The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090: A Next-Gen Leap Forward, But For Whom?

Nvidia periodically unveils exorbitantly priced, incredibly powerful graphics cards, propelling PC gaming into new realms. The RTX 5090 fits this mold, though its approach to next-gen performance is unconventional. In many games, the performance boost over the RTX 4090 is less dramatic than anticipated, especially without DLSS Frame Generation. However, the next iteration of Nvidia's DLSS, encompassing upscaling and frame generation, delivers significant improvements in image quality and performance, exceeding typical generational leaps.

The RTX 5090's value hinges on your gaming habits, resolution, and tolerance for AI-generated frames. For users with monitors below 4K 240Hz, this upgrade is likely unnecessary. However, high-end display owners will experience AI-generated frames as a glimpse into the future of gaming.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 – Image Gallery

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RTX 5090 – Specifications and Features

The RTX 5090 leverages Blackwell, Nvidia's high-end architecture powering data centers and supercomputers behind popular AI models. This architecture highlights the card's AI prowess, but Nvidia didn't overlook non-AI aspects.

The 5090 packs more Streaming Multiprocessors (SMs) into the same Graphics Processing Clusters (GPCs), resulting in 21,760 CUDA cores (a 32% increase over the RTX 4090). This core count significantly contributes to raw gaming performance.

Each SM retains four Tensor Cores and one RT Core, mirroring its predecessor. This translates to 680 Tensor Cores and 170 RT cores, compared to the RTX 4090's 512 and 128, respectively. The 5th-generation Tensor Cores are optimized for AI performance, adding FP4 operation support to reduce VRAM dependency in AI workloads.

The card boasts 32GB of GDDR7 VRAM, a generational upgrade from the RTX 4090's GDDR6X, offering speed and power efficiency improvements. However, its 575W power draw (a substantial increase over the 4090's 450W) demonstrates that power efficiency wasn't a primary design goal.

The improved Tensor Core efficiency enabled Nvidia to shift the DLSS algorithm to a Transformer Neural Network (TNN) from a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN). While this doesn't necessarily boost frame rates with DLSS enabled, Nvidia claims it enhances image quality and reduces artifacts.

Beyond this internal DLSS change, Nvidia introduces Multi-Frame Generation, a refined version of the RTX 4090's Frame Gen technology. It's more efficient, smoother, and generates multiple frames from each rendered image, drastically improving frame rates. Similar to its predecessor, it's best enabled when a decent frame rate is already achieved.

Purchasing Guide

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 launched January 30th, starting at $1,999 (Founders Edition). Third-party cards are significantly more expensive.

The Founders Edition

The RTX 5090's 575W power requirement surpasses the RTX 4090's 450W, necessitating robust cooling. While anticipating a larger card than its predecessors, Nvidia surprisingly created a smaller, dual-slot design with dual fans.

During testing (including standard benchmarks and DLSS 4 multi-frame generation), temperatures peaked around 86°C at 578W power consumption. While higher than the RTX 4090's 80°C, it remains below throttling levels.

This is achieved by centrally positioning a compact PCB within the card, flanked by dual fans and a heatsink spanning the card's width. Air intake is from the bottom, exiting through the top, utilizing the PC case's exhaust fans. Unlike previous generations, there are no exhaust vents under the rear output ports.

The Founders Edition maintains a design language similar to previous generations, featuring a central silver 'X' design and a 'GeForce RTX' logo with white LEDs.

The power connector, while visually similar to the 12VHPWR connector, is a new 12V-2x6 connector, claimed to be more efficient. An included 12V-2x6 adapter uses four 8-pin PCIe power connectors. The angled connector on the card, facing the rear, simplifies cable connection and appears more secure.

This design allows compatibility with smaller PC builds, unlike the RTX 4090 and 3090. However, third-party designs will likely be larger.

DLSS 4: AI-Generated Frames

Nvidia claimed an 8x performance boost for the RTX 5090. While not reaching that level, it delivers exceptionally high frame rates in demanding games, primarily through AI-generated frames. While raw rasterization performance improves, the true next-gen advantage lies in frame generation.

DLSS 4's 'Multi-Frame Generation' surpasses its DLSS 3 counterpart, utilizing a new AI Management Processor (AMP) core. The AMP efficiently distributes GPU workload, traditionally handled by the CPU, resulting in improved performance.

This isn't a magic fix; it’s most effective with already acceptable frame rates (around 60fps without Frame Gen). Enabling it with low frame rates can introduce significant latency. Pairing it with DLSS upscaling maximizes performance.

At launch, DLSS 4 supported numerous games with DLSS 3 Frame Generation. Testing on beta builds of Cyberpunk 2077 and Star Wars Outlaws showed impressive results. Cyberpunk 2077 at 4K with Ray Tracing Overdrive and DLSS Performance mode reached 94fps, increasing to 162fps with 2x frame generation and 286fps with 4x frame generation. Star Wars Outlaws similarly achieved around 300fps with DLSS 4 enabled.

Multi-Frame Generation proved effective, with minimal artifacts observed. However, this requires a high-end 4K display to fully benefit. Further testing across a wider range of games is needed for comprehensive evaluation.

RTX 5090 – Performance Benchmarks

The RTX 5090 is incredibly powerful, but testing revealed complexities. 3DMark showed generational improvements over the RTX 4090. However, in most games, the RTX 5090 was CPU-bound, even at 4K, even when paired with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D. For high-end GPU owners, the upgrade might not justify the cost. This card is an investment in future-proof gaming. Benchmarks were conducted without DLSS 4, using publicly available drivers (Nvidia Driver version 566.36, AMD Adrenalin 24.12.1).

3DMark showed a 42% performance increase over the RTX 4090. Game testing revealed a different story. Call of Duty Black Ops 6 showed a mere 10% improvement at 4K, highlighting the CPU bottleneck. Cyberpunk 2077 showed similar results, with worse scaling at lower resolutions. Metro Exodus: Enhanced Edition (tested without DLSS) showed a 25% improvement over the RTX 4090. Red Dead Redemption 2 showed a meager 6% improvement. Total War: Warhammer 3 showed a 35% improvement, closer to 3DMark results. Assassin's Creed Mirage showed lower performance than the RTX 4090, possibly due to a driver issue. Black Myth: Wukong showed a 20% uplift, and Forza Horizon 5 showed negligible differences.

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 – Benchmark Charts

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Which new graphics card are you planning to buy?

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Conclusion:

The RTX 5090, while the fastest consumer graphics card, doesn't always deliver a dramatic performance leap over the RTX 4090 in current games due to CPU bottlenecks. Its strength lies in its future-proof AI capabilities, particularly DLSS 4's Multi-Frame Generation. It's a worthwhile investment for cutting-edge gamers willing to bet on an AI-driven gaming future, but for most, the RTX 4090 remains a powerful option.