AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT "Reference Design" Tinkered With & Tested, Max. VRAM Temp Reduced to 82 °C

[T0@st]

AMD's Radeon RX 9070 XT and RX 9070 "MBA" graphics cards are no longer "best kept secrets"—as demonstrated recently by the "leaking out" of supposed reference models through black market/back alley channels in China. Late last month, a dual-fan non-XT specimen was snapped up by Chiphell forum member—alleged benchmark results were soon shared within that community. A few days later, a "Made-by-AMD" Radeon RX 9070 XT sample was dissected and compared to Sapphire's PULSE Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB SKU. An additional MBA XT example emerged last week, courtesy of another in-depth Chiphell thread. A "bored" enthusiast happened upon a 5499 RMB (~$748 USD) when idly browsing through Xianyu listings (Taobao's Ebay equivalent platform). Their buying experience was described as follows: "(I) found a 'public version' Radeon RX 9070 XT in Tianjin. It was said to be manufactured by (an) OEM, so I bought it without hesitation...I made an appointment to meet today and got it successfully. I don't have to wait for a graphics card anymore."

For unknown reasons, AMD decided to launch its first wave of RDNA 4 gaming graphics cards sans first-party designs. Leaked specimens have attracted much attention in China; with owners bragging about their respective ownerships of reasonably priced rarities. The latest back channel customer expressed satisfaction when inspecting Team Red's all-black flagship Navi 48 GPU-based solution: "after I got it, I have to say that it is not very heavy and is quite light. But the appearance is really what I like." After initial tests, they discovered that VRAM temperatures were not up to snuff—as alluded to (pre-launch) by other Chiphell figures. Their personal DIY improvements were described: "(I) took it apart to measure the thickness of the thermal grease pad. Everyone said the temperature of the video memory was high, so I decided to change to something better....(with) original silicone grease FurMark 2K resolution for 20 minutes: maximum core temperature was 62 degrees, maximum hot spot temperature was 84 degrees, maximum memory temperature was 88 degrees, maximum power was consumption 346 W."




They determined that the graphene-like conductive layer was fit for GPU die cooling purpose, but replaced the factory-applied thermal grease on VRAM sections. This modification resulted in recorded memory temperatures reduced down to 82 °C. In conclusion, they surmised: "the temperature of the (expensive) silicone grease I bought dropped significantly, proving that it is effective, but whether it is worth the price is debatable. Note: I didn't open the 1.75 mm one and returned it, but I still have a lot of 2 mm ones that I haven't used up. So the actual cost is less than 300 yuan (~$41 USD), don't criticize me."

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[RejZoR]

I've been asking about this few weeks ago here on TPU and we've established that VRAM sensors on RX 9070 report hotspot temperature which means seemingly high VRAM temperatures are perfectly normal because they are hotspot values and not regular.

The issue is mainly because tools like GPU-Z don't specify what kind of temperature it is, it just says "memory temperature", but it's really hotspot temperature. GPU has 2 separate values, normal and hotspot, VRAM only has hotspot. 82°C or even 88°C for VRAM as hotspot value is pretty normal.

 

[jonup]

I've been asking about this few weeks ago here on TPU and we've established that VRAM sensors on RX 9070 report hotspot temperature which means seemingly high VRAM temperatures are perfectly normal because they are hotspot values and not regular.

The issue is mainly because tools like GPU-Z don't specify what kind of temperature it is, it just says "memory temperature", but it's really hotspot temperature. GPU has 2 separate values, normal and hotspot, VRAM only has hotspot. 82°C or even 88°C for VRAM as hotspot value is pretty normal.

Yeah dropping the VRAM T from 88 to 82 is nothing to write home about and probably a waste. Doesn't mean that I won't do it for shits and giggles, but that's another story.

 

[DaemonForce]

If there's some issue with anything within that temp window, it's probably a big deal but we haven't heard anything yet.

 

[Philaphlous]

Now lets see some liquid metal on that VRAM!!!!

 

[Cheeseball]

Looks like I'm going to have to go diving into Taobao again.

This ASRock Steel Legend RX 9070 XT I've got is pretty good (reasonable size, reasonable price, but hate the plasticky-shroud), but I do prefer the MBA's look.

 

[LabRat 891]

Now lets see some liquid metal on that VRAM!!!!

Now, properly measured Cu or Ag shims and PTM, on the other hand...

 

[Jism]

Can i ask why this is any relevant ?

The PCB or AMD's reference design is no different then lets say, a 6700xt:

It's logical AMD releases a "blueprint" of the cards design for vendors to pick it up, and slap their own logo, cooler or brand on top of it.

 

[Chrispy_]

I have my doubts this is a genuine MBA card. I've held a few recent MBA cards in my hands from the 6000 and 7000 series and they've always had solid metal backplates without cutouts or design flair. The fans and fan shroud has always been two-tone colour, or at least on the cheaper models it's been two very different textures (gloss+matte), and the fans have always had more detail to their blades and hubs than here. Even on cheaper models, MBA cards have always had some level of magnesium frontplate/reinforcement frame that's totally absent here and the shroud is a wrap-around design at the corners and I can see that's not the case here.

Additional clues are that the AMD logo or Radeon branding has always embossed or indented into the side or back of the card, not a sticker, and the cards always feature a red highlight or accent somewhere, even if it's just a few of the heatsink fins on an otherwise all-monochrome design.

This honestly looks like your typical aliexpress knockoff that's trying to pass itself as an MBA card, but it's lacking too many distinctive MBA features and is very obviously a much cheaper cooler than AMD have made for half a dozen generations now. If it was just one or two discrepancies, I could give it the benefit of the doubt for being an unfinished prototype but this isn't like MBA cards in at least 10 different ways.