• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

AMD Readies 4 GB Variant of the Radeon R9 390

Joined
Jan 31, 2012
Messages
2,671 (0.57/day)
Location
East Europe
System Name PLAHI
Processor I5-10400
Motherboard MSI MPG Z490 GAMING PLUS
Cooling 120 AIO IWONGOU
Memory 32GB Corsair LPX 2400 Mhz DDR4 CL14
Video Card(s) PNY QUADRO RTX A2000
Storage Intel 670P 512GB
Display(s) Philips 288E2A 28" 4K + 22" LG 1080p
Case Silverstone Raven 03 (RV03)
Audio Device(s) Creative Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Fractal Design IntegraM 650W
Mouse Logitech Triathlon
Keyboard REDRAGON MITRA
Software Windows 11 Home x 64
Am I the only person that cares more about the box than the card that comes in it? Seriously, look at that thing.

Naaah, you are not the only one. Look at what XFX did...look at it...it is majestic ;)
 
Joined
Jun 6, 2014
Messages
28 (0.01/day)
I'd rather have R9-290X than GTX 970. Any day.

I've got a 290X myself. Quite happy with it, though the GTX 970 is a very good card.

In this specific situation, the only reason why I'd get a 970 is that games just seem to be smoother and more trouble free on an Nvidia card. Nvidia is gobbling up AAA+ titles and making them all fancy and smooth.

However, the 290X winds hands down on longevity. 3-4 years after being released and it's still trying to put up a fight against Nvidia. The whole DX12/GCN advantage is a plus too.

TBH, I'd actually love to sell off my 290X and get a 980 Ti, but damn.. it's so expensive.. my MSI Lightning 290X costed $350 (new) where the 980Ti costs nearly $900, more than double the price. (In South Africa)
 
Joined
Sep 6, 2013
Messages
3,393 (0.82/day)
Location
Athens, Greece
System Name 3 desktop systems: Gaming / Internet / HTPC
Processor Ryzen 5 7600 / Ryzen 5 4600G / Ryzen 5 5500
Motherboard X670E Gaming Plus WiFi / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (1) / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (2)
Cooling Aigo ICE 400SE / Segotep T4 / Νoctua U12S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 32GB DDR5 6000 / 16GB JUHOR / 32GB G.Skill RIPJAWS 3600 + Aegis 3200
Video Card(s) ASRock RX 6600 + GT 710 (PhysX) / Vega 7 integrated / Radeon RX 580
Storage NVMes, ONLY NVMes / NVMes, SATA Storage / NVMe, SATA, external storage
Display(s) Philips 43PUS8857/12 UHD TV (120Hz, HDR, FreeSync Premium) / 19'' HP monitor + BlitzWolf BW-V5
Case Sharkoon Rebel 12 / CoolerMaster Elite 361 / Xigmatek Midguard
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Chieftec 850W / Silver Power 400W / Sharkoon 650W
Mouse CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Keyboard CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Software Windows 10 / Windows 10&Windows 11 / Windows 10
Now we know why AMD didn't came out with a 384bit 380X. AMD is targeting that gap between 960 and 970 really hard and with a 4GB 390 they secure two things. First, in case Nvidia drops 970's price, it will find a competing card already waiting and probably beating it again in the new lower price point. Second, a 960Ti is DOA.
 
Joined
Dec 22, 2011
Messages
3,890 (0.82/day)
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 3700X
Motherboard MSI MAG B550 TOMAHAWK
Cooling AMD Wraith Prism
Memory Team Group Dark Pro 8Pack Edition 3600Mhz CL16
Video Card(s) NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 FE
Storage Kingston A2000 1TB + Seagate HDD workhorse
Display(s) Samsung 50" QN94A Neo QLED
Case Antec 1200
Power Supply Seasonic Focus GX-850
Mouse Razer Deathadder Chroma
Keyboard Logitech UltraX
Software Windows 11
I'd rather have R9-290X than GTX 970. Any day.

Sadly for AMD, you're still in the minority.

I suspect the 970 has outsold AMD's entire lineup.

Also Rebrandeons are meh too.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Jul 9, 2015
Messages
3,413 (0.99/day)
System Name M3401 notebook
Processor 5600H
Motherboard NA
Memory 16GB
Video Card(s) 3050
Storage 500GB SSD
Display(s) 14" OLED screen of the laptop
Software Windows 10
Benchmark Scores 3050 scores good 15-20% lower than average, despite ASUS's claims that it has uber cooling.
The legendary GTX... It has placed itself beside the legends like ....

I recall P4 Prescott was even more legendary, topping the sales chart, like, all the way.
 

rtwjunkie

PC Gaming Enthusiast
Supporter
Joined
Jul 25, 2008
Messages
14,019 (2.34/day)
Location
Louisiana
Processor Core i9-9900k
Motherboard ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 6
Cooling All air: 2x140mm Fractal exhaust; 3x 140mm Cougar Intake; Enermax ETS-T50 Black CPU cooler
Memory 32GB (2x16) Mushkin Redline DDR-4 3200
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX 4070 Ti Super OC 16GB
Storage 1x 1TB MX500 (OS); 2x 6TB WD Black; 1x 2TB MX500; 1x 1TB BX500 SSD; 1x 6TB WD Blue storage (eSATA)
Display(s) Infievo 27" 165Hz @ 2560 x 1440
Case Fractal Design Define R4 Black -windowed
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Seasonic Focus GX-1000 Gold
Mouse Coolermaster Sentinel III (large palm grip!)
Keyboard Logitech G610 Orion mechanical (Cherry Brown switches)
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit (Start10 & Fences 3.0 installed)
The legendary GTX 970, It has placed itself beside the legends like 8800 GTS, ATi 9700, GeForce 256, TNT 2 and 3DFX Voodoo series.
And it took the crown for best seller for an entire year and it's still fighting for places in the top ten list with GTX 980Ti and GTX 960.

How is this relevant to the thread?
 
Joined
Sep 17, 2014
Messages
22,681 (6.05/day)
Location
The Washing Machine
System Name Tiny the White Yeti
Processor 7800X3D
Motherboard MSI MAG Mortar b650m wifi
Cooling CPU: Thermalright Peerless Assassin / Case: Phanteks T30-120 x3
Memory 32GB Corsair Vengeance 30CL6000
Video Card(s) ASRock RX7900XT Phantom Gaming
Storage Lexar NM790 4TB + Samsung 850 EVO 1TB + Samsung 980 1TB + Crucial BX100 250GB
Display(s) Gigabyte G34QWC (3440x1440)
Case Lian Li A3 mATX White
Audio Device(s) Harman Kardon AVR137 + 2.1
Power Supply EVGA Supernova G2 750W
Mouse Steelseries Aerox 5
Keyboard Lenovo Thinkpad Trackpoint II
VR HMD HD 420 - Green Edition ;)
Software W11 IoT Enterprise LTSC
Benchmark Scores Over 9000

rtwjunkie

PC Gaming Enthusiast
Supporter
Joined
Jul 25, 2008
Messages
14,019 (2.34/day)
Location
Louisiana
Processor Core i9-9900k
Motherboard ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 6
Cooling All air: 2x140mm Fractal exhaust; 3x 140mm Cougar Intake; Enermax ETS-T50 Black CPU cooler
Memory 32GB (2x16) Mushkin Redline DDR-4 3200
Video Card(s) ASUS RTX 4070 Ti Super OC 16GB
Storage 1x 1TB MX500 (OS); 2x 6TB WD Black; 1x 2TB MX500; 1x 1TB BX500 SSD; 1x 6TB WD Blue storage (eSATA)
Display(s) Infievo 27" 165Hz @ 2560 x 1440
Case Fractal Design Define R4 Black -windowed
Audio Device(s) Soundblaster Z
Power Supply Seasonic Focus GX-1000 Gold
Mouse Coolermaster Sentinel III (large palm grip!)
Keyboard Logitech G610 Orion mechanical (Cherry Brown switches)
Software Windows 10 Pro 64-bit (Start10 & Fences 3.0 installed)
Joined
Apr 19, 2011
Messages
2,198 (0.44/day)
Location
So. Cal.
970's will in a year feel meh, when a Pascal/Artic Island replacement hit, and so will these 390 4Gb and perhaps the 8Gb... spending $300 now is bad timing.

Consider 780's... for those who grabbed it a little more than 2 years ago and paid the close to the full tilt price of $650, it's now are sparring with cards costing 65% less. Nvidia has the 3.5Gb as a planned obsolescence. Not saying that if you hadn't grabbed the 970 back a year ago it wasn't a good place, but it won't be 6-8 months when the B-M's will be showing ($300 today) on Dx12 titles will have folks seeing it's time to spend again. If holding to 1080p for more than a year, getting into this class of card is to much cash, while >4Gb will be the bare minimum for 1440p soon enough.

My 18 year olds' are on 1080p; with a 270X (2 years now) and 280 (year ago). While 270x is still doing adequate, what would you say is the right jump to upgrade? All the while realizing in 6-8 months a new FinFET parts for $240 could bouncing all these cards (390/970) down 2 tiers, all the while making 1440p an actual ability.
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2014
Messages
4,304 (1.11/day)
Location
Texas
System Name SnowFire / The Reinforcer
Processor i7 10700K 5.1ghz (24/7) / 2x Xeon E52650v2
Motherboard Asus Strix Z490 / Dell Dual Socket (R720)
Cooling RX 360mm + 140mm Custom Loop / Dell Stock
Memory Corsair RGB 16gb DDR4 3000 CL 16 / DDR3 128gb 16 x 8gb
Video Card(s) GTX Titan XP (2025mhz) / Asus GTX 950 (No Power Connector)
Storage Samsung 970 1tb NVME and 2tb HDD x4 RAID 5 / 300gb x8 RAID 5
Display(s) Acer XG270HU, Samsung G7 Odyssey (1440p 240hz)
Case Thermaltake Cube / Dell Poweredge R720 Rack Mount Case
Audio Device(s) Realtec ALC1150 (On board)
Power Supply Rosewill Lightning 1300Watt / Dell Stock 750 / Brick
Mouse Logitech G5
Keyboard Logitech G19S
Software Windows 11 Pro / Windows Server 2016
You are wrong my friend, everyone who reads still agrees the 970 is a damn good card. I knew about the 3.5gb of vram and still proceeded to buy two of them. The first one I got has 0 issues gaming at 1440p 60hz so I decided to get another one for my little brother. We both have 450watt power supplies in our systems so a 390 was out of the question since we have overclocked i7's in our systems. The 970 fit in nicely and handled a good overclock and we aren't overloading our power supplies. Different strokes for different folks, the 970 is still very well regarded in the community even among those who read and are well informed.
First of all, I am correct as most people who buy the cards look at the box. I've lost track at how many people I've spoken to who are unaware of the issue as most do not research and buy based off of the numbering schemes and what the box says. Most state it does not bother them and that they are just more annoyed they were not aware because it might have influenced their decision to upgrade to a GTX 980 or something else. But that begs the question on why you would spend the money on building an OC i7 system with that card then buy a very low wattage power supply (Except for a few exceptions) 450watts for a gaming system is pushing the minimum...
Am I the only person that cares more about the box than the card that comes in it? Seriously, look at that thing.
Yea, the XFX box (I am assuming you mean that one) is awesome.
Oh, thanks for clearing that up for me! :laugh:
I think it has become a requirement for any AMD thread at this point.

Now we know why AMD didn't came out with a 384bit 380X. AMD is targeting that gap between 960 and 970 really hard and with a 4GB 390 they secure two things. First, in case Nvidia drops 970's price, it will find a competing card already waiting and probably beating it again in the new lower price point. Second, a 960Ti is DOA.
Maybe, but it depends where this becomes priced. Hopefully it will be close to $275 which will offer a decent value and (Sortta) midway point between the 380X and 390.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Sep 6, 2013
Messages
3,393 (0.82/day)
Location
Athens, Greece
System Name 3 desktop systems: Gaming / Internet / HTPC
Processor Ryzen 5 7600 / Ryzen 5 4600G / Ryzen 5 5500
Motherboard X670E Gaming Plus WiFi / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (1) / MSI X470 Gaming Plus Max (2)
Cooling Aigo ICE 400SE / Segotep T4 / Νoctua U12S
Memory Kingston FURY Beast 32GB DDR5 6000 / 16GB JUHOR / 32GB G.Skill RIPJAWS 3600 + Aegis 3200
Video Card(s) ASRock RX 6600 + GT 710 (PhysX) / Vega 7 integrated / Radeon RX 580
Storage NVMes, ONLY NVMes / NVMes, SATA Storage / NVMe, SATA, external storage
Display(s) Philips 43PUS8857/12 UHD TV (120Hz, HDR, FreeSync Premium) / 19'' HP monitor + BlitzWolf BW-V5
Case Sharkoon Rebel 12 / CoolerMaster Elite 361 / Xigmatek Midguard
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply Chieftec 850W / Silver Power 400W / Sharkoon 650W
Mouse CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Keyboard CoolerMaster Devastator III Plus / CoolerMaster Devastator / Logitech
Software Windows 10 / Windows 10&Windows 11 / Windows 10
Maybe, but it depends where this becomes priced. Hopefully it will be close to $275 which will offer a decent value and (Sortta) midway point between the 380X and 390.
Or where they will be sold. Wccftech updated there article with, what they call, official confirmation from AMD, that those 4GB 390s will be sold exclusively in China. On the other hand I do expect latter, if there is any movement from Nvidia in that price range, AMD to let it's partners sell those cards globally.
 
Joined
Jan 4, 2013
Messages
1,184 (0.27/day)
Location
Denmark
System Name R9 5950x/Skylake 6400
Processor R9 5950x/i5 6400
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Master X570/Asus Z170 Pro Gaming
Cooling Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360/Stock
Memory 4x8GB Patriot PVS416G4440 CL14/G.S Ripjaws 32 GB F4-3200C16D-32GV
Video Card(s) 7900XTX/6900XT
Storage RIP Seagate 530 4TB (died after 7 months), WD SN850 2TB, Aorus 2TB, Corsair MP600 1TB / 960 Evo 1TB
Display(s) 3x LG 27gl850 1440p
Case Custom builds
Audio Device(s) -
Power Supply Silverstone 1000watt modular Gold/1000Watt Antec
Software Win11pro/win10pro / Win10 Home / win7 / wista 64 bit and XPpro
I just hope that a R9 390 bios will fit my R9 290...
 
Top