Widescreen Gaming Forum

Hi all,


I'm planning on buying a second card for xfire and have a few questions. The card I have is the MSI version, I was looking at this 'AMD version' for the second card.

My understanding is that the reference cards are made exactly to AMD specs in the same factory (TMSC?), then sends them to partners like Sapphire and Asus who puts their stickers on, boxes and then sells them. Is this about right?

I'm concerned about the quality of the cheaper cards, if they have to meet the reference design but can use any components they want-do they cut corners with the components on the boards to reduce costs? I think this maybe OK at stock but could mean they won't overclock well?

Thing is it's a €79 difference, but is it worth it to go with a more well known manufacturer? Anyone any info on AMD 'own branded' cards?

I did google this thoroughly, but seems to be a lot of different answers, mainly based on opinions & I can't find any decent articles about it.

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Silverstone FT05 * Asus Maximus VII Formula* I7 4970k * Corsair H80i * 8GB Corsair Vengeance Pro* 2 x EVGA 980ti ACX superclocked * Crucial M4 256GB * Silverstone ST85F-GS 850W* Corsair SP2500 * 3 x 1 Samsung S27A950D's 1 x AOC 24" 1080p something..

A reference card is a reference card. Only variation is warranty and label art.

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Brad Hawthorne
Product Manager
Nthusim Pty. Ltd. | www.nthusim.com

A reference card is a reference card. Only variation is warranty and label art.

+1

I run 2 reference cards here that perform very well and are extremely reliable, even after being overclocked for the past 2 years nearly, there is no sign of any issues :)
No sub quality components used on these ;)

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| Gigabyte X79S-UP5-WiFi Skt2011 | i7 4820k @4.4GHz Watercooled (Ivy Bridge-E) | Corsair Vengence 32GB @2133MHz 11-11-11-27 2T Quad-Channel (8x4GB) | AMD R9-Fury-X 4GB @1140/505MHz + EKWB Watercooled | 256GB Crucial MX200 SSD | 8x 1TB Samsung F3 SATA-II | Corsair 850W TX PSU | 3x Dell S2209W 22"wide TFT's (5760x1080res) | Logitech Z-5400 5.1ch speakers | Win7 Ultimate x64 |

Thanks guys,

Turns out the AMD version advertised is a Sapphire branded one, who are reputable enough warranty wise as well. Its ordered, so now we play the waiting game Now I'm looking at upgrading my monitors-it never ends :bigsmile:

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Silverstone FT05 * Asus Maximus VII Formula* I7 4970k * Corsair H80i * 8GB Corsair Vengeance Pro* 2 x EVGA 980ti ACX superclocked * Crucial M4 256GB * Silverstone ST85F-GS 850W* Corsair SP2500 * 3 x 1 Samsung S27A950D's 1 x AOC 24" 1080p something..

Please consider people who dislike opening Links. You could also rename your Links to "AMD Hd 7970" in stead of MSI and AMD. And it would be way easier if you would mention your specific card your talking about in the Thread title.


I'm not sure. But i thought ALL reference design Cards were produced in the same Location and just sticker put on top by resellers. But that makes me think... WHO produces them all? There are quite a lot! GPU die is made by TMSC but the rest? I doubt it's all made by them! Does AMD have their own factury? Did the only sell Lithografy stuff with Globalfoundries?

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We gonna send it to outa space!

Last time I checked, all AMD branded reference cards were actually manufactured by Sapphire.