Power Consumption
For calculating power consumption, we used a Kill-A-Watt meter to deduce the subjective estimated idle and peak load numbers for the tested graphics cards.
Our results were based on the following tests:
- Idle – Windows 7 Aero sitting at the desktop (1920×1080, 32-bit) with 15 minutes of idle operation and stabilization.
- Peak – 3DMark Fire Strike Demo with the highest single reading recorded during the test.
It seems that Tonga does indeed bring power consumption improvements to the table. These results are pleasing considering the performance class of the R9 285 OC. In both idle and load states the R9 285 manages to best the other graphics cards in our collection.
Like power consumption, gamers and computer enthusiasts have become more aware of acoustical properties and tolerate noise a bit less than say a decade ago. For noise testing, we simply placed an off-the-shelf Digital Sound Level Meter (accurate to +/- 1.5dB) approximately 100cm and directly in front of our chassis with the side panel off and pointed directly at the graphics card with all case fans unplugged and the CPU cooler set to silent mode in the motherboard’s BIOS.
In idle operation, the R9 285 OC barely registers with our sound meter and remains fairly quiet under load. This is how all coolers should be. Well done, GIGABYTE!
Like power consumption and noise levels, gamers and computer enthusiasts have become more aware of thermal properties and definitely take all of these into consideration when making a purchase. For temperature testing, we simply record the highest temperature from a run of the 3DMark Fire Strike benchmark test from Futuremark. As you can see the acoustic properties coupled with the temperature levels combine for an ideal noise/temperature ratio. Well done, GIGABYTE.
Now that we have put the R9 285 OC through these additional tests, let us crank it up a notch and find out what overclocking abilities that this graphics card has in store for us.
