# AMD Readies Radeon HD 7950 GHz Edition



## btarunr (Jul 5, 2012)

NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 670 presents a big problem to AMD's Radeon HD 7900 series lineup. It clearly outperforms Radeon HD 7950, outperforms Radeon HD 7970 in most cases, and maintains a healthy cost-performance lead over Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition, even if it lags behind in performance. To combat this, AMD is reportedly working on a new SKU, called Radeon HD 7950 GHz Edition. 

The "new" Radeon HD 7950 GHz Edition will be priced competitively to the GeForce GTX 670 (around $350-400), will retain the core configuration of the original HD 7950, with 1,792 Graphics CoreNext stream processors, 112 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and 384-bit wide GDDR5 memory interface holding 3 GB of memory; but will feature higher clock speeds, with a core clock speed ≥1.00 GHz, and could feature AMD PowerTune with Boost feature. It is also reported that a majority of HD 7950 GHz Edition graphics cards launched to the market (later this quarter), will be cost-effective non-reference designs by AMD's add-in board (AIB) partners. 





*View at TechPowerUp Main Site*


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## Totally (Jul 5, 2012)

Inb4 speculation and fanbashing


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## Over_Lord (Jul 5, 2012)

Yay I'm happy. Free performance boost at the same price. Excellent for people who were gonna settle for the HD7950. At similar price they will get a better product


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## reverze (Jul 5, 2012)

great idea, cant wait for these cards!


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## Zubasa (Jul 5, 2012)

Just make sure they do a better job at setting the card's bios than its bigger brother


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## KooKKiK (Jul 5, 2012)

and what about the original 7970 ???


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## alwayssts (Jul 5, 2012)

This is long overdue.

There was never an inherent problem with this sku,  only the stock clockspeed which created some marketing fallacy I will never completely understand.  

Sure, it has more bw and isn't as tightly coordinated as the 670 so the tdp will be slightly higher for similar performance at 1080p, but it is and should be more versatile at higher-rez.  That's the basic trade-off, and not really a huge one that should be an issue if one is cheaper than the other.

Hope they don't cripple voltage tweaking with powertune as they seemed to in the 7970 ghz ed.  Still po'ed these 'new features' seem to be more-and-more excuses to take away value potential and create market separation.

That said, odds are the guy at ATi that gave us software voltage tweaking probably doesn't even work there anymore...


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## Zubasa (Jul 5, 2012)

KooKKiK said:


> and what about the original 7970 ???


The original reference 7970 have been obsolete for a while now 
There are so many better non-reference designs out there, and the GTX 670 is such good price performance compare to the original 7970.


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## Over_Lord (Jul 5, 2012)

Can't wait for HD8000 actually.

Optimized 28nm


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## Hustler (Jul 5, 2012)

Here's an idea...why don't you just drop the price on the standard 7950, to a level it should have launched in the first place..because right now they're $75-$100 over priced.

That way you wont have to worry about the 670, because the majority people looking to buy a new Gfx card will always look at the price,before performance.


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## Fluffmeister (Jul 5, 2012)

A more power hungry 7950, just what the market needs.


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## SIGSEGV (Jul 5, 2012)

AMD Radeon HD7900 series are overpriced, but they had a reason for that, their competitor could not supply enough 600 series cards in the market.


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## farquaid (Jul 5, 2012)

Zubasa said:


> The original reference 7970 have been obsolete for a while now
> There are so many better non-reference designs out there, and the GTX 670 is such good price performance compare to the original 7970.



It seams like the original 7970 was a wait and see product. It was first with 40nm and had the performance crown while still leaving a huge room to grow for future products. And when Nvidia released their product it was easy for AMD to upgrade the cards.


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## DarkOCean (Jul 5, 2012)

i hope they put better cooler on this not like 7970 ge.


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## Recus (Jul 5, 2012)

SIGSEGV said:


> AMD Radeon HD7900 series are overpriced, but they had a reason for that, their competitor could not supply enough 600 series cards in the market.








Reality.

Just small country's local store.


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## radrok (Jul 5, 2012)

Recus said:


> http://s7.postimage.org/9og5nzh6z/Kepler.jpg
> Reality.
> 
> Just small country's local store. http://s14.postimage.org/3lnuptmml/image.gif



He's probably talking about post launch days, not now.


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## function69 (Jul 5, 2012)

too little, too late


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## adams (Jul 5, 2012)

function69 said:


> too little, too late


And too faked.
http://extrahardware.cnews.cz/amd-nechysta-radeon-hd-7950-ghz-edition-unikle-fotografie-jsou-fake


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## phanbuey (Jul 5, 2012)

They need to sell for about $300, then they would be ok...


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## dj-electric (Jul 5, 2012)

I hope this card wont sell at all. I hope that something will happen to AMD to make their cards cost-effective again, even at the sake of losing market share.


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## mastrdrver (Jul 5, 2012)

phanbuey said:


> They need to sell for about $300, then they would be ok...



You can get vanilla 7970s on ebay for ~$350, relatively new too.


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## cadaveca (Jul 5, 2012)

mastrdrver said:


> You can get vanilla 7970s on ebay for ~$350, relatively new too.



I can get brand new 7970, with wararnty and everything else for $429.

This card best sell for $329 or less. THat is the only way AMD can really compete. 7970 should be $379-$429(stock, oc, GHz, GHz OC @ $10 intervals), and 7950 should be $309-$349).

Just my opinion though, of course.


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## INSTG8R (Jul 5, 2012)

GDDR 5 isn't cheap and you get 3GB standard. People seem to forget this. NV has nothing in this price range to compete with that.


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## MxPhenom 216 (Jul 5, 2012)

I would just buy a normal 7950 and overclock it lol.


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## tacosRcool (Jul 5, 2012)

I need benchmarks!!!


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## Nordic (Jul 5, 2012)

You guys do know the prices have dropped right. I was just looking last night on newegg and a 7950 was $350 and a 7970 was $450. Original not ghz


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## N3M3515 (Jul 5, 2012)

i would probably buy this card if it costs $280


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## phanbuey (Jul 5, 2012)

I wish they also made it with the reference blower cooler... we need at least a small selection for those people that can't have all that heat dumped into the case.


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## Rauelius (Jul 5, 2012)

I just picked up the Asus GTX670 for $400. If AMD released the 7950 and 7970 at the correct prices ($300 and $400 respectively) I would have gotten the 7950 at it's launch and missed out on the bad ass GTX670. So, thank you AMD for overpricing your cards and showing me that patience pays off. Not having to deal with the micro-stutter from my old 5850-CFX set up rocks. 

AMD really has to get out of this price bubble where in their mind their is no competition. The 7850 should really be $220, the 7870 should be $270 and this new 7950 GHZ should show up for $350 at the absolute most. Considering it's probably likely that the GTX660 will perform like a 7950 but cost much less, if AMD doesn't do these price corrections fast then more and more people like me will switch to nVidia who, while still pricey, has the price/performance crown. Only if AMD can get it's ego in line and understand that the 7950 really (will) compete best with the GTX660 and pre-empt it's release with a $300 7950(non-Ghz), Just as the 7970 should be $370-$400 as it competes well with the GTX670.


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## Nordic (Jul 5, 2012)

The 670 and 7970 are close. The 7970 has better compute and better performance at higher resolutions. My personal opinion is 7970 should be $420 and the 7950 $320. I just bought a 7970 for $385... so I think I got a decent deal.


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## dalekdukesboy (Jul 5, 2012)

james888 said:


> The 670 and 7970 are close.



exactly...so how can a 7970 ever go for more than 400'ish as the 470 does is beyond me, and the 7950 has no prayer at the 670 without seeing latest drivers and whatever clocks they release the new 7950 at I'd still bet on the fact the 670 at bone stock will laugh at it in a majority of the games out there if not almost every one. SO...that means the new 7950 is overpriced if it goes over 350 far as I'm concerned, and really should be more around the 320 mark realistically.


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## erocker (Jul 5, 2012)

dalekdukesboy said:


> exactly...so how can a 7970 ever go for more than 400'ish as the 470 does is beyond me, and the 7950 has no prayer at the 670 without seeing latest drivers and whatever clocks they release the new 7950 at I'd still bet on the fact the 670 at bone stock will laugh at it in a majority of the games out there if not almost every one. SO...that means the new 7950 is overpriced if it goes over 350 far as I'm concerned, and really should be more around the 320 mark realistically.



I can agree with your pricing. I did see a 7970 going for under $400 bucks the other day which is promising I suppose.


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## Nordic (Jul 5, 2012)

dalekdukesboy said:


> exactly...so how can a 7970 ever go for more than 400'ish as the 470 does is beyond me, and the 7950 has no prayer at the 670 without seeing latest drivers and whatever clocks they release the new 7950 at I'd still bet on the fact the 670 at bone stock will laugh at it in a majority of the games out there if not almost every one. SO...that means the new 7950 is overpriced if it goes over 350 far as I'm concerned, and really should be more around the 320 mark realistically.





james888 said:


> and the 7950 $320


As I said...




erocker said:


> I can agree with your pricing. I did see a 7970 going for under $400 bucks the other day which is promising I suppose.


I did just buy a 7970 for $385 while seeing others from $350-$420


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## SIGSEGV (Jul 6, 2012)

radrok said:


> He's probably talking about post launch days, not now.



i was talking about electronic retail market in my country and perhaps south east asia markets, their price including radeon 7900 series are overpriced


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## Xzibit (Jul 6, 2012)

AMD pricing is fine.  E-Tailers match Retailers 

Nvidia pricing is aweful - E-tailers are at MSRP and Retailers prices have gone up since launch.

I was just at Fry's and MicroCenter this morning.  You see more 670s on shelves then 7900s or 7800s. Still havent seen a 680 or a 690 at the retail level.


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## dalekdukesboy (Jul 6, 2012)

erocker said:


> I can agree with your pricing. I did see a 7970 going for under $400 bucks the other day which is promising I suppose.



true, and to be fair on the flipside I don't see how a gtx 680 commands a 100+ dollar premium over the 670...just isn't worth it, considering again to be fair in some games and especially when clocked to ghz plus a 7970 is right there or beats a 680 so...again clock for clock especially if you could take out the boost clock the 680's have now that the 7970 has gone to relatively reasonable price levels the 680 is pretty out of whack for what you actually get, I only mentioned the 7950 due to this article obviously plus I think it's laughable till recently and even still you can find plenty of 7950's OVER 400$...I pity anyone who buys one of those at this point for that much.


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## eidairaman1 (Jul 6, 2012)

dalekdukesboy said:


> true, and to be fair on the flipside I don't see how a gtx 680 commands a 100+ dollar premium over the 670...just isn't worth it, considering again to be fair in some games and especially when clocked to ghz plus a 7970 is right there or beats a 680 so...again clock for clock especially if you could take out the boost clock the 680's have now that the 7970 has gone to relatively reasonable price levels the 680 is pretty out of whack for what you actually get, I only mentioned the 7950 due to this article obviously plus I think it's laughable till recently and even still you can find plenty of 7950's OVER 400$...I pity anyone who buys one of those at this point for that much.



its the numbers game. Just Like Intel CPUs.


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## TheoneandonlyMrK (Jul 6, 2012)

im starting to think Amd have a Lot of 7xxx in channel and i cant help but think that Q3-4(prob 4) when 8xxx gets released there's going to be a lot of high oomph gfx cards on the market, possibly too many as nvidia are going to be working on a counter punch to the Ghz jab of Amd, then yet again well be swamped with decent cards that smash modern games up, and yes and some great bargains to be had


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## Rauelius (Jul 6, 2012)

dalekdukesboy said:


> true, and to be fair on the flipside I don't see how a gtx 680 commands a 100+ dollar premium over the 670...just isn't worth it, considering again to be fair in some games and especially when clocked to ghz plus a 7970 is right there or beats a 680 so...again clock for clock especially if you could take out the boost clock the 680's have now that the 7970 has gone to relatively reasonable price levels the 680 is pretty out of whack for what you actually get, I only mentioned the 7950 due to this article obviously plus I think it's laughable till recently and even still you can find plenty of 7950's OVER 400$...I pity anyone who buys one of those at this point for that much.



It seems like you don't like nVidia's strategy, I much rather have the second place card run really really close to the top end, than have a gulf of a performance difference like the 7950 to 7970. While that may seem stupid on nVidia's part, its really great for us. Besides, if someone has the $$ to spend on a higher end one, let them. It's always an option. This reminds me of how close the Geforce 6800 GT performed to the Geforce 6800 Ultra and had a huge $100 difference..funny how history repeats itself :_)

http://www.anandtech.com/show/1383/13

If the Radeon 7950 ran as close to the 7970 as the GTX670 runs to the GTX680, I would have upgraded my Graphics card months ago. AMD really shouldn't have cut BOTH the cards ROPs AND the clockspeed...In my opinion, the 7950 should have just been a downclocked 7970...and introduced what we have now as the 7950,as the 7930 later on.


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## mastrdrver (Jul 6, 2012)

Just looking at this [H] review of the overclocked 670, 680, and 7970, I don't see why the 7970 Ghz needs to be at the $400 mark. It beats the 670 and 680 when they are all overclocked. The 680 doesn't make sense as it is not any quicker then the 670.

I for one want to try nVidia for a turn as I've had a 4870x2 and now my two 5870s. I would like to go nVidia now, but with the smaller bus they seem to be limited when running multiple monitors, so I'm waiting around until next year until prices drop on the then GK110.


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## rvalencia (Jul 6, 2012)

cadaveca said:


> I can get brand new 7970, with wararnty and everything else for $429.
> 
> This card best sell for $329 or less. THat is the only way AMD can really compete. 7970 should be $379-$429(stock, oc, GHz, GHz OC @ $10 intervals), and 7950 should be $309-$349).
> 
> Just my opinion though, of course.



7950 starts @ $319.

http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=71,70&sort=a5


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## Nordic (Jul 6, 2012)

rvalencia said:


> 7950 starts @ $319.
> 
> http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=71,70&sort=a5



MSI R7950 Twin Frozr 3GD5/OC Radeon HD 7950 3GB 38...
$320 with rebate...

and on a side note...
$621 for a 7950... do they really expect this to have a chance of selling?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ASUS-HD7950...eo_TV_Cards&hash=item337831365e#ht_1344wt_910


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## rvalencia (Jul 6, 2012)

james888 said:


> MSI R7950 Twin Frozr 3GD5/OC Radeon HD 7950 3GB 38...
> $320 with rebate...
> 
> and on a side note...
> ...



Note that the first 7950 item refers to MSI Radeon HD 7950 OC @ 880Mhz and Newegg's link ($319.99).



Rauelius said:


> It seems like you don't like nVidia's strategy, I much rather have the second place card run really really close to the top end, than have a gulf of a performance difference like the 7950 to 7970. While that may seem stupid on nVidia's part, its really great for us. Besides, if someone has the $$ to spend on a higher end one, let them. It's always an option. This reminds me of how close the Geforce 6800 GT performed to the Geforce 6800 Ultra and had a huge $100 difference..funny how history repeats itself :_)
> 
> http://www.anandtech.com/show/1383/13
> 
> If the Radeon 7950 ran as close to the 7970 as the GTX670 runs to the GTX680, I would have upgraded my Graphics card months ago. AMD really shouldn't have cut BOTH the cards ROPs AND the clockspeed...In my opinion, the 7950 should have just been a downclocked 7970...and introduced what we have now as the 7950,as the 7930 later on.


7950 has the same 32 ROP unit count as 7970. 

The fastest known Radeon HD 7950 is Sapphire 100352OCSR i.e. factory clocked @ 950Ghz.
SAPPHIRE 100352OCSR Radeon HD 7950 3GB 384-bit GDD...



dalekdukesboy said:


> true, and to be fair on the flipside I don't see how a gtx 680 commands a 100+ dollar premium over the 670...just isn't worth it, considering again to be fair in some games and especially when clocked to ghz plus a 7970 is right there or beats a 680 so...again clock for clock especially if you could take out the boost clock the 680's have now that the 7970 has gone to relatively reasonable price levels the 680 is pretty out of whack for what you actually get, I only mentioned the 7950 due to this article obviously plus I think it's laughable till recently and even still you can find plenty of 7950's OVER 400$...I pity anyone who buys one of those at this point for that much.



Not supported by http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=71&sort=a5

Only one 7950 item line is above $400 USD.



dalekdukesboy said:


> exactly...so how can a 7970 ever go for more than 400'ish as the 470 does is beyond me, and the 7950 has no prayer at the 670 without seeing latest drivers and whatever clocks they release the new 7950 at I'd still bet on the fact the 670 at bone stock will laugh at it in a majority of the games out there if not almost every one. SO...that means the new 7950 is overpriced if it goes over 350 far as I'm concerned, and really should be more around the 320 mark realistically.


Depends on the benchmark mix. 

From http://techreport.com/articles.x/23150





















Note that 
1. XFX 7950 Black is keeping up with Zotac GTX 670 AMP.
2. XFX 7950 Black has lower power consumption than Zotac GTX 670 AMP i.e. 7950 has less CUs with the same ROP count as 7970.

XFX 7950 Black is factory clocked @900Mhz.


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## eidairaman1 (Jul 6, 2012)

Combine ur posts man


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## Nordic (Jul 6, 2012)

eidairaman1 said:


> Combine ur posts man


Please



rvalencia said:


> Note that the first 7950 item refers to MSI Radeon HD 7950 OC @ 880Mhz and Newegg's link ($319.99).


Exactly... don't know why your noting it because that is what the link says...



rvalencia said:


> Depends on the benchmark mix.
> 
> From http://techreport.com/articles.x/23150
> Note that
> ...


These tests are done with really high resolution where the 79xx's do better. This could be because of more memory, and because of more powerful hardware that just hasn't been driver optimized yet. I like to think that they are faster mysellf, and is why I got a 7970. But still nvidea is faster in resolutions most people play at.


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## rvalencia (Jul 6, 2012)

james888 said:


> Please
> 
> 
> Exactly... don't know why your noting it because that is what the link says...
> ...



@1080p, it still depends on the games and MSAA settings.


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## Jstn7477 (Jul 6, 2012)

Only reason I bought a 7950 was because Newegg had the XFX DD 7950 for $360 + 10% off + $20 MIR and a free 3 games coupon, so I couldn't resist for $325.


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## SIGSEGV (Jul 6, 2012)

Jstn7477 said:


> Only reason I bought a 7950 was because Newegg had the XFX DD 7950 for $360 + 10% off + $20 MIR and a free 3 games coupon, so I couldn't resist for $325.



if only newegg had a branch which selling their stuffs in south east asia, i'd be happy for sure. lol

enterkomputer.com/vga.php

in rupiahs mode, you can covert them into us$ by dividing each item's price with 10,000 (assuming 1us$ is equal with 10,000 rupiahs)


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## dalekdukesboy (Jul 7, 2012)

1. XFX 7950 Black is keeping up with Zotac GTX 670 AMP.
2. XFX 7950 Black has lower power consumption than Zotac GTX 670 AMP i.e. 7950 has less CUs with the same ROP count as 7970.

XFX 7950 Black is factory clocked @900Mhz.[/QUOTE]




that's the definition of cherry picking your benchmarks...dirt is a game amd dominates at, and I currently am looking to get a 7970 for at the right price it's a great option but the 7950 even according to all of the wiz's reviews rarely kept anything near to close to 670's at any speed nevermind the amp and that goes for most every review site I checked...I"d love to believe I could get a 670/680/7970'ish performing product when I oc it for 300 bucks but unless some driver magic happens or tpu/hardwarecanucks/TT/everyotherreviewer I went to hates 7950's and was "hatin" on them in a massive conspiracy it simply isn't nearly as fast as a gtx 670 in most anything even in high resolutions and AA where it does catch up it only comes somewhat closer not really matching or beating the 670 very often.


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## rvalencia (Jul 7, 2012)

dalekdukesboy said:


> that's the definition of cherry picking your benchmarks...dirt is a game amd dominates at,


Hence "it depends on the benchmark mix" e.g.








dalekdukesboy said:


> and I currently am looking to get a 7970 for at the right price it's a great option but the 7950 even according to all of the wiz's reviews rarely kept anything near to close to 670's at any speed nevermind the amp and that goes for most every review site I checked...


XFX HD 7950 OC doesn't run at 800Mhz. XFX HD 7950 OC is about 11 percent faster than 7950's 800Mhz.

For 7950 Ghz Edition's  performance hints, look at XFX HD 7950 OC @1025Mhz benchmarks e.g. 
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7950-overclock-crossfire-benchmark,3123-3.html
7950 OC @1025Mhz rivals 7970 @ 925Mhz.


AMD is making factory/user overclocks as standard.



dalekdukesboy said:


> I"d love to believe I could get a 670/680/7970'ish performing product when I oc it for 300 bucks but unless some driver magic happens or tpu/hardwarecanucks/TT/everyotherreviewer I went to hates 7950's and was "hatin" on them in a massive conspiracy it simply isn't nearly as fast as a gtx 670 in most anything even in high resolutions and AA where it does catch up it only comes somewhat closer not really matching or beating the 670 very often.


In terms of "out-of-the-box", current HD 7950 ranges from 800Mhz to 950Mhz e.g. http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=71&sort=a3


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## SonDa5 (Jul 7, 2012)

I doubt the new GHz edition will bring anything new in terms of raw over clocking potential.


I'm very happy with my Sapphire HD7950 OC 950mhz Edition which I have found a sweet spot of 1300/1600 @1.22v.

I wouldn't trade my HD7950 for any GTX670.


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## dj-electric (Jul 8, 2012)

... You got a 1300Mhz-core operating HD7950?!


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## Nordic (Jul 8, 2012)

Dj-ElectriC said:


> ... You got a 1300Mhz-core operating HD7950?!


his thread about it
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=166840


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## dalekdukesboy (Jul 8, 2012)

Glad you posted the thread cool reading that as well as giving me more info on my future card upgrade...odd though that several reviews online show the 7950 oc'ing no more than 1100 if not 1050'ish with or without voltage and you find a fair amount of people who own them getting them 1200+ with stock coolers, if I was confident I could get say a sapphire dual fan card to oc that high with 1800'ish memory I'd be all over it for the right price for then I'm sure it does and would beat any card stock and maybe even be close to the 1200+ mhz 680's I've seen released.  

     What would really be cool is a review with latest drivers with several games of which a few favor nvidia and amd and a few which are as neutral as possible, with 7950,7970,870,680 all oc'd to max on air with good coolers like the sapphire etc and see where the chips really fall currently.  I do note that the 7950 is not as far off the other cards when I look at all the charts but still no doubt at stock clocks anyway it trails the 670 usually as I said...however that boost clock nvidia employs throws off the apples to apples per mhz comparison and per mhz core and memory the amd's are faster just use more power than nvidia and a bit trickier to cool down.  But regardless of who's camp you're in I think both sides have a decent crop of cards this go around and it isn't the lopsided mess it has been in the past with one side limping along needing price cuts to stay competitive while blown away in every other category.


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## Totally (Jul 9, 2012)

Has anyone under clocked the GHz cards to see if there are any improvements power consumption?


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## eidairaman1 (Jul 10, 2012)

Totally said:


> Has anyone under clocked the GHz cards to see if there are any improvements power consumption?



youd have to undervolt them aswell.


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