GPU Upgrade

Andrew Paterson · 18 Mar 2023 at 15:26

Hello

I am looking to upgrade my GPU, my current specs are

CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 3600
CPU Cooling - Artic 34 E sport
GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 1660 SUPER
Displays - LG 27GL650F 27 "" 1080p 144HZ
RAM - Corsair Vengeance (32Gb 2 x 16GB) 3600Mhz
Storage - WD Blue SN550 1Tb M.2 SSD / WD Blue SN570 1Tb M.2 SSD
Motherboard - MSI B550 Gaming Edge WIFI
PSU - Corsair RM750 (Gold)
Case - Kolink Observatory Lite Mesh RGB Mid Tower Case (Black)

Budget around 500 give or take.

My thoughts at first where 3060ti and a CPU upgrade, however if i can avoid a CPU upgrade then push it to a 3070, thoughts ?

tamzzy · 18 Mar 2023 at 15:31

3060ti/3070 is doable for a 3600
do you need something that's nvidia specific?
radeon cards are valid alternatives and usually cheaper for the same rasterisation performance (not ray tracing though...)

tamzzy · 18 Mar 2023 at 15:37

My basket at OcUK:

1 x Powercolor Radeon RX 6800 XT Red Dragon 16GB PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GX-19U-PC) = £599.99
1 x PowerColor Radeon RX 6700 XT Fighter 12GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GX-1A5-PC) = £374.99
1 x Gainward GeForce RTX 3060Ti Ghost LHR 8GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GX-20N-GW) = £419.98
1 x Gigabyte GeForce RTX 3070 Eagle OC V2 LHR 8GB GDDR6 PCI-Express Graphics Card (SKU: GX-1EA-GI) = £548.99

Total: £1,951.94 (includes delivery: £7.99)

the 6800xt is obviously the strongest card - approx 3080 level in nvidia terms (50-55% faster than the 6700xt/3060ti)
the 3070 is about 15-20% faster than the 6700xt/3060ti
the 6700xt is neck and neck with the 3060ti (<5% difference in performance on average)

Tetras · 18 Mar 2023 at 15:38

6800 non-XT would be my choice, though you'd have to push the budget up a little bit.

tamzzy · 18 Mar 2023 at 15:42

Tetras said:
6800 non-XT would be my choice, though you'd have to push the budget up a little bit.

oh yes, those are still available at other etailers...
only £50 cheaper than the 6800XT, so the cost-per-frame is similar
worth a thought...

Andrew Paterson · 18 Mar 2023 at 16:00

I've never really compared AMD to NVidia, I mean it doesn't have to be NVidia specific. I'm mainly playing MSFS or Call of duty

Andrew Paterson · 19 Mar 2023 at 14:08

Think i am swaying towards the 6800xt, can someone clarify that my system above will handle this? thanks

Tetras · 19 Mar 2023 at 14:18

Andrew Paterson said:
Think i am swaying towards the 6800xt, can someone clarify that my system above will handle this? thanks

In theory, yes. Motherboard is compatible & supports PCI-E 4.0 and AMD recommend a 750 PSU. The 6800 non-XT shaves about 50 watts on the top, if you want to play it safer.

tamzzy · 19 Mar 2023 at 14:43

The 6800xt will be bottlenecked by the 3600.
But with AM4, you have an upgrade path to the 5600/5800x3d.
Will be a nice boost in FPS when the time comes to upgrade the CPU.

tamzzy · 19 Mar 2023 at 14:45

Tetras said:
In theory, yes. Motherboard is compatible & supports PCI-E 4.0 and AMD recommend a 750 PSU. The 6800 non-XT shaves about 50 watts on the top, if you want to play it safer.

750w will be absolutely fine.
I'm running a 5800x3d and 3080 on a 750w psu

Andrew Paterson · 19 Mar 2023 at 14:59

I will be selling my 1660 super so I suppose I could upgrade the Processor whilst I'm at it to a 5600

tamzzy · 19 Mar 2023 at 16:46

Andrew Paterson said:
I will be selling my 1660 super so I suppose I could upgrade the Processor whilst I'm at it to a 5600

selling the 3600 and the 1660S will get you most of the way there for a 5800x3d
though however i am aware that you are already £100 over your £500 budget by getting the 6800xt...so the 5600 may make it easier on your wallet should you choose to upgrade
there really is no rush tbh
i would suggest you stick with the 3600 for now and only upgrade when you feel that the fps is lagging behind

Andrew Paterson · 19 Mar 2023 at 22:27

tamzzy said:
selling the 3600 and the 1660S will get you most of the way there for a 5800x3d
though however i am aware that you are already £100 over your £500 budget by getting the 6800xt...so the 5600 may make it easier on your wallet should you choose to upgrade
there really is no rush tbh
i would suggest you stick with the 3600 for now and only upgrade when you feel that the fps is lagging behind

Thanks for the advice, ill stick with the 3600 for now with a view to upgrading in the future.

Joxeon · 19 Mar 2023 at 23:12

I'd go used for Nvidia at £500 which would get you a 3080, paying the same for a new 3070 seems a bit of a kick in the teeth.

Andrew Paterson · 20 Mar 2023 at 11:11

Joxeon said:
I'd go used for Nvidia at £500 which would get you a 3080, paying the same for a new 3070 seems a bit of a kick in the teeth.

yeah I mean I have seen a few second hand deals for 3080 I'm just not sure I want to part with the amount of money and have no warrant etc.

The 6800xt looks to be the one, what are the drivers like for AMD any issues etc ?

Joxeon · 20 Mar 2023 at 11:28

Andrew Paterson said:
yeah I mean I have seen a few second hand deals for 3080 I'm just not sure I want to part with the amount of money and have no warrant etc.

The 6800xt looks to be the one, what are the drivers like for AMD any issues etc ?

Just look for an evga card which has transferable warranty or ask the seller to provide the purchase receipt.

I think AMDs drivers are fine now so if going new their cards will offer more performance for the money.

tamzzy · 20 Mar 2023 at 15:40

Joxeon said:
Just look for an evga card which has transferable warranty or ask the seller to provide the purchase receipt.

.

sorry they still do

Wing-Man · 21 Mar 2023 at 22:57

tamzzy said:
750w will be absolutely fine.
I'm running a 5800x3d and 3080 on a 750w psu

5800x and a 3080 on a 650w it pulls 400 at wall max load i can put on it

Andrew Paterson · 23 Mar 2023 at 10:05

I never realised how stressing it can be picking a GPU, i explored the second hand avenue and did see a few 3080s at around 500-550 however I think I'm decided I want new with the protection of warranty etc. Ive now found a 6800(non xt)

Sapphire AMD Radeon RX 6800 PULSE OC 16GB Graphics Card

for £560.

I just want some advice, im playing 1080p right now as my specs above suggest. Am I making the right choice here or should I go 6800xt for the extra 40 quid or is that overkill? I do plan to up my CPU to 5600 soon enough aswell.

Wing-Man · 23 Mar 2023 at 10:11

Andrew Paterson said:
6800xt for the extra 40 quid

get the XT
the 6800 is a good strong GPU, but if you can afford the extra £40 and still eat this week hahah get it. in the GPU world bigger is always better, it will last longer and preform better

BUT.... the 3080 is a lot load better if you buy used it costs the same

RTX 3080 vs RX 6800 Game Performance Benchmarks (Core i9-10900K vs Core i9-10900K)

RTX 3080 versus RX 6800 performance benchmarks comparison. Compare graphics card gaming performance in 86 games and in 1080p, 1440p, and 4K at Ultra, High, Medium, and Low quality settings. Compare specifications, price, power, temperature, and CPU bottlenecks.

www.gpucheck.com

BUT... the 3070ti is a the same but used costs £150 less

RTX 3070 Ti vs RX 6800 Game Performance Benchmarks (i7-8700K vs i7-8700K)

RTX 3070 Ti versus RX 6800 performance benchmarks comparison. Compare graphics card gaming performance in 86 games and in 1080p, 1440p, and 4K at Ultra, High, Medium, and Low quality settings. Compare specifications, price, power, temperature, and CPU bottlenecks.

www.gpucheck.com

none XT vs XT, is about 10 to 15% better

RX 6800 XT vs RX 6800 Game Performance Benchmarks (i7-8700K vs i7-8700K)

RX 6800 XT versus RX 6800 performance benchmarks comparison. Compare graphics card gaming performance in 92 games and in 1080p, 1440p, and 4K at Ultra, High, Medium, and Low quality settings. Compare specifications, price, power, temperature, and CPU bottlenecks.

www.gpucheck.com

GPU Upgrade

Sapphire AMD Radeon RX 6800 PULSE OC 16GB Graphics Card​

Sapphire AMD Radeon RX 6800 PULSE OC 16GB Graphics Card