I'm looking for feedback on my current gaming PC and whether it has any meaningful bottlenecks or worthwhile upgrade opportunities. The system has a Ryzen 7 5800X3D, RTX 4060 8GB, MSI A520M-A PRO motherboard, 64GB (2x32GB) Kingston DDR4-3200 CL16 memory, a 1TB Verbatim Vi5000 NVMe SSD, a 512GB Samsung 850 PRO SATA SSD, a Cooler Master AIO cooler, and a Thermaltake TR2 S 750W power supply. I'm running Windows 11 Home 64-bit on an LG UltraGear 2560x1440 monitor.
The 5800X3D and second 32GB memory module were recent upgrades from a Ryzen 5 5600X and 32GB of single-channel RAM. The RTX 4060 is operating at PCIe 3.0 x8 because of the motherboard and card configuration.
I mainly play Path of Exile 1 and 2, Factorio, and other games at 1440p. I also want to be prepared for upcoming AAA games such as GTA 6. The system currently runs well, and I'm not interested in replacing parts unnecessarily. Is the graphics card the main weakness, and what would you upgrade first, if anything?
3 Answers
The RTX 4060 is the obvious weak point for 1440p gaming, especially because it only has 8GB of VRAM. The 5800X3D is already one of the best gaming processors available for the AM4 platform, so replacing the CPU would mean moving to a completely new platform for relatively little benefit.
If your current performance is acceptable, there’s no urgent need to upgrade. Otherwise, save for a substantial GPU jump rather than making a small sidegrade. Cards such as the RX 9070 or RX 9070 XT, with 16GB of VRAM, would make the system much better balanced for demanding 1440p games. Cheaper options like a 16GB RX 9060 XT can also work, while used cards such as an RX 6800 XT or RX 7800 XT may offer good value. Just check the power requirements and the condition of any used card.
There’s no need to change the motherboard, CPU, or RAM right now. The 5800X3D is effectively the top gaming upgrade for AM4, and 64GB is already plenty for these games. The PCIe 3.0 x8 connection can reduce performance slightly in some situations, but it isn’t a reason by itself to replace the whole platform. Put the money toward a better GPU when the 4060 starts falling short.
I’d upgrade the graphics card first, particularly to something with more VRAM. At 2560x1440, the RTX 4060 is much more likely to limit performance than the 5800X3D, memory capacity, or storage. A 16GB card in the RX 9070 or RX 9070 XT class would be a meaningful upgrade and should make the system more suitable for newer AAA games.
Would a Gigabyte RX 9070 Gaming OC 16GB be the right kind of upgrade? The 9070 XT doesn’t seem much faster for the extra cost.