Table of Contents
We analyze the XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition graphics card, the new range from AMD, which replaces the RX 400 Series and aims to compete with the mid-range of NVIDIA.
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INTRODUCTION
A few days ago, AMD has launched the RX 500 Series graphics cards, graphics cards that arrive to replace the RX 400 Series. These new graphics cards offer a series of improvements or differences with respect to their predecessors, such as higher frequencies and therefore a little more performance, as well as a new manufacturing architecture, in this case 14nm FinFET LPP, which we will detail. a little more in depth. The graphics card at hand is the XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition.
XFX has implemented years of knowledge and experience in this XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition, since it has worked exclusively with AMD for many years and knows its architectures and features perfectly. The graphics card that XFX has presented is a high-performance solution with a dual fan heatsink based on red LEDs. This graphics card is factory overclocked by the company, so it is another factor to take into account and other elements and characteristics of XFX, something that we must take into account to make a smart choice.
REVIEW XFX RX 580 GTR-S BLACK EDITION 8GB CRIMSON
XFX has provided a high quality and performance system to efficiently dissipate the temperature. We know that these new Polaris 10 Refined GPUs have a higher consumption due to the fact that the frequencies have been raised and therefore the temperature is increased. XFX has implemented a heatsink more than enough to keep this XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition in a very stable temperature and also have implemented custom VRM phases by XFX, in addition to other custom elements, such as the PCB. We will talk more in depth about this graphics card.
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[nextpage title=»POLARIS 10 REFINED» ]
POLARIS 10 REFINED
AMD has implemented in the RX 500 Series the new graphics cards with the new Polaris GPU, which has been refined. These new graphics are still based on the Polaris 10 GPUs in the AMD RX 400 Series graphics cards. AMD has provided us with information on technical news regarding enhancements to these new GPUs. Those who own an RX 400 Series can rest easy, because the improvements are relatively small and there are hardly any technical differences between the two series.
Polaris Refined has two great improvements basically, one in the silicon and the other the new working frequencies of the memories. The first of the factors is based on the benefits of improved performance and quality in the AMD manufacturing process that AMD has developed since the Polaris 10 were released and these memories have been implemented in these new Polaris 10. All These improvements have been implemented in the new manufacturing process, which has been dubbed 'Latest generation FinFET 14nm'.
Basically these new GPUs are based on the improvements developed by their partners in the manufacture of silicon chips, GlobalFoundries and Samsung, with respect to the FinFET 14nm LPP manufacturing processes, developed in the last year. The performance and quality of the chips has been improved, offering a significant average improvement and characteristics in these chips, which starts from an improvement in the frequency of work and in the energy consumption. Both features have been implemented through minor, undisclosed manufacturing tweaks to improve chip quality. It is not based on a new manufacturing process, as it is based on 14nm LPP, but it has been improved over the initial Polaris 10 production system that was initially used a year ago.
These new GPUs hit the market without any advertising, offering gradual improvements, thus generating the AMD RX 500, which provide a slight improvement over the RX 400, offering a slight improvement in working frequencies with respect to graphics. from AMD so far. The difference is not extremely significant, the benefits being based on an optimization in manufacturing with a slight improvement in the manufacturing nodes.
AMD has released a review of the Polaris 10, which will be used in the RX 580/570 graphics cards. The working frequencies have been slightly adjusted, being a little higher, allowing these AMD graphics to offer higher working frequencies and in theory a reduction in consumption. These new GPUs have some minor minor fixes to some minor issues with these graphics. Specifically, these graphics have a new state of frequencies for the memories, making the memories when they are not under high loads, lower their working frequencies, reducing the power supply and thus stabilizing the consumption of the graphics cards.
We must bear in mind that the chips have been improved by AMD, however, the combination of a new system of manufacturing and revision improvements, make these graphics cards have slightly higher frequencies than previous families. Although theoretically the consumption should be lower, it has increased between 30-50W with respect to the RX 480/470.
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HEAT SINK
XFX has established in this XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition a powerful and interesting heatsink that improves thermal efficiency by up to 40% compared to reference solutions. XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition makes use of a heat sink based on a copper base that is in direct contact with the GPU and from which six heatpipes depart that are attached to a series of aluminum fins for temperature dissipation efficiently, which is powered by fans, high quality and performance.
It is practically impossible to see a mid-range graphics card, as is the case, or high-end, that does not have a backplate. XFX has implemented in this XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition a high quality aluminum backplate, which not only has the function of improving dissipation and cooling, but also has the function of preventing this graphics card from bending, producing long-term graphics card breakdown and short-term performance and performance drop. Although it seems strange, the heat generation can also be dissipated from the rear and not only is the heat dissipated from the GPU, it also works on the heat dissipation of all the components of the graphics card that are installed in the part ' rear 'of this graphics card.
It is very important that the memories and the VRM are efficiently cooled, establishing a very specific area in the heatsink destined to dissipate the temperature of these elements. XFX after a lot of hours of work, development and testing, the company's engineers have developed a special cooling for the VRM and GDDR5, which has resulted in a reduction of 20ºC for GDDR5 memories and up to 30ºC for VRMs and not only that, the dB has been reduced by 5% through this improvement.
Within the dissipation and work area, we must highlight the heatpipe of this heatsink that implements high-performance characteristics to be more efficient in cooling heat. Regarding the design, we are talking about a technology that uses a combination of liquid and capillaries together to improve cooling. This allows to increase the surface area of the heatpipe by up to 30%, increasing the thermal efficiency.
XFX knows that the noise made by the fans can annoy users, that is why it has implemented sensors so that when the temperature of the graph drops a lot and there is no load, the Zero dB mode is activated, which starts to dissipate the heat passively, with the fans deactivated and will only be activated if a certain temperature is reached. This solution is essential in today's graphics cards, offering a highly efficient solution that significantly reduces loudness.
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TECHNOLOGIES XFX
XFX has implemented some interesting utilities on this graphics card, such as the XFX True Clock. The frequency of work is usually controlled by software, but this limits the performance of the equipment, so XFX has developed a new solution. XFX's True Clock, however, controls the working frequencies via hardware, ensuring that the graphics card works at optimum performance. This hardware stability of the frequency guarantees that it is more stable.
A complementary element to the True Clock is the XFX OC +, which is a tool that allows working with higher operating frequencies. What this utility allows is to overclock beyond the True Clock frequencies, offering an extra performance. This utility is quite simple to use, as it allows you to modify the frequencies using the AMD Wattman utility, which allows you to get the most out of this graphics card. This software also allows the intelligent management of overclocking and it is guaranteed that at no time we will exceed certain values.
This graphics card has been customized to obtain the highest possible performance and this is achieved by modifying the working frequencies. If this graphics card worked at AMD reference frequencies we would be limiting the potential, but this XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition does not offer factory overclocking through the BIOS with a performance optimization with gaming in mind. XFX has used many hours to get the full potential of this graphics card, yes, guaranteed maximum security and stability, preventing this graphics card from being damaged prematurely.
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TECHNOLOGIES AMD
The XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition graphics card benefits from several AMD technologies that ensure energy efficiency and that this graphics card does its best when under load. AMD's Radeon iChill is a clear example of this. This is an energy saving function that makes a dynamic regulation of the frames according to the movement of the games. When the game is heavily loaded, Radeon iChill works to deliver all the graphics power and do a full frame load. If you decrease the momentum, iChill reduces the frame rate automatically. Therefore, this technology has been developed to save energy, reduce temperature and extend the life of the GPU.
How could it be otherwise, this graph has a certain dependency on the drivers, therefore we must keep them updated. Radeon Crimon ReLive are the AMD drivers that allow performance improvements through optimization and benefit from some AMD technologies. AMD drivers are constantly being optimized for new games and the implementation of Vulkan, FreeSync, DirectX 12 and Eyefinity technologies. These four technologies are very important, especially for gaming and we will talk a little about them.
Vulkan is the API developed by Khronos and it is giving a lot of talk in the industry, because its implementation improves performance. Vulkan is an open technology that enables high computing and graphics efficiency in modern graphics cards. This utility is widely implemented in games and together with DirectX 12 they are present and future technologies in the gaming world. DirectX 12 is an exclusive Microsoft technology for Windows 10 that significantly improves the performance of video games thanks to the joint work between the graphics and the processor. DX12 is AMD's big bet and currently AMD graphics cards are better optimized than NVIDIA graphics for games that already work in DX12 and those that will work under it in the future.
AMD sees virtual reality as the present and the future and the new RX 500 Series implement Radeon VR Ready certification. Among other things, it means that these new graphics from AMD have compatibility with AMD LiquidVR technology, which allows a great experience in games with low latency and without flickering or falling frames. This technology guarantees that we will have high quality virtual reality experiences, allowing us to execute games, multimedia content and any utility developed to work under virtual reality glasses without falling frames.
FreeSync 2 is the latest AMD technology, which allows communication between monitor and graphics card and avoid stuttering and tearing problems. This allows games that work in 4K to work perfectly offering a cinematic experience, with smooth transitions and without affecting the frame rate. The utility developed by AMD offers great responsiveness and smooth transitions. It differs from other utilities developed that do the same, in that it is a free utility and does not require additional hardware.
Lastly, we have Eyefinity, an AMD technology that allows you to enjoy multiple displays for gaming, productivity and entertainment. Thanks to this technology we can connect up to six monitors on the same graphics card. This will allow users to have a truly spectacular work and enjoyment system.
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[nextpage title=»BENCHMARK» ]
BENCHMARK
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[nextpage title=»CONCLUSION» ]
CONCLUSION
We have before us the model inferior to the one previously analyzed, although the performance of this new XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition is very interesting. As with the XFX RX 580 that we have analyzed, we have before us a very well-cooled graphics card with great potential, so much so that in some cases, by very little, it has surpassed the reference RX 480, a fact very interesting. We especially like the heatsink, which is made from a single block of aluminum with only two heatpipes (although there are holes for three).
Cooling is one of the most important factors in these new graphics, which, as we already know, have AMD Polaris GPUs, which are a rehash of the GPUs integrated in the RX 400 Series and which have, so to speak, OC ex factory, consuming little more and therefore generating more heat. The two fans of the XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition are enough to keep the temperature at a maximum of 72ºC, which is the upper limit set by this graphics card, with an IDLE temperature of 50ºC. They are high, we know, but it is because they are modified GPUs and with increased frequencies, but the cooling integrated by XFX keeps it at bay, something to consider.
This XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition has an aluminum backplate that gives it an aesthetic touch, slightly improves cooling, but as we have already commented in the previous analysis, this to prevent the graphics card from bending, which would cause component breakage and graphics card malfunction. It also has a switch to switch between the two integrated BIOSes, which allows us to do OC and whatever we want without danger, being able to return the BIOS to the original state quickly and easily.
REVIEW XFX RX 580 GTR-S BLACK EDITION 8GB CRIMSON
We have been struck by the poor result that the XFX RX 570 RS 4GB XXX Edition has given in Zcash mining, but it has an explanation and that is that the drivers and the mining software are not yet optimized for this graph and the mining task. . This happened to us with the previous XFX RX 580 that we analyzed, which at first gave a bad result, but after updating the drivers the mining power went up. Probably with new drivers and an update of the mining software, the problem will be solved.
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