Introduction
Today we are evaluating the MSI Radeon RX 7900 XTX GAMING TRIO CLASSIC 24G video card (912-V520-005). This video card represents the top selection currently from MSI in its Gaming series lineup of AMD Radeon GPUs with performance, low-noise efficiency, and aesthetics for gamers. MSI has decked it out with a hefty heatsink with TRI FROZR 2 design, TORX FAN 4.0, dual BIOS, top-quality PCB components, a brushed aluminum slotted backplate, and subtle RGB Mystic Light controllable from MSI Center.
Currently, the MSI Radeon RX 7900 XTX GAMING TRIO CLASSIC is the only model of Radeon RX 7900 XTX GPU MSI offers, but that doesn’t mean it is just standard. It is a custom MSI video card with custom MSI cooling and offers a robust MSI GAMING Series build for the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX GPU. The CLASSIC in the name refers to the video card running at the stock AMD reference clocks, out of the box, and the 24G denotes the generous 24GB of VRAM on board with TRIO denoting the triple fan configuration and GAMING denoting the overall custom MSI design.
MSI is one of the most well-recognized manufacturers of PC components as well as all varieties of peripherals, laptops, monitors, desktop systems, and much more. Launched in December 2022, the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX is seen as a direct competitor to the NVIDIA RTX 4080. Our full launch review, with specs, of the made-by-AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX can be read here.
Our MSI AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX GAMING TRIO CLASSIC was sent to us directly from MSI and is a full retail video card. Currently, the card is available and selling in the mid-$900’s in e-tail, check our pricing block above for current pricing. The launch MSRP for the MBA (made-by-AMD) RX 7900 XTX was $999 and is listed for that price on AMD.com. The MSI warranty is listed as 3 years.
As a quick brief, the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX GPU uses the AMD RDNA 3 architecture based on a chiplet design made up of a 5nm GCD and several 6nm MCDs. It has 96 compute units, 6144 Stream Processors, 96 Ray Accelerators, 192 AI Accelerators, 192 ROPs, and 96MB of AMD Infinity Cache and runs at a Game GPU Clock of 2300MHz and a Boost GPU Clock of 2500MHz. It has 24GB of GDDR6 on a 384-bit memory bus at 20Gbps offering 960GB/s of bandwidth with a Board Power of 355W.
MSI Radeon RX 7900 XTX GAMING TRIO CLASSIC
The video card arrived to us in a heavy box well protected by formed foam. The lone accessory, a support bracket, has its own pocket to isolate it from the video card. The card itself has a full cover top shroud made of thick plastic. There are three 95mm TORX 4.0 fans which feature 5 groups of dual blades, each pair joined along the top edge. This helps funnel the airflow through the heatsink more efficiently and quietly. The fan cowls are also slightly raised above the shroud.
The full-length heatsink is centered around a direct heat pipe design. The heatsink is quite heavy, so there is an inner support bracket to keep the PCB from bending. On the backside is a nice brushed aluminum metal slotted backplate featuring the MSI dragon logo. The video card uses MSI Core Pipes which are precision machined for maximum contact over the GPU. It also has Airflow Control Wave-curved 2.0 fin edges to disrupt unwanted airflow harmonics resulting in reduced noise. The fans support Zero Frozr to keep them stopped at idle. As we noted the lone accessory is a support bracket that attaches to your case to help support the video card’s weight.
The MSI Radeon RX 7900 XTX GAMING TRIO CLASSIC uses enhanced PCB material with 2oz thickened copper. The video card is outfitted with a dual BIOS switch near the front of the card. It is set at “Silent” by default, which will control and reduce the fan cycles versus the “Gaming” setting.
As we mentioned, the MSI Radeon RX 7900 XTX GAMING TRIO CLASSIC runs at the AMD reference speed with a Game Boost Clock up to 2500MHz. This card feels well-built and is rather hefty. The overall dimension is 12 ¾ x 4 7/8 x 2 1/4 inches. This is a 3+ slot card. It weighs in at 3 pounds 9.6 ounces. The video card is powered by three 8-pin PCIe connectors.
MSI recommends at least an 800 Watt PSU. The TBP is rated at 355 Watts. The front I/O plate has one HDMI 2.1 and three Display Port 2.1 outputs. There is subtle RGB on the card consisting of two groups of three chevrons on the middle fan cowl and an illuminated “MSI” and dragon logo on the top side. The RGB is controlled by the MSI Center download, the most current version is located on the support page for the video card.