Technical Data / Specifications

ASUS ships its Radeon R9 280X Matrix Platinum card with the core clocked at 1'100 MHz and the memory at 1'600 MHz (6'400 effective). Compared to the R9 280X reference clocks the Matrix Platinum has a nice factory overclocking with 100 MHz on the core and the memory. This makes the Matrix Platinum the second fastest Radeon R9 280X out of the box at this time after the Toxic from Sapphire.

In the tested games we didn't see the PowerTune Boost in action, the card was always running at full speed of 1'150 MHz (under load). In Furmark though we did see it working, when running Furmatk the Matrix Platinum was going up and down from 1'100 MHz/1.256v to 950 MHz/1.2v.

	Matrix Platinum	DirectCU II Top	Radeon R9 280X	7970 Matrix Platinum
Chip	Tahiti XT2	Tahiti XT2	Tahiti XT2	Tahiti XT2
Process	28 nm	28 nm	28 nm	28 nm
Transistors	4.31 billion	4.31 billion	4.31 billion	4.31 billion
GPU clock	1'100 MHz	1'070 MHz	1'000 MHz	1'100 MHz
GPU Boost clock	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Memory GDDR5	3'072 MB	3'072 MB	3'072 MB	3'072 MB
Memory clock	1'600 (6'400) MHz	1'600 (6'400) MHz	1'500 (6'000) MHz	1'650 (6'600) MHz
Memory interface	384 Bit	384 Bit	384 Bit	384 Bit
Memory bandwidth	307.2 GB/s	307.2 GB/s	288 GB/s	316.8 GB/s
Shader Cores	2'048	2'048	2'048	2'048
TMUs	128	128	128	128
ROPs	32	32	32	32
TDP	xxx Watt	xxx Watt	250 Watt	xxx Watt
PCB Type	Custom Design	Custom Design	Reference Design	Custom Design
Lenght (PCB - Total)	28.5 - 28.5 cm	26.8 - 28.7 cm	xx.x - xx.x cm	28.5 - 28.5 cm
Height (PCB - Total)	13.9 - 13.9 cm	12.2 - 14.8 cm	xx.x - xx.x cm	13.9 - 13.9 cm
Slots	3	2	2	3
Cooler	DirectCU II ROG	DirectCU II	AMD Reference	DirectCU II ROG
Launch Price	$XXX	$XXX	$299	$XXX

To cool its Radeon R9 280X Matrix Platinum, ASUS makes use of the same cooler you find on the Radeon HD 7970 Matrix, the DirectCU II ROG. When you put the two cards next to each other you don't see any difference. In this case you get two eight and three seven millimeter copper heatpipes (non nickel plated). The heatpipes are not in direct contact with the core like the manufacturer advertise, there is an extra metal plate in-between. Soldered to the heatpipes you find the fin stack which is being provided with fresh air via two 95mm fans. Both fans are identical, they carry the model number T129025SU and are being manufactured by Everflow. Overall the cooler is well made and finished, there is only the thermal paste which could have been better especially on such a high end card. The thermal paste used seems to be of mid quality, it is soft but looks dry.

Most memory chips are actively cooled by the metal plate that covers a big part of the PCB, they are in contact with the cooling unit thanks to thermal pads. There are only four memory chips that haven't been included in the loop, the ones on the right side of the GPU, because they are in the way of the heatpipes.



No surprise here too, the 7970 Matrix PCB put next to the R9 280X Matrix PCB shows no difference, they are identical. We are talking about a beefed up to the edge power implementation with 20 phases for the main power design. The GPU gets sixteen phases (there are five on the reference card), the memory two and the PLL (VDDCI) two.

The same metal plate that covers the memory chips is also providing active cooling to the MOSFETs via thermal pads. The manufacturer decided to equip its 280X with a full metal reinforcement (backplate) to prevent bending and also protect crucial components from potential damage. The 280X Matrix also features VGA Hotwire, instant voltage adjustment buttons, the safe mode button, the turbo fan button and soldering points.
Component wise, the Matrix complies with ASUS Super Alloy Power standard.

Checking the voltage regulation chip we find a digital multi-phase controller labelled Digi+ ASP1211 for the GPU, probably a rebranded CHiL 8228 or 8318. Additionally, there are two unidentified 2-phase controllers labelled 02=FF 42H on this card. The one closer to the PCIe power connectors is taking care of the memory and the one close to the BIOS switch is taking care of the PLL (VDDCI).



The memory chips used are made by SK Hynix and carry the model number H5GQ2H24AFR-R0C. They are specified to run at 1'500 MHz (6'000 MHz effective).

Page 1 - Introduction	Page 12 - DIRT Showdown
Page 2 - Technical Data / Specifications	Page 13 - Far Cry 3
Page 3 - Preview & Delivery	Page 14 - Sleeping Dogs
Page 4 - Test Setup	Page 15 - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Page 5 - 3DMark Fire Strike	Page 16 - Metro: Last Light
Page 6 - Unigine Heaven 4.0	Page 17 - GTA V
Page 7 - BattleField 3	Page 18 - Power Consumption
Page 8 - Borderlands 2	Page 19 - Fan Speed / Noise Level
Page 9 - Bioshock Infinite	Page 20 - Temps - Idle / FurMark / BF3
Page 10 - Crysis 3	Page 21 - Performance/Price & Performance/Watt
Page 11 - Call of Duty Black Ops 2	Page 22 - Conclusion