Did I make a poor decision buying the R9 290X Reference?

[nillawafers]

I've been looking to build a new PC for a while. Nothing hardcore. Just 1080p 60Hz

So I went ahead and bought an AMD r9 290X reference card for $180. I thought it was a good deal (Ebay), but I didn't realize it was a reference card until it arrived (they had the wrong box displayed...). I don't want to return it because...well...$180 seemed like a really good deal for such a card.

But, at the same time, I've heard horror stories about the heat and the noise.

Have y'all had any issues with this or similar cards? Should I return it for a 280X with an aftermarket cooler?

 

[railven]

I've been looking to build a new PC for a while. Nothing hardcore. Just 1080p 60Hz

So I went ahead and bought an AMD r9 290X reference card for $180. I thought it was a good deal (Ebay), but I didn't realize it was a reference card until it arrived (they had the wrong box displayed...). I don't want to return it because...well...$180 seemed like a really good deal for such a card.

But, at the same time, I've heard horror stories about the heat and the noise.

Have y'all had any issues with this or similar cards? Should I return it for a 280X with an aftermarket cooler?

Heat and noise is subjective. It's winter where I am now, so I'd take the 290X ref for what's it's worth. IE, the ambient temp would be cooler thus the card won't get as hot as fast, and when it does it will warm up your room (god knows I loved my CFX 7970's during the winter ).

The noise is loud, but not unberable (I was benching 290X CFX, I wasn't going deaf, but i wouldn't want that noise all the time).

TL;DR
Nah, you got a great deal. See how it is for your before you start panicking. You might not even mind it.

 

[Erenhardt]

I have 290 with reference cooler.
Did custom fan profile to keep it below 93'c. It is noisy, but if you play with headphones it is not an issue for you. It may be for your room-mates, so keep that in mind. If you want to overclock, custom cooling solution like arctic silver extreme IV, or Gelid Icy vision rev2 is advised.
I decided to go with reference because it was cheap. And I could match the noise by adjusting power limit and voltage, sacrificing almost no performance. Actually, undervloted my GPU by -30mv and increased power limit to +30%, so the cards is faster then on stock (no throttling) and a bit quieter.

Try undervolting the GPU if you don't like the noise, or get aftermarket cooler if you want more performance and quiet card.

 

[Seba]

I assume that it is a second hand card. For how much could you get a second hand R9 290X with a good cooler?

Possible issues, other than noise:
- low longevity if it was used for mining;
- throttling.

 

[Actaeon]

$180 all in is a great deal for a 290x. 280x would be a downgrade for sure. You could underclock and undervolt the 290x and still be faster than a 280x.

 

[RussianSensation]

I've been looking to build a new PC for a while. Nothing hardcore. Just 1080p 60Hz

Have y'all had any issues with this or similar cards? Should I return it for a 280X with an aftermarket cooler?

Absolutely not, keep it. 290X for $180 is a smoking deal. Even with PowerTune at -20%, some undervolting and slight reduction in GPU clocks, you would end up with a card much faster than the 280X. If you game with headphones or with loud speakers, you might not even care about the 290X's noise levels. The card is rated to operate at 95C so that's not a big deal either.

 

[nillawafers]

Heat and noise is subjective. It's winter where I am now, so I'd take the 290X ref for what's it's worth. IE, the ambient temp would be cooler thus the card won't get as hot as fast, and when it does it will warm up your room (god knows I loved my CFX 7970's during the winter ).

The noise is loud, but not unberable (I was benching 290X CFX, I wasn't going deaf, but i wouldn't want that noise all the time).

TL;DR
Nah, you got a great deal. See how it is for your before you start panicking. You might not even mind it.

Ah okay. Did you notice any performance dips as it heated up? I heard that it's rated to 95C, but getting up to that temp will cause the card to underclock itself and you'll notice FPS drops.

 

[nillawafers]

I have 290 with reference cooler.
Did custom fan profile to keep it below 93'c. It is noisy, but if you play with headphones it is not an issue for you. It may be for your room-mates, so keep that in mind. If you want to overclock, custom cooling solution like arctic silver extreme IV, or Gelid Icy vision rev2 is advised.
I decided to go with reference because it was cheap. And I could match the noise by adjusting power limit and voltage, sacrificing almost no performance. Actually, undervloted my GPU by -30mv and increased power limit to +30%, so the cards is faster then on stock (no throttling) and a bit quieter.

Try undervolting the GPU if you don't like the noise, or get aftermarket cooler if you want more performance and quiet card.

Can you replace the reference cooler with an aftermarket design? I knew you could take it off and add liquid cooling like the NZXT Kraken, but I wasn't aware you could add custom air cooling to a reference card.

 

[nillawafers]

I assume that it is a second hand card. For how much could you get a second hand R9 290X with a good cooler?

Possible issues, other than noise:
- low longevity if it was used for mining;
- throttling.

It really depends. Most are $250-300, but I've seen a few as low as $150. Kinda makes me envious of whoever got that deal lol

 

[Actaeon]

Yes, if it gets too hot the GPU will throttle itself.

If I were you I'd enable frame rate control in the drivers, set it to 60hz or whatever FPS you want. If the scene isn't demanding, the card will throttle back its load to hit your target FPS and help manage heat better. This way the GPU isn't @ 100% load all the time, helping to keep it cool. Then on demanding scenes when you really need it, it is less likely to throttle back. This won't help in games where it still needs 100% all the time to try to hit 60hz, but I think it'll help in general.

 

[nillawafers]

Yes, if it gets too hot the GPU will throttle itself.

If I were you I'd enable frame rate control in the drivers, set it to 60hz or whatever FPS you want. If the scene isn't demanding, the card will throttle back its load to hit your target FPS and help manage heat better. This way the GPU isn't @ 100% load all the time, helping to keep it cool. Then on demanding scenes when you really need it, it is less likely to throttle back. This won't help in games where it still needs 100% all the time to try to hit 60hz, but I think it'll help in general.

I was thinking that. I assume it won't cause overall FPS drops like V-Sync does? (Sorry if that's a dumb question lol I haven't messed with this stuff since like 2008)

 

[tential]

Why don't you try the card and see how it performs first. Then look into an aftermarket air cooler.

Something like this
http://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-Accelero-Efficient-VRM-Cooling-DCACO-V800001-GBA01/dp/B00HHMJIIO

Still makes it a decent deal. An R9 290x for ~$260, but check and see how it performs first. People are buying reference R9 290s new for $200 right now, so it's not like you made a mistake.

 

[railven]

Ah okay. Did you notice any performance dips as it heated up? I heard that it's rated to 95C, but getting up to that temp will cause the card to underclock itself and you'll notice FPS drops.

Because I was benching I ran them with 100% fan speed, to prevent throttling.

Using one card by itself gave acceptable performance. The games I tried didn't push it to throttle. I recall seeing 80-85C with fan speed at 50-60%. It is audible but not unbearable.

To your other post, I was originally going to strap on dual Corsair H10-A1 and use my spare Corsair radiators, but I decided against it last minute, returned them to get my current card.

But for $180, that is a steal, I'd re-TIM it, and create a custom fan profile.

 

[Actaeon]

I was thinking that. I assume it won't cause overall FPS drops like V-Sync does? (Sorry if that's a dumb question lol I haven't messed with this stuff since like 2008)

Nope, it doesn't cause a decrease in performance, it just limits itself to whatever you set it at.

The way FRC works is that it'll run the GPU as hard as it can to hit your desired framerate. Once you hit the target framerate and there is excess 'power' left, it'll dial back load to the GPU which reduces heat and power consumption. Your card will be less likely to throttle when the demanding situations come up since it was running cooler.

200fps when staring at a wall doesn't help anybody, lol.

 

[lavaheadache]

I have an Msi gaming heat sink for the card if you want something for cheap. I think you have to drill out a very small section on the back plate cause it was for a 290 and those don't have one capacitor that the X has. Seriously a 2 minute operation will make the cooler 100% operational for your card and miles better than the oem unit. Pm me if interested

 

[RussianSensation]

I have an Msi gaming heat sink for the card if you want something for cheap. I think you have to drill out a very small section on the back plate cause it was for a 290 and those don't have one capacitor that the X has. Seriously a 2 minute operation will make the cooler 100% operational for your card and miles better than the oem unit. Pm me if interested

The front looks identical.

R9 290 reference PCB

R9 290X reference PCB

I cannot find the difference on the back. Maybe you know where to look for.

R9 290 reference PCB (back)

R9 290X reference PCB (back)

I'd take lava's offer though if the noise bothers you a lot on the reference 290X.

 

[Silverforce11]

All you need is setup Afterburner, down-volt by 50mV and it'll run much quieter.

That's it. No stupid noisy reference blower.

GCN responds very well with undervolt.

 

[lavaheadache]

Russian, I actually think the difference is between the amd reference board and the Msi gaming pcb. After refreshing my memory it's the cluster of 4 caps in an L shape near the display outputs. The Msi revised board doesn't have those caps but everything else is the same. I'd post a picture but I'm on my iPhone and can't figure out how to get out of he new mobile interface.

The gaming cards have a top plate that attaches under the main heat sink and this is the one that needs the minor modification. Fwiw, the cooler is brand new unused as it was pulled off before use and replaced with a water block

http://www.custompcreview.com/reviews/review-msi-radeon-r9-290-gaming-4g/19995/3/

Link to the cooler and pcb

 

[nillawafers]

All you need is setup Afterburner, down-volt by 50mV and it'll run much quieter.

That's it. No stupid noisy reference blower.

GCN responds very well with undervolt.

How will that affect performance?

 

[Bubbleawsome]

Russian, I actually think the difference is between the amd reference board and the Msi gaming pcb. After refreshing my memory it's the cluster of 4 caps in an L shape near the display outputs. The Msi revised board doesn't have those caps but everything else is the same. I'd post a picture but I'm on my iPhone and can't figure out how to get out of he new mobile interface.

The gaming cards have a top plate that attaches under the main heat sink and this is the one that needs the minor modification. Fwiw, the cooler is brand new unused as it was pulled off before use and replaced with a water block

If it's on iOS 9 then when the page loads press and hold on the refresh button. A box should come up and ask what you want to do, press request desktop site.

 

[lavaheadache]

If it's on iOS 9 then when the page loads press and hold on the refresh button. A box should come up and ask what you want to do, press request desktop site.

Ahhhhhh..... You are the man! I've been dealing with this for what seems like an eternity. So happy! Sorry for taking the thread slightly off topic but major kudos here.

 

[Silverforce11]

How will that affect performance?

Improves performance since it won't hit the thermal threshold to throttle clocks on the reference blower.

If you really want to tame it, set the power limit to -25%. You'll lose ~5% performance but save about 20% power, thus, the blower won't work as hard.

 

[the unknown]

Undervolting is just like overclocking but in reverse. This won't affect performance as you're not changing the clocks though. Setting the power limit lower is a good idea though that's more likely to keep temps down way better in 3D mode without losing any stability.