Review: MSI Radeon R9 390X Gaming 8G OC

techpowerup's W1zzard stated in the forums that ...

Meaning it is binning. They got a worse sample that had higher voltages. This is nothing new, but is probably compounded by the fact that 390Xs are overclocked parts, meaning "stable, stock" voltages have to be generally higher. It is also probably not helped by the fact that the MSI card has 5ghz stock memory chips overclocked up to 6.1ghz. With reviewers getting samples all over the place, the realistic target is probably between the two extremes. I would probably expect most 390Xs to have slightly more power usage than a 290X simply due to more RAM, higher clocks, and because of that, higher leakage through higher temperature, but not as high as this.

 

So, everybody is hyping on 'omg power consumption" , but they dont see that the 390x is on paar with the GTX 980 witch costs 100$ more... Really?!

 

Well, 390X is just an overclocked 290X at almost all situations. A 290X highly overclocked can beat a reference 980. Nothing really new over here. However, a 970/980 also overclocks very well = there will be a difference in performance regardless, especially if you compare AIB 390x to AIB 980 (both overclocked).

 

Well, i'm seeing 390 8GB Nitro for 330€ while 970 3.5GB is 360€ and 390X 8GB is 440€ while 980 4GB is 550€. This is how it rolls here. Idk but those prices isnt really competitive for nVidia and they will have to bring some price reductions.

Also, more Vram is always better this days.

 

The problem is the 390X isn't competitive with 290X prices. This is what everyone is talking about. Whether or not it is competitive with Nvidia is a whole different can of worms due to local prices, driver support, and power efficiency.

More memory is good, but Hawaii/Grenada most likely isn't fast enough for games that do require over 4GB of VRAM (and at that high of a resolution).

 

So it looks like Hilbert got really lucky with the sample he received. I don't quite like this... The difference can be huuuuge.

I'm seeing 290X for 309 €. Here in Finland 390X costs 170 € more. That extra 4GB is useless one these cards. If application would require that much the GPU would already be unplayable because the GPU just doesn't have enough horsepower. In this case the 8GB is just marketing gigabytes.

 

It could even be worse...Hilbert was apparently the only reviewer who got an MSI card that was actually up to 390X GRENADA spec and the other cards had GPUs that were still Hawaii. So there may be a batch of MSI 390X Hawaii cards out there. And yes that makes a nice rumor lol...

 

390X with Direct X 12

Hi Gurus,

I would like to caution you, no to write of the 390X yet as a poor offering from AMD. Remember that with Direct X 12 around the corner/Windows 10, a single 390X with 8GB of RAM might be a cost effective option for 4K gaming under the new API.

I too would rather own a FURY X over the 390X, but if I am able to get 40+ FPS under Direct X 12, I would consider it a winner.

I look forward to seeing what other members of this forum think.

 

That's where you live. The world is a lot larger than your country.

nvidia are more than competitive over here in the UK. Also in the US. Just to name a couple of countries.

UK pricing example:

290x £289
390 £259
390x £339

970 £259
980 £359
980ti £499

Absolutely zero wrong with nvidia prices. 970 goes for same as 390, 980 is slightly more than 390x and 980ti is the most expensive, but also offers a lot more performance. FuryX will probably cost the same, if not more, offer about the same performance (slightly less after overclocking) and have less VRAM.

 

Jeez, so many threads with people going on about Nvidia being more expensive.

eclap, is that a typo on the 980ti as i don't think i've saw anywhere with it for less than £499.

Undying, same thing with the 390X 8GB at 440€, no way is that true as that would make it cheaper than the US price.

 

Typo indeed, fixed.

 

970 is dirt cheap in the USA. Nothing wrong with that 970 pricing.

 

AMD Radeon R9 390X in CrossFire at 4K

Interesting to see how the next driver update impacts these cards.

http://www.tweaktown.com/tweakipedia/91/amd-radeon-r9-390x-crossfire-4k/index.html