AMD RX 480

[bgbeuning]

So these are in stores today.
Anyone got one to try it out?

Looks like the 4 GB card is $200 and the 8 GB is $240.
Newegg has 5 models listed, but 3 are out of stock.
My local Microcenter only has the 8 GB model.

[LaurV]

Currently there are issues with RX480's power specs. Here is a starting point.

I wouldn't jump to buy a RX480 right now, especially if I want more than one on the same mobo, and not at all if that mobo is not a top-gun (i.e. some gaming or workstation mobos are able to give enough power over the PCI slots, like 100W, or 90W, but the standard id like 70W, and for most of the average/cheap mobos, your RX480 may be able to "fry" their voltage converters).

[airsquirrels]

Interesting. I've got an 8GB coming in next week, will report back with measured performance.

[kladner]

Originally Posted by LaurV

Currently there are issues with RX480's power specs. Here is a starting point.

I wouldn't jump to buy a RX480 right now, especially if I want more than one on the same mobo, and not at all if that mobo is not a top-gun (i.e. some gaming or workstation mobos are able to give enough power over the PCI slots, like 100W, or 90W, but the standard id like 70W, and for most of the average/cheap mobos, your RX480 may be able to "fry" their voltage converters).

If I were able to consider a purchase at this time, I think my board (Asus Crosshair V Formula-Z, ridiculous name!) would handle it. It has a Molex connector near the first PCIe slot, which is supposed to augment PCIe power capacity.

However, it seems that there are too many "issues" with the first release version. The defensive-sounding snark from AMD suggests that they know they are excessive in their claims for the card. I put considerable stock in Tom's and Techpowerup test results.

[James Heinrich]

Originally Posted by airsquirrels

Interesting. I've got an 8GB coming in next week, will report back with measured performance.

If you could fire off some benchmarks to me (PM or email is ideal) I would appreciate for updating my TF/LL charts.

[LaurV]

Originally Posted by kladner

(Asus Crosshair V Formula-Z,

That is a RoG-certified mobo, I think easily able to handle 3 or 4 of the RX480. The only problem with your mobo is the spacing of the slots, you can't put 4 cards into it without a raising or cable

[kladner]

The spacing is not great, but better than the Sabertooth I had before. It is hard to imagine getting more than two of anything on most standard ATX boards. If nothing else, you need a full tower case to get the lower edge of the board away from the PSU, and have a chance of using the lowest slot. I suppose centrifugal blower cards might fit, but I've never had one of those.

[VictordeHolland]

Originally Posted by LaurV

Currently there are issues with RX480's power specs. Here is a starting point.

I wouldn't jump to buy a RX480 right now, especially if I want more than one on the same mobo, and not at all if that mobo is not a top-gun (i.e. some gaming or workstation mobos are able to give enough power over the PCI slots, like 100W, or 90W, but the standard id like 70W, and for most of the average/cheap mobos, your RX480 may be able to "fry" their voltage converters).

Any responds from AMD on this matter?
(sorry I'm lazy and don't want to read 50+ reddit posts)

[LaurV]

Originally Posted by VictordeHolland

Any responds from AMD on this matter?
(sorry I'm lazy and don't want to read 50+ reddit posts)

Yes, but as said by kladner above, their response was quite defensive and saying mostly nothing.

[James Heinrich]

Doesn't seem to be an useful official response.
For those looking for an RX 480 the wise thing to do would be to wait for non-reference designs that may hopefully contain 8-pin or 2x6-pin power connectors to supply sufficient power without stressing the PCIe slot.

Here's a second detailed power-usage evaluation:
http://www.pcper.com/reviews/Graphic...-Radeon-RX-480

[James Heinrich]

Originally Posted by VictordeHolland

Any responds from AMD on this matter?

They apparently released a statement today saying:

Originally Posted by http://www.anandtech.com/show/10465

As you know, we continuously tune our GPUs in order to maximize their performance within their given power envelopes and the speed of the memory interface, which in this case is an unprecedented 8Gbps for GDDR5. Recently, we identified select scenarios where the tuning of some RX 480 boards was not optimal. Fortunately, we can adjust the GPU's tuning via software in order to resolve this issue. We are already testing a driver that implements a fix, and we will provide an update to the community on our progress on Tuesday (July 5, 2016).

So basically the problem is there and they'll make sure future versions of the driver limit performance to keep within power envelope.