Nvidia was not too long ago engulfed within the melting 16-pin connector fiasco, however now issues are heating up for AMD. Reviews and person suggestions have proven that the Radeon RX 7900 XTX can get scorching scorching, with hotspots hitting 110 levels Celsius. Consequently, PowerColor, one in every of AMD’s notable companions, has issued a name for person experiences on Reddit (opens in new tab) so it could actually ship the small print to AMD for additional investigation.
So far, the 110C hotspot phenomenon seems solely to have an effect on MBA (Made By AMD) or reference Radeon RX 7900-series graphics playing cards, whether or not you bought them straight from AMD or one of many chipmaker’s companions. There haven’t been any experiences of customized designs bothered with the problem, suggesting a possible design flaw with the reference cooler. Nevertheless, let’s not get forward of ourselves: The million-dollar query is whether or not the 110 levels Celsius junction temperature is inside specification for Radeon RX 7900-series graphics playing cards. We’ve reached out to AMD for affirmation; nonetheless, the chipmaker hasn’t gotten again to us but, in all probability as a result of holidays.
There’s a precedent of Radeon graphics playing cards reaching 110C, which aligns with AMD’s specs. When you don’t bear in mind, the traditional junction temperature for the Radeon RX 5700-series graphics playing cards, such because the Radeon RX 5700 XT, was 110C.
“As an alternative of setting a conservative, ‘worst case’ throttling temperature for all the die, the Radeon RX 5700 collection GPUs will proceed opportunistically and aggressively ramp clocks till any of the various accessible sensors hits the ‘hotspot’ or ‘Junction’ temperature of 110 levels Celsius. Working at as much as 110C Junction Temperature throughout typical gaming utilization is predicted and inside spec,” said AMD in a weblog submit (opens in new tab) three years in the past.
Apart from the junction temperature, it’s important to take a look at the sting temperature to find out whether or not there’s an underlying drawback. The sting temperature corresponds to the temperature measured on the fringe of the silicon. So it’s a wonderful metric to disclose the situation of the mounting strain. A low worth means there’s good mounting strain. “110 hotspot is inside spec in case your card is getting as much as 90° GPU edge temp… If 110 is hit at 70 edge, yeah that isn’t splendid,” commented an AMD consultant on Reddit (opens in new tab).
AMD has already stated that its GPU crew is investigating the issue. It’ll be important to guage if the excessive temperatures are the offender for the thermal throttling, forcing the graphics card to fall under the rated clock speeds. In any other case, it’s regular habits. Do not forget that AMD solely ensures the bottom clock speeds for its graphics playing cards.
In the meantime, homeowners are reportedly RMAing or returning their Radeon RX 7900 XTX graphics playing cards. The suggestions has been a combined bag, although. In a Reddit thread (opens in new tab), some stated AMD had accepted their RMA, whereas others claimed the chipmaker rejected the RMA and refunds.
Some person experiences say repasting solves the issue on the Radeon RX 7900 XTX, however it’s not a 100% repair. There’s a concept (opens in new tab) that the cooler’s chilly plate is uneven. That may clarify why the thermal interface materials (TIM) appears thicker within the center than on the sting of the die. One Redditor (opens in new tab) urged {that a} graphite thermal pad might resolve the issue. That’s fascinating as a result of AMD opted to make use of thermal pads in earlier generations of Radeon graphics playing cards, so it’s unknown why the chipmaker went for TIM on RDNA 3. Both approach, we don’t advocate you tear off your cooler since it might doubtless void your guarantee. The one choice proper now could be to attend for AMD’s steering or simply try to RMA the graphics card, although the latter can be a fruitless endeavor if the cardboard proves to be working as anticipated.