ASRock Steel Legend Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB Review – PCIe 5.0 Gaming Powerhouse

The ASRock Steel Legend Radeon RX 9060 XT 16GB offers excellent 1080p performance with quiet operation and a powerful cooling system, while its 16GB of VRAM makes it a strong 1440p choice, rivaling the RTX 5060 series despite a significant gap to the 9070. It features RDNA 4, improved ray-tracing, support for the new FSR 4 upscaling technology, and is a solid alternative to Nvidia's offerings, though FSR 4 adoption is still growing.

Key Features & Performance:

• 16GB VRAM: This abundant VRAM is a significant advantage for 1440p gaming and future-proofing.

• Strong 1080p & 1440p Performance: It handles 1080p with max settings and provides a viable path to 1440p gaming.

• Improved Ray Tracing: The RX 9060 XT offers better ray-tracing performance than previous AMD mainstream cards.

• FSR 4: Support for AMD's latest upscaling tech enhances image quality and frame rates, though its widespread adoption lags behind DLSS.

ASRock Steel Legend Model Specifics:

• Cooling & Noise: ASRock's Steel Legend model is noted for its powerful, quiet, and cool performance, with very low operating temperatures and idle fan-stop.

• Design & Connectivity: It includes an attractive, colorful RGB design with an ARGB header to control LEDs, and supports the latest display technologies with HDMI 2.1b and DisplayPort 2.1a outputs.

• PCIe 5.0 Interface: The card supports PCIe 5.0 x16, offering next-generation connectivity.

Considerations:

• Price vs. MSRP: While the MSRP may be favorable, actual retail prices can be higher, so comparing prices is important.

• DLSS vs. FSR: Nvidia's DLSS still offers a superior upscaling and frame generation experience for many users.

• Performance Gap to 9070: There is a significant performance gap between the 9060 XT and the higher-tier 9070 model.