I'm trying to prioritize my next PC upgrades while staying within a limited budget. My current setup is an RTX 5060 8GB, Ryzen 7 8700F, 24-inch 1080p 144Hz monitor, and 650W power supply. Eventually, I'd like to move to an RX 9070 XT, Ryzen 7 9800X3D, and a 27-inch 1440p monitor.
The GPU is my main priority. Upgrading to the RX 9070 XT would likely mean replacing my 650W PSU with a quality 850W model. I'm unsure whether I should buy the 1440p monitor at the same time as the GPU, or put that money toward upgrading to the 9800X3D sooner and replace the monitor later.
I've already been using NVIDIA DLDSR to render games at 1440p on my 1080p display and I'm happy with the results. After switching to AMD, I could use VSR in a similar way while saving for a better monitor. I mainly play single-player games, with some multiplayer shooters occasionally.
Which order would provide the biggest overall improvement for the money: GPU and PSU, then CPU, then monitor—or GPU and PSU, then monitor, then CPU? Would a different upgrade path make more sense?
3 Answers
I’d go with GPU and PSU first, followed by the monitor, and leave the CPU for later. A 9070 XT is powerful enough to make a future 1440p display worthwhile, while the 8700F is unlikely to be a major limitation in most single-player games. The CPU upgrade would matter more for very high frame rates or CPU-heavy multiplayer games.
Upgrade the graphics card first. The RX 9070 XT should provide the biggest noticeable performance improvement, and your Ryzen 7 8700F should be capable of keeping up in most games. You can continue using your current display with VSR for now, then move to 1440p when the budget allows.
It may be worth considering the standard RX 9070 instead of the XT if the price difference is meaningful. The savings could help cover a monitor without requiring as large a budget increase. For the processor, a less expensive gaming-focused chip such as the 7600X3D could be enough, especially for mostly single-player games where the difference from a 9800X3D may be small.
I mostly play single-player games, with some multiplayer shooters such as Battlefield. The price gap between the RX 9070 and 9070 XT is fairly small where I live, so I’m leaning toward the XT for the extra performance. Do you think the 9800X3D is still the best long-term choice, or would a cheaper X3D processor make more sense?