The long-awaited «super» series has been replenished with the pre-top MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert, and we are ready to share the test results with you. In addition to the usual benchmarks in desktop programs and games, we tested local neural networks, measured the temperature, noise, and power consumption.
Pluses:
good ratio of noise, temperature, and size; high performance in work programs; low power consumption in idle mode and high performance per 1 W; generous package; support for various software and modern technologies (DLSS, FG) in games;
Minuses:
high price; small performance gain compared to the regular RTX 4080 version;
Content
Technical specifications of the MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert
| Technical specifications of the MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert | |
| Interface | PCI-E 4.0 x16 |
| Technical process | 5 nm |
| VRAM frequency | 23 000 MHz |
| GPU frequency | 2625 MHz |
| VRAM capacity | 16 GB GDDR6X |
| Memory bus | 256-bit |
| Exits | DisplayPort x 3 (v2.1) |
| HDMI x 1 (v1.4) | |
| CUDA kernels | 10240 |
| Power connector | 16 Pin |
| Energy consumption | 320 W |
| Recommended power supply | 850 W |
| Dimensions | 312×141×61 mm |
| Occupies places | 3 slots |
Test bench
We tested the new product with the following components:
- Motherboard MSI MPG B650 CARBON WIFI
- Processor AMD Ryzen 9 7900
- Cooler Be quiet! Dark Rock ELITE
- RAM Kingston Fury Beast DDR5 2x16GB
- Power supply MSI MPG A1000G PCIE5 1000W
- Body MSI MPG QUIETUDE 100S
Completeness and packaging
The video card comes with a generous package in the form of a support stand and a 3×8 pin > 16 pin adapter. Considering the TDP of 300W, 2×8 pin would have been enough, but it’s good enough with a margin. Owners of old power supplies will be happy with this adapter, but we didn’t use it in our tests because the PSU already has a bundled cable. The support was also not useful — the case also has its own.
Appearance, cooling
The MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is similar to the reference RTX 4080 model, but has a few differences. The strict industrial design and two coolers on opposite sides of the radiator are striking. Everything is assembled neatly, monolithically, without any RGB elements. No less interesting is the design itself, with asymmetrical fan placement. We tested their effectiveness in practice and are ready to share our impressions.
In general, the appearance of MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is a strong point because it is at least something fresh and new among hundreds of similar models with three in-line fans. The hero of the review is well suited for those who want to build the most rigorous computer for work.
Workload performance of the MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert
MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is primarily intended for professionals, not gamers. Although the video card belongs to the «consumer» GeForce series, the top RTX models have long been used not in gaming PCs, but in workstations. If that’s what you can call a workstation for a person who rarely plays video games and works with 3D graphics.
Comparative data was taken from the official Geekbench and Blender charts. The theoretical power of MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is only slightly higher than RTX 4080. The new product also outperforms AMD RX 7900 XTX, but only in the Open CL test.
Geekbench, Vulkan shows a small but significant «red» advantage of the flagship over the MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert. The RTX 4090 is quite far away with both APIs. It’s also far from the cost of the most powerful NVIDIA ADA series graphics card.
MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert performs best when rendering graphics. The entire RTX 4000 line is well suited for those who like to design something in Blender or similar programs. The only surprising thing is that the RTX 4080 is a few % more productive than its Super partner.
Gaming performance
All video games except Battlefield 2042 were tested with maximum graphics settings. With such a powerful video card, you can afford ray tracing and path tracing, so we tested various scenarios in the most demanding video games. Only Quad HD 1440p and Ultra HD 2160p resolutions were considered. No one is going to play with MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert on a Full-HD monitor.
Conventional notation:
- ULTRA/EXTREME — maximum graphics settings;
- COMP — esports graphics settings;
- DQ — DLSS with the Quality profile;
- FG — NVIDIA Frame Generation;
- RT — Ray Tracing;
- PT — Path Tracing;
Alan Wake 2 is within the power of this mastodon, but in 4K with ray tracing, you won’t be able to get a stable 60 FPS. Frame generation makes the picture smoother, but for a comfortable game, we recommend a «final» FPS of at least 80-90.
Baldur’s Gate 3 with the maximum settings is quite easy. The lowest FPS was taken into account with the expectation that the game will have more difficult locations. You can play in 4K without DLSS, but it makes no sense — with DLSS Quality the picture is clear.
Battlefield 2042 made the video card wait for the processor. Only switching to Ultra graphics will help to load the video card fully. The video sequence is smooth, the graphics are gorgeous, the battles are large-scale, and during the tests the United States wins again. An interesting fact: for the entire time (six months) of testing Battlefield 2042 on laptops and computers, we have never seen the Russian side win, which is about 15–20 matches.
Cyberpunk 2077 You can play with path tracing, but you will get good FPS only with frame generation. Switching to ray tracing almost doubles the performance. It is unlikely that anyone will play this game without RT with such a powerful video card.
Forza Horizon 5 works flawlessly with ultra graphics and ray tracing. Frame generation helps, but the increase is small (relative to other games). You can play with any settings, and by blocking the FPS to 60, you will also get a meager power consumption, but more on that in a separate section.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 in the most difficult location, New York delivers 95–120 FPS with frame generation. Without FG, we immediately hit the CPU, even at 4K resolution without DLSS. This is probably the only game where we don’t turn on DLSS, even in the Quality profile because here hundreds of thousands of objects are drawn for tens of kilometers.
Starfield was a bit disappointing after the update, as it was not possible to enable Frame Generation. The game crashed when this option was activated, so we tested it without FG. In Quad HD, we often ran into the capabilities of the processor, which in the most difficult locations could not deliver a stable 100 FPS.
Power consumption, noise, heat MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert
Under maximum load, the coolers spin up to 1400 rpm, which creates a low noise level. The MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is significantly quieter than the reference AMD RX 7900 XTX, but not quieter than the Suprem X version of the RTX 4080. Opening the lid of the system unit and placing a sound level meter a few centimeters away from the coolers, we get 50 dB. A meter away from the system unit, this parameter does not exceed 38-40 dB.
At the same time, the temperature indicators are good: the back panel does not heat up much, in most places the pyrometer showed 35-45 °C, only in some places (near the chip itself) it was possible to catch 51+ °C. The 16 Pin connector is relatively cold — 47-48 °C at full GPU TDP, i.e. 305-310 W.
During stress tests, the sensors showed up to 81 °C Hotspot, but this is only at the beginning. After 5 minutes of testing in Furmark, the video card raised the fan speed from 1100 rpm to 1400 rpm and the hottest spot temperature dropped to 78 °C. The chip itself heated up to 67 °C, and the memory only to 60 °C.
The entire computer consumes a lot of power (more than 100 watts) when idle, which is due to the AM5 platform based on MSI B650 and the AMD Ryzen 9 7900 processor. The video card itself, according to the sensors, requires from 2 to 10 watts during light tasks. Watching 4K YouTube with hardware acceleration made the video card consume 6, 10, and rarely 20 watts with short-term peaks (for 1–2 seconds) of up to 40 watts.
The MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is incredibly economical in this regard, especially relative to Radeon competitors, but how does it fare under load? The Furmark stress test squeezed the maximum out of the hero of the review — the video card consumed 305 watts. Of course, a few more watts are required from the outlet due to power supply losses. The entire PC consumed almost 420 watts, and that’s without loading the processor.
In games, the video card requires between 250 and 300 watts, depending on the project. In most cases, this figure was kept at 270–280 watts without vertical synchronization. If you own an Ultra HD 60 Hz monitor or TV, you can limit the FPS for additional savings. In Forza Horizon 5 with maximum graphics and 60 FPS, the MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert consumed 95–125 watts in different locations.
Price and competitors
Cost MSI RTX 4080 Super Expert is UAH 56,000. The video card comes with the game Skull And Bones as a gift (temporary promotion). So far, this model is rare in Ukraine and is not sold in every store, but there are other versions of RTX 4080 Super that can be considered the main competitors of the hero of the review.
Gigabyte GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER WINDFORCE has slightly larger dimensions, as it is made in a classic gaming design.
Asus GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER TUF Gaming OC has an additional HDMI port (2 in total) and good cooling.
MSI GeForce RTX 4080 16GB GAMING X TRIO without the Super prefix, it will cost a little cheaper «industrial» novelty.
Sapphire Radeon RX 7900 XTX PULSE — a compromise analog for those who are primarily interested in video games. The advantages are a larger amount of VRAM and a more pleasant price.