HD 7970M Crossfire vs R9 M290X Crossfire

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General info

GPU architecture, market segment, value for money and other general parameters compared.

Place in performance ranking265309
Place by popularitynot in top-100not in top-100
Value for moneyno data30.38
ArchitectureGCN (2011−2017)GCN (2011−2017)
GPU code nameNeptune CFWimbledon XT
Market segmentLaptopLaptop
Release date1 March 2014 (10 years old)1 May 2012 (11 years old)
Current priceno data$126
Value for money

Performance to price ratio. The higher, the better.

no data

Technical specs

General performance parameters such as number of shaders, GPU core base clock and boost clock speeds, manufacturing process, texturing and calculation speed. These parameters indirectly speak of performance, but for precise assessment you have to consider their benchmark and gaming test results. Note that power consumption of some graphics cards can well exceed their nominal TDP, especially when overclocked.

Pipelines / CUDA cores25602560
Core clock speed850 MHz850 MHz
Boost clock speed900 MHzno data
Number of transistors2x 2800 Millionno data
Manufacturing process technology28 nm28 nm
Power consumption (TDP)200 Watt200 Watt

Size and compatibility

Information on Radeon R9 M290X Crossfire and Radeon HD 7970M Crossfire compatibility with other computer components. Useful when choosing a future computer configuration or upgrading an existing one. For notebook video cards it's notebook size, connection slot and bus, if the video card is inserted into a slot instead of being soldered to the notebook motherboard.

Laptop sizelargelarge

Memory

Parameters of VRAM installed: its type, size, bus, clock and resulting bandwidth. Integrated GPUs have no dedicated video RAM and use a shared part of system RAM.

Memory typeGDDR5GDDR5
Maximum RAM amount2x 4 GBno data
Memory bus width2x 256 Bit2x 256 Bit
Memory clock speed4800 MHz4800 MHz
Shared memory--

API support

List of supported graphics and general-purpose computing APIs, including their specific versions.

DirectX12 (FL 11_1)11.1

Synthetic benchmark performance

Non-gaming benchmark performance comparison. The combined score is measured on a 0-100 point scale.


Combined synthetic benchmark score

This is our combined benchmark performance score. We are regularly improving our combining algorithms, but if you find some perceived inconsistencies, feel free to speak up in comments section, we usually fix problems quickly.

R9 M290X Crossfire
19.59
+22.7%

R9 M290X Crossfire outperforms HD 7970M Crossfire by 23% in our combined benchmark results.


3DMark Vantage Performance

3DMark Vantage is an outdated DirectX 10 benchmark using 1280x1024 screen resolution. It taxes the graphics card with two scenes, one depicting a girl escaping some militarized base located within a sea cave, the other displaying a space fleet attack on a defenseless planet. It was discontinued in April 2017, and Time Spy benchmark is now recommended to be used instead.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

R9 M290X Crossfire 32792
+5.3%
HD 7970M Crossfire 31127

R9 M290X Crossfire outperforms HD 7970M Crossfire by 5% in 3DMark Vantage Performance.

3DMark 11 Performance GPU

3DMark 11 is an obsolete DirectX 11 benchmark by Futuremark. It used four tests based on two scenes, one being few submarines exploring the submerged wreck of a sunken ship, the other is an abandoned temple deep in the jungle. All the tests are heavy with volumetric lighting and tessellation, and despite being done in 1280x720 resolution, are relatively taxing. Discontinued in January 2020, 3DMark 11 is now superseded by Time Spy.

Benchmark coverage: 17%

R9 M290X Crossfire 14147
+27.2%
HD 7970M Crossfire 11119

R9 M290X Crossfire outperforms HD 7970M Crossfire by 27% in 3DMark 11 Performance GPU.

Gaming performance

Let's see how good the compared graphics cards are for gaming. Particular gaming benchmark results are measured in FPS.

Average FPS across all PC games

Here are the average frames per second in a large set of popular games across different resolutions:

900p160−170
+21.2%
132
−21.2%
Full HD62
−64.5%
102
+64.5%

Performance in popular games

Full HD
Low Preset

Cyberpunk 2077 30−35
+24%
24−27
−24%

Full HD
Medium Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 40−45
+21.2%
30−35
−21.2%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 35−40
+29.6%
27−30
−29.6%
Battlefield 5 65−70
+22.2%
50−55
−22.2%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 50−55
+24.4%
40−45
−24.4%
Cyberpunk 2077 30−35
+24%
24−27
−24%
Far Cry 5 50−55
+23.8%
40−45
−23.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 50−55
+23.3%
40−45
−23.3%
Forza Horizon 4 65−70
+20%
55−60
−20%
Hitman 3 55−60
+29.5%
40−45
−29.5%
Horizon Zero Dawn 40−45
+24.2%
30−35
−24.2%
Red Dead Redemption 2 30−35
+18.5%
27−30
−18.5%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 40−45
+23.5%
30−35
−23.5%
Watch Dogs: Legion 35−40
+23.3%
30−33
−23.3%

Full HD
High Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 40−45
+21.2%
30−35
−21.2%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 35−40
+29.6%
27−30
−29.6%
Battlefield 5 65−70
+22.2%
50−55
−22.2%
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 50−55
+24.4%
40−45
−24.4%
Cyberpunk 2077 30−35
+24%
24−27
−24%
Far Cry 5 50−55
+23.8%
40−45
−23.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 50−55
+23.3%
40−45
−23.3%
Forza Horizon 4 65−70
+20%
55−60
−20%
Hitman 3 55−60
+29.5%
40−45
−29.5%
Horizon Zero Dawn 40−45
+24.2%
30−35
−24.2%
Metro Exodus 30−35
+28%
24−27
−28%
Red Dead Redemption 2 30−35
+18.5%
27−30
−18.5%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 40−45
+23.5%
30−35
−23.5%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 40−45
+26.5%
30−35
−26.5%
Watch Dogs: Legion 35−40
+23.3%
30−33
−23.3%

Full HD
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 40−45
+21.2%
30−35
−21.2%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 35−40
+29.6%
27−30
−29.6%
Battlefield 5 65−70
+22.2%
50−55
−22.2%
Cyberpunk 2077 30−35
+24%
24−27
−24%
Far Cry 5 50−55
+23.8%
40−45
−23.8%
Far Cry New Dawn 50−55
+23.3%
40−45
−23.3%
Forza Horizon 4 65−70
+20%
55−60
−20%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 40−45
+26.5%
30−35
−26.5%
Watch Dogs: Legion 35−40
+23.3%
30−33
−23.3%

1440p
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 27−30
+26.1%
21−24
−26.1%
Hitman 3 30−35
+28%
24−27
−28%
Horizon Zero Dawn 24−27
+18.2%
21−24
−18.2%
Metro Exodus 18−20
+26.7%
14−16
−26.7%
Red Dead Redemption 2 14−16
+25%
12−14
−25%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 24−27
+25%
20−22
−25%

1440p
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 21−24
+23.5%
16−18
−23.5%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 18−20
+38.5%
12−14
−38.5%
Battlefield 5 40−45
+26.5%
30−35
−26.5%
Cyberpunk 2077 10−12
+22.2%
9−10
−22.2%
Far Cry 5 30−35
+26.9%
24−27
−26.9%
Far Cry New Dawn 35−40
+23.3%
30−33
−23.3%
Forza Horizon 4 35−40
+26.7%
30−33
−26.7%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 24−27
+31.6%
18−20
−31.6%
Watch Dogs: Legion 14−16
+40%
10−11
−40%

4K
High Preset

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 14−16
+27.3%
10−12
−27.3%
Hitman 3 18−20
+20%
14−16
−20%
Horizon Zero Dawn 14−16
+27.3%
10−12
−27.3%
Metro Exodus 10−12
+37.5%
8−9
−37.5%
Red Dead Redemption 2 10−12
+22.2%
9−10
−22.2%
Shadow of the Tomb Raider 12−14
+30%
10−11
−30%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 20−22
+33.3%
14−16
−33.3%

4K
Ultra Preset

Assassin's Creed Odyssey 12−14
+20%
10−11
−20%
Assassin's Creed Valhalla 10−11
+25%
8−9
−25%
Battlefield 5 21−24
+29.4%
16−18
−29.4%
Cyberpunk 2077 4−5
+33.3%
3−4
−33.3%
Far Cry 5 16−18
+23.1%
12−14
−23.1%
Far Cry New Dawn 18−20
+18.8%
16−18
−18.8%
Forza Horizon 4 24−27
+25%
20−22
−25%
Watch Dogs: Legion 8−9
+33.3%
6−7
−33.3%

This is how R9 M290X Crossfire and HD 7970M Crossfire compete in popular games:

900p resolution:

  • R9 M290X Crossfire is 21.2% faster than HD 7970M Crossfire

1080p resolution:

  • HD 7970M Crossfire is 64.5% faster than R9 M290X Crossfire

Here's the range of performance differences observed across popular games:

  • in Watch Dogs: Legion, with 1440p resolution and the Ultra Preset, the R9 M290X Crossfire is 40% faster than the HD 7970M Crossfire.

All in all, in popular games:

  • Without exception, R9 M290X Crossfire surpassed HD 7970M Crossfire in all 68 of our tests.

Advantages and disadvantages


Performance score 19.59 15.97
Recency 1 March 2014 1 May 2012

The Radeon R9 M290X Crossfire is our recommended choice as it beats the Radeon HD 7970M Crossfire in performance tests.


Should you still have questions concerning choice between the reviewed GPUs, ask them in Comments section, and we shall answer.

Cast your own vote

Do you think we are right or mistaken in our choice? Vote by clicking "Like" button near your favorite graphics card.


AMD Radeon R9 M290X Crossfire
Radeon R9 M290X Crossfire
AMD Radeon HD 7970M Crossfire
Radeon HD 7970M Crossfire

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User ratings: view and submit

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Questions and comments

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