ASUS ARES II Dual HD 7970 Video Card Review

Nebulous · 01-28-13, 05:35 PM

A most excellent and thorough write-up Hokie! That sucker sent shivers down my spine! I want one!

ivanlabrie · 01-28-13, 07:04 PM

Ha! I told you it was an Ares, Mars, Jupiter something card

Yikes, that price tag is scary, but well, as usual this is a product for the e-peenists out there.

wingman99 · 01-28-13, 09:15 PM

I will take two!!!

hokiealumnus · 01-29-13, 12:33 PM

Quick 3DMark 11 run in tri-fire.

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HWBot link.

Having trouble figuring out how to get more voltage to the DirectCU II, which is needed to run Heaven at these clocks. That'll take some more time later.

bmwbaxter · 01-29-13, 07:25 PM

how difficult do you think it will be to install in a case?

EarthDog · 01-29-13, 07:28 PM

Id guess about as easy as installing a gpu and a small rad aio? Slot the gpu then mount the rad? Not sure but that is how I would do it!

bmwbaxter · 01-29-13, 07:30 PM

hose's just looked a bit long to me. excess hose isn't a plus for me, seemed a bit much if it is supposed to be mounted at the 120mm rear?

hokiealumnus · 01-30-13, 09:12 AM

They're long'ish, but not too long. Remember, it's coming from a GPU instead of a CPU, so the GPU tubing originates further from the rear 120mm fan hole. The other reason they're long is (probably) in the event you're using the rear fan hole for a CPU cooler, it might be able to reach to the top of the case from the GPU.

If it's too long for a given purpose, you could just turn the radiator a different direction, assuming no board / CPU cooler interference.

bmwbaxter · 01-30-13, 10:08 AM

Okay, fair enough. You know better than I since you can see it first hand. I have a feeling that the tube length isn't the only thing not being done justice in photo. That's not saying your review photo's aren't good, just that it is one nice looking card.

hokiealumnus · 01-30-13, 10:13 AM

If it helps, specs say the tubing is 13.4" long. By contrast, the H100's tubing is 12".

theELVISCERATOR · 01-30-13, 06:39 PM

whats the card sell for...seems like two 670s match up fairly well to it....

peanutbudder · 01-30-13, 07:04 PM

I was like, "oh that's pretty cool." Then I saw the price tag and my firefox crashed to the desktop.

Janus67 · 01-30-13, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theELVISCERATOR

whats the card sell for...seems like two 670s match up fairly well to it....

MSRP is ~$1500

m715 · 01-30-13, 11:28 PM

Thank You!
Impressive card

, great review!

Dark_n_Beyond · 01-31-13, 05:17 PM

Great write up, Hokie! All I can really say about the card is just....WOW.

Conumdrum · 02-02-13, 05:53 AM

Those bench comparisions are just... Like you said, moderately well off need not apply. WOW!

But if you have a Lambo in the garage and your a PC hardcore addict, then this beast slays them all. This time with not one ring, but two!

Great writeup. Wish I had a Lambo so I could play with this. I'm sure the pics don't even come close to how it felt in your hands or the tests results. 0 to infinity in OMG seconds.

Lucky you, glad you had a chance to play with it. You had to send it back didn't you?

If not. You better be building a rig for it.

Conumdrum · 02-02-13, 05:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hokiealumnus

They're long'ish, but not too long. Remember, it's coming from a GPU instead of a CPU, so the GPU tubing originates further from the rear 120mm fan hole. The other reason they're long is (probably) in the event you're using the rear fan hole for a CPU cooler, it might be able to reach to the top of the case from the GPU.

If it's too long for a given purpose, you could just turn the radiator a different direction, assuming no board / CPU cooler interference.

But a card like that deserves a nekkid tech stand so it can have spotlights and lasers to show it. A case would be like a car cover on a $1,000,000 car.

hokiealumnus · 02-02-13, 08:38 AM

The way the heatsink is designed, I bet you could put two universal blocks in there and add it to a water loop.

Sadly, yes, it has to go back. I'm awaiting shipping instructions. In the mean time, it's getting a bit more torture with the new 3DMark that's being released Monday.

Codeman05 · 02-02-13, 03:02 PM

wow.....would love to try and squeeze one of those into my mItx build hahaha.
Great review

hokiealumnus · 02-05-13, 02:13 PM

Well, this is going to be the ARES II's last hurrah in my hands. Tis slated to return to ASUS as soon as the proper department sends me a shipping label. It was fun while it lasted.

HWBot link. That's only 47 marks short of our 4x team record.

01-28-13, 05:35 PM	#21
Nebulous Señor Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: The Empire State	A most excellent and thorough write-up Hokie! That sucker sent shivers down my spine! I want one! __________________ <MEGA-O> Gigabyte Z77X-UD4H / i5 3570K@ 4.5Ghz 16GB GSKILL Sniper F3-17000CL11D-8GBSR XSPC Rasa Black / RX360 / MCP-655 / MCRes OCZ Vertex III SSD 120GB / 2x Seagates 500GB~Raid-0 XFX Double D FX-787A-CDBC Radeon HD 7870 + H80 Sony AD-7220S / Lite On LH-16A1S SilverStone Zeus ZM1350 1350w CM Cosmos 1000 / Win7 Pro x64 Samsung LN40A550 40" HD TV ** Under TITLE II, SECTION 210.340 it is legal to overclock **
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01-28-13, 07:04 PM	#22
ivanlabrie Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina	Ha! I told you it was an Ares, Mars, Jupiter something card Yikes, that price tag is scary, but well, as usual this is a product for the e-peenists out there. __________________ "What it can take scales inversely with how much you want it to not die." Bobnova
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01-28-13, 09:15 PM	#23
wingman99 Member Join Date: Dec 2003	I will take two!!! __________________ i5 2500K @5.0 GHz Motherboard Gigabyte Z68A-D3-B3 G.SKILL RipjawsX X.M.P. 1600MHz EVGA SuperClocked GTX 570 SOLD Ivy bridge i5 3570k
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01-29-13, 12:33 PM	#24
hokiealumnus Water Cooled Moderator Overclockers.com Lead Editor Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC	Quick 3DMark 11 run in tri-fire. HWBot link. Having trouble figuring out how to get more voltage to the DirectCU II, which is needed to run Heaven at these clocks. That'll take some more time later. __________________ Enjoy benchmarks? Join the benching team! \| New to water cooling? Read the Beginner's Guide to Water Cooling Your PC. xsuperbgx - "As a wise man once said: "Less talky. More clocky."" \| cyberfish - "When overclocked, it's undefined behavior." I.M.O.G. - "Vaseline on Ivy Bridge is a bad idea. But not so bad of an idea that it can't be fixed with a torpedo heater, a dishwasher, an oven, and a few hours. " \m/ OverClockers mATX L33T Club \m/ - Join Now! - My mITX Build
	QUOTE Thanks

01-29-13, 07:25 PM	#25
bmwbaxter Premium Member #5 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: London, Ontario, Canada	how difficult do you think it will be to install in a case? __________________ SSD > PCMark 05 freeagent - Torture is watching all these 2600k's kicking my rig in the mosfets HeatWare News Team Profile Monthly Benching Competition
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ASUS ARES II Dual HD 7970 Video Card Review

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01-29-13, 07:28 PM	#26
EarthDog Senior PITA Member Overclockers.com Editor Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Stuck in Maryland...	Id guess about as easy as installing a gpu and a small rad aio? Slot the gpu then mount the rad? Not sure but that is how I would do it!
	QUOTE Thanks

01-29-13, 07:30 PM	#27
bmwbaxter Premium Member #5 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: London, Ontario, Canada	hose's just looked a bit long to me. excess hose isn't a plus for me, seemed a bit much if it is supposed to be mounted at the 120mm rear? __________________ SSD > PCMark 05 freeagent - Torture is watching all these 2600k's kicking my rig in the mosfets HeatWare News Team Profile Monthly Benching Competition
	QUOTE Thanks

01-30-13, 09:12 AM	#28
hokiealumnus Water Cooled Moderator Overclockers.com Lead Editor Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC	They're long'ish, but not too long. Remember, it's coming from a GPU instead of a CPU, so the GPU tubing originates further from the rear 120mm fan hole. The other reason they're long is (probably) in the event you're using the rear fan hole for a CPU cooler, it might be able to reach to the top of the case from the GPU. If it's too long for a given purpose, you could just turn the radiator a different direction, assuming no board / CPU cooler interference. __________________ Enjoy benchmarks? Join the benching team! \| New to water cooling? Read the Beginner's Guide to Water Cooling Your PC. xsuperbgx - "As a wise man once said: "Less talky. More clocky."" \| cyberfish - "When overclocked, it's undefined behavior." I.M.O.G. - "Vaseline on Ivy Bridge is a bad idea. But not so bad of an idea that it can't be fixed with a torpedo heater, a dishwasher, an oven, and a few hours. " \m/ OverClockers mATX L33T Club \m/ - Join Now! - My mITX Build
	QUOTE Thanks

01-30-13, 10:08 AM	#29
bmwbaxter Premium Member #5 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: London, Ontario, Canada	Okay, fair enough. You know better than I since you can see it first hand. I have a feeling that the tube length isn't the only thing not being done justice in photo. That's not saying your review photo's aren't good, just that it is one nice looking card.
	QUOTE Thanks

01-30-13, 10:13 AM	#30
hokiealumnus Water Cooled Moderator Overclockers.com Lead Editor Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC	If it helps, specs say the tubing is 13.4" long. By contrast, the H100's tubing is 12". __________________ Enjoy benchmarks? Join the benching team! \| New to water cooling? Read the Beginner's Guide to Water Cooling Your PC. xsuperbgx - "As a wise man once said: "Less talky. More clocky."" \| cyberfish - "When overclocked, it's undefined behavior." I.M.O.G. - "Vaseline on Ivy Bridge is a bad idea. But not so bad of an idea that it can't be fixed with a torpedo heater, a dishwasher, an oven, and a few hours. " \m/ OverClockers mATX L33T Club \m/ - Join Now! - My mITX Build
	QUOTE Thanks

01-30-13, 06:39 PM	#31
theELVISCERATOR Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Michiana	whats the card sell for...seems like two 670s match up fairly well to it.... __________________ Intel 2600k @4.5ghz Megahalem/Corsair SP120 Pull Gskill Sniper 8gb DDR3-2133cas8 @ 1866 MSI P67A-GD65 BIOS 2.4 Galaxy Winforce GTX670 @1215/3404 SLI Xfi Fatality Pro Sound Boot /Adata SX900 256gb SSD Storage/ 2x 640GB WDAAK Raid 0 Antec 1200/Corsair 750 TX PSU / Win7 Pro 64bit Yamakasi 30" IPS 2560x1600
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01-30-13, 07:04 PM	#32
peanutbudder Member Join Date: May 2012	I was like, "oh that's pretty cool." Then I saw the price tag and my firefox crashed to the desktop. __________________ •Intel i5 2500k @ 4.4Ghz •Corsair H60 push/pull •ASUS P8P67 PRO •8 GB 1600Mhz DDR3 Corsair Dominator RAM (2x4GB) •(2)PNY Oc2 560ti 900mhz in SLI 1GB GDDR5 •80GB Intel 320(Boot) •1TB Seagate Black edition(Game HD) •Corsair AX850 •NZXT Phantom case
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01-30-13, 11:28 PM	#34
m715 Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Owego, NY	Thank You! Impressive card, great review! __________________ DESKTOP: THE MONOLITH - [Project Log] \| i5-3570k @ 4.5 GHz w/Corsair H100 \| ASRock Z77 Ext4 \| Corsair 16GB DDR3 \| Sapphire 7950x2 \| 120GB HyperX 3k \| Corsair HX750w \| Corsair 600T \| WIN8 PRO \| DELL 24" LCDs x3 \| Toshibia 40" LCD \| LAPTOP: \| ASUS X202E \| 11.6" TS \| i3-3217U @ 1.8GHz \| 4GB DDR3 \| 256GB SSD \| WIN8 \|
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01-31-13, 05:17 PM	#35
Dark_n_Beyond Premium Member #27 Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: Minneapolis, MN	Great write up, Hokie! All I can really say about the card is just....WOW. __________________ Main Rig:Asus Maximus V Extreme, Core i7 3770k @ 4.8, Samsung Green 1600 2X4, Corsair AX1200, EVGA GeForce GTX680 Classified (4 GB), Crucial M4 256 GB (W7), Alphacool UT60 360 & 280, MCP655, Raystorm full copper, EVGA hydro copper Current Bench Rig: Asus Maximus V Gene, Core i7 3770k, GSkill TridentX 2400 2X4, Corsair AX850, Various GPUs, KPC F1 Extreme Dark and Tek9 Fat pots Just another day in the evolution of convolution...
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02-02-13, 05:53 AM	#36
Conumdrum Mutant Forrespondent Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Las Vegas	Those bench comparisions are just... Like you said, moderately well off need not apply. WOW! But if you have a Lambo in the garage and your a PC hardcore addict, then this beast slays them all. This time with not one ring, but two! Great writeup. Wish I had a Lambo so I could play with this. I'm sure the pics don't even come close to how it felt in your hands or the tests results. 0 to infinity in OMG seconds. Lucky you, glad you had a chance to play with it. You had to send it back didn't you? If not. You better be building a rig for it. __________________ All stock for now, no need for more, but it's gonna be soon methinks. Giga Xtreme 58 mobo i7 965 ES D0 step Corsair 1600 6 gig SLI GTX470 OC when I need it to 870 GPU/1725 mem EK HF nickle blue top CPU block (free from Eddie) Koolance 470 waterblocks One big loop, two 120x3 rads. Pa 120.3 and XSPC RX 120x3. Swiftech 35x pump with V2 restop. GT AP15 fans. Banchetto Tech Station 120 GB SSD, and a few other drives. 1000W UltraX3 PSU, 900 watt (1500VA UPS 27" ASUS VG 3D/Nvidia V2 3D glasses and 24" Acer H243H UPS is 1500 PFCLCD
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02-02-13, 08:38 AM	#38
hokiealumnus Water Cooled Moderator Overclockers.com Lead Editor Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC	The way the heatsink is designed, I bet you could put two universal blocks in there and add it to a water loop. Sadly, yes, it has to go back. I'm awaiting shipping instructions. In the mean time, it's getting a bit more torture with the new 3DMark that's being released Monday.
	QUOTE Thanks

02-02-13, 03:02 PM	#39
Codeman05 Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: US	wow.....would love to try and squeeze one of those into my mItx build hahaha. Great review __________________ Gaming Desktop: i7-3770k @ 4.8GHz \| 16GB DDR3 @ 2000 \| 2x ASUS GTX 670 DC2 4GB SLI @ 1200/1600 \| Vertex 4 240GB SSD \| 3x 25" 1080p Surround Home Server: Q6600 @ 3.6 GHz \| 8GB DDR2-1066 \| 3ware 9650 \| Norco 2U RPC-2008 Heatware: 79-0-0 HWbot Goodbye to texas university...
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02-05-13, 02:13 PM	#40
hokiealumnus Water Cooled Moderator Overclockers.com Lead Editor Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC	Well, this is going to be the ARES II's last hurrah in my hands. Tis slated to return to ASUS as soon as the proper department sends me a shipping label. It was fun while it lasted. HWBot link. That's only 47 marks short of our 4x team record. __________________ Enjoy benchmarks? Join the benching team! \| New to water cooling? Read the Beginner's Guide to Water Cooling Your PC. xsuperbgx - "As a wise man once said: "Less talky. More clocky."" \| cyberfish - "When overclocked, it's undefined behavior." I.M.O.G. - "Vaseline on Ivy Bridge is a bad idea. But not so bad of an idea that it can't be fixed with a torpedo heater, a dishwasher, an oven, and a few hours. " \m/ OverClockers mATX L33T Club \m/ - Join Now! - My mITX Build
	QUOTE Thanks

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