AMD’s latest addition to its RDNA 3 lineup, the Radeon RX 7600 XT, has arrived with the promise of delivering smooth 1440p gaming and future-proofing with its generous 16GB of VRAM. However, as is often the case in the world of graphics cards, the devil is in the details. While the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT GAMING OC 16G undoubtedly packs a punch, its pricing and performance leave something to be desired, especially when compared to its competition from Nvidia and even AMD’s own previous generation.
Having already looked at another one of the Radeon RX 7600 XT lineup, I had a pretty good idea of what to expect when walking into this review, but even still, GIGABYTE had some interesting surprises up its sleeve with this card. Starting with the aesthetics and cooling solution, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT GAMING OC 16G sports a sleek, all-black design with a nice splash of RGB lighting, which should appeal to those who prefer a little flash in their gaming rigs. This dual-slot card measures 281.4mm in length, making it slightly bigger than the PowerColor Hellhound variant we first tested.
That extra length means GIGABYTE could step things up with their tried-and-true WINDFORCE cooling system, featuring three 80mm fans and a substantial heatsink. This is a solid choice for the card, and In our testing, the card maintained impressive temperatures, with the GPU managing to stay cool, even when under load. While not as quiet as some other cooling options on the market, the fans remained relatively unobtrusive, even during intense gaming sessions.
“GIGABYTE has slightly increased clock speeds, with a game clock of 2.53GHz and a boost clock of up to 2.81GHz…”
However, unlike the reference card, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT is overclocked to give you a little extra performance for your investment. Looking at the specs, this OC variant of the RX 7600 XT shares its Navi 33 GPU with the standard RX 7600, with 32 processing cores, 2,048 stream processors and 64 AI accelerators. However, GIGABYTE has slightly increased clock speeds, with a game clock of 2.53GHz and a boost clock of up to 2.81GHz, compared to 2.47GHz and 2.75GHz on the reference XT card.
The GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT benefits from AMD’s latest RDNA 3 architecture, inheriting features like AV1 encoding, DisplayPort 2.1 support, and HYPR-RX technology, which combines upscaling and frame interpolation for smoother gameplay. AMD’s regular driver updates further enhance the GPU’s capabilities over time, even on older cards. The comprehensive software suite offers extensive performance tuning, image quality controls, and system monitoring tools — invaluable for extracting maximum potential from your hardware.
Jumping over to the power draw of this card, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT is a relatively thirsty card, especially for its target level of performance with a TBP (Total Board Power) of 190W running on a dual 8-pin connection. This is a significant increase over the 165W TBP of the RX 7600, and it puts the XT variant on par with some higher-end cards from the previous generation, like the RX 6700 XT. This is very consistent with what we saw in our review of the RX 7600 XT Hellhound, so there are no surprises here, at least when the power draw is concerned.
“The GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT is a relatively thirsty card, especially for its target level of performance…”
While the increased power draw doesn’t necessarily translate into excessive heat or noise, it does raise questions about the card’s overall efficiency, especially when compared to NVIDIA’s offerings in the same price range. The RTX 4060 Ti, for instance, delivers comparable or better performance while sipping less power, making it a more attractive option for those concerned about energy costs and heat output.
But with the basics of the card now out of the way, it is time to put it into our test system to see what it can do. As with the previous RX 7600 XT I looked at, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT was dropped into our AMD Ryzen 9 7950X test system, which has 32GB of DDR5 RAM and a WD_Black M.2 SSD, all running on an MSI 850W PSU, giving the card all the bandwidth it needs to show us what it can do. This also ensures that there are no bottlenecks in any aspect of the system that could prevent the Radeon RX 7600 XT from performing at its best.
1080P Game Benchmarks
As I expected, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT delivers solid results, especially in rasterized gaming at 1080p. In our tests, the card consistently achieved frame rates above 60fps in demanding titles like Cyberpunk 2077 and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, even with settings cranked up to their highest levels. However, while I was pleased with what the card delivered, it was relatively minor when compared to the non-overclocked version we tested previously. In reality, it was single-digit improvements that most people would not notice.
| Game | GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT | Radeon 7600 XT | Radeon 7600 | RTX 4060 TI 8GB | RTX 7700 XT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 139 | 137 | 131 | 200 | 138 |
| Rainbow Six Siege | 439 | 437 | 435 | 567 | 445 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 89 | 88.6 | 85.22 | 102.21 | 109.62 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 + RT | 26 | 25.23 | 18.15 | 42.4 | 30.02 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 + RT + DLSS | 47.56 | 46.56 | 34.17 | 116 | 55.12 |
| Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 109 | 107 | 104 | 121 | 117 |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | 130 | 128 | 124 | 121 | 172 |
1440P Game Benchmarks
Moving up to 1440p, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT starts to show its limitations, even with its upped clock speeds, struggling to maintain smooth frame rates in more demanding titles without the aid of upscaling technologies like AMD’s FidelityFX Super Resolution (FSR). While still capable of delivering playable performance, the card often falls behind its direct competitor, the NVIDIA RTX 4060 Ti, in this resolution bracket. The issue is that while it does offer slightly faster clock speeds, it still has limitations, and the increased RAM does not make up for that in most games.
| Game | GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT | Radeon 7600 XT | Radeon 7600 | GeForce RTX 4060 TI 8GB | RTX 7700 XT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 87 | 85 | 83 | 132 | 127 |
| Rainbow Six Siege | 312 | 309 | 301 | 389 | 378 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 | 54 | 53.99 | 52.37 | 63.55 | 87.9 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 + RT | 16 | 15 | 8.05 | 27.26 | 22.69 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 + RT + DLSS | 37 | 35 | 26.12 | 77.1 | 45.53 |
| Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | 74 | 73 | 71 | 89 | 94 |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | 87 | 85 | 83 | 84 | 132 |
Ray tracing performance is another area where the Radeon RX 7600 XT falls short, trailing behind the RTX 4060 Ti by a significant margin. While AMD has made strides in improving ray tracing capabilities with RDNA 3, the Radeon RX 7600 XT’s relatively modest hardware simply can’t keep up with NVIDIA’s dedicated RT cores when it comes to real-time ray tracing workloads. That does not even touch on DLSS, which still has a major advantage over FSR, as much as AMD is working to narrow the gap.
The biggest feature that the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT brings to the table over the non-XT version is its generous 16GB of GDDR6 VRAM. This is double that of its less powerful sibling and many of its competitors in the same price range. AMD has positioned this as a future-proofing measure, ensuring that the card can handle the ever-increasing memory demands of modern games or workflows.
In practice, however, the benefits of the extra VRAM are often negligible, at least for now. Most current titles simply don’t require more than 8GB of VRAM, even at higher resolutions and settings. There are exceptions, of course, but for the majority of games, the performance delta between the 8GB and 16GB variants is minimal. As I mentioned before, the 16GB VRAM does give more flexibility for AI workflows, and as these become more prominent, this could be a solid gateway to tinkering with that, but for people who just want to play games, it does not do enough.
While I want to root for the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT, simply because I think GPUs should offer more RAM, especially as workflows need it, the price is still the biggest issue. With an MSRP of $329 in the US, the card finds itself in an awkward position, sandwiched between the more affordable RX 7600 ($269) and the significantly more powerful RX 7700 XT ($449), and as sales see the RX 7700 XT coming down further, it is an even harder sell.
While the $60 premium over the RX 7600 might seem reasonable on paper, the relatively modest performance gains make it a tough sell, especially when factoring in the competition from NVIDIA’s RTX 4060, which often outperforms the Radeon RX 7600 XT while retailing for $299. There are reasons to dive into the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT card, but for the average buyer, they are harder to justify at the price point.
The GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT GAMING OC 16G is a solid graphics card that delivers excellent 1080p gaming performance and a generous helping of VRAM for future-proofing. However, its relatively modest performance gains over the non-XT variant, lacklustre ray tracing capabilities, and questionable pricing make it a tough sell, especially when compared to the competition from NVIDIA and AMD’s own previous generation offerings or even its sibling cards in the RX 7000 range.
For gamers on a tight budget or those primarily focused on 1080p gaming, the non-XT Radeon RX 7600 might be a more sensible choice, offering similar performance at a lower price point. Conversely, those willing to stretch their budget could find better value in the higher-tier Radeon RX 7700 XT or even NVIDIA’s RTX 4060 Ti, both of which offer more substantial performance gains and better ray tracing capabilities and can push games farther with fewer compromises.
Ultimately, the GIGABYTE Radeon RX 7600 XT GAMING OC 16G is a capable graphics card that falls victim to the ever-shifting landscape of the GPU market. While it may find its niche among those seeking a future-proof solution, AI enthusiasts, or those deeply invested in AMD’s ecosystem, for most gamers, better options are likely available that offer a more compelling balance of performance, features, and value.
- Powered by Radeon RX 7600 XT
- Integrated with 16GB GDDR6 128-bit memory interface
