AMD Radeon RX 590 GME vs AMD Radeon RX 7700S Comparison

The AMD Radeon RX 7700S and AMD Radeon RX 590 GME represent two very different eras of AMD graphics, separated by architecture, process node, and intended use case. The data shows a clear split: the RX 7700S dominates modern DirectX 12 workloads and raw compute, while the RX 590 GME holds a surprising lead in Vulkan performance. This makes the choice between them less about raw "speed" and more about which software environment you actually run.

Where Each One Wins

The benchmark results break down into two distinct territories. The AMD Radeon RX 7700S wins in the modern 3DMark Steel Nomad DirectX 12 test and in Geekbench OpenCL compute. Its score of 2185 in Steel Nomad is more than double the RX 590 GME's 1001, a delta of 118.3%. That is not a marginal victory; it is a generational gap. In OpenCL, the 7700S posts 62983 points against 36294, a 73.5% advantage. These are the workloads that stress raw shading power, texture throughput, and modern API features.

The AMD Radeon RX 590 GME wins exclusively in Geekbench Vulkan. Its score of 60508 beats the 7700S's 36380 by 39.9% in the 7700S's favor (meaning the 590 GME wins by that margin). This is a substantial reversal. Vulkan is a low-overhead API, but the GCN architecture of the 590 GME appears to handle this specific workload much more efficiently than RDNA 3.0. If your primary software relies on Vulkan, the older card is the data-backed pick.

Looking at the broader average benchmark score, the 7700S sits at 33849, putting it in the 78th percentile of all GPUs, while the 590 GME averages 32601, in the 77th percentile. These are nearly identical overall percentiles, which underscores how the two cards trade blows depending on the test. The 7700S has a slight edge in the aggregate, but the 590 GME is not far behind despite being from an older generation.

Architecture Differences

The architectural gap between these two is significant. The RX 7700S uses the Navi 33 chip on the RDNA 3.0 architecture, built on a 6 nm process at TSMC. It packs 13,300 million transistors into a 204 mm² die, yielding a transistor density of 65.2M / mm². The RX 590 GME uses the Polaris 20 chip on GCN 4.0, fabricated on a 14 nm process at GlobalFoundries. It has 5,700 million transistors on a larger 232 mm² die, with a density of just 24.6M / mm². The 7700S is clearly the more modern, dense design.

Core counts tell a nuanced story. The 590 GME actually has more shading units (2304 vs 2048) and more texture mapping units (144 vs 128). However, the 7700S has double the ROPs (64 vs 32) and adds 32 dedicated ray tracing cores that the 590 GME lacks entirely. The 7700S also supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2) and Vulkan 1.4, while the 590 GME is limited to DirectX 12 (12_0) and Vulkan 1.3. This means the 7700S is ready for hardware ray tracing and the latest API features; the 590 GME is not.

Memory systems also diverge sharply. The 7700S uses 8 GB of GDDR6 on a 128-bit bus, delivering 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The 590 GME uses 8 GB of GDDR5 on a 256-bit bus, providing 256.0 GB/s. Despite the narrower bus, the newer memory technology gives the 7700S a bandwidth advantage. Clock speeds follow the expected generational trend: the 7700S boosts to 2500 MHz (with a game clock of 2200 MHz), while the 590 GME boosts to just 1420 MHz. The power situation is starkly different — the 7700S is a 100 W integrated GPU (IGP) with no power connectors, while the 590 GME is a 175 W dual-slot card requiring a 1x 8-pin connector and a 450 W suggested PSU.

The Verdict

The data points to a clear recommendation for most users: choose the AMD Radeon RX 7700S if you are building or buying a system focused on modern DirectX 12 gaming or compute workloads. Its 118.3% lead in Steel Nomad and 73.5% lead in OpenCL are decisive. The 2:1 win ratio in the head-to-head benchmarks confirms its overall superiority. The 7700S also offers ray tracing capability, a feature absent on the 590 GME, and does so at a much lower power draw of 100 W versus 175 W, making it far easier to integrate into a compact system.

However, the AMD Radeon RX 590 GME is the data-backed choice for a very specific scenario: legacy Vulkan applications. Its 39.9% lead in Geekbench Vulkan is not a fluke; it is a substantial margin. If you have a library of Vulkan-based games or compute tools that favor GCN, the 590 GME will outperform the newer card. It is also an end-of-life product with a predecessor of "Arctic Islands" and a successor of "Vega," meaning it is likely available cheaply in the used market, but its 175 W draw and dual-slot size make it a less flexible physical option.

In practical terms, the 7700S is the safer, more future-proof choice. It is an active production card from the RX 7000 series, released in January 2023, while the 590 GME is end-of-life from March 2020. The 7700S's higher percentile rank (78 vs 77) and higher average score (33849 vs 32601) confirm it is the stronger overall performer. The 590 GME only makes sense if Vulkan performance is your absolute priority and you are willing to accept lower performance everywhere else.

FAQ

Q: Which GPU is faster in DirectX 12 gaming?

A: The AMD Radeon RX 7700S is dramatically faster. In the 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 test, it scores 2185 versus the RX 590 GME's 1001, a 118.3% advantage.

Q: Does the AMD Radeon RX 590 GME beat the RX 7700S in any benchmark?

A: Yes. In Geekbench Vulkan, the RX 590 GME scores 60508 compared to the RX 7700S's 36380, winning by 39.9% in favor of the 7700S (meaning the 590 GME is ahead by that margin).

Q: Which card has more memory bandwidth?

A: The RX 7700S has higher bandwidth at 288.0 GB/s, despite using a 128-bit bus. The RX 590 GME has a 256-bit bus but only achieves 256.0 GB/s due to older GDDR5 memory.

Q: Can the RX 7700S do ray tracing?

A: Yes. It has 32 dedicated ray tracing cores and supports DirectX 12 Ultimate (12_2). The RX 590 GME has no ray tracing cores and only supports DirectX 12 (12_0).

Q: What are the power requirements for each card?

A: The RX 7700S is a 100 W IGP with no power connectors. The RX 590 GME is a 175 W dual-slot card that requires a 1x 8-pin power connector and a 450 W suggested PSU.

Q: Which card has a higher average benchmark score?

A: The RX 7700S averages 33849 points, placing it in the 78th percentile of all GPUs. The RX 590 GME averages 32601 points, placing it in the 77th percentile.

Head-to-Head Benchmarks

The three head-to-head results paint a split picture. The largest win for the RX 7700S comes in 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12, where it scores 2185 against the 590 GME's 1001. That is a 118.3% delta, meaning the 7700S is more than twice as fast in this modern rasterization test. This is the single most important benchmark for contemporary gaming, and the 7700S utterly dominates it. The gap is so large that it overshadows any other consideration for DX12-focused workloads.

The second win for the RX 7700S is in Geekbench OpenCL, where it scores 62983 versus 36294. This 73.5% advantage shows the RDNA 3.0 architecture's raw compute superiority. OpenCL is used in many productivity and compute applications, so this result indicates the 7700S is also the better choice for general-purpose GPU compute tasks. The combination of higher FP32 throughput (20.48 TFLOPS vs 6.543 TFLOPS) and double the pixel rate (160.0 GPixel/s vs 45.44 GPixel/s) explains this decisive win.

The sole win for the RX 590 GME is in Geekbench Vulkan, where it scores 60508 against the 7700S's 36380. The delta is -39.9% from the 7700S's perspective, meaning the 590 GME is ahead by that percentage. This is a surprising result given the 590 GME's older GCN 4.0 architecture and lower clock speeds. The Vulkan score suggests that the 590 GME's higher shading unit count (2304 vs 2048) and wider memory bus (256-bit vs 128-bit) can be leveraged effectively in this low-level API, despite its lower overall bandwidth. It is a reminder that architectural efficiency in a specific API can defy raw spec sheet comparisons.

Specification Differences

The two cards differ in nearly every measurable specification. The process node is a major divider: the 7700S uses 6 nm TSMC, while the 590 GME uses 14 nm GlobalFoundries. This leads to a massive transistor count difference: 13,300 million on the 7700S versus 5,700 million on the 590 GME. The die size is actually smaller on the 7700S (204 mm² vs 232 mm²), resulting in a transistor density of 65.2M / mm² versus 24.6M / mm².

Clock speeds are significantly higher on the 7700S: base 1500 MHz and boost 2500 MHz (with a game clock of 2200 MHz), compared to the 590 GME's base 1257 MHz and boost 1420 MHz. The memory clocks also differ: 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective) on the 7700S versus 2000 MHz (8 Gbps effective) on the 590 GME. Memory bandwidth favors the 7700S at 288.0 GB/s versus 256.0 GB/s.

Core configurations show the 590 GME has more shading units (2304 vs 2048) and TMUs (144 vs 128), but the 7700S has more ROPs (64 vs 32) and adds 32 RT cores. Pixel rate is 160.0 GPixel/s on the 7700S versus 45.44 GPixel/s on the 590 GME. Texture rate is 320.0 GTexel/s versus 204.5 GTexel/s. FP32 performance is 20.48 TFLOPS versus 6.543 TFLOPS. The power draw is dramatically different: 100 W for the 7700S versus 175 W for the 590 GME. The bus interface is PCIe 4.0 x16 on the 7700S versus PCIe 3.0 x16 on the 590 GME. Finally, the 7700S is an IGP with no power connectors, while the 590 GME is a dual-slot card with a 1x 8-pin connector and a 450 W suggested PSU.