AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT Launch: A New Contender in Mid-Range Graphics Cards

The AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT, with both 16GB and 8GB memory variants, officially launches tomorrow, promising a compelling option for those seeking mid-range graphics performance. Early reviews are in, revealing how this new card stacks up against its competition, primarily focusing on the 16GB model, offered at a price point of $349.

Navi 44 Architecture: Key Specifications

The Radeon RX 9060 XT is powered by the Navi 44 GPU featuring 2048 cores, 64 raster units, 128 texture units, and 32 RT cores. While sharing the same GPU core count as the Radeon RX 7600 XT, the 9060 XT delivers enhanced performance. It offers GDDR6 memory at 20Gbps with a 128-bit bus, yielding a bandwidth of 322.3 GB/s.

Performance Benchmarks: 1080p and 1440p Results

In 1080p gaming tests, the RX 9060 XT 16GB is on average 3% slower than the GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB, priced at $430. However, it holds an 11% lead over the RTX 5060. Compared to previous Radeon models, it’s 2% slower than the RX 7700 XT but 13% slower than the RX 6800 XT. The Radeon is also 7% faster than both GeForce RTX 4060 Ti models.

At 1440p, performance differences tighten. The RX 9060 XT 16GB matches the RTX 5060 Ti 8GB, while surpassing the basic RTX 5060 by 15%. Impressively, it offers substantial gains over the RX 7600 XT with 37% and 43% improvements in 1080p and 1440p, respectively.

Ray Tracing and Real-World Performance

With RDNA 4’s enhancements, the RX 9060 XT narrows the gap in ray tracing, being only 3% behind the RTX 5060 Ti in 1080p/1440p settings. Compared to the RX 7600 XT, ray tracing performance has improved by 64%, though real-world results vary by hardware configuration.

Thermals, Noise, and Power Consumption

The Prime OC version from Asus shows promising thermal performance, with the GPU staying cool at 49°C in BIOS OC mode and 57°C in a quiet mode. Power consumption remains at 177W across both modes, maintaining efficiency alongside lesser noise levels.

Conclusion: A Cost-Conscious Choice

At $350, the Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB offers a competitive alternative to the more costly RTX 5060 Ti 16GB, though it misses on DLSS Transformer support. Market pricing may influence buyers’ decisions, leaning towards cards like RTX 5060 Ti if priced similarly, especially given its broader game support.