All About AMD Radeon RX 7000 series – RDNA3

Last Updated on August 27, 2023 by Nahush Gowda

AMD Radeon RX 7000 series is the third generation of RDNA architecture – RDNA 3. RDNA 3 promised better “value performance” and better ray tracing performance compared to the previous generation RDNA 2 (6000 series).

• RDNA 3 uses a new chiplet design that combines 5nm and 6nm process nodes. This allows AMD to optimize each chiplet for specific tasks, such as graphics or compute.
• The RDNA 3 architecture also features a new cache hierarchy that includes a larger L2 cache and a new L3 cache. This improves performance and efficiency by reducing the need to access main memory.
• The RDNA 3 media engine supports new video codecs and formats, such as AV1 and HEVC. This allows AMD Radeon RX 7000 series graphics cards to decode and encode high-quality video content.

Here’s a complete overview of all the graphics card in the RX 7000 series.

Radeon RX 7900 XTX (Released)

The Radeon RX 7900 XTX is a high-end graphics card from AMD that was released in November 2022. It is based on the Navi 31 graphics processor and offers up to 2.5x the performance per watt, 2x the raytracing performance, and 3x the memory bandwidth of the previous generation. 

It supports DirectX 12 Ultimate and features 24 GB of GDDR6 memory, a 384-bit memory interface, and a boost clock of up to 2500 MHz. The RX 7900 XTX is a great choice for gamers and professionals who demand the best possible performance.

Brief Review

In terms of performance, the RX 7900 XTX is about 35% faster than the previous generation RX 6950XT. It is also about on par with the RTX 4080 in terms of rasterized performance, but it lags behind in ray tracing performance.

The RX 7900 XTX features a number of new technologies, such as AMD Infinity Cache, which helps to improve performance by caching frequently used data in the GPU’s memory. The RX 7900 XTX also supports the latest DirectX 12 Ultimate API, which provides support for hardware-accelerated ray tracing and variable-rate shading.

Overall, the Radeon RX 7900 XTX is a very powerful graphics card that offers a significant performance boost over the previous generation. It is a great choice for gamers and professionals who demand the best possible performance in rasterized games. However, its ray tracing performance is not as good as the RTX 4080, so it may not be the best choice for gamers who want the best possible ray tracing experience.

Read the full review of Radeon RX 7900 XTX

Radeon RX 7900 XT (Released)

The Radeon RX 7900 XT is a high-end graphics card from AMD. It is based on the Navi 31 graphics processor and features 5376 shading units, 336 texture mapping units, and 192 ROPs. It also has 84 raytracing acceleration cores and 20 GB of GDDR6 memory.

The GPU is operating at a frequency of 1500 MHz, which can be boosted up to 2394 MHz.

The RX 7900 XT draws power from 2x 8-pin power connectors and has a power draw of up to 300 W. It has a dual-slot cooling solution and dimensions of 276 mm x 110 mm x 51 mm.

The RX 7900 XT was launched in November 2022 and was launched at the price of ₹90,000 ($899).

Brief Review

The AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT impresses in gaming performance, boasting a 5 nm Navi 31 GPU with DirectX 12 Ultimate support. Competing with Nvidia’s RTX 4080 and RTX 4070 Ti, it holds its ground. 

Modern game tests reveal a 16% deficit against the XTX variant, questioning the value given the $100 price difference. Efficient power draw and cooling are commendable. While the RX 7900 XT excels, the $899 tag makes the slightly pricier XTX version the better recommendation for superior value and performance.

Radeon RX 7800 XT (Announced)

The Radeon RX 7800XT and RX 7700XT announced by AMD at Gamescom 2023 along with some performance numbers and complete specifications. It will be available on September 6.

The Radeon RX 7800 XT is a high-end graphics card from AMD that is expected to launch in 2023. It is built on the 5 nm process and features the Navi 32 XT graphics processor. The card has 3840 shading units, 240 texture mapping units, and 128 ROPs. It also has 60 raytracing acceleration cores and 16 GB of GDDR6 memory. The RX 7800 XT is expected to be a powerful graphics card that can handle even the most demanding games. It is expected to launch at $579.

Latest News about Radeon RX 7800 XT

PowerColor has leaked the first pictures and specs of the Radeon RX 7800XT

PowerColor has inadvertently leaked the first pictures of its AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT Red Devil graphics card. The card is based on a maxed-out version of the Navi 32 GPU and has 60 RDNA3 compute units, 3,840 stream processors, 120 AI accelerators, 60 ray accelerators, 192 TMUs, and possibly 128 ROPs.

 It also has a 256-bit GDDR6 memory interface and 16 GB of memory running at 18 Gbps. The card is expected to be priced competitively against the RTX 3070 Ti.

RX 7800 XT specifications leaked

According to Moore’s Law is Dead, the Radeon RX 7800XT is expected to come with 16GB of 256-bit memory and a Total Board Power (TBP) of 260W. It is likely to utilize the full 60CU configuration of the GPU. The Radeon RX 7700XT is expected to support a 48 to 54 CU configuration with 12GB of memory on a 192-bit bus. It is also expected to have a TBP of 230W.

Both graphics cards are expected to sport 19.5 Gbps memory. The Navi 32 GPU is also expected to debut as a high-end mobile model (RX 7800/7900) for gaming laptops.

The launch of the Navi 32 GPU has been postponed due to excess inventory of Navi 21 based RX 6900/6800 series. However, the rumors that Navi 32 might launch after 31 and 32 SKUs were dated even before the debut of the first RX 7000 graphics card.

The Navi 32 GPU is expected to be available at Gamescom 2023 in Germany (August 23 – August 27, 2023), with a potential release date planned for September.

AMD has a smaller package for Navi 31

According to Moore’s Law is Dead, AMD has been shipping prototypes of a smaller version of the Navi 31 GPU to board partners for months now. This interim replacement GPU is a 40x40mm package that includes one Navi 31 GCD and six MCDs, two of which are dummy dies.

The purpose of this prototype GPU is to help board partners prepare for the Navi 32 launch. Navi 32 was long expected to appear later, so this prototype GPU gives board partners something to work with in the meantime.

The Navi 31 turned 32 pictured above has six MCD dies, but the GPU can only support 256-bit memory bus. Such a bus width allows 4/8/16/32 GB memory configurations to be enabled.

Since AMD has already created a smaller version of Navi 31, it is possible that this type of processor will end up on smaller platforms, such as laptop motherboards. Technically, nothing should prevent AMD from using this type of die for an even more powerful Radeon RX 7900M series that could potentially compete with NVIDIA RTX 4080 Laptop GPU. The leaker claims that such a design is already in the labs, but it is unclear if gamers will ever get a taste of it.

ASRock preparing to launch its RX 7800 series GPU based on Navi 32

ASRock is preparing to release its first RX 7800 GPU, which is most likely based on the Navi 32 GPU. The card is rumored to have 16GB of VRAM and a 256-bit memory bus. It is also possible that the card will have factory-overclocking.

The Navi 32 GPU has recently been pictured, and it is said to feature up to 60 Compute Units and up to 3840 Stream Processors. This would make it a significant upgrade over the Navi 21 GPU that is used in the RX 6800 XT.

RX 7800XT to be around 12% faster than RX 6800XT in 4K according to synthetic performance benchmarks

Igor’s Lab simulated the performance of the RX 7800 XT using a Radeon Pro W7800 graphics card, which is based on the Navi 31 GPU. The simulated RX 7800 XT appeared to be 4%, 8%, and 12.5% faster than the RX 6800 XT at 1080p, 1440p, and 2160p respectively. However, it is important to note that this is just a simulation, and the real-world performance may be different.

The Navi 32 GPU is a significant upgrade over the Navi 21 GPU that is used in the RX 6800 XT. However, it is not clear if AMD will release the Navi 32 version of the RX 7800 series yet. AMD has a large stock of Navi 21 GPUs that they need to sell before they can release a new generation of graphics cards.