[SOLVED] 3070 vs 3090 vs 6900xt ?

[Methuselah7]

Don't really know who to ask about this and this is also a very strange predicament to be in, but I need help solving this question.

So I am a 3d modeller/animator who does some rendering and video editing. I use maya, the adobe suite, substance suite, zbrush, Vray, Houdini, UE4, Unity, the works. So a few months ago my laptop crapped out on me and I needed to build a new PC. I decided to make a mini ITX but the card I bought (scalped for $1800 Canadian) was defective so I sent it in to AMD to get repaired (card was a reference 6900xt).

In the 6 weeks it took for them to repair that GPU I got super lucky. First I was able to get an EVGA XC3 RTX 3070 for $960 CAD and in a panic I bought an EVGA XC3 RTX 3090 for around $2600 CAD (both are the MSRP for Canada).

So my main question I guess is, what GPU should I stick with? I built the computer to futureproof it (12 TB of storage, Ryzen 5900x) but even then a 3090 seems like overkill and especially since the 3080 is around $1300 dollars at it's MSRP, half of what the 3090 is. On top of that the GPU is still in the box and I have no clue if I have the space to mount it in my case. My case is a cooler master nr200p but I would want to mount it on it's side with the Ryzer cable since thats my current setup, it SHOULD fit but GPUs in this case mounted that way are slightly slanted and I'm having trouble finding information on how much real space I have for mounting it the way I want to. Plus even if I do get it in, whos to say my PC wont horribly thermal throttle? It's got good airflow but I don't want to find out my build has crippling problems after the fact.

Logically I should just use the 6900xt because I could utilize smart access memory and I already overpaid for the card as is but my biggest concern is software compatibility, AMD has a history of issues with driver support and programs like VRAY just flat out don't utilize AMD GPUs the last time I checked, I don't want to worry about debugging programs that would work perfectly fine on a different GPU. Also I don't know how big raytracing is going to get when it gets more streamlined for production workflows so thats also something to consider.

I could stick with my 3070, it's been great so far and I've been having trouble hitting it's limit, but I don't know how it will fair in the future, I'm big into VR (both development wise and general gaming) so I need something to last me for that. On top of that my buddy whos also a modeler is in desperate need for a GPU so I wanna sell it to him at retail price.

The reason I'm not immediately going with the 3090 despite being the most powerful card is that, surprisingly, I'm not made of money so buying these cards has essentially liquidated most of my funds and am about to move halfway across my country so I will need the funds to do so.

So I guess my question is what do? Stick with the 3070? Go with the 3090? Or go with the 6900xt? There are some uncertainties and probably things I didn't account for either in relation to these GPUs so don't be afraid to ask if something seems off. Pic related is my PC from the top so you can see the slant.

 

[JWNoctis]

FWIW smart access memory, or resizable BAR, is also supported by RTX 30-series cards.

How much compute and video memory do you really need? Is your current PSU going to handle a RTX 3090?

If you really do feel more of the need for more funds, then have another look at the eBay prices for those cards you have.

Also, while irrelevant to the question and really not for me to say, blowing the better part of your liquidity on not one but three high-end graphic cards was...probably not something that should be done often, professional requirements notwithstanding, given their usual depreciation outside the current crisis.

 

[Bassman999]

I have same issue with my NR200 where the GPU is squished toward the side panel from wiring. I bought some thin PSU wires that were flexible and it made a big difference.
The riser I bought was too long and I just bent it in the middle with no consequences

 

[Methuselah7]

How much compute and video memory do you really need? Is your current PSU going to handle a RTX 3090?

My current PSU was geared towards a 6900XT so it's a cooler master SFX 850 watt. Honestly the 24gb is a big selling point since 3d animation uses it like crazy, but aside from that I would also hope games take more advantage of VRAM in the future. That big unkown is the biggest point against the 3090 for me as well as it's current comparison to a 3080 not that great for the price.

I have same issue with my NR200 where the GPU is squished toward the side panel from wiring. I bought some thin PSU wires that were flexible and it made a big difference.
The riser I bought was too long and I just bent it in the middle with no consequences

I have the NR200p, which came with the ryzer cable. I'm going to try what you did with my current graphics card.

 

[JWNoctis]

My current PSU was geared towards a 6900XT so it's a cooler master SFX 850 watt. Honestly the 24gb is a big selling point since 3d animation uses it like crazy, but aside from that I would also hope games take more advantage of VRAM in the future. That big unkown is the biggest point against the 3090 for me as well as it's current comparison to a 3080 not that great for the price.

The price no longer applies to something already bought. Resale value matters - But only if you couldn't make more with your professional work, over the 3070, in terms of productive time gained and more enjoyable experience.

High end and professional graphic hardware had never been known for good $/performance ratio over mainstream stuff, and even a RTX 3090 is cheap when compared to the likes of Quadro RTX A6000 and similar.

The power supply is a separate question however, to which I'm not qualified for any opinion.