The AMD Radeon R9 290 Review
by Ryan Smith on November 5, 2013 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- GPUs
- AMD
- Radeon
- Hawaii
- Radeon 200
Total War: Rome 2
The second strategy game in our benchmark suite, Total War: Rome 2 is the latest game in the Total War franchise. Total War games have traditionally been a mix of CPU and GPU bottlenecks, so it takes a good system on both ends of the equation to do well here. In this case the game comes with a built-in benchmark that plays out over a forested area with a large number of units, definitely stressing the GPU in particular.
For this game in particular we’ve also gone and turned down the shadows to medium. Rome’s shadows are extremely CPU intensive (as opposed to GPU intensive), so this keeps us from CPU bottlenecking nearly as easily.
Rome is another game that sees the 290X significantly throttle, and as such it’s another game the 290 has little trouble catching up in. At 2560 the two cards are essentially tied, each enjoying a 5% lead over the GTX 780. Elsewhere the 290 beats the 280X by 27% and the GTX 770 by 30%. Even the 7950B gets left behind to a significant extent, with the 290 beating it by 58%.
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Tetracycloide - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
I love you use steam surveys to justify comparing the cards at 1080p because "1080/1200p is running on 98.5% of our screens" and then reference a review that benchmarks based on bleeding edge overclocks of each GPU...geok1ng - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
well, while it may be true that an overclocked 780 is about as fast as an overclocked 290/X, it is also true that under water a 290/x will blow away an OC 780, and that the cost of a waterblock more than compensates the price NVIDIA asks for a 780. it may well be true that most of 780 and 290 buyers are running it at 1080p, it only points towards how irrational/stupid enthusiasts can behave, i am speaking as a 1600p gamer whose games do not demand more than a 4870x2 but has upgraded to a 6950 and then to a 7950. There is one point in favor of the 290/X that all your whining can not deny: THESE CARDS ARE 4K GAMING READY. We are ending 2013, and buying a new card today may well mean that one will use it on a 4k display over the next 2 years.Galidou - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
''buying a new card today may well mean that one will use it on a 4k display over the next 2 years''Or simply means that one will use it to continue maxing graphics no 1080p for the enxt 2 years... like if new gen consoles and games will not make graphics improve so 1080p will never ever be a challenging resolution for 2 years old graphics card... sigh...
Spunjji - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
Sparks, dripping fire? Was it a GTX 590? Sorry, didn't watch the vid ;) Nothing quite like a fanboy making up the other side's arguments for them.swing848 - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
It looks like you and Anand almost see eye to eye, GeForce fan boys. If I remember correctly the GeForce 480 [and 470] fan was very noisy in an effort to keep the HOT GPU from melting down, along with may be part of your motherboard.[IMG]http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p266/Swing848/A...[/IMG]
Fallen Kell - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
Well, as long as your PC is in sound dampened closet with a usb extension cable and your dvi/hdmi cables comming out of it, yes, this is an amazing card. But I certainly wouldn't want something that is in the mid 50db range in my bedroom or office.Galidou - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
Then wait for Asus or gigabyte cards with aftermarket coolers... comon you guys denying amazing cards because they have 2 weeks to be sold with a crappy cooler... COMON are you that stupid?yacoub35 - Wednesday, November 6, 2013 - link
7970 is still the best bang-for-the-buck right now. This card will be too, once it's been out for a year or so and has a price drop to $299.Galidou - Wednesday, November 6, 2013 - link
I've got to agree that the 7970 at the current price is the bargain hunter best deal. If you run 1080p monitor and even above, you REALLY can't go wrong. It usually performs better than GTX 770 and can be overclocked like... Anyway, you get the point.mgl888 - Tuesday, November 5, 2013 - link
Too much of the article was dedicated to noise.Personally, if it came down to saving $100 or having my GPU run loudly (but stably at factory speeds), I'd take the $100 savings any day.