[SOLVED] Is it worth upgrading my 1080 Ti Hydro Copper?

[SonJustin]

I know it's near impossible to find the 3080 at MSRP, but if I actually put in the work it might be doable. However, should I even bother? My rig in general is older, from 2017. These are the specs:

Intel Core i7 7000-series I believe
16gb of Vengeance DDR4 memory, 3000mhz
256gb M.2 on the motherboard
Many SSDs and HDDs also inside
ASUS Rampage V Extreme motherboard
EVGA Supernova 1000w PSU

I also have an EK water cooling loop setup which I did myself. It has the pump/reservoir, and is connected to two separate quad-radiators, each fitting 4 Noctua fans. This water loop connects to the Hydro Copper GPU as well as the processor.

Anyway, I have no issues with the 1080 Ti, I like it and use it with an older Acer Predator x34 monitor (ultrawide, 3440x1440p, 100hz, G-sync). However, it's been years since I looked into the latest and greatest and am assuming most of my parts are old and might hold a newer GPU like the 3080 behind. Am I correct?

What should I do? I see the the 1080 Ti Hydro Copper, used, sells for between $500-650 on ebay, so not bad!

Thanks for any advice

 

[ohio_buckeye]

On the other hand your i7 is roughly equivalent to a modern i3. You might consider selling your board and cpu and go for a new i7 and board, or go for a new ryzen setup. Then you could keep the 1080ti until prices settle down or unless a deal comes up.

 

[SonJustin]

On the other hand your i7 is roughly equivalent to a modern i3. You might consider selling your board and cpu and go for a new i7 and board, or go for a new ryzen setup. Then you could keep the 1080ti until prices settle down or unless a deal comes up.

Oof, hearing that about my i7 hurt lol. I gotta get up to date on what the latest and greatest is in the component world. I hope processors are not as hard to get and overpriced as GPUs.

The thing is, if it gets to the point of getting a new processor and motherboard, I feel I'll just avalanche into an entire new rig haha. The 1080ti has served me well so far, so unless I find an MSRP 3080 or really do build a new rig, I'll keep it. Thanks

I used Intel Retail Edge program to get the discounted processor btw, since I work in retail, but I missed their summer sales

 

[RTX 2080]

Oof, hearing that about my i7 hurt lol. I gotta get up to date on what the latest and greatest is in the component world. I hope processors are not as hard to get and overpriced as GPUs.

The thing is, if it gets to the point of getting a new processor and motherboard, I feel I'll just avalanche into an entire new rig haha. The 1080ti has served me well so far, so unless I find an MSRP 3080 or really do build a new rig, I'll keep it. Thanks

I used Intel Retail Edge program to get the discounted processor btw, since I work in retail, but I missed their summer sales

It's mostly GPUs that are super expensive and hard to find these days, CPUs aren't overpriced right now and some of the better ones are even on sale right now.

If you're set on buying a RTX 3080 without changing the rest of your build, it should still provide a solid boost. Your i7 might limit you in some games (especially if you are trying to hit 100 fps consistently) but you'll be able to max out graphical settings in basically all the games you might play. Being able to play a newer title with ray tracing or DLSS is also nice.

 

[SonJustin]

It's mostly GPUs that are super expensive and hard to find these days, CPUs aren't overpriced right now and some of the better ones are even on sale right now.

If you're set on buying a RTX 3080 without changing the rest of your build, it should still provide a solid boost. Your i7 might limit you in some games (especially if you are trying to hit 100 fps consistently) but you'll be able to max out graphical settings in basically all the games you might play. Being able to play a newer title with ray tracing or DLSS is also nice.

I really wanna believe that this scalping+shortage+overpriced nightmare combo will EVENTUALLY end. Maybe next year, or the year after. Can't be the new norm forever right? Maybe if I hold off a 40 series will be out and even better!

What's the recommended amount of RAM these days for a heavy graphics/fps setup, and what MHZ is important? Is it still around 3500mhz?

 

[RTX 2080]

I really wanna believe that this scalping+shortage+overpriced nightmare combo will EVENTUALLY end. Maybe next year, or the year after. Can't be the new norm forever right? Maybe if I hold off a 40 series will be out and even better!

What's the recommended amount of RAM these days for a heavy graphics/fps setup, and what MHZ is important? Is it still around 3500mhz?

Yeah, I've got a RTX 2080 and whle I was interesting in a RTX 3090, these shortages and scalper prices kept me away and at this point I'll probably just wait another year for a RTX 4090 lol.

Your RAM is just fine. 16 GB (two sticks of 8 GB RAM) running at 3600 MHz is considered ideal for most builds, but 3000 MHz is perfectly fine (my RAM runs at 3000 MHz as well) and Intel CPUs aren't as sensitive to RAM speeds as Ryzen CPUs are.

 

[SonJustin]

Yeah, I've got a RTX 2080 and whle I was interesting in a RTX 3090, these shortages and scalper prices kept me away and at this point I'll probably just wait another year for a RTX 4090 lol.

Your RAM is just fine. 16 GB (two sticks of 8 GB RAM) running at 3600 MHz is considered ideal for most builds, but 3000 MHz is perfectly fine (my RAM runs at 3000 MHz as well) and Intel CPUs aren't as sensitive to RAM speeds as Ryzen CPUs are.

Man, you'd think since it's been 4+ years since I last upgraded my rig that we would've had huge improvements in RAM power, like 5000mhz or higher lol. Same thing with processors. GPUs seem ideal.

 

[RTX 2080]

Man, you'd think since it's been 4+ years since I last upgraded my rig that we would've had huge improvements in RAM power, like 5000mhz or higher lol. Same thing with processors. GPUs seem ideal.

These is faster RAM available out there, something like 4500 MHz or so, its just that most builds can't take full advantage and the performance uplift is so slight that it doesn't make since for the majority of PC builders.

DDR5 RAM is coming out with the next Intel 12th gen CPUs and Z690 motherboards; it'll be interesting to see what a difference that makes.

CPUs actually have come a long way since you built your PC; you can buy a very respectable 6 core / 12 thread gaming CPU from Intel (the i5-11400) for only 200 bucks.

 

[SonJustin]

These is faster RAM available out there, something like 4500 MHz or so, its just that most builds can't take full advantage and the performance uplift is so slight that it doesn't make since for the majority of PC builders.

DDR5 RAM is coming out with the next Intel 12th gen CPUs and Z690 motherboards; it'll be interesting to see what a difference that makes.

CPUs actually have come a long way since you built your PC; you can buy a very respectable 6 core / 12 thread gaming CPU from Intel (the i5-11400) for only 200 bucks.

Okay so it seems RAM with that crazy speed will hit a bottleneck, or the games and apps can't really benefit from it.

Honestly, with me either mortgage shopping in a month or 2 (or getting an apartment), I almost certainly will wait a year or so before doing a full replacement. And hey, sounds like crazy new things will be out then!

 

[spentshells]

As of today, nothing you have is worth upgrading. Unless you need more fps.
Nice setup if you ask me. Sure more cores will be great but I don't really think your current cpu is holding you back at all.

Save and buy a new setup. You could always shoot for a reg price 3080 and when you find it dump that 1080ti for high cash.