Before I get into this review, I'll give you fair warning: cases like the Cooler Master NR200 is about as small as you can go for a 340mm length GPU like this.
I ran numerous game benchmarks and found myself amazed that this card was in the realm of 4K90 to 4k120 performance. The difference between medium and ultra settings aren't as drastic as a decade ago given how well games look nowadays. Still, mixed high and ultra settings at 4K in titles like Gears 5, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Resident Evil 2 & 3 remakes, and Forza Horizon 4 really blew me away. Coming from a RADEON VII and RX 5700 XT, I'm glad to see a doubling in performance nearly across the board. This card is definitely a 4K card, while its 1440p performance is great for those yearning for 1440p high refresh rate gaming. But keep in mind it really shines at higher resolutions.
I'm going to state that Ray Tracing still isn't widespread in implementation. If you're using this feature in GameWorks titles (titles optimized for Nvidia RTX and other features), you'll see a massive performance gap. If you find better optimized titles like Dirt 5, you'll find RT performance parity if not better performance with AMD. Keep in mind that console titles optimized for the consoles' Ray Tracing hardware (PS5, XSX, XSS) will definitely benefit RDNA 2 (RX 6000 series). This is also why Watchdogs Legion has terrible Ray Tracing performance on the consoles: they're optimized for Nvidia. With that in mind, and this being AMD's first shot at hardware accelerated Ray Tracing, I have to say I'm a bit impressed nonetheless. It sits right between Turing (RTX 2000 series) and Ampere (RTX 3000 series) in this area. All in all, not a bad first go for a budding feature.
I'll also go ahead and say that as of this writing (Dec 29, 2020), AMD has yet to make its FidelityFX Super Resolution feature available. As a DLSS competitor, I hope this really takes FidelityFX, Radeon Boost, and other Radeon settings further as a cohesive set. Using in-game dynamic scaling along with Integer Scaling, I'm fine for the moment. Also, DLSS isn't even available in over 20 games yet, so it's also a non-issue for some time. It'd just be better for optics if AMD one-upped that feature like Radeon Image Sharpening did to DLSS 1.0.
According to reviewers, as well as my own testing, this 6800 XT model is the highest clocked, coolest, and arguably quietest of all 6800 XTs. Undervolting it is a blast, and even at stock it's below 300W power. Temps stay at 74°C GPU and 88-90°C Junction (Hot Spot) while under load, with fans spinning up to 1500 RPM. This is all under load at 4K native resolution. I undervolted by 50mV and rose the memory clocks to 2020MHz with +5-10% power limit to be safe. I saw a 40-50W reduction in power and 10°C reduction in both temp readings.
This card is amazing, with the only downside that it won't fit my Nouvolo Steck unless I use a currently nonexistent water block or modify the case to accommodate the extra length. Fortunately, I have the Cooler Master NR200 to accommodate the GPU. For now, I'll be using that case.
I'd also like to point out that outside of the upcoming Sapphire Pulse, this model is the best priced AIB 6800 XT in the market for $799. Rival cards like the Red Devil and Taichi require three 8 pin connectors for power, you might as well get this card or a 6900 XT with those levels of power draw. Those cards also approach $900, like the ASUS RX 6800 XT ROG STRIX LC OC (hybrid cooled 6800 XT with 240mm radiator, AIO, all for $899 with 6900 XT performance). Even while drawing arguable5 less power than those cards, only the ASUS hybrid cooled card beats this card by every metric while costing $100 more. Kudos to XFX for improving their THICC designs from last Gen to the point of becoming the best AIB model with the Speedster Merc. If you can fit this card, I highly recommend you get this when available. Ditto the 6900 XT model if you're going for that.
The only ding or knock against this card is the fact it's still $150 over reference MSRP ($649.99). But I'm light of the competition, this is the most tame price AIB until the Sapphire Pulse shows up.