Help me choose a 7950!

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Why not wait for GTX700 cards to drop to see if there are price movements? Rumour has it GTX760Ti will ~ GTX670 or so at $299 and GTX770 ~ GTX680 at $399. Might put pricing pressure on 7950s and 7970s too.

Nvidia is so far behind price/performance wise it'd take a complete about face on their current strategy to get them competitive again. People are buying regardless so why give up free money?

 

[almightyobo]

Why not wait for GTX700 cards to drop to see if there are price movements? Rumour has it GTX760Ti will ~ GTX670 or so at $299 and GTX770 ~ GTX680 at $399. Might put pricing pressure on 7950s and 7970s too.

I had thought about this, the thing is though is that today I have a guaranteed $30 off thanks to the $30 off $250 deal going on right now. So it would be a risk.

 

[birthdaymonkey]

I have the Sapphire 3L, which I just bought a few weeks ago. It's not bad, but it doesn't seem capable of 1200MHz at any voltage. It is voltage adjustable in Trixx, however. And it mines bitcoins pretty well at 1125MHz, 1.15v. The fan starts to get obnoxious over 50%, but I can run full bore at 1125, 44-46% fan, and temps don't go above 75. This is in a Fractal R3.

Overall, I would say my 3L a good but not a great card. ASIC quality is around 68% I think.

 

[almightyobo]

I have the Sapphire 3L, which I just bought a few weeks ago. It's not bad, but it doesn't seem capable of 1200MHz at any voltage. It is voltage adjustable in Trixx, however. And it mines bitcoins pretty well at 1125MHz, 1.15v. The fan starts to get obnoxious over 50%, but I can run full bore at 1125, 44-46% fan, and temps don't go above 75. This is in a Fractal R3.

Overall, I would say my 3L a good but not a great card. ASIC quality is around 68% I think.

thanks for the input! I'm kind of stuck between the MSI TF3 and the Sapphire 3L I think.. though the more I read the more confused I get

MSI and Sapphire have the best reps overall though, which is making me lean towards those over the HIS and Gigabyte

 

[Remobz]

My expert opinion is ----- get the MSI TF3 7950.....:whiste:

Agreed..........

 

[wand3r3r]

Why not wait for GTX700 cards to drop to see if there are price movements? Rumour has it GTX760Ti will ~ GTX670 or so at $299 and GTX770 ~ GTX680 at $399. Might put pricing pressure on 7950s and 7970s too.

Precisely this. 2 weeks out according to rumors (23rd)...

I guess the 7950 may not drop drastically but it's such a short time to wait being it's already 1.5 years after 7950 came out.

Between the 3L and TFIII I'd go cheaper if its a big difference, although MSI has a better warranty based on serials and you can change the thermal paste etc.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArCtGVODPUTtdEdEUjRiSFdyckZ1Q1dGNUI3bkd5R1E#gid=0

 

[almightyobo]

Precisely this. 2 weeks out according to rumors (23rd)...

I guess the 7950 may not drop drastically but it's such a short time to wait being it's already 1.5 years after 7950 came out.

Between the 3L and TFIII I'd go cheaper if its a big difference, although MSI has a better warranty based on serials and you can change the thermal paste etc.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0ArCtGVODPUTtdEdEUjRiSFdyckZ1Q1dGNUI3bkd5R1E#gid=0

I already addressed waiting 2 weeks. I have a guaranteed $30 off today if I choose to purchase today

the 3L is 309 and the TF3 is 319 so price difference between those 2 is not a factor for me

 

[BallaTheFeared]

Hey Balla, if you get a Vapor-X could you please compare the noise compared to the TF3? I made some recordings on youtube
http://youtu.be/kdifmfCrtrY
http://youtu.be/TDikMf2CicA
and while this is the most silent card I had in modern times, some people think it sounds loud on the recordings. However, one reason I did not go for the TF3 was that it is supposedly loud like a NASA shuttle, and I keep my PC in the living room.

This is at stock (960/1250), running borderlands 2 and bitminter in the background.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxpxu2he9KM


I'd do some more videos but I'm gaming on a laptop playing D&D classics waiting for Haswell while my cards are mining in the garage.

It's not reporting fan speed correctly, it's set to 1C=1% but it should give you an idea.

 

[Erenhardt]

My bet is on underdog:
http://ht4u.net/reviews/2012/vtx3d_radeon_hd_7950_oc_im_test/index5.php
This cooler is preety nice, they use it in 7970 X-edition. Goes head to head with asus DCUII:
Noise:
http://ht4u.net/reviews/2012/vtx3d_radeon_hd_7950_oc_im_test/index10.php
Temps:
http://ht4u.net/reviews/2012/vtx3d_radeon_hd_7950_oc_im_test/index8.php

 

[almightyobo]

My bet is on underdog:
http://ht4u.net/reviews/2012/vtx3d_radeon_hd_7950_oc_im_test/index5.php
This cooler is preety nice, they use it in 7970 X-edition. Goes head to head with asus DCUII:
Noise:
http://ht4u.net/reviews/2012/vtx3d_radeon_hd_7950_oc_im_test/index10.php
Temps:
http://ht4u.net/reviews/2012/vtx3d_radeon_hd_7950_oc_im_test/index8.php

it must be available at NewEgg

 

[RussianSensation]

Noise levels of:

PowerColor PCS+ 7950
Asus DirectCUII 7950
Sapphire HD7950 OC
MSI TF3 7950
http://www.computerbase.de/artikel/grafikkarten/2012/kurztest-3-x-amd-radeon-hd-7950/6/

I'd go for the Sapphire 7950. The cooler is 2nd quietest and it costs the least at $290 after rebate:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202026

The one trump of the MSI 7950 is that it's a proven overclocker. Probably one of the best overclocking 7950 cards when it comes with 6+8 pin 7970 PCB. It's not unusual for these cards to hit 1175-1225mhz.

Have you thought about GTX660Ti for $205 after 10% off using code VGA0509, ends 5/15 and after $25 MIR?

That's a pretty good deal. Saves you $100 to carry over towards 20nm GPU.

 

[BallaTheFeared]

All three of mine will do 1225, the first did 1275 (6+6) second maxed at 1225 (6+6), third is unknown as far as max, but it will do at least 1225 in CF (8+6).

None of them have been particularly good when it came to the vram though, 1675~ was about the limited for extended gaming at 1080p.

 

[zaydq]

I can attest to the tf3 being an amazing overclocker! I can also attest to it's loud noise levels anywhere past 55% though.

Check out the 7950 owners thread. Lots of tf3 overclocking figures as well as plenty of number figures for other models ie. Gigabyte, sapphire, hsi, power color, etc.

 

[Rikard]

This is at stock (960/1250), running borderlands 2 and bitminter in the background.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxpxu2he9KM


I'd do some more videos but I'm gaming on a laptop playing D&D classics waiting for Haswell while my cards are mining in the garage.

It's not reporting fan speed correctly, it's set to 1C=1% but it should give you an idea.

You, sir, have a squeeky chair!

What I gather from your video is that the TF3 is loud, but it is not a very annoying high pitch noise at least. Almost...soothing

Which card is which in the screen shot?

 

[Shmee]

I would go with the MSI twin frozr or a sapphire.

 

[raghu78]

Why not wait for GTX700 cards to drop to see if there are price movements? Rumour has it GTX760Ti will ~ GTX670 or so at $299 and GTX770 ~ GTX680 at $399. Might put pricing pressure on 7950s and 7970s too.

yeah Nvidia is refereshing their product stack with the GTX 780 based on GK110 launching May 23rd. GTX 770 which is a faster clocked GTX 680 will sell for USD 400. GTX 760 Ti, basically a faster clocked GTX 670 will launch sometime after computex next month.

currently one of the best HD 7950 cards is HIS HD 7950 iceq x2 boost. built on a HD 7970 PCB. 8 + 6 pin power. more power phases than reference HD 7950. unlocked voltage. fantastic cooler with good VRM heatsinks. built for overclocking. but its also costly at USD 350.

http://www.hisdigital.com/un/product2-731.shtml

http://www.legionhardware.com/artic...hz_edition_7950_iceq_xsup2_boost_clock,3.html

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161429

 

[birthdaymonkey]

yeah Nvidia is refereshing their product stack with the GTX 780 based on GK110 launching May 23rd. GTX 770 which is a faster clocked GTX 680 will sell for USD 400. GTX 760 Ti, basically a faster clocked GTX 670 will launch sometime after computex next month.

currently one of the best HD 7950 cards is HIS HD 7950 iceq x2 boost. built on a HD 7970 PCB. 8 + 6 pin power. more power phases than reference HD 7950. unlocked voltage. fantastic cooler with good VRM heatsinks. built for overclocking. but its also costly at USD 350.

http://www.hisdigital.com/un/product2-731.shtml

http://www.legionhardware.com/artic...hz_edition_7950_iceq_xsup2_boost_clock,3.html

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814161429

Hmmm... the 7970 version of that card was available recently at $339 AR (OOS at Newegg now). Seems a bit silly to spend more for a 7950.

 

[Smartazz]

I've loved my first Sapphire 7950. I really hope my 2nd one has voltage control.

 

[birthdaymonkey]

I've loved my first Sapphire 7950. I really hope my 2nd one has voltage control.

Which one did you order?

 

[AtenRa]

It has unlocked voltage right? also does it have a custom pcb?

Yes unlocked Voltage and custom PCB, the card its a beast

Observe how big the PCB is, it is taller than the bracket

 

[Remobz]

MSI TF3 all the way!

 

[Smartazz]

Which one did you order?

Both are: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814202006

 

[BallaTheFeared]

You, sir, have a squeeky chair!

What I gather from your video is that the TF3 is loud, but it is not a very annoying high pitch noise at least. Almost...soothing

Which card is which in the screen shot?

That's the problem with youtube, if you turn it up high enough everything gets loud >.<

My mouse and keyboard don't click loudly, and I was playing with headphones, it was pretty much silent except for some air moving. You can hear the actual sound at the end when I move right on top of it, while recording it was probably 1 1/2 feet away.

Screen is two TF3 7950s mining.

The card is great until around 57% fan then it gets noticeably loud, but you also don't gain much performance gain past 55% or so.

I run 1% for 1C, it will do 1.3v at whatever clocks I can do 1225 or 1275 and hold it around 58-60C, obviously I could lower fan speed to lower noise but that would have the side effect of increasing temps.

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the cards he's looking at. However I'd think the Asus would have a slight advantage since it has more cooling area.

 

[Smartazz]

I finally hooked up my second Sapphire dual x today. Despite being the exact same models on Newegg with the same part numbers, they aren't identical. The boards themselves look a little bit different which made me worry about overvolting, but overvolting is enabled. It also seems to run a bit cooler than the first one.