Sapphire Nitro+ Radeon RX 6700 XT review: Performance-boosting Trixx

 The Radeon RX 6700 XT hits the streets today, and it’s a fantastic graphics card for 1440p and high refresh rate 1080p gaming. But in an unusual twist, AMD’s darn good reference version of the RX 6700 XT isn’t your only option available on day one. While the Radeon RX 6800-series and flagship RX 6900 XT initially released in reference form with custom models following weeks later, AMD partners like Sapphire, XFX, and Asus can ship their bespoke 6700 XT versions at the same time as the reference card for this launch.

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Enter the Sapphire Nitro+ Radeon RX 6700 XT.

This graphics card isn’t cheap. At $579, it costs $100 more than AMD’s already expensive reference model, and understandably so (as we explained in our initial Radeon RX 6700 XT review). Worse, you’ll probably wind up paying hundreds more in real life unless you’re lucky enough to catch the initial stock drop at a retailer. That’s a tough pill to swallow, but the Nitro+ makes a strong bid for being the most worthwhile version of the Radeon RX 6700 XT after a couple of easy tweaks. Its dead-silent, ice-cold custom cooler design delivers an outstanding user experience even under full load, while the company’s flat-out excellent Trixx Boost software can help the Nitro+ RX 6700 XT pump out frames nearly as fast as the Radeon RX 6800—a graphics card that costs a whole lot more. Yes, even scalped.

Sapphire Nitro+ RX 6700 XT specs

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The Sapphire Nitro+ is built around the same “Navi 22” GPU as all Radeon RX 6700 XT models. That means it includes screaming-fast clock speeds, support for Smart Access Memory and real-time ray tracing, access to all of AMD’s modern Radeon Software features, and an ample 12GB of GDDR6 memory bolstered by 96MB of ultra-fast on-die Infinity Cache.

For a deeper look at the best new features found in the Radeon RX 6000-series, be sure to check out our RDNA 2 deep dive. (RDNA 2 is the name of the energy-efficient graphics architecture powering AMD’s latest GPUs.)  Here’s a refresher on the Radeon RX 6700 XT’s specific technical details next to the RX 5700 XT it’s replacing:

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And here’s a Sapphire-supplied rundown of the Nitro+’s own specifications, which largely align with the reference models but include a few key differences, as well as additional details about the card’s physical dimensions and extra features:

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igher clocks also require more power. The Nitro+ draws 260 watts of total board power, compared to 230 watts for the reference design. You shouldn’t worry about that slight uptick.

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Sapphire Nitro+ RX 6700 XT design and features

But the real reason to spend more for a hot-rod custom graphics card like the Sapphire Nitro+ RX 6700 XT is for its custom cooling and special-sauce software.

Sapphire’s 6700 XT brings back the new cooler design introduced with the Sapphire Nitro+ RX 6800 XT, but with a few minor tweaks. The card still sports the same cyberpunk-esque black-and-silver design, with gorgeous RGB lights illuminating the logo on the backplate, the long light bar on the edge of the backplate, and the Sapphire name on the side of the card. That lighting bleeds through the small cutouts spaced across the metal backplate, a nice aesthetic touch.

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The shroud itself includes a trio of “hybrid fans” that merge characteristics from both axial and blower-style fans, improving airflow and air pressure compared to yesteryear’s axial fans while keeping noise levels low. Each fan comes loaded with 12 of the slim, swooping blades, set shallower than you normally see.

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Under the plastic shroud, Sapphire improved the Nitro+’s cooling capabilities with some significant alterations for this generation. Here’s what we said about the Nitro+ 6800 XT’s interior, which still holds true for this version of the Nitro+:

The Sapphire Nitro+ also includes a physical BIOS switch, and even it offers more functionality than usual. Most custom GPUs offer a dual BIOS switch, but the Nitro+ includes three toggles. The rightmost “Performance Mode” BIOS runs at the full 2,548MHz Game Clock speeds and boosts the card’s power limit to 211 watts, while the middle “Quiet Mode” switch dials those slightly back to 2,433MHz and 186 watts to run even quieter and cooler. The leftmost option, on the other hand, enables the ability to swap between Performance and Quiet modes using Sapphire’s Trixx software rather than having to physically open your case and toggling the BIOS switch over—a very handy and very practical feature indeed.

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The only downside is where it’s positioned. The Sapphire Nitro+ RX 6700 XT is a big graphics card, measuring 3 slots thick and 12.2 inches long, and it’s wider than usual too. Sapphire’s BIOS switch is set back along the edge of the board’s PCB, and the shroud extends around and in front of the tiny toggle. You’ll probably need to stick a pen or something in there to actually be able to move it. I recommend leaving it set to its Performance Mode default (which is already virtually silent) or using the Trixx software for BIOS management instead.