480 4GB successfully flashed to 8GB [TechPowerUp]

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sze5003

Lifer
Aug 18, 2012
14,177
622
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It seems like it was on purpose. Its way too awesome to not be on purpose. Imagine buying a cheaper 4gb version, peeling back that sticker and realizing you really got the full blown 8gb version for a cheaper price?! That's awesome. That would make people go nuts trying to grab one. I am liking this card a lot more now. I love this kind of crap.
It's probably over now as soon as new stock comes in and AIB models come out. I mean that's 20% anyone could save. I also have not seen many 4gb models and most aib models will be 8gb anyways it seems.
 

Sonikku

Lifer
Jun 23, 2005
15,749
4,558
136
I'm starting to wish I had bought a reference version instead of holding out for an aftermarket cooler. It sounds like the 4gb variant I had my eye on was an even better value for $200 than I had imagined, and once the overvoltage thing gets worked out the power consumption will go down and the fan won't need to spin as fast to keep it cool. The gravy train will likely be over with the next shipment.
 

sze5003

Lifer
Aug 18, 2012
14,177
622
126
I'm starting to wish I had bought a reference version instead of holding out for an aftermarket cooler. It sounds like the 4gb variant I had my eye on was an even better value for $200 than I had imagined, and once the overvoltage thing gets worked out the power consumption will go down and the fan won't need to spin as fast to keep it cool. The gravy train will likely be over with the next shipment.
Yea you are right. I'm checking my micro center here to see if they have a 4gb model. I think they do. But do you know how to check if it is actually 8gb before you open it?
 

swilli89

Golden Member
Mar 23, 2010
1,558
1,181
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Yeah, they paid for the chips anyway...should have been 8gb of VRAM for $199.00 or better yet, actual 4gb cards for $169.00.

The fact that the extra ram is there at the $199 price point means prices could have been at a lower tier for actual 4gb cards.

4gb for $169
8gb for $199
Maybe 8gb with GDDR5X for $229 for the niche buyers

Huh? So nVidia should be charging $299 for the 1070 that has a cut down 330mm die then right? nVidia is allowed to be a capitalistic entity and maximize profits as is their due right! But AMD when shown that all cards are 8gb must shave down another $40 from an already dirt cheap card?
 

dark zero

Platinum Member
Jun 2, 2015
2,655
138
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It seems like it was on purpose. Its way too awesome to not be on purpose. Imagine buying a cheaper 4gb version, peeling back that sticker and realizing you really got the full blown 8gb version for a cheaper price?! That's awesome. That would make people go nuts trying to grab one. I am liking this card a lot more now. I love this kind of crap.

I feel that the 4GB 480 will be demoted to 470.

Also... maybe the GDDR5X version is near?
 
Nov 20, 2009
10,043
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I'm starting to wish I had bought a reference version instead of holding out for an aftermarket cooler. It sounds like the 4gb variant I had my eye on was an even better value for $200 than I had imagined, and once the overvoltage thing gets worked out the power consumption will go down and the fan won't need to spin as fast to keep it cool. The gravy train will likely be over with the next shipment.
And where are these being sold for $200? Everywhere I look it is $250-300.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
14,612
318
126
I can only imagine how much more favourable reviews and sales RX480 would have gotten if they had only launched RX480 8gb for $199.There was no need for 4gb.RX470 would have taken care of that.The awesome value of RX480 8gb for $200 is just not the same as RX480 for $240.


Some of y'all are confusing the fact that AMD shipped 8GB for $200 with the concept that AMD wanted to ship 8GB for $200. They clearly didn't because these cards only operate with 4GB by default.

It is VERY clear what happened. AMD always planned to have a $199 card to hit the sub $200 price point. But the 4GB cards weren't ready in time and AMD had to be aggressive about releasing timing to not get screwed by the 1060 going first.

So they took 8GB and shipped them as 4GB so that way there wouldn't be complaints the 4GB model "paper launched" and to avoid [Nvidia fanboy]"the real price is $230 because you can't get a $199 model"[/Nvidia fanboy]. As a way to minimize this margin damage the 8GB one was MUCH more available- on Newegg there are seven 8GB models listed and only three 4GB models. There are only enough 4GB models as needed to keep the reviews (some of which are based on store bought cards) mentioning that $199 price point.

AMD never planned to sell 8GB cards this cheap. This was about avoiding bad press, and I bet the margins lost on the fake 4GB cards came out of some marketing budget somewhere. The AIB ones will almost certainly be real 4GB (why would an AIB give us this margin?), as will reference 4GB cards after a certain point. No one should be angry they missed this as just getting a 4GB card was hard to do on launch day.

In other news it looks like the Polaris bios editor is coming along nicely. If AMD doesn't fix these cards I am going to make a nice custom bios for mine with 8GB enabled:

https://github.com/caa82437/PolarisBiosEditor
 
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railven

Diamond Member
Mar 25, 2010
6,604
561
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Doesn't this sort of work in reverse?

How many people who forum hop now will actively look for a 4GB card versus just flat out buying an 8GB card to save that money?

Reading NeoGAF it seems the mainstreamers are now telling each other "wait for AIB if you can't find a 4GB card to unlock."

So that's two strikes against ref 8GBs. Stroll through my Microcenter, they got plenty of stock but it also seems they haven't sold many. That's just my MC, don't mean anything but since some posters like to extrapolate using 1 store.

Seems like a botched launch. Now the ref 8GB is essentially the adopted red-head step child.
 
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sze5003

Lifer
Aug 18, 2012
14,177
622
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Doesn't this sort of work in reverse?

How many people who forum hop now will actively look for a 4GB card versus just flat out buying an 8GB card to save that money?

Reading NeoGAF it seems the mainstreamers are not telling each other "wait for AIB if you can't find a 4GB card to unlock."

So that's two strikes against ref 8GBs. Stroll through my Microcenter, they got plenty of stock but it also seems they haven't sold many. That's just my MC, don't mean anything but since some posters like to extrapolate using 1 store.

Seems like a botched launch. Now the ref 8GB is essentially the adopted red-head step child.
Most cards even at my micro center were 8gb models. They only have 3 in stock left. They had 10 and one 4gb model.

Either way, only 8gb were available everywhere whereas 4 was scarce which makes sense since it is faster to use the same bios and lock it to make both cards rather than have two PCB's.
 

railven

Diamond Member
Mar 25, 2010
6,604
561
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Most cards even at my micro center were 8gb models. They only have 3 in stock left. They had 10 and one 4gb model.

Either way, only 8gb were available everywhere whereas 4 was scarce which makes sense since it is faster to use the same bios and lock it to make both cards rather than have two PCB's.

I'm sure 8GB were the majority of the products, but now people will actively look for the 4GB versus just buying the 8GB. And if they can't find the 4GB they'll most likely wait for the AIBs.

Essentially what I'm saying is the ref 8GB model is basically the least desired and most plentiful model/product.

Which is sort of what you don't want to do when launching a new product.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
14,612
318
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Doesn't this sort of work in reverse?

How many people who forum hop now will actively look for a 4GB card versus just flat out buying an 8GB card to save that money?

Reading NeoGAF it seems the mainstreamers are now telling each other "wait for AIB if you can't find a 4GB card to unlock."

So that's two strikes against ref 8GBs.


The so called "mainstreamers" (great term BTW) already were avoiding the reference 480 because of strike 1. The PCI power issue alone made this a botched launch. Everyone even here was already saying wait until AIB 480s and maybe the 1060. The magic of "a 970 for $200!" was lost when that Tom's review hit.

Now at least AMD will sell every 4GB card that they "made" with the label maker. And if miners don't clean out 8GB 480 stocks then they can relabel a few more to be 4GB cards to move those out the door. The launch was already botched, this is maybe a partial PR recovery.
 

sze5003

Lifer
Aug 18, 2012
14,177
622
126
I'm sure 8GB were the majority of the products, but now people will actively look for the 4GB versus just buying the 8GB. And if they can't find the 4GB they'll most likely wait for the AIBs.

Essentially what I'm saying is the ref 8GB model is basically the least desired and most plentiful model/product.

Which is sort of what you don't want to do when launching a new product.
I don't think this is an issue anymore but I understand your concern. Only those that were able to order within the first week or so probably got a 4gb model.

I doubt we will see those flashable 4gb ones anywhere now. AIB models will be out in 2 weeks and most of those will also be true 8gb models.

People can look for a reference 4gb all they want but it's likely new shipments won't have them and reference won't last very long once the third parties start releasing.
 
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Sonikku

Lifer
Jun 23, 2005
15,749
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And where are these being sold for $200? Everywhere I look it is $250-300.

Note I said I wish I "had" bought. There were $200 variants at launch that have since sold out. I should have nabbed one instead of holding out for an aftermarket. Those that got one on launch day at newegg got an amazing value for their money.
 

railven

Diamond Member
Mar 25, 2010
6,604
561
126
The so called "mainstreamers" (great term BTW) already were avoiding the reference 480 because of strike 1. The PCI power issue alone made this a botched launch. Everyone even here was already saying wait until AIB 480s and maybe the 1060. The magic of "a 970 for $200!" was lost when that Tom's review hit.

Now at least AMD will sell every 4GB card that they "made" with the label maker. And if miners don't clean out 8GB 480 stocks then they can relabel a few more to be 4GB cards to move those out the door. The launch was already botched, this is maybe a partial PR recovery.

This is basically what I'm getting at. Following AMD habits, the ref 8GB will get price cut (especially if the GTX 1060 is any thing the rumors claim it to be) and it just seems AMD runs head first into the same problems.

They flood the market, with a product that generates little interest and basically have inventory issues that get cleared with price reductions.

It's just aggravating to see them continue to do the same mistakes. Like you said, strike 1 basically made the product undesirable to a good chunk of buyers and now strike 2 just compounds it.

Eat the loss now and get more 4GB cards out there. At least it continues to generate a positive rumor for your company.

I don't think this is an issue anymore but I understand your concern. Only those that were able to order within the first week or so probably got a 4gb model.

I doubt we will see those flashable 4gb ones anywhere now. AIB models will be out in 2 weeks and most of those will also be true 8gb models.

People can look for a reference 4gb all they want but it's likely new shipments won't have them and reference won't last very long once the third parties start releasing.

And that leaves you with a good chunk of ref 8GB that people will openly avoid. That will eventually get price cut and sold for, perhaps, $220 or less with a game bundle. Just get it out of the way now before products sit on shelves.

Hell, following the non-USA comments on other forums, the retailers are already jacking up the price which is strike 3 in those regions.
 

sze5003

Lifer
Aug 18, 2012
14,177
622
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I don't see any more reference 8gb models in stock anywhere. The ones at micro center will most likely sell out. Newegg hasn't had any, same as other websites.

Probably won't see any more stock until the AIB models come.

The 1060 being more expensive I suppose wont do much guessing the 3gb model goes for $249 and 6gb for $299. At least it would be direct comparison this time.
 

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
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Huh? So nVidia should be charging $299 for the 1070 that has a cut down 330mm die then right? nVidia is allowed to be a capitalistic entity and maximize profits as is their due right! But AMD when shown that all cards are 8gb must shave down another $40 from an already dirt cheap card?

Yep.

AMD can't afford to be like NV, imo.

Gotta' make different moves.

If they can sell a card with 8gb of VRAM on it, at the listed 4gb card price, then that should have been the 8gb card price, imo. It has 8gb on it, and the chips don't cost the same.

It seems to me that AMD missed an opportunity with pricing. Prices could clearly have been a little lower.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
14,612
318
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This is basically what I'm getting at. Following AMD habits, the ref 8GB will get price cut (especially if the GTX 1060 is any thing the rumors claim it to be) and it just seems AMD runs head first into the same problems.

I really don't think that will happen. I think by the time the 1060 is readily available most of 480s available will be AIB models and the reference models will mostly be sold to OEMs for their "gaming" machines in full 8GB RAM mode because that looks great on a specs sheet.

What I personally believe you are missing is we should be congratulating AMD for finally having some marketing success! Go look at every single review in the review thread and even though almost every review is of the 8GB card the reviews give it credit for a $200 price and bury the lead that the 8GB upgrade is $30 somewhere in some paragraph where they recommend probably getting the 8GB anyway.

A sub-$200 480 was ALWAYS a marketing gimmick, from the start! And it succeeded in fooling almost everyone in a way that it was meant to and is the only thing that is keeping the hype going despite a engineering mistake on the design because people will excuse some issues in a sub $200 card.

There will never be a REAL 4GB reference 480. Ever. Every real 4GB 480 will be a AIB model that will start at $210-220 dollars and might get to $199 after rebate in a few months. Just like there will never be a reference 470 or 460 because OEMs only want those chips in laptops. The reference 480 was meant for OEMs long-term and their sales will matter more in that context. The 4GB card is slower on the spec sheet for a reason- there will be real ram chips that slot in there eventually.

The FAKE 4GB 480 is a successful marketing gimmick from one end to the other. If the Silverforce forum link above is correct then there were only a couple hundred 4GB 480s to begin with and they all were really 8GB cards. Go look on Newegg and you will see that the only three 4GB models were given to Sapphire, XFX and Powercolor- aka the OEMs that put a priority on making AMD cards. This was AMDs way of giving some special partners an "exclusive" card that all the reviews will be talking about. Apparently XFX has a few more they plan to trickle out to much fanfare, it's all a marketing stunt.

I applaud AMD for pulling it off. The needed a marketing win really bad and almost every 480 review has been glowing (aka the opposite of 290 reviews) because of a supposed $199 price.

And in a way they got the "Founder's Edition" early adopter tax by forcing people into mostly 8GB models after they read only the headline of the reviews, as most cards available are 8GB ones. But enough 4GB models existed to prove that MSRP wasn't a fabrication, unlike early Nvidia MSRPs. At least the AMD early adopters got more RAM for their extra money, and people like me who got a fake 4GB model will be happy with their brand.
 
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Bacon1

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2016
3,430
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Yep.

AMD can't afford to be like NV, imo.

Gotta' make different moves.

If they can sell a card with 8gb of VRAM on it, at the listed 4gb card price, then that should have been the 8gb card price, imo. It has 8gb on it, and the chips don't cost the same.

It seems to me that AMD missed an opportunity with pricing. Prices could clearly have been a little lower.

Or maybe they sold those basically at cost to make sure they met the $199 price point. Doesn't mean they can afford to sell them all for that price. They have to make up their R&D costs.
 

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,575
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Or maybe they sold those basically at cost to make sure they met the $199 price point. Doesn't mean they can afford to sell them all for that price. They have to make up their R&D costs.

I'd feel pretty mad if my buddy paid the same amount of money as me for his RX480, and had 8gb to my 4gb...
 

codyray10

Senior member
Apr 14, 2008
854
4
81
I don't see any more reference 8gb models in stock anywhere. The ones at micro center will most likely sell out. Newegg hasn't had any, same as other websites.

Probably won't see any more stock until the AIB models come.

The 1060 being more expensive I suppose wont do much guessing the 3gb model goes for $249 and 6gb for $299. At least it would be direct comparison this time.

My Microcenter has been sold out since mid-afternoon on launch day. They said they had ~50 cards on hand and they were gone pretty quick. Cant imagine they had many 4GB units though. I've checked the site for new inventory 1-2 times a day since and they have had nothing.
 

Bacon1

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2016
3,430
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I'd feel pretty mad if my buddy paid the same amount of money as me for his RX480, and had 8gb to my 4gb...

Why? Because he was an early adopter? Many people have been able to unlock early cards to get more shaders / cores because top end parts get disabled to make the lower end ones.
 

Det0x

Golden Member
Sep 11, 2014
1,027
2,953
136
This is basically what I'm getting at. Following AMD habits, the ref 8GB will get price cut (especially if the GTX 1060 is any thing the rumors claim it to be) and it just seems AMD runs head first into the same problems.

They flood the market, with a product that generates little interest and basically have inventory issues that get cleared with price reductions.

It's just aggravating to see them continue to do the same mistakes. Like you said, strike 1 basically made the product undesirable to a good chunk of buyers and now strike 2 just compounds it.

Eat the loss now and get more 4GB cards out there. At least it continues to generate a positive rumor for your company.

Strike 3 and your out ? ():)

Third design flaw

http://hexus.net/tech/news/graphics...-work-htc-vive/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium

In another tale of hardware not quite working as expected, there are reports that the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 and 1070 Display Port doesn't work with the HTC Vive virtual reality headset. Nvidia markets both the GTX 1080 and 1070 as offering "innovative new gaming technologies and breakthrough VR experiences," so to have this compatibility problem exist, with the best selling PC HMD, seems like a bit of a blunder.

Second design flaw

https://www.techpowerup.com/223669/geforce-gtx-pascal-faces-high-dvi-pixel-clock-booting-problems

The second design flaw to hit the GeForce GTX 1080 and GTX 1070 after the fan revving bug, isn't confined to the reference "Founders Edition" cards, but affects all GTX 1080 and GTX 1070 cards. Users of monitors with dual-link DVI connectors are noticing problems in booting to Windows with pixel clocks set higher than 330 MHz. You can boot to windows at default pixel clocks, and when booted, set the refresh-rates (and conversely pixel clocks) higher than 330 MHz, and the display works fine, it's just that you can't boot with those settings, and will have to revert to default settings each time you shut down or restart your machine.

A user of a custom-design GTX 1070 notes that if the refresh rate of their 1440p monitor is set higher than 81 Hz (the highest refresh rate you can achieve with pixel clock staying under 330 MHz) and the resolution at 2560 x 1440, the machine doesn't correctly boot into Windows. The splash screen is replaced with flash color screens, and nothing beyond. The system BIOS screen appears correctly (because it runs at low resolutions). The problem is also said to be observed on a custom-design GTX 1080, and has been replicated by other users on the GeForce Forums.

First design flaw

https://www.techpowerup.com/222895/...edition-owners-complain-of-fan-revving-issues

VIDIA's decision to sell its reference-design GeForce GTX 1080 graphics card at a $100 premium over the SKU's MSRP of $599, is beginning develop cracks, with early adopters complaining of erratic default fan behavior. The GTX 1080 Founders Edition graphics card features NVIDIA's reference lateral-blower-type cooler, which didn't exactly blow us away, in our review of the card. Customers across the forumscape, including on NVIDIA's own GeForce Forums, are complaining of an issue where the fan of the cooler has a mind of its own, and revs up from 2,000 RPM to 3,000 RPM intermittently, and drops back to its idle speed. This, users complain, is particularly annoying if you're not gaming.

The users observe that these sudden and unpredictable spikes in fan-speed are not in response to rising GPU temperatures or clock speeds. Sudden variations in fan-speed are worse than gradual variations in response to legitimate triggers, as it also means sudden changes in noise, which is distracting. Users also observe that you can't even use third-party software (eg: EVGA Precision) to stabilize or override the fan-behavior, as the speed-spikes don't respect custom settings.


And that leaves you with a good chunk of ref 8GB that people will openly avoid. That will eventually get price cut and sold for, perhaps, $220 or less with a game bundle. Just get it out of the way now before products sit on shelves.

Hell, following the non-USA comments on other forums, the retailers are already jacking up the price which is strike 3 in those regions.

Pretty funny these shortcomings don't get more press..


Threadcrapping and trolling are not allowed
What does this possibly have to do with the RX480 ?
Markfw900
 
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LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,575
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They don't deserve a lot of press?

Just like AMD's 480 PCI-E problem doesn't deserve a lot of press.

But, as long as you're around...
 

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,575
126
Why? Because he was an early adopter? Many people have been able to unlock early cards to get more shaders / cores because top end parts get disabled to make the lower end ones.

Then again, 8gb didn't seem to do much for the card vs 4gb, so it's probably a wash.