In the Powercolor review the performance they gained by overclocking was 7,2%, just about enough to beat a stock reference GTX 970.
Click to expand...

I think your clutching at straws. There is more than just project cars and wow that are exaggerating the 970s performance, wolfenstein was not mentioned for one. Who cares if one card does 100fps compared to 170fps anyway they are both annihilating that game. You will notice e.g 38fps vs 45fps, which is more akin to when the 390 wins.
 
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