[SOLVED] How to tell if I need a new GPU?

[NeilDaMassTyson]

Hello, I am fairly new to the PC world only having had one for about a year. I use it for gaming mostly and have run into several instances which has me questioning whether I need a new GPU. I currently have an MSI RX 580 ARMOR with a Ryzen 5 2600 processor. I have all my in game settings set to low for graphics and my monitor set to 1080p. I struggle to get more than 60-80fps while playing and the games I play are not very demanding. In addition, I frequently check the Radeon software that came with the GPU to check each games performance and it always reports that it "needs an upgrade" and that its struggling to keep up. Do I need a new GPU? If so, any recommendations? Or is it just something that i've overlooked? Im not looking for a powerhouse, but my monitor has a 144 refresh rate and it would be nice to get at least kind of close to that. Thank you in advance!

 

[Newtonius]

An RX 580 is meant for 1080 60FPS AAA gaming in today's gaming world (at high settings), it's not a weak card per sey but with a 144Hz 1080p monitor you would need at the least:
(from cheapest to priciest)

• 1660 Ti
• RX 5600XT
• RTX 2060 OR THE 2060 Super (The 'super' is another variant that came out as a refresh of the older 2060)

Or if you choose to wait a couple months you can get the brand new RTX 3060 which is the next gen of the 2060. It will come at the same price (~300$USD) but will be much faster, will most likely be able to handle 1440p 144FPS.

What games is your card struggling with? Have you updated the radeon software your computer came with? New drivers for these cards have given it a lot more performance, albeit it's still a 1080p 60fps card.

 

[NeilDaMassTyson]

An RX 580 is meant for 1080 60FPS AAA gaming in today's gaming world (at high settings), it's not a weak card per sey but with a 144Hz 1080p monitor you would need at the least:
(from cheapest to priciest)

• 1660 Ti
• RX 5600XT
• RTX 2060 OR THE 2060 Super (The 'super' is another variant that came out as a refresh of the older 2060)

Or if you choose to wait a couple months you can get the brand new RTX 3060 which is the next gen of the 2060. It will come at the same price (~300$USD) but will be much faster, will most likely be able to handle 1440p 144FPS.

What games is your card struggling with? Have you updated the radeon software your computer came with? New drivers for these cards have given it a lot more performance, albeit it's still a 1080p 60fps card.

Thanks for the reply. I have my settings for games all at low. It gives me “marginal” performance ratings for Warzone, Star Wars battlefront 2 and Minecraft. I update the drivers whenever there is a new one as well. I’d be willing to spend between 300-500 dollars for a GPU but that 3060 sounds like it might be worth the wait. Is there a way to determine if I’d be getting a CPU bottleneck with my current processor and the 3060?

 

[Newtonius]

Thanks for the reply. I have my settings for games all at low. It gives me “marginal” performance ratings for Warzone, Star Wars battlefront 2 and Minecraft. I update the drivers whenever there is a new one as well. I’d be willing to spend between 300-500 dollars for a GPU but that 3060 sounds like it might be worth the wait. Is there a way to determine if I’d be getting a CPU bottleneck with my current processor and the 3060?

The 2600 is a 6 core processor that should be able to handle the 3060 just fine. As for your current issue with the 580, your card might be undervolting itself. Follow these instructions and see if you can give your card more of a boost:
https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/faq/dh-020