Image source: Joseph Maldonado
The PowerColor Hellhound AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE brings formidable graphics power to the gaming world, built on AMD’s latest RDNA 3 architecture. This GPU is intended for competition with Nvidia’s current offering and offers impressive performance at 1440p and 4K gaming. But, it has a tough fight against the Nvidia Super series especially in the ray tracing aspect. This review aims at comparing the performance of the RX 7900 GRE with its competitors and if it is worth the investment for gamers.
Design and Build Quality
The PowerColor Hellhound series has always been characterized by its unique design, and the RX 7900 GRE is no different. Its black and silver color scheme with red LED illuminated fans and full-length backplate gives it a very sleek and menacing look that will fit most gaming rigs. The card has three fans that help to cool the system when it is under load, and the metal backplate enhances the durability of the card and also helps to dissipate heat.
However, it is still a dual-slot card, which means it will not hog too much space in most mid-tower cases. Ventilation cutouts on the shroud and backplate help air circulation and prevent overheating during intense gaming sessions.
Technical Specifications
The RX 7900 GRE comes with 80 compute units and a memory interface of 320 bits as well. The card has a base clock of 1800MHz while the boost clock can go up to 2400MHz thus providing high performance in all aspects. Other notable specs include:
- Memory: 16GB of GDDR6 VRAM
- Infinity Cache: 64MB
- Ray Accelerators: 80
- TBP (Total Board Power): Approximately 300W
It also features other contemporary features such as FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR) 2. 0, AMD Smart Access Memory, and AV1 encoding for efficient video streaming and recording.
Gaming Performance
The RX 7900 GRE is aimed at 1440p and 4K gaming and, for the most part, it does what it is supposed to. In traditional rasterization games such as Shadow of the Tomb Raider or Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, the GPU delivers stable frame rates at ultra graphics settings, sometimes exceeding 100 fps at 1440p and 60 fps at 4K. For competitive games like Fortnite and Call of Duty: In Warzone, the card can deliver even higher frame rates, which will be useful for owners of high-refresh-rate monitors.
However, the RX 7900 GRE has some performance issues in ray tracing. In games like Control and Cyberpunk 2077, frame rates tank when ray tracing is enabled, even with AMD’s FSR enabled to help. In comparison with Nvidia’s Super series that has enhanced ray tracing cores, the RX 7900 GRE is less efficient. This performance difference could be an issue for gamers who are interested in ray tracing.
Cooling and Noise
The cooling system of PowerColor Hellhound RX 7900 GRE is good and does not exceed 80 degrees Celsius when under stress. The triple-fan design provides enough airflow and the heatsink does a great job at cooling down the product. Although they do spin up quite a bit during gaming, the card itself is fairly quiet and only produces a low humming sound in a quiet room.
In idle or low-load conditions, the fans are turned off which makes the system almost silent.
Software and Features
The Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition is an interface that offers the users various tools to enhance and tune the performance of their games. Options such as Radeon Anti-Lag and Radeon Boost minimize input lag and enhance frame rates in certain games.
FSR 2. 0 still persists, which is enhancing games to higher resolutions while still having a stable frame rate. It is not as refined as Nvidia’s DLSS but it does the job and the increase in frames is noticeable especially in games that offer support for VRS.
Other features include AMD Link that enables the user to stream games to a mobile device or another PC and the performance monitoring tools to monitor frame rates, temperature, and power consumption.
Pricing and Competition
The RX 7900 GRE has advantages over other models, including better price-performance ratio than Nvidia Super series cards. For the gamers who want high performance in traditional rasterized gaming, this card can be considered as a good buy. But if ray tracing is an important element of the game, then the options from Nvidia will be more optimal in terms of price to performance.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
1. Solid 1440p and 4K Performance: Delivers high frame rates in most games with traditional rasterization.
2. Efficient Cooling: Triple-fan design and heatsink provide effective cooling without excessive noise.
3. Competitive Pricing: More affordable than Nvidia’s equivalent offerings, making it suitable for budget-conscious gamers.
4. Feature-Rich Software: Radeon Software offers robust customization and monitoring tools.
Cons:
1. Ray Tracing Performance: Struggles to keep up with Nvidia Super series, especially in demanding titles.
2. Power Consumption: Relatively high TBP compared to other mid-range GPUs.
3. Limited FSR Adoption: Not as widely supported as Nvidia’s DLSS in many popular titles.
Conclusion
The PowerColor Hellhound AMD Radeon RX 7900 GRE is a great choice for those who primarily focus on traditional gaming performance at a decent budget. In rasterized games, it can easily achieve high frame rates at 1440p and 4K due to the RDNA 3 architecture and ample VRAM. The efficient cooling system and the rich set of software features also contribute to the product’s attractiveness.
Nevertheless, the ray tracing capabilities of the card are not the best and hence not ideal for those who want to explore the latest graphics technology in games. For users who are mostly interested in regular gaming with some ray tracing on the side, the RX 7900 GRE is a great choice. If not, then go for Nvidia’s Super series which offers a mid-range ray tracing experience.
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