Nvidia RTX 5090D V2 Low Bandwidth, Same Game Power
New tests have come out for the Nvidia's RTX 5090D V2, a video card made for China, and they show us cool stuff about its design. A face-off by Chinese test site Yesky finds that the V2 works as well as the first RTX 5090D in games, even though its memory speed is cut down by a third.
The Test Run-Down Almost a Tie
Yesky put both video cards through a set of 3DMark tests and top games. The scores were very close all around. For instance:
- In 3DMark Speed Way, the score gap was just 3.5%.(D 14,550 SCORE, D V2 14,050)
- In Cyberpunk 2077 at 4K with DLSS 4, the V2 got 289 FPS, just one frame less than the first's 290 FPS.
- In Hogwarts Legacy DLSS 4 at 4k, the V2 got 253 FPS, the first's 259 FPS.
- Even in tests like Borderlands 3 at 4K without more help, the V2 (161 FPS) was almost the same as the first (164 FPS).
These small changes show us that for playing games, the V2's smaller 384-bit memory does not hurt much when put next to the first's 512-bit memory. (Only in gaming)
The Big Ask Why No Game Power Loss
This is where things get really neat. The equal power hints that Nvidia's Blackwell design, for games at least, can't use a 512-bit memory that well. Here’s the main stuff to know:
- Design Limit: It looks like the main limit in games is the GPU's core, not the width of the memory. It seems the core can't use data quick enough to fill the larger 512-bit memory, so that extra speed is not needed for these tasks.
- The Role of Cache and GDDR7: Modern video card design depends a lot on other parts to make up for narrow memories. Blackwell's big L2 cache and the fast GDDR7 memory really help to keep the core filled with data, so it doesn't need the very wide memory.
- Past Designs: This fits with Nvidia's older designs. High-end cards like the RTX 4090 and RTX 3090 used a 384-bit setup, showing Nvidia knew this was good for games. The big 512-bit memory on the full RTX 5090 might be more for AI and professional work than for games.
What This Means for Players and Nvidia
The RTX 5090D V2 is Nvidia's third version of the 5090, made to follow U.S. rules for China. For buyers there, this is great news they get the same game power as the first 5090D for the same price, even with a lower spec on paper.
More so, these results tell us a lot about how Nvidia thinks when they make products. It shows they can make a product fit exact needs and rules without losing what users want most: great game play.
