Checking in for review is the ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition graphics card. This is a much awaited collaboration between ASUS and Noctua for the upper midrange GeForce RTX 30 graphics family.
The ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition comes with a compelling 1845 MHz boost clock which is cooled by dual Noctua NF-A12x25 PWM fans blowing air into a massive tailor-made heatsink. Suffice to say, this is one of the most anticipated partnerships this side of the year.
Disclosure: ASUS sent this unit as a return sample for the purpose of this review. The company did not ask me to say anything particular about it. All thoughts and opinion are of course my own.
- Product Page: ASUS GeForce RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition Graphics Card
- Price: $830 (MSRP), ₱41,995 PHP (PCHub)
- Release Date: Q4 2021
Technical Specifications
| GPU | |
|---|---|
| Cores | 5888 SP, 184 TMU, 46 SM |
| Core Clock | 1845 MHz (OC) |
| Architecture | Ampere |
| Manufacturing Process | 8 nm |
| TDP | 220W |
| Memory | |
| Memory Clock | 1750 MHz |
| Memory Bus Width | 256-bit |
| Memory Capacity | 8 GB |
| Memory Type | GDDR6 |
| Connectivity | |
| Display | 3x DisplayPort 1.4a, 2x HDMI 2.1 |
| Power | 2x 8-pin |
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 310 mm |
| Width | 147 mm |
| Height | 87.5 mm |
| Weight | 1566 g |
Packaging and Accessories
The ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition comes in a nice carry box – with a colorway to match.
Here’s what you should expect inside the box:
- ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition Graphics Card
- Quick setup guide
- Warranty guide
- Super Trump inspired trading card?
Nothing much to see here except maybe for that trading card.
Design, Layout and Build Quality
I have tested some of the largest graphics cards in the past, yet only a few managed to get close to the behemoth that is the ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition. This is no surprise since the graphics card comes with dual Noctua NF-A12x25 PWM fans – the same spinners found bundled with the brand’s high-end CPU coolers. This thing weighs in at 1566 grams and takes about four slots. Owners of microATX and smaller motherboards beware – this could potentially block some headers.
The graphics card comes with a thick back plate to offer some kind of protection to the PCB. The most important thing about this is its added rigidity to the whole package. Notice it also supports the cooler along with the fan shroud. Now the card comes with 220 W of TDP, made possible by two 8-pin power connectors.
Connectivity options are excellent. We have three DisplayPort 1.4a here and dual HDMI 2.1 ports. I would love to see a larger bracket here though, similar to what ASUS offered with their DirectCU II models of the yesteryears. A missed opportunity to make the card even sturdier.
Quality and presentation are both excellent, as expected from the two major brands within the industry. Nothing major to complain here.
Test Setup and Methodology
Our test setup relies on the measurements taken with CapFrameX. It is important to note that we are testing the review sample after burn-in, with at least 24-hours of uptime. This is done so to negate the FOTB (fresh out the box) state of the DUT (device under test), yielding better benchmarking consistency.
| Test System Specifications | |
|---|---|
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 5 3600 |
| Motherboard | BIOSTAR B550M-SILVER |
| Cooler | Noctua NH-U12S Redux |
| Memory | ADATA Premier 2666MHz 16GB |
| GPU | ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition |
| Storage | Plextor M9PE NVME 512GB |
| Case | Mechanical Library JXK-K3 |
| PSU | Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 650W |
| Display | LG UF680T |
| OS | Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64-bit |
Selected game titles are tested at the standard resolutions using the High Preset. The following custom settings are then applied to ensure ensure a more level playing field between GPU manufacturers:
- Render Scale: 100%
- V-Sync: Off
- Anti-Aliasing: FXAA>TAA>Off
- Nvidia Exclusive Features: Off
- AMD Exclusive Features: Off
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege is a multi-player first-person shooter developed by Ubisoft Montreal. It runs on the AnvilNext 2.0 engine, utilizing the DirectX 11 and the Vulkan API.
The ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua is definitely the fastest card around the block – as it should. We have a coil whine inducing 352.8 average FPS on our 1080P run here along with exceptional 1440P and 2160P results. If you have a 360Hz gaming monitor, then this is definitely a card you should look out for with of course, R6 Siege in mind.
Metro Exodus
Metro Exodus is a single-player first-person shooter developed by 4A Games. It runs on the 4A Engine engine, utilizing the DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 API.
Metro Exodus performance is also excellent. Surely, the game is expected to work well with the higher end RTX GPU along with its 8 GB of GDDR6 VRAM.
Assetto Corsa
Assetto Corsa is a multi-player simulation racing game developed by Kunos Simulazioni. It runs on an in-house game engine, utilizing the DirectX 11 API.
As for Assetto Corsa, the RTX 3070 pulled way ahead of everything else on the bench. Again, this is expected considering the GPU’s capabilities.
F1 2020
F1 2020 is a multi-player racing game developed by Codemasters. It runs on the Ego Engine 3.0, utilizing the DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 API.
F1 2020 performance is just as what I’ve expected. Truly a top tier card worthy of your attention.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker is an MMORPG developed by Square Enix. It runs on the Crystal Tools engine, utilizing the DirectX 11 API.
Now End Walker’s benchmark tool is capped at 120 FPS. Best we could analyze here are the higher resolution results as far as higher end cards goes. For an instance, the RTX 3070 outputs an average of 84.1 FPS at 2160P which is fine at such resolution. Not the most optimized game though – least with the benchmark tool in mind.
Horizon Zero Dawn
Horizon Zero Dawn is an single-player adventure developed by Guerrilla Games. It runs on the Decima engine, utilizing the DirectX 12 API.
Horizon Zero Dawn is yet another capped title when it comes to its own benchmarking tool. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother testing it. Anyway, we get an average of 66.6 FPS at 2160P which is totally playable.
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI is a strategy game developed by Firaxis Games. It runs on an in-house game engine, utilizing the DX11 and DX12 API.
Civilization VI remains as an intensive benchmark and it shows. Still, we get excellent results here with the ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition.
Total War: Three Kingdoms
Total War: Three Kingdoms is a strategy game developed by Creative Assembly. It runs one the WarScape engine, utilizing the DirectX 11 API.
Total War: Three Kingdoms yet another, or perhaps the most intensive title we got here. Even the RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition couldn’t breach decent frame rates here at 2160P.
Thermals
Temperature is measured in degree Celcius (ºC) at system idle and load. This is done via AIDA64 Extreme and its built-in System Stability Test.
A bit hot there with the 0dB feature in place but considering its GPU and load thermal output, this is overall an excellent cooling performance for the Noctua NF-A12x25 equipped model.
Power
Power is measured in Watts (W) at system idle and load. This is done via AIDA64 Extreme and its built-in System Stability Test.
The card is efficient enough at idle to desktop level load. Stressing the card though is another story. We get a maximum of 273.3 W of power consumption from the wall socket. Card actually consumes around 204.2 W based on its board power sensor.
Noise
Sound Pressure Level is measured in Decibels (dBA) at system idle and load. This is done via AIDA64 Extreme and its built-in System Stability Test.
Noctua is a brand well-known for their ethos of providing the best of both cooling and acoustics – and this model shows. At load, the dual NF-A12x25 barely reaches 34 dB which is quiet enough to warrant it running 24/7 at any given load.
Features
The ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition is light on features but it has some pretty neat ones – GPU Tweak II support aside. That includes the dual BIOS responsible for the Quiet and Performance modes of the graphics card.
Aside from it and the Noctua enhanced cooling solution, the model we got also comes with a complimentary membership of Adobe Creative Cloud for a month. There’s also an XSplit Gamecaster membership in tow along with QuantumCloud mining support. This is an LHR model so its pretty ironic in a sense.
Final Thoughts
The ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition is a high performance graphics card alright. Its GPU and GDDR6 memory aside, such feat is also thanks in part to its tailor-made Noctua enabled cooling solution; enabling the card to reach its potential while still maintaining exceptional thermal headroom and acoustics. That’s at below 70% fan speed, mind you.
Power wise, its an RTX 3070 with two full-size standard CPU cooler fans so I expected this much. No major complains to report apart from its size that could potentially block some motherboard headers.
Now this is truly a likable card – performance and recent price drops considered. At 41, 995 PHP, you should really consider this model if you want the gaming performance of a top of the line product along with excellent thermals and acoustic performance.
Those things considered and if you have the budget to shell-out, I cannot stress enough how good the ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition is. That said, I hope ASUS and Noctua will continue to collaborate for more high-performance to come.
ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition Graphics Card
Summary
The ASUS RTX 3070 Noctua OC Edition is hard to fault as things should be at its price bracket. An impressive graphics card with minor caveats attached.
