Monday, December 16th 2013

MSI Radeon R9 290X Gaming OC Pictured

by
btarunr
 Discuss (10 Comments)
At a press event held in Japan, MSI showed off its second non-reference design Radeon R9 290X graphics card besides the R9 290X Lightning, the R9 290X TwinFrozr 4S Gaming OC. The card features MSI's top-grade TwinFrozr IV cooling solution with the red+black color scheme; and a non-reference design PCB by MSI. Its PCB will feature a strong VRM, a voltage controller that's fully accessible using Afterburner, factory-overclocked speeds, and a back-plate decking up the rear portion of the card, even though there's nothing on the rear side of the PCB that requires active cooling. Since the card features a BIOS-toggle switch, you can expect one of the two BIOS ROMs to feature a failsafe BIOS with reference clock speeds. MSI is expected to launch the card a little later this month. The R9 290X Lightning, however, can't be expected before 2014. One could expect a similar-looking card (perhaps minus the back-plate) based on the R9 290 (non-X).
Source: Hermitage Akihabara

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10 Comments on MSI Radeon R9 290X Gaming OC Pictured

#2
btarunr
Editor & Senior Moderator
Rumor has it that non-reference coolers have tamed 290X on the noise front.
Posted on Reply
#3
megamanxtreme
Most annoying part is that we still have to wait for them. And if they are capable of making a dent to Nvidia's reference/non-reference designs.
Posted on Reply
#4
The Von Matrices
The problem that few people are seeing with these custom 290s is that there is not enough supply, and the manufacturers knowing that will drive up the MSRP.

What AMD couldn't have foreseen when deciding how many Hawaii GPUs to fab was the sudden surge in the price of Litecoin. The scrypt hashers will buy the entire supply of 290/290X even at $100-200 over MSRP because it is just that profitable at the moment.

The market is already priced that way. Try to buy a 280X/290/290X and you'll see that the ones in stock are all at least $100 over MSRP. The people who just want them as graphics processors are priced out of the market, and all except the AMD diehards will buy NVidia instead since they now have the better price/performance.
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#5
nemesis.ie
The Von MatricesWhat AMD couldn't have foreseen when deciding how many Hawaii GPUs to fab was the sudden surge in the price of Litecoin. The scrypt hashers will buy the entire supply of 290/290X even at $100-200 over MSRP because it is just that profitable at the moment.
And the LTC difficulty just increased which may make 290s even more desirable for those on slower cards ...

With luck some of the "non gouging" retailers will get supply and stick to the standard pricing, fingers Xed, I really want to be rid of my 7970 with stock cooler (due to the noise, not the performance).
Posted on Reply
#6
west7
its look awsome and i bet the overclocking will be great on this one:)
Posted on Reply
#7
The Von Matrices
nemesis.ieWith luck some of the "non gouging" retailers will get supply and stick to the standard pricing, fingers Xed
I hope so, but I'm not optimistic. I hope the reason for the shortage of cards is that the manufacturers saw all the backlash from AMD's reference cooler and vowed to not use it even if it meant not selling any Hawaii GPUs until they could get their own coolers ready. If the reason is due to a shortage of Hawaii chips as speculated, you still won't be able to find one since they will sell out in under 5 minutes. At least with higher prices the people who are willing to pay can be assured they can get one.
nemesis.ieI really want to be rid of my 7970 with stock cooler (due to the noise, not the performance).
Wouldn't buying a $50 aftermarket cooler be a much better option then?
Posted on Reply
#8
nemesis.ie
The Von MatricesWouldn't buying a $50 aftermarket cooler be a much better option then?
Well I'd like to get a 290 for some LTC mining (45% more for the same power) when not gaming, plus a warranty is nice and I have also got a buyer for the 7970, Additionally some of the 3rd party coolers have less than stellar VRM cooling which is more important when running overnight.

I'm doing a "mid life upgrade" on the machine - adding a Swiftech H320 and two 290s is the plan for some quiet performance.

The H320 came in today, looks really nice compared to the H100i. ;)

If I can't get a "nice" 290 (or x, or two of them) in time for the buyer I'll likely just get a 280x (or two) with a decent cooler.
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#9
Solaris17
Super Dainty Moderator
The Von MatricesThe problem that few people are seeing with these custom 290s is that there is not enough supply, and the manufacturers knowing that will drive up the MSRP.

What AMD couldn't have foreseen when deciding how many Hawaii GPUs to fab was the sudden surge in the price of Litecoin. The scrypt hashers will buy the entire supply of 290/290X even at $100-200 over MSRP because it is just that profitable at the moment.

The market is already priced that way. Try to buy a 280X/290/290X and you'll see that the ones in stock are all at least $100 over MSRP. The people who just want them as graphics processors are priced out of the market, and all except the AMD diehards will buy NVidia instead since they now have the better price/performance.
Thats not true my 290x is the first AMD card iv had since the 9800pro iv been with nvidia for years. ilove them. but I also bought it at 550.
Posted on Reply
#10
The Von Matrices
Solaris17Thats not true my 290x is the first AMD card iv had since the 9800pro iv been with nvidia for years. ilove them. but I also bought it at 550.
When did you buy it? Was it any time before the last week of November when the price of Litecoin increased 400%? The early adopters got their cards at MSRP since they were launched before the rise in price; anyone who wants them now has to pay extra. I hope you can see that a 290X priced at the same level as a GTX 780 Ti makes no sense for graphics.
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