AMD FSR 4 Activation on RDNA 3 Graphics Cards in Clair Obscur Achieves 100+ FPS at 1440p Ultra Settings

Recent reports indicate that AMD’s RDNA 3 GPUs have shown impressive capabilities with FSR 4 technology, although frame rates may be marginally lower in comparison to previous upscaling technologies.

User Experience with FSR 4 on AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT

While FSR 4 is officially restricted to the RDNA 4 GPUs, known as the Radeon RX 9000 series, innovative workarounds have enabled some RDNA 3 GPUs to leverage this advanced feature as well. This is primarily due to the lack of dedicated FP8 AI hardware in RDNA, which is necessary for FSR 4’s optimal functionality. Consequently, only RDNA 4 GPUs are typically recognized as compatible with FSR 4. Interestingly, on Linux systems, users have found that enabling FSR 4 on RDNA 3 GPUs through Mesa allows for FP8 emulation via FP16 processing.

Despite the misconceptions surrounding the capabilities of RDNA 3 GPUs, a recent testing scenario conducted by @uzzi38 using the Radeon RX 7800 XT has proven otherwise. The findings revealed that RDNA 3 GPUs can effectively handle FSR 4, yielding performance just above native levels.

OptiScaler settings interface with AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT, displaying FSR 4.0.0 and a resolution of 3840x2160.

OptiScaler v0.7.7-pre12 interface with text advising to select FSR, DLSS, or XeSS as upscalers from game options.

The testing involved the game ‘Clair Obscur’ at a 1440p resolution and compared various upscaling technologies, including FSR 3.1, FSR 4, and XeSS, using the Ultra Quality preset. The Opticaler tool, known for its support of upscaling technologies, indicated that the RX 7800 XT achieved approximately 95 FPS without any upscaling. When FSR 4 was implemented, performance rose to over 100 FPS. In contrast, FSR 3.1 and XeSS produced significantly higher frame rates, ranging from 120 to 130 FPS. The difference is likely due to RDNA 3’s need to emulate FP8 capabilities using FP16, which can lower performance slightly.

OptiScaler v0.7.7-pre12 interface with AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT settings on screen.

OptiScaler v0.7.7-pre12 settings screen with AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT, FSR 3.1.4, and Apply Limit at 0 FPS Limit.

Regardless, FSR 4 presents a compelling option, as both its Quality and Balanced presets offer enhanced visual fidelity and stability compared to the Ultra Quality preset of FSR 3.1. However, to fully ascertain the benefits of FSR 4 for RDNA 3, further testing across multiple games is necessary. While the absence of official support introduces potential challenges, as evidenced by @uzzi38’s findings and insights from XDA Developers, RDNA 3 GPUs utilizing FSR 4 are capable of demonstrating worthwhile enhancements in gaming performance.

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