I recently sold my RX 6650 XT for $205 and am looking for a worthwhile upgrade for my AM5 system with a Ryzen 5 7600X and 1440p monitor. My budget is around $350, and I care mainly about raw FPS and being able to keep the card for at least three more years. Ray tracing and upscaling are not important to me.
My current options are a triple-fan RX 6700 XT for $245–262, a two-fan Sapphire Nitro+ RX 7700 XT for $320 that is about two years old, a triple-fan Sapphire Nitro+ RX 7700 XT for $350 that is about one year old and includes on-site testing, or a roughly five-year-old triple-fan RTX 3080 Ti for $312. I am leaning toward the newer RX 7700 XT because I can test it, but I am unsure whether the extra $30 is worthwhile or whether I should choose a cheaper card. I am also open to other used or new GPUs if they offer significantly better value.
4 Answers
I would skip the RX 6700 XT at those prices. It is only a moderate step up from the RX 6650 XT, so the performance gain probably will not feel worth spending another $40–57 on. Between the two RX 7700 XT cards, the one-year-old card with on-site testing is worth the extra $30 for the lower risk and newer age.
Before committing, check used prices for an RX 7800 XT. It is a stronger 1440p card and the extra VRAM gives it more breathing room for newer games. If one is close to your $350 limit and can be tested, it would be a better long-term target than the RX 7700 XT.
A current-generation 16GB card such as an RX 9060 XT could also be worth considering if you can find one near your budget. It may not beat every older high-end card in raw FPS, but newer features, warranty coverage, and lower age can make it a safer long-term purchase.
The RTX 3080 Ti is the fastest option here in raw performance, but its age makes it the riskiest purchase. If the seller lets you thoroughly test it for stability, temperatures, and memory problems, $312 could be a very good deal. Without testing, I would avoid taking that chance.
The RX 7700 XT is considerably better suited to a longer 1440p upgrade than the RX 6700 XT, especially since the older card would be a relatively small upgrade from what you had.