I previously asked whether I should upgrade my current setup with a Ryzen 7 3800x and a 2080 Super, especially considering costs and the uncertain future of hardware. Based on the advice I received, I'm leaning towards upgrading to a better AMD processor and GPU. I have some options from Microcenter: Ryzen 7 5800xt for $200 or Ryzen 9 5900xt for $300, along with GPU choices like the 5070ti ranging from $750 to $880, or the 9070xt costing between $600 and $900. I've been hearing that choosing the cheaper graphics card might be a good idea since they have similar performance. Is that true? Also, will my current RAM (DDR4 3600) bottleneck these potential upgrades?
3 Answers
Upgrading to a 5800xt with a 9070xt would really give your system a nice boost. Since you’ve got access to Microcenter, they have some great AM5 bundles if you're considering future-proofing your build. If most people can’t get there, sticking with AM4 might still be the way to go, but those AM5 deals are tough to ignore!
I haven’t seen any MC stores selling 32GB of DDR5 for $400 in those combos. Do you have a link for that?
What resolution are you planning on gaming at? And what graphics settings are you aiming for?
I’ll be gaming at 1440p. I just want it to look good enough—no need for modded Cyberpunk or anything maxed out.
Honestly, I’d go with the 5800XT and 9070XT for your needs. They seem like solid choices for a reasonable price.
Is DDR5 really that much of an upgrade? My RAM is 3600, and seeing DDR5 at 6000 makes it seem like a big jump. If I switch to AM5, which CPU would pair well with a 5070ti? I see the Ryzen 9 9950x3D is around $650, but I'm wondering if that's overkill for my needs.