Legacy AMD GPUs receive 30% performance boost in Linux with new drivers — latest kernel update finally drops obsolete Radeon graphics driver after more than two decades

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The latest Linux 6.1.9 kernel has delivered a massive performance boost — not for the best graphics cards, but for AMD’s long-forgotten Southern Islands and Sea Islands GPUs, launched over 13 years ago. According to Phoronix, these vintage cards powered by AMD’s GCN (Graphics Core Next) 1.0 and GCN 1.1 architectures now enjoy up to 30% higher performance.

It’s easy to forget about GCN 1.0 and 1.1—while not ancient, they feel like relics from another era of PC gaming. GCN 1.0 powered the Radeon HD 7000 series, while GCN 1.1 appeared in the mostly OEM Radeon HD 8000 series, save for a handful of exceptions. For many, these cards defined a generation of unforgettable gaming moments.

The reason behind this performance leap lies in a major graphics driver upgrade. For more than two decades, Linux relied on the aging Radeon DRM driver for AMD’s GCN 1.0 and GCN 1.1 graphics cards, while newer GPUs (GCN 1.2 and beyond) benefited from the advanced AMDGPU driver. Although GCN 1.0 and GCN 1.1 owners could technically switch to AMDGPU, they never enjoyed the same features or performance as later models. Thanks to contributions from Timur Kristóf and Valve’s Linux Open-Source Graphics Driver Group, GCN 1.0 and GCN 1.1 cards can now fully harness the power of the AMDGPU driver.

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Phoronix tested the Linux 6.19 kernel upgrade using a powerful Ryzen 9 9950X3D, an ASRock X870E Taichi motherboard, 32GB of DDR5-6000 memory, and the aging AMD Radeon HD 7950. The Linux media outlet’s benchmarks revealed up to a 30% performance boost, with especially impressive gains in older OpenGL titles.