What a whirlwind week it’s been over in best graphics card land. Just as we had been getting all excited in regards to the launch of AMD’s Navi playing cards, Nvidia went and crashed the celebration with their pair of RTX Super playing cards. Offering superior efficiency for roughly the identical worth as AMD’s Navi GPUs, it appeared prefer it was curtains for AMD earlier than they’d even had an opportunity to bust out their greatest dance strikes. Not content material to let Nvidia steal the present, nonetheless, AMD then made a shock comeback within the type of an sudden Navi price cut. It was just like the graphics card equal of a sick burn and blazing sizzling mic drop. The RX 5700 and RX 5700 XT had been again within the game and I’ve actually by no means been extra excited.
So let’s take inventory of the place every thing stands. In one nook, we’ve received Nvidia’s entry-level ray tracing card, the RTX 2060. Priced from £310 / $349, it’s presently my high greatest graphics card advice for anybody seeking to purchase a graphics card for high notch 1440p gaming. In one other nook, we’ve received the RTX 2060 Super, Nvidia’s new 1440p contender that prices £379 / $399 and provides successfully RTX 2070 ranges of efficiency for about $100 lower than an precise RTX 2070. Then we’ve received AMD’s new Radeon RX 5700. Once set to value the identical the RTX 2060 Super, it’s now accessible for simply £340 / $349 – the identical worth as the traditional RTX 2060. It may not assist any of that ray tracing malarkey, however as a uncooked efficiency proposition, it’s a extremely compelling little bit of package. Here’s the way it stacks up.
First, let’s discuss specs. Armed with 8GB of GDDR6 reminiscence, the RX 5700 has a base clock pace of 1465MHz, a so-called ‘game clock’ of 1625MHz (which is the pace AMD say you’ll most probably see when taking part in games), and a most enhance clock of 1725MHz. That’s the identical quantity of reminiscence because the RTX 2060 Super, and a just about similar base and ‘game’ clock pace as its Super rival, which sits at 1470MHz and 1650MHz.
Personally, I noticed speeds a lot nearer to its max enhance clock pace throughout my benchmarks, with the RX 5700 commonly hitting at the very least 1700MHz in each Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and Shadow of the Tomb Raider. At least that’s what MSI’s Afterburner software program was reporting, anyway. Either manner, Nvidia’s going to should work a heck of loads tougher to justify spending that further $50 – particularly in the event you couldn’t care much less about having barely fancier shadows and ray traced reflections.
So let’s discuss numbers. Overall, the RX 5700 is just like the lettuce in a BLT sandwich. I imply, looks-wise it’s the very definition of lettuce. I don’t suppose I’ve seen a blander, extra boring-looking graphics card in my total life. But it’s additionally nestled so carefully between its fellow Nvidia fillings that typically it’s tough to inform them aside. In some games it’s received the identical crispy, bacon-y whiff of the RTX 2060, whereas in others it’s a full-blown Super juicy little bit of tomato.
Starting at 1080p, the RX 5700 can fairly do every thing at 60fps+ on max settings no drawback, so that you’re unlikely to note any distinction by any means between it and the RTX 2060 brothers until you’ve received a monitor with a excessive refresh fee. If you do have such a monitor, it just about stands toe to toe with the RTX 2060 Super at this decision, providing up similar common body charges in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (60fps), Metro Exodus (61fps), and Shadow of the Tomb Raider (73fps). It was additionally a median of simply 3fps slower in Monster Hunter World, hitting round 73fps versus 76fps on Highest, and round 8fps behind in Total War: Three Kingdoms, averaging 67fps on Ultra quite than 75fps.
Naturally, there have been some games the place the hole was slightly wider. In Final Fantasy XV, for instance, the RX 5700 ranged between 68-72fps as I strolled up and down the plush hills of Duscae on Highest (with all Nvidia results turned off, natch), which was nonetheless barely smoother than the common RTX 2060’s 63-68fps, however not practically as silky because the RTX 2060 Super, which managed an excellent nippier 75-82fps. And, in fact, the RX 5700 isn’t actually able to deploying all these fairly greatest boy-enhancing Nvidia results with out tanking its general efficiency. It nearly managed a gentle 40-52fps with TurfEffects and HairWorks switched on (which do have an impact, by the best way), nevertheless it’s clearly not practically as effectively constructed for it as an sincere to goodness Nvidia card.
Still, in Forza Horizon 4, the RX 5700 got here out combating, streaming previous each of its Nvidia challenges with a vastly superior common of 135fps, beating the Super’s common by a large 20fps and the traditional RTX 2060’s by 37fps.
So far, so good, then. As a 1080p card, the RX 5700 has loads going for it at its new worth of $349 in comparison with its Nvidia competitors, however actually, you needn’t spend this sort of money get equally easy body charges at this decision. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti remains to be completely good for flawless 1080p gaming, and that may presently be picked up for £250 / $280 – and to see how shut it involves the common RTX 2060 at each 1080p and 1440p, simply check out my RTX 2060 vs GTX 1660 Ti comparability piece.
Instead, you’re extra possible going to need to think about the RX 5700 as one other high notch 1440p card. And right here, it begins to really feel a bit extra like a daily RTX 2060 once more. In Total War: Three Kingdoms, for instance, it averaged an similar 45fps on Ultra at this decision, and did the identical once more on High with 58fps. Shadow of the Tomb Raider was eerily related as effectively, with each playing cards averaging 46fps on Highest with its powerful SMAA x4 anti-aliasing enabled. The RX 5700 pulled forward once I dropped its AA down a rung to SMAAT x2, hitting a median of 73fps over the RTX 2060’s 65fps, however once more, until you’ve received a excessive refresh fee monitor it’s unlikely you’re going to see or really feel the distinction.
However, whereas the RX 5700 might not provide fairly Super ranges of efficiency in all games at 1440p, there are nonetheless glimpses of Super-esque brilliance to be discovered elsewhere. In Monster Hunter: World, for instance, the RX 5700 matched the RTX 2060 Super’s vary of 46-56fps on Highest at 1440p body for body as I trawled by way of the Ancient Forest in search of Great Jagrases to show into a brand new pair of trousers, and was noticeably smoother than the RTX 2060’s 41-50fps. The similar goes for Metro Exodus, too. Whereas the RX 5700 and RTX 2060 Super each averaged 49fps on Ultra, and 58fps on High at 1440, the common RTX 2060 solely managed respective averages of 40fps and 48fps.
The solely game the place it fell in between its two Nvidia rivals was Final Fantasy XV. Again, discounting the game’s further Nvidia results, the RX 5700 was capable of run at a really pleased 47-60fps on Highest, beating the RTX 2060’s 44-52fps, however not fairly as easy because the Super’s 54-66fps. Still, for a card that value $50 lower than its Super-fied competitor, that’s fairly good going. And in fact, the RX 5700 was nonetheless streets forward in Forza Horizon 4, averaging 109fps over the Super’s 94fps and the common 2060’s 80fps.
From a uncooked efficiency viewpoint, then, the RX 5700 is de facto fairly splendid. Offering at the very least RTX 2060 ranges of efficiency for a similar worth, it’s additionally capable of attain the identical heights because the RTX 2060 Super for $50 much less. It’s not an outright RTX Super killer, admittedly, as there are nonetheless a handful of instances the place it struggles to fulfill its Nvidia rival, however a daily RTX 2060 killer? Yes certainly.
However – and I say this with a considerably heavy coronary heart – I merely can’t ignore the truth that the RX 5700 is fairly darn loud. Like, gaming laptop computer ranges of ‘I’m in an air hanger ready for a airplane to take off’ type of loud. The RTX 2060 and RTX 2060 Super, alternatively? Quiet as two tiny church mice, comparatively talking. I don’t have a decibel meter to let you know precisely how quiet, however let’s simply say this. It’s an audible distinction, and as a sheer high quality of life play, I believe I’d quite persist with the RTX 2060.
At least for now, anyway. After all, that is solely the AMD model of the RX 5700, and there’ll nearly definitely be third celebration playing cards accessible quickly with significantly better cooling choices than the blower fan design AMD’s determined to go along with right here (for no matter ungodly motive). I’ll do my greatest to try to get at the very least a kind of in for testing to see in the event that they’re any higher on the outdated whirring rocket launch pad entrance, however I believe (and hope) they’ll most likely be a heck of loads quieter.
In principle, then, AMD have actually pulled it out of the bag with the RX 5700, particularly at its new lower cost of £340 / $349. If it had stayed at $399, the RTX 2060 Super would have blown it clear out of the water. As a direct RTX 2060 competitor, although, it’s very tempting certainly. As I stated, I most likely wouldn’t purchase this specific model immediately, however as soon as these third celebration fashions begin coming by way of, the RTX 2060 is just about completed as our 1440p best graphics card champion.
