SAPPHIRE Two New HD 7970 Vapor-X Variants

Sapphire launched a pair of new Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition graphics cards based on the same Vapor-X cooling solution as its recently-launched HD 7970 TOXIC, but with AMD reference clock-speeds.

Among Sapphire’s new Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition graphics cards are a 3 GB version, and a 6 GB one.

The 3 GB variant uses a cost-effective blue-colored PCB that has been featured on several Radeon HD 7900 series SKUs by Sapphire.

The 6 GB variant, on the other hand, uses the same high-end, black-colored PCB featured on the HD 7970 TOXIC.

Two things common to the two is the same Vapor-X cooling solution featured on the HD 7970 TOXIC, and AMD-reference clock speeds of 1000 MHz core, 1050 MHz boost, and 6.00 GHz GDDR5-effective memory (288 GB/s).

Both variants draw power from two 8-pin PCIe power connectors.

The PCB of the Sapphire HD 7970 GHz Edition Vapor-X 6 GB has 12-layers for improved signalling efficiency, and a 10-phase VRM that features International Rectifier DirectFETs.

The 6 GB of memory is spread across 24 GDDR5 2 Gbit chips, 12 on each side of the PCB.

The chips on the reverse side are cooled by a metallic back-plate.

The 3 GB variant has all its major components on the obverse side, and so there is no back plate, just a bare-blue reverse side.

The two also differ in display connectivity.

While the 3 GB variant has two DVI and one each of HDMI 1.4a and DisplayPort 1.2, the 6 GB variant has two mini-DisplayPort 1.2 connectors, next to an HDMI 1.4a, and two DVI.

The Vapor-X cooling solution uses a large vapor-chamber plate to draw heat from the GPU and memory chips on the obverse side of the PCB, and transport it to the massive aluminum fin heatsink.

Four (two each 6 mm-thick and 8 mm-thick) nickel-plated copper heat pipes transport heat to the edges of the heatsink.

Two 90 mm fans ventilate the heatsink.

Based on the 28 nm “Tahiti” silicon, the Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition packs 2,048 Graphics CoreNext stream-processors, 128 TMUs, 32 ROPs, and a 384-bit wide GDDR5 memory interface.

The chip supports the latest DirectX 11.1 API, and PCI-Express 3.0 bus interface.

Sapphire did not release pricing information, as this is a global launch, and prices vary between markets.

SAPPHIRE HD 7970 Vapor-X Variants Specifications:

• Output:
  • 2 x Dual-Link DVI
  • 1 x HDMI
  • 1 x DisplayPort
  • DisplayPort 1.2
• GPU:
  • 1000/1050(Boost) MHz Core Clock
  • 28 nm Chip
  • 2048 x Stream Processors
• Memory:
  • 3072 MB Size
  • 384 -bit GDDR5
  • 6000 MHz Effective
• Dimension:
  • 285(L)x135(W)x45(H) mm Size.
  • 2.5 x slot
• Software:
  • Driver CD
  • SAPPHIRE TriXX Utility
• Accessory:
  • CrossFire™ Bridge Interconnect Cable
  • 8 PIN to 4 PIN Power Cable
  • DVI to VGA Adapter
  • 6 PIN to 4 PIN Power Cable
  • HDMI 1.4a high speed 1.8 meter cable(Full Retail SKU only)

System Requirements:

• PCI Express® based PC is required with one X16 lane graphics slot available on the motherboard.
• Certified power supplies are recommended.
• 4096MBMinimum of system memory.
• Installation software requires CD-ROM drive.
• DVD playback requires DVD drive.
• Blu-ray™ / HD DVD playback requires Blu-ray / HD DVD drive.
• 500 Watt Power Supply is required.
• 850WattPower Supply is recommended for CrossFireX™ System.
• 2X150 Watt 8-pin PCI Express power connector is required.
• 4X150 Watt 8-pin PCI Express power connector is required for CrossFireX™ system.
• 64-bit operating system highly recommended
• Use of 3 or more displays with AMD Eyefinity technology requires a DisplayPort-capable panel or an AMD Eyefinity-validated dongle.