I currently have a Ryzen 5 5500, 16GB of DDR4 memory, and an RTX 5050. I'm planning to move to AM5 next summer, probably with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D and 32GB of DDR5, then upgrade the graphics card afterward. Since I'm a student, I need to keep the cost reasonable and can't justify something like an RTX 5080. I'm currently deciding between the Radeon RX 9070 XT and GeForce RTX 5060 Ti, which seem to be priced similarly. Should I choose one of those, or wait and see whether prices and new hardware improve before upgrading?
4 Answers
For gaming, the RX 9070 XT is the much stronger option. It offers substantially more performance than the RTX 5060 Ti for a similar price, so unless you specifically need Nvidia features such as CUDA, the Radeon card makes more sense.
I wouldn’t seriously consider the 5060 Ti at its current pricing. Even for general technical or CAD use, AMD cards can work perfectly well. The main reason to choose Nvidia here would be a particular application that absolutely requires CUDA or Nvidia-specific features.
Try not to overspend on the processor while compromising too much on the graphics card. A slightly cheaper AM5 CPU could free up money for the GPU, which has a bigger impact on gaming performance. The 9800X3D is excellent, but it may not be necessary depending on your resolution, refresh rate, and budget.
The 9070 XT should pair very well with your planned CPU upgrade and is the clear choice between these two cards. Just make sure the purchase still represents good value when you upgrade, since your build is several months away and newer hardware or price changes could alter the recommendation.
The upgrade will be next summer in the Northern Hemisphere, so I have plenty of time to save and see what gets released before deciding.
I’m planning to move to AM5 anyway because I’ll be passing my current AM4 system to my younger brother, so I’d rather build the new system on the newer platform instead of staying on AM4.