Recommended System Requirements | ||
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Game | Radeon RX 590 8GB | Radeon RX 550 4GB |
Red Dead Redemption 2 | 12% | 65% |
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | 12% | 65% |
Halo: Reach | 72% | 48% |
Star Wars: Jedi - Fallen Order | 20% | 126% |
Borderlands 3 | 7% | 74% |
Cyberpunk 2077 | 20% | 126% |
FIFA 20 | 53% | 12% |
Fortnite: Chapter 2 | 60% | 25% |
eFootball PES 2020 | 40% | 12% |
Halo: The Master Chief Collection | 1% | 90% |
In terms of overall gaming performance, the graphical capabilities of the AMD Radeon RX 590 8GB are significantly better than the AMD Radeon RX 550 4GB.
The RX 590 has a 379 MHz higher core clock speed and 88 more Texture Mapping Units than the RX 550. This results in the RX 590 providing 150.5 GTexel/s better texturing performance. This still holds weight but shader performance is generally more relevant, particularly since both of these GPUs support at least DirectX 10.
The RX 590 has a 379 MHz higher core clock speed and 16 more Render Output Units than the RX 550. This results in the RX 590 providing 29.6 GPixel/s better pixeling performance. However, both GPUs support DirectX 9 or above, and pixeling performance is only really relevant when comparing older cards.
The RX 590 was released over a year more recently than the RX 550, and so the RX 590 is likely to have better driver support, meaning it will be more optimized for running the latest games when compared to the RX 550.
Both GPUs exhibit very powerful performance, so it probably isn't worth upgrading from one to the other, as both are capable of running even the most demanding games at the highest settings.
The RX 590 has 4096 MB more video memory than the RX 550, so is likely to be much better at displaying game textures at higher resolutions. This is supported by the fact that the RX 590 also has superior memory performance overall.
The RX 590 has 256 GB/sec greater memory bandwidth than the RX 550, which means that the memory performance of the RX 590 is massively better than the RX 550.
The Radeon RX 590 8GB has 2304 Shader Processing Units and the Radeon RX 550 4GB has 896. However, the actual shader performance of the RX 590 is 3560 and the actual shader performance of the RX 550 is 1075. The RX 590 having 2485 better shader performance and an altogether better performance when taking into account other relevant data means that the RX 590 delivers a massively smoother and more efficient experience when processing graphical data than the RX 550.
The RX 590 transistor size technology is 2 nm (nanometers) smaller than the RX 550. This means that the RX 590 is expected to run very slightly cooler and achieve higher clock frequencies than the RX 550.
The Radeon RX 590 8GB requires 175 Watts to run and the Radeon RX 550 4GB requires 75 Watts. We would recommend a PSU with at least 500 Watts for the RX 590 and a PSU with at least 350 Watts for the RX 550. The RX 590 requires 100 Watts more than the RX 550 to run. The difference is significant enough that the RX 590 may have an adverse affect on your yearly electricity bills in comparison to the RX 550.
Core Speed | 1469 MHz | ![]() | vs | 1090 MHz | |
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Boost Clock | 1545 MHz | ![]() | vs | 1200 MHz | |
Architecture | GCN 1.3 Polaris 30 | GCN 1.3 Baffin XT | |||
OC Potential | - | vs | - | ||
Driver Support | - | vs | Great | ||
Release Date | 30 Oct 2018 | ![]() | vs | 18 Apr 2017 | |
GPU Link | GD Link | GD Link | |||
Approved | ![]() | ![]() | |||
Comparison |
1366x768 | - | vs | ![]() |
10
|
|
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1600x900 | - | vs | ![]() |
10
|
|
1920x1080 | - | vs | ![]() |
8.1
|
|
2560x1440 | - | vs | ![]() |
5.9
|
|
3840x2160 | - | vs | ![]() |
4.2
|
Memory | 8192 MB | ![]() | vs | 4096 MB | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Memory Speed | 2000 MHz | ![]() | vs | 1750 MHz | |
Memory Bus | 256 Bit | ![]() | vs | - | |
Memory Type | GDDR5 | ![]() | vs | - | |
Memory Bandwidth | 256GB/sec | ![]() | vs | - | |
L2 Cache | 2048 KB | ![]() |
vs | 1024 KB | |
Delta Color Compression | no | vs | yes | ||
Memory Performance | 0% | ![]() |
vs | ![]() |
0% |
Comparison |
Shader Processing Units | 2304 | ![]() | vs | 896 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Actual Shader Performance | 100% | ![]() | vs | 52% | |
Technology | 12nm | ![]() | vs | 14nm | |
Texture Mapping Units | 144 | ![]() | vs | 56 | |
Texture Rate | 211.5 GTexel/s | ![]() | vs | 61 GTexel/s | |
Render Output Units | 32 | ![]() | vs | 16 | |
Pixel Rate | 47 GPixel/s | ![]() | vs | 17.4 GPixel/s | |
Comparison |
Max Digital Resolution (WxH) | 4096x2160 | vs | ![]() | 5120x2880 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
VGA Connections | 0 | vs | 0 | ||
DVI Connections | 0 | vs | ![]() | 1 | |
HDMI Connections | 1 | ![]() | vs | ![]() | 1 |
DisplayPort Connections | 3 | ![]() | vs | 1 | |
Comparison |
Max Power | 175 Watts | vs | ![]() | 75 Watts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Recommended PSU | 500 Watts & 33 Amps | vs | ![]() | 350 Watts & 23 Amps |
DirectX | 12.0 | ![]() | vs | ![]() | 12.0 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Shader Model | 6.0 | ![]() | vs | - | |
Open GL | 4.6 | ![]() | vs | 4.5 | |
Open CL | - | vs | - | ||
Notebook GPU | no | no | |||
SLI/Crossfire | no | vs | no | ||
Dedicated | yes | ![]() | vs | ![]() | yes |
Comparison |
Recommended Processor | - | AMD Ryzen R3 1200X | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Recommended RAM | 8 GB | ![]() | vs | ![]() | 8 GB |
Maximum Recommended Gaming Resolution | 2560x1440 | ![]() | vs | 1600x900 |
Performance Value | ![]() |
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Mini Review | Overview The new AMD Radeon RX 590 is an uprated version of the RX 580 on the smaller 12nm process node. This RX 590 is the 8GB version. Architecture It equips a GPU codenamed Polaris 30, which has 2304 shader processing units, 144 TMUs and 32 ROPs. GPU The RX 590 8GB central processing unit runs at 1545MHz and goes up to (xx)MHz when in boost and turbo mode. Memory The GPU accesses a 8GB frame buffer of fast GDDR5, through a 256-bit memory interface, while the Memory Clock operates at 2000MHz. Power Consumption The RX 590 8GB has a power TDP requirement of 150W. This means it will require at least a 500W PSU with one dedicated 8-pin connector. Performance Early benchmarks indicate that the AMD Radeon RX 590 8GB will be around 10-15% faster than the Nvidia GTX 1060 in terms of gaming performance, and around 6% faster than the Radeon RX 580 model it is replacing. System Suggestions The new Radeon RX 590 8GB releases on the 30th October 2018 and is best suited for resolutions up to and including 2560x1440. We recommend a high-end processor, like the new Ryzen R5 and at least 12GB of RAM for optimal gaming performance. | Overview Radeon RX 550 4GB is an Middle-Class Graphics Card based on the 4th Generation of the Graphics Core Next (GCN) Architecture. GPU It equips a GPU Codenamed Baffin XT which has 14 Compute Units activated and thus 896 Shader Processing Units, 56 TMUs and 16 ROPs. Memory The GPU accesses a 4GB frame buffer of Fast GDDR5, through a 128-bit memory interface, while the Memory Clock Operates at 1750MHz. Power Consumption With a rated board TDP of 75W, it requires at least a 350W PSU and relies entirely on the PCI Slot for Power, meaning no Extra Connectors are required. Performance This graphics card was designed and marketed towards the competitive MOBO gamers. A light weight, small form factor GPU solution that offers mobility, so that gamers travelling to events can bring a smaller cheaper gaming rig. The Radeon RX 550 4GB can play most modern games at medium graphics selection on a 1600p screen res and expect around 45+FPS System Suggestions Radeon RX 550 4GB is best suited for resolutions up to and including 1600x900. We recommend a Performance Processor and 8GB of RAM for Optimal Performance. |
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Recommended CPU | - | ||||
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Possible GPU Upgrades | - | - | |||
GPU Variants | - | - |