ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC Graphics Card Review – As Premium As You Can Get

In classic Nvidia fashion, RTX 4070 reviews are split with the Founders and Reference spec variants released the same day as the RTX 4070 announcement. RTX 4070 OC model reviews, on the other hand, have an embargo at the same as the GPUs hit the store shelves. For our first Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 overclocked model, we have the ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC graphics card. Let’s see if the out-of-the-box overclock brings any value to the RTX 4070, especially against the RTX 3080.

Ada Lovelace Architecture

Following the success of the RTX 30 series card and the Ampere architecture, Nvidia continues to double down on its proven and tested formula with the debut of the Nvidia Ada Lovelace architecture featuring 76 Billion Transistors. Nvidia has moved from Samsung 8N to TSMC’s 4N process, resulting in much bigger performance gains and slighter higher pricing as TSMC recently hiked up its prices. The new Ada Lovelace features 3rd Generation RT Cores at 200 RT TFLOPs and 4th Gen Tensor Cores for 1,4000 TFLOPs as well as a new streaming multiprocessor with up to 2x power efficiency. Moreover, Ada Lovelace also brings in new features exclusive to the RTX 40 series graphics card such as DLSS 3, AV1 Encoding, and Shader Execution Reordering.

Shader Execution Reordering

Shader Execution Reodering largely contributes to the performance gains of the RTX 40 series GPUs thanks to the more efficient usage of the shaders. SER is a scheduling system that reorders shading work on-the-fly for better execution efficiency, especially on ray-traced workloads. Think hyperthreading plus thread director but for GPUs particularly the RTX 40 series where the rays are reordered so that the ones that are running on the same program or similar are grouped together resulting in the shader working consistently instead of waiting on each other.

SER is an NVAPI extension meaning that developers would have to enable it on their games. We should expect SER to be heavily and quickly adopted especially in games where there are already Nvidia features enabled such as Reflex, RTX, and DLSS.

Nvidia DLSS 3

DLSS 3 uses the 4th Gen Tensor Cores and the Optical Flow Accelerator of the RTX 40 series to improve overall performance using AI-generated frames. In addition to already upscaling existing frames like DLSS 2, DLSS 3 generates intermediate frames in your game aka inserting AI-generated frames to improve performance. The RTX 40 series GPU will analyze two in-game frames and generate an optical flow field, closely looking at all elements in the game and using the information gathered to construct a frame in between. Additionally, DLSS 3 incorporates Nvidia Reflex’s ultra-low-latency solution making your games way more responsive and providing more frames. Games that support DLSS 3 will automatically support Nvidia Reflex.

DLSS 3 can be used by older Nvidia RTX graphics cards but won’t be able to fully maximize the feature as the biggest improvement of the technology, Frame Generation, is exclusive to the RTX 40 series graphics cards.

Nvidia RTX 40 Series Specifications

The Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 sports an average of 24% fewer cores than the RTX 4070 Ti and with a significantly lower base clock of only 1,920 Mhz, making it the lowest-clocked RTX 40 GPU. It does, however, sport the same 12GB GDDR6X and 192-bit memory configuration. The 24% lower core count translates to a much lower TGP of only 200 watts and a 35 percent cheaper price tag of only $499 (Php 40,590) albeit it’s $100 more than the launch price of the GeForce RTX 3070.

ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC

ASUS has reverted to the classic box-style packaging with the ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC. I personally loved the octagon design found on the TUF Gaming RTX 4080 OC and TUF Gaming RTX 4090 that we recently reviewed.

Unlike the higher tier RTX 40 series cards from ASUS, there’s no Nvidia 12VHPWR adapter included as the TUF RTX 4070 OC doesn’t need one. Apart from that, you have the usual packaging contents listed below:

• ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC GPU
• TUF Gaming certificate of reliability
• TUF Gaming Velcro Strap
• ASUS TUF Graphics Card Holder
• Quick Start Guide
• Warranty Card
• TUF Gaming Card

It’s glad to see that ASUS hasn’t gimped the TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC despite being a lower-tier graphics card. The ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC sports the signature metal vented exoskeleton that greatly helps not only in cooling but also in overall structural rigidity and build quality.

Moving to the back you can see the full backplate that’s part of the exoskeleton to combat unnecessary PCB bends and GPU sagging. ASUS has made subtle changes to the backplate of the TUF RTX 4070 OC. Design-wise you have a more prominent TUF web design that covers almost half of the left side of the metal backplate — A design I liked and didn’t even notice on the TUF RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 as it only covered about 1/5th of the backplate.

Aesthetics aside, the cutout for the third fan is noticeably smaller as the higher tier variants’ cutout exposes the almost entire fan compared to a mere less half on the RTX 4070. ASUS’ decision to make a smaller cutout is probably due to the RTX 4070 OC not requiring as much cooling as it only has a TGP of 200W.

The Nvidia RTX 4070 Founders Edition that we reviewed occupies only 2 slots making its compactness a big selling point, especially for ITX and SFF owners. The ASUS TUF RTX 4070 OC is also smaller compared to its bigger TUF brothers by occupying only 3.15 slots vs the TUF 3080’s 3.65 slots. Sure it’s not 2-slot thin but its smaller form factor makes it compatible with more PC chassis in the market.

One feature of the TUF RTX 40 series graphics card that’s carried over to the ASUS TUF RTX 4070 OC is the dual-BIOS switch located beside the 8-pin PCI-E connector. The connector is set to Performance Mode by default which is also the mode we benchmarked the card in this review.

Despite the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 having only a 200W TGP, Nvidia still insisted on using the controversial 12VHPWR connector for its Founders Edition. What surprised us and probably a lot of reviewers as well is that Nvidia allowed board partners to use older 8-pin PCI-E connectors. ASUS is one of the brands that jumped ship by using an 8-pin PCI-E connector for its RTX 4070. A single 8-pin is enough for the 200W TDP since it’s rated at 150W with the remaining wattage to be supplied by the PCI-E slot itself. That however poses a slight concern in terms of overclocking headroom as you only have about 25W more power to spare with the combined 150W 8pin and 75W PCI-E slot.

When placed beside the ASUS TUF RTX 4090, the TUF Gaming RTX 4070 looks like a mini model. The TUF RTX 4070 OC is only slightly larger than the TUF RTX 3080 OC at 301 x 139 x 63mm (LxWxH) 3.15 slots versus the latter’s 299 x 126 x 51mm 2.7 slots.

The ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC sports the standard display output configuration with three DisplayPort 1.4a ports and one HDMI 2.1 port. Both the RTX 4080 and RTX 4090 TUF GPUs have an extra HDMI 2.1a port which is an unfortunate thing to be seen missing on the TUF RTX 4070 but it’s understandable due to the more compact form factor of the card.

Test Bench Setup and Benchmark Methodology

Gadget Pilipinas’ testing philosophy is to provide detail-oriented results as accurately as possible so that our readers can replicate our tests given that these conditions are met. Different benchmarking apps and sequences are used depending on the component or device being tested.

ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC Testbench Specs

We use CapFrameX 1.7.0 Beta as our primary FPS capture and analysis tool for all our gaming benchmarks. The latest build version of Windows 11 Pro and WHQL-certified drivers are used for our benchmarks. Readings such as temperatures and power draws are recorded using HWINFO64, and other relevant software for cross-checking.

ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC Benchmarks

COUNTER-STRIKE: GLOBAL OFFENSIVE

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive aka CSGO is an 11-year-old first-person shooter title that’s still widely popular despite its old Source Engine. CS:GO is a great game to test out CPU performance as the game is heavily CPU-dependent like any other FPS title. Our CS:GO benchmark process uses ULLETICAL’s FPS Benchmark workshop mod to measure the hardware’s performance.

DOTA 2

Most gamers play at least one of the following free-to-play titles: League of Legends, CS: GO, Dota 2, and/or Fortnite. Dota 2 is a good representation of the F2P titles as it is the most demanding game in the spectrum. The benchmark will give you an idea of the graphic card’s relative performance on other lesser demanding titles. Our benchmark sequence is based on a replay of OG vs. Liquid in the TI9 grand finals from the team fight that happened from 28:30 to 29:30.

CALL OF DUTY MODERN WARFARE II

The latest installment in the Call of Duty franchise is a sequel to the much-loved Modern Warfare game that launched in 2019. Call of Duty Modern Warfare II is one of the most demanding titles to date, pushing the latest hardware from Intel, AMD, and Nvidia. CODMW2 is one of the few games that comes with the DLSS feature without Ray Tracing.

Far Cry 5 & Far Cry 6

FarCry 5 is an FPS game published by Ubisoft and uses the Dunia engine. It heavily relies on and takes advantage of DirectX 11 to render a realistic environment that makes it taxing to both the CPU and GPU. Far Cry 6 is the latest installment in the franchise which utilizes DirectX 12 to run the virtual world of Yara.

Rainbow Six Siege

Rainbow Six Seige is one of the few popular AAA games that’s still popular in 2021 due to its competitive gameplay mechanics. R6S uses the AnvilNext game engine, which the game’s publisher, Ubisoft, developed. As of writing, Rainbow Six Siege is currently the most popular Tom Clancy title beating out Wildlands, Breakpoint, and even Division 2.

Cyberpunk 2077

Cyberpunk 2077 is arguably the most hyped game of 2020. Developed by CD Projekt Red, the dystopian open-world, action-adventure RPG sports is one of the most demanding titles to date. Cyberpunk 2077 also supports three Ray Tracing settings as well as DLSS which makes the game a great tool to measure Ray tracing performance for both AMD and Nvidia graphics cards.

Shadow of The Tomb Raider

Shadow of The Tomb Raider or SOTR is the latest installment of the Lara Croft Tomb Raider franchise. Developed by Square Enix, SOTR uses the Foundation engine and is further enhanced by Eidos Montreal. SOTR is also one of the first games to come out with Ray Tracing and DLSS support.

Metro Exodus

Metro Exodus is the third Metro game trilogy based on Dmitry Glukhovsky’s novels. The game is a first-person shooter with survival horror and stealth elements. The post-apocalyptic game uses 4A Engine by 4A games. Released last 2019, Metro Exodus remains to be one of the most graphically pleasing and demanding games that’s popular to date.

Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey and Valhalla

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is the latest franchise installment from Ubisoft. It’s by far the most popular and stable Assassin’s Creed title since AC IV: Black Flag. It uses the AnvilNext 2.0 game engine, an updated version of Rainbow Six Siege’s game engine, and uses the DirectX 12 API.

F1 2020 and F1 22

F1 2020 is the official video game of the 2020 Formula 1 and Formula 2 championships developed by Codemasters. F1 2020 is the twelfth installment in the franchise and uses the Ego Engine 3.0. F1 2020 is a good representation of racing games thanks to its realistic graphics and fairly demanding spec requirements.

HORIZON ZERO DAWN

Horizon Zero Dawn is one of the most popular console-port RPG developed by Guerilla Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Horizon Zero Dawn is a multi-award-winning action RPG, and its popularity resulted in an exclusive Complete Edition game bundle on Steam.

ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC Temperatures and Power Daw

ASUS has done a tremendous job with the TUF Gaming RTX 4070’s cooling peaking at only 64°C with the same idle temp as the RTX 4070 FE at 32.1°C. It’s one of the coolest GPUs in our benchmark suite being beaten only by its bigger TUF brothers and the RTX 4080 FE.

With a rated TGP of 200W and a recorded maximum power draw of 201.802 watts, the RTX 4070 sits at RTX 3060 Ti levels of power draw all while delivering performance that’s closer to the RTX 3080.

The ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC stays within the rated 200W TGP with a peak power consumption of only 205.345W. The negligible higher power consumption over the RTX 4070 FE can be attributed to the extra fan and RGB lighting.

Performance Summary and Conclusion

We ended our RTX 4070 Founders Edition review with the ASUS TUF RTX 3080 OC gaining a 2% lead. Now that the ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC enters the fray, the 2% gap is rendered moot thanks to its higher clock speeds paired with superb cooling performance. But that’s just about it, ASUS has squeezed whatever it can with the AD104 GPU die of the RTX 4070 by giving it the best components possible, especially in the cooling department. At this point, there’s really no reason to go for a more premium model like a Strix card as the TUF RTX 4070 OC is about as premium as you can get before diminishing returns kick in. To further strengthen our point, ASUS Philippines won’t be bringing a ROG Strix card to compete with other GPU brands at launch – they’ll probably bring it at a later date in small quantities to satisfy their ROG fanbase.

Priced at Php 45,740, the Php 4,150 premium over the Nvidia recommended SRP is well worth it for the performance and cooling gain you get with the ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC — Not to mention the premium will probably be smaller as retailers will likely offer cash prices below ASUS’ SRP. Though it’s not to say that ASUS didn’t give up something to get this level of performance and cooling. Compared to the FE model and probably other reference RTX 4070 cards, the TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC is definitely one of the largest in its classes as it breaches the 3-slot threshold. This makes the ASUS TUF RTX 4070 OC a pass for ITX and SFF users as case compatibility is a hit or miss with a card of this size. That said, the ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 4070 OC is an ideal card if the size isn’t an issue and you only care about performance and cooling. Its performance, cooling, build quality, and a touch of RGB more than justify its price premium.

Grant Soriano

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Grant is a Financial Management graduate from UST. His passion for gadgets and tech crossed him over in the industry where he could apply his knowledge as an enthusiast and in-depth analytic skills as a Finance Major. His passion allows him to earn at the same time help Gadget Pilipinas' readers in making smart, value-based decisions and purchases with his reviews and guides.