AMD introduced its first Radeon HD 6000 graphics card concluding October, when we reviewed the mid-range Radeon HD 6870. Since then AMD opened upward to bear witness its GPU roadmap and the cards that shortly thereafter were coming to market.

The high-end Radeon HD 6970 and Hard disk 6950 also arrived late last year, while the dual-GPU version of AMD's terminal generation graphics series code-named Antilles was expected to get in shortly afterward. Coincidentally (or not) both AMD and Nvidia took a few months longer than expected to show its hardcore dual-GPU graphics cards, with the one-time making the showtime move to finally unveil the Radeon Hd 6990.

Having looked at most of the previous generation Crossfire and SLI products, nosotros were certainly looking forward to see what AMD had in store for usa with this dual-GPU monster.

We don't remember AMD sells big volumes of these dual-GPU cards, in fact, previous versions of their topmost offerings have been known to disappear from retail temporarily then stock back up once again. Having that said, the Radeon Hard disk drive 6990 is an important product on AMD's line-upwards as it can do a lot for the series reputation, simply as the HD 5970 did before.

With both AMD and Nvidia trying hard to push button its graphics technologies across PC gaming, including the use of embedded graphics in motherboards and processors, that has also meant that the discrete GPU marketplace on the low-stop segment is shrinking and thus mid-range offerings are taking a new level of precedence.

Holding the performance crown can be a big deal, and AMD did so uncontested for quite some fourth dimension with the Radeon HD 5970. As you may call up, the GeForce GTX 400 serial was only too hot to stick a pair of GPUs on a single PCB and therefore Nvidia was never able to respond with a dual-GPU offering of their own. Nvidia has overcome all those issues at present, having also released their latest generation architecture with multiple GeForce 500 series products on offer today.

The GeForce GTX 580 is able to match the dual-GPU Radeon HD 5970 and even beat information technology in a number of areas. With the arrival of the Radeon HD 6990, AMD is hoping to take dorsum the functioning crown which they volition likely hold until the GeForce GTX 590 arrives.

Under the hood, the Radeon HD 6990 is essentially a pair of underclocked Radeon HD 6970 GPUs on pinnacle of a massive PCB. This is the same of what we establish with the Radeon HD 5970 which featured a pair of Hd 5870 GPUs operating at slightly lower frequencies.

When designing the older Radeon HD 5970, AMD worked hard to continue within the PCI Limited specification which calls for a maximum TDP of 300 watts. At 294 watts the Hard disk drive 5970 just scrapped in and was still the nigh ability hungry graphics card of its fourth dimension. However, the new Radeon HD 6990 is much closer in specification to the Hard disk 6970 than the Hd 5970 was to the Hd 5870. As a result the card's TPD rating has increased to a staggering 375 watts.

Perhaps for some that won't be the biggest shocker. The new Radeon 6990 is fix to sell for $699, which translates in a $100 premium versus the Hard disk drive 5970's price at launch. At this price signal gamers can alternatively buy a pair of Radeon HD 6970 cards and withal save a few bucks while scoring a little actress performance. With that in mind, let's bank check out the almighty Radeon Hard disk 6990 in meliorate detail...