AMD Radeon RX 6700 GPU Review: Striking The Right Balance

AMD Radeon RX 6700 Test Bench Hardware

We tested the AMD Radeon RX 6700 GPU along with the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X (review). Both components get along well together, especially if you are planning to build a 1440p-class gaming RIG. The GPU and CPU were paired to the MSI MPG X570S Edge Max Wi-Fi motherboard with 16GB of HyperX Predator DDR4 RGB(8GBx2) RAM.

The test bench used XPG Core Reactor 850 Gold modular power supply and the CPU was cooled using Antec Kuhler H2O -- K240 RGB dual radiator cooling solution. To reiterate, the price of the entire build will be less than Rs. 1,00,000.

• Operating System: Windows 11 64-bit
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X
• GPU: AMD Radeon RX 6700
• RAM: 16GB HyperX Predator DDR4 RGB
• Storage: Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 SSD 250GB
• Motherboard: MSI MPG X570S Edge Max Wi-Fi
• Power Supply: XPG Core Reactor 850 Gold (modular)
• Thermal Solution: Antec Kuhler H2O - K240 RGB

 

AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT Specifications

• Compute Units -- 32
• Boost Clock (MHz) -- 2495
• Game Clock (MHz) -- 2330
• Base Clock (MHz) -- 1941
• Standard Memory Config -- 10GB GDDR6 16Gbps
• Memory Interface Width -- 160-bit
• Ray Accelerators -- 36
• Stream Processors -- 2304
• AMD Architecture -- RDNA2
• HDMI 2.1 with VRR and FRL -- Yes
• DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC -- Yes
• Standard Display Connectors -- HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4
• Slot -- 2-Slot
• Graphics Card Power (W) -- 220
• Required System Power (W)-- 500

Sapphire AMD Radeon RX 6700 Design

The AMD Radeon RX 6700 from Sapphire is a two-slot graphics card, which will be able to work its magic even on a medium-sized cabinet. Since it's a lightweight GPU, there won't be much stress on the motherboard, and it also won't require any sort of GPU support bracket.

The GPU has a dual fan design and incorporates technologies like Intelligent Fan Control that help the GPU keep both temperature and fan noise in check. However, unlike most GPUs, this one comes without any lighting. So, for an RGB enthusiast, the GPU might across as a dull offering.

The GPU features three DisplayPort 1.4 ports and an HDMI 2.1 port, enabling users to plug it into most modern gaming monitors and smart TVs. Thanks to an eight-pin power connector, the cable management task becomes hassle-free. Overall, the Radeon RX 6700 XT from Sapphire is a decent-looking compact GPU.

AMD Radeon RX 6700 Performance Review

Unlike the slightly more affordable Radeon RX 6600 (review), the Radeon RX 6700 is a 1440p class GPU. The GPU might not be able to handle most modern AAA titles at the highest graphics settings at 1440p and deliver over 60fps gameplay.

To push the Radeon RX 6600 to its limits, we ran several benchmarks. We will be comparing it with some of the similarly priced GPUs available in the market. These numbers give us an idea about how the GPU will fare in real-world scenarios.

AMD Radeon RX 6700 Time Spy 3D Mark Benchmark

On the 3DMark Time Spy graphics test, the Radeon RX 6700 posted 11178 points, confirming its potential to deliver over 110fps at 1440p resolution and over 130fps at 1080p resolution in the Battlefield V video game. The benchmark also suggests the GPU is capable of running at around 2400MHz even with continuous usage.

AMD Radeon RX 6700 Gaming Performance

The Radeon RX 6700 does a pretty good job at gaming as well. The GPU offered an average FPS of 132 on GTA 5, 129fps on the Shadow of The Tomb Raider, and 106fps on Far Cry 6. This graphics card delivered stellar FPS on most modern AAA titles at 1080p. Even at 1440p resolution, the GPU managed to offer over 80fps on all these games without breaking a sweat.

AMD Radeon RX 6700 Ray Tracing Performance

Although RDNA2 GPUs natively support real-time ray-tracing, the ray-tracing performance is disappointing compared to the NVIDIA RTX 2000/3000 series of GPUs. With the ray-tracing quality set to ultra for the Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the average FPS plummeted from 129 to 72. Similarly, the GPU only offered an average FPS of 19 on Bright Memory: Infinite RTX benchmark at 1080p resolution with RTX quality set to very high.

Verdict: Versatile Mid-Tier Gaming GPU

In our testing, the Radeon RX 6700 impressed us a lot and did outperform the Radeon RX 6600 and even the RTX 2060 Super GPU significantly. For the asking price of Rs. 44,000, the Radeon RX 6700 is an easy-to-recommend GPU. However, we won't recommend this GPU for people who don't want to miss the ray-tracing action.