I'm putting together a budget living room gaming PC using some parts I already have and a few secondhand purchases. I'm planning to pick up a Ryzen 5 5600X3D and motherboard bundle, and I already have an RTX 3070 from my previous system. The computer will be connected to a 4K 60Hz TV, possibly upgraded to 120Hz later, and I play everything from older games and indies to newer AAA titles. A local store has the Radeon RX 9070 GRE on sale for around $480, with the 16GB RX 9060 XT available for roughly the same price. Would either card be a worthwhile upgrade over the RTX 3070 I already own, or should I simply reuse the 3070?
4 Answers
I’d reuse the RTX 3070 unless you’re unhappy with its performance right now. Buying a 9070 GRE for $480 is paying a substantial amount for a moderate upgrade, and you could put that money toward a stronger future card instead. The GRE makes more sense if you can sell the 3070 and reduce the effective price, or if current games are already running into VRAM limits at 4K.
The 3070 is still perfectly usable, especially if you use DLSS and avoid demanding ray tracing settings. However, 4K gaming is where its 8GB VRAM starts to hurt. If you want a clear upgrade, I’d look at the RX 9070 GRE or preferably a standard RX 9070 if selling the 3070 helps cover the cost. The 16GB RX 9060 XT is newer, but its raw performance increase over the 3070 isn’t large enough to justify replacing a card you already own.
For a 4K living room setup, I’d lean toward the RX 9070 GRE. It’s roughly 40% faster than the RTX 3070 and its 12GB of VRAM gives it more breathing room than the 3070’s 8GB, which can become a limitation in newer games at 4K. It’s also a newer card and should receive driver support for longer. If you can find an open-box model around $400, that makes the upgrade more compelling.
The 9070 GRE should be noticeably ahead of the 9060 XT, with considerably more compute capability, so I wouldn’t choose the 9060 XT as an upgrade from a 3070. For a 1080p TV setup, keep the 3070. For 4K, the GRE’s extra performance and VRAM are useful, but it’s still a value decision rather than a must-have upgrade.
The PC will be connected to a 4K 60Hz TV initially, though I may move to 120Hz later. I play a pretty broad mix of games, so I don’t have one specific workload in mind.