I'm trying to upgrade the gaming PCs my partner and I use. We mostly play at 1080p, including Stardew Valley, Hogwarts Legacy, Horizon, the Tomb Raider games, and Red Dead Redemption 2. We may move to 1440p eventually, but neither of us has much gaming time right now because we have a toddler, so I'm trying to avoid spending more than necessary.
My current PC has a B550 Tomahawk, Ryzen 5 5600X, EVGA RTX 3070 Ti, Dark Rock Pro 4, and 16GB of RAM. My partner's system has a B350 Tomahawk, Ryzen 5 1600, GTX 1070, Dark Rock Pro 4, and 16GB of RAM.
One option is to give my current system to my partner and build a completely new PC, but current component prices make that unappealing. I'm considering installing a 5600X3D or similar X3D processor in my system, moving the 5600X to hers, and possibly replacing her motherboard. I'll also be replacing her oversized case. What would be the most sensible upgrade path, especially for the graphics cards?
4 Answers
If you’re open to spending more, AM5 gives you a longer upgrade path, and Micro Center bundles can sometimes make the motherboard, CPU, and DDR5 cost more reasonable. But for these games at 1080p, switching platforms isn’t required. An AM4 X3D upgrade plus a graphics-card replacement should provide strong results while reusing most of what you already own.
The cheapest sensible route is to update both BIOSes, install an AM4 X3D chip such as the 5600X3D or 5800X3D in your system, and move the 5600X into hers. The 5600X would be a substantial upgrade over the first-generation Ryzen 5 1600, and the B350 board may support it after a BIOS update. Verify the exact CPU support list before buying. Put most of the remaining budget toward a newer GPU, since the GTX 1070 is the bigger limitation in her PC.
Before choosing a GPU, check the power supplies, available connectors, case clearance, and your actual budget. A modern midrange card would be a much larger improvement for the GTX 1070 system, while the RTX 3070 Ti is still capable at 1080p and reasonable at 1440p. You may not need to replace both cards immediately. Also compare the cost of extra RAM and storage before committing, since those parts can be surprisingly expensive right now.
There’s no need to replace her motherboard automatically. If the manufacturer provides a BIOS that supports the 5600X, update it before swapping processors. It would also be worth checking whether both systems are running dual-channel memory and considering 32GB if the current 16GB kits are limiting newer games.
I checked the board’s CPU support information, and a BIOS update should allow the B350 board to run the 5600X. That makes the platform swap much more appealing.