Did AMD remove driver support for the RX 6600?
Did AMD remove driver support for the RX 6600?
Hello. I’m searching for a budget-friendly GPU replacement, not an upgrade. Right now I’m on a tight budget and only have a few options in my country. The RTX 3050 6GB model is the only one available, but the 8GB version isn’t being sold anywhere. The RX 6600 seems to be the better fit for what I need. I also learned that AMD might stop supporting the RX 6600, so I’m unsure about its current driver availability for new games. I don’t play many new releases right now, but I do enjoy trying out something fresh from time to time. In this case, which one would you suggest? I don’t want a used model and can’t afford better options than these two, as the price difference is too high. My main concern is performance for upcoming games.
In my country
I'm not sure yet about the situation of the 6600.
Is it still getting drivers for new games? I don't know if they're still providing support.
The latest driver available is: Adrenalin 25.12.1 (WHQL Recommended)
I’m looking for a replacement GPU, not an upgrade, and I’m short on money right now, so I’m just searching for the cheapest option I can find.
You might want to keep your current specs in mind when choosing:
CPU:
CPU cooler:
Motherboard:
RAM:
SSD/HDD:
GPU:
PSU:
Chassis:
OS:
Monitor:
Add the age of the PSU along with its make and model.
Also, note the BIOS version for your motherboard at this time.
I’m mainly concerned about how this might impact future games.
In the end, driver support will likely be phased out in favor of newer technology, so you might want to consider a RX 9060 or an RTX 5060 if you can afford it and your PSU is up to standard.
I wouldn't recommend going for the 6000 series and am uncertain about supporting their GPU side, given that driver support seems doubtful at best since RDNA 1 is being phased out. I'd consider Intel's specifications instead.
I continue to notice current drivers for the RX 6600. Just mentioning that.
I have a build from 2019 (i5 9400f, GTX 1660, 16GB RAM). However, the entire system failed due to a short circuit. Only the RAM and an old HDD from 2010 survived, which I installed next to a SSD. Now I’m putting together a very basic PC because I don’t have much money for a full build.
My current setup looks like this:
CPU: Ryzen 5 5500 with the standard cooler
Motherboard: MSI A520M-A Pro
RAM: 2x8GB HyperX Fury (one at 2400MHz, the other at 2666MHz)
Storage: The PC is still running on an old HDD
GPU: To be decided
Power Supply: MSI Mag A650BN 650W
Case: Generic model
Operating System: Windows 10
Monitor: Office monitor with a 75Hz screen
Everything is brand new except the RAM and the old HDD. I live in Brazil.
My other build is:
CPU: Ryzen 5 5500 with the stock cooler
Motherboard: MSI A520M-A Pro
RAM: 2x8GB HyperX Fury (2400MHz and 2666MHz)
Storage: Still using an old HDD
GPU: To be decided
Power Supply: MSI Mag A650BN 650W
Case: Generic
OS: Windows 10
Monitor: Office monitor with a 75Hz screen
I’m not very familiar with Intel, so I’ll need to research what’s available in Brazil. What concerns me is how long the 6000 series will be supported before they decide to stop releasing it, leading to compatibility and stability problems.
Drivers being removed won't impact the card in that manner; the most likely outcome is that a new game might struggle with performance under certain conditions and remain unresolved. Compatibility should stay the same since AMD isn't eliminating features, and games won't adopt new ones for a while. The 6600 supports ray tracing and some frame generation in FSRC3, ensuring any new game can still function. Stability is expected to remain unchanged—new drivers are the ones that can cause issues, not the absence of them.
The RTX 3050 6GB is expected to perform worse than the GTX 1660 you owned earlier, even when using DLSS. The 1660 Super would likely be about 40-45% quicker before applying FSR or XeSS upscaling. Switching to an RX 6600 XT should work well and AMD will continue supporting these cards for years, though the driver support path will differ slightly. The RX 6600 XT is projected to be roughly 45-50% faster than the GTX 1660 Super.
from what I understand, maintenance mode people often claim they backpedaled but I wouldn't be confident about it. flip flops are quite problematic.
the best choice for Intel would likely be a750 or a770, as they support PCI 3 generation.
you can opt for b570 and b580, though you'll face performance drops because of the x8 slot bandwidth.
intel graphics work well if you enable SAMDE, having used three already. they provide comparable or better performance than the a6600 at a similar price even in Brazil.
Intel gpu's may be ok but there's a feature(?) that even some older intel chips don't have that limits the gaming performance of them. You're in the AMD camp for cpu so I don't know if there's a workaround or something for them. Be sure to get it sorted if you go with an Intel gpu.
EDIT: The r5 may have the needed bits to run Intel gpu's well. My apologies.
Older Intel chips 9th gen require motherboard support to function properly.
Resizable BAR is available on most AMD boards, provided the feature is enabled. Performance remains comparable to the RX 6600, according to my tests.
The Ryzen 5500 only supports version 3.0, which matches its board's capabilities, so I suggest using an A750 or A770 instead.