After reviewing the okay-ish ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce RTX 5070 OC, we finally get to the ultimate boss of NVIDIA’s graphics cards in this generation – the GeForce RTX 5060. Not just any RTX 5060 as we’re going to review the ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC. If you have seen the news, this card has gotten its fair share of boos so you might have clicked on this review to further trash on this graphics card. But let’s see if the this card is actually what most people say about it.
| Model | PRIME-RTX5060-O8G |
| Graphic Engine | NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 5060 |
| AI Performance | 630 TOPs |
| Bus Standard | PCI Express 5.0 |
| OpenGL | OpenGL®4.6 |
| Video Memory | 8GB GDDR7 |
| Engine Clock | OC mode: 2595MHz Default mode: 2565MHz (Boost Clock) |
| CUDA Cores | 3840 |
| Memory Speed | 28 Gbps |
| Memory Interface | 128-bit |
| Resolution | Digital Max Resolution 7680 x 4320 |
| Interface | Yes x 1 (Native HDMI 2.1b) Yes x 3 (Native DisplayPort 2.1b) HDCP Support Yes (2.3) |
| Maximum Display Support | 4 |
| NVlink/ Crossfire Support | No |
| Accessories | 1 x Speedsetup Manual, 1 x Thank You Card |
| Software | ASUS GPU Tweak III & MuseTree & GeForce Game Ready Driver & Studio Driver |
| Dimensions | 268.3 x 120 x 50 mm 10.56 x 4.72 x 1.97 inches |
| Recommended PSU | 550W |
| Power Connectors | 1 x 8-pin |
| Slot | 2.5 Slot |
| AURA SYNC | None |
The ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC has only the 8GB version available in the market. If you want to have 16GB of VRAM, you have to buy the higher-tier RTX 5060 Ti.
For benchmarking, the rig used to test the ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC is listed below:
| CPU | AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D |
| Motherboard | ASUS TUF Gaming X670E-PLUS WIFI |
| RAM | 32GB DDR5 6400Mhz |
| Storage | Kingston NV3 PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD |
| PSU | ROG Thor 850W Platinum |
3DMark Steel Nomad is a cross-platform, non-raytraced benchmark for high-end gaming PCs and Macs. It uses the DirectX 12 API on Windows.
3DMark Port Royal is the world’s first real-time ray tracing benchmark for gamers. It shows you how well your PC handles ray tracing effects in real-time.
3DMark Time Spy is a DirectX 12 benchmark test for Windows 10 gaming PCs. Time Spy is one of the first DirectX 12 apps to be built the right way from the ground up to fully realize the performance gains that the new API offers.
The 3DMark Firestrike Ultra tests the computer’s capabilities when rendering at 4K resolution.
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme is designed for multi-GPU systems and future hardware generations. In addition to raising the rendering resolution, additional visual quality improvements increase the rendering load to ensure accurate performance measurements for truly extreme hardware setups.
FurMark 2 is the successor of the venerable FurMark 1 and is a lightweight and very intensive graphics card / GPU stress test. You can also get an idea on how your rig would perform using the OpenGL and Vulkan graphics benchmark. FurMark is available on Windows and Linux platforms.
Blender Benchmark collects and displays the results of hardware and software performance tests. This benchmark aims at an optimal comparison between system hardware and installations, and to assist developers to track performance during Blender development.
The ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC was tested in modern titles and graphically-demanding games using 1080p and 1440p resolution.
The ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC finds its place in 1080p, being capable of playing most modern games to above 60 FPS. It’s also worth noting that the tests above are mixed with some not relying on the help provided by DLSS. If it’s 1080p, the card is capable enough to play it in the highest possible settings without making you suffer sub 30 frames per second.
Similar in our review of the ASUS TUF Gaming RTX 5070 OC, the ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC is also capable of 4x frame generation. Frame generation is a technology that NVIDIA developed to make gaming experience more fluid by using prediction to produce frames. As opposed to the usual generation of frames in which the GPU labors and exhausts itself to generate multiple frames per second in real-time, the GPU now “guesses” the next possible frame. This results in a higher frame rate but then again, some consider this generated frame as “fake”. It’s not a perfect solution and when it does work, it looks incredible. Downside however is that it can introduce artifacts (things that shouldn’t be on your screen) and even input lag.
| Testing | Average FPS | Average FPS with 4x Frame Gen | Ave FPS vs Ave Fps w/ 4x Frame Gen Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p Ultra | 80 | 204 | +155.00% |
| 1440p Ultra w/ 4x DLSS Frame Gen | 50 | 142 | +184.00% |
Gameplay experience in Space Marine 2 greatly benefits from the additional frames. Turning the multi-frame generation on results in more than twice the number of frames compared to normal.
| Testing | Average FPS | Average FPS with 4x Frame Gen | Ave FPS vs Ave Fps w/ 4x Frame Gen Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1080p Ultra Nightmare | 103.18 | 264.55 | +156.40% |
| 1440p Ultra Nightmare w/ 4x DLSS Frame Gen | 18.88 | 32.95 | +74.52% |
In Doom: The Dark Ages, turning on multi frame generation on 1080p works as intended. It was able to get more than double the frames, making the experience as smooth as butter. The experience flips when it comes to 1440p. The game struggles to create more frames given the limited VRAM, leading to less than double the frames of an already low baseline.
Note that only RTX 5000 series cards can get the frame generation to 4x while the previous generation, the RTX 40 series can only go up to 2x. And while it may sound great on paper and in reality, a good number of games do not support this feature. Modern titles such as Doom: The Dark Ages and Space Marine 2 have and they do reap the benefits of multi-frame generation. But if they’re not your type of games, you are out of luck.
If you’re planning on a build without RGB, getting an ASUS Prime GPU might just be the right decision for you. Having no RGB, there’s no glow in this graphics card. Only it’s dark premium look and that’s it.
The ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC only takes up 2.5 slots, making it great for smaller mATX and ITX builds. It does not take up too much space and only has a width of about 12cm.
In terms of temperature, the ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC idles at around 40.5°C (104.9°F) when idle. During benchmarking, the card registered a high 70.6°C (159.08°F). Note that temperature is highly dependent on several factors such as the ambient temperature, cooling systems inside the PC, and airflow.
The chart above shows the power consumption of the whole card. At maximum, the card draws 168.5W. This number was acquired while running Furmark. When idle, the ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC plays around a measly 9.1W.
At the end of the day, the ASUS Prime GeForce RTX 5060 OC is still a decent graphics card. It has a good amount of features that’s not as bombastic compared to its more gaming-centric siblings but it’s good enough to do the job. Cooling is okay and the power draw is what to be expected. The card can also play pretty well, in most cases if you play on 1080p or lower resolution. However, the problem in this case does not lie with ASUS but with the chip that NVIDIA made, primarily because of the number one limitation: the 8GB VRAM.
The GeForce RTX 5060’s 8GB really does stifle its ability to play. While we do know that a 16GB variant or even a 12GB can easily be made available, the decision to use 8GB is quite odd. It has the chip and the capabilities to run things but the gas is really not there. 8GB is not enough when it comes to modern and even years-old titles. During testing, I’ve had to make compromises just to make some games run due to the lack of VRAM. EVEN IN 1080p. And that’s what makes this card a bit of a disappointment.
Fortunately, there are some cards that you can check out instead of this one. If you need more VRAM for more leeway or future-proofing for upcoming games, then maybe you can check out the ASUS GeForce RTX 5060 Ti or the also formidable ASUS Radeon RX 9060XT. Both are a bit more expensive but if you do want your graphics card to perform for more or less five more years, then best get either. On the other hand, if you’re fine with 1080p and are not a super hardcore gamer, maybe, just maybe, this 8GB version would be more than enough (hopefully.)
The ASUS Prime Gaming GeForce RTX 5060 OC is available in the Philippines and you can buy it via local and online stores. The card can be spotted having price tags of above PhP 23,580. The card comes with a whopping 3-year warranty.
For more information, head over to the ASUS Prime Gaming GeForce RTX 5060 OC product page.
