To remedy the situation, we have the RX 7900 GRE—for Golden Rabbit Edition. The 7900 GRE isn’t a new GPU as such; it’s built on the same Navi 31 processor as the 7900 XTX and XT, only trimmed down. AMD uses GPU chiplets for Navi 31 and 32, with a larger GCD (graphics compute die) linked to multiple MCDs (memory cache dies). The 7900 XTX uses a GCD with 96 compute units (CUs) and six MCDs, while the 7900 XT has 84 CUs and five MCDs. The 7900 GRE offers 80 CUs and four MCDs. The next step down is the 7800 XT, which moves to the Navi 32 GCD with just 60 CUs and four MCDs.
It’s an interesting mix of specifications, and AMD also lowered both the GPU and GDDR6 clocks relative to the other high-end RDNA 3 offerings. That keeps the power requirements relatively low, so that the 7900 GRE basically matches the lesser 7800 XT on power requirements. Ultimately, the 7900 GRE fills the somewhat larger gap between the 7800 XT and 7900 XT with a new product.