MSI GeForce RTX 5070 Gaming Trio OC Review – Quieter and a little more colorful is always possible

1 - Introduction and unboxing 2 - Test system and equipment 3 - Teardown: PCB and cooler 4 - Material analysis and thermal interface material 5 - Gaming performance rasterization 6 - Gaming performance Super Sampling, RT & FG 7 - Power consumption, transients and PSU recommendation 8 - Temperatures, clock rate and thermography 9 - Fans speed and noise 10 - Summary and conclusion

Teardown

When disassembling a graphics card, it is dismantled step by step, whereby the initial state is first recorded. Once the backplate and cooling components have been removed, the board is exposed so that the layout, power supply and soldering quality can be examined in detail. The central components such as the GPU, memory chips and voltage regulator are also analyzed, as are the design of the cooling system and the heat conducting materials used. In this way, not only can the technical implementation be evaluated, but conclusions can also be drawn about the performance and efficiency of the card – a procedure that provides insightful findings for both end users and experts.

Circuit board and components

The board is quite compact and is based on NVIDIA’s reference design, which relies on three large voltage rails and several smaller ones. The voltage converters for the NVVDD, i.e. the core voltage of the GPU, are already familiar. What is new, however, is that NVIDIA – similar to Intel and AMD – once again uses separate voltages for the GDDR7 memory and the frame buffer. While dedicated voltage rails for GPU cores and memory are already established, the separation of the frame buffer voltage in this form is a new feature at NVIDIA.

The frame buffer serves as a storage area for the image data required for display on the monitor. Information such as color depth, transparency and resolution is stored here and continuously updated by the GPU. This area is directly connected to the graphics memory and operates under the MSVDD voltage, which supplies the memory chips themselves. While MSVDD regulates the basic operating voltage of the memory chips, FBVDD ensures the stability and accuracy of data transfer between GPU and memory, especially at high clock rates.

The clear separation between MSVDD and FBVDD allows a more precise adjustment of the voltage values to the respective requirements. MSVDD determines the speed and stability of the memory chips by matching the electrical properties of the memory cells and the memory controller logic. FBVDD, on the other hand, ensures that communication between the frame buffer and memory remains efficient. The voltage regulation of the board is clearly laid out: There are 13 control loops in total, 8 of which are for NVVDD (GPU core voltage, 0.8 to 1.1 V), three for MSVDD (memory voltage, 0.8 to 1.1 V) and two for FBVDD (framebuffer voltage, 0.9 to 1.24 V), supplemented by other smaller voltages for various components.

The power supply of modern graphics cards requires precise coordination of various control and power components. On the back of the board is the Alpha & Omega AOZ73004CQI (ENCO), a rather inexpensive PWM controller that takes over the voltage regulation for the GPU core voltage (NVVDD) and the frame buffer (FBVDD). This multi-phase system ensures even load distribution and precise voltage regulation, which optimizes both thermal and electrical load. The Alpha & Omega AOZ73004CQI on the front controls the three phases for FBVDD.

The actual voltage regulation is implemented by DrMOS modules, whereby the Alpha & Omega AOZ5311NQI-04 (BLN4) is used for NVVDD, MSVDD and also FBVDD. These modules convert the control signals supplied by the PWM controllers into the required output voltages. They integrate high-side and low-side MOSFETs as well as the gate drivers in a compact housing, which minimizes switching losses and saves space on the circuit board. All voltage converters have integrated protection mechanisms such as temperature and short-circuit protection to ensure operational safety.

There are no major surprises on the back. Like NVIDIA, MSI relies exclusively on MLCCs under the socket and completely dispenses with polymer capacitors. The reasons for this have already been discussed in detail, as in my investigation into the polymer capacitors of the RTX 3090, I found that their choice has a direct influence on the stability of the GPU, especially at high clock rates. Some models relied exclusively on SP-CAPs, which offer a high capacity but filter high-frequency voltage peaks worse than MLCCs. This led to instability and crashes on certain cards. Models with a mixture of MLCCs and SP-CAPs proved to be more stable, as MLCCs are more effective at smoothing out voltage fluctuations. As a result, manufacturers adapted their designs and increasingly relied on mixed solutions or completely on MLCCs to improve operational reliability. NVIDIA has now also followed AMD and Intel in using a complete MLCC assembly.

In addition to the fuse and shunt resistor for the PEG connection, the large PWM controller for NVVDD and MSVDD and a smaller one for FBVDD can be found here. The whole thing is supplemented by the obligatory supervisor chip, which is responsible for power monitoring.

The uS5650Q , a high-performance IC for monitoring bus voltages and currents on up to four high-voltage power supplies, is located on the board for this purpose. This component enables the acquisition and scaling of shunt and bus voltages and allows each channel to be flexibly adapted to specific requirements using external resistors. Particularly noteworthy is the fast settling time, which enables the voltage values to be checked in real time. This makes the chip ideal as a supervisor for the 12V lines, especially for the 12V2X6 and PEG connections of the graphics card.

All relevant components are shown again below in a high-resolution microscopy view:

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The cooler

The rear backplate is made of aluminum and also cools the circuit board by means of an attached heat conducting pad, once again in the wrong place of course. The backplate therefore contributes to mechanical stability and improves cooling. Together with the central cooling block as a load-bearing element, the structural integrity of the card is also increased, guaranteeing stable operation under high loads.

The slightly lighter cooler of the MSI GeForce RTX 5070 Gaming Trio is a compromise between cool operation and cost efficiency, which is achieved through a combination of innovative technologies and very high airflow. Cooling is made possible by a continuous, nickel-plated copper heatsink instead of a vapor chamber, which serves as the primary heat dissipation element. This transports the heat directly from the GPU and the VRAM to the four so-called core pipes, three of which run through the middle and then bend back under the area of the first fan. These square-shaped heat pipes behind the chamber optimize thermal contact with the chamber and ensure even heat distribution. The heat is then dissipated through a network of precision-manufactured fins, which are designed for a very high throughput in order to be able to handle the up to 330 watts of waste heat.

The cooler’s fans are each equipped with seven fan blades optimized for throughput, which we already know from the newer Vanguard and Suprim models. In addition, the Zero-Frozr function offers the option of stopping the fans completely at low loads to enable silent operation. Another element is the thermal pads, which I will discuss later, which provide additional heat dissipation from critical components such as the voltage converters.

The cooling system represents a very good compromise between size, weight and performance, I still have to measure the rest…