Friday, October 8th 2010

AMD Radeon HD 6870 Reference Design Looks Refined, Ready to Market

Oct 8th, 2010 04:39 Discuss (126 Comments)

Here it is, the AMD Radeon HD 6870, all dressed up to go to work. There has been quite some speculation surrounding the naming scheme AMD is going to adopt with the HD 6000 series, but fresh information suggestively lays some of that to rest. Firstly, Radeon HD 6800 series is built around the "Barts" GPU, not "Cayman". Barts is a new performance GPU, though isn't the highest-end single GPU from AMD (which is reserved for Cayman). Barts "XT" is Radeon HD 6870, and Barts "Pro" is HD 6850. Pictured below is the HD 6870. At a purely subjective glance, the HD 6870 reference design card seems to be as long as the HD 5850 reference.

The new Radeon logo has been Photoshopped on to the fan, so the products in market will definitely do away with the older ATI logo. The rear panel resembles that of the Radeon HD 5800 series, except that the exhaust grille seems slightly wider, there are two DVI-I connectors, one standard HDMI, and two mini DisplayPort connectors for a change. The connector output sharing scheme isn't known right now, it could be 3 or 4 head Eyefinity, or all-out 5 head Eyefinity, a yet to be detailed "Eyespeed" feature is mentioned. We will definitely know more about this card in the weeks to come.

Source: it.com.cn

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126 Comments on AMD Radeon HD 6870 Reference Design Looks Refined, Ready to Market

#51

Kitkat

HXL492So theres no new features? Still just eye infinity?

Oh well, AMD will still be my choice

too close its evolution not revolution. if u dont want to go stronger then dont.

CDdude55Such a crappy naming scheme.,nice look looking card though.

And of course considering i have no cash and the fact that most game devs are still pushing out lazy console ports for PC, i'll stick to my ever so powerful GTX 470 for now.

lol so u were trolling too. these products are here if people want to buy them. You don't HAVE to buy a intel extreme 1000 dollar chip. They just skipped to the end of the show for those who want to. They could come out with the 7870 right after that how does that make your chip any weaker than it was when the newest didn't exist? If u want to skip it skip it. I don't understand why people feel pressured. If u always have to have the best for bragging rights then that's on you lol.

#52

inferKNOX

CDdude55I'm guessing you didn't read the rest of my post, but only the first sentence.:laugh:

Rest of that post:

I agree.

well that was more directed at NAVI_Z, you were just the proxy as you commented to the same. I was in fact agreeing with you as well as adding on to what you said. ;)

#53

CDdude55

Crazy 4 TPU!!!

Kitkatlol so u were trolling too. these products are here if people want to buy them. You don't HAVE to buy a intel extreme 1000 dollar chip. They just skipped to the end of the show for those who want to. They could come out with the 7870 right after that how does that make your chip any weaker than it was when the newest didn't exist? If u want to skip it skip it. I don't understand why people feel pressured. If u always have to have the best for bragging rights then that's on you lol.

I don't see at all how i was trolling:confused:

That post you quoted is fact, the majority of devs are in fact pushing out crappy console ports and this renders the majority of higher end parts for people like me, a gamer, fairly useless, as the software isn't putting the hardware to work enough to justify for ME putting down money for something that won't matter in the activities that I do on my system on a regular basis. People can buy wherever the hell they want, i never stated otherwise.

#54

dir_d

I dont care what its named, i just want to know 3 things. Performance, Price and how well it scales in Xfire.

#55

cheezburger

see? i was right! that pcb board from chiphell is prove to be barts than cayman. barts xt is now confirmed to have 6+8pin connector and this board is completely match

Mr McCMarket studies probably show that there are significant numbers of people who can afford and cannot do without the latest products. Whether or not the games that are being produced, now largely console ports, require or will be significantly improved by the latest generation is another question. In any event, technology companies would be ill advised to remain inactive for too long as the competitor will always be vying to corner additional market share with its own "new" products.

I'll probably hang on to my card and update when the 7xxx series comes along, but the release of the 6xxx should significantly push down the prices of the 5xxx series, thereby giving the consumer greater choice, which can only ever be a good thing.

casual gamer are largely family guy, female and elder or kiddy that's below 10 that doesn't know how to built his own system. however family guy/female/elder gamer are huge issue that stop technology from being progressive. most of them are simply rather spending time with family than spend money on new part and console graphic nowadays are pretty much all they need. but i think that just developer's excuse.

most of pc native game are almost have to be bigger budget and most of developer these day are rather using outdated engine to make the game and willing head for easy coding. to them that is where profit as they can save amounts of money on development by reduce to time and meet the consumer with product soon as possible and since average idiot are easy to be feed on no surprise these console game can eventually overrun the industry....

#56

Kitkat

CDdude55I don't see at all how i was trolling:confused:

That post you quoted is fact, the majority of devs are in fact pushing out crappy console ports and this renders the majority of higher end parts for people like me, a gamer, fairly useless, as the software isn't putting the hardware to work enough to justify for ME putting down money for something that won't matter in the activities that I do on my system on a regular basis. People can buy wherever the hell they want, i never stated otherwise.

no one asked u to do anything u dont HAVE to do anything thats just it, its an anoucement. and thanx for stopping to to let us know u will stick to your "ever so powerful trolling" Every one of these parts is a want not a need. relax

#57

CDdude55

Crazy 4 TPU!!!

Kitkatno one asked u to do anything u dont HAVE to do anything thats just it, its an anoucement. and thanx for stopping to to let us know u will stick to your "ever so powerful trolling"

:confused::confused:

I don't understand, i explained how it wasn't trolling and yet you still, in a grammatically poor way, willfully stay ignorant.

I see who's actually trolling.;)

#58

inferKNOX

After thinking about it, maybe Barts was always intended to be the 6800, and the 6700 was in fact the mis-info to confuse nVidia. Maybe the Caymans were meant to be a new higher-high end... although that seems stupid to me.
If that's the fact of it, unless the 6950 (which I hope[d] would be called 6850) is at a decent price, I will seriously reconsider upgrading until HD7000 probably... as I expect many others will do as well.:shadedshu

Disclaimer: The reason I bring the "confuse nVidia" thing up so much, is because I read that that's a major reason for codenames, to confuse the opponents about things like pricing, performance, etc; not to somehow insult nVidia, so no aggression nV fans.

@CDdude55: What I think Kitkat is trying to say is that the statement you made was not constructive and only seemed to serve the purpose of criticising the whole point of this announcement and promote your GTX470 instead.

#59

dj-electric

so... HD6900 series, coming soon?

#60

CDdude55

Crazy 4 TPU!!!

inferKNOX@CDdude55: What I think Kitkat is trying to say is that the statement you made was not constructive and only seemed to serve the purpose of criticising the whole point of this announcement and promote your GTX470 instead.

Sorry if it seemed that way, but i don't understand whats wrong with the post, it's an awesome card and the post was on-topic in regards to how i wouldn't need another based on how powerful my current card is and the current shape of the video game market/software(all based on my activities and opinions). If i had said 5850 instead would that have been better to say in this thread?

A good card is a good card, and people being super sensitive about hearing how good it is, is just dumb imo. I can understand if i created a wall of text dedicated to saying how awesome the card is, but it was literally one tiny portion of a bigger point.

#61

gumpty

The naming/numbering scheme makes logical sense.

I think it makes perfect sense, from a logical perspective, to use this naming scheme.

Think about it: Cayman is their top-of-the-line chip, for their second-digit identifier in the name they can choose anything from 1-9. It's top of the line chip so it gets 9. Barts is second best chip, it gets 8. And so forth down the line.
As such it was the previous generations that didn't make much sense. Although I concede that it does muddy the waters for the naming scheme of their dual-GPU cards.

Also, I find it unlikely that there are 5870 owners out there that would be so dense as to not read reviews before buying a 6870. Very unlikely. Those sort of people don't own high-end gear. And if they do, then they deserve to get burnt by their own stupidity. :nutkick:

#62

Kitkat

Holy chirst lol...

dir_dI dont care what its named, i just want to know 3 things. Performance, Price and how well it scales in Xfire.

Dito I'm hoping its higher (scales) from all the rumors and speculation (cause that's what they are until it leaves the dragons or was it lions mouth) looks that way, but over all performance from the last cards will matter most to those who just bought. I'm hoping its higher if its high enough ill sell my 2 and get it. And yes yes yes to Xfire. That's a place i want to know about.

gumptyAlso, I find it unlikely that there are 5870 owners out there that would be so dense as to not read reviews before buying a 6870. Very unlikely. Those sort of people don't own high-end gear. And if they do, then they deserve to get burnt by their own stupidity. :nutkick:

RIGHT!!! CORRECCT!! lol! "ITLL CONFUSE THE CUSTOMERS" who ?? cause you will really trust your mom aunt or uncle or spouse with going to buy the card for u?? Cause u wouldn't do the research yourself lol?? Cause u are so noob that u wouldn't know which is stronger? lol thats so true

#63

Mr McC

gumptyI think it makes perfect sense, from a logical perspective, to use this naming scheme.

Think about it: Cayman is their top-of-the-line chip, for their second-digit identifier in the name they can choose anything from 1-9. It's top of the line chip so it gets 9. Barts is second best chip, it gets 8. And so forth down the line.
As such it was the previous generations that didn't make much sense. Although I concede that it does muddy the waters for the naming scheme of their dual-GPU cards.

Also, I find it unlikely that there are 5870 owners out there that would be so dense as to not read reviews before buying a 6870. Very unlikely. Those sort of people don't own high-end gear. And if they do, then they deserve to get burnt by their own stupidity. :nutkick:

No, it is not likely, but there might be people buying pre-built systems who are not aware that the 6870 is actually the 6770 we were expecting under a new naming scheme. Given the well established naming scheme, it is logical to assume that a 6870 would be the direct successor of the 5870 rather than the 5770 and, if this is not in fact the case, my criticism would be laid on ATI's marketing practices, rather than consumer stupidity.

#64

mdsx1950

I didn't read the whole thread.

But isn't Barts supposed to the HD 6700 series? :confused:

#65

Kitkat

Mr McCNo, it is not likely, but there might be people buying pre-built systems who are not aware that the 6870 is actually the 6770 we were expecting under a new naming scheme. Given the well established naming scheme, it is logical to assume that a 6870 would be the direct successor of the 5870 rather than the 5770 and, if this is not in fact the case, my criticism would be laid on ATI's marketing practices, rather than consumer stupidity.

and my criticism would be laid on those who don't wait for something to acutely come out before we get SO deep into hypotheticals. :P

Even if a "3870 was stronger than a 8990, Trying to find a slim instance where a "consumer" would be involved where they didn't do any research before buying a 2000 dollar computer is still on them.

#66

cheezburger

i think it would be worst for amd if they decide to skip dual chip setup for their top line this gen. as gtx 460 has such wonderful scaling capability it might actually had chance beating cayman in dual gpu card(gtx 495?) and reclaim the performance crown while amd don't have any dual gpu to compete with and cayman is just a single chip even thought with 1.5x of everything still don't see any chance to surpass gtx 460 that is equal spec with barts while cayman is only 3/2 of barts....if nV decide to launch dual gtx 460 then that's it amd.....

this is all should be blame on cayman that having such handicap spec which it should have to be 640ALU:128TMU:64ROP, 4 RBE and 512bit bus instead crappy current 480ALU:96TMU:48ROP, 3RBE and 384bit bus....

however barts will be x7xx and not x8xx, charles had pointed out two days ago this news is hoax.

#67

CDdude55

Crazy 4 TPU!!!

mdsx1950I didn't read the whole thread.

But isn't Barts supposed to the HD 6700 series? :confused:

According to this article, the Barts XT is supposed to be the 6870 and the Pro is the 6850. It's pretty confusing right now, but im sure as they get released we will be much more comfortable with it.

#68

cadaveca

My name is Dave

I really suggest soemone puts up a translation of the chinese on those ads.

:laugh: Might be surprising.:laugh:

#69

bear jesus

i wonder if the architecture changes mean it could be possible that the 6870 beats the 5870, when it comes down to stream processors and cuda cores nvidia has less (admitdly higher clocked) and beats AMD, i know there is many major differences between the AMD and nvidia "cores" but would that not mean that a good change to the cores could possibly mean much more speed with less of them?

#70

the54thvoid

Intoxicated Moderator

I'd love to say naming isn't important but it is.

The 5850 destroyed the 4850
The 5870 destroyed the 4870

It looks like:

The 6870 equals the 5870
The 6850 equals the 5850.

I personally find that sad. You expect the next gen to be more powerful. I know giving same performance for lower wattage is an increase but personally i called that making a more efficient model.

I think it will mean stupendously silly prices and the card i await (the Cayman) will be perhaps excessively priced. I am no NV fan when it comes to marketing but AMD may lose some of their fan base if they keep turning the dollar buck thumbscrews.

However, we all, I am sure, are waiting for W1zz's review.

#71

cadaveca

My name is Dave

There are going to be situations where barts greatly exceeds the current gen, and it will be precisely for the exact same reason that nVidia's tech, with less shaders, does better.

For some apps though, yes, it will be about the same, if not slower than the current gen. If you ahve 5-series now, you do not want a Barts-based card, IMHO.

#72

yogurt_21

the54thvoidI'd love to say naming isn't important but it is.

The 5850 destroyed the 4850
The 5870 destroyed the 4870

It looks like:

The 6870 equals the 5870
The 6850 equals the 5850.

I personally find that sad. You expect the next gen to be more powerful. I know giving same performance for lower wattage is an increase but personally i called that making a more efficient model.

I think it will mean stupendously silly prices and the card i await (the Cayman) will be perhaps excessively priced. I am no NV fan when it comes to marketing but AMD may lose some of their fan base if they keep turning the dollar buck thumbscrews.

well based on the rumored shader change from 4simple +1 complex to 4 moderate complexity we may be looking at barts xt being decently powerful simply because in many situations those extra 4 shaders were idling leaving 320 to do most of the work, if we have 1280 or even 960 capable of doing moderate work we may see a card that has the same frames at 1024x768 as the prior gen but doubles performance at 1920x1080 and in high feature/detail games.

edit:

cadavecaThere are going to be situations where barts greatly exceeds the current gen, and it will be precisely for the exact same reason that nVidia's tech, with less shaders, does better.

For some apps though, yes, it will be about the same, if not slower than the current gen. If you ahve 5-series now, you do not want a Barts-based card, IMHO.

damn beat me by like a second. lol

double edit: I show the pn as 109-C22231-00 which is a new pn so it does seem to be one of the next gen cards pictured at least.

#73

wolf

Performance Enthusiast

I have great hopes for these cards, if they're naming Barts XT a 6870, I feel it will be as fast as a 5870, maybe a touch better even.

#74

bear jesus

wolfI have great hopes for these cards, if they're naming Barts XT a 6870, I feel it will be as fast as a 5870, maybe a touch better even.

This is one thing i had not been thinking about before and assume other are nto thinking about, could the name change be relative to a change in power due to the change in shader architecture .

#75

Mr McC

Kitkatand my criticism would be laid on those who don't wait for something to acutely come out before we get SO deep into hypotheticals. :P

That's a fair comment, but nothing about the name change aids clarification or benefits the consumer in any way: that much we know already.

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AMD Radeon HD 6870 Reference Design Looks Refined, Ready to Market

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