Introduction

MSI GeForce RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio continues on the solid legacy of MSI’s award-winning Gaming X line of graphics cards that changed the landscape of custom-design, propelling MSI to being one of the top graphics card vendors. Its design appeals to gamers who want a little more from their RTX 4080 graphics card, in terms of design as well as performance, and like to flaunt their hardware’s aesthetics. The new GeForce RTX 4080 “Ada Lovelace” cements NVIDIA’s domination in the high-end segment with a second product that does the same things as the RTX 4090—4K Ultra HD maxed-out gaming with ray tracing; at a more appealing starting price of $1,200.

With the GeForce RTX 4080, NVIDIA introduces the new AD103 silicon, which borrows the best of both the high-end AD102, and the performance-segment AD104. The GPU has a high CUDA core count, with 9,728 enabled on the RTX 4080; while having an optimized 256-bit wide GDDR6X memory interface driving 16 GB of memory, more than the 10 GB or 12 GB available to the previous-generation RTX 3080. NVIDIA attempted to overcome the shortfall in memory bandwidth with faster 22.4 Gbps memory, and larger on-die caches that lubricate the memory sub-system.

The RTX 4080 is endowed with 9,728 CUDA cores across 76 streaming multiprocessors, 304 Tensor cores, 76 RT cores, and 112 ROPs. The GPU is normally clocked at 2.50 GHz boost, which MSI has overclocked to 2.59 GHz. The MSI Gaming X cooler features a meaty 3-slot cooling solution with three Axial-Tech fans, and an elaborate RGB LED setup with multiple diffusers. The card draws power from the same 16-pin 12VHPWR connector, but which is keyed for 450 W delivery, as is the included power adapter with three 8-pin PCIe power inputs. MSI is pricing the RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio at $1,310, a $110 premium over the NVIDIA baseline.