Radeon 7900 Reviews

[Stuka87]

Will update this list as more come along.

ArsTechnica:
(Ryzen 5800X3D, Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Dark Hero, 64GB DDR4-3200, Windows ???)
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/202...0-gpus-are-great-4k-gaming-gpus-with-caveats/

Gamers Nexus:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=We71eXwKODw

Guru3D:
(Ryzen 5950X, ASUS X570 Crosshair VIII HERO, 32 GB (4x 8GB) DDR4 3600 MHz, Windows 10)
https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/amd-radeon-rx-7900-xtx-review,1.html

Hardware Canucks
(Ryzen 7700X, Asus X670E ROG Crosshair hero, 32GB DDR5-6000, Windows 11)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3XPNr506Dc

Hardware Unboxed:
(Ryzen 5800X3D, MSI MPG X570S Carbon Max WiFi, 32GB DDR4-3200, Windows 11)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4UFiG7CwpHk

Igor's Lab:
(Ryzen 7950X, MSI MEG X670E Ace,32GB DDR5 6000)
https://www.igorslab.de/en/amd-rade...giant-step-ahead-and-a-smaller-step-sideways/

Jay's Two Cents:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yq6Yp2Zxnkk

KitGuruTech:
(Intel 12900K, MSI MAG Z690 Unified, 32GB DDR5)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qThrADqleD0

Linus Tech Tips:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TBJ-vo6Ri9c

Paul's Hardware:
(Ryzen 7950X, Asus X670E ROG Crosshair Hero, 32GB DDR5-6000, Windows 11)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q10pefkW2qg

PC Mag:
(Intel 12900K, Asus ROG Maximus Z690 Hero, 32GB 5600MHz, Windows 11)
https://www.pcmag.com/reviews/amd-radeon-rx-7900-xtx

Tech Power Up:
(Intel 13900K, ASUS Z790 Maximus Hero, 2x 16 GB DDR5-6000 MHz, Windows 10)
AMD: https://www.techpowerup.com/review/amd-radeon-rx-7900-xtx/
ASUS: https://www.techpowerup.com/review/asus-radeon-rx-7900-xtx-tuf-oc/
XFX: https://www.techpowerup.com/review/xfx-radeon-rx-7900-xtx-merc-310-oc/

Tech Spot:
(Ryzen 5800X3D, MSI MPG X570S, 32GB of dual-rank, dual-channel DDR4-3200 CL14, Windows ???)
https://www.techspot.com/review/2588-amd-radeon-7900-xtx/

TechTesters:
(Intel 13900K, ASUS ROG Maximus Z790 HERO, 32GB DDR5-6000, Windows 11)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uQh4GkPopQ

 

[DeathReborn]

People tend to get hung up on temps too much. The chips are rated for 95C before they will start to do any sort of throttling. If the chips are designed for that temp, running them there won't hurt them.

However, better cooling will allow them to boost to higher clocks. So if you can have a better cooler, you can also get better performance. This is why undervolting is the new overclocking. The automatic boosting logic for both AMD and NV means lowering the voltage will lower temps, which will allow higher boost clocks.

The problem comes from throttling as the room heats up, or in some cases as soon as you put a load on the cards. I have seen a 7900XTX hit 110c when horizontal but only 86c when vertical, it's a random issue but it affects different cards differently. Der8auer in his video only tests cards in vertical mount outside of a case, he could be missing that data point or have no issue no matter the orientation. High temps bother me so just the risk of it is enough to put me off the MBA cards.

 

[Karnak]

whats the deal with the high temps drama now on several youtube channels?
one guy posts a response from AMD where they say 100c is normal.

People are getting 110°C hot spot temps which means the GPU is throttling which means the performance will be lower - and all that with fans already at 100%.

So no, that is def not "normal" that you're getting the gpu to thermal throttle with fans at max speed.

 

[Kaluan]

People are getting 110°C hot spot temps which means the GPU is throttling which means the performance will be lower - and all that with fans already at 100%.

So no, that is def not "normal" that you're getting the gpu to thermal throttle with fans at max speed.

With what drivers? The ones released 5-6 days ago (22.12.2) seem to overhaul clocking behavior. Better temps, power draw behavior and even some performance uplifts (CP2077 1% lows are a massive 22% higher). Going by Fabio/Ancient Gameplay's testing:



Results are of from his tuned/OC 400W PL (Sapphire) reference 7900 XTX, unlocked framerate first, 100fps cap second. CP2077 raster only, maxed.

 

[Stuka87]

The problem comes from throttling as the room heats up, or in some cases as soon as you put a load on the cards. I have seen a 7900XTX hit 110c when horizontal but only 86c when vertical, it's a random issue but it affects different cards differently. Der8auer in his video only tests cards in vertical mount outside of a case, he could be missing that data point or have no issue no matter the orientation. High temps bother me so just the risk of it is enough to put me off the MBA cards.

That's due to the design of the vapor chamber in the reference cards. This is not a new thing, and it has been discussed before. Several places have had articles and videos on it.

If the card is mounted in a regular configuration, the water inside the chamber will condense along the entire area the CPU touches. Gravity will pull the water down as it cools. However, if you have the GPU mounted vertically, the water is not going to condense along the entire area that the CPU touches. Gravity will pull the water down to where it may only condense on 1/4 or 1/2 of the GPU area.

There are some vapor chamber designs that can help prevent this, but none of them are immune to it.

Here is a recent video that goes over the internal structure of a vapor chamber:

 

[kallisX]

So no, that is def not "normal" that you're getting the gpu to thermal throttle with fans at max speed.

i realize that. i just think its odd that AMD approved it to market with 100c being "normal"
also funny how drivers can effect heat on a chip that much, but what do i know?

 

[biostud]

i realize that. i just think its odd that AMD approved it to market with 100c being "normal"
also funny how drivers can effect heat on a chip that much, but what do i know?

Knowing absolutely nothing about programming, I will just come with a guess. With the shift from hardware scheduler to software scheduler, they might be able to change how the different part of the GPU is loaded through driver updates.

With furmark it was possible to make a GPU to generate “unrealistic” amounts of heat, and so drivers where made to mitigate this. Now if your own drivers are not very optimized, then the might stall or overload specific part of the GPU in certain situations, and when you find a way to mitigate this by updating your driver code, you should see lower GPU temps.

 

[igor_kavinski]

Knowing absolutely nothing about programming, I will just come with a guess. With the shift from hardware scheduler to software scheduler, they might be able to change how the different part of the GPU is loaded through driver updates.

With furmark it was possible to make a GPU to generate “unrealistic” amounts of heat, and so drivers where made to mitigate this. Now if your own drivers are not very optimized, then the might stall or overload specific part of the GPU in certain situations, and when you find a way to mitigate this by updating your driver code, you should see lower GPU temps.

Yeah maybe their driver is so good at scheduling instructions and utilizing all available resources that the silicon is not getting enough idle time to cool down. Or someone somewhere made the wrong assumptions about the general silicon quality and some dies are more prone to overheating than others.

 

[biostud]

Yeah maybe their driver is so good at scheduling instructions and utilizing all available resources that the silicon is not getting enough idle time to cool down. Or someone somewhere made the wrong assumptions about the general silicon quality and some dies are more prone to overheating than others.

I was more thinking a long the lines of using proces cycles to generate data, that might not be used in the final frame. But again, I know nothing

 

[igor_kavinski]

I was more thinking a long the lines of using proces cycles to generate data, that might not be used in the final frame. But again, I know nothing

That's what HT does on CPUs. Not sure if GPUs have that.

 

[AnandThenMan]

whats the deal with the high temps drama now on several youtube channels?
one guy posts a response from AMD where they say 100c is normal.

100C may be considered "normal" but it shouldn't be. Also can AMD please kick their board partners in the arse and get them to improve their quality control? I have two Red Dragon 6800XT cards they both had the same problem, GPU not contacting the cooler properly. Easy enough fix I removed the spring limited screws and used regular screws.

Prior to the fix they would go past 115 degrees and shut down. GPU is supposed to throttle. Doesn't. These are the kinds of things that drive people to Nvidia.

 

[moonbogg]

All those problems and more can be yours for only $1000.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

100C may be considered "normal" but it shouldn't be. Also can AMD please kick their board partners in the arse and get them to improve their quality control? I have two Red Dragon 6800XT cards they both had the same problem, GPU not contacting the cooler properly. Easy enough fix I removed the spring limited screws and used regular screws.

Prior to the fix they would go past 115 degrees and shut down. GPU is supposed to throttle. Doesn't. These are the kinds of things that drive people to Nvidia.

Sounds like a QC/QA issue with that particular model.

While you state it is the kind of thing that drives gamers to Nvidia. I would think that issues like "Space Invaders", melting power connectors, and RTX Ampere cards being killed by New World would have driven them right back to AMD.

BTW, the XFX Qick 6800 I have runs cool and quiet. So do the RX 6600 and 6600XT Sapphire and Power Color cards I have. My XFX RX 6400 not so much, but that is more due to the ultra cheap and tiny fan and cooler they used. Not so bad it throttles, at least not yet, but toastier than I like under extended gaming.

 

[nurturedhate]

Sounds like a QC/QA issue with that particular model.

While you state it is the kind of thing that drives gamers to Nvidia. I would think that issues like "Space Invaders", melting power connectors, and RTX Ampere cards being killed by New World would have driven them right back to AMD.

BTW, the XFX Qick 6800 I have runs cool and quiet. So do the RX 6600 and 6600XT Sapphire and Power Color cards I have. My XFX RX 6400 not so much, but that is more due to the ultra cheap and tiny fan and cooler they used. Not so bad it throttles, at least not yet, but toastier than I like under extended gaming.

You're completely missing the point...

Nvidia included a free copy of Space Invaders with their cards.
Nvidia knew the bomb cyclone was coming for xmas 2022 to the US. Their cards only started fires to save their owner's lives. Jensen personally didn't want YOU to freeze to death.
Nvidia saved, SAVED, people from playing New World at launch. All for the better.

Nvidia gives us free games and saves our lives. Jensen starts with a J. Jesus starts with a J. Jensen saves.

Now you understand.

 

[nurturedhate]

Also Nvidia drivers killed my GTX 580 only to be resurrected three days later in the oven

 

[DAPUNISHER]

You're completely missing the point...

Nvidia included a free copy of Space Invaders with their cards.
Nvidia knew the bomb cyclone was coming for xmas 2022 to the US. Their cards only started fires to save their owner's lives. Jensen personally didn't want YOU to freeze to death.
Nvidia saved, SAVED, people from playing New World at launch. All for the better.

Nvidia gives us free games and saves our lives. Jensen starts with a J. Jesus starts with a J. Jensen saves.

Now you understand.

Indeed I do.

What sucks, is that some people have drank so much of the Nvidia green Hi-C Ecto Cooler, that had certain people posted that, it could have be subjected to Poe's Law.

 

[RnR_au]

An official(?) message from AMD?

Hello

I'll stick my neck out here and say I am one of the software engineering technical leads for this card.

We (sw,hw,thermals,management,directors) are well aware of this hotspot issue being reported and we are investigating / correlating steps to repro and collecting serial numbers (looks like 2-3 unique issue signatures).

The ongoing Covid situation overseas is not helping matters either as some factory representatives are out of office sick.

If the card has mechanical issues, certainly it should be RMA, but maybe there is something we can do to mitigate in firmware, in certain conditions. It's not clear yet.

110 hotspot is within spec if your card is getting up to 90° GPU edge temp... If 110 is hit at 70 edge, yeah that is not ideal.

Thank you for your passion for being an early adopter, we ask for some patience as we recharge over the holidays. Most engineers are out of office spending time with family.

Source

Seems PowerColor is collecting data on AMD's behalf. Seems its only some reference cards that are affected... possibly a bad batch, or a bad manufacturing line somewhere.Or maybe two... occasionally slightly out of spec randomly, and its only when you get bad spec gear from both that you get a bad cooling situation.

 

[kallisX]

I have two Red Dragon 6800XT cards they both had the same problem, GPU not contacting the cooler properly. Easy enough fix I removed the spring limited screws and used regular screws.

Prior to the fix they would go past 115 degrees and shut down. GPU is supposed to throttle. Doesn't. These are the kinds of things that drive people to Nvidia.

this has happened before with AMD. im actually a conspiracy theorist on this, it may be possible that some people have gotten money and looking the other way to sabotage their own products against a brand. people in here will notice if a cooler is not making proper contact, but most users will not, blame AMD and not ever buy that brand again. damage is done in the media etc while the supplier is not at fault.
you dont think stuff like this is happening in 2022? get real. when lots of money is involved and you know there is no evidence to convict you the possibility is very real.
the problem is also what people perceive to be true. what people perceive to be true is only based on what information they are fed, if they are fed no information about corruption they will refuse to believe it, usually they refuse to look at it also.
the top dog will always win in the end, history shows this again and again. the truthfull will perish.

 

[amenx]

IgorsLab investigates temp hotspots.

RDNA3 and too high hotspot temperatures on some AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT(X) - Cause research | igor´sLAB

Of course, you can discuss BIOS problems with the changed telemetry of the new RDNA3 cards, faulty thermal sensors in an alleged amok mode or even tangible mechanical problems, but in the end only AMD…

www.igorslab.de

 

[GodisanAtheist]

It's weird reading about junction temps over and over and over.

Wasn't there a bunch of hullabaloo about junction temps when the reading was first introduced with the... 5700xt cards?

Most card temp readings are edge of die, AMD introduces junction temps (center of die) readings and everyone lost their damn minds because they suddenly had info they didn't have before.

IMO so long as my card is operating properly and boosting to proper clocks then IDGAF what the junction temps are.

 

[Stuka87]

It's weird reading about junction temps over and over and over.

Wasn't there a bunch of hullabaloo about junction temps when the reading was first introduced with the... 5700xt cards?

Most card temp readings are edge of die, AMD introduces junction temps (center of die) readings and everyone lost their damn minds because they suddenly had info they didn't have before.

IMO so long as my card is operating properly and boosting to proper clocks then IDGAF what the junction temps are.

Yup! All the RDNA cards have junction temps as an option. And actually, different software may show different temperatures depending on which sensor they are reading.

 

[Tup3x]

It's weird reading about junction temps over and over and over.

Wasn't there a bunch of hullabaloo about junction temps when the reading was first introduced with the... 5700xt cards?

Most card temp readings are edge of die, AMD introduces junction temps (center of die) readings and everyone lost their damn minds because they suddenly had info they didn't have before.

IMO so long as my card is operating properly and boosting to proper clocks then IDGAF what the junction temps are.

Well, it would be fine if fan speed wouldn't go up to 3K RPM and if it wouldn't throttle because of it.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I lost two PCs, both with RX 5700 XT, and on with a lone RX 5700 XFX card.

After a AMD Adrenaline driver update, and a Nicehash update. They ran for maybe a week, then crapped out, within like a day of each other. They were on different circuits.

This was about a month ago.

 

[Shmee]

I lost two PCs, both with RX 5700 XT, and on with a lone RX 5700 XFX card.

After a AMD Adrenaline driver update, and a Nicehash update. They ran for maybe a week, then crapped out, within like a day of each other. They were on different circuits.

This was about a month ago.

This is unfortunate, sorry to hear that. I hope you didn't lose everything in those computers, hopefully it was just an issue with a single component? Or maybe even software?

But I don't see what this has to do with the 7900 cards

 

[Tup3x]

I lost two PCs, both with RX 5700 XT, and on with a lone RX 5700 XFX card.

After a AMD Adrenaline driver update, and a Nicehash update. They ran for maybe a week, then crapped out, within like a day of each other. They were on different circuits.

This was about a month ago.

It's a sign that you probably should stop doing what you are doing.

 

[amenx]

This is unfortunate, sorry to hear that. I hope you didn't lose everything in those computers, hopefully it was just an issue with a single component? Or maybe even software?

But I don't see what this has to do with the 7900 cards

Maybe because of 5700xt similarity with hot spot temps? Which are probably fine under normal circumstances, but maybe not when pushed in long term mining?

AMD confirms 110-degree RX 5700 hot-spot temps | bit-tech.net

Says it's totally normal.

bit-tech.net