Powercolor r9 390 pcs + review

The Powercolor R9 390 PCS + boasts the strongest, largest, quietest and most well-built finish of all the R9 390s, and that is just what we are going to show you today. Unlike all the others, it is one of the few that still has the reference pcb but with the latest components well dissipated, a backplate that boasts and 8Gb so that no detail escapes us in our favorite games. Here we go!.

Technical characteristics.

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TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS R9 390 PCS +
GPU	AMD Radeon R9 390 (Grenada)
Connectors	1 x PCIE 6-pin. 1 x 8-pin PCIE.
Core frequency	1010 Mhz
Memory type	GDDR5.
Memory size	8 GB.
Memory speed (mhz)	6000 MHz
DirectX	Version 12.
BUS memory	512 bits.
BUS card	PCI-E 3.0 x16.
OpenGL	OpenGL®4.4
I / O	2 x DVI-D 1 x HDMI Output 1 x Display Port (Regular DP) Supports HDCP.
Dimensions	29 x 11.5 x 5.1 cm
Price	349 euros.

Powercolor R9 390 LCS +.

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It is, of all the 390 analyzed so far, the most advantageous in all aspects and that, continues to maintain a very attractive price despite this. Starting from the base, which has a reference pcb, with its phases and VRM dissipated by two smaller aluminum blocks, it has a huge almost triple slot heatsink, large and seasoned with 3 silent fans but at the same time effects and Main block has 4 aluminum heatpipes that cover the entire card.

As usual, it also has the characteristic of being semi passive, or what is the same 0 DB, making the fans stand until you really need them. As we can see, it has a backplate that covers the entire back of the card, giving it more solidity, cooling and finishing.

The GPU R9 390 has 2560 GCN 1.1 Shaders, 64 Rops and 160 texture units, the operating frequency is 1010Mhz. All this supported by its huge 512 Bit bus, accompanied by 8Gb of memory at a frequency of 1500Mhz. Unlike other 390, this one has double bios, unlocked voltage and much higher performance thanks to it as we will see later.

Despite its large size, it is still a little lower than other models such as the Msi, as well as its weight, which is much lower but despite everything, the temperatures are fantastic. The card comes equipped with manual, CD, drivers and a 6 to 8 pin power connector for whoever needs it.

Test bench and performance tests.

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TESTING BENCH
Processor:	i5-4690k @ 4400 Mhz..
Base plate:	Asus Z97M-Plus.
Memory:	Geil Evo Potenza @ 2666Mhz.
Heatsink	Be Quiet Dark Rock 3.
HDD	Transcend M.2 MT800 256Gb. Sata interface.
Graphics Card	Powercolor R9 390 Pcs + 1010/1500. Oc @ 1170/1650 Mhz Msi R9 390X Gaming @ 1100 / 1525Mhz Asus 970 Mini. 1280 / 1753Mhz
Power supply	Corsair CS550M 550W.

For benchmarks we will use the following titles:

• 3DMark - Gpu ScoreF1 2015Hitman AbsolutionLotR - Shadow of MordorThiefTomb RaiderBioshock InfiniteMetro Last Light

All tests will be passed in their maximum configuration unless it is stated differently in the graph. And this time we will do it in two resolutions, the most popular today, 1080P (1920 × 1080) and a slightly higher one, 1440P (2560x1440P). The operating system used will be the new Windows 10 Pro 64 bit and the latest drivers, the 15.8Beta.

What are we looking for in the tests?

First the best possible image quality. The most important value for us is the average FPS (Frames per second), the higher the number of FPS, the more fluid the game will be. To differentiate the quality a bit, we leave you a table to assess the quality in FPS, but we will also have the minimum Fps in the tests that were thus possible:

FRAMES BY SECONDS
Frames for Seconds. (FPS)	Gameplay
Less than 30 FPS	Limited
30 - 40 FPS	Playable
40 - 60 FPS	Good
Greater than 60 FPS	Fairly Good or Excellent

1080P test results

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Test results at 1440P.

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Overclock and first impressions with the undervolt

One of the most attractive sections of this card has undoubtedly been its high overclock. For this we have used the Msi Afterburner tool and starting from the base frequencies, which are 1010 / 1500Mhz, we have been able to reach the interesting figure of 1170Mhz for the gpu and 1650Mhz the memory, for this we have applied a voltage of + 87mv and increased the powerlimit 50%. As we see in the tests, in most cases it exceeds the 390X, which also does not go to serial frequencies, but rather higher as it is a model with serial overclock.

Keep in mind that the temperature has risen quite a bit as well as the noise level, therefore it is better to leave more conservative figures such as 1125/1600 to have a balance between power, consumption and temperature as we will see later.

The underlock has also been very good that, as we remember, it consists of lowering the voltage to further reduce its temperature or consumption, leaving its serial frequency and lowering the voltage -75mv, there has been no game that has even reached 68ºc with the fan by car, excellent without a doubt for lovers of silence.

Temperature and consumption.

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And because not only does the power of a card matter, we are going to evaluate both its consumption and its temperatures, and have a general reference compared to other cards.

Consumption and temperatures have been verified by reading the maximum peak, passing the Metro Last Light benchmark 3 times, ideal for how demanding it is.

Final words and conclusion.

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We come to the end of the review, and we will take stock of everything seen so far. Being the 390 that we liked the most not only for its fantastic finish, but also for its results, we are struck that despite all the overclocking that we have given it, it has been much better in consumption and temperature than other models, clearly seeing which is a card made in conscience, well dispelled and finished.

Temperatures are excellent in all aspects, resting and playing, hardly needing to even make a ventilation profile for us. With overclock as we mentioned before, if they went up although they did not reach 80ºc at any time, making it among all the most suitable to get extra performance.

Making mention of consumption, we are facing the best of all 390, which although it is true is the one with the least frequency (15Mhz less), it has been very suitable even with overclock, for what these cards have been and, if we count that It has dual bios and 0 DB for the day, making it the most versatile.

We still like the 390 more than the 390X, not only because of its price but because the performance is so even, that just raising the frequency a little, puts us at the height of the 390X and there is still too much price difference for the narrow gap that separates them. The real pity is that there are very few national suppliers that have these Powercolor ranges, making it difficult to obtain compared to other brands.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ The most complete 390 of all	- Hard to find in our country
+ Semi-passive at rest and silent under load.
+ Heatsink and backplate
+ Performance
+ Overclocking capabilities

And after carefully evaluating all the tests as the product, Professional Review awards him the gold medal:

Powercolo R9 390 PCS +

Component quality

Refrigeration

Gaming experience

Sonority

Additional features

Price

8.5 / 10

Fantastic performance, versatility, sound and overclocking.