I'm running a Ryzen 5 3500X with the stock Wraith cooler, an Asus RTX 3060 Ti, 16GB of DDR4-3200 memory, a Crucial MX500 SSD, a Biostar B450M motherboard, and a 550W 80+ Bronze power supply. My system is in a case with three intake fans and one exhaust fan, and I'm using Windows 11.
I play a mix of games, including League of Legends, CS2, Red Dead Redemption 2, Path of Exile 2, DayZ, and Resident Evil, on a 1080p 144Hz monitor. I'd like to maintain at least 144 FPS where possible with medium-to-high settings. In some games, it feels like the processor may be holding back the graphics card, but I'm not sure how serious the limitation is.
Would upgrading to a Ryzen 7 5700X for around $175 be worthwhile, or is there a better AM4 processor to consider? I'm also wondering whether my motherboard and 550W power supply are suitable for the upgrade.
3 Answers
If you can find one at a reasonable price, a Ryzen 7 5700X3D would generally be the better gaming upgrade on this platform. Its extra cache can substantially improve frame-time consistency and minimum FPS, particularly in simulation and open-world games. If it is unavailable or costs too much, the regular 5700X is still a solid option. Make sure your motherboard has a compatible BIOS before installing either chip.
The motherboard’s VRM should not automatically rule out a 5700X. It is a 65W processor, though the exact Biostar model and its airflow matter. Keep the BIOS updated, use a decent cooler if possible, and monitor CPU temperatures and clock speeds after the upgrade. Your 550W supply should be enough for a 3060 Ti and 5700X if it is a genuine, healthy unit from a reputable manufacturer; the exact model is worth checking before spending money.
A 5700X should not heavily stress the board because of its modest power draw, but a specific low-end B450M model could still have weaker VRM cooling. Checking reviews for the exact board would be safer than judging it by the chipset alone.
The 3500X can definitely become the limiting component in high-refresh 1080p gaming, especially in CPU-heavy games such as CS2, DayZ, and Path of Exile 2. A Ryzen 7 5700X would provide a noticeable improvement in minimum FPS and overall smoothness, although it won’t guarantee 144 FPS in every game. Check CPU and GPU usage while playing: if the GPU is well below full utilization while one or more CPU cores are heavily loaded, the processor is the bottleneck.
That makes sense. I’ll monitor CPU and GPU usage before deciding, but the 5700X sounds like a worthwhile upgrade.
The 5700X3D isn’t available in my country, and importing one would cost about as much as a 5800X3D, so the 5700X may be the more practical choice.