I'm currently using a Sapphire RX 6600 XT with a Ryzen 5 5600X, 32GB of DDR4 memory, a Super Flower 750W power supply, and an Aorus B450 motherboard. I can get a used RX 7800 XT for roughly the same price as a new RX 9060 XT 16GB, while a used RX 6900 XT is slightly cheaper than the new 9060 XT. Which option would be the best upgrade from my RX 6600 XT? I'm also wondering whether running one of these cards in my older B450 PCIe slot would cause any meaningful performance loss.
3 Answers
The RX 9060 XT 16GB is the safer new-card purchase because it gives you a warranty, newer architecture, improved ray tracing, and support for newer upscaling features. However, if the used RX 7800 XT is in good condition and costs about the same, I’d lean toward the 7800 XT for its higher standard gaming performance. The RX 6900 XT only makes sense if it’s substantially cheaper and you’re comfortable buying an older used card.
Your Ryzen 5 5600X will work with any of these GPUs, although it may limit frame rates in some CPU-heavy games, especially at 1080p. At 1440p, the GPU upgrade should be much more noticeable. The B450 board uses PCIe 3.0, but the RX 7800 XT and RX 6900 XT have a full x16 interface, so the impact should be very small. The RX 9060 XT uses a narrower PCIe interface, so PCIe 3.0 may cost it a little more performance in some situations, though it shouldn’t be a major issue in most games.
The RX 7800 XT is probably the best overall choice here. It’s generally around 18% faster than the RX 9060 XT 16GB in traditional rendering, while also offering better performance than the RX 6900 XT in some newer features and better efficiency than both older high-end cards. It also has official support for newer FSR 4 features. Your 750W power supply should be enough, assuming it’s a good-quality unit.
That was my concern too. Would using the card in the PCIe slot on my older B450 board noticeably reduce performance?