Just Installed A 290x

Well, I already had a 7950 BIOS modded to 7970, so this isn't a huge upgrade. However, the free 250GB Samsung SSD and 3 free games from AMD made the purchase worthwhile.

My card is the HIS, and it's non-reference cooling does a good job. As with my HIS 7950/70 the card stays cool. The 7950/70 never broke out of the 60s and the 290x never leaves the 70s, so all in all, not bad for a card that is known to get well into the lower 90s with the reference cooler. Sound is not an issue, as the solution is quite docile with it's automatic fan profile, but using MSI afterburner, overclocking and fan control are easily tailored to desired settings.

The driver package is every bit as good as previous releases and so far I've not seen any issues with my game play through my current mission in Wolfenstein: The New Order. I haven't had the card long enough to say whether issues will appear with other games, but my BOIC programs don't seem to mind the new card, and still work as expected.

All in all, if you already have a 79xx series card, it isn't worth the money. If you have a 69xx series, maybe if you get in on the same deal I got when I bought this card. If you have a 68xx or any other older/lower series card, it may be worth a look.