I don't plan to have such high resolution yet, so for me the benefit is simply using radeonsi, and then poking developers with bug reprots for games that don't work well on it for some reason 
I don't plan to have such high resolution yet, so for me the benefit is simply using radeonsi, and then poking developers with bug reprots for games that don't work well on it for some reason
A true pioneer ^^
Yup, as I thought it hits the mainstream (<$200) market quite well, bringing above GTX 970 performance to it (and sometimes coming close to 980 even, which is impressive). Definitely not an enthusiast card, but I believe this is a smart move from AMD to regain its market share, since according to steam charts %80 of the consumers use cards that cost <$200. As a - sort of - enthusiast myself, I'd wait for Vega. Not saying it'll most definitely be faster than 1080 or 1080 Ti (we will have to wait and see that), but considering the price gouging going for the Nvidia cards because of low supplies, it seems smarter to wait a bit. When Vega comes out, the prices should normalize, and maybe go down a bit because of market pressure.
All in all, for the people who have older cards and want to upgrade for a solid 1080p gaming, this seems like the best option with that kind of a price. We'll have to wait for GTX 1060, but I'm assuming it'll provide a similar performance for around $250, so I don't think it'll be able to beat this one; especially considering how Nvidia is rushing it now. I'm looking forward to some further tests using DX12 and Vulkan. That might show some extra future proofing I say this is good news though. We need a strong AMD in the market for better pressure on Nvidia for lower prices. It's still far from its Radeon days when they were kicking ass and taking names, but this is a step in the correct direction I'd say.
All in all, for the people who have older cards and want to upgrade for a solid 1080p gaming, this seems like the best option with that kind of a price. We'll have to wait for GTX 1060, but I'm assuming it'll provide a similar performance for around $250, so I don't think it'll be able to beat this one; especially considering how Nvidia is rushing it now. I'm looking forward to some further tests using DX12 and Vulkan. That might show some extra future proofing
I say this is good news though. We need a strong AMD in the market for better pressure on Nvidia for lower prices. It's still far from its Radeon days when they were kicking ass and taking names, but this is a step in the correct direction I'd say.
The fan on the RX 480 looks somewhat smallish. I wonder if it's noisy in general.
---------- Updated at 03:24 PM ----------
Looks like it's not very noisy: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-radeon-rx-480-polaris-10,4616-10.html
---------- Updated at 03:26 PM ----------
Another review: http://www.anandtech.com/show/10446/the-amd-radeon-rx-480-preview/6
---------- Updated at 03:24 PM ----------
Looks like it's not very noisy: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-radeon-rx-480-polaris-10,4616-10.html
---------- Updated at 03:26 PM ----------
Another review: http://www.anandtech.com/show/10446/the-amd-radeon-rx-480-preview/6
Oh you should definitely wait for 3rd party stuff, that's given. Reports show that ASUS Strix will be able to factory overclock it to around 1650 MHz boost clock, for example. Custom coolers will definitely be much quieter and would give more headway in overclocking. The reference design doesn't seem to be overly impressive in that regard. Apparently it only gives headway for 100 MHz in overclocking, in the best case scenario.
Will Sapphire make custom cooling variants, or they always use reference design?
They usually have more than one custom cooling design, but also the reference. Needless to say, you shouldn't buy the reference, unless you have specific requirements like need for a DHE cooler.
Got my GTX 1070 today: (MSI Gaming X)
Performance wise it's roughly the same as my old 980Ti. A tad better maybe. Of course driver updates will further improve the performance but it's never going to leave the 980Ti to dust. (minus maybe DX12/Vulkan titles.)
The real difference however is in the noise levels and temperatures. Even though my apartment is like a sauna right now, the fans don't spin faster than 1300RPM which makes it nearly silent. Can't hear it over the ambient noise in the room. And the peak temp I've recorded was 71C. And this was after overclocking. The 980Ti in similar conditions would be 10C hotter and loud as hell.
Just goes to show how much more efficient Pascal is compared to Maxwell.
Also, damn MSI cards are wide:
The power cables are rubbing my R4's side panel. If you own a narrow case I recommend looking for something like EVGA or Gigabyte cards..
Performance wise it's roughly the same as my old 980Ti. A tad better maybe. Of course driver updates will further improve the performance but it's never going to leave the 980Ti to dust. (minus maybe DX12/Vulkan titles.)
The real difference however is in the noise levels and temperatures. Even though my apartment is like a sauna right now, the fans don't spin faster than 1300RPM which makes it nearly silent. Can't hear it over the ambient noise in the room. And the peak temp I've recorded was 71C. And this was after overclocking. The 980Ti in similar conditions would be 10C hotter and loud as hell.
Just goes to show how much more efficient Pascal is compared to Maxwell.
Also, damn MSI cards are wide:
The power cables are rubbing my R4's side panel. If you own a narrow case I recommend looking for something like EVGA or Gigabyte cards..
The drivers are in the active development, so current results won't stay the same. But it already performs rather well.
The regular one seems to be reference design:
https://www.facebook.com/SapphireTe...1467230277./10154406584624430/?type=3&theater
The Nitro seems to be made with dual-slot dual-fan from mama Sapphire! (it seems it has a back-plate too)
http://hexus.net/tech/news/graphics/93659-sapphire-amd-rx-480-nitro-show/
Interesting. Is the Nitro variant supposed to be more silent in general? Two fans can increase noise, but they look bigger too.
I thing it's not tested out yet.
However, something else to notice: The upcoming Radeon RX 480 Nitro 8GB will feature an LED-illuminated SAPPHIRE logo,
(according to VideoCardz's source) stating that the colors will change depending on the fan speed,
GPU temperatures, or a custom profile that the user can set.
Nice feature!
However, something else to notice: The upcoming Radeon RX 480 Nitro 8GB will feature an LED-illuminated SAPPHIRE logo,
(according to VideoCardz's source) stating that the colors will change depending on the fan speed,
GPU temperatures, or a custom profile that the user can set.
Nice feature!
Seeing how they made these custom designs for previous series, I'm sure they will sell some for RX 480 as well
http://www.sapphiretech.com/productdetial.asp?pid=D40475DB-8BD0-40F6-8C33-F12D63272AEC&lang=eng
http://www.sapphiretech.com/productdetial.asp?pid=D40475DB-8BD0-40F6-8C33-F12D63272AEC&lang=eng
Here is the regular RX 480 from inside:
http://ocaholic.ch/modules/news/article.php?storyid=14964
Th main PCB is quite small.
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For those who haven't seen the AMD Sapphire main page:
http://www.sapphiretech.com/catapage_pd.asp?cataid=305&lang=eng
http://www.sapphiretech.com/productdetial.asp?pid=4647A08C-25B5-4E68-B291-DEF9837B36A6&lang=eng
Pictures from XFX ans Power Color
http://www.overclock.net/t/1603257/jd-xfx-rx480-8gb-pictured-with-official-specifications-update
Asus and MSI tease custom Radeon RX 480 cards (WoW, STRIX looks awesome if that's a true picture!)
http://www.guru3d.com/news-story/asus-and-msi-tease-custom-radeon-rx-480-cards.html
http://ocaholic.ch/modules/news/article.php?storyid=14964
Th main PCB is quite small.
--------
For those who haven't seen the AMD Sapphire main page:
http://www.sapphiretech.com/catapage_pd.asp?cataid=305&lang=eng
http://www.sapphiretech.com/productdetial.asp?pid=4647A08C-25B5-4E68-B291-DEF9837B36A6&lang=eng
Pictures from XFX ans Power Color
http://www.overclock.net/t/1603257/jd-xfx-rx480-8gb-pictured-with-official-specifications-update
Asus and MSI tease custom Radeon RX 480 cards (WoW, STRIX looks awesome if that's a true picture!)
http://www.guru3d.com/news-story/asus-and-msi-tease-custom-radeon-rx-480-cards.html
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Well, three fans look a bit excessive You don't want your card to resemble a jet takeoff
You don't want your card to resemble a jet takeoff
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Somewhat surprising since they are using 14nm transistors, while the card is not as powerful as GTX 1070.
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