GeForce RTX 2070 Super Max-Q & RTX 2080 Super Max-Q Performance Review
Before we start with the benchmarks and the performance evaluation, we want to talk about the current testing situation. Due to the Corona pandemic, the production and the shipment of hardware from Asia was heavily delayed, so we only received two notebooks with 10th Gen Intel CPUs and Nvidia Super GPUs for in-depth reviews ahead of the official launch. More laptops have already been announced or are in shipment right now, so we will release multiple reviews over the next couple of weeks. In addition to the pure performance evaluation, we will also cover other aspects like the temperature development, the fan noise, and power consumption in these review. The following article is supposed to give you an idea of the performance you can expect from the GeForce RTX 2070 Super Max-Q and GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q.
Test Systems & Specifications
Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB
We use a brand-new Aero 17 HDR XB from Gigabyte for our performance analysis. The designation already indicates that the 17-inch gaming notebook is equipped with an HDR capable display. The latter – without giving too much away at this point – convinces with 3840 x 2160 pixels and wide color gamut. The operating system (Windows 10 Pro 64-bit) is installed on a 512 GB NVMe-SSD from Samsung. You also get 2x 8 GB DDR4-3200 RAM in a dual-channel configuration. Gigabyte selected the powerful Core i7-10875H processor; the 8-core CPU runs at 2.3-5.1 GHz under load. Thanks to Hyperthreading, the 14nm chip (45W TDP) supports up to 16 threads simultaneously.
| Laptop | Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Core i7-10875H |
| Memory | 2 x 8 GB DDR4-3200 |
| Storage | 512 GB NVMe-SSD |
| GPU | Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 Super Max-Q |
| Shader Units | 2560 |
| Core clock Base | 930 MHz |
| Core clock Turbo | 1155 MHz |
| VRAM | 8 GB GDDR6 |
| Memory interface | 256-bit |
| Memory clock | 1375 MHz |
| Driver | ForceWare 445.87 |
The most interesting components for gamers is obviously the tuned graphics card. While the old GeForce RTX 2070 Max-Q only got 2304 shader units, the Super version now gets 2560 EUs, which is a gain of 11%. The base clock was increased from 885 MHz to 930 MHz; the Boost clock on the other hand is a bit lower with 1155 MHz vs. 1185 MHz. However, the Turbo is much more aggressive in the real-world as long as the cooling solution can keep up. We managed to get a clock of up to 1665 MHz from the Aero 17 during the GPU-Z render test. Attention: The clocks can vary between notebooks depending on the individual TDP configuration.
The memory has not been changed at a first glance. 8 GB GDDR6-VRAM are still attached via 256-bit interface. However, we can see some differences when it comes to the memory clock, which was reduced from 12,000 to 11,000 MHz. This reduces the memory bandwidth from 384 to 352 GB/s (probably to reduce the power consumption; the low-power GDDR6 is supposed to be particularly power efficient). In return, the number of TMUs and the texture fill rate were increased. We use the GPU driver ForceWare 445.87, which was provided by Nvidia.
Acer Predator Triton 500
The second test system is the Acer Predator Triton 500. We reviewed its predecessor – similar to the Aero 17 – last year (see review). The 15-inch laptop is also equipped with 2x 8GB DDR4-3200 RAM and a 512 GB NVMe-SSD (windows 10 Pro 64-bit), but the CPU only has 6 instead of 8 cores. Intel's Core i7-10750H, which manages between 2.6-5.0 GHz under load), replaces the previous 6-core favorite Core i7-9750H.
| Laptop | Acer Predator Triton 500 |
|---|---|
| Processor | Intel Core i7-10750H |
| Memory | 2 x 8 GB DDR4-3200 |
| Storage | 512 GB NVMe-SSD |
| GPU | Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q |
| Shader Units | 3072 |
| Core clock Base | 815 MHz |
| Core clock Turbo | 1160 MHz |
| VRAM | 8 GB GDDR6 |
| Memory interface | 256-bit |
| Memory clock | 1353 MHz |
| Driver | ForceWare 445.87 |
The graphics calculations are handled by the GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q. Compared to the old RTX 2080 Max-Q, the number of shaders is only slightly increased from 2944 to 3072 (+4%), and the clocks are hardly different, either. The minimum base clock – the values can once again vary depending on the TDP configuration – is even identical at 735 MHz (Boost: 1080 MHz).
Acer preloads the tool PredatorSense with two overclocking profiles to increase the performance even further. While Fast increases the base clock to 815 MHz (Boost: 1160 MHz), you get 855 MHz (Boost: 1200 MHz) with the preset Extreme. Our benchmarks were performed with the Fast preset, which results in a maximum clock of 1815 MHz in the GPU-Z render test. The optimized GDDR6-VRAM still has a size of 8 GB attached via 256-bit interface. The memory clock was reduced from 12,000 to 11,000 MHz.
Synthetic Benchmarks
We are comparing both the Aero 17 HDR XB as well as the Acer Predator Triton 500 with other Turing equipped laptops and at least 16 GB dual-channel RAM in the synthetic benchmarks. In addition to the MSI GE75 9SG (GeForce RTX 2080) we use the Asus ROG GX701GXR (GeForce RTX 2080 Max-Q), the MSI GE65 9SF (GeForce RTX 2070), the Gigabyte Aero 17 XA (GeForce RTX 2070 Max-Q), and the Asus ZenBook Pro Duo (GeForce RTX 2060) for our 3DMark comparison tables.
DirectX 11
As expected, the Super versions are sitting right between the old Max-Q chips and their regular counterparts in most benchmarks. While results of the RTX 2070 Super Max-Q are closer towards the standard edition of the RTX 2070, however, the RTX 2080 Super Max-Q is closer to the old RTX 2080 Max-Q. The 3DMark Fire Strike test shows the Aero 17 HDR XB roughly on par with the MSI GE65 9SF. The 2019 Aero 17 XA on the other hand is about 20% slower. If you compare the Acer predator Triton 500 and the Asus ROG GX701GXR, the new GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q is only about 7% faster than its predecessor.
DirectX 12
The Time Spy test based on DirectX 12 shows a slightly bigger advantage for the standard RTX 2070 over the RTX 2070 Super Max-Q. +7% is no miracle considering the higher power consumption though. The old RTX 2070 Max-Q falls behind by more than 10%. The performance advantage of the RTX 2080 Super Max-Q over the RTX 2080 Max-Q is only ~4% in the case of the Predator Triton 500.
Raytracing
The result of the Raytracing benchmark Port Royal is a bit surprising. The new RTX 2070 Super Max-Q is about 3% faster than the RTX 2070 (+22% vs. RTX 2070 Max-Q). The additional price of the RTX 2080 Super Max-Q is hardly worth it at about 14% more performance.
Gaming Benchmarks
The selection of suitable gaming comparison devices is much more complicated, because for modern games, we often do not have results for the Max-Q chips and the performance in older titles is not always comparable due to different drivers and patch versions. In the end, we decided to use three long-term loaners from MSI (GT76 9SG, GP65 9SF & GE65 9SE), which are equipped with 6-core or 8-core CPUs as well as a standard RTX 2080, 2070 or 2060, respectively. The following 12 games (all tested in FHD, QHD, and UHD) are from 2019 and 2020.
Full-HD (1920 x 1080)
Neither the GeForce RTX 2070 Super Max-Q, nor the RTX 2080 Super Max-Q, have problems with the classic 1080p resolution even in demanding titles. The fps number rarely drops below 60 fps even when you use Ultra settings. Some titles even run at more than 100 fps (like Call of Duty Modern Warfare, for example).
| Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2019 - 1920x1080 Maximum Settings AA:T2X Filmic SM | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Doom Eternal - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| Hunt Showdown - 1920x1080 High Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Escape from Tarkov - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 - 1920x1080 Maximum Settings | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order - 1920x1080 Epic Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Need for Speed Heat - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| GRID 2019 - 1920x1080 Ultra High Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Ghost Recon Breakpoint - 1920x1080 Ultra Preset AA:T | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Borderlands 3 - 1920x1080 Badass Overall Quality (DX11) | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Control - 1920x1080 High Quality Preset (DX11) | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| F1 2019 - 1920x1080 Ultra High Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
QHD (2560 x1440)
The performance of the RTX 2070 Super Max-Q and RTX 2080 Super Max-Q is usually sufficient for QHD panels, only very demanding and/or poorly optimized games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Borderlands 3, and Control can be a bit too challenging, at least for the 2070 GPU.
| Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2019 - 2560x1440 Maximum Settings AA:T2X Filmic SM | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Doom Eternal - 2560x1440 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Hunt Showdown - 2560x1440 High Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Escape from Tarkov - 2560x1440 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 - 2560x1440 Maximum Settings | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order - 2560x1440 Epic Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| Need for Speed Heat - 2560x1440 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| GRID 2019 - 2560x1440 Ultra High Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Ghost Recon Breakpoint - 2560x1440 Ultra Preset AA:T | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Borderlands 3 - 2560x1440 Badass Overall Quality (DX11) | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Control - 2560x1440 High Quality Preset (DX11) | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| F1 2019 - 2560x1440 Ultra High Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
UHD (3840 x 2160)
4K enthusiasts are better off with a standard GeForce RTX 2080. A combination of 3840 x 2160 pixels and maximum details are often a bit too challenging for the two Super GPUs. 60 fps+, which is often the target for many gamers, are more of an exception than the rule.
| Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2019 - 3840x2160 Maximum Settings AA:T2X Filmic SM | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Doom Eternal - 3840x2160 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Hunt Showdown - 3840x2160 High Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Escape from Tarkov - 3840x2160 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Red Dead Redemption 2 - 3840x2160 Maximum Settings | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order - 3840x2160 Epic Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| Need for Speed Heat - 3840x2160 Ultra Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| GRID 2019 - 3840x2160 Ultra High Preset | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Ghost Recon Breakpoint - 3840x2160 Ultra Preset AA:T | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Borderlands 3 - 3840x2160 Badass Overall Quality (DX11) | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| Control - 3840x2160 High Quality Preset (DX11) | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
| F1 2019 - 3840x2160 Ultra High Preset AA:T AF:16x | |
| MSI GT76 Titan DT 9SG | |
| Acer Predator Triton 500 PT515-52-70N3 | |
| Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB | |
| MSI GP65 Leopard 9SF | |
| MSI GE65 Raider 9SE | |
Verdict
As we have already expected, the performance GeForce RTX 2070 Super Max-Q is almost on par with the standard RTX 2070 (which has its own Super successor) – with a reduced power consumption. The Turing GPU turns out to be the ideal companion for gamers that prefer a slim notebook with 1080p or QHD panels. A full review of the Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XB including temperature and noise analyses etc. should – if all goes as planned – be ready soon. This is also the case for the Acer Predator Triton 500, but the GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q leaves mixed impressions, because the performance hardly differs from the old RTX 2080 Max-Q.
Note: A similar performance overview is also planned for the GeForce RTX 2070 Super and the GeForce RTX 2080 Super as soon as the corresponding devices arrive.
