Is Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G graphics card good for 4K gaming? Get the ultimate gaming experience with powerful new compute units, amazing AMD Infinity Cache, and up to 8GB of dedicated GDDR6 memory. And, when paired with an AMD Ryzen Series desktop processor, AMD Smart Access Memory technology offers new levels of gaming performance. Explore details in Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G graphics card review.
Pros & Cons
PROS
- Similar performance to other 6600 XT cards
- Comes with dual HDMI 2.1 ports
- Runs cool
- Some 4K wins
CONS
- Underwhelming design
- Only a modest overclock applied out of box
- Higher fan speeds, noise, and temperatures
- No significant performance gains with manual overclocking
- Hard to find in stock, like everything else
Specs – Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G graphics card
Graphics Card | Gigabyte RX 6600 XT Eagle | ASRock RX 6600 XT Phantom | Sapphire RX 6600 XT Pulse |
---|---|---|---|
Architecture | Navi 23 | Navi 23 | Navi 23 |
Process Technology | TSMC N7 | TSMC N7 | TSMC N7 |
Transistors (Billion) | 11.1 | 11.1 | 11.1 |
Die size (mm^2) | 237 | 237 | 237 |
CUs | 32 | 32 | 32 |
GPU Cores | 2048 | 2048 | 2048 |
Ray Accelerators | 32 | 32 | 32 |
Infinity Cache (MB) | 32 | 32 | 32 |
Game Clock (MHz) | 2359 | 2428 | 2382 |
VRAM Speed (Gbps) | 16 | 16 | 16 |
VRAM (GB) | 8 | 8 | 8 |
VRAM Bus Width | 128 | 128 | 128 |
ROPs | 64 | 64 | 64 |
TMUs | 128 | 128 | 128 |
TFLOPS FP32 (Boost) | 9.66 | 9.95 | 9.76 |
Bandwidth (GBps) | 256 | 256 | 256 |
PCIe Slot Interface | x8 Gen4 | x8 Gen4 | x8 Gen4 |
TBP (watts) | 160 | 180 | 160 |
Launch Date | Aug-21 | Aug-21 | Aug-21 |
Launch Price | $379 | $499 | $379 |
Price
While there are a few retail models that start at AMD’s base $380 asking price, most are listed at $450–$550. Checking sold listings at eBay, the average price for the RX 6600 XT right now sits at $637, and that includes plenty of minimum spec models like the Gigabyte Eagle. More desirable GPUs like the RX 6700 XT and RTX 3060 Ti average $835 and $935, respectively.
Compare Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G graphics card vs ZOTAC Gaming GeForce GTX 1660
GIGABYTE Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G Graphics Card, WINDFORCE 3X Cooling System | ZOTAC Gaming GeForce GTX 1660 Super 6GB GDDR6 192-bit Gaming Graphics Card | |
---|---|---|
Graphics Card Interface | PCI-Express x16 | PCI-Express x16 |
Graphics Coprocessor | RX 6600 XT | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 |
Graphics Ram Size | 8 GB | 6 GB |
Graphics Ram | GDDR6 | GDDR6 |
Hardware Interface | PCI Express x16 | PCI Express x8 |
Included Components | GRAPHIC CARD, USERS MANUAL | ZOTAC GAMING GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER Twin Fan graphics card, User Manual |
Item Dimensions | 11.1 x 4.45 x 1.61 inches | 6.81 x 13.9 x 4.39 inches |
Memory Bus Width | 128 bits | 192 bits |
Memory Clock Speed | 16000 MHz | 1785 MHz |
Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G graphics card review
Build
The Gigabyte RX 6600 Eagle features a large WindForce 3X cooling solution with an aluminium fin-stack heatsink that’s fed heat by three copper heat-pipes that make direct contact with the GPU at the base. This heatsink is ventilated by three 100 mm fans.
Design
The Eagle measures 289 x 112 x 38mm and tips the scales at 674g (those are both our measurements), which is longer but shorter and slightly thinner than the Sapphire Pulse. The ASRock Phantom by comparison weighs 898g and measures 306 x 131 x 47mm, easily the largest of the three RX 6600 XT cards. If you have a sufficiently-long mini-ITX case, the Gigabyte Eagle might be a good fit.
Ports
it includes two HDMI 2.1 ports. While nearly all gaming monitors still tend to prefer DisplayPort 1.4 — it can do 4K at 144 Hz with DSC, and FreeSync / adaptive sync is more commonly supported over DP — HDMI 2.1 technically offers superior specs. You can read more about DisplayPort vs. HDMI, but either one should be sufficient for typical gaming use, particularly on a 1080p display,
Temperature
Considering the incredibly low 65°C, I feel Gigabyte could have allowed slightly higher temperatures, like 70°C, which won’t affect longevity or anything else, but achieve better noise levels. It’s good to see that idle fan stop has become a mandatory capability nowadays even in this segment—the RX 6600 will shut off its fans in idle, desktop work, and internet browsing.
Temperature & Noise Comparison | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Idle | Gaming | |||||
GPU | Noise | GPU | Hotspot | Noise | RPM | |
ASRock RX 6600 XT Phantom Gaming | 38°C | Fan Stop | 61°C | 80°C | 29.1 dBA | 1438 RPM |
ASUS RX 6600 XT STRIX OC | 44°C | Fan Stop | 59°C | 81°C | 41.2 dBA | 2000 RPM |
ASUS RX 6600 XT STRIX OC (Quiet BIOS) | 43°C | Fan Stop | 65°C | 87°C | 34.4 dBA | 1565 RPM |
Gigabyte RX 6600 Eagle | 47°C | Fan Stop | 65°C | 78°C | 33.1 dBA | 1965 RPM |
MSI RX 6600 XT Gaming X | 42°C | Fan Stop | 66°C | 93°C | 30.0 dBA | 1566 RPM |
PowerColor RX 6600 Fighter | 53°C | Fan Stop | 70°C | 82°C | 29.7 dBA | 1461 RPM |
Sapphire RX 6600 XT Pulse | 42°C | Fan Stop | 70°C | 97°C | 27.9 dBA | 1739 RPM |
XFX RX 6600 XT Merc 308 | 41°C | Fan Stop | 75°C | 98°C | 24.5 dBA | 1293 RPM |
Fan speed
The smaller fans on the Gigabyte Eagle, combined with a relatively lightweight heatsink, ultimately required substantially higher RPMs to keep the card from overheating. Where the ASRock and Sapphire cards both land around 1300 RPMs in Metro and FurMark (give or take), the Gigabyte card runs the fans at over 2100 RPM.
Fan noise for the Gigabyte Eagle was 44.4 dBA while gaming, about 7dB louder than the ASRock Phantom and Sapphire Pulse. Again, that’s not incredibly loud — RTX 3070 Ti and above tend to land at 50 dB or more.
Power Consumption
Single-monitor idle power consumption is amazing, just 2 W is really impressive and the best result we’ve ever seen. Typical for AMD is that they’re running the memory at full speed when two monitors are connected—in that situation, we see 20 W, much higher, but not that bad compared to many other cards on the market.
Gaming power draw of just 131 W is extremely impressive, especially considering the performance offered. The Gigabyte RX 6600 is one of the most energy-efficient graphics card we ever tested.
Overclocking
The appeal of overclocking has waned alongside reduced headroom on modern parts, so it is surprising to find that entry-level Navi 23 GPUs show better willingness than most. The caveat on Radeon RX 6600 is that memory is limited to an effective 15.2Gbps.
Alternate of Gigabyte Radeon RX 6600 XT Eagle 8G graphics card
AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT
SPECIFICATIONS
Stream processors: 2,048Core clock: 1,968Memory: 8GB GDDR6Memory clock: 16GbpsPower connectors: 1 x 8-pinOutputs: 1.4 with DSC DisplayPort, HDMI 2.1 VRR and FRL
REASONS TO BUY
+Strong 1080p performance+Great thermal efficiency+Low power consumption
REASONS TO AVOID
-Should be cheaper-Only slightly better than the RTX 3060
For rock solid 1080p gaming, you can’t go wrong with the AMD Radeon RX 6600 XT. Not only is the card a great performer, but it doesn’t use a lot of power so you can install it in a system with a smaller PSU. Because of its great thermal efficiency, you also don’t need a super expensive water cooling system built into your PC. Unfortunately, it is a bit pricier than the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, its direct competition, and doesn’t come with ray tracing.
AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT
SPECIFICATIONS
Stream Processors: 2,560Core Clock: 2.32 GHz (2.58 GHz boost)Memory: 12GB GDDR6Memory Clock: 16 GbpsPower Connectors: 8 pin + 6 pinOutputs: HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC
REASONS TO BUY
+Excellent 1440p performance+Ray tracing+Lightweight card with no sag
REASONS TO AVOID
-Ray tracing performance is weak-No FidelityFX Super Resolution
Those comfortable messing with your BIOS and looking for a 1440p graphics card that’s slightly more accessible, price-wise, will appreciate AMD’s latest high-end offering. This Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti rival delivers a solid 1440p performance with ray tracing to boot. It comes at the right time as well, with 1440p gaming monitors’ growing popularity. Its price is a bit closer to the more powerful RTX 3070, but if you’re an AMD fan, it’s still an excellent contender.
AMD Radeon RX 6800
SPECIFICATIONS
Stream Processors: 3,840Core Clock: 1.82 GHz (2.10 GHz boost)Memory: 16GB GDDR6Memory Clock: 16GbpsPower Connectors: 2 x 8 pinOutputs: DisplayPort 1.4 with DSC, HDMI 2.1 VRR and FRL
REASONS TO BUY
+Excellent performance+Finally, AMD ray tracing
REASONS TO AVOID
-Divisive design
If you think AMD is still stuck in the budget and mid-range markets, think again. The AMD Radeon RX 6800 marks AMD’s return to the high-end graphics card market, and it’s a premium ace without the incredibly premium price. This GPU delivers a solid 4K gaming performance and impressive ray tracing at 1440p, while being a better value than its direct rival, the RTX 3070, thanks to its VRAM. Plus, AMD’s Smart Access Memory technology will make it even faster.
Editor’s recommendations
- GIGABYTE AORUS GeForce RTX 3070 Master 8G (REV2.0) graphics card review
- ASUS GeForce RTX 2060 overclocked 6G GDDR6 dual-fan EVO edition review
- EVGA 3070 XC3 vs FTW3 differences – which has better memory boost?
- EVGA GeForce RTX 3070 XC3 ultra gaming 08G-P5-3755-KL 8GB GDDR6 review
- EVGA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti FTW3 ultra gaming 08G-P5-3797-KL 8GB GDDR6X review