AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT review

Now that the present era of graphics playing cards has been round for some time, and we've the Xbox Series X and PS5 inadvertently pushing the requirements for PC video games larger, it isn't simply 4K players which are going to want an improve. The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is supposed to energy next-generation video games at 1080p, taking the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 head-on, particularly with regards to conventional rasterization with out shiny ray tracing results.

However, the Radeon RX 6600 XT additionally comes at a time the place it is more durable than ever to purchase any graphics card, not to mention the newest and biggest. Because of this, AMD bumped the advised worth above what the competing RTX 3060 comes with. And it isn't exhausting to see why - it isn't like you are going to discover any graphics card on the retail worth both manner proper now, so why not make it a bit dearer?

But the present graphics card scenario will not final ceaselessly, so the massive query is whether or not or not the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT will likely be price it within the long-term, particularly in case you're nonetheless advantageous ready a bit to purchase a graphics card.

ASUS ROG Strix RX 6600 XT

(Image credit score: Future)

Price and availability

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT is accessible beginning August 11, with a advised retail worth of $379 (AED 1,399). That worth will, after all, go up from there and this time round AMD is not promoting its personal model of the graphics card.

Instead, identical to the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, the 6600 XT will completely be accessible by third-party graphics card producers like ASUS and MSI - and the one we examined was the ASUS ROG Strix version, whichhas an MSRP of $650 (about AED 2,399).

That further worth does get you some good bells and whistles like a vented backplate, a twin BIO change and the Axial-tech fan design. But, as we have seen with the identical design on all types of graphics playing cards this era - from the RTX 3080 to the Radeon RX 6700 XT, it does not actually add a lot to your efficiency except you are planning to overclock your graphics card.

But then once more, as a result of we have not been in a position to check a reference spec AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT, we won't actually say how a lot of a efficiency enhance this model of the cardboard is, or how a lot you are dropping out in case you go together with a $379 model of the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT.

Then there's the elephant within the room: the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti which has an MSRP of $399 (AED 1,475) nevertheless it's round 20-30% quicker than the RX 6600 XT. Most folks will simply spend the additional money for the RTX 3060 Ti – if they'll discover it in inventory, no less than. There's a cause why it is our decide for the finest graphics card.

ASUS ROG Strix RX 6600 XT

(Image credit score: Future)

Chipset and options

Like the remainder of the Radeon RX 6600 graphics playing cards, the Radeon RX 6600 XT relies on AMD's 7nm RDNA 2 graphics structure. AMD's principal focus right here was to optimize RDNA, working in new options like hardware-accelerated ray tracing and boosting energy effectivity. AMD additionally included Infinity Cache with RDNA 2 graphics playing cards, which massively improves reminiscence bandwidth.

This implies that these AMD graphics playing cards can have extra reminiscence for much less money, despite the fact that with the RX 6600 XT, no less than, AMD opted for 8GB of GDDR6 reminiscence, quite than the 12GB of GDDR6 that the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 brings to the desk.

The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT has 32 RDNA 2 compute models (CU), which suggests you are getting 2,048 Stream Processors (SP) and 32 ray accelerators – one per CU. That's fairly a step down from the Radeon RX 6700 XT, which has 40 CUs, with 2,560 SPs. That's a 25% discount in cores, and that just about correlates with the efficiency.

But no less than you get fairly a excessive clock pace. The AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT has a Boost clock of two,589MHz, and a Game Clock of two,359MHz. The enhance clock is principally how briskly the GPU will get in brief bursty workloads, whereas the Game Clock is often what you are see whereas really taking part in video games.

One big characteristic has been added for the reason that Radeon RX 6600 XT dropped again in March 2021, although: FidelityFX Super Resolution, or FSR. This is AMD's reply to Nvidia's Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS), and can principally upscale a recreation from a decrease decision to your native decision. This is supported by the Radeon RX 6600 XT, nevertheless it's additionally accessible on just about any DirectX 11-ready graphics card – although efficiency will likely be a lot better on AMD's GPUs, no less than for now.

Of course the options current on different AMD RDNA 2 graphics playing cards are nonetheless accessible. Smart Access Memory is a giant one, and can allow you to squeeze out a little bit of efficiency out of the Radeon RX 6600 XT. If you wish to allow this characteristic, you are going to have to enter your BIOS and allow Resizable BAR.

This will give your CPU direct entry to your GPU's reminiscence, which ought to enhance latency, and thus gaming efficiency. We have a look at it like overclocking, as it's a must to navigate your BIOS so as to allow it – no less than for now – however in case you're comfy doing so, it is type of a no brainer to allow this expertise.

Another nice software program characteristic right here is Radeon Boost, particularly in case you play plenty of fast-paced aggressive shooters like Rainbow Six Siege or Apex Legends. This will principally decrease the decision in scenes with plenty of motion, the place you would not essentially discover the additional element anyway. This then boosts framerate, and in video games like these, a excessive framerate might be the distinction between profitable and dropping, so undoubtedly price enabling.

ASUS ROG Strix RX 6600 XT

(Image credit score: Future)

Design

Unlike the opposite graphics playing cards within the RDNA 2 lineup, AMD just isn't launching its personal model of the Radeon RX 6600 XT. Instead, it is completely accessible by third social gathering card companions like MSI and ASUS. The model of the cardboard we had been despatched for review was the ASUS ROG STRIX RX 6600 XT.

The graphics card is simply 9.6 inches (234mm) lengthy which is brief sufficient to equip it on an Intel NUC 9 PC nevertheless it takes 2.5 slots width which the NUC cannot present. That's a little bit of a disgrace because the ASUS 3060 Ti might be bought in a type issue that is smaller and thinner than the RX 6600 XT.

ASUS ROG Strix RX 6600 XT

(Image credit score: Future)

This graphics card has two followers whereas the shroud provides some RGB lighting. You can simply inform that the cardboard has a really gamer aesthetic, with a black and silver colorway. There's a full steel backplate on the again.

The cooler is greater than enough for this GPU with a 160W TGP. The ASUS ROG STRIX RX 6600 XT stayed effectively underneath that 160W threshold, even in extraordinarily demanding video games like Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition, peaking at 146W of energy. That's lower than the RTX 3060 or the RTX 2060 Super, which peaked at 169W and 183W, respectively.

You ought to have the ability to simply toss this GPU in your construct and neglect about it, with out ever worrying concerning the ASUS ROG STRIX RX 6600 XT getting too scorching.

As far as ports, you are getting three DisplayPort outputs and one HDMI 2.1 port. So, whereas this graphics card is certainly aimed toward 1080p gaming, it's able to outputting 8K video at 60Hz. Just do not go anticipating to play video games at that decision.

For energy, you simply want one 8-pin PCIe energy cable and AMD is recommending no less than a 500W energy provide.