- Joined
- Nov 23, 2001
Today, PowerColor announced the upcoming PCS+ HD 6950 Vortex II Edition video card. This comes only weeks after PowerColor discontinued the manufacturing of it's original overclocked model, the HD 6950 PCS++ that we reviewed. According to PowerColor, the PCS++ was pulled from the shelves after several customers reported problems with the unlocked 6970 BIOS that was included with the card.
The new PCS+ Vortex II Edition is not unlocked, but it does feature an additional 50 MHz memory overclock compared to the PCS++ model. The core overclock is 30 MHz less, but with the new cooler may allow for some additional overclocking headroom. Plus, I am guessing unlocking this card manually will still be an easy option.
The cooler features a "perforated fan design" and manual angle adjustment, which might allow for better airflow. According to the press release, this could lead to as much as a 20% cooler GPU when compared to reference cards. This could translate to as much as 12° C, based on my previous testing with these cards.
Assuming the price is right, this could be a nice option for overclockers and benchers. Having a strong cooling solution out of the box, saves the time and money of dealing with a third-party cooler.
What do you guys think? Will this be worth the extra $20-$30? Is 8-12° cooler worth the extra overclocking possibilities?
Here is the full press release (Courtesy: PowerColor) for those interested:
Full specifications are available on PowerColor's website.
The new PCS+ Vortex II Edition is not unlocked, but it does feature an additional 50 MHz memory overclock compared to the PCS++ model. The core overclock is 30 MHz less, but with the new cooler may allow for some additional overclocking headroom. Plus, I am guessing unlocking this card manually will still be an easy option.
The cooler features a "perforated fan design" and manual angle adjustment, which might allow for better airflow. According to the press release, this could lead to as much as a 20% cooler GPU when compared to reference cards. This could translate to as much as 12° C, based on my previous testing with these cards.
Assuming the price is right, this could be a nice option for overclockers and benchers. Having a strong cooling solution out of the box, saves the time and money of dealing with a third-party cooler.
What do you guys think? Will this be worth the extra $20-$30? Is 8-12° cooler worth the extra overclocking possibilities?
Here is the full press release (Courtesy: PowerColor) for those interested:
Full specifications are available on PowerColor's website.
