Make sure you check your PSU can handle it first ("Minimum Power Supply Requirement: 750W", but a decent 600W PSU shouldn't have any problems), and if it can, and you're gaming in Windows, and you don't want Shadowplay, and you don't mind a slightly hotter and noisier card, then this will most likely be a far better purchase than a GTX 970!
All comments (51)
rev6
15 Nov 151#1
If you use MSI Afterburner, you can record gameplay at a touch of a button using VCE, AMD's Shadowplay if you want to call it that. If you have an Intel CPU with QuickSync, you can use that as well which is much better.
BetaRomeo
15 Nov 15#2
It's better to look at maximum power consumption to see the theoretical max and make sure you have the headroom to accommodate it without crashes, wouldn't you agree?
As they say, "compared to the GTX 970, the difference is still massive, with the GTX 970 also being 50% more power efficient in gaming." It's fair to assume (at least) a 100W difference in PSU requirements between the 970 and 390. (I imagine a decent 550W would be fine for a 390 in 95% of cases (no pun intended), but I said 600W above just to be safe!)
Other alternatives include Raptr and OBS, both of which have VCE support now - and I like having a choice of more than one utility. But did they get them working now with Mantle and DX12? (I'm out of the loop there, maybe! Three-four months ago it was limited to DX11 and still had inconsistent performance drops, as well as significant performance drops above 1080P - is that all fixed now? The advantage of Shadowplay is that it just works - the end.)
QuickSync is nice to have access to, but it does have its share of problems! It's only good for low-bitrate recording at 1080P or lower, but as long as you're on Haswell (at least) it's a decent alternative.
rev6
15 Nov 151#3
I use QuickSync so not sure about VCE performance, etc. It doesn't support my native resolution.
joetootell
15 Nov 15#4
I'm running an i7 4770k with a r280x I also have a 550w Psu. Do you think I can get away with it?
rossaw to joetootell
15 Nov 15#7
what PSU?
lukec123
15 Nov 15#5
I really want to get a R9 390 over a 970 but I'm starting to have second doubts... This card is 295cm and I want to move it into a miniITX build eventually, it uses a lot more power and I' m not sure my 650w PSU could handle it, also thinking the airflow would be worse in a miniITX case as it runs hotter.
TehJumpingJawa
15 Nov 15#6
Be aware it's the 12V rail amperage that matters, not the total wattage of the PSU.
rev6 to TehJumpingJawa
15 Nov 15#23
It's both :smiley:
lukec123
15 Nov 15#8
I have this psu with an i5-2500k, 3 case fans, 2 HDDs and 1 HDD. Anyone know if it will be enough?
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Opening post
All comments (51)
If you use MSI Afterburner, you can record gameplay at a touch of a button using VCE, AMD's Shadowplay if you want to call it that. If you have an Intel CPU with QuickSync, you can use that as well which is much better.
https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Powercolor/R9_390_PCS_Plus/28.html
390 max 323W
970 max 169W (154W difference)
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/sapphire-nitro-r9-390-8g-d5,4245.html
390 Furmark 323.3W
970 Furmark 180W (143.3W difference)
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2015-amd-radeon-r9-390-8gb-review
390 Peak System Draw 447W
970 Peak System Draw 277W (170W difference)
http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/powercolor_radeon_r9_390_pcs_8gb_review,8.html
390 Calculated GPU Power Consumption 282W
970 Calculated GPU Power Consumption 154W (128W difference)
As they say, "compared to the GTX 970, the difference is still massive, with the GTX 970 also being 50% more power efficient in gaming." It's fair to assume (at least) a 100W difference in PSU requirements between the 970 and 390. (I imagine a decent 550W would be fine for a 390 in 95% of cases (no pun intended), but I said 600W above just to be safe!)
Other alternatives include Raptr and OBS, both of which have VCE support now - and I like having a choice of more than one utility. But did they get them working now with Mantle and DX12? (I'm out of the loop there, maybe! Three-four months ago it was limited to DX11 and still had inconsistent performance drops, as well as significant performance drops above 1080P - is that all fixed now? The advantage of Shadowplay is that it just works - the end.)
QuickSync is nice to have access to, but it does have its share of problems! It's only good for low-bitrate recording at 1080P or lower, but as long as you're on Haswell (at least) it's a decent alternative.
This one