GTX 780 (vs AMD 290x): Did I goof?

[ams23]

If you really think about it, GTX 780 is simply a much more balanced graphics card than R9 290X. Compared to R9 290X reference, it is less expensive, much quieter, much cooler, consumes much less power, has better OC ability, has better build quality and industrial design (in my opinion), and has three free games and a $100 coupon to boot.

The R9 290X in Uber[Loud] mode is just annoyingly loud for extended periods of gameplay (see the Nordic Hardware youtube video for reference). This is a mode to look good in benchmarks IMHO. The R9 290X in [Not-So]Quiet mode is not appreciably faster than GTX 780, and has little to no OC headroom due to the fact it is regularly pushing into thermal/fan speed limits (and in fact, at least one reviewer found that performance DECREASED a bit when overclocking R9 290X in [Not-So]Quiet mode, which is ridiculously bad).

Considering that you game at 1080p, this is an easy choice IMO.

 

[toyota]

it does not have a "100 coupon". its just 100 bucks off the Shield if you bundle it at the same time.

 

[Teizo]

Should have made the poll public so we can see who actually recommends putting a 747 in someones case for 4 more fps.

Warning issued for inflammatory language.
-- stahlhart

 

[Slomo4shO]

Lets wait and see how the 290 performs and how it is priced.

Should have made the poll public so we can see who actually recommends putting a 747 in someones case for 4 more fps.

Yes, because there are no prospects of after market coolers for the 290X at all...

 

[Teizo]

Yes, because there are no prospects of after market coolers for the 290X at all...

Oh, my bad. I didn't realize they were out already when he made his purchase.

When they come out, the 290X will be worth a look. Until then...not so much.

/Try harder

 

[Chubzdoomer]

Should have made the poll public so we can see who actually recommends putting a 747 in someones case for 4 more fps.

Can you see the voting results? Or are you just referring to seeing who voted?

If you're talking about the results, here's what they currently are:

Yes - 20 votes (46.51%)
No - 17 votes (39.53%)
Other - 6 votes (13.95%)​

 

[Subyman]

Right now I'd get a 780 with a custom cooler. After tuesday, that may change.

 

[MrK6]

I answered "Other" in your poll because there's too much grey area to make it a simple "yes/no" type of situation. I think right now the cards are priced appropriately given their inherent trade-offs. Personally, at 1080p, I think the 780 is a better choice. It's cheaper outright, comes with the 3 games (which adds value whether you play them or sell them), and is quieter. I also think 1080p is too low a resolution to let the 290X stretch its legs and you might not be able to appreciate the full capabilities of the card (and hence would be overbuying performance).

The 290 might shake things up a bit, but not a whole bunch; I think it was a fine choice OP. Just overclock the heck out of your 760 now

 

[HisDivineOrder]

I answered, "No," you did not make a mistake. A mistake implies you should have bought one or the other imo, which is really just a subjective thing. What you lose in performance, you gain in silence and--depending on your case, etc--possible longevity. Ultimately, though, both are great architectures. The choice is a subjective one, similar to how the choice between the 7970 and the 680 became subjective once the drivers on the 7970 were improved in June of last year. If you wanted to overclock, you went with the more conservatively clocked 7970. If you wanted cards with coolers not running as hard, you went 680. The performance was close enough so as not to be disturbing if you chose one or the other. Certainly, the frame latency problems that showed up later were, but that seems to be dealt with.

Today, the choice is subjective again. One is louder and one is quieter. One performs better and one performs at what was the top end of performance a month ago but is no longer the top end. That is to say, the 780 still outperforms the 7970, 7970GHZ (usually), the 680 and 770. So it's a powerful card. It's just not as strong as the R9 290X in performance. Do you want a card that sacrifices everything in the name of absolute performance? Do you prefer a card that gives you a great reference cooler?

If there was a mistake, it was not waiting for the R9 290 (non-X) and 780 Ti, 780GHZ, whatever to show up. I suspect prices are going to be in flux for a bit as things settle.

I also happen to think anyone buying a reference R9 290(X) without an intention to watercool it is making a mistake. I'd wait for the custom cards to show up since I'd want more headroom than the reference allows, either in overclocking or in acoustics. There's also the VRM's on the card that seem to be a weak link for a card pushed to the extreme a lot.

So yeah, there's a lot of things right now that make it wise to wait, but sometimes you just want to get in on the action when the metal's still hot. I get that. I'm more of a, "Wait a few months and let things shake out" kinda guy, but that's me. The great thing about being me is that with GPU generations now lasting two years or more, I'll have plenty of time to jump in when/if I do decide to.

I debate selling my 670 SLI for one of these new high end cards, but I doubt I'd get performance gains to warrant the hassle. I'm relatively certain, though, that by this time next year I'll be looking at new high end card and hoping it lasts as long as the 7970 has lasted its early owners. By then, we should have a really good idea how hard the PC ports from true next gen games (designed to be next gen from the ground up) are going to hit our systems when we try to scale up the resolutions to the levels only a PC can rise to (1600p+).

 

[Slomo4shO]

/Try harder

What's to try when your entire argument is based around noise levels? A reference 290X is quite on silent mode and will outperform a stock 780. Non-reference cards are due to be available at the end of the month and the real contender against the 780 is the 290 which is due to release on Tuesday.

OP, the only recommendations I can make is maybe switching to the EVGA GTX 780 SC ACX or picking up a Lightning instead of the reference clock ACX card that you purchased. Also, waiting around until Black Friday to make your purchases would also have provide you a potentially better deal.

 

[BrightCandle]

I don't think you can go wrong with either so long as you know the trade offs between them. I still consider both a bad deal considering the price/performance they achieve, SLI has never been more attractive than it is right now. But I do understand the single fastest card as well, so again I think its all about understanding the trade off you are making.

While you may miss out on Mantle and True Audio you will also get to play with gsync and PhysX and ShadowPlay. These extra features are not a reason to get either vendor, they are just part of the trade off between. Both have decent overpriced cards on the market and I don't think anyone should be unhappy with either.

 

[Teizo]

A reference 290X is quite on silent mode and will outperform a stock 780.

What's that, I couldn't hear you over the 290X in Quiet Mode...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQhqOKKAq7o


You do have a point on the 290 being a contender perhaps, but the OP already has the 780. So that pretty much is a moot point.

/You're signature is awesome by the way (Plato quote)

Can you see the voting results? Or are you just referring to seeing who voted?

If you're talking about the results, here's what they currently are:

Yes - 20 votes (46.51%)
No - 17 votes (39.53%)
Other - 6 votes (13.95%)​

No, I can see how the voting is going. I just would like to see who voted how to see who actually thinks having a card that loud in their case is worth it for just 4 more fps and as if the 780 is not capable of delivering good performance @ 1080p and presents a good value @ $500 vs the 290X @ $550. AIB custom cooled 290X's will likely have decent versions of the card though, but I imagine will carry quite a premium over the reference given the challenge presented.

 

[Slomo4shO]

What's that, I couldn't hear you over the 290X in Quiet Mode...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQhqOKKAq7o


You do have a point on the 290 being a contender perhaps, but the OP already has the 780. So that pretty much is a moot point.

/You're signature is awesome by the way (Plato quote)

You do realize that quite mode is capped at 40% fan speed and uber mode is capped at 55%? Is this conversation in whispers that you can't seem to hear over 40% fan speed?


Also, thanks. The tragedy of life seems to be commonplace in our society

 

[chimaxi83]

I like when people base how loud something is off a YouTube video. Scientific accuracy!

 

[Teizo]

You do realize that quite mode is capped at 40% fan speed and uber mode is capped at 55%? Is this conversation in whispers that you can't seem to hear over 40% fan speed?


Also, thanks. The tragedy of life seems to be commonplace in our society

I think we have different definitions of what quiet is probably. Even quiet mode to me is not quiet at all. Quiet compared to the others, but still not really quiet. The TechPowerUp review even stated so as well. Quiet for me is AsusDirectCu levels like on the 280X or Gaming version from MSI. The 290X is only quiet in idle. The video from NordicHardware demonstrates that.

I like when people base how loud something is off a YouTube video. Scientific accuracy!

I don't think that video is inaccurate. What is shows is what reviewers are not able to do simply by putting numbers on a graph.

 

[blackened23]

It's clear that the 290X cooler isn't good. But i'd agree that making a youtube video and placing a camera 1 inch away from a GPU isn't a good representation. I 100% guarantee you, that you can do that with any GPU, aftermarket or not, and the video will exaggerate the noise...

This is the GTX 780 reference:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQ4g_J3CMfw

Fast forward to 1:58. This is auto fan ramping up during a Heaven run as far as I can tell. Now is that quiet? Don't you think that youtube recording exaggerates the sound? Yes, yes it does. When you put a GPU in your PC, you don't place your ear one inch away from the GPU. Watching this youtube video would make you think that the GTX 780 has awful sound output, but in reality it doesn't. You don't put your ear 1 inch away from a GPU during use.

Again, I agree that the 290X cooler sucks. I have stated such many, many times that it drags a high performing card down. Also, 55% fan on the AMD reference shroud, based on my 7970 use in the past, is definitely audible. But a youtube video is absolutely a stupid representation of real world sound output based on the fact that the camera will generally be placed right under the fans. This is not how a user places their ear in relation to the GPU during real world use.

In any case, it's really too bad that this is even an issue for discussion. AMD could have prevented this. Hell, i'm willing to bet the 780ti will have roughly the same power consumption (non overclocked) as the 290X yet will be infinitely quieter at 100% GPU load. AMD could have made a cooler to match this, but they didn't. While I don't think the reference fan is AS bad as some characterize, I do think AMD is stupid for not improving it over the 7970 fan. The GTX 780 price drop makes it apparent that most people DO value quieter GPUs.......stupid, stupid decision on AMD's part.

 

[bystander36]

I personally stay away from cards with known to be hot and loud coolers. I already experience the 470 and do not wish to experience anything similar. Others seem to have a higher tolerance to noise.

 

[Grooveriding]

After running multiple GTX 480s in SLI I will never again deal with a noisy system. That rig was horrid and those cards had the most robust reference cooler ever seen, just imagine if it had a standard blower like on the 290x, the 480 would of ignited.

I would still take a 290X over a 780 though as performance is king and I would deal with the cooling myself. The 290X has enough of a performance lead over the 780 to make it a noticeably better card in the only metric I care about for how I use my system; performance.

 

[chimaxi83]

At 100%, the fan is absolutely a leaf blower. It probably gets to that around 80%, for me. To say "I can't hear you over quiet mode" is bs though, because I own one, and I can't hear it. I guess I should play with an open air test bench, because then I guess I'd be able to hear it. Like I said before, around 45% it starts to become audible, and by 50-55% you can definitely hear it.

Cooler is bad, news at 10.

I think I can cancel my hearing damage insurance though:

 

[Grooveriding]

Man the EK blocks for the 290X are sexy. Really nice to see they went full cover only for the 290X/290 waterblocks. I was never happy with my EK blocks on my Titans because they just didn't look so nice not being full cover. My current ones with the EVGA blocks look great though !

 

[chimaxi83]

Yeah, this block looks good, along with the back plate. Full cover block... TWIMTBCooled

 

[exar333]

Reference 290x is not a great card. Fast, but not quiet or OC friendly. Situation will likely change once non-reference are available and 780Ti is out too.

 

[el etro]

Today is a much better deal, but i'm talking about the custom versions.

 

[Will Robinson]

Yeah, this block looks good, along with the back plate. Full cover block... TWIMTBCooled

That's pretty neat Chi...thanks for the feedback.
Any one being too critical of full fan noise output might recall the NV card known as "The Dust Buster".
It's not good but lets keep a little perspective here.
Personally I think the case for keeping the GTX780 is strong.
Its a very good card,the best really NV do right now and is only a few percent slower than R9.
As you have hinted at tho...send it back and get the R9 290X and remove that itch that you shoulda risked it,turn up that Radeon and just blast through games like BF4 etc.
If the Mantle API update suddenly adds 10-25% better performance you will kick yourself.

 

[UaVaj]

The 290x is worth it solely for the performance per price ratio and is the better choice, but its very loud, it draws a lot more power and can get quite hot fast and thus within 15 minutes of gaming you are going to lose some of the frames per second advantage.

x2. well said.

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for uber mode. if you can deal/accept the added noise and added heat and added wattage. get the 290x. this will offer the best performance/price ratio.

for quiet mode. get the 780 instead. 780 faster at tessellation and better at frame pacing (if you ever go multi-gpu in future).

as for the 3GB. you will be hard press to exceeded it at 1080p.

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if you are like some of us.
just want drop it in and forget about it and not be reminded of a 747 every time you game.

$500 for 780 is the better overall package.