PowerColor Red Devil Radeon RX 580 8GB Graphics Card Review

Introduction PowerColor has a long history of creating high-performance AMD graphics cards, and their latest, the PowerColor Red Devil RX 580 promises to deliver faster performance than the 4xx series, better cooling, higher clock speeds, and offers up 8GB of GDDR5 memory. It comes equipped with the latest AMD’s 4th generation GCN 4 architecture, which features asynchronous shaders. The PowerColor RX 580 is perfect for those who are gaming with the latest Direct X 12 and Vulcan APIs, and best of all, it's competitively priced too. The new card features 2304 stream processors with a 2000MHz memory clock speed and an improved 256-bit high-speed memory interface. The Red Devil RX580 is clocked at 1355Mhz on the GPU core and takes its power from 8+6-pin power connections, which run through the improved 6+1 multi-phases board design. This power delivery system means the card can run more efficiently and help the card maintain its factory overclocks with improved stability. Featuring their new cooler design, which features a 4-piece 8mm nickel-plated heat pipe configuration, with two 100mm fans, so we're expecting it to perform pretty well in that regard. The card also uses the Mute Fan Technology, allowing it to turn the fans off completely for silent performance if the card is below 60c. Packaging and Accessories The box is cool, with a very funky Red Devil graphic on the front, as well as detailing some of the extra features the card provides; DirectX 12 and Vulkan support, Chill, FreeSync 2, and Relive Capture. Around the back, a detailed technical breakdown of the card, which shows the new Ultra OS or Silent OC BIOS switching modes, the new cooling design, the improved MOS, TwoBall Bearing fan design, and so much more. Clearly, this card is a significant improvement over the reference design, so we're eager to see some great results in our benchmarks. There's not a lot included in the box, you get the graphics card (obviously), and a small amount of documentation, but that's it. A Closer Look Immediately we can see that this is one gorgeous looking graphics card. The whole black and red "gaming" thing is done to death, but the Red Devil wears it well. What stands out the most, is that the shroud for the cooler is made from metal, while many graphics cards in this price range will offer plastic covers. The two tone effect certainly stands out, and the fact that it's two separate chunks of metal bolted together gives it a premium quality look and feel that few cards can rival. The card is quite chunky but still keeps within a dual-slot design. The extra size is no bad thing though, as that makes room for a much larger heat sink that will help with the Mute Fan mode. Of course, those two huge 100mm fans should be able to keep the card cool even at low RPM. On the edge of the card, there's a red LED lit Red Devil which is sure to look great when you peek through the side panel window of your chassis. Connectivity is superb too, with 3 x DP, 1 x HDMI, and 1 X DVI. This means you shouldn't have any issues connecting up various display types, and those eager to use multiple displays will have no issues either. I also like that all of the connections come with dust covers, it's a small detail, but a welcome one. There's also a good amount of ventilation here, which should help shift plenty of heat out of the back end of the card. One of the best features of this card, however, is this stunning 1.5mm thick backplate. It has a matte black finish, with some cool ventilation holes cut into it around the pentagram graphic. Tucked away right at the rear corner of the card, you'll find the power connections, a 6+8pin configuration, which means this card can chomp through quite a bit of power, but we're eager to see how much of that power it can turn into performance! Fired up on our test bench and ready to go, the lighting is not great today, but you can see the little Red Devil logo lit up on the side of the card. Testing & Methodology Please note that on 16/04/2017, the graphics cards featured in this review were completely retested. This was done to implement new changes in the way we test, the settings we use, the software and more. We've also made some slight hardware changes to our test benches, and all games have been recently updated, as has the OS, graphics drivers, etc. This would mean new results would not be a fair comparison to old. For your reference, the last review to feature our old results can't be found here. Here is the test system used for all graphics card reviews (pictured above) and game performance analysis: Graphics Card Test System Motherboard – Asus Rampage V Extreme X99 Processor – Intel Core i7 5960X at stock with turbo enabled RAM – Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) 2666 MHz Graphics Card – Varies per review CPU Cooler – Noctua NH-D15S Power Supply – Be Quiet Power Zone 1000W Main Storage Drive – Toshiba OCZ VX500 500GB Chassis – Lian Li T80 Open Air Test Bench Operating System – Windows 10 64-bit Additional Hardware "Killawatt” style electricity usage meter wall plug Precision Gold N05CC Decibel meter Games Throughout the testing procedure, we always use demanding presets which stress graphics cards to reasonable limits. However, in the interest of fairness, any technology which favours either AMD or NVIDIA is disabled. More specifically, this refers to PhysX, Hairworks and similar technologies. Additionally, we also disable all forms of AA, including FXAA, to gauge performance levels which aren't impacted by sophisticated AA. Theoretically, we could have employed FXAA because it only has a minor impact on the frame-rate, but many users strongly dislike the hazy image this causes. N-Sync is always disabled in our testing, graphics card power usage is set to optimised or balance, system power mode is set to High Performance. Some benchmarks may feature more cards, this is due to some tests being older or newer than others, and being used in other game specific feature tests we have conducted, so you'll find all relevant cards included in each chart as we add or remove new and old tests. Selecting strenuous presets especially at higher resolutions can cause hitching and other performance problems on graphics cards with lower amounts of video memory. For example, Rise of the Tomb Raider's Very High textures requires 4GB of RAM to maintain a smooth frame-rate. In theory, we could run the benchmarks at the High setting, but this defeats the purpose of high-end graphics cards which are designed to cope with the absolute best graphics on the market. Furthermore, the notion of enthusiast cards sporting less than 4GB memory has become less of an issue. Of course, whenever we're tackling more affordable GPUs, the settings will be altered accordingly and detailed for clarity. Identical settings are used for all resolutions, 1080, 1440, 2160, and 1440 Ultrawide, unless otherwise stated. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided Graphics Settings For this game, we use the Very High preset, with some small changes to increase the Texture Filtering, turn off the AA, and all V-Sync settings. Preset: Custom Fullscreen: On Exclusive Fullscreen: Off DirextX 12: On VSync: Off Anti-aliasing: Off Texture Quality: Very High Texture Filtering: 16x Anisotropic Shadow Quality: Very High Sun Soft Shadows: High Depth of Field: Very High Level of Detail: Very High Dynamic Foliage: High Ambient Occlusion: On PureHair: Off Specular Reflection Quality: Normal Vignette Blur: On Motion Blur: On Bloom: On Tesselations: On Screen Space Reflections: On Lens Flares: On Screen Effects: On Film Grain: On Rise of the Tomb Raider Graphics Settings Preset: Custom Fullscreen: On Exclusive Fullscreen: Off DirextX 12: On MSAA: Off VSync: Off Texture Quality: Very High Texture Filtering: 16x Anisotropic Shadow Quality: Very High Ambient Occlusion: Very High Contact Hardening Shadows: On Parallax Occlusion Mapping: High Depth of Field: Very High Level of Detail: Very High Volumetric Lighting: On Screenspace Reflections: On Temporal Anti-Aliasing: Disabled Motion Blur: On Sharpen: On Bloom: On Lens Flares: On Cloth Physics: On Subsurface Scattering: On Chromatic Aberration: On Tesselations: On Far Cry Primal Graphics Settings Graphics Quality: Custom HD Textures: On Textures: Very High Shadow: Ultra Post FX: High Geometry: Ultra Terrain: Very High Water: Very High Environment: High Anti-Aliasing: Off Volumetric Fog: Very High Motion Blur: On Ghost Recon: Wildlands Graphics Settings Preset: Custom Antialiasing: Off Ambient Occlusion: SSBC Draw Distance: Very High Level of Detail: Ultra Texture Quality: Ultra Anisotropic Filtering: 16 Shadow Quality: Ultra Terrain Quality: Ultra Vegetation Quality: Ultra Turf Effects: Off Motion Blur: On Iron Sights DOF: On High-Quality DOF: On Bloom: On God Raws: Enhanced Subsurface Scattering: On Lens Flare: On Long-Range Shadows: Ultra Software 3DMark Firestrike 3DMark Time Spy Unique Superposition Deus Ex: Mankind Divided Rise of the Tomb Raider Far Cry Primal Ghost Recon: Wildlands CPU-ID HWMonitor TechPowerUp GPU-Z Noise Everyone has their own reasonable noise level when it comes to comes to components on a computer. Some can handle all fans at 100% load to keep temperatures down; some want an entirely silent computer. To accurately gauge the noise output of a graphics card, we position a Precision Gold N05CC Decibel meter from one metre above our open air test bench and take an average reading at idle and load. Power Consumption With electricity becoming increasingly expensive across most parts of the world the need for computer components to become power efficient has never been more relevant. Graphics cards are often the most power-hungry components of a desktop system so having an efficient graphics card is crucial to keeping power bills under control. Power is tied to heat, so lower power consumption means a graphics card is likely to run slightly cooler and put out less heat into your system meaning your other components will run cooler with improved longevity. AMD and NVIDIA have both made power consumption an integral part of the way graphics cards dynamically overclock, so the need for graphics card vendors to use efficient VRM and PCB designs is becoming essential to maximise performance. We take power readings during idle state with no background applications running. Then again at 25%, 50%, and 99% completion of the Unigine Superposition benchmark, using the average as the final published result. Temperatures The cooling solution which graphics card vendors choose to implement is one of the main differences that consumers have to contend with when selecting a graphics cards. Apart from their acoustic properties, the thermal properties of graphics card coolers are critical. Lower temperatures are always better, and with AMD and NVIDIA opting to use dynamic overclocking algorithms that take temperature into account, it is important that graphics card vendors use high-performance cooling solutions to maximise performance. The era of graphics cards reaching critical temperatures are now in the past, but the importance of low temperatures remains. Lower temperatures mean better stability, longer component longevity and lower fan speeds. We take temperature readings after 10 minutes of desktop idle with no background programs running, then take the recorded maximum delivered from Unigine Superposition after a 4K optimised run, confirming the numbers are accurate with HWMonitor. Ambient temperature is always kept +/- 1c from 21c. 3DMark Straight away we see the RX 580 pull ahead of the RX 480, although I would like to point out that the 480 on our charts is a factory-overclocked ASUS STRIX model, so the comparison is greater if you consider that the stock 480 would have scored lower in today's results. Another solid performance, topping the mid-range cards on our charts with ease. Pushing up the resolution didn't change much either, with the Devil still a few percent ahead of the 480. Again, another great score, with the 580 sitting ahead of the GTX 1060, and the RX 480. Unigine Superpossition The improvement isn't huge here, but again, there is an improvement, with the RX 580 clearly pulling ahead. Another good score here, but it looks like the faster core of the 1060 was enough to tip it ahead in this benchmark. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided Deus Ex can really make a graphics card work hard, but as we've seen before the AMD card deals with the DirectX 12 API very well, clocking in at just under 60fps is excellent for a card of this value, especially given were running it at such extreme graphics settings. Pushing the resolution up and the 580 is still beating the 1060 and the 480, if only by a small margin. 4K is just too much at these settings for any of our mid-range cards, but the results are pretty much what you would have predicted, with the 508 slightly ahead of the 480, and the same holds true for 21:9 Ultrawide testing. Rise of the Tomb Raider Rise of the Tomb Raider is a little more forgiving than Deus Ex, as such we were able to hit an average above 60fps, putting it way ahead of the RX 480. Again the new card decimated the 480, 1060, and the 470, since that did pretty good here too. Both the 480 and the 580 managed a similar score here, although the RX 580 is ever so slightly in the lead. For 1440 Ultrawide, we see the same predictable results, which is no bad thing. Far Cry Primal Again the card makes easy work of the game at 1080p, although the similarly priced GTX 1060 has pulled ahead here. The RX 580 and GTX 1060 are neck and neck at 1440p. While the RX 580 pulls slightly ahead of both the GTX 1060 and the RX 480 at 2160p. The card is very similar to the GTX 1060 in ultrawide too, although it's just ever so slightly ahead. Ghost Recon: Wildlands Easily our most demanding gaming benchmark so far, the card does fall down here, actually falling behind the RX 480, but that's the first time this has happened today, so we're still winning overall. The GTX 1060 still takes the crown here though, if only by a little. Pushing up the resolution, the RX 580 makes up ground on the 480, but again it's the 1060 that keeps the lead. Again, strange results at 4K and ultrawide, with the RX 580 dropping further down. This game is optimised for Nvidia though, so that could be software problems throwing out the results more than anything. Acoustic, Thermal and Power Testing Acoustic Performance That fantastic looking cooler clearly isn't going to waste, with the RX 580 running completely silent for most of our testing, and even when the fans are spinning, they clock in at just 41 dBa, which is very quiet, and much quieter than the triple-fanned RX 480 STRIX we tested. Thermal Performance Able to run completely silent until the GPU reaches 60c, this card certainly is impressive. Even when we did max it out, it reached a more than comfortable 69c, which is about the same as the GTX 1060, and most RX 480's. Our RX 480, however, did have a much bigger cooler and lower clocks, so it managed to stay around 5c cooler. Power Usage Unsurprisingly, the card is a little thirsty for power, using a little more than a GTX 1080. Nvidia is usually the more efficient of the bunch though, so this is hardly surprising. Final Thoughts Price The AMD Radeon RX 580 is here at last, and there are many variants of it hitting the market today. The Power Color Red Devil is one of the more expensive options, and you can expect a retail price of around $250/269EUR. What's interesting is that the older RX480 which this is based on costs around the same, meaning you're getting more performance for the same money. It's also slightly cheaper than most of the Nvidia GTX 1060's on the market right now, and since the RX 580 is a little faster than the equivalent Nvidia card in most tests, that makes it very good value for money overall. Overview There's no hiding the fact that this card is basically a re-tooled RX480, we've known it's a rebrand for a while now. However many similarities are there, but there are quite a few changes too. Power Color, in particular, used the same PCB as their Red Devil RX 480, but they added significantly improved power delivery and MOS, which allows the card to run more efficiently and at higher clock speeds with improved stability. They've also upgraded the cooling capabilities of the card, and that means it can maintain those higher clock speeds with ease, while still keeping the card well within a comfortable thermal target. Speaking of thermal performance, the fact this card can run complete silent up to 60c is very impressive. Even while benchmarking we noticed the fan would only spin up after a few minutes of heavy benchmarking, and that speaks volumes about the quality of the heat sink. If you're keen to have a quiet computer, it's an appealing option. Of course, with Radeon Chill technology built-in, as well as a growing list of games which support it, you can drastically cut the power usage and thermals of your card by not having the GPU core work any harder than is needed to hit your target frame rate. Other very welcome technologies include FreeSync 2, making it ready for the newest FreeSync displays hitting the market. Display connectivity options on the back of the card are excellent too, so a wide variety of displays will work without issue. Those who really want to move onto the next-gen of PC monitors, or even hook up the graphics card to their new 4K TV will find support for high resolutions, as well as HDR video output, which is something I certainly welcome. Regarding performance, the card is right on the money to appeal to most consumers. The card is a little faster and a little cheaper than the Nvidia GTX 1060 in most benchmarks, while also being faster and similarly priced compared to the RX 480 too; this makes it a welcome improvement for the AMD lineup. If you've bought a new GPU in the last 6 months, even the last 18 months, perhaps the RX 580 isn't the upgrade you're waiting for. However, if you're part of a large number of gamers still using 2 years+ old mid-budget graphics cards, the price versus performance ratio offered by the RX 580 makes it a great option for those who want to play the latest games with the latest technologies, but don't want to spend a small fortune. Pros Competitive performance Great price Mute Fan Technology Quiet fans under full load Gorgeous two-piece metal shroud Unique and durable backplate design Great connectivity Improves on RX 480 performance Supports FreeSync 2, Chill, HDR, and more! Cons High power consumption Neutral Ghost Recon: Wildlands performance needs improvement, we expect a driver update will fix this. "The Power Color RX 580 takes an already competitive graphics card (RX 480) and makes it just that bit better in every respect. With plenty of modern features, fantastic gaming performance and a competitive price, it's a very good time for some gamers to stop putting off that long-overdue GPU upgrade."