Not counting exceptions where AMD or NVIDIA don’t allow the release of customized models during the first months, as was the case with the R9 290x or GTX TITAN , it is usual that after the announcement of a new GPU we see an avalanche of new models, some slower, some faster or with unique cooling systems; this has been the case with the new AMD Radeon R9 270.
First we have the ASUS and R9 270 Direct CU II OC, a graphics card with speeds of up to 975 MHz (the base model has 950 MHz), it keeps the 2GB RAM at 5600 MHz and has a dissipation system known as DirectCU II , known by its copper heat pipes that are always in direct contact with the GPU for a better temperature control. Also, two fans keep the entire card cool.
Club 3D has also joined the party and has shown its Radeon RoyalQueen R9 270 , a version with 5 MHz more than the reference model, i.e., 930 and 955 MHz, normal speed and boost, respectively. Its CoolStream dissipation system includes a double copper heat pipe copper and aluminum finned heat sink cooled by a single central fan, all covered by a metal casing.
Now it’s the turn of Gigabyte and their WindForce OC Radeon R9 270, a model that also runs at 950 MHz (975 MHz with Boost). Everything else remains unchanged from the reference model, with 2 GB 5600 MHz GDDR5 and Gigabyte’s WindForce 2X cooling system, known for its big-sized dual fan.
HIS also has a dual-fan model, the R9 270 IceQ iPower X2, with the speeds of 950/975 MHz we’ve seen in other models, same memory speed as the reference model and 4 copper heat pipes connecter to the aluminum-made heat sink.
MSI has also introduced a graphics card with this chip on their Gaming Series, the R9 270 Gaming. It works at 975 MHz in boost mode and interestingly has two 6-pin PCI-E. Its memory and speed remain unchanged from the reference model; it also features two fans.
Sapphire has the R9 Dual – X 270 , with the same speed as the base model but with an extra fan.