I'm choosing between two gaming PCs priced in Canadian dollars. The first costs $3,200 and includes a Ryzen 7 9800X3D, B650E motherboard, RTX 5070 Ti, and 4TB of storage. The CPU, memory, and storage are used, while the rest of the parts are new. The second costs $3,900 and has a Ryzen 7 9850X3D, X870E motherboard, RTX 5080, and 2TB of storage, with all parts being new. Both systems include 32GB of DDR5-6000 CL30 memory and a 1,000W power supply. I currently play at 1080p but plan to move to 4K. My games are mostly World of Warcraft, Cities: Skylines, and eventually GTA 6. Is the more expensive system worth the additional $700, or would the 5070 Ti build offer better value and leave money for a 4K monitor?
4 Answers
Be cautious about the used SSD and other used components. Check the drive’s health, total writes, and remaining life before relying on it. A reputable builder is encouraging, but it doesn’t eliminate the risk of getting storage that has already seen heavy use.
The extra money gets you roughly a moderate performance increase while giving you half the storage. Since you already have another 1TB SSD, the storage difference may not matter much, but the used components and warranty situation should be checked carefully. If the used parts have no meaningful coverage, the all-new system has more peace of mind.
The 5070 Ti system looks like the better value. The 5080 build should be faster, especially at 4K, but the performance increase probably doesn’t justify paying another $700 for this use case. I’d put the savings toward a good 4K monitor instead.
The 9850X3D and X870E motherboard are premium upgrades, but they may not add much for you. The 9800X3D is already excellent for gaming, and the B650E board should be sufficient unless you specifically need extra USB connectivity, newer expansion features, or particular upgrade options. The 5080 would matter most for demanding 4K games, while WoW and Cities: Skylines are likely to benefit heavily from CPU performance. GTA 6’s eventual PC requirements are still uncertain, so I wouldn’t pay a large premium based only on that game.
I could undervolt the 9850X3D, and the system includes a 360mm cooler, but I agree that the motherboard may be unnecessary. My main question is whether the 5070 Ti will be comfortable at 4K, especially in future games.
That’s one of my main concerns. The RAM has a lifetime warranty, but the other used parts don’t have the same coverage. I could add my existing 1TB SSD, so I don’t strictly need the full 4TB.