Question multiple in-game problems with RX 7900 XTX (should I get a 4080?)

JayGau

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I know I wrote on another post on this site that I had no real issues with my 7900 XTX so far but as I am trying more games I find more problems and I am wondering if it's normal since the card just got released or if it's the AMD drivers curse that everybody is talking about.

First problem was The Witcher 3 that is crashing all the time with DX12 (I guess everybody knows about this one). Then I saw some screen tearing in Deathloop despite having V-sync enabled. I also had some very bad luminosity flickering in MS Flight simulator that I fixed by disabling free-sync. Then I tried to play Horizon Zero Dawn but the game randomly crashes to the deskstop so often that it's almost unplayable. And the worst is with Ghostwire: tokyo. The game is not supposed to be hard to run (especially with RT off) and indeed it runs above 130 FPS most of the time but I often get huge FPS drops (goes down to 20-30 fps) especially when attacked by those flying ghosts that throw red light projectiles. And when it happens the GPU utilization drops as hell like to 40-50% (and my ryzen 5900x is still at 20% so not likely a CPU bottleneck).

I got more issues with the 7900 XTX in less than a month than I had with my RTX 2080 in 3 years. By the way, I used DDU in safe mode to clear the old drivers. I also updated my BIOS and the chipset drivers. My power supply is a Cosrair 1000W and I use two cables to connect the card (not the two connectors on a single cable). And I don't think it's a power issue since the card runs at full power on other games without any problems. My temperatures are also great. Never goes above 65C and the hotspot is always below 85C.

So now I am wondering whether I should wait for new AMD drivers or return the card and buy a 4080 instead. It's more expensive and I don't like its size and the new power connector but I really don't want to pass the next 3 years wondering if my games are going to work before buying them (a question I never had to ask myself with my 2080). I still have 16 days to return the card to Newegg

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
 
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mjbn1977

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I can't speak about the 7900 XTX, but I do have a RTX 4080 and have no problems with it so far. I play everything in 1440p. Even so I tested many different games with the card, so far I mostly played Cyberpunk 2077 and Witcher 3 next gen. I didn't experience any crashes so far. Performance is very good and smooth in both games.

Cyberpunk I play in ultra settings with Raytracing on Ultra/Psycho. Without DLSS I get around 61 fps in average. But I mostly play with DLSS Quality since I feel it gives the better image. With DLSS Quality I get 103 fps average.

In Witcher 3 Next Gen I play in Ultra with Raytracing using DLSS Quality and DLSS 3 frame generation. It is very smooth and delivers between 140 and 160 fps. No crashes in Witcher. Played in for a few ours last night without any problems. But I get sometimes a weird bug that when I reload a game too often I get stuck a 15fps. Restarting the game fixes that. Maybe had it 2 or 3 times happing in the last months. Don't think it has to do with the video card. I think it is a bug in the game. Supposedly we are very close to a big patch.....

I spent a little time in MS flight simulator with the A32x Flybywire. It's awesome with the 4080 since you can use frame generation in that game and it basically doubles the framerate. Probably ideal game for that technology.....

My card (MSI Gaming X Trio) runs very silent and very cool (mid 60s). But I have a very hot CPU.....

One question about your system: the crashes are not power supply related? You have good power supply with the required wattage?
 

JayGau

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One question about your system: the crashes are not power supply related? You have good power supply with the required wattage?
I have a Corsair RM1000x (so 1000W). Best PSU I ever had and I think it's more than enough power (I replaced my RM750x with it last summer since I knew the new gen would be very power hungry). And as I said, other demanding games are running fine (Cyberpunk runs at 120 FPS at ultra 1440p without RT). I also tried RDR2 with max settings and it runs at 120-130 fps without any problems (but I only played a few minutes).

If I was sure the 4080 would fit well in my case I would order it right now but I am not sure there will be enough space for the adapter (I read that it should not bend too much). I like the 7900 XTX but peace of mind is something I absolutely need when it comes to gaming (I play to relax, not being stressed about whether or not my next game will work).
 

mjbn1977

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I have a Corsair RM1000x (so 1000W). Best PSU I ever had and I think it's more than enough power (I replaced my RM750x with it last summer since I knew the new gen would be very power hungry). And as I said, other demanding games are running fine (Cyberpunk runs at 120 FPS at ultra 1440p without RT). I also tried RDR2 with max settings and it runs at 120-130 fps without any problems (but I only played a few minutes).

If I was sure the 4080 would fit well in my case I would order it right now but I am not sure there will be enough space for the adapter (I read that it should not bend too much). I like the 7900 XTX but peace of mind is something I absolutely need when it comes to gaming (I play to relax, not being stressed about whether or not my next game will work).

Yeah, the PSU is not the problem.

What case do you have. Just look at the specs of my case (Corsair 400C). The MSI RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio fits in my case. It just fits, but I was able to install it without any issues. That model has the 12 volt pin a little recessed which gives extra space for gently bending the cable. So I do not have an issue with the plug. Even so its a little tight in the case the card runs cool with about 65C in gaming.

Here is a picture of my 4080 in my case. Snug and tight, but it works and I have overall pretty good temps:
View: https://imgur.com/a/ZakrBI6#7EoWmE6
 

JayGau

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Yeah, the PSU is not the problem.

What case do you have. Just look at the specs of my case (Corsair 400C). The MSI RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio fits in my case. It just fits, but I was able to install it without any issues. That model has the 12 volt pin a little recessed which gives extra space for gently bending the cable. So I do not have an issue with the plug. Even so its a little tight in the case the card runs cool with about 65C in gaming.

Here is a picture of my 4080 in my case. Snug and tight, but it works and I have overall pretty good temps:
View: https://imgur.com/a/ZakrBI6#7EoWmE6
Thank you very much for the info about your case. It helps. I have a Corsair 570X. It's much bigger than the 400C so I guess it should fit just fine. I was looking at the MSI models and since you say that the connector gives slightly more clearance than the other models I would go with that (if I decide to return the 7900 XTX). Yeah I heard that RT is gorgeous in Cyberpunk. I tried with the 7900 XTX and it looked weird and of course the frame rate was pretty low. But I knew RT would not be great before I bought this card (you don't buy AMD cards for ray tracing).
 
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mjbn1977

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Thank you very much for the info about your case. It helps. I have a Corsair 570X. It's much bigger than the 400C so I guess it should fit just fine. I was looking at the MSI models and since you say that the connector gives slightly more clearance than the other models I would go with that (if I decide to return the 7900 XTX). Yeah I heard that RT is gorgeous in Cyberpunk. I tried with the 7900 XTX and it looked weird and of course the frame rate was pretty low. But I knew RT would not be great before I bought this card (you don't buy AMD cards for ray tracing).

Glad to help. Let us know what you when you decided what you wanna do.

The 4080s are big. But also run cool. If it fits in your case the size really doesn't matter.....
 
I know I wrote on another post on this site that I had no real issues with my 7900 XTX so far but as I am trying more games I find more problems and I am wondering if it's normal since the card just got released or if it's the AMD drivers curse that everybody is talking about.

First problem was The Witcher 3 that is crashing all the time with DX12 (I guess everybody knows about this one). Then I saw some screen tearing in Deathloop despite having V-sync enabled. I also had some very bad luminosity flickering in MS Flight simulator that I fixed by disabling free-sync. Then I tried to play Horizon Zero Dawn but the game randomly crashes to the deskstop so often that it's almost unplayable. And the worst is with Ghostwire: tokyo. The game is not supposed to be hard to run (especially with RT off) and indeed it runs above 130 FPS most of the time but I often get huge FPS drops (goes down to 20-30 fps) especially when attacked by those flying ghosts that throw red light projectiles. And when it happens the GPU utilization drops as hell like to 40-50% (and my ryzen 5900x is still at 20% so not likely a CPU bottleneck).

I got more issues with the 7900 XTX in less than a month than I had with my RTX 2080 in 3 years. By the way, I used DDU in safe mode to clear the old drivers. I also updated my BIOS and the chipset drivers. My power supply is a Cosrair 1000W and I use two cables to connect the card (not the two connectors on a single cable). And I don't think it's a power issue since the card runs at full power on other games without any problems. My temperatures are also great. Never goes above 65C and the hotspot is always below 85C.

So now I am wondering whether I should wait for new AMD drivers or return the card and buy a 4080 instead. It's more expensive and I don't like its size and the new power connector but I really don't want to pass the next 3 years wondering if my games are going to work before buying them (a question I never had to ask myself with my 2080). I still have 16 days to return the card to Newegg

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
What model 7900xtx? The ones using the reference cooler are prone to overheating causing problems.
 

ManDaddio

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Oct 23, 2019
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Yeah, the PSU is not the problem.

What case do you have. Just look at the specs of my case (Corsair 400C). The MSI RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio fits in my case. It just fits, but I was able to install it without any issues. That model has the 12 volt pin a little recessed which gives extra space for gently bending the cable. So I do not have an issue with the plug. Even so its a little tight in the case the card runs cool with about 65C in gaming.

Here is a picture of my 4080 in my case. Snug and tight, but it works and I have overall pretty good temps:
View: https://imgur.com/a/ZakrBI6#7EoWmE6
My personal opinion is dump the Radeon gpu and go with the 4080. It is superior is so many ways. The internet bubble never talks about the Radeon driver problems which they always have. If you read past forums you will see all over people have had issues. But you know, everyone has to pamper the underdog.
Buy a new case if yours is mid tower or smaller. I just built a new PC and got a larger mid-tower but I wish I got a large one now after putting everything together.
I know it is adding more cost but cases are not that expensive and you will be happy you got a new case after you see it all together again with a top of the line GPU. 🆒
Just my thoughts.
 

JayGau

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Dec 20, 2016
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Hi guys. On Monday night I tried a couple more games and saw other frame rate drops so I told myself I had enough and requested a refund from Newegg. As soon as I got the confirmation that the return was accepted I ordered a MSI RTX 4080 gaming X trio. I received it yesterday night and installed it.

I don't know if my RX 7900 XTX had some hardware issues but it's really day and night. The games run smoother and so far I didn't get any crashes. No more screen tearing, flickering or frame drop. Also the ray tracing looks so much better it was just horrible with the AMD card, especially in The Witcher 3 but now it's beautiful. I also don't see anymore those strange pixelated textures I was seeing when looking at far-away vegetation in Far Cry 6, Hitman 2 and Witcher 3. Now they all look perfect.

I also took a quick look at Cyberpunk 2077 with ray tracing and it's just awesome. With DLSS it runs at above 100 FPS with everything maxed out and looks gorgeous. I am ready for Phantom Liberty now!

The card fits quite well in my case as I expected based on mjbn1977's info about his own setup (thanks again for that). Here is a picture:

View: https://imgur.com/a/AADccLu


Now I really want to figure out how to modify the fan speed curve. I tried with MSI Afterburner, Evga Precision X1, Asus GPU Tweak, and so far no luck, it's stuck at the default settings that is not great. The temperatures are not bad but could be better with a more aggressive curve. I might start a new thread on this site about this problem.

Anyway, thank you all for your help and suggestions!

Edit: I figured out the problem with the fan control. It was because I had MSI Center installed and for some reason it was locking the fan speed. I uninstalled it, reinstalled Afterburner and it's working fine now.
 
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