Introduction
The ASUS GeForce RTX 5090 ROG Matrix Platinum is a limited-edition enthusiast graphics card celebrating 30 years of ASUS graphics card innovation. The ROG Matrix brand has a long and storied pedigree in the world of extreme overclocking. It started with the HD 5870 Matrix in 2010, which introduced VGA Hotwire for hardware-level voltage control. The GTX 580 Matrix was followed in 2011 with the original Memory Defroster for LN2 overclocking and a custom PCB with additional power stages. In 2012, the HD 7970 Matrix brought thought to AMD’s side with large three-slot cooling and power-monitoring points. Then came the GTX 980 Matrix in 2015, which added a dedicated safe mode button to restore default clocks after a failed overclock. The GTX 980 Ti Matrix in 2016 improved the formula further with a DirectCU II dual-fan cooler and a temperature-controlled Memory Defroster that adjusted its heat output automatically. After that, the RTX 2080 Ti Matrix in 2019 brought a combination of liquid metal hot and cold with three fans. More recently, the RTX 4090 Matrix Platinum pushed the envelope further with a vapor chamber, liquid metal, and a large overclocked VRM. This new RTX 5090 Matrix takes everything ASUS has learned over 15 years and adds dual BTF power delivery, a quad-fan cooler, a three-ounce copper PCB, and Level Sense sag detection, making it the most advanced Matrix card ever built.
ASUS places the GeForce RTX 5090 Matrix a few notches above the Astral and TUF product lines. Limited to only 1,000 units worldwide, the Matrix Platinum features a quad-fan design with a copper vapor chamber, a hot liquid metal alloy, and a three-ounce copper PCB for superior heat dissipation. ASUS overclocked the RTX 5090 to a boost clock of 2730 MHz, compared to NVIDIA’s reference of 2407 MHz—that’s a +13% factory overclock. When paired with an ASUS Advanced BTF motherboard and 12V-2×6 power supply, the Matrix can draw up to 800 W and achieve up to 10% higher performance than the Founders Edition, including front and rear power delivery.
The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 represents the apex of the GeForce RTX Blackwell generation. At its heart is the massive GB202 chip, a 750 mm² slab of silicon with more than 92 billion transistors, and 192 broadcast multiprocessors (SM). The GPU introduces several first-to-market features, including a PCI-Express 5.0 x16 interface, ATX 3.1 + PCIe Gen 5 capabilities, DisplayPort 2.1b UHBR20, and the new GDDR7 memory standard. The GPU has a wide 512-bit GDDR7 interface that drives 32 GB of 28 Gbps GDDR7 memory for a jaw-dropping memory bandwidth of 1,792 GB/s. The GPU needs this for neural, DLSS 4 multi frame generation, and other new technologies to work. The RTX 5090 powers 170 out of 192 SM, and 96 MB of the 128 MB L2 cache physically present on the silicon. It also hosts 3 of 4 NVENC accelerators, and 2 of 4 NNVDEC accelerators. This works out to 21,760 CUDA cores, 680 Tensor cores, and 170 RT cores, across 11 GPCs.
Blackwell Graphic Architecture, now in its second year, presents Neural Rendering. You’ve already seen the incredible power of AI generation in creating photorealistic images and video. NVIDIA has found a way for the GPU to use the AI model that generates and renders graphics in parallel, thanks to a new component called AMP (AI management processor). The GPU combines 3D objects created by a generating AI model with raster 3D images in much the same way that it combines real-time ray-traced objects. The result is a technological leap in photorealism and geometric detail. We were blown away by the technology demos NVIDIA showed us at CES, and we can’t wait to see game developers take advantage of the technology. For its part, NVIDIA has collaborated with Microsoft to standardize the technology, making it possible for 3D applications to deal directly with Tensor cores. The shader reprogramming engine supports neural shaders.
The new 4th Generation RT core has added Mega Geometry Hardware, the ability to render a ray traced object with a high poly count, and all those additional areas to precisely match the rays. Then there is DLSS 4. NVIDIA has replaced the convoluted neural networks (CNN) based AI model powering the various parts of DLSS, with a new transformer-based model that is more accurate, and provides higher image quality for all performance presets. This applies not only to the RTX 40-series Ada and RTX 30-series Ampere generations, but even the RTX 20-series Turing cards, exclusive to Blackwell, however, the Multi Frame Generation. NVIDIA has created a way for the AI frame generation model to create not only the second frame that is normally rendered, but up to five AI-generated frames, taking into account motion vectors and other relevant information. Combined with high resolution, it takes the rendering power of 1 pixel to create up to 16 pixels. This feature relies on a key component of the hardware found in Blackwell’s display engine—hardware flip-metering—for frame-rate accuracy, which is why Multi Frame Generation is exclusive to Blackwell. NVIDIA has recently introduced frame generation updates, developing a type of gearbox that adjusts the MFG multiplier to the lowest required between x2 and x6 to reach the target FPS, increasing it in heavy scenes—Dynamic Multi Frame Generation, which allows for low latency and smooth gameplay.
The ASUS GeForce RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum is part of a new wave of RTX 5090 cards focused on premium overclocking that goes beyond the reference specification. The outstanding feature of the card is the dual power delivery: the standard 12V-2×6 connector provides up to 600 W, but when installed on an ASUS Advanced BTF motherboard, the card draws power through the rear BTF connector, activating the 800 W power mode. This is done automatically—no BIOS changes are required. The card also features a Memory Defroster, which heats up the GDDR7 memory chips to prevent fading during LN2 overclocking sessions, a feature that competitive overclockers will appreciate. The card measures 370 × 150 × 77 mm, making it a large triple-slot card, but without the radiator that competing products like the MSI Lightning Z require.
| Price | The cores | ROPs | Total A clock |
Improve A clock |
Memory A clock |
The GPU | Transistors | Memory | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RTX 4070 | $500 | 5888 | 64 | 1920 MHz | 2475 MHz | 1313 MHz | AD104 | 35800M | 12 GB, GDDR6X, 192-bit |
| RX 7800 XT | $500 | 3840 | 96 | 2124 MHz | 2430 MHz | 2425 MHz | Navi 32 | 28100M | 16 GB, GDDR6, 256-bit |
| RTX 4070 Super | $600 | 7168 | 80 | 1980 MHz | 2475 MHz | 1313 MHz | AD104 | 35800M | 12 GB, GDDR6X, 192-bit |
| RX 7900 GRE | $550 | 5120 | 160 | 1880 MHz | 2245 MHz | 2250 MHz | Navi 31 | 57700M | 16 GB, GDDR6, 256-bit |
| RTX 4070 Ti | $700 | 7680 | 80 | 2310 MHz | 2610 MHz | 1313 MHz | AD104 | 35800M | 12 GB, GDDR6X, 192-bit |
| RTX 5070 | $630 | 6144 | 80 | 2325 MHz | 2512 MHz | 1750 MHz | GB205 | 31100M | 12 GB, GDDR7, 192-bit |
| RTX 4070 Ti Super | $900 | 8448 | 96 | 2340 MHz | 2610 MHz | 1313 MHz | AD103 | 45900M | 16 GB, GDDR6X, 256-bit |
| RX 7900 XT | $670 | 5376 | 192 | 2000 MHz | 2400 MHz | 2500 MHz | Navi 31 | 57700M | 20 GB, GDDR6, 320-bit |
| RX 9070 | $550 | 3584 | 128 | 2070 MHz | 2520 MHz | 2518 MHz | Navi 48 | 53900M | 16 GB, GDDR6, 256-bit |
| RX 9070 XT | $620 | 4096 | 128 | 2400 MHz | 2970 MHz | 2518 MHz | Navi 48 | 53900M | 16 GB, GDDR6, 256-bit |
| RTX 5070 Ti | $900 | 8960 | 96 | 2295 MHz | 2452 MHz | 1750 MHz | GB203 | 45600M | 16 GB, GDDR7, 256-bit |
| RX 7900 XTX | $860 | 6144 | 192 | 2300 MHz | 2500 MHz | 2500 MHz | Navi 31 | 57700M | 24 GB, GDDR6, 384-bit |
| RTX 4080 | $1200 | 9728 | 112 | 2205 MHz | 2505 MHz | 1400 MHz | AD103 | 45900M | 16 GB, GDDR6X, 256-bit |
| RTX 4080 Super | $1300 | 10240 | 112 | 2295 MHz | 2550 MHz | 1438 MHz | AD103 | 45900M | 16 GB, GDDR6X, 256-bit |
| RTX 5080 | $1200 | 10752 | 112 | 2295 MHz | 2617 MHz | 1875 MHz | GB203 | 45600M | 16 GB, GDDR7, 256-bit |
| RTX 4090 | $2000 | 16384 | 176 | 2235 MHz | 2520 MHz | 1313 MHz | AD102 | 76300M | 24 GB, GDDR6X, 384-bit |
| RTX 5090 | $3500 | 21760 | 176 | 2017 MHz | 2407 MHz | 1750 MHz | GB202 | 92200M | 32 GB, GDDR7, 512-bit |
| ASUS RTX 5090 Matrix Platinum |
$4000 | 21760 | 176 | 2017 MHz | 2730 MHz | 1750 MHz | GB202 | 92200M | 32 GB, GDDR7, 512-bit |