AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX Review: Performance Tested

For the past few generations, AMD has relentlessly pursued Nvidia in the high-end graphics card market. However, with the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT, Team Red strategically shifts its focus. Instead of directly challenging the ultra-high-end RTX 5090, AMD aims to deliver the best graphics card for the majority of gamers—a goal it convincingly achieves.

Priced at $599, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT rivals the $749 GeForce RTX 5070 Ti in performance. This alone positions it as a top contender, but AMD enhances its appeal with FSR 4, finally introducing AI upscaling to its lineup. This makes it the ideal choice for 4K gaming, especially for those who aren't prepared to spend $1,999 on the RTX 5090.

Purchasing Guide

The AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT launched on March 6th, starting at $599. Remember that prices may vary among third-party vendors. Aim for a price under $699 if possible.

AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT – Photos

Specs and Features

Built on the RDNA 4 architecture, the AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT boasts improved shader cores, but its standout features are the new RT and AI Accelerators. These accelerators power FidelityFX Super Resolution 4 (FSR 4), bringing AI upscaling to AMD GPUs for the first time. While FSR 4 doesn't always boost frame rates compared to FSR 3.1, it significantly enhances image quality and accuracy. Conveniently, Adrenalin software allows users to disable FSR 4 if frame rate is prioritized.

Beyond AI upscaling, AMD has significantly improved shader core performance. Despite having 64 Compute Units (compared to 84 in the RX 7900 XT), the RX 9070 XT delivers a substantial generational leap at a lower price point. Each Compute Unit features 64 Streaming Multiprocessors (SMs) for a total of 4,096, along with 64 ray accelerators and 128 AI accelerators.

The RX 9070 XT features 16GB of GDDR6 memory on a 256-bit bus, less than the RX 7900 XT's 20GB on a 320-bit bus. This reduces capacity and bandwidth, but remains sufficient for most 4K gaming. The use of GDDR6, rather than a newer standard, is a minor drawback.

While more efficient, the RX 9070 XT has a slightly higher power budget (304W) than the 7900 XT (300W). However, testing showed the 7900 XT consuming more power in practice. This power budget is typical for modern GPUs, simplifying cooling solutions. Unlike previous generations, AMD isn't releasing a reference design; relying on third-party manufacturers for the 9070 XT. The review unit (Powercolor Radeon RX 9070 XT Reaper) maintained temperatures around 72°C during testing despite its compact triple-fan design.

The RX 9070 XT utilizes two standard 8-pin PCI-E power connectors, simplifying upgrades for most users with a 700W power supply. Connectivity includes three DisplayPort 2.1a and one HDMI 2.1b ports. The absence of a USB-C port is a missed opportunity.

FSR 4

AMD has long needed an AI upscaling solution to compete with DLSS. While previous FSR versions offered performance gains, they suffered from ghosting and fuzziness. The RX 9070 XT addresses this with FSR 4.

Similar to DLSS, FSR 4 uses AI accelerators to analyze frames and game engine data to upscale lower-resolution images. The result surpasses FSR 3 in image quality, but introduces a performance penalty. In *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6* at 4K, FSR 4 reduced frame rates by approximately 10% but improved image quality. *Monster Hunter World* showed a 20% performance drop with FSR 4. This performance hit is expected due to the increased computational demands of AI upscaling. FSR 4 is optional; users can easily disable it via Adrenalin software.

AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT & 9070 – Benchmarks

Performance

The Radeon RX 9070 XT delivers impressive performance for its price. At $599, it's 21% cheaper than the RTX 5070 Ti while offering comparable performance. Across various tests, the RX 9070 XT was 17% faster than the RX 7900 XT and 2% faster than the RTX 5070 Ti. Its 4K performance is particularly noteworthy, making it a compelling entry-level 4K card, even with ray tracing enabled. Testing was conducted using the latest drivers available at the time.

3DMark benchmarks show the RX 9070 XT outperforming the 7900 XT by 18% in Speed Way and 26% in Steel Nomad, even surpassing the RTX 5070 Ti by 7% in the latter. Game benchmarks reveal a mixed bag. In *Call of Duty: Black Ops 6*, the RX 9070 XT leads the RTX 5070 Ti by 15%. *Cyberpunk 2077*, however, favors the RTX 5070 Ti, but the performance difference is smaller than in previous generations. *Metro Exodus* shows nearly identical performance between the two cards. *Red Dead Redemption 2* highlights the RX 9070 XT's Vulkan performance advantage. *Total War: Warhammer 3* shows a deficit for the RX 9070 XT. *Assassin's Creed Mirage* and *Black Myth: Wukong* demonstrate strong performance gains for the RX 9070 XT, particularly in ray tracing. *Forza Horizon 5* also shows a modest lead for the RX 9070 XT.

Test System: CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D, Motherboard: Asus ROG Crosshair X870E Hero, RAM: 32GB G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo @ 6,000MHz, SSD: 4TB Samsung 990 Pro, CPU Cooler: Asus ROG Ryujin III 360

The Radeon RX 9070 XT represents a strategic move by AMD, offering a compelling high-performance graphics card at a significantly more accessible price point than its top competitors. While not reaching the absolute peak performance of cards like the RTX 5080 or 5090, it provides exceptional value and performance for the vast majority of gamers. It feels like a return to the days of a truly compelling flagship graphics card, reminiscent of the GTX 1080 Ti.