I'm planning a few upgrades to make my PC capable of running games with ray tracing, especially DOOM: The Dark Ages. My current system has a Ryzen 5 3600, 16 GB of DDR4-3200 RAM, a 224 GB ADATA SU650 SSD, a GTX 1660 SUPER 6 GB, and a 600W 80+ Gold power supply. I'm considering replacing the graphics card with a Dell RTX 3060 Ti 8 GB and upgrading the power supply to a Corsair RM750x 750W 80+ Gold unit. I couldn't identify my case, but a compatibility check didn't show any obvious problems. Would this setup be enough to play DOOM: The Dark Ages at very low settings with ray tracing, or should I consider different upgrades?
4 Answers
Check real gameplay benchmarks for the exact RTX 3060 Ti and settings you want. Look for tests that specify resolution, ray tracing, and upscaling settings, since those can make a much bigger difference than the graphics card name alone. Also verify the card’s length and thickness against your case before buying.
The system appears to be slightly above the game’s minimum requirements, but don’t expect high ray-traced settings. The Ryzen 5 3600 should work for now, although a future CPU upgrade could help with frame-time consistency once the GPU is replaced.
The RTX 3060 Ti should be a substantial upgrade over the GTX 1660 SUPER and is around the minimum recommended level for a demanding game like DOOM: The Dark Ages. It may run at low settings, but 8 GB of VRAM could become a limitation, especially with ray tracing. If the price difference is reasonable, a model with more VRAM or a stronger RTX card would give you more headroom.
No, running out of VRAM won’t damage the card. It can cause stuttering, texture problems, or lower performance, but it’s a performance limitation rather than a hardware danger.
The planned GPU upgrade makes sense, but the 750W power supply probably isn’t necessary for a 3060 Ti and Ryzen 5 3600. Your current 600W unit should be enough if it’s still healthy and from a reliable design. Replacing it is reasonable if it’s old or questionable, but additional storage or more memory may improve the overall experience more.
I was thinking about replacing the power supply because it’s fairly old and I’d rather avoid problems later. I may also need more storage since 224 GB will fill up quickly.
Could having only 8 GB of VRAM actually damage the graphics card?