Best PCIe Card For ~£340:
Radeon HD 7970
Great 2560x1600 performance
| Radeon HD 7970 | |
|---|---|
| Codename: | Tahiti |
| Process: | 28 nm |
| Unified Shaders: | 2,048 |
| Texture Units: | 128 |
| ROPs: | 32 |
| Memory Bus: | 384-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 925 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 1,375 (5,500 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 11.1/SM 5 |
| Max TDP: | 250 W |
We really like AMD's Radeon HD 7970 at £340. There's really no reason to pay an extra for a similar-performing GeForce GTX 680 unless its 55 W-lower thermal ceiling is necessary in your small form factor enclosure. In that case, spending more for better efficiency is something we can get behind.
You might be able to find a Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition card selling in the £350 range. If you do, that'd be a good buy too. But, at the price most GHz Edition cards are currently selling for, we'd skip them. As they stand, the Radeon HD 7970s are already pretty overclockable, meaning you can coax much of the performance difference out of the cheaper card anyway.
Read our full preview of AMD's Radeon HD 7970 for more information on the card and its accompanying architecture.
Honorable Mentions over £340:
Assorted Multi-Card Configurations
The Radeon HD 7970 delivers such impressive performance that we find it hard to recommend higher-performing (but sometimes-inconsistent) multi-card configurations for more money.
We'll call out some of the most promising options, though, mostly for folks with one of these cards already installed: two Radeon HD 7850 2 GB cards in CrossFire, two Radeon HD 7870 LEs in CrossFire, two GeForce GTX 670s in SLI, and finally, two Radeon HD 7970s in CrossFire.
Honourable Mention:
Radeon HD 7990
Excellent 2560x1600 performance
| Radeon HD 7990 | |
|---|---|
| Codename: | 2 x Tahiti |
| Process: | 28 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 4,096 (2 x 2,048) |
| Texture Units: | 256 (2 x 128) |
| ROPs: | 64 (2 x 32) |
| Memory Bus: | 384-bit |
| Core Speed (Turbo) MHz: | No standard, 900 to 1050 MHz |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 1,375 (5,500 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 11/SM 5 |
| Max TDP: | 570 W |
The dual-GPU Radeon HD 7990 is not an official AMD product, despite the fact that the company promised its arrival shortly after the Radeon HD 7970 arrived. Nevertheless, PowerColor manufactures two different versions: the Devil13 (925 MHz with a 1,000 MHz alternate BIOS setting) and the AX7990 (900 MHz with a 925 MHz alternate BIOS setting). HIS has a 7970 X2 card, but it isn't for sale in North America. Similarly, Asus has a water-cooled Ares II, but Newegg claims it was discontinued.
Although we've excluded it for some time, we have to acknowledge that PowerColor's offering is in stock now, even as Nvidia's GeForce GTX Titan is sold out. And with only two different models on Newegg, the GeForce GTX 690 doesn't exactly enjoy widespread availability, either.
Our point is that you can buy this card, its game performance is up there with the GeForce GTX 690. The trade-off is that the Radeon HD 7990 uses significantly more power (our tests show that HIS' board peaks at an astounding 575 W under full load). It's also significantly louder than Nvidia's GeForce GTX 690 (Ed.: I'll add that we had a Devil13 in the lab, and its inductor whine was simply unbearable). Moreover, you can get two Radeon HD 7970s for around £720, which are a better deal. But if we're going to give props to the unavailable Titan and the pricier 690, PowerColor gets a tip of the hat, too.
Read our full review of PowerColor's Radeon HD 7990 for more information on the card and its accompanying architecture.
Honourable Mention:
GeForce GTX Titan
Excellent 2560x1600 performance
| GeForce GTX Titan | |
|---|---|
| Codename: | GK110 |
| Process: | 28 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 2,688 |
| Texture Units: | 224 |
| ROPs: | 48 |
| Memory Bus: | 384-bit |
| Core Speed (Turbo) MHz: | 837 (836) |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 1,502 (6,008 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 11/SM 5 |
| Max TDP: | 250 W |
The GeForce GTX Titan sports the fastest GPU ever seen: GK110. Unfortunately, that one chip isn't quite as fast as two GK104s, which you find on Nvidia's GeForce GTX 690, even though it also costs £850.
Although we're impressed by what GK110 can do, the Titan is overpriced by most accounts. Two GeForce GTX 680s are faster, and for less money. Nevertheless, GeForce GTX Titan gets an honorable mention for the two applications where it really shines: small form factor and multi-card machines.
Read our full review of Nvidia's GeForce Titan for more information on the card and its accompanying architecture.
Honourable Mention:
GeForce GTX 690
Excellent 2560x1600 performance
| GeForce GTX 690 | |
|---|---|
| Codename: | 2 x GK104 |
| Process: | 28 nm |
| Universal Shaders: | 3,072 (2 x 1,536) |
| Texture Units: | 256 (2 x 128) |
| ROPs: | 64 (2 x 32) |
| Memory Bus: | 256-bit |
| Core Speed MHz: | 915 |
| Memory Speed MHz: | 1,502 (6,008 effective) |
| DirectX/Shader Model: | DX 11/SM 5 |
| Max TDP: | 300 W |
Nvidia's GeForce GTX 690 is one of the fastest graphics cards in the world. It's essentially two GeForce GTX 680s on a single PCB, with a slightly lower core clock and a 300 W TDP. The company sets this card's MSRP right around £850, over £100 pricier than two GeForce GTX 680's in SLI. Although it used to suffer from availability issues, the card can be found right around its launch price without too much trouble.
AMD seems to have dropped plans for an official dual-GPU Radeon HD 7990 to compete with Nvidia's flagship (Ed.: Or has it?). This didn't stop a few companies from releasing dual-Tahiti cards. PowerColor has one, but it's also more expensive than a couple of Radeon HD 7970s operating in tandem.
Read our full review of Nvidia's GeForce GTX 690 for more information on the card and its accompanying architecture.
Create a new thread in the UK Article comments forum about this subject
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0 Hideblazorthon , 22 March 2013 06:11Is it just me, or did a lot of comments that were even from the current article get cleared?
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0 Hidehizodge , 22 March 2013 17:26Is there an echo in here?