ASRock (via momomo_us) has rebranded the company’s Navi 31-based AMD Radeon RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX WS graphics cards as the new Creator series for generative AI workloads and workstation configurations. These WS series graphics cards were originally launched at Computex 2024.
It’s worth noting that both WS series (now Creator series GPUs) are the first AMD cards to use the 16-pin (12V-2×6) power connector, which was previously found in Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 40 series graphics cards. Originally, both variants used two 8-pin PCIe connectors, but it makes sense that these graphics cards would switch to the new standard, as the latest high-power power supplies have multiple 16-pin connectors for multi-GPU clusters. Additionally, using a single cable per graphics card helps reduce cable clutter.
ASRock’s decision to use 16-pin power connectors is more a matter of convenience than necessity, as the RX 7900 XT and RX 7900 XTX don’t draw enough power during workloads to justify using the 12V-2×6 power connector. It’s plausible that ASRock will likely bundle a 12V-2×6 adapter with these Creator series.
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The Creator series uses a dual-slot design with a single blower-type fan with a vapor chamber, making it ideal for multi-GPU environments with various workloads. While it offers the high airflow and reliability needed for such an environment, the tradeoff is usually the high noise profile. Additionally, it omits unnecessary elements such as RGB lighting effects, which are typical of these workstation graphics cards.
While they offer the best options for such a performance segment, one wonders how many people would choose these AMD cards over Nvidia’s. AMD deserves credit for working on its shortcomings by publishing its firmware documentation for RDNA 3 GPUs and regularly making its software open source. The best that AIB partners can do in such situations is to provide an option if one chooses one of the cards for the intended workload and environment.
