ASUS R9 380 Strix RushKit

ASUS R9 380 Strix - RUSHKIT

| Source: ASUS Price: Author: Mark Campbell

ASUS R9 380 Strix - RUSHKIT



Today we are having a look at ASUS's new R9 380 Strix GPU, which holds the accolade of not just being one of AMD's First R9 380 GPUs to hit store shelves and being one of ASUS's first GPUs which has been made using their new fully automated production method.

This GPU is available in 2GB and 4GB versions and in terms of specifications this GPU looks perfect for 1080p gaming. This GPU will feature all of ASUS' latest features, including their 0 dB fan technology and will be using ASUS' Strix Cooler, which they say will make your GPU 20% cooler than an AMD reference R9 380.

ASUS are the first GPU manufacturer to fully automate their GPU production, bringing the accuracy in which they build their GPUs to a whole new level.

The increased precision in which ASUS is making their GPUs allows them not just to produce cleaner PCBs, but allows them to use much stricter methods for internal testing, meaning that their GPUs will be less likely to be built with or delivered to retailers with faults. With this new method of production ASUS will have a greatly reduced rate of returns and their users will have a reduced chance of buying a faulty or dead GPU.

For more information on ASUS' Fully Automated GPU Production, please read our full article on it here.

Up Close and Extra personal

It is hard to deny that this card is a real looker, with it's full cover backplate, exposed nickel plated heat pipes the lack of crossfire fingers makes this GPU look exceptionally tidy.

With one of ASUS' unique selling points of this card being it's ultra accurate manufacturing process we decided to give this GPU a closer look, which meant that we had to take all of it's clothes off. Nerd porn is incoming, prepare to cover the eyes of any nearby children.

(Nerd Porn Alert!!)

ASUS were not lying when they said that their PCBs would be cleaner than ever before> Every point where we would usually see soldering points on the PCB (like under the capacitors and the MOSFETs) we see barely any solder, which makes the PCB look much tidier and much less visible inside your system.

We would almost say that this eliminate the aesthetic need for a back plate on lower end GPUs, as the large solder points are what we typically want a backplate to cover up.

We definitely see this new manufacturing process give ASUS a distinct advantage in the lower end market, where GPUs typically do not have a backplate, as the PCBs of their GPUs should look much cleaner than the competition.

GPU Tweak II

One other thing that ASUS has recently launched is their new GPU Tweak utility, which add many new features to the overclocking program.

The first of these new features is a new GPU-z style window, which will provide you with most necessary details for your GPU, though sadly it isn't quite as easy to measure maximum VRAM usage, temperatures and fan speeds.

Second on the list is ASUS' "Game Booster" utility, which will help gamers take back every possible piece of extra performance out of their systems by disabling necessary visual effects on Windows, turn off any unused Windows services and programs and allowing you to defragment your system memory for optimum memory performance.

These changes make GPU Tweak II almost an All-in-one overclocking/ performance gaming utility, as it almost eliminates the need for GPU-z and other gGame boosting programs. If ASUS make maximum VRAM and Temperature measuring as easy to use as GPU-z, they will really have a winner on their hands.

Conclusion and Video

The ASUS GTX 380 GPU is a great looking GPU both inside and out, with the best looking PCB that we have ever seen and an exterior to match.

Many words come to mind when we think of ASUS, quality is the one that comes to mind most often, particularly while looking at this GPU. ASUS expect a dramatic decrease in returns or faults in their GPUs thanks to their new manufacturing process, so much so that we expect other GPU vendors to follow suit over the next few years.

The R9 380 more or less a R9 285 which has a bump in clock speeds, making it a great competitor to Nvidia's GTX 960, especially for it's retail price of £179.99. With many R9 380 GPUs also offering a 4GB frame buffer, we also expect that it will be albe to cope with the ever increasing size of textures for at least the next few years, provided that you are playing at 1080p.

With that crazy tidy PCB and the first GPU we have seen from the 100% automated process the Asus Strix R9 380 wins our Innovation Award

You can join the discussion on the ASUS R9 380 on the OC3D Forums.

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