The AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT, priced at $450, enters the mid-range GPU market with some intriguing characteristics. Despite its positioning, there are initial concerns about its performance relative to the 6700 XT and its comparative value against the concurrently launched Radeon 7800 XT.
Dec 15, 2023 - 11:16
Dec 15, 2023 - 11:20
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Price and Specification Comparison
The Radeon 7700 XT is priced just 10% lower than the Radeon 7800 XT, raising questions about its value proposition. It features 10% fewer cores and a 25% reduction in Infinity Cache compared to the 7800 XT. This results in a significant 26% decrease in bandwidth. Additionally, the 7700 XT has 12GB of VRAM, a cutdown 192-bit wide memory bus, and slower 18 Gbps memory, leading to a 31% reduction in memory bandwidth to 432 GB/s. These specifications suggest that the 7700 XT could be more than 10% slower than the 7800 XT, complicating its market position, especially with Nvidia's 16GB RTX 4060 Ti also priced at $450.
For the review, a Ryzen 7 7800X3D test system with 32GB of DDR5-6000 memory was used, along with the latest display drivers. The review involved testing 16 games, both with and without ray tracing, to assess the overall performance and cost-effectiveness of the 7700 XT.
Benchmark Analysis at 1080p Resolution
In "A Plague Tale: Requiem," the 7700 XT achieved 102 fps at 1080p, which is 11% slower than the 7800 XT but 11% faster than the RTX 4060 Ti. This demonstrates a respectable performance uplift at the $450 price point.
Performance at 1440p Resolution
At 1440p, the 7700 XT trails the 7800 XT by 14% but maintains a 9% lead over the RTX 4060 Ti. Although still a decent performance, the recent price adjustment of the RTX 4060 Ti puts pressure on AMD to enhance the 7700 XT's value.
4K Resolution Gaming
In 4K gaming, the 7700 XT and RTX 4060 Ti are closely matched, with no definitive winner. The 7700 XT shows a 16% performance deficit compared to the 7800 XT, suggesting that investing an additional $50 for the 7800 XT might be justifiable.
Cyberpunk 2077 Benchmark
In "Cyberpunk 2077," the 7700 XT averaged 123 fps, 13% slower than the 7800 XT but 16% faster than the RTX 4060 Ti, indicating impressive performance in this title.
Comparative Analysis at 1440p in Cyberpunk 2077
At 1440p, the 7700 XT remains 13% behind the 7800 XT. However, it significantly outperforms the RTX 4060 Ti, being 30% faster and demonstrating a substantial advantage over its Nvidia counterpart in this game.
4K Performance in Cyberpunk 2077
In 4K resolution, the 7700 XT continues to be 16% slower than the 7800 XT but surpasses the RTX 4060 Ti by a remarkable 27%. This highlights the Radeon GPU's strength against the similarly priced GeForce GPU in high-resolution gaming.
Conclusion and Market Positioning
The Radeon RX 7700 XT, with its mixed performance results, presents a complex value proposition in the mid-range GPU market. While it shows strength in certain titles and resolutions, particularly against the RTX 4060 Ti, its close pricing to the more powerful 7800 XT and comparable Nvidia offerings complicates its appeal. Consumers must weigh the performance differences and price points carefully to determine the best choice for their specific gaming needs.
