AMD PowerColor RX590 Red Devil: Review, reviews, temperatures and mining

In this review we will look at the PowerColor RX590 Red Devil video card from AMD.

The card is equipped with a 1x8 Pin + 1x6 Pin power connector and consumes from 190 Watt to 225 Watt depending on the miner, overclocking and algorithm.

With optimal overclocking via MSI Afterburner, the video card produces 31 Mh/s on Ethash and 8 Mh/s on X16R.
Specifications

How much can you earn

The PowerColor RX590 Red Devil mines the best algorithms: Ethash, CryptoNightV8, CryptoNightHeavy, CryptoNightHaven. This can also include coins of the ProgPow algorithms and, in rare cases, NeoScrypt coins, but most often in the latter case this is only due to an increase in the rate of these coins or a temporary withdrawal of miners from their mining.

On average, 1 such video card can bring in profitable algorithms from $0.35 to $0.62 (data given at the time of writing - November 18, 2022). It is worth understanding that these are very far-fetched calculations, since at any moment the exchange rate of these coins can change, and the income will become noticeably less.

Next come the algorithms that bring slightly less profit per day, but they can also be considered for mining on this video card. These are NeoScrypt (most coins are less profitable, as we wrote earlier, and in some cases a couple of coins can be considered profitable), X16R, X16S, PHI1612.

And finally, algorithms, the mining of which is generally unprofitable (by mining them, you will not make a profit, but will go into the red) or, at best, you will be able to pay for the consumed electricity. These are Equihash, CryptoNight and many others. Most often, these are coins that already have an ASIC, or the mining of which is much better suited for Nvidia.

Note that there are coins even among profitable algorithms, the mining of which is unprofitable.

We will also add that if you want to receive coins of unprofitable algorithms, you can resort to the “pseudo mining” technique. In this case, you must mine any coin of a profitable algorithm and sell it on the exchange in exchange for a coin of an unfavorable algorithm.

In order not to be unfounded, we will give specific examples. All tests were performed on November 18, 2018, that is, the difficulties and prices for the given coins are current as of November 18, 2018.

Let's start with a profitable algorithm - Ethash, an Ethereum coin. From 1 video card per day:

• Total coins – 0.0027 ETH.
• Amount in dollars equivalent to mined coins – $0.47

This is a pretty good result, considering that at the time of writing, cryptocurrency rates are not going through the best of times.

Overclocking features of the RX 590

The RX590 is a fairly powerful option even in factory settings, but the card can be overclocked. It should be noted right away that overclocking the card will not give some kind of cosmic increase in FPS, it will not open the way to 4K gaming, but it can significantly increase stability and eliminate unpleasant FPS drops.

Overclocking the RX590 is more of an optimization.

Globally, there are two approaches to overclocking, each of these approaches has 2 methods.

Approaches:

• Classic increase in video card frequencies.
• Undervolting.

Methods:

• Via the video driver in the operating system
• By manipulating the BIOS parameters of the video card.

The first approach is the simplest; you need to increase the frequencies of the graphics chip and video card memory. To do this through the video driver, there is no need to even install any additional software, Adrenalin software from AMD, which is installed along with the video driver, allows you to do this in a couple of clicks, you just need to go to the “Performance” section, go to the “Settings” tab and twist a little a couple of sliders, adding the treasured megahertz. But there is a catch: often, RX series video cards out of the box cannot stably maintain the declared boost frequencies, therefore, if you increase the frequency that the video card does not support anyway, there will be no effect. The video card is limited by the energy consumption limits set in the BIOS, which for the RX590 range from 185 to 220 Watts in versions from different manufacturers.

To increase the performance of the RX590, it is not necessary to increase the clock speeds; it is enough to simply move, in the same Adrenalin, the Power Limit parameter, which is adjustable in the range from -50% to +50%. You should select the value at which the video card does not heat above 75-78 degrees and at the same time operates at the boost frequencies declared by the card manufacturer.

The second approach is aimed at obtaining a similar effect, only with the opposite action, you should reduce the voltage on the graphics chip until it can work stably at the declared boost frequency, without going beyond the Power Limit. All this can be done in the Adrenalin utility.

If for some reason it is not possible or desirable to use Adrenalin, then the steps described above can be done manually by editing the video card BIOS using the appropriate software.

Important! This method is much more dangerous, since problems may arise with installing drivers that will swear at the modified BIOS and, in the worst case, the video card can be damaged; it is strongly not recommended to use this overclocking method on video cards without the dual BIOS function.

Memory and power consumption

The video card is equipped with 8 gigabytes of GDDR5 graphics memory. Most often, cards come with memory from Micron, and a little less often Elpida.

The video card is equipped with a 1x8 Pin and 1x6 Pin power connector and consumes from 190 Watt to 225 Watt depending on overclocking, miner and algorithm, where 75 Watt goes through the riser (or PCI-e in the motherboard), and the remaining 115 Watt or 150 Watts go through PCI-e wires from the power supply.

For a farm of 6 PowerColor RX590 Red Devil video cards (taking into account the maximum consumption of 225 Watts) and the connected system (motherboard, processor and hard drive), 1 1600 Watt power supply or 2 800-850 Watt power supplies are suitable.

You can find out how to power the farm with 2 power supplies on our website.

Also on our website you can choose an excellent block for mining: in the corresponding section there are detailed articles about different power supplies: their configuration, efficiency, drawdowns, ripple, analysis and much more.

Guide to video card firmware

ATIWinflash GUI application and one of the BIOS modification programs. It involves performing the following actions:

1. Saving the BIOS contained in the video card to a file for modification and backup. Copying the original BIOS to a safe place is necessary so that you can return the card to its original state in the event of unsuccessful firmware or for other reasons.

To do this, perform the following actions:

• the ATIWinflash application as . right- click on the file icon and select the appropriate command;
• In the System Video Devices , select the desired video card;
• Click the Save (the right button in the bottom row of three buttons) and indicate the path to save the file;

• Once the BIOS copying is complete, a success message will appear. The resulting file can be modernized, and the original can also be copied for backup.

2. Modernization of factory BIOS parameters, which is carried out by flashing straps (timings) from low frequencies to higher ones.

As a rule, when modifying a BIOS file, memory timings are written from a frequency of 1500 or 1625 megahertz to all BIOS lines with higher frequencies. When using PolarisBiosEditor-1.6.7, modification of timings can be done automatically with one click of a button. To do this, perform the following actions:

• launch the Polaris BIOS Edito r program;
• press the OPEN BIOS ;
• press the One click timing patch ;
• save the modified BIOS to the desired location by clicking the Save as button under a new name, for example RX570-mod.rom .

What coins can you mine?

As mentioned earlier, the best mined coins are the Ethash and CryptoNightV7 algorithms. Also sometimes the Lyra2REv2 and CryptoNightHeavy algorithms work well.

Next are the algorithms that bring slightly less profit per day, but they can still be considered for mining: NeoScrypt, X16R, X16S.
Mined coins

you can use these algorithms on our website.

You can also .

Characteristics and test results of PowerColor Radeon RX 470 Red Devil 4GB GDDR5

Comparison with analog video card line

AMD RX590 series video cards are noticeably very different from each other, not only in price, but also in the quality of mining work. First of all, they differ in the cooling system.

The PowerColor RX590 Red Devil has an excellent cooling system, both internal and external (cooler). For example, XFX Fatboy cools the card much worse and a farm of such video cards will become noticeably overheated, unlike Red Devil. But the Asus Strix will be noticeably cooler than these 2 video cards.

Cards also differ in build quality - if the parts are very flimsy, the coolers are weak, then they will naturally break faster. The Red Devil model has very good build quality, unlike most of its competitors. In terms of quality, it can be compared with the Asus Strix, but the latter has a rather weak casing.

Comparison of RX590 with RX580 and with RX570

Let's take a closer look at the video card data. All of them are equipped with 8 gigabytes of graphics memory. We will conduct and review all tests using Ethereum mining.

We have already reviewed the AMD RX590 earlier, but for more convenient orientation we will present the data again.

AMD RX590:

• Total coins – 0.0027 ETH.
• Amount in dollars equivalent to mined coins – $0.47

This is a pretty good result. However, this amount is not the best considering the prices at which these graphics cards are sold.

Let’s immediately compare these figures with the previous AMD RX580 8GB series video card. Per day from 1 video card:

• Total coins – 0.0025 ETH.
• Amount in dollars equivalent to mined coins – $0.44

As you can see, the difference is almost minimal - about 6%. At the same time, the new RX590 in Russia costs from 21-27 thousand rubles, while the RX580 costs from 17 thousand rubles, and in the German online store “computeruniverse” the RX580 costs from 12 thousand rubles.

The consumption of the 590 is up to 225 Watts, while the consumption of the 580 reaches 180 Watts, which indicates large expenditures on electricity, of course, if the “socket is not free”.

Also, as an example, let’s consider the RX570, which is also almost no different in mining from the 580, which means it shouldn’t be much different from the 590.

• Total coins – 0.0025 ETH.
• Amount in dollars equivalent to mined coins – $0.43

So, we get an almost completely imperceptible difference between the RX590 and the 580 and a slightly larger one with the 590. At the same time, the consumption of the 570 is in the same range as that of the 580. In Russia, an 8 GB RX570 can be bought from 14 thousand rubles, and on “computeruniverse” from 10 thousand rubles.

The difference is noticeable. Especially given that in mining the video card data is almost the same.

If we consider them at Russian prices, then 570 and 580 will pay off noticeably faster (570 is a little faster, but not much) than 590. And if we take into account the purchase from computeruniverse, then 570 will pay off noticeably faster, in about 13 months, if cryptocurrency rates do not fall even more, but if they grow, it will happen even faster.

What drivers should I use?

It is best to use the latest AMD “Adrenalin Edition” driver, which you can download from the official AMD website.

https://support.amd.com/en-us/kb-articles/Pages/Radeon-Software-Adrenalin-Edition-18.5.1-Release-Notes.aspx

After downloading, go to the program.

1. Next, click on the top tab – “Games”
2. A new window opens where you need to click on “Global Settings”

3. Next, a new window will open again, where you will immediately configure 1 of your video card.
4. Look among all the settings for “GPU workload” - set the mode to “Calculate”

5. If you have several video cards - that is, a whole rig, then do the same with other video cards, since 1 action applies only to 1 video card.
6. To move to the next video card, click on the top tab (button) “Global graph...”

That's it, now the calculation mode is set, video cards will produce a noticeably higher hashrate!

Video card characteristics

The reference design of the printed circuit board from AMD assumes the presence of only DisplayPort version 1.4 HDR connectors, and HDMI with the ability to provide image output in 4k resolution at 60FPS.

It is not possible to find such an important parameter as Thermal Design Power for the AMD RX 590 on the AMD website; this parameter indicates how much energy the video card consumes and how much heat it generates; in fact, partner cards have a TDP hardwired into the BIOS of 185 Watt.

The specified graphics card characteristics are starting points, since AMD partners who release their versions of the RX 590, such as Shapphire, MSI, ASUS, GIGABITE, Powercolor, XFX, and so on, deviate from the base specifications to varying degrees, usually in the direction of increasing base frequencies and frequencies boost, which is more of a marketing ploy than an effective overclocking.

Temperatures and internal structure

• Length - 24 cm
• Noise ~35 dB

Traditionally, we will start analyzing the video card with the cooler. The card is equipped with 2 powerful coolers, each of which has a diameter of 95 mm. They cover almost the entire area of ​​the map. Rotation speed ~ 1700 rpm.

In general, the video card is not very noisy, but the sound it produces is not dull, but sharper, a bit reminiscent of the sound of mini quadcopters flying. A rig of 6 such video cards is quite noisy, but cannot compare with the Asus Strix.

Next, let's move on to the back of the video card - the backplate. This model has it and is installed correctly: it is well ventilated and has additional ventilation holes.

It is worth noting that this part does not cool the video card, but serves to impart rigidity to the structure. So, for example, the Asus Strix would simply “fall apart” without the backplate, which gives the structure reliability and strength. Moreover, in some cases, if installed incorrectly, the backplate heats up the card more, thereby increasing its temperature. It is also just for decoration, and only in some cases it is installed with a copper plate to cool the GPU.

Let's move on to analyzing the video card. Having unscrewed all the screws, we separate the video card into 2 parts: the printed circuit board and the internal cooling system (let's start with it).

The internal cooling system consists of a rather massive radiator grille that runs across the entire area of ​​​​the video card.

There is a metal plate adjacent to the grille, on it we see 2 parts:

1. Thermal paste
2. Thermal pads

The area with thermal paste is close to the GPU.

Thermal pads are used for additional memory cooling. Next we see 3 nickel-plated heat pipes, which also pass through the entire video card and serve to remove heat from it.

We can also see that there is another metal plate with a thermal pad adjacent to the radiator grille - it serves for additional cooling of the VRM area.

Let's move on to the printed circuit board. She looks very good!

Note that the thermal paste on the GPU was not applied very well at the factory, with small smudges around.

As we wrote earlier, the card is equipped with 8 GB GDDR5 memory and most often this model is equipped with memory from Micron. This card is no exception.

We see 8 Micron memory sticks labeled MT51J256M32HF-80:B, which operate from only 1.5 Watts.

Seven phases are responsible for powering the GPU and memory.

At the back of the PCB we see the VRM control components. Including shunt resistors used to measure current.

Next, let's move on to thermal images.

Thermal imager

All thermal images were taken under maximum load for a general idea and concept of the cooling system, with minimal overclocking of the core and memory.

By installing a thermal camera on the back of the video card (backplate), we get the following results:

The hottest point is H1 around 62-63 degrees. This point is the GPU area. This temperature is not critical.

However, we cannot be 100% sure of the accuracy of the images, since the backplate slightly distorts the data.

By installing the thermal camera on top, we get the following results: the hottest point H1 is 57 degrees. This is the VRM point.

This temperature is very good.

We can also see that the coolers do a good job of dissipating heat from the video card.

Description of the RX 590 card and customer reviews

AMD Radeon RX590 is the pinnacle of the evolution of the Polaris architecture, which AMD first introduced to the world in 2016. using the example of the good old RX480 and RX470, this is the crown of the four hundredth and five hundredth line, but this is not the most powerful video card in the AMD family, and it wasn’t even like that at the time of its release in 2018, but with the advent of affordable 2k and 4k monitors, the video card market is strongly changed and devirsified. The RX590 is positioned by the manufacturer as a top-end solution for gaming at 60 FPS in a resolution of 1920x1080, which, according to Steam statistics, is used by 65.48% of users, for which the power of the graphics chip and 8 GB of GDDR memory are sufficient with reserve.

Important! RX590 video cards not only do not have a VGA connector, but also do not output an analog signal at all; to connect to monitors that only have a VGA connector, you need to buy special signal converters, and not just adapters.

Over 2 years on the market, extensive statistics have been collected about the RX590 based on customer reviews; for the most part, customers were satisfied with the product, but there were some complaints and disadvantages.

The main complaints usually include the high temperature of the graphics chip under load, which visually frightens users. But in fact, a temperature of 72-74 degrees, which users consider dangerous, is more than acceptable for the RX590. The fact is that in the BIOS of modern AMD video cards there is a “Target temperature” parameter, which sets the temperature that is optimal and which the video card cooling system tries to provide under load. The specified parameter for different versions of the RX590 ranges from 75 degrees to 78, with the maximum temperature being 85 degrees.