This isn’t the primary time we’re reviewing or testing AMD’s Radeon RX 7900 GRE. That really occurred about six months in the past, however technically that is nonetheless a brand new GPU launch… as a result of now you may truly purchase it. Round mid-last yr, AMD quietly launched the 7900 GRE as a Chinese language unique for what amounted to $650.
For these curious, the distinctive title is a nod to Chinese language tradition as 2023 marked the yr of the Rabbit, that is why it is known as the “Golden Rabbit Version.” The Radeon GRE was meant to be a China-only launch, and it was for essentially the most half. Nevertheless, an Australian PC retailer managed to supply it with one in all their pre-built techniques, and as you might need guessed, we bought that system to achieve entry to this GPU.
So, because the proud house owners of an AMD reference-designed 7900 GRE, we started benchmarking and supplied that evaluate six months in the past. Since then, a lot has modified. A number of new Radeon GPUs have been launched, making the $650 GRE a extremely dangerous deal.
However now, AMD has formally diminished the cardboard’s MSRP to $550 and, for causes unknown to us, has now launched it globally. If you happen to’re and also you missed our preliminary evaluate, what precisely is the 7900 GRE? The GPU is actually a hybrid 7800 XT with a configuration that will increase cores in 33%, nonetheless introduces a bottleneck within the reminiscence subsystem.
Just like the Radeon 7800 XT, the 7900 GRE is provided with a 16 MB VRAM buffer and a 256-bit broad reminiscence bus, nevertheless it makes use of barely slower 18 Gbps reminiscence, whereas the 7800 XT makes use of 19.5 Gbps reminiscence. Which means the GRE’s bandwidth is diminished by 8%, presenting an uncommon configuration with 33% extra cores however 8% much less reminiscence bandwidth.
Furthermore, the cores are clocked 8% decrease, and there is a 16% discount in Infinity Cache bandwidth. It is going to be attention-grabbing to see how the 7800 XT and 7900 GRE examine, particularly contemplating the GRE’s MSRP is simply $50 extra, forming an odd lineup. It would even be attention-grabbing to match the GRE in opposition to the RTX 4070 Tremendous, which is at the moment priced at $600, making it $50 costlier than the GRE. These direct comparisons might be made.
What’s additionally new on this evaluate, in comparison with our protection six months in the past, is that we now have fashions from board companions for testing, together with the Asrock Metal Legend, Gigabyte Gaming OC, PowerColor Hellhound, and Sapphire Nitro+. In direction of the top of this evaluate, we are going to study the working habits of all 4 fashions.
For testing, we’re using our Ryzen 7 7800X3D take a look at system with 32 GB of DDR5-6000 reminiscence, and the newest show drivers. All knowledge has been validated and up to date for this evaluate, and all GPUs have been examined at their base specs. This strategy ensures consistency throughout all fashions examined. We have examined 12 video games in whole however will concentrate on particular person outcomes for just a few earlier than analyzing the 12-game common and, in fact, the associated fee per body knowledge. Let’s dive into the findings…
Benchmarks
First up, we’ve Cyberpunk 2077, the place the GRE managed a mean of 97 fps, matching the RTX 4070 Tremendous precisely, regardless of being solely 2% quicker than the 7800 XT. This represents a modest enchancment for an extra $50.
At 4K, the GRE continued to match the 4070 Tremendous whereas being simply 2% quicker than the 7800 XT. We hope to see extra important positive factors in a few of the different video games we have examined.
In Starfield, at 1440p, the GRE’s efficiency was barely disappointing, being solely 2% quicker than the 7800 XT and seven% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
At 4K, efficiency was equivalent to the 7800 XT, making it 9% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
For The Final of Us Half I, the GRE solely managed to match the 7800 XT, leading to it being 6% slower than the 4070 Tremendous at 1440p.
Shifting to 4K, the GRE was solely 2% forward of the 7800 XT, whereas it was simply 2% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
Dying Gentle 2 presents extra attention-grabbing outcomes: at 1440p, the GRE was 11% quicker than the 7800 XT. Whereas not a large margin given its 33% extra cores, it is an enchancment over the earlier titles.
At 4K, the efficiency remained 11% quicker than the 7800 XT, although 7% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
The GRE carried out even higher in Fashionable Warfare 3 at 1440p, being 14% quicker than the 7800 XT and a major 25% quicker than the 4070 Tremendous, highlighting this title’s choice for Radeon GPUs.
At 4K, it was 21% quicker than the 7800 XT and 31% quicker than the 4070 Tremendous, even outpacing the 4070 Ti Tremendous by 16%.
In Alan Wake 2, the GRE carefully resembled the efficiency of the 7800 XT. At 1440p, it was 3% quicker, averaging 63 fps, which additionally made it 6% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
The sample continued at 4K, with the GRE being 3% quicker than the 7800 XT and 6% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
Lastly, taking a look at Resident Evil 4’s rasterization efficiency at 1440p, the GRE surpassed the 7800 XT by an 8% margin, a notable enchancment given the development of the outcomes.
This margin barely elevated to 9% at 4K, the place the GRE additionally managed to outperform the 4070 Tremendous, beating it by a 5% margin.
Common Efficiency
Throughout all 12 video games examined at 1080p, the GRE was, on common, 6% quicker than the 7800 XT and just one% slower than the 4070 Tremendous when focusing solely on rasterization efficiency. Whereas these outcomes aren’t excellent, it is necessary to notice that some 1080p outcomes could also be restricted by CPU efficiency. Subsequently, we’ll study the 1440p outcomes for a clearer image of GPU efficiency.
At 1440p, the GRE was nonetheless simply 6% quicker than the 7800 XT on common, delivering 105 fps in comparison with 99 fps for the extra reasonably priced mannequin. It was additionally 3% slower than the 4070 Tremendous, indicating a minimal distinction. Nevertheless, this locations the GRE in an odd place out there.
At 4K, the GRE managed to match the 4070 Tremendous, regardless of solely surpassing the 7800 XT by a 5% margin. This efficiency is underwhelming, contemplating it’s imagined to be 10% costlier. We are going to focus on the associated fee per body in additional element shortly, however let’s first evaluate some ray tracing efficiency figures.
Ray Tracing Efficiency
In our ray tracing checks with Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora at 1440p, the GRE was 9% quicker than the 7800 XT however 13% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
The outcomes for Spider-Man Remastered are noteworthy, because the GRE was a major 26% quicker than the 7800 XT. Although we’ve not detailed the rasterization efficiency for Spider-Man, the GRE was simply 5% quicker in these checks. Enabling ray tracing considerably advantages the GRE on this title, although it stays 11% slower than the 4070 Tremendous, which is a extra favorable comparability than with the 7800 XT.
As anticipated, Radeon’s ray tracing efficiency in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty is missing. With a mean of 39 fps at 1440p, the GRE was 11% quicker than the 7800 XT however nonetheless a considerable 43% slower than the 4070 Tremendous.
Throughout the ten video games examined with ray tracing enabled, the GRE was 10% quicker than the 7800 XT, which is a decent enchancment. Nevertheless, it was, on common, 28% slower than the 4070 Tremendous, which is disappointing, particularly contemplating it’s priced solely 8% decrease. With this context, let’s now study the associated fee per body knowledge.
Price Per Body
When analyzing the associated fee per body primarily based on the 1440p rasterization knowledge, we discover that the GRE is definitely extra expensive than the 7800 XT, with roughly a 4% premium per body. It additionally provides only a 6% higher worth than the 4070 Tremendous, putting the GRE in a difficult place.
At 4K, the state of affairs stays related, with the GRE being 4% extra expensive per body in comparison with the 7800 XT and providing solely barely higher worth than the 7900 XT. When in comparison with the 4070 Tremendous, the financial savings are round 8% per body, which is favorable, however we’re not satisfied it is ample to discourage players from selecting the competing model.
For these excited by ray tracing efficiency, the GRE provides the identical worth because the 7800 XT, which is common. In comparison with the 4070 Tremendous, the GRE is 27% extra expensive per body, making it a much less engaging possibility for lovers of ray tracing efficiency, who would seemingly desire a GeForce GPU.
AIB Testing: Temperatures, VRM
Analyzing the brand new AIB variations of the 7900 GRE compared to AMD’s reference mannequin, which recorded a peak GPU hotspot temperature of 90°C, the Asrock and Sapphire fashions each maintained round 80°C, marking a major enchancment. In addition they achieved round a 7% larger clock velocity, and notably, the Sapphire Nitro+ operated virtually silently as a result of its low fan velocity.
The Gigabyte Gaming OC mannequin showcased a peak hotspot temperature of 75°C. Nevertheless, its 1700 RPM fan velocity meant it was audible over our case followers.
The standout performer was the PowerColor Hellhound, peaking at simply 72°C at a fan velocity of just one,100 RPM, whereas sustaining a core clock velocity of two,140 MHz, clearly main the pack.
Relating to reminiscence temperatures, the AMD reference mannequin ran scorching at 96°C, with the Sapphire Nitro+ exhibiting a marginal enchancment at 94°C, albeit with a low fan velocity.
The Asrock Metal Legend recorded 88°C, putting it within the mid-tier vary, whereas the PowerColor Hellhound and the Gigabyte Gaming OC excelled at 82°C and 78°C, respectively. The latter’s larger fan velocity of 1700 RPM didn’t detract from its prime efficiency, making the Hellhound’s outcome particularly commendable.
Lastly, for VRM temperatures, the AMD reference mannequin was the least environment friendly, with a temperature of 80°C, with the Sapphire Nitro+ solely barely cooler at 79°C. The Gigabyte Gaming OC, whereas the loudest, achieved the good VRM temperature.
Nevertheless, the PowerColor Hellhound’s VRM temperature of 68°C, achieved with a lot much less noise, was essentially the most spectacular, demonstrating a steadiness between cooling effectivity and operational noise.
What We Discovered
The Radeon RX 7900 GRE has all the time been a little bit of an odd product, and successfully re-launching it at present for international consumption at $550 would not make it any much less odd. The hole between the 7800 XT and 7900 XT has by no means actually made sense; even at present, the 7900 XT prices virtually 50% extra, leaving a reasonably giant $230 hole. It could appear AMD hoped to fill that hole with the 7900 GRE.
Nevertheless, the GRE is simply too just like the 7800 XT by way of efficiency and would actually profit from quicker reminiscence to totally leverage these further cores. Talking of which, reminiscence overclocking is nearly fully restricted on the GRE, as AMD solely permits the frequency to be elevated by a most of three% to 2,316 MHz, leading to a throughput of 18.5 Gbps.
When in comparison with the 7800 XT, you are additionally getting the identical 16 GB VRAM buffer, so there’s nothing further on provide with the GRE, which means for many, the $500 7800 XT goes to supply extra worth.
Then, when in comparison with Nvidia’s RTX 4070 Tremendous, you do get an additional 4 GB of VRAM, which is good however not essentially helpful proper now, no less than within the overwhelming majority of use circumstances. It is not clear when 12 GB will begin to turn into inadequate.
When it comes to efficiency, the 4070 Tremendous and 7900 GRE are just about equivalent for rasterization, however in terms of ray tracing, the GeForce GPU is mostly far forward. So, for those who’re largely excited by RT efficiency, then the 4070 Tremendous is a no brainer. Nevertheless, for primarily rasterization efficiency, the selection might go both manner.
However once more, we expect if rasterization is the precedence, then you definitely’re higher off both spending rather less on the 7800 XT or fairly a bit extra on the 7900 XT. Not that we essentially counsel avoiding the GRE, however primarily based on the outcomes we’ve right here, it is solely price a really small premium over the prevailing 7800 XT.
That concludes our re-review of the 7900 Golden Rabbit, although this time we had the chance to take a look at extra board associate fashions, with the PowerColor Hellhound being notably spectacular.
Purchasing Shortcuts:
- AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE on Amazon
- AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT on Amazon
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Tremendous on Amazon
- AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT on Amazon
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 Tremendous on Amazon
- Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Ti Tremendous on Amazon
- AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT on Amazon