MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review

MSI has your back if you want a 4K 120FPS or 8K 60FPS gaming beast, with its custom GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card.

Published
Updated
Manufacturer: MSI
18 minutes & 45 seconds read time
TweakTown's Rating: 99%
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The Bottom Line

MSI has one of, if not the fastest graphics card on the planet with its new GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO. 4K 120FPS and 8K 60FPS gaming are now a reality.

Introduction

NVIDIA has just unleashed its new GeForce RTX 3090 graphics card today, with the very best that the Ampere-based GA102 GPU has to offer with an ultra-huge 24GB of ultra-fast GDDR6X memory.

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The new GeForce RTX 3090 is effectively the new TITAN RTX as it replaces it in terms of the 24GB framebuffer and high price -- $1499 for the RTX 3090. This is $1000 cheaper than the TITAN RTX that the new RTX 3090 beats in every test and demolishes it in 8K gaming.

MSI provided me with a review unit before launch, so we can now roll right into the MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card review. If you are in the market for a new RTX 3090 and wanted a kick ass custom-cooled, triple-fan RTX 3090 then you need to have your wallet ready (if the websites don't crash this time) for the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO.

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NVIDIA is charging $1499 for its new GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition, while the custom MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO costs $1589, a $90 premium over the RTX 3090 FE.

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Everything You Need to Know About Ampere

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  • Ampere GPU architecture: NVIDIA has so much going on under the Ampere GPU hood, with the GA102 GPU packing a huge 28 billion transistors (that's 28,000,000,000) on the Samsung 8nm node. We have a huge 10496 CUDA cores on GA102, over double the 4608 CUDA cores on the TITAN RTX.
  • RTX improvements: NVIDIA has effectively doubled everything when it comes to RTX, where it will rips and tears your games and delivers them to your eyeballs faster than ever before with Ampere. If you want to run any RTX-powered games, you'll want a new GeForce RTX 3080.
  • GDDR6X memory: The new NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 has 10GB of GDDR6X memory on a 320-bit memory bus, with a huge 760GB/sec of memory bandwidth. You should see the 4K gaming results for the evidence of the Ampere GPU + GDDR6X memory slaying it.
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  • PCIe 4.0 connectivity: NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards are now PCIe 4.0 compatible, so if you're building a new AMD Ryzen 3000 series system with an X570 motherboard -- you will be ready to rock and roll with PCIe 4.0 connectivity.
  • HDMI 2.1: 4K 120Hz + 8K 60Hz = single cable: If you are buying a new TV in the coming months or years, HDMI 2.1 is going to be something you want. It opens up the bandwidth floodgates to 4K 120Hz and 8K 60Hz over the single HDMI 2.1 cable.
  • RTX IO: NVIDIA's introduction of RTX IO with Ampere is very similar to the ultra-fast game load times on the next-gen Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 consoles. You can read all about RTX IO right here, which is something we'll see build more foundation in 2021 and beyond.

MSI marketing

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MSI has deployed its TRI FROZR 2 thermal system on the custom GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO, with what MSI calls the "perfect balance of cool and quiet". It's true, the card runs incredibly quiet during gaming loads while keeping GPU clocks up nice and high.

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We have the core pipes precision-machined for maximum contact on that Ampere GA102 GPU, spreading the heat along the entire length of the heat sink.

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MSI has multiple thermal improvements with the TRI FROZR 2 thermal system, with wave-curved 2.0 fin edges that will disrupt unwanted airflow harmonics which give you a quieter-operating graphics card, while keeping the air running over it as quick -- but as quiet -- as it can.

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A nice recap on what is going on under the hood of the MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card.

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The card doesn't just look great, have kick ass performance, awesome thermals -- but it's also tough as nails. MSI has used more fuses in its custom PCB that provide improved protection against electrical damage. The enhanced PCB material design is using 2oz thickened copper as well, which improves conductivity, improving heat dissipation, and high-performance reliability.

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MSI wants you to bend the rules, not the card.

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You get a brace in the box so your MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO doesn't sag in your rig.

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MSI also has a comprehensive software package in its Dragon Center -- which lets you tweak, customize, and optimize your system in real-time in a few easy clicks of your mouse.

RTX 3090 tech specs

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Just look at the sheer CUDA core count increase, from the 4608 CUDA cores inside of the TITAN RTX to the insane 10496 CUDA cores inside of the RTX 3090. We have increases across the board, with third-gen Tensor Cores (328 of them) versus second-gen Tensor Cores in the TITAN RTX (576 of them).

We have 82 second-gen RT Cores in the new RTX 3090, versus 72 first-gen RT Cores inside of the TITAN RTX while TUs get bumped up from 288 to 328 and ROPs from 96 to 112 -- nice increases across the board, with some even more impressive performance numbers.

We have the same 24GB of VRAM here -- but the new RTX 3090 gets some ultra-fast GDDR6X memory versus the slower GDDR6 (but same 24GB framebuffer) on the TITAN RTX. It's on the same 384-bit memory bus, but the new GDDR6X is clocked at a much higher 9750MHz (19.5Gbps) versus 7000MHz (14Gbps) which results in way higher memory bandwidth numbers that hit 936GB/sec on the RTX 3090 compared to just 672GB/sec.

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MSI cranks up the GPU boost up to 1785MHz -- but my sample was pushing higher than that, and still had some OC headroom which we'll go into later on in the review.

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NVIDIA has a new third-generation NVLink bridge and connector with the GeForce RTX 3090, with the new RTX 3090 the only one in the Ampere-based GeForce RTX 30 series stack that supports multi-GPU technology. The new third-gen NVLink bridge has 112.5GB/sec of bandwidth to share between two RTX 3090 graphics cards.

Detailed Look

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MSI is using the same retail packaging on its GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO as the RTX 3080 GAMING X TRIO. We have detailed information on the TRI FROZR 2 cooling system on the back, as well as some more specs and the big mention of 24GB of GDDR6X memory in the bottom right.

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From the front of the card we have that triple-fan TRI FROZR 2 cooling system, as well as some RGB lights on those grills around the middle fan.

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You will either not like, or you will love the backplate on the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO. I personally dig it, but if it were up to me I'd get rid of that huge 'GEFORCE RTX' branding -- but I'm sure that is a condition of NVIDIA's for MSI to comply with. Personally, just the MSI dragon (even that could be removed) would look slick on the back.

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It's a thick card -- but it's no thicker than the MSI RTX 3080 GAMING X TRIO.

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You will need 3 x 8-pin PCIe power connectors for the card.

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That's a lot of pins.

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We have the same 3 x DP 1.4 and 1 x HDMI 2.1 as the RTX 3090 FE and MSI RTX 3080 GAMING X TRIO.

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Test System Specs

Latest upgrade:

Sabrent sent over their huge Rocket Q 8TB NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSD, which will be my new Games install SSD inside of my main test bed. Even the MSI Lucky Dragon loves it, he was just as hungry as I was during these reviews and 20-hour days for weeks on end. Thanks, Sabrent!

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I've got a new upgrade inside of my GPU test bed before my change to a next-gen test bed, where I will be preparing for NVIDIA's next-gen Ampere graphics cards and AMD's next-gen RDNA 2 graphics cards.

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Sabrent helped out with some new storage for my GPU test beds, sending over a slew of crazy-fast Rocket NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSDs. I've got this installed into my GPU test bed as the new Games Storage drive, since games are so damn big now. Thanks to Sabrent, I've got 2TB of super-fast M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD storage now.

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Anthony's Test System Specifications

Additional Images

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Benchmarks - Synthetic

3DMark Fire Strike

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3DMark has been a staple benchmark for years now, all the way back to when The Matrix was released and Futuremark had bullet time inspired benchmarks. 3DMark is the perfect tool to see if your system - most important, your CPU and GPU - is performing as it should. You can search results for your GPU, to see if it falls in line with other systems based on similar hardware.

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3DMark TimeSpy

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Heaven - 1080p

Heaven benchmark

Heaven is an intensive GPU benchmark that really pushes your silicon to its limits. It's another favorite of ours as it has some great scaling for multi-GPU testing, and it's great for getting your GPU to 100% for power and noise testing.

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Benchmarks - 1080p

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DOOM Eternal is one of the best-looking, but superbly-optimized games of 2020 with the folks at id Software truly putting their all into the id Tech 7 engine for DOOM Eternal. We're using the Vulkan API on DOOM Eternal here.

You can buy DOOM Eternal at Amazon.

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Another new entry into our regular graphics card benchmarks is Red Dead Redemption 2, which is powered by the RAGE engine by Rockstar Games. The RAGE engine has been tuned from its normal use in the Grand Theft Auto series. We're also running this on the Vulkan API.

You can buy Red Dead Redemption 2 at Amazon.

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Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it's nothing.

You can buy Middle-earth: Shadow of War at Amazon.

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Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games' latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.

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Far Cry New Dawn was developed by Ubisoft, and is powered the Dunia Engine, an engine that has been modified over the years for Far Cry and last used in Far Cry 5. Dunia Engine itself was a modified version of CRYENGINE, scaling incredibly well on all sorts of hardware.

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Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal R&D department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.

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1080p Benchmark Performance Thoughts

Please, please do not buy the GeForce RTX 3090 for 1080p gaming... it is so, so beyond overkill for 1080p gaming. Even 1440p gaming isn't really where the RTX 3090 is aiming for, it's more for 4K gaming -- and even 8K gaming finally.

Still, you are getting unrivaled performance even at 1080p.

Benchmarks - 1440p

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DOOM Eternal is one of the best-looking, but superbly-optimized games of 2020 with the folks at id Software truly putting their all into the id Tech 7 engine for DOOM Eternal. We're using the Vulkan API on DOOM Eternal here.

You can buy DOOM Eternal at Amazon.

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Another new entry into our regular graphics card benchmarks is Red Dead Redemption 2, which is powered by the RAGE engine by Rockstar Games. The RAGE engine has been tuned from its normal use in the Grand Theft Auto series. We're also running this on the Vulkan API.

You can buy Red Dead Redemption 2 at Amazon.

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Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it's nothing.

You can buy Middle-earth: Shadow of War at Amazon.

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Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games' latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.

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Far Cry New Dawn was developed by Ubisoft, and is powered the Dunia Engine, an engine that has been modified over the years for Far Cry and last used in Far Cry 5. Dunia Engine itself was a modified version of CRYENGINE, scaling incredibly well on all sorts of hardware.

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Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal R&D department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.

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1440p Benchmark Performance Thoughts

Please, please do not buy the GeForce RTX 3090 for 1080p gaming... it is so, so beyond overkill for 1080p gaming. Even 1440p gaming isn't really where the RTX 3090 is aiming for, it's more for 4K gaming -- and even 8K gaming finally.

Still, we're looking at 240FPS in DOOM Eternal on maxed out Ultra Nightmare settings, while we have 1-5FPS more performance from the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card over the RTX 3090 FE.

Benchmarks - 4K

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DOOM Eternal is one of the best-looking, but superbly-optimized games of 2020 with the folks at id Software truly putting their all into the id Tech 7 engine for DOOM Eternal. We're using the Vulkan API on DOOM Eternal here.

You can buy DOOM Eternal at Amazon.

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Another new entry into our regular graphics card benchmarks is Red Dead Redemption 2, which is powered by the RAGE engine by Rockstar Games. The RAGE engine has been tuned from its normal use in the Grand Theft Auto series. We're also running this on the Vulkan API.

You can buy Red Dead Redemption 2 at Amazon.

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Middle-earth: Shadow of War is a sequel to the popular Shadow of Mordor, which was powered by the Lithtech engine. When cranked up to maximum detail, it will chew through your GPU and its VRAM like it's nothing.

You can buy Middle-earth: Shadow of War at Amazon.

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Metro Exodus is one of the hardest tests that our graphics cards have to go through, with 4A Games' latest creation being one of the best looking games on the market. It is a serious test that pushes GPUs to their limits, and also features RTX technologies like DLSS.

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Far Cry New Dawn was developed by Ubisoft, and is powered the Dunia Engine, an engine that has been modified over the years for Far Cry and last used in Far Cry 5. Dunia Engine itself was a modified version of CRYENGINE, scaling incredibly well on all sorts of hardware.

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Shadow of the Tomb Raider is one of the latest games to join our graphics card benchmark lineup, with the game built using the Foundation engine as a base, the same engine in Rise of the Tomb Raider. Eidos Montreal R&D department made lots of changes to the engine during the development of Shadow of the Tomb Raider to make it one of the best-looking games out right now.

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4K Benchmark Performance Thoughts

Across the board you get more performance out of the box with the MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO over the RTX 3090 FE -- with games like DOOM Eternal up to 8FPS better -- with 164FPS average at 4K over the 156FPS average on the RTX 3090 FE.

For the most part, you're going to get 1-5FPS more at stock settings. There's some OC headroom for another few FPS on top of that as well. You're getting masterclass 4K performance with the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card.

Benchmarks - 8K

8K might sound like just 'double 4K' but it really isn't -- it is quad 4K, you would need 4 x 4K monitors stacked 2-by-2 in order to have the same pixel count as an 8K monitor or TV.

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We're using the Dell UP3218K monitor, which is a native 8K monitor outputting 7680 x 4320 at 60Hz. The monitor uses 2 x DisplayPort cables to do it, but I will note that NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 30 series graphics cards all support HDMI 2.1.

HDMI 2.1 is capable of delivering either 4K 120Hz or 8K 60Hz through a single HDMI 2.1 cable, which is what all of the new 8K TVs hitting the market will be using.

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8K Benchmark Performance Thoughts

I went into greater detail on the 8K performance of the GeForce RTX 3090 in my Founders Edition review, with MSI's custom RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO adding a few more FPS on each game I tested. Here's what I said in my RTX 3090 FE review:

This is why we're here: 8K gaming.

7680 x 4320 isn't easy... 4x the pixels of 4K, 16x the pixels of 1080p -- it chews through VRAM like it's nothing. You will need 16GB or more VRAM to drive 8K in some games (Control, Death Stranding, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, and others) which is where the huge 24GB framebuffer of the RTX 3080 FE and TITAN RTX come into play.

NVIDIA's new GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition carves through DOOM Eternal pumping out an astonishing 46FPS on the Nightmare graphics preset. The RTX 3090 rips and tears through DOOM Eternal harder than the RTX 3080 did... 46FPS average at 8K is bananas.

$1000 cheaper, 35% faster at 8K -- amazing.

Shadow of War at 8K on its maxed out graphics settings also has some great performance to stretch the legs of the GeForce RTX 3090, with 36FPS average -- up from the 30FPS on the RTX 3080 FE and just 24FPS on the TITAN RTX. This is a huge 50% increase in performance over the TITAN RTX.

But then you come to Control... and without any DLSS enabled (but RT fully cranked up) the GeForce RTX 3090 comes out swinging -- and while it might 'only' be 10FPS average, the only other card capable of running it at 8K + RT is the TITAN RTX (as you need 16GB+ of VRAM). The RTX 3090 FE is a game-changing 80% faster than the TITAN RTX in Control at 8K with ray tracing maxed out.

This is f***ing pure insanity, representing a I-had-to-double-check-my-numbers 80% increase in performance over the TITAN RTX that cost $2499.

RTX 3090 FE > TITAN RTX:

  • Control: 80% faster
  • Death Stranding: 46% faster
  • DOOM Eternal: 35% faster
  • Red Dead Redemption 2: 52% faster
  • Shadow of the Tomb Raider: 52% faster
  • Shadow of War: 50% faster
  • Metro Exodus: 40% faster

RTX 3090 FE > RTX 3080 FE:

  • Control: DNR on RTX 3080 FE
  • Death Stranding: 73% faster
  • DOOM Eternal: 77% faster
  • Red Dead Redemption 2: 16% faster
  • Shadow of the Tomb Raider: 60% faster
  • Shadow of War: 20% faster
  • Metro Exodus: 12% faster

Benchmarks - RTX + DLSS

I've now got an entire section dedicated to ray tracing and DLSS benchmarks, where I'll slowly benchmark more and more titles and add them into future reviews. I've now introduced Control, Death Stranding, and Wolfenstein: Youngblood into my testing routine for RTX + DLSS benchmarks.

Control

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  • Control RT + DLSS performance: The performance coming out of the DLSS "ultra performance" preset in Control really shines at 8K (rendering at 1440p). We have 1FPS more than the RTX 3090 FE with 56FPS average on the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO.

Death Stranding

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  • Death Stranding + DLSS performance: Death Stranding with its DLSS ultra performance mode on the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO is another impressive feat, pushing 94FPS average -- up 4FPS from the 90FPS average on the RTX 3090 FE.

Metro Exodus

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  • Metro Exodus RT + DLSS performance: MSI is just ahead of NVIDIA's own GeForce RTX 3090 FE with its RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO -- able to handle 4K 60FPS with RT and DLSS enabled. Fantastic to see in person, I can tell you that.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider

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  • Shadow of the Tomb Raider RT + DLSS performance: Some more incredible results out of the RTX 3090 here with the custom MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO pushing 114FPS average with RT + DLSS enabled at 8K.

Overclocking

Now this is where I thought we'd see a big brick wall -- but MSI has got some headroom for overclocking on its ultra-fast GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card. My sample was able to be pushed up by another 82MHz which had it sitting at a boost GPU clock of around 2070MHz or so.

Here's where I landed with my MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO sample:

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+41MHz on the GPU

+600MHz (or so) on the VRAM

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The card was sticking at around 2040MHz or so for the most part, boosting up to 2070MHz at times. With the fans cranked up to 100% we're looking at around 60C which is nuts, kudos to MSI for its impressive work with the thermal solution on this card.

The board power draw reaches 360W or so when overclocked, the GPU on its own 200-210W and the entire system up to 500W when overclocked to the max.

Overclocked Benchmarks

I had 115MHz on top of the boost GPU clock on the RTX 3090 FE, with the 24GB of ultra-fast GDDR6X overclocked by another 700MHz. After that, I ran some benchmarks again to see what type of improvement we'll see.

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MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 125

3DMark overclock: We are able to breach 20K in TimeSpy (1440p) with the overclock on the RTX 3090 FE, while breaking through 10K at stock we get close to 11K with the RTX 3090 FE overclocked.

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MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 126

Metro Exodus overclock: We're seeing a decent uplift in performance with the overclock at 1440p in Metro Exodus, adding 5FPS more to hit 87FPS average. The overclock on the RTX 3090 FE sees us hitting that magic 4K 60FPS mark.

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MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 128

Shadow of War overclock: We have only 3FPS more in Shadow of War at 1440p with the overclocked RTX 3090 FE, but we get to the even more magical 4K 120FPS average with the tweaked RTX 3090 FE graphics card.

Power Consumption & Temps

MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 222

NVIDIA's own GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition graphics card already ran nice and cool, with the card running at just 67C under load. MSI's new custom GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO graphics card runs at 74C under load, but with the fans cranked up to 100% it drops down to 54C.

You can find a happy medium in the middle with your own fan profile and enjoy chill, and quiet gaming.

MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 333

You're not getting an 8K 60FPS gaming beast without requiring some power, with the GeForce RTX 3090 FE in our system using up to 440W total -- while the custom MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO uses 470W. With our overclock applied, power consumption for the whole system reaches 500W or so.

Depending on the game and resolution, the whole power consumption can reach 550W or so.

What's Hot, What's Not

What's Hot

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  • Insane 4K performance: NVIDIA already has stellar performance from its GeForce RTX 3090, but MSI adds a little more with some factory overclocks. The 4K gaming performance on the RTX 3090 has unrivaled performance -- nothing comes close.
  • Mind blowing 8K gaming performance: You might not have an 8K monitor or TV but for whatever PC gamers are out there in the world with the money to slap down on 8K, then the RTX 3090 is going to give you that performance. Nothing else comes close, and when you add in DLSS magic you're hitting 60FPS easily.
  • 24GB of GDDR6X: NVIDIA ships the GeForce RTX 3080 with 10GB of VRAM, we are to expect 20GB models in the near future, but the RTX 3090 ships with a huge 24GB of GDDR6X. This helps it have superior 4K and much more superior 8K gaming performance.
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OC headroom: There's not much gas left in the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO tank with overclocking, but it's enough to get the best performance out of the card for free. While the RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO has triple 8-pin PCIe power connectors, the card is so heavily power limited.

Smaller than RTX 3090 FE: NVIDIA has a triple-slot beast with its RTX 3090 Founders Edition, but some gamers will find it too big. MSI's new custom RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO is the same physical size as the MSI RTX 3080 GAMING X TRIO.

Whisper quiet gaming: You probably won't even hear the card during gaming, it's whisper quiet just like the RTX 3090 FE.

What's Not

Maybe the price?

I said in my review for the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090 Founders Edition that people reading this and contemplating buying it, are going to see immense value. For them, they're getting performance that is like a solar flare ripping the crust of the Earth away compared to the TITAN RTX.

NVIDIA sold the TITAN RTX for $2499.

NVIDIA now sells the RTX 3090 for $1499.

The RTX 3090 beats the pants, as well as the top, underwear and socks off of the TITAN RTX and saves you $1000. That $1000 can be put towards a huge 4K 144Hz gaming monitor or TV -- or if you really want to push it, an 8K 60Hz TV.

Final Thoughts

If you want one of the very best graphics cards on the planet, then you need to grab the MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO. For those who don't dig the slick RTX 3090 FE, the triple-fan TRI FROZR 2 cooler on the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO should win you over.

MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 5101

You might not want it for 8K gaming right now, but if you want another 10-20% performance at 4K over the GeForce RTX 3080 (which is impossible to buy right now) then the RTX 3090 is going to be a hot item the second the review NDA lifts and you all read this review.

If you are playing games with RTX ray tracing on then you're going to get the very best possible performance that money can buy: buy the MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO. If you want amazing 4K performance in non-RTX games? Buy the RTX 3090. Best 8K performance? RTX 3090. See the pattern?

MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 512

The style of the card is great, something I loved on the RTX 3080 GAMING X TRIO. You get some nice RGB lighting that isn't too over the top. There's PCIe 4.0 connectivity here as well, which doesn't provide any benefits (but I will be shifting to a new X570 platform in the coming weeks anyway). I'll do some comparison articles on that on the way.

I'm working a little closer with MSI this time around, where they've provided me with an Intel Core i9-10900K processor and MSI Z490 Unify motherboard. I'll be building this system over the weekend and re-running a few of the cards on it and will do some comparisons between the 8700K and 10900K processors and the MSI RTX 3080 and RTX 3090 cards.

MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO Review 516

I do have a question now, MSI -- something I'll ask publicly: I really want to see an unleashed GeForce RTX 3090 LIGHTNING Z graphics card released. Let it drive up to 500W+ and let's see what this card can really do when it's unleashed.

For now, the MSI GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO is an amazing graphics card, for the enthusiasts out there that have the money to build a monster PC then this is going to be one of the most exciting things you'll install into your machine.

4K 120FPS and 8K 60FPS gaming are here, and it's only possible on the GeForce RTX 3090.

Performance

100%

Quality

100%

Features

100%

Value

95%

Overall

99%

The Bottom Line

MSI has one of, if not the fastest graphics card on the planet with its new GeForce RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO. 4K 120FPS and 8K 60FPS gaming are now a reality.

TweakTown award
99%

MSI Meg X570 Unify Motherboard

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Anthony joined the TweakTown team in 2010 and has since reviewed 100s of graphics cards. Anthony is a long time PC enthusiast with a passion of hate for games built around consoles. FPS gaming since the pre-Quake days, where you were insulted if you used a mouse to aim, he has been addicted to gaming and hardware ever since. Working in IT retail for 10 years gave him great experience with custom-built PCs. His addiction to GPU tech is unwavering and has recently taken a keen interest in artificial intelligence (AI) hardware.

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