Toofan
05-07-2009, 10:58 AM
Sapphire HD 4890 Atomic Edition Review
Introduction:
Sapphire is one ATI partner that really takes the time to build a better product for the consumer. Usually the lag time between the original reference video cards release and the "Improved" versions is a few months, at least. Not this time around. Just a scant one month ago, the HD (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/#) 4890 was released with a clock speed of 850 MHz on the R790 core, and a clock speed of 975MHz on the 1GB GDDR5 memory. Pretty hefty increases from the HD 4870 it is replacing as the top dog single GPU in ATI's performance lineup. As ATI's largest partner, Sapphire seems to have a leg up when it comes to building enthusiast level video cards that usually start with their own PCB design. From there, the power circuits get the work over - and finally, to top it off, the "Improved" cards usually sport a readily available aftermarket cooling solution as seen on the HD 4850 Toxic model, or a full-on custom creation as seen on the HD 4870x2 Atomic video card.
Lately, the push on the cooling has been the extremely effective Vapor-X heatsink design that has adorned all of Sapphire's top end creations. This cooling concept was first released on the HD 3870 Atomic edition, back in early 2008. The last card we looked at from Sapphire, before the release of the HD 4890, was the HD 4870 2GB Vapor-X edition that took this concept to another level. Talking about going to the next level! What I have in my grubby hands here from Sapphire is a pre-production sample of the HD 4890 Atomic that really is a step above the standard HD 4890. The Vapor-X cooling is just the tip of the iceberg with this card. Let's see just what makes this card so special, and see what it can do.
Closer Look:
The HD 4890 is a stout performer that puts a serious dent in the performance lead that Nvidia enjoys with the GTX 285. Rather than wait out the sales rush on the initial HD 4890, Sapphire has stepped up the HD 4890 to Atomic status with the usual items: in-house PCB design, better voltage regulation and improved looks, and most importantly the cooling improvements. The PCB is the light teal blue that lets you know this is not the reference PCB, but Sapphire's own design that usually incorporates better voltage regulation to drive performance higher. The Atomic uses the RV790 core with clock speeds bumped up to a massive 1GHz from the stock cards' 850MHz. The 1GB of GDDR5 memory sees a bump up from 975MHz to 1020 MHZ, nowhere near as significant as the increase in the core clock, but still a bump up nonetheless. The cooling solution looks very similar to what is on the HD 4870 1GB Toxic Edition, but the heatpipes do not extend as far from the fin array. The Atomic version is a dual-slot card, so it will indeed cover two slots on the motherboard (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/#), while only physically being in one slot. The front of the card is decorated with the "Atomic" and "Vapor-X" logos.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/1_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/1.htm) http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/2_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/2.htm)
http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/14_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/14.htm) http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/15_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/15.htm)
The front side of the card features two Dual Link capable DVI ports, and a standard S-Video port for use with a dongle. On the rear of the card, you can suspect something is up with the inclusion of a 6-pin as well as an 8-pin power connection. If these implications are correct, this additional power should bring some stability at higher clock speeds. The HD 4890 Atomic is CrossFire capable by using the CrossFire bridge connections along the spine of the card. Of course, you will need a second card to make that option work.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/17_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/17.htm) (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/16.htm)
Introduction:
Sapphire is one ATI partner that really takes the time to build a better product for the consumer. Usually the lag time between the original reference video cards release and the "Improved" versions is a few months, at least. Not this time around. Just a scant one month ago, the HD (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/#) 4890 was released with a clock speed of 850 MHz on the R790 core, and a clock speed of 975MHz on the 1GB GDDR5 memory. Pretty hefty increases from the HD 4870 it is replacing as the top dog single GPU in ATI's performance lineup. As ATI's largest partner, Sapphire seems to have a leg up when it comes to building enthusiast level video cards that usually start with their own PCB design. From there, the power circuits get the work over - and finally, to top it off, the "Improved" cards usually sport a readily available aftermarket cooling solution as seen on the HD 4850 Toxic model, or a full-on custom creation as seen on the HD 4870x2 Atomic video card.
Lately, the push on the cooling has been the extremely effective Vapor-X heatsink design that has adorned all of Sapphire's top end creations. This cooling concept was first released on the HD 3870 Atomic edition, back in early 2008. The last card we looked at from Sapphire, before the release of the HD 4890, was the HD 4870 2GB Vapor-X edition that took this concept to another level. Talking about going to the next level! What I have in my grubby hands here from Sapphire is a pre-production sample of the HD 4890 Atomic that really is a step above the standard HD 4890. The Vapor-X cooling is just the tip of the iceberg with this card. Let's see just what makes this card so special, and see what it can do.
Closer Look:
The HD 4890 is a stout performer that puts a serious dent in the performance lead that Nvidia enjoys with the GTX 285. Rather than wait out the sales rush on the initial HD 4890, Sapphire has stepped up the HD 4890 to Atomic status with the usual items: in-house PCB design, better voltage regulation and improved looks, and most importantly the cooling improvements. The PCB is the light teal blue that lets you know this is not the reference PCB, but Sapphire's own design that usually incorporates better voltage regulation to drive performance higher. The Atomic uses the RV790 core with clock speeds bumped up to a massive 1GHz from the stock cards' 850MHz. The 1GB of GDDR5 memory sees a bump up from 975MHz to 1020 MHZ, nowhere near as significant as the increase in the core clock, but still a bump up nonetheless. The cooling solution looks very similar to what is on the HD 4870 1GB Toxic Edition, but the heatpipes do not extend as far from the fin array. The Atomic version is a dual-slot card, so it will indeed cover two slots on the motherboard (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/#), while only physically being in one slot. The front of the card is decorated with the "Atomic" and "Vapor-X" logos.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/1_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/1.htm) http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/2_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/2.htm)
http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/14_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/14.htm) http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/15_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/15.htm)
The front side of the card features two Dual Link capable DVI ports, and a standard S-Video port for use with a dongle. On the rear of the card, you can suspect something is up with the inclusion of a 6-pin as well as an 8-pin power connection. If these implications are correct, this additional power should bring some stability at higher clock speeds. The HD 4890 Atomic is CrossFire capable by using the CrossFire bridge connections along the spine of the card. Of course, you will need a second card to make that option work.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/siteimages/articles/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/17_thumb.jpg (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/17.htm) (http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/sapphire_hd4890_atomic/images/16.htm)