Update GPU or CPU on gaming PC??

gupott · 7 Jun 2025 at 12:31

I am wondering whether to update either the GPU or the CPU on my main PC. I use my desktop mainly for games, internet use, office work, emails etc. I maintain a dual boot with windows 11 (on the 1tb samsung), and ubuntu (on the 500gb Samsung). Over time I have gradually begun to use linux over windows more and more.

Initially I was wondering about updating the GPU, and as I use linux more often, the 9700 xt might be an option as it has 16gb ram, and I think its an issue with the 3080 (only 10gb) when gaming at 4k. I know the AMD cards are generally better on linux, and I have had a few Wayland issues with the Nvidia. Once I started thinking about it I begun thinking about whether I should upgrade CPU first.

So, should I replace the GPU first, or the CPU (and mobo etc)? Or wait for better kit down the line?

Keep - Retain the case, PSU, monitor, peripherals etc.

Replace/buy - CPU, Mobo, Ram, HDD x1, (I think I can buy an update for the noctua fan) or GPU?

Existing kit

MONITOR - Samsung Odyssey Neo G85NB 32" 4K
CPU - Intel Core i9-9900K Desktop Processor 8 Cores up to 5.0GHz Unlocked LGA1151 300 Series 95W (BX806849900K)
Mobo - Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Ultra Intel Z390 (Socket 1151) DDR4 ATX Motherboard MB-577-GI
GPU - MSI GeForce RTX 3080 10GB GAMING Z TRIO LHR Ampere Graphics Card
RAM - Patriot Viper Steel 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 PC4-28800C18 3600MHz Dual Channel Kit (PVS432G360C8K)
CASE - be quiet! Silent Base 601 Midi-Tower Case - Black Window CA-12H-BQ
PSU - PSU - 1000W Corsair RMx Series RM1000x
HDD 1 - Samsung 970 PRO Polaris 1TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 3.0 x4 NVMe Solid State Drive HD-23S-SA
HDD 2 - Samsung 970 EVO Plus 500 GB PCIe
Cooling - Noctua NH-U12A High Performance CPU Cooler

I have not nailed down the budget, but around £1250+ possible.

Thanks for reading.

gupott · 7 Jun 2025 at 13:04

Thanks for the reply.

Tetras said:
When are you having noticeable performance problems?

Recently, probably cyberpunk, elden ring, and the latest Horizon game.

gupott · 7 Jun 2025 at 16:50

mickyflinn said:
R y using dlss , have you turned down quality settings to see if it's a vram issue

Download MSI Afterburner and check vram usage , etc

I would on windows, but not on Linux (I don't think...).

gupott · 8 Jun 2025 at 15:02

Thank you @Tetras , this is an interesting video. I have been looking at GPUs, then I made the mistake of looking at CPUs, and its very easy to start putting together a Ryzen 9 9950X3D uber system! Perhaps I should wait, but its hard once you start looking!

gupott · 9 Jun 2025 at 10:45

I think I need to probably choose between the GPU, and then upgrading the CPU/RAM/Mobo, as its more difficult to do all at once e.g. costly. So the choice could be i9-9900K/32gb DDR4 (e.g. current) + 9070 XT (new) or Ryzen 7 9800x3d/DDR 5 6000+/new mobo (new) + 3080 (current). Or, save up a bit more and do the lot in six months or so...

dfour said:
As its mainly gaming then I would ignore the 9950x3d in favour of the 9800x3d.

Thanks.

Craig_d1 said:
don't know what office work you do but we just upgraded some of our older pc's in the office on i7 8th gen to 14700kf's, and made a massive difference for our work (a lot of spreadsheet work). depending on your work I'd def upgrade the cpu at the same time if you can. And I use an x3d at home and wfh is fine, so a mpodern cpu works wonders

Nothing thats particularly demanding at work. Microsoft suite + Teams etc, all done in the browswer.

gupott · 13 Jun 2025 at 15:24

So, if I was to get soon, how do the following look? Initially paired with the 3080. I think the mother board has two nvme slots, is that enough? I might also need to get a hard drive, maybe something like the Samsung 990 Pro 2TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 4.0 x4 NVMe. I need to read around a bit more to make there are no better options. I will reuse current case and PSU. I also need to check about the cooler situation, I have a Noctua NH-U12A, and I have been able to buy adapters previously, so I hope to reuse too.

1 X AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - Retail - £428.99
SKU: PRO-AMD-03517

1 X G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB XMP 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 PC5-57600C34 7200MHz Dual Channel Kit - Bl - £128.99
SKU: MEM-GSK-01365

1 X Gigabyte X870 GAMING X WIFI7 (Socket AM5) DDR5 ATX Motherboard - £249.98
SKU: MOT-GIG-03321

Grand Total: £815.95

gupott · 13 Jun 2025 at 16:54

Tetras said:
It has 3x M.2 slots, but 2 of them share bandwidth. If you don't care about USB4, there are usually less compromises with B850 boards.

I was thinking for longevity really, and my current board has been a Gigabyte which has been solid for me. Perhaps I should look around a bit more.

Tetras said:
That cooler is fine, subject to the fan curve needing tweaking.

Thanks! I guess I need to find the AMD mounting kit it came with.

Tetras said:
Due to peculiarities of the memory controller, 7200 isn't an optimal speed for these CPUs and you may have difficulty getting it running. I'd suggest an EXPO kit instead of Intel XMP, @ 6000 C30 (or close to it).

Thanks thats helpful.

I was also looking at Samsung 990 Pro 1TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 4.0 x4 NVMe Solid State Drive with Heatsink @ £129.95 vs Samsung 9100 Pro 2TB M.2 2280 PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe Solid State Drive with Heatsink @ £242.99. I just realised I looked at the Samsung as my current drives are Samsung so it shows I just stick with what I know. Again, perhaps I should look at some other makes!

Thanks for the help @Tetras

gupott · 14 Jun 2025 at 12:18

I have updated a bit, I am still playing around. I have a 870e board in there currently but I am about to do a little more reading. I am trying to avoid RGB if possible. I will be reusing my be quiet! Silent Base 601 case, and Corsair RMx Series RM1000x PSU. And the 3080 of course. Although I am half eyeing up GPUs too...

How does it look?

My basket at OcUK:

1 x AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D Eight Core 5.20GHz (Socket AM5) Processor - Retail (SKU: PRO-AMD-03517) = £428.99
1 x Gigabyte X870E Aorus Elite WIFI7 (Socket AM5) DDR5 ATX Motherboard (SKU: MOT-GIG-03318) = £279.99
1 x Corsair Vengeance EXPO/XMP 48GB (2X24GB) DDR5 PC5-48000C30 6000MHz Dual Channel Kit (SKU: MEM-CRS-03745) = £146.99
1 x Crucial T500 2TB NVMe PCIe Gen4 M.2 Solid State Drive (SKU: STO-CRU-01090) = £128.99

Total: £992.95 (includes delivery: £7.99)

gupott · 14 Jun 2025 at 15:22

I wonder if I should spend a little more, just reading about the ASRock X870E Taichi and the MSI MPG X870E CARBON WIFI. This is sort of typical for me, I start a bit lower down the food chain. Many hours later, I have confused myself and I am looking at more expensive options!

gupott · 15 Jun 2025 at 11:45

Thanks @Tetras that is really helpful explanation!