Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review

We take the Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC video card for a spin by overclocking it even further. Let's see how it goes under our gaming tests.

Published
Updated
Manufacturer: Sapphire
19 minutes & 51 seconds read time

Introduction and Package

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 02

Since the start of the year, we started seeing more and more companies offer new variations of AMD R Series cards. Being busy with motherboards at the start of the year and just generally not feeling great having had the same flu that seemed to be traveling around the world, I got off to a bit of a slow start.

Feeling so much better and ready to go, though, I've finally got the chance to check out some of the great looking cards that have arrived recently. The other day, I got a chance to check out the MSI R9 290X 4GB Twin Frozr Gaming OC.

While impressed with what MSI had done via the Twin Frozr IV Advanced cooler, the card found itself with the same issue so many other R9 290X 4GB cards we've tested have. Overclocking continues to be limited, and talking to partners, it seems that it's due to the simple fact that AMD has already pushed the clocks so high.

While we do indeed have our hands-on the Tri-X version of both the R9 290X 4GB and R9 290 4GB, we won't be looking at something so high-end today. Instead, we'll be checking out something that sits more in the middle of the pack. The R9 270 2GB was one of the later R series cards to be released and is the entry-level R9 offering sitting above the R7 260X and below the R9 270X.

The particular version of the card we're going to be looking at today from Sapphire is the Dual-X version, which is a series we've seen before. It's impressed us in the past, and we're hoping that it continues to do so today. While we're dealing with an OC model of the card today, we'll be taking that overclock even further with the help of MSI Afterburner.

Before we do that, there's a few other things we need to do. Let's check out the package of the Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC and see just what exactly we're dealing with here today.

Package

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 03

Taking a look at the box, you can see the overall design isn't too different to anything we've seen before. The purple color scheme looks awesome, and the image looks great. You can see the model and series in the top right corner, and some of the main features are covered in the bottom left, including 2GB of GDDR5, Dual-X Cooler, and the fact the card is pre-overclocked, to name just a few of the main features.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 04

Turning the box over, you can see we've got a bit of a blurb on the model, and we've also got some extended information on the features that are on offer. You can see we get a bit more detail about the Dual-X cooler that Sapphire is using along with a mention about the TriXX overclocking software that Sapphire offers. You can also see some of the AMD specific technologies mentioned, including Eyefinity and CrossFire, to name just a few.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 05

As we move inside, you can see we've got that slightly larger-than-normal bundle that we see from Sapphire so often. Starting from the left, you can see the normal Sapphire leaflet along with a quick install guide and our driver CD.

Along with that, you can see the HDMI cable that is something that Sapphire consistently include on their mid-range and up models. Finally, we finish off with our Molex-to-6-Pin PCIe Power Connector, CrossFire bridge, and DVI-to-VGA connector.

The Card and Specifications

The Card

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 06

Pulling the card out of the box, we don't see anything that we haven't really seen before. The Dual-X line from Sapphire isn't new to us, and you can see the Dual stands for dual fans.

Behind the two fans, you can see we've got a massive heat sink that covers the entire PCB, and looking at the bottom along with the left and right side of the card, you can see hints of the copper pipes that are helping pull the heat away from the core.

The Dual-X cooler is a really nice cooler for these mid-range cards, and it should put out some great numbers, even when overclocking is thrown into the mix.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 07
Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 08

Taking a look around the card, you can see that power comes in the form of a single 6-Pin PCIe power connector. Here we also get good look at the heat sink and copper pipe cooling solution that is going on. Continuing to move around the card, you can see we've got a single CrossFire connector in the event you want to run two of these cards together.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 09

Finishing up our look at the card, you can see we've got two Dual-Link DVI ports, one in the form of DVI-D and the other in the form of DVI-I. Along with this, you can see we've also got an HDMI and DisplayPort connector to round things off. You can also see some vents are on offer to help push the hot air out the back of the case.

Specifications

As we mentioned on the first page, the Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC is an OC model and brings with it an out-of-the-box overclock. The reference R9 270 2GB brings with it a 925MHz clock on the core and 5600MHz QDR clock on the 2GB of GDDR5. Looking below, you can see Sapphire has pushed the core slightly to 945MHz and left the memory alone.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 01

As we mentioned earlier, we'll be overclocking our Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC card today. Looking above, you can see we pushed the core up to 1010MHz, and the 2GB of GDDR5 has been upped to 5920MHz QDR.

Benchmarks - Test System Setup

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 99

We would like to thank the following companies for supplying and supporting us with our test system hardware and equipment: Intel, ASUS and Corsair.

One of the main comparisons we want to make today is the performance of our overclocked Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB against the reference-clocked HIS R9 270 IceQ X2 2GB.

Along with that, though, we've also got the just-released GTX 750 Ti 2GB from NVIDIA, which comes in a bit cheaper. We've got the reference version of the card along with the pre-overclocked MSI offering we recently looked at.

The FPS Numbers Explained

When we benchmark our video cards and look at the graphs, we aim to get to a certain level of FPS that we consider playable. While many may argue that the human eye can't see over 24 FPS or 30 FPS, any true gamer will tell you that as we climb higher in Frames Per Seconds (FPS), the overall gameplay feels smoother. There are three numbers we're looking out for when it comes to our benchmarks.

30 FPS - It's the minimum number we aim for when it comes to games. If you're not dropping below 30 FPS during games, you're going to have a nice and smooth gaming experience. The ideal situation is that even in a heavy fire fight, the minimum stays above 30 FPS making sure that you can continue to aim easily or turn the corner with no dramas.

60 FPS - It's the average we look for when we don't have a minimum coming at us. If we're getting an average of 60 FPS, we should have a minimum of 30 FPS or better, and as mentioned above, it means we've got some smooth game play happening.

120 FPS - The new number that we've been hunting down over recent months. If you're the owner of a 120 Hz monitor, to get the most out of it, you want to get around the 120 FPS mark. Moving from 60 FPS / 60 Hz to 120 FPS / 120 Hz brings with it a certain fluidity that can't really be explained but instead has to be experienced. Of course, if you're buying a 120 Hz monitor to take advantage of 3D, an average of 120 FPS in our benchmark means that in 3D you will have an average of 60 FPS, which again means you should expect some smooth gameplay.

Why are some graphs incomplete?

Adding new game benchmarks is a long, tedious, and time consuming task as every video card has to be re-tested in those new benchmarks. Because of that reason, we have always just evaluated our benchmark line up every six months. To stay up to date and current with the latest benchmarks and games available, we've changed our approach to adding new benchmarks.

Our benchmark line up will progress and be updated as newer more intensive games with benchmarks comes to light. While this will mean that initially you may only see a single video card in those particular graphs, as the weeks go on and we test more and more video cards, the results will grow quickly. This will help keep our benchmark line up as up to date as possible as we introduce and remove games on a constant basis.

Benchmarks - 3DMark 11

3DMark 11

Version and / or Patch Used: 1.1

Developer Homepage: http://www.futuremark.com

Product Homepage: http://www.3dmark.com/3dmark11/

Buy It Here

3DMark 11 is the latest version of the world's most popular benchmark. Designed to measure your PC's gaming performance, 3DMark 11 makes extensive use of all the new features in DirectX 11, including tessellation, compute shaders, and multi-threading. Trusted by gamers worldwide to give accurate and unbiased results, 3DMark 11 is the best way to consistently and reliably test DirectX 11 under game-like loads.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 20

Starting off with 3DMark 11, you can see that we manage to get a nice little boost in performance when compared to the stock-clocked HIS R9 270 IceQ X2 2GB.

Benchmarks - 3DMark Fire Strike

3DMark Fire Strike

Version and / or Patch Used: 1

Developer Homepage: http://www.futuremark.com

Product Homepage: http://www.futuremark.com/benchmarks/3dmark

Buy It Here

Fire Strike is our new showcase DirectX 11 benchmark designed for high-performance gaming PCs. It is our most ambitious and technical benchmark ever, featuring real-time graphics rendered with detail and complexity far beyond what is found in other benchmarks and games today. Fire Strike will only be available in the Windows editions of 3DMark initially.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 21

Moving into Fire Strike, we can see our overclocked Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB sees a nice little boost in performance at both presets.

Benchmarks - Unigine Heaven Benchmark

Unigine Heaven Benchmark

Version and / or Patch Used: 3

Developer Homepage: http://www.unigine.com

Product Homepage: http://unigine.com/press-releases/091022-heaven_benchmark//

This new benchmark grants the power to unleash the DirectX 11 potential in the gift wrapping of impressively towering graphics capabilities. It reveals the enchanting magic of floating islands with a tiny village hidden in the cloudy skies.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 22

Heaven shows some great performance gains for the Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC as it tops over 2,000 points at the higher resolution.

Benchmarks - Phantasy Star Online 2

Phantasy Star Online 2

Version and / or Patch Used: Standalone Benchmark

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.sega.com/?t=EnglishUSA

Product Homepage: http://www.pso2.com/us/html/index.html

Play Phantasy Star Online 2 and experience revolutionary combat in an action-driven, free-to-play multiplayer online RPG from SEGA. Take a journey into an immersive sci-fi fantasy narrative and explore mysterious world's to unravel their secrets. Join fellow adventurers and fight against the legions of darkness to banish them from the galaxy.

Score explanation: Less than 2000: Please adjust your game settings because the processing load is quite heavy.

2000 through 5000: The game runs fine at the setting, if you have room, you can adjust some settings.

5001+: The game works wonderfully at this setting.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 23

As always, PSO 2 sees a great performance increase when overclocking is thrown into the mix. Scoring 5,053 points, you can see we're into that "the game works wonderfully at this setting" score.

Benchmarks - Lost Planet 2

Lost Planet 2

Version and / or Patch Used: Standalone Benchmark

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark - Test A Scene 1

Developer Homepage: http://www.capcom.com/

Product Homepage: http://www.lostplanet2game.com/

Lost Planet 2 is a third-person shooter video game developed and published by Capcom. The game is the sequel to Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, which is also made by Capcom. It takes place ten years after the events of the first game on the same fictional planet. The snow has melted to reveal jungles and more tropical areas that have taken the place of more frozen regions. The plot begins with mercenaries fighting against jungle pirates. After destroying a mine, the mercenaries continue on to evacuate the area, after which a Category-G Akrid appears and attacks them. After being rescued, they find out their evacuation point (Where the Category-G appeared) was a set-up and no pick up team awaited them. The last words imply possible DLC additions to the game: "There's nothing to be gained by wiping out snow pirates...unless you had some kind of grudge."

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 24

Lost Planet 2 performance looks great across the board, and you can see a slight performance increase across the board. You can see our FPS numbers are solid at both 1680 x 1050 and 1920 x 1200.

Benchmarks - Just Cause 2

Just Cause 2

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Dark Tower

Developer Homepage: http://www.eidos.com/

Product Homepage: http://www.justcause.com/

Just Cause 2 employs the Avalanche Engine 2.0, an updated version of the engine used in Just Cause. The game is set on the other side of the world from the original Just Cause, on the fictional island of Panau in Southeast Asia. Panau has varied terrain, ranging from desert to alpine to rainforest. Rico Rodriguez returns as the protagonist, aiming to overthrow the evil dictator Pandak "Baby" Panay and confront his former mentor, Tom Sheldon.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 25

Just Cause 2 performance is strong across the board, and you can see playable numbers at all resolutions. We get a nice little performance boost across the board, but the extra FPS seen at 2560 x 1600 is fantastic as we manage to get a bit more breathing room, moving from a 63 FPS average to a 68 FPS average.

Benchmarks - F1 2012

F1 2012

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.codemasters.com/uk/

Product Homepage: http://www.codemasters.com

In F1 2012, players will feel the unparalleled thrill of becoming a FORMULA ONE driver with a host of new features, wide-ranging technical and gameplay advancements, and extensive competitive and co-operative multiplayer components. F1 2012 will feature all of the official teams, drivers, and circuits from the 2012 FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, including the debut of the 2012 FORMULA 1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX at Austin, Texas, and the return of Germany's famous Hockenheim circuit to the calendar.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 26

F1 2012 numbers across the board are strong, and you can see, when overclocked, the Sapphire R9 270 Dual X 2GB OC manages to see a nice little boost in FPS numbers.

Benchmarks - Metro Last Light

Metro Last Light

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.4a-games.com/

Product Homepage: http://enterthemetro.com/ /

Metro: Last Light takes place one year after the events of Metro 2033, proceeding from the ending where Artyom chose to call down the missile strike on the Dark Ones. The Rangers have since occupied the D6 military facility, with Artyom having become an official member of the group. Khan, the nomad mystic, arrives at D6 to inform Artyom and the Rangers that a single Dark One survived the missile strike. Khan believes the Dark One is the key to humanity's future and wants to make peace with it, while Ranger leader Colonel Miller wants to kill the creature due to its potential threat. Miller sends Artyom to the surface with a mission to kill the Dark One; he is accompanied by Anna, Miller's sarcastic daughter and the Rangers' best sniper.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 27

Metro Last Light performance across the board is just too low on all our setups here. Even overclocked, the extra couple of FPS just isn't enough. You can see at the lowest resolution, we manage to only receive a 46 FPS average.

Benchmarks - Dirt Showdown

Dirt Showdown

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.codemasters.com/uk/

Product Homepage: http://www.codemasters.com/uk/dirtshowdown/360/

DiRT Showdown is the new arcade racing game from the team that brought you the award-winning DiRT series. Pick-up-and-play controls combine with electrifying events, frenzied crowds, and stunning graphics to deliver high octane, dive-in-and-drive thrills from event one.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 28

Looking at Dirt Showdown, you can see that our overclocked Sapphire R9 270 Dual X 2GB OC actually sees a small drop in performance at the lower resolutions and no change at the highest. While we're never happy about a drop in performance, at least the numbers remain in the playable realm at both 1920 x 1200 and 1680 x 1050.

Benchmarks - Nexuiz

Nexuiz

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.alientrap.org/

Product Homepage: http://www.nexuiz.com/

Nexuiz is an Arena First Person shooter coming soon to consoles. Nexuiz is fast paced with extremely competitive game play. IllFonic brings Alientrap Software's Nexuiz to next-gen gaming consoles around the world while staying true to the game play refined over the years through development. IllFonic introduces a new Victorian influenced art style that is simultaneously futuristic and sophisticated. Nexuiz for consoles is powered by CryENGINE 3.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 29

Nexuiz sees a small performance boost at the lower resolutions, but just as you'd expect, the overall FPS at all resolutions on all setups here are just way too low for the game to be playable.

Benchmarks - Sniper Elite V2

Sniper Elite V2

Version and / or Patch Used: Standalone Benchmark

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.rebellion.co.uk/

Product Homepage: http://sniperelitev2.com/us/age.html

Sniper Elite V2 features detailed sniping simulation with advanced ballistics that take into account gravity, wind, velocity, bullet penetration, aim stability, and more. It is guaranteed to provide players with the most realistic simulation of military sharpshooting yet available.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 30

Sniper Elite V2 sees the overclocked Sapphire R9 270 Dual X 2GB OC get a couple of extra FPS across the board. The 1920 x 1200 66 FPS number looks especially good as we manage to get a bit more breathing room from that 60 FPS average we're normally looking for.

Benchmarks - Sleeping Dogs

Sleeping Dogs

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://eu.square-enix.com/en

Product Homepage: http://www.sleepingdogs.net/

The core gameplay of Sleeping Dogs consists of giving the player an open world environment in which to move around freely. Sleeping Dogs is played as an over-the-shoulder, third-person perspective action-adventure game with role-playing elements. The player controls Wei Shen, a Chinese-American police officer, as he goes undercover to infiltrate the Sun On Yee Triad organization. On foot, the player character has the ability to walk, run, jump, climb over obstacles, and swim, as well as use weapons and martial arts in combat. Players also drive a variety of vehicles, including cars, boats, and motorcycles.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 31

Sleeping Dogs numbers look great with playable numbers across the board. Just like Sniper Elite V2, we see that extra performance coming in handy. At the highest resolution, you can see the 66 FPS average helps give us a bit more breathing room over the stock-clocked HIS version we looked at.

Benchmarks - Hitman Absolution

Hitman Absolution

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.ioi.dk/

Product Homepage: http://hitman.com/

Hitman: Absolution is an action-adventure stealth game developed by I/O Interactive and published by Square Enix. It is the fifth entry in the Hitman game series and runs on I/O Interactive's proprietary Glacier 2 game engine. Before release, the developers stated that Absolution would be easier to play and more accessible while still retaining hardcore aspects of the franchise. The game was released on 20 November 2012, which is in the 47th week of the year (in reference to the protagonist, Agent 47).

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 32

Hitman Absolution sees a slight performance bump across the board but nothing that is going to change the overall gaming experience. We continue to see playable numbers at both 1920 x 1200 and 1680 x 1050, but when we move to 2560 x 1600, you can see the average is just a little too low, despite having a strong minimum here.

Benchmarks - Tomb Raider

Tomb Raider

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://www.nixxes.com/

Product Homepage: http://www.tombraider.com/us/base/agegate?refer=184&

Tomb Raider is an action-adventure platform video game. Published by Square Enix, Tomb Raider is the fifth title developed by Crystal Dynamics in the Tomb Raider franchise. As the first entry in a new Tomb Raider continuity, the game is a reboot that emphasizes the reconstructed origins of the culturally influential lead character Lara Croft. Tomb Raider was released on 5 March 2013 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows to universal critical acclaim.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 33

Tomb Raider manages to see a bit of a performance increase, and the jump at 1680 x 1050 from 44 FPS to 52 FPS is a good one. While we're not at that 60 FPS number we normally like to hit, the fact we've got a 37 FPS minimum means that we're kind of borderline for what we would consider playable; you may or may not choose to adjust the detail slightly to bring that average up higher.

Above that, though, you can see that the numbers just aren't where we need them to be.

Benchmarks - BioShock Infinite

BioShock Infinite

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Steam Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Built in Benchmark

Developer Homepage: http://irrationalgames.com/

Product Homepage: http://www.bioshockinfinite.com

BioShock Infinite is a first-person shooter video game and the third installment in the BioShock series. Previously known as "Project Icarus," it is being developed by Irrational Games and was released worldwide on the Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 platforms on March 26, 2013. BioShock Infinite is not part of the storyline of previous BioShock games but features similar gameplay concepts and themes.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 34

Looking at BioShock Infinite, you can see that the overclock helps push our 1680 x 1050 average FPS to that magical 60 number. Above that, we see a little increase in performance with an extra FPS seen at both resolutions. Overall, though, the averages are just too low.

Benchmarks - Battlefield 4

Battlefield 4

Version and / or Patch Used: Latest Origin Update

Timedemo or Level Used: Custom 60 Second Run with FRAPS

Developer Homepage: http://dice.se/

Product Homepage: https://www.battlefield.com/games/battlefield-4

Battlefield 4 (also known as BF4) is a first-person shooter video game developed by Digital Illusions CE and published by Electronic Arts. The game is a sequel to 2011's Battlefield 3. Battlefield 4 features several changes compared to its predecessor. The game's heads-up display is much the same, composed of two compact rectangles. The lower left-hand corner features a mini-map and compass for navigation, and a simplified objective notice above it; the lower right includes a compact ammo counter and health meter.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 35

While the Battlefield 4 minimums see a slight increase, you can see the averages on a whole take a dive. Overall, the results are the same in the sense that 1920 x 1200 and 1680 x 1050 continue to offer playable FPS. 2560 x 1600, though, is just too low with a 46 FPS average.

Benchmarks - High Quality AA and AF

High Quality AA and AF

While we test all our games with maximum in-game settings, turning on Anti-Aliasing (AA) and Antistrophic Filtering (AF) helps take the intensity of our testing to another level.

Here we see video cards go from playable FPS to unplayable FPS, and the real power houses continue to break that 60 FPS mark we always aim for to provide a smooth gaming experience.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 36

With AA and AF on, you can see that the Sapphire doesn't see any performance increase. In the end, though, the performance on a whole is just way too low that no overclock would bring us to playable levels.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 37

Just Cause 2 sees a nice little performance boost, and you can see our overclocked Sapphire R9 270 Dual X 2GB OC manages to move into the 70 FPS range. The 46 FPS average at 2560 x 1600, though, is just still too low.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 38

While Sleeping Dogs sees an extra FPS at both resolutions, the numbers on a whole are just way too low.

Temperature Test

The temperature of the core is pulled from MSI Afterburner with the max reading used after a completed run of 3DMark Vantage at the Performance preset.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 50

Temperature numbers on a whole are pretty strong with the overclocked Sapphire R9 270 Dual X 2GB OC sitting well into the bottom half of the pack. You can see the load numbers are actually in line with the reference clocked HIS. Considering the extra MHz, this is only a good thing for the Sapphire offering.

Sound Test

Pulling out the TES 1350A Sound Level Meter, we find ourselves quickly yelling into the top of it to see how loud we can be.

After five minutes of that, we get a bit more serious and place the device two CM away from the fan on the card to find the maximum noise level of the card when idle (2D mode) and in load (3D mode).

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 51

Noise levels look pretty strong, sitting below the half way mark as you'd hope. The idle number, though, is particularly strong, coming in a little over 50dB. Looking above, you can see that's considerably lower than a lot of the other cards that sit around it.

Power Consumption Test

Using our PROVA Power Analyzer WM-01--or "Power Thingy" as it has quickly become known as to our readers--we are now able to find out what kind of power is being used by our test system and the associated video cards installed. Keep in mind that it tests the complete system (minus LCD monitor, which is plugged directly into AC wall socket).

There are a few important notes to remember, though. While our maximum power is taken in 3DMark06 at the same exact point, we have seen in particular tests the power being drawn as much as 10 percent more. We test at the exact same stage every time, so tests should be very consistent and accurate.

The other thing to remember is that our test system is bare minimum--only an SSD hard drive is used with a single CD ROM and minimal cooling fans.

So while the system might draw 400 watts in our test system, placing it into your own PC with a number of other items will result in a higher draw.

Sapphire Radeon R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC Overclocked Video Card Review 52

Power draw numbers on the new R series of cards are pretty strong, and you can see here is really no difference. Even with overclocking thrown into the mix, we're just a little over 300 watts under load.

Pricing, Availability and Final Thoughts

While the R9 270 2GB was one of the last cards to be launched, we continued to find ourselves impressed with what AMD was offering. Filling in that gap between the R7 260X 2GB and the R9 270X 2GB, the R9 270 2GB did a good job coming in at the low $200 mark. The model also helped AMD continue to apply pressure to NVIDIA on its own line of cards.

The Sapphire R9 270 2GB Dual-X OC is going to set you back somewhere around the low $200 region at the time of writing. You are, of course, paying a slight premium for the upgraded cooler, but it clearly seems to do a good job. Overclocking wasn't too bad, and the noise levels alongside the temperature ones continued to look strong.

Getting into the bundle of the card, it's all very typical Sapphire. The added HDMI cable helps the company stand out slightly from the competition. While it's not something that you'll use right now, the addition of an HDMI cable laying around the house is great. I needed one just the other day, and I was able to grab from a Sapphire box. It's not the biggest extra, but it beats a game that you're not going to play or just simply nothing at all.

When it comes to performance, the Sapphire offering is going to be slightly quicker out the box when compared to the reference-clocked card thanks to the slight overclock they offer. Of course, if you want to get more out of the card, you can fire up something like Sapphire TriXX or MSI Afterburner and get even more performance out of the model.

For the money, the R9 270 2GB is a good model that offers some great bang for your buck. As always, Sapphire offers us a great variant of the model. The Dual-X line of cards isn't new to us, and it's manage to impress us in the past. Designed for mid-range AMD models, the series does a great job. If you're looking at spending around that $200 mark, the Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC is a great option. Fire up some overclocking software, and you can get even more performance out of the model with very little effort.

PRICING: You can find the Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC retails for $199.99 at Amazon.

Canada: The Sapphire R9 270 Dual-X 2GB OC retails for CDN$311.37 at Amazon Canada.

What do TweakTown.com awards mean? Click for details!

PRICING: You can find products similar to this one for sale below.

USUnited States: Find other tech and computer products like this over at Amazon.com

UKUnited Kingdom: Find other tech and computer products like this over at Amazon.co.uk

AUAustralia: Find other tech and computer products like this over at Amazon.com.au

CACanada: Find other tech and computer products like this over at Amazon.ca

DEDeutschland: Finde andere Technik- und Computerprodukte wie dieses auf Amazon.de

Shawn takes care of all of our video card reviews. From 2009, Shawn is also taking care of our memory reviews, and from May 2011, Shawn also takes care of our CPU, chipset and motherboard reviews. As of December 2011, Shawn is based out of Taipei, Taiwan.

Newsletter Subscription
We openly invite the companies who provide us with review samples / who are mentioned or discussed to express their opinion. If any company representative wishes to respond, we will publish the response here. Please contact us if you wish to respond.