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Radeon RX 6950 is a graphics card made to deliver performance to rule your game. RX 6950 features AMD’s RDNA 2 architecture, well-crafted to offer an ultimate 4K gaming experience. It is a Navi 21 KXTX variant that also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate.
All modern games comfortably run on RX 6950, thanks to its DirectX 12 ultimate capabilities. They ensure that your hardware is fully supported for hardware ray-tracing and variable rate-shading in new video games.
Radeon RX 6950 is a triple-slot card that draws its power from 2*8 pin power connectors, rated at a maximum of 335W. Its display output is made of 1*HDMI 2.1 and Display Port 1.4a. The card connects to the rest of the system via a PCI-Express 4.0*16 interface.
Radeon Rx 6950 Overview
AMD launched RX 6950 on May 10, 2022. It arrived after numerous rumors and leaks, and was accompanied by RX 6750 XT and RX 6650 XT. The legendary flagship card has outstanding features that guarantee gamers excellent performance.
The GPU came in promising faster memory, a modest increase in power consumption, and higher GPU clocks. Its performance speed goes toe-to-toe with NVidia’s fastest GPU, though RX 6950 has more wins, including 4K and ray tracing at affordable rates.
Radeon RX 6950 was just a minor refresh in AMD’s GPU lineup. Its functionality is based on the original model, 6900 XT, while its core count remains the same as before. However, the GPU received a 3% core clock upgrade and a 13% boost to memory bandwidth since it uses 18 Gbps GDDR6 memory.
- Video Memory: 16GB GDDR6
- Stream Processor: 5120
- Game Clock: 2226 MHz (OC) / 2116 MHz (Silent)
- Boost Clock: 2435 MHz (OC) / 2324 MHz (Silent)
- Memory Clock: 18.0 Gbps
Features
Performance
Radeon RX 6950 is one of the fastest graphics cards available. The card is suited for 4K gaming, so it will run any game. The graphics card is built on the 7nm process and a Navi 21 KXTX variant. These specs make the GPU ideal for upcoming games.
RX 6950 can be expensive if you use a 1080p or 1440p monitor. It is a power-hungry card and may require a decent amount of power supply to perform optimally.
Its 16GB RAM is more than enough for any modern game. The GPU consistently delivers excellent frame rates over its predecessors like RX 5700 XT. Overall, RX 6950 performance is impressive!
Power consumption
Radeon RX 6950 is more power-efficient than RX 7900 XTX. The GPU has an average power consumption of about 286 Watts, while RX 7900 has 323 Watts. Its minimum system power requirement is 950 W, and the GPU uses a three-pin PCI Express Power Connector.
Connecting RX 6950 is straightforward. Once your card is in place, hook it up to external power connectors, preferably those with native PCIe PEG. The power supply you buy should match the power consumption of your PC and GPU. For instance, if your game consumes about 300W, your PC should have a 600W power supply on average.
Windforce 3X cooling system
RX 6950 uses the Windforce 3X cooling system, AMD’s reference cooling. The system displays the GPU temperature up to 81c and a Hot Spot at 95c. The cooling system ensures that your RX 6950 remains cool, but the cooling does not stop your video card from overclocking.
The Windforce 3X cooling system uses three 100 mm fans with a distinctive blade design, angular fin design, double ball structure, and six blended heart pipes. Its outstanding design has the center fans recessed while the fins of the rest of the fans are stacked above it.
The center fans rotate in the reverse direction to optimize airflow. The reverse direction or alternate spinning also ensures that heat spreads evenly with less turbulence from adjacent fans.
RX 6950 also achieves screen cooling through its extended heat sink design, allowing airflow for better heat dissipation.
Large vapor chamber and heat pipe
RX 6950’s large vapor chamber and heat pipe are directly connected to the VRAM. The vapor chamber combines the composite heat pipes to move the heat generated from the GPU’s interior core towards the heat sink effectively.
Protection metal back plate
RX 6950 has a metal plate at the back, contributing to its aesthetic shape. The plate also enhances the whole structure of the Radeon RX 6950 card to offer wholesome protection.
Durability and overclocking
RX 6950 has an excellent power phase design, enabling MOSFET to run at lower temperatures. It also has an over-temperature protection design and a load-balancing mechanism for every MOSFET. The GPU also has extra durable capacitors and certified chokes, which provide outstanding performance and longevity to the entire system.
Other notable features include a user-friendly PCB design with a full-automated production process for top-quality circuit boards and the elimination of other connectors as seen on the PCB surface. The design also prevents cuts on your hands or damaging components.
Its outstanding interface also allows you to adjust real-time voltage, clock speed, fan performance, or power target based on your game’s requirements.
The GPU has a silent mode that ensures that everything runs quietly and that you can easily switch modes (from silent mode to OC mode –default), though it might require you to reboot the system to effect it.
RX 6950 Pros and Cons
Pros
- It is cool and quiet
- It is reasonably efficient
- It is less costly compared to its Nvidia competition
- It offers a 4K gaming experience
- It uses relatively low power
- RX 6950 outperforms RTX 3090
Cons
- It is almost similar to RX 6900 XT, so buying it as a replacement might not make much economic sense.
- Ray tracing performance is slightly behind Nvidia RTX graphics cards.
RX 6950: Is it Worth it?
RX 6950 is a bumped version of RX 6900 that is worth trying. It is significantly overclocked than the previous versions following its refreshed RDNA2 lined up based on binned chips, giving it a significant performance advantage.
It has outstanding graphics for the price bringing its worth and functionality to the costlier RTX 3090. Its latest painted black design will only require you to top up with $100.
Buy it if…
You are an enthusiastic gamer interested in pushing the limits of what can be done with modern games.
You want more than the basic 1080p gaming experience. This GPU will allow you to play even the most popular or demanding games in an incredible 4K resolution.
You want outstanding performance, a lower price point, and lower power consumption.
Don’t buy it if…
You plan to enjoy new games with extra power in the future. The gaming industry keeps upgrading, and GPU companies must keep up with their pace by packing in extra power, extra cores, and more features.
Unfortunately, AMD did not take advantage of the dynamic nature of the gaming industry, as RX 6950 only features a few upgrades that might not sustain various versions of high-demanding games. Since the GPU is not different from RX 6900, we wouldn’t advise buying an RX 6950 if you already have the RX 6900.
- Video Memory: 16GB GDDR6
- Stream Processor: 5120
- Game Clock: 2226 MHz (OC) / 2116 MHz (Silent)
- Boost Clock: 2435 MHz (OC) / 2324 MHz (Silent)
- Memory Clock: 18.0 Gbps
