After reading of the sharing of goodwill by @Zer0GriD towards @zakalwe and @eebiii towards me (his offer has me looking at a higher end GPU than I originally planned for, but hey... it'll make handing this rig down to my nephew in a year or two even more awesome since we'll be able to build a custom loop together) I couldn't help but go on a bit of a rant on the state of the GPU market.
Rantmode ON.
TBH, I'd like to see GPU pricing along the lines of this:
Entry level 1080p GPU with 8gb VRAM (seems to be the bare nuts minimum these days) able to run only on board power for $100. Perfect for breathing life into an old PC that doesn't have on-board graphics since that went the way of the dodo bird back around AM3 or AM3+; or for your SFF build that doesn't have an IGPU. Call it the RX x500 class.
Next step up would be the same GPU with more oomf. 6-pin PCIe power, basically this would be the baseline for most people's supreme budget builds, whereas the 500 model would be a neutered version of this card. Probably best paired with a 4 core CPU that's dirt cheap. I'd call it your kid-sibling's Minecrafting rig. Not something too expensive, but not Bulldozer. We'll name this one the RX x600 and sell it for around $150, with a 20% performance uplift over the RX x500.
Next we'll move on to the lower mid-range card. This one will not RT but will be a 1080p POWERHOUSE, absolutely taking everyone's lunch on every title at 1080p ULTRA while still being able to deliver 1440p medium-high, but you're not going to break over 75 fps doing it. Give it 10-12gb of X-class VRAM, 8 pin PCIe power. Sell for $250, and call it the RX x700. 25% uplift over the 600, with underperforming chips being binned down and neutered to fit a 650 model to slot in between the 600 and 700.
Upper mid-range RX x800: This one will be the 1440p POWERHOUSE. It'll also push 4K-Ultra to decent framerates, but is going to suck at ray tracing. 12gb of X-class VRAM. Charge about $350-400, and again, about 25% uplift over the 700.
Top mid RX x800XT: Same basic specs as the x800, but with more RT capability. $150 premium.
Lower flagship RX x900XT: This is going to be the one that really starts to compete with the monstrosities that nGreedia spew out. 16gb of X-class VRAM, very good RT, amazing 4K performance, warp-speed GPU based rendering, a gamer's wet dream, and a great card for people who work their GPUs hard for WORK. This the more budget friendly option to the x080 from Evil Green that doesn't take a beating in performance. I think it would sell like hotcakes around $650.
Middle Flagship RX x900XTX: Crank up the x900XT by 20-25%. Call it an $800 card.
THE BE-ALL-END-ALL, LAST WORD in Radeon GPUs: Meet the RX x950XTX. 50 more XTXs, more performance. This one will out raster the x090, match it in RT, and do it for about $1000 in a package that can actually fit in an ATX Mid-tower with a 360mm rad/fan combo in the front. Let Jensen have the Ray Tracing title. Let him charge more than most people pay for rent. This will be the top-shelf card for people who still care about their bank accounts.
AMD has always been a bastion of performance on a budget. It's why I went AMD over 20 years ago. Zen 3 absolutely knocked it out of the park in terms of outperforming all but the very top end Intel 12th gen SKUs, and they did it for a lower price. Zen 4 and 13th Gen are really closely matched, so much so that Intel has had to self-destruct to maintain market share. But I've been on AMD for so long, I don't see myself switching to Intel ever again.
I look at it like this: AMD is like the venerable 350cid GM small-block V8. Tons of them out there, tons of mods and power potential, but they can be fickle if you don't do it right. You can turn it into a million mile workhorse (like I did with my 8120) or turn it into a 1000hp firebreather (my plan for my future AM5 build) and everything in between (the plan for my AM4.) Intel can't build a decent GPU to save their life. They've had to take a beating on their stock to ship more CPU numbers than AMD to stay dominant. nVidia are like an ultra-niche supercar. Sexy AF, everyone "oohs" and "aahs" when you tell them you have an upper end nVidia GPU, but they pretty much charge supercar boutique pricing. And they don't make CPUs. They also treat their AIBs like crap (I'll reference EVGA here.) AMD has a great idea with the chiplet design. Couple that with binning good and bad GPUs, and you'll be ale to offer something at every level and price point from $100 to $1000.
Rantmode OFF.
TL;DR: This lone OG (Old Gamer) has some ideas that AMD is welcome to use for the next next generation of GPUs to sell a bunch, eat up some market share and make some GPU buyers happy as long as they can ship enough units. And if Doctor Lisa ever does read this and tells the minions to make it so, I'll happily take my compensation in a lifetime supply of CPUs, Motherboards and GPUs.
Performance over Pretty.
