# PowerColor HD 4890 PCS 1 GB



## W1zzard (Apr 28, 2009)

PowerColor is one of the first board partners to release an overclocked, custom designed HD 4890. Instead of the AMD reference cooler a solution from Zerotherm is used. The clock speeds have also been bumped to 950 MHz core and 1100 MHz memory. Due to their improved PCB, PowerColor has managed to position their HD 4890 PCS at the price that normal reference cards go for: $249.

*Show full review*


----------



## mlee49 (Apr 30, 2009)

Can you please add to the Power Consumption chart on page 26, the specs of the  275GTX?  Since it is  an equivalent.

Otherwise excellent review!


----------



## MRCL (Apr 30, 2009)

[...]transport the heat away to a large number of cooling fans.

I believe you mean fins there?

Otherwise great review. Interesting to see that assumed better cooling solutions can have their major downsides.


----------



## WarEagleAU (May 1, 2009)

Awesome review and Im loving the zerotherm cooler. Not liking copper painted aluminum, which is just cheap and tacky. 

I wouldnt not knock it for being so overclocked, you can barely OC it more. That is a boon which you did note. 

I too wish they offered voltage control, that way you can pump some more juice into it.


----------



## stefanels (May 1, 2009)

Nice review... just finished to read...


----------



## Registrat (May 1, 2009)

W1zzard, can you check the power consumption values again?


At that usage with TWO 6-pins, it has officially exceeded the PCIe spec. Which is not possible for any card that wants certification.


----------



## sneekypeet (May 1, 2009)

Taken from the top line of that page... "In order to characterize a video card's power consumption, the whole system's mains power draw was measured. This means that these numbers include CPU, Memory, HDD, Video card and PSU inefficiency."

So it isnt just the card taken into account for those numbers.


----------



## Registrat (May 1, 2009)

Well that one's obvious! 

I meant the difference AFTER considering the normal 4870/90/280 consumptions, looks like this card might have problems later on in its lifespan.


----------



## air_ii (May 1, 2009)

sneekypeet said:


> Taken from the top line of that page... "In order to characterize a video card's power consumption, the whole system's mains power draw was measured. This means that these numbers include CPU, Memory, HDD, Video card and PSU inefficiency."
> 
> So it isnt just the card taken into account for those numbers.



I don't want to be the one who rants about the power consumption again, but it's 70W more than "normal" 4890 at load. Given it's not possible due to exceeding the PCI-E specs, you have to put a blame on the test system. But if so, then how can you draw a negative conclusion about the card's power consumption if you don't really know how much power the card takes, as your test system messes the results up?

I really like Wizzard's reviews, but to me, his power consumption charts have provided more disinformation than insight.


----------



## newtekie1 (May 1, 2009)

air_ii said:


> Given it's not possible due to exceeding the PCI-E specs



It is entirely possible the card does exceed the PCI-E specs.


----------



## Registrat (May 1, 2009)

newtekie1 said:


> It is entirely possible the card does exceed the PCI-E specs.



With a second party like Anandtech providing power values that show a reference 4890 @1Ghz taking less power than a 285, I beg to differ about this big increase.


Something has to be FUBARed in between the 2 levels.


----------



## 3870x2 (May 1, 2009)

air_ii said:


> I don't want to be the one who rants about the power consumption again, but it's 70W more than "normal" 4890 at load. Given it's not possible due to exceeding the PCI-E specs, you have to put a blame on the test system. But if so, then how can you draw a negative conclusion about the card's power consumption if you don't really know how much power the card takes, as your test system messes the results up?
> 
> I really like Wizzard's reviews, but to me, his power consumption charts have provided more disinformation than insight.



you provide misinformation about misinformation.  W1zzard doesn't charge you for his reviews, therefore he doesn't owe you anything.  You want good customer service? talk to XFX.  Here he provided you with knowledge from the tools he used, and clearly explains it.  Use your own intelligence to understand what it means.


----------



## newtekie1 (May 1, 2009)

Registrat said:


> With a second party like Anandtech providing power values that show a reference 4890 @1Ghz taking less power than a 285, I beg to differ about this big increase.
> 
> 
> Something has to be FUBARed in between the 2 levels.



It has been shown many times in the past that changing the power setup can drastically affect power consumption.  So Anandtech's reference HD4890@1GHz has nothing to do with this discussion.

And switching to a cheaper power setup, usually means it is less efficient also.


----------



## 3870x2 (May 1, 2009)

newtekie1 said:


> It has been shown many times in the past that changing the power setup and drastically affect power consumption.  So Anandtech's reference HD4890@1GHz has nothing to do with this discussion.
> 
> And switching to a cheaper power setup, usually means it is less efficient also.



Any change in hardware can fluctuate the power needed.  You can be assured that W1zzard's reviews are 100%.


----------



## air_ii (May 1, 2009)

3870x2 said:


> you provide misinformation about misinformation.  W1zzard doesn't charge you for his reviews, therefore he doesn't owe you anything.  You want good customer service? talk to XFX.  Here he provided you with knowledge from the tools he used, and clearly explains it.  Use your own intelligence to understand what it means.



I don't recall attacking W1zzard in any way, let alone the way you're attacking me now. I thought the forums were to discuss things and the last time I checked, it wasn't you who decided on what I can or can't talk about in here.

Anyway, I think the forums are here to ask questions and it's normal to confront results from different sites. I've been reading his reviews for many years now and I appreciate every bit of effort he puts into it. Having said that, it doesn't mean I have to take everything for granted and sometimes it's useful to challenge the results, especially when there is not enough info in the review to figure out all the answers. For instance, we don't know anything about voltages the card uses, therefore I can't directly confront the power consumption with, say, Anand's results.

To sum up, I only stated what seems odd and what I can't explain based on the facts provided. And to me, these charts do not provide much information, as they are pretty much off from what others present, without giving any additional information / explanation. And - as I hope you might notice - I'm not bashing him or his reviews, I'm just trying to come up with constructive criticism, so that perhaps next time he might look into it himself, if he's not too busy. If I'm not allowed to do that and if all I can say is jolly good without you saying he doesn't owe me anything (which - I assure you - I know he doesn't), then excuse me.


----------



## iStink (May 4, 2009)

I laughed at the F-word in the value & conclusion section about the fan settings.  I love this place.


----------



## W1zzard (May 4, 2009)

iStink said:


> I laughed at the F-word in the value & conclusion section about the fan settings.  I love this place.



i found no other descriptive way to properly design the state of the fan settings


----------



## inferKNOX (Jul 18, 2009)

Hey there W1zzard. I went ahead and got this card after contacting PowerColor and being assured that the fan control in the BIOS was revised, I think to the version they later sent you. I just couldn't help it because of the price and lovely heatsink which matches my Nirvana NV120 & now the HS on my new MSI 790FX-GD70, so now it's a set, lol. (oh, wait there's still the RAM, ha ha ha!)
Do you think anything more can be done about it?
(I'm yet to try my card btw, but it's quite a looker.)


----------



## Azkeyz (Oct 31, 2009)

*PowerColor HD 4890 PCS 1GB*




Hi wizard !

I just stopped by to say hello , and anounce that I just perchased a

PowerColor ATI Radeon HD 1GB PCIE 2.0

Core Clock = 900Mhz
Memory Clock = 1000Mhz DDR5

I can't wait to drop it in my "dual core" 2.0Ghz 1MB L2 

I will be increasing the specs in days to come.

I have dual 500GB WD SATA hard drives for those massive game files.

I wanted to tell you I never did get GPU-Z to work on my Radeon 3850 512MB AGP

I hope it works on my new 4890 

I've heard good things about power color , I've heard these 4890 chips overheat and die fast
I have no way to take precautions at this time.

Any recommendations on an after market cooler would be appreciated.

PS. Happy Hanuka and Yom Kippur


----------



## kNives (May 5, 2010)

> Just like in the first part the game is set around the Russian area of Chernobyl and Pripyat, most well known for the nuclear accident that occurred there.


http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Powercolor/HD_4890_PCS/18.html
Hello, dear author W1zzard and the TechPowerUp administrators!
Chernobyl, Pripyat and the Nuclear Power Plant are located in Ukraine (Kyiv region), not Russia, so the area can't be "Russian", it's "Ukrainian". And GSC Gameworld, the developer, is situated in Kyiv, Ukraine, also.
So, please, be patient to correct this information.
Thank you very much in advance!


----------



## anonemus (May 13, 2010)

On another note, would you guys recommend this over an HD5770 for someone with a limited budget? In my area, this 4890 is selling at roughly the same price as a 5770.

Thanks!


----------

