why are the PCIe and power connectors blacked out? it's painfully obvious what they'd be. those looks like digital regulators though, has nVidia finally given up on analogue regulators? will this mean no more whining noise?
I think those have markings that could be tracked back to the manufacturer/source of the card -> NONO under NDA? Just my initial thoughts on that... Also liking how there's "just" 8+6 pin connectors, it isn't going to be too bad, now if only it idles at as nice a wattage as the new Atis do. And then to wait for my review sample
Jipa is correct. Tweakers.net got their paws on this sample for a few moments at CeBit, and in the article they state that they blacked out these markings themselves for exactly this reason. One thing of not that this article also states is that this sample concerns the A2 spin, while retail samples will be A3, so there still may be some differences.
8+6pin power. Confirms that this series is worse than the 2900XT launch, as those only needed the 8 pin supply for overclocking. AFAIK the only other cards that need 8+6pin power are dual-GPU cards, but this is a single GPU card... Getting dangerously close to max power usage limits there nvidia
This is going to be quite interesting, with that huge power req, one wonders how they'll tote the SLI card?
Few comments: That's a HUGE gpu die! I'm hoping that's a high end card - my 4850 (relatively high end last gen) only has a single 6pin power socket Why does the pcb have the airflow holes there if it's a single layer item? Seems to me the cooler doesn't match the card/there's a pcb missing? I remember when the 58xx/59xx series ati cards were launched everyone thought they were too long. This looks the same length?
You should know some HD4890's come with 8 + 6 pin connectors Dunno how commonly, but I've got one HIS HD4890 on the shelf that packs those connectors.
The 4890's that had the 8+6 connectors weren't following the reference though... Most of the models with 8+6 usually had a power modification of some sort, such as Asus's TOP edition 4980. The GTX480 has an 8+6 pin stock, and is apparently pulling around 280 watts. Me thinks I'll still end up with an ATI card in the next month...
What happend to the wood screws from the earlier version? Any idea on how long it is that must be closing in on a foot. My guess is that FERMi will give good performance but at a high cost.
I agree, existence of 6 and 8-pin connectors hints that power usage will not be that much greater then GTX 285. Or if you want to count this way: 6-pin connector has output of maximum 75W and 8-pin connector can output maximum of 150W = max power draw can be 225W. If performace will be half of what they say, it's not that bad then, right? Unless of course you count that 225W plus PCI-E 2.0 output of maximum of 300W, then then numbers go crazy! In this case, my Corsair HX850 wouldn't be able to handle 2x GTX 480???
Thats good, as if I was crazy enough ( and i'm already nuts ) to buy two of those I wouldn't have a problem. However, I would single-handedly start the next ice age if I turned the power on :0
Well, the problems with high temperatures can seem to be confirmed. The board seems to have those holes reserved for dual PCB cards and 4 big heat pipes.
dual PCB cards? when each chip consumes 280w? unless each PCB has its own power sockets it wouldnt be doable, and even then what would be the point over having 2 in sli? the heat will be a horrible engineering challenge alone.
- You can't use the size of the IHS to gauge the size of the GPU die. - If the GTX480 is 8+6-pin, chances are the GTX470 will be 6+6-pin. I suppose we might be lucky and power requirements drop like a rock when it's not being pushed as hard, but that would advertise that the chip is running on the ragged edge in the 480 cards... - Probably some extra breathing holes for the centrifugal fan. 4-pin black header for fan, 2-pin white header S/PDIF? I hope that fan isn't a GeForceFX/2900XT/dustbuster type...
Sorry, didn't make my post clear. The holes in the PCB indicate that the card will have a cooler that is powerful enough to cool a dual PCB card like the 9800 GX2 or GTX 295. Would love to see the engineering heat solution to a GTX 495 though
