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When all is considered the VTX3D HD7770 is a slightly disappointing product, especially when compared directly against the Sapphire solution reviewed today. We can appreciate that not every partner can prepare a custom cooled card for AMD's launch but this is a cutthroat industry and we need to look at the wider picture before coming to a final verdict.
AMD have made a rather big song and dance about releasing the ‘World's first 1GHZ GPU' however to be perfectly honest there is very little to get excited about. It would have been more titillating to have clocked all reference HD7950's to 1GHZ, because the performance at that speed is truly exceptional and a worthy addition to the history books. That said, realistically @ 1GHZ, the HD7950 would hurt HD7970 sales so we can understand why AMD wouldn't do it.
The AMD HD7770 at 1GHZ might earn a place in history for the core clock alone, but in the real world, it is just a little faster than the HD6790 before it. Not as great a punchline for AMD, but accurate.
It isn't all gloom and doom because the reference clocked HD7770 does come to life when placed in a Crossfire configuration delivering performance parameters almost identical to a single HD7950. A very fast card at reference clocks. Obviously the game you are playing needs a driver profile to support both cards but the end result is very positive.
The price is going to be the deciding factor, and we would estimate that the reference HD7770 should hit UK shores around £130 inc vat. If we factor in my previous statement, then two HD7770's will offer similar performance to a single HD7950, while costing around £100 less. In that regard it makes for a very tempting proposition. AMD's reference cooler doesn't have to work too hard on the HD7770 core, so the noise levels are never too intrusive.
Power consumption and heat emissions are acutely modest, which earns the design a bonus point.
In closing, there is little reason to choose this specific HD7770 over the other modified solutions released today, but we would imagine that VTX3D will have the most competitive price point, as they usually do. If you are in the market for a Crossfire configuration then two VTX3D HD7770's can keep up with a HD7950 and leave enough money spare for a very tasty power supply or DDR3 memory kit.
Pros:
- Low power consumption.
- noise levels are quite good, even with the reference cooler.
- good crossfire scaling.
- two cards should only set you back £260 inc vat.
Cons:
- Not a huge leap up from previous series.
- no modified cooling on this card.
- AMD HD6790 can be picked up for £99 now
- Asus HD6850 Direct CU V2 only £89.99!
Kitguru says: VTX3D need to rely on price point to help sell this product.
Crossfire results are quite good as author said compared gainst more expensive 7950. much like the 5770 I owned, I had two and it was really good.