Graphics Cards - Page 93

Overclocker CENS has pushed the clock speed on a GeForce RTX 4090 to new heights, passing the 3900 MHz barrier to hit an impressive 3930 MHz and sustain that for over 46 seconds. The number surpasses the previous best set by CENS of 3825 MHz and now sits in the top spot in HWBOT's GPUPI 3.3 32B ranking.

The GPUPI benchmark isn't about pushing graphics or visuals but about observing peak frequency through complex mathematics. Interestingly, the Top 10 results are all GeForce RTX 4090 overclocks, pointing to NVIDIA's flagship GPU as the most powerful in raw performance and potential boost clock speeds. AMD is basically nowhere to be seen here.

Still, it's an impressive showing and another step towards a single GPU hitting 4 GHz, which this result is just 70 MHz shy of!

Some weirdness in the world of AMD drivers for Radeon graphics cards, with two AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition releases adding F1 23 support. AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 22.40.57.06 for F1 23 covers all Radeon GPUs from the Radeon RX 7900 to the RX 6000 Series and even cards from the Radeon RX 500 Series.

That is all GPUs apart from one, the new AMD Radeon RX 7600. And so it looks like AMD has released an F1 23 optimized driver, AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 23.10.01.37, specifically for the Radeon RX 7600. And separately from the mainline driver update.

This isn't the first time we've seen a split in driver support for AMD drivers for the new RDNA 3-based Radeon RX 7000 Series, with the company taking a few months to unify its driver updates to support the new cards and previous generation cards after the launch of the Radeon RX 7900 and Radeon RX 7900 XTX in December.

With NVIDIA dominating the GPU space, it's always good to see new players enter the game, Intel with its Arc Graphics line-up or Moore Threads, a Chinese-based tech company looking to create new GPUs for the PC gaming market.

But we already know that the Moore Threads MTT S80, even with its MUSA architecture with 14.4 TFLOPs of performance, 16GB of GDDR6, and a 256-bit memory bus, is something of a dud. Earlier this year, we reported on benchmarks for the new GPU appearing online, where South Korean outlet BullsLab showed it lagging the GeForce GT 1030. A passively cooled 30W GPU with only 2GB of VRAM and a 64-bit memory bus. Yikes.

The story isn't much better with the latest benchmarks, this time from Japanese outlet PC Watch, which shows the Moore Threads MTT S80 being absolutely destroyed by the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 150 Ti. Not only that, but PC Watch came across several titles that didn't even run on the card, and the most prominent issues look to be around DirectX 12 and Vulkan-based games.

Our good friend Igor Wallossek over at Igor's Lab has tested the new professional Radeon Pro W7800 GPU as a potential gaming card - the still-to-be-announced Radeon RX 7800 XT. The big thing is that these GPUs are not like-for-like; one is designed for efficiency and professional workloads, while the other is all about gaming performance.

First up, with the Radeon Pro W7800 GPU rated at 260W, the estimation made by Igor's Lab is that the Radeon RX 7800 XT proper will be rated at around 270W, not to mention the fact that it will probably feature 16GB of VRAM. Other considerations were taken, including drivers that will be a factor and that memory speeds will differ. The Radeon PRO W7800's 4480 shader units, 280 texture mapping units, and 70 ray tracing acceleration cores match the expected Radeon RX 7800 XT specs.

And with that, Igor's Lab's extensive benchmarks - which go into far greater technical detail than my quick summary here - present 1080p, 1440p, and 4K simulated results for the Radeon RX 7800 XT plus adjusted results. And for those wondering, you're looking at a modest improvement to the Radeon RX 6800 XT, albeit with better power efficiency, thanks to the new RDNA 3 architecture.

NVIDIA has released a new driver update with the GeForce Game Ready 536.23 WHQL driver now available for download or updating via the GeForce Experience app. It brings day-one support for F1 23, out June 16, which supports DLSS and ray-tracing in the form of reflections, shadows, and ambient occlusion. Like F1 22, DLSS 3 support is coming with a post-launch update.

GeForce Game Ready 536.23 also supports Aliens: Dark Descent, a cool-looking XCOM strategy game set in the Aliens universe - specifically James Cameron's Aliens. And both F1 23 and Aliens: Dark Descent support is part of the new Intel Game On Drivers for Arc Graphics which has also dropped today. F1 23 is also set to support Intel's XeSS on day one to boost performance on the Intel Arc A750.

Intel's latest driver release preps Arc Graphics for the upcoming release of Counter-Strike 2 from Valve, the official free upgrade to CS:GO. Running on the Source 2 engine, it promises several visual overhauls and dramatically improves the server-side tech. This is excellent news for Arc owners, as CSGO presented quite a few issues when the GPUs launched last year; the Intel Arc A750 can deliver 167 FPS at 1440p High settings with 1% lows of 130 FPS.

AMD has yet to announce or even formally hint at when we might see the proper mid-range options for its new RDNA 3-powered Radeon RX 7000 line-up. It's not hard to understand why there has been a delay, as sales for discounted Radeon RX 6700 and RX 6800 GPUs have made them an excellent choice for many new PC builds in recent months.

Still, we got our first look at Navi 32, the GPU that will presumably power the Radeon RX 7700 XT and Radeon RX 7800 XT, via a new Forbes interview with AMD CEO and President Lisa Su. As part of the b-roll footage in the video (which you can see at the end of the article at around the 1:30 mark), we got a glimpse at Navi 32 sitting alongside other AMD chips, and it provides some insight into what to expect.

The image confirms a similar multi-chip or chiplet design seen with the Radeon RX 7900 XT and Radeon RX 7900 XTX, albeit with a single GCD (Graphics Compute Die) in the center measuring at around 200mm squared with four MCDs (Multi-Cache Die) measuring at approximately 37.5mm squared each.

AMD recently launched its new Radeon RX 7600 GPU, an 8GB GPU targeting the mainstream 1080p gaming segment. Based on our in-depth review, the USD 269 price point presents a pretty good deal when you're getting better than GeForce RTX 3060 performance. Not to mention around 25% more performance than its predecessor, the Radeon RX 6600.

But, with new GPU launches sitting alongside massive discounts to previous-gen models (where it seems like now's the right time to purchase something like the Radeon RX 6700, RX 6800, or GeForce RTX 3060 Ti), it looks like AMD's new mainstream RDNA 3 card has effectively dropped the price of the previous-gen RDNA 2 model.

And with that, over at Newegg (link at the end of this article), the ASRock Radeon RX 6600 8GB is currently being sold with a $20 off promo that puts its price down to USD 179.99. This represents a 33% discount when you compare the price to the new Radeon RX 7600 though you're getting something less powerful.

Bright and colorful PC components aren't exactly new, and we've seen some impressive designs over the years - including licensed stuff that adds a bit more flair to the usual black or monotone look we see for the most part. And there's the rise in popularity and presence of white hardware, from GPUs to motherboards, cases, and everything else.

This new GPU from Chinese company Zephyr, the Zephyr GeForce RTX 3060 Ti ITX, looks like a small form-factor GeForce RTX 3060 Ti in white. Taking a closer look at the pink fan, you might notice that the PCB is also pink - which is a first.

The "Sakura and Snow" color scheme of white and pink is the main drawcard alongside the mini-ITX form factor, which means this GPU could be slotted into pretty much any build. Unfortunately, Zephyr is an unknown quantity outside of China, so we don't think this one will get a wide release.

UPDATE: NVIDIA has confirmed the June 29 launch date for the GeForce RTX 4060 and is now listing the date on the GPU's product page.

With rumors pointing to a potential early release for the new GeForce RTX 4080 8GB from July to late June, today comes confirmation from Videocardz.com, citing release plans and embargo information from NVIDIA's partners, that this is indeed the case.

According to the leaked info, reviewers will get their hands-on the new mainstream GeForce RTX 40 Series GPU around June 21, with MSRP model reviews set to drop on June 28, with non-MSRP model reviews coming on June 29. And with that, the global launch for the GeForce RTX 4060 is happening on June 29, before July though pretty much on the cusp.

GIGABYTE is refreshing its GeForce RTX 4090 WINDFORCE graphics card with the new GeForce RTX 4090 WINDFORCE V2 24G, and the most interesting change looks to come from moving the 12VHPWR power connector to the backside of the GPU. It's still a part of the board but is now positioned facing outward with ample space for cabling via a single cable or a 12VHPWR to 8-pin adaptor.

For those looking at the GeForce RTX 4090 and rightfully concerned about having to bend cables, this design should alleviate those fears, and we wouldn't be surprised if it becomes GIGABYTE's standard design for massive GPUs going forward. And as an added bonus, the new V2 WINDFORCE RTX 4090 is smaller than the original - coming in at under 3 slots!

No matter the model, the GeForce RTX 4090 is a monster in terms of the 4K performance it delivers and the physical size of the cooling it requires - so it's great to see this revision shrinking the overall size of the GPU. Dimension-wise, the new V2 is 331 x 136 x 55.5mm compared to the original's 331 x 150 x 70mm.

At Computex 2023, one of the big recurring stories and advances that we witnessed first-hand from all the major players was a shift towards cable management and making fundamental design changes to motherboards, graphics cards, cases, and even fans to minimize the number of cables you see and make the whole building process smoother and more manageable.

At first glance, the new GeForce RTX 4070 AX eSports and GeForce RTX 4060 Ti iChill X2 White from Inno3D look to follow in the footsteps of concept GPUs that pretty much remove the PCIe power connectors.

The clever design touch puts the connector on the back for a hidden approach to make new PC builds cleaner with no noticeable cables plugging into the GPU. Having the power cables routed via the back of the GPU is an excellent idea, and based on the number of companies looking to make significant changes to how cables connect to GPUs, it's the sort of design idea we can see becoming more prevalent as time goes on.

Some more troubling news from the GPU world, with many GIGABYTE GeForce RTX owners - covering the GeForce RTX 30 Series (Ampere) and potentially GeForce RTX 40 Series (Ada Lovelace) too - reporting catastrophic cracking on the PCB.

With the cracking close to the power connectors, the graphics cards are non-functioning and in need of critical repair or replacement. This is troubling because GIGABYTE is an established and trusted brand in the PC gaming space, which has seen its graphics cards, motherboards, and other hardware components receive critical acclaim and commercial success.

In Australia, my homeland, it's one of the go-to brands for GPUs and motherboards for new builds - so a widespread PCB cracking issue is not the sort of news you want to hear about.

Recently we reported on the seemingly dire state of the discrete graphics card market, with a report from Jon Peddie Research stating that total AIB shipments decreased by around 40% in Q1 2023 compared to the same quarter from last year.

Well, NVIDIA's SVP of Gaming, Jeff Fisher, has presented a somewhat different story at the recent Bank of America Global Technology Conference, stating that the Ada Lovelace generation and the new GeForce RTX 40 Series are performing exceptionally well in terms of revenue and sales. With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20% for the GeForce segment of NVIDIA's business through FY23, Jeff Fisher specifically highlighted the success of the GeForce RTX 4070 and RTX 4070 Ti models.

Of course, with higher MSRPs compared to their Ampere generation equivalents, the idea of higher revenue and growth beings to make sense, with Jeff Fisher noting that the GeForce RTX 4070 and RTX 4070 Ti have generated revenue 3X faster than the GeForce RTX 3070 and RTX 3070 Ti - or 40% faster.

When NVIDIA lifted the lid on the new GeForce RTX 40 Series of GPUs - and so far, the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti is already available starting from USD 399 - we got word that the baseline mainstream GeForce RTX 4060 was set to launch sometime in July 2023.

NVIDIA is changing its plans, with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 8 GB now set to launch in late June 2023, as per insider leaks. The information comes via MEGAsizeGPU, a well-known and established leaker in the GeForce space, who said to expect the GeForce RTX 4060 in June.

The good news is that the GeForce RTX 4060 is set to launch with a price-point of USD 299, cheaper than the GeForce RTX 3060's launch price of USD 329. As far as performance is concerned, NVIDIA has already provided information noting that it will deliver a raw 20% or so bump over the GeForce RTX 3060 with the added benefit of being considerably more power efficient thanks to the new Ada Lovelace architecture as well as making full use of cutting-edge techs like DLSS 3 and Frame Generation.

When Intel introduced its new line-up of discrete Intel Arc graphics for PC gamers, it also introduced the AI-based Intel Xe Super Sampling, which is similar to NVIDIA's DLSS and AMD's FSR in that it's all about upscaling and boosting performance with minimal impact to visual fidelity.

Today comes word that XeSS (which is also compatible with non-Intel GPUs though tests showcase that it works best when leveraging Intel Arc's dedicated AI hardware) is now available in over 50 games.

The good news is that adoption for XeSS covers many popular PC titles, including the recently released Diablo IV from Blizzard and other high-profile releases like Hogwarts Legacy, Call of Duty Modern Warfare II, Returnal, and others.

Sales for discrete PC graphics cards or GPUs are in a dire state, with a new report from Jon Peddie Research stating that total AIB shipments decreased by 38.2% in Q1 2023 compared to the same quarter from last year. According to the report, this still equates to roughly 6.3 million units, down from the previous quarter's 7.16 million units.

But with new GPU releases from NVIDIA and AMD, in the form of cards like the GeForce RTX 4070 Ti, the report indicates that the demand for new GPUs is historically low. Jon Peddie Research cites inflation worries, layoffs, and people buying up last-gen graphics cards sold at a discount to clear out inventory.

With the prices we've recently seen for cards in AMD's Radeon RX 6000 series, discounts in the hundreds of dollars compared to their original MSRPs, it's no wonder people are snapping up bargains. We'd wager that the overall price increases for new high-end GPUs like the GeForce RTX 4080, GeForce RTX 4070 Ti, and Radeon RX 7900 XTX have factored into lower volume.

NVIDIA's DLAA, or Deep Learning Anti-Aliasing, is an impressive bit of tech that draws on a lot of the same technology that sits at the heart of DLSS - that thing we all enable if it's an option to boost performance.

DLAA isn't about boosting performance; it doesn't take a lower-resolution image as the input. Instead, it's about leveraging AI to improve image quality at your native resolution as long as you've got the frames to spare. And in the process, it makes PC games look sharper and more detailed compared to standard anti-aliasing techniques like TAA and MSAA.

DLAA is a feature already available in several games, and like DLSS, requires GeForce RTX hardware and its AI Tensor Cores to enable - but currently, it is a separate option. Today we've got word that a DLSS update for Unreal Engine, the 3.1.13 SDK, has a new DLAA mode that will sit alongside the existing Ultra-Performance, Performance, Balanced, and Quality Modes. Apparently, it will be called 'Performance Quality Mode', which admittedly is a little confusing.

Intel Arc Graphics added a couple of new professional graphics cards to their line-up with the Intel Arc Pro A60 and Pro A60M combo for workstations. Both expand the PCIe lane usage to 16 compared to other Arc Graphics products, and they support up to 12GB of VRAM with 384 GB/s of memory bandwidth - another step up over the current Arc line-up.

They're not only the fastest Arc workstation solutions that Intel offers, and the Intel Arc Pro A60 is single-slot slim too. Specs-wise the Arc Pro A60 features 16 Xe Cores, 256 EUs, 16 RT units, 256 matrix engines, and 12GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus. The mobile-focused Pro A60M reduces memory capacity to 8GB on a 128-bit bus.

Compared to the consumer-based Arc graphics, these new workstation models increase the dedicated AI Xe Matrix Extensions (XMX) engines and even the hardware ray-tracing units. Like their discrete desktop counterparts, they support full AV1 encoding, high dynamic range (HDR), and Dolby Vision output support.

AMD's RX 7600 graphics card is outperforming NVIDIA's RTX 4060 Ti in terms of sales, and by a good margin, if the latest gossip from the grapevine is right.

Well-known YouTube leaker Moore's Law is Dead (MLID) has a new video out that will not make pleasant viewing for NVIDIA, claiming that the RTX 4060 Ti is floundering out there right now. (Something early price cuts point to, as well).

One of the leaker's most trusted sources, who is apparently 'deep' within the supply chain, informed MLID that overall, this mid-range GPU head-to-head was a relatively modest launch globally for both AMD and NVIDIA.

An RTX 4060 graphics card has been spotted at Computex, with this model coming from MSI.

It's the first sighting of an RTX 4060 that we've been treated to - the vanilla version due to debut in July, as opposed to the RTX 4060 Ti, which is already out - although it doesn't bring any surprises.

By which we mean that the MSI Ventus 2X Black OC looks pretty much like the same take on that model with the RTX 4060 Ti (it's a compact board with dual fans, designed to fit well in a smaller PC case).