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The HD6950 Flex Edition should be a big seller for Sapphire as it combines great gaming performance with reduced noise levels and moderate power consumption. As we would expect, the build quality is first class and the proprietary cooler design is one of the best we have tested.
On a performance level, the card is very strong, but we already knew this, going on previous reviews. What this specific solution brings to the table is a cheaper way to get into the multi screen gaming sector. You don't need expensive DisplayPort panels and Sapphire have kindly included several converters in the box to help you on the path to high resolution gaming.
Thanks to the power of the HD6950 card, 5760×1080 resolution is achievable and if you add another card, then 7680×1080 is also an option. Obviously you need a big enough desk to support four screens, but the incredibly wide field of vision certainly aids user immersion when enjoying the latest titles.
The Vapor X cooler generates very little noise, and manages to keep the card around 10c cooler than the reference board. The added benefit of this means that you can increase the core voltage with Sapphire's TriXX tool to significantly enhance the performance. We do say ‘significantly' because in this case another 164mhz was squeezed from the Cayman core.
With a reference card this wouldn't be possible on a variety of levels, but Sapphire have released an overclocking monster with the latest HD6950 Flex Edition. Obviously we can't guarantee every card will hit these heights, but it is possible some might scale even further. If you haven't checked out the performance benefits on the previous page then we suggest you start backtracking now. At our maximum clocks, this card managed to outperform the GTX570.
If you are interested in moving into multiple screen gaming and don't want to compromise with frame rates, then this is one of the best choices on the market right now.
Pros:
- Great cooler design
- fantastic build quality
- overclocks like a mofo
- ideal way to get into multiple screen gaming, especially if you have a few DVI screens already
Cons:
- none we can find
KitGuru says: another great card from the Sapphire team.
I saw this on amazon last week but its vanished. they stopped stocking it or something?
Been hearing good things about that trixx tool with the sapphire cards, that is a damn fine OC. wonder if it would cause a longevity issue however.
No stock of this in the UK, it shows a fair price premium in states over an ordinary board.
Good card, but ive very litle chance of getting 3 screens. Still looks to be one of the better HD6950s on the market, regardless of the FLEX aspect.
Big fan of Sapphire, I had a 5 series card fail on me and I had a replacement within 14 days. it would be either these cards or XFX for me.
Reckon Sapphire might make an nvidia board someday ? 🙂
Their coolers are always great, but there is quiet a premium sometimes for Sapphire products. Powercolor are usually cheaper and just as good IMO.
Powercolor as good as Sapphire? hardly. wait until one of them fails. unless you are in the states or far east you can kiss any warranty you might like. I know a buddy who had a card fail and he chased a replacement for 4 months then gave up.