Asus RX Vega 64 Strix Performance versus PowerColor and Sapphire Vega 64.

[colesdav]

Hi,

I have been waiting to purchase an RX Vega 64 when GPU prices dropped.
Right now I could purchase the following.

(1). Asus RX Vega 64 Strix for 450.
(2). PowerColor Red Dragon Vega 64 for 450.
(3). Sapphire Nitro+ Vega 64 for 500.

They all come with 120 worth of free games (AMD Raise the Game deal).
I do not like GPU > 40mm width, but all non reference Vega 64's are large GPU because of cooling requirement.
I really do like the look of Asus card, plus there are (or at least were) waterblocks available for it, there are no waterblocks for the other two.
The ASUS card also comes with 3 year warranty versus 2 year warranty for the other two Vega 64's.

I am an Asus fan anyhow, I use Asus Motherboards for my intel PC's and I want to use an Asus Motherboard for my next Ryzen and Threadripper builds.

However I am concerned about a few things regarding the ASUS Strix RX Vega 64 and I was hoping someone on this forum might be able to help me out to answer some questions.

1. Toms hardware review of the Asus Strix RX Vega 64 complainied about VRM temperatures on the GPU and lack of thermal pads. - Does anyone know if this issue has been fixed? Reference here: https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/asus-rx-vega64-strix-oc,5520.html
The review is quite old now, however ... it would be good to know if VRM temps and thermal pad issue has been addressed by ASUS?

2. When the RX Vega 64 AIB cards were launched there were problems reported with the AIB card BIOSes working well with the AMD Drivers on both the PowerColor Red Devil and the Asus RX Vega 64 Strix. The last information I see about it, the Powercolor issue was fixed, but the Asus Vega 64 Strix still had problems. Does anyone have an update on this? Information here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc_XgsX2P40

3. Finally the reason I ask about (2). I see this recent benchmark review of ASUS Vega 64 strix versus AMD Vega 64 reference versus PowerColor Red Devil Vega 64 versus Sapphire Vega 64 Nitro+ Standard Edition. The Asus Vega 64 Strix is performing poorly, sometimes worse than reference. I have seen comments about the Asus card having a GPU downclocking issue in the BIOS. Is this 'issue' fixed or true? Here is the benchmark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYQsFnVDbpw

I would be grateful if someone could comment on the above.
I understand ths is an Asus forum so likely you would all tell me just buy the Asus Strix Vega 64 GPU. I do own other ASUS GPU's ... but I would prefer to know if there is an issue with the Asus Vega 64 Strix GPU before I spend 450 on one.

Thanks.

[colesdav]

Update.

I have been asking on YouTube about this Asus ROG Vega 64 Strix performance versus Sapphire and PowerColor cards.

This person has kindly investigated the VRM performance on the Asus ROG Strix RX Vega 64 for everyone interested in the card:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay34-gNFW8M&lc=z22vgli5oyn3g13lxacdp431nxv2m2dkespltx0xfxtw03c010c.1...

They have demonstrated a problem with VRM cooling on their card, and a fix.
Problem is, performing this fix would void the 3 year warranty on the card.

What is the official response from ASUS about this?
Will these GPU's be recalled and fixed for free?
They are AIB cards with a large 3 fan cooler yet perform worse than Vega 64 reference in some benchmarks I have seen.
Has this VRM cooling problem been fixed on these cards?
Is there any way to tell if you purchase a bad one?

Also is there any comment from ASUS regarding use of the GPU backplate to cool components on the PCB?

Thanks.

[colesdav]

I contacted Asus regarding this Thermal Pad, VRM Cooling, and backplate on ROG Strix Vega 64.
This is what I was told.:

"Thank you for contacting ASUS Support!
About your case, I would like to inform you that we cannot comment statements like this in Internet.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us again.
Have a lovely day!"

I will have to look at PowerColor RX Vega 64 or Sapphire Nitro+ Vega 64 instead.

What a shame.

[colesdav]

I contacted Asus regarding this Thermal Pad, VRM Cooling, and backplate on ROG Strix Vega 64.
This is what I was told.:

"Thank you for contacting ASUS Support!
About your case, I would like to inform you that we cannot comment statements like this in Internet.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us again.
Have a lovely day!"

I will have to look at PowerColor RX Vega 64 or Sapphire Nitro+ Vega 64 instead.

[RavageSoul]

so no answer at all? i order 2 vega 64 but they are out of stock, idk if i should cancel the order or wait and see u.u

[panzlock]

RavageSoul wrote:
so no answer at all? i order 2 vega 64 but they are out of stock, idk if i should cancel the order or wait and see u.u

Relax, I got you, brother......... Here we go:

This is a clue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyFTQFtju4Y Not sure if these issues have been addressed, but looking at other review sites ASUS seems to have repaired their flagship AMD product.

Personally, I would opt for Sapphire. I bought the Sapphire Nitro+ RX Vega 56 (SP) when building my daughter's PC after reading multiple reviews (as rare as thy were) and it hasn't let us down. It has good cooling and when undervolted AND underclocked it performs on par with my ASUS Strix 1070 in the same game but at higher resolution (1440p vs 1080p) and similar wattage. That's right, slightly above what the Strix 1070 requires despite the bump in resolution.

I have to say, Vega received undeserved criticism due to it's advertised TDP. I'm still uncertain about the reason AMD released these VGA's with such high voltages. If you tinker with it a little, you can recover some efficiency whilst maintaining decent FPS.

Other than that, the card looks great in the chassis, complementing the other components. The Strix has the stealthy design, but the Sapphire has this subdued elegance so desperately needed in electronics, nowadays. The best of the available Vega cards, aesthetically, would be the Red Devil from Powercolor, but again, due to superior cooling and slightly better overall performance I chose Sapphire.

That said I wouldn't put ASUS at the top of the list if you want an AMD Vega card. Based on reviews and personal taste this is how I rate Vega:

1.) Sapphire Nitro+ LE

2.) Sapphire Nitro+ SP

3.) Powercolor Red Devil

4.) ASUS Strix

5.) Powercolor Red Dragon

6.) XFX

7.) MSI Air Boost

8.) AMD RX Vega (reference)

9.) Gigabyte

10.) Marriage

Can't post it at work because it's blocked but I can get you a comparison review of these cards which should help with your decision.

P.S. Don't get married.

[panzlock]

RavageSoul wrote:
so no answer at all? i order 2 vega 64 but they are out of stock, idk if i should cancel the order or wait and see u.u

Relax. I got you, brother.

This is a clue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyFTQFtju4Y Not sure if these issues have been addressed, but looking at other review sites ASUS seems to have repaired their flagship AMD product.

Personally, I would opt for Sapphire. I bought the Sapphire Nitro+ RX Vega 56 (SP) when building my daughter's PC after reading multiple reviews (as rare as thy were) and it hasn't let us down. It has good cooling and when undervolted AND underclocked it performs on par with my ASUS Strix 1070 in the same game but at higher resolution (1440p vs 1080p) and similar wattage. That's right, slightly above what the Strix 1070 requires despite the bump in resolution.

I have to say, Vega received undeserved criticism due to it's advertised TDP. I'm still uncertain about the reason AMD released these VGA's with such high voltages. If you tinker with it a little, you can recover some efficiency whilst maintaining decent FPS. Be mindful, much like with overclocking, undervolting will depend on the silicon lottery, hence certain cards undervolt better than others. Also, poor marketing and a year behind its Pascal rival from Nvidia ensured this would never become a prominent centerpiece in the gaming community. But they do have advantages in other areas such as graphic design and mining, to name......two.

Other than that, the card looks great in the chassis, complementing the other components. The Strix has the stealthy design, but the Sapphire has this subdued elegance so desperately needed in electronics, nowadays. The best of the available Vega cards (and generally any cards), aesthetically, would be the Red Devil from Powercolor, but again, due to superior cooling and slightly better overall performance I chose Sapphire.

That said I wouldn't put ASUS at the top of the list if you want an AMD Vega card. Based on reviews and personal taste this is how I rate Vega:

1.) Sapphire Nitro+ LE

2.) Sapphire Nitro+ SP

3.) Powercolor Red Devil

4.) ASUS Strix

5.) Powercolor Red Dragon

6.) XFX

7.) MSI Air Boost

8.) AMD RX Vega (reference)

9.) Gigabyte

10.) Marriage

Can't post it at work because it's blocked but I can get you a comparison review of these cards which should help with your decision.

P.S. Don't get married.

[panzlock]

Vega 64 AIB card comparisons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDaWiT-f2go

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYQsFnVDbpw

This should help. As you can see, my previous comments regarding the Strix Vega 64 were based on scrutiny that was outdated and upon which I never followed up. The Strix is the best contender to Sapphire's Nitro+ which has a very narrow but consistent edge over the Strix. The second video shows, side by side, how the best of Vega AIB cards perform, evaluating core parameters including GPU and HBM 2 speeds and temperatures under various loads. You'll find performance per watt to favour the Sapphire brand.

Rock N' Roll.