290 or 770?

Solution
I'd wait for custom cooling designs for the 290 to come out before getting it. it is otherwise an amazing card but you're right, that cooler from AMD is horrid.

if you must get something now, go for the 770. however, I feel that another price drop from Nvidia may be coming up given the performance of the 290
I'd wait for custom cooling designs for the 290 to come out before getting it. it is otherwise an amazing card but you're right, that cooler from AMD is horrid.

if you must get something now, go for the 770. however, I feel that another price drop from Nvidia may be coming up given the performance of the 290
 
Solution


Thats why we said wait for non reference models, for example ASUS will make a R9 290 with better cooling, on top of this, it will last much longer in future titles.
 


exceeeept, the 290 is $400 and faster than the 770 if cooled properly.
 


Yes the cooling will be better but no matter what the 290 runs at 95c so it will still overclock in order to achieve the temperature.
 


I assume drivers will add customization features for this if not already so. For example you can tell the GPU to run at 80C but due to better cooling its running like a 95C Reference but at 80C. Keep in mind GPU's can run at high temperatures better than CPU's. Even pre R9 290 GPU's.

I watched Linus and I think AMD catalyst controllers allow you to control temperature headroom.

edit:
As stated below Mantle will be nice feature that could take off. Besides I think that is what everyone is suggesting, wait for 290 non reference models.
 
The R9 290 at stock trades blows with the GTX 780, it is in a different league compared to the GTX 770. The release price is $399, and if you wait a few months for one with aftermarket cooling, you can probably get a really good one for $425. The GTX 770 has dropped to around $329, so there is about $100 and a huge performance difference between the two. I say definitely wait for an aftermarket 290 if your case has decent ventilation. You just can't beat that performance for the price. And the 290 still has more potential when Mantle is implemented into BF4. No brainer decision here.
 
So instead of creating another thread about the 290 and 770, I am going to ask here. I just bought an MSI 770 lightning like 4 days ago and I do enjoy it, got it for $350. Now it seems the R90 will blow this out of the water for only 50 bucks more. Should I return the 770?
 


This is hard because its your money, in my "View" maybe, probably yes, only you can decide. The GTX 770, a good card but lacks memory bus size and usable vram to be future proof to any degree. When it comes to future titles, the R9 290 sits nicely.

To be honest, its a lot of money and opening a dedicated thread wont hurt and should provide more viewpoins.
 


If you'll be getting back $350 without restocking fees, and you don't mind the heat and the noise, then yes, the extra performance is definitely worth the extra $50. But I would still recommend waiting for aftermarket versions, so that when those hit the shelves you won't be wondering if you should return your reference 290 for a better cooler.
 
Thanks guys. Honestly the temperature of the 290's is a little out of my comfort zone, during the summer they would prob go around 100C. Currently I am using a 1920x1080 monitor so the Vram of the 770 doesn't bother me much but I did end up getting a 120hz monitor because I have been running games between 80-150 fps.
 


The 290 throttles back to stay at a max temp of 94C, although hot. worth waiting for reference cards.