Question RTX 3000-4000 series cards

thewalleprod

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Feb 28, 2016
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Debating on getting a 3070ti or a 3080/ti possibly. Was wondering what newer generation CPU do I need to have system perform at max performance. Currently have an i7 8700k but have heard that it doesn't support the 3070ti+ cards fully for max performance.

All suggestions are appreciated!
 

Eximo

Titan
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It is true you would be leaving some performance on the table with it, but depending on your target resolution and settings it may not matter all that much.

1440p and up I would say you should be good for a while. 1080p you would probably start to see the CPU hold you back.

I would probably wait for the 4070 to come out rather than pick up a 30 series at this point.
 

DSzymborski

Curmudgeon Pursuivant
Moderator
Generally speaking, if you're upgrading, you should upgrade to the newest generation because you generally won't get enough of a discount to make the generations between Coffee Lake and the current one a good deal.

While an 8700K will likely hold back a 3070 Ti at the very top-end of performance, it's not going to be so much that it's urgent. The 8700K/9700K/9900K were the best gaming CPUs for years until the Zen 3 CPUs came out and ran 2080 Tis without issues. The 2080 Ti was in the same neighborhood as the 3060 Ti. It's not like you're running a Core2Quad or Nehalem in there!

You could get the 3070 Ti, use it just fine, and then evaluate how much of an upgrade you feel you need. If you're at 1080p or something, the resolution may be more of a limiting factor than the CPU is.
 
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MEMOFLEX

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As mentioned above I would wait until the 4070 comes out as buying the latest generation card is recommended where possible.

Whilst the 8700k will not be able to fully utilise the GPU, the performance would still be decent especially at 1440p and above.

The benefit of doing this upgrade is that you potentially can get a GPU boost twice as if you upgrade your CPU in the future you will regain any performance left on the table.
 
Between the RTX 3070 Ti and RTX 3080 Ti, there is no question that I would choose the RTX 3080 Ti. The RTX 3070 Ti is very hampered by the fact that it only has 8GB of VRAM while the RTX 3080 Ti is far less hampered because it has 12GB of VRAM. The RTX 3080 Ti will be a viable gaming card long after the RTX 3070 Ti has been relegated to being nothing more than a glorified video adapter.
 
Debating on getting a 3070ti or a 3080/ti possibly. Was wondering what newer generation CPU do I need to have system perform at max performance. Currently have an i7 8700k but have heard that it doesn't support the 3070ti+ cards fully for max performance.

All suggestions are appreciated!
What's your monitor resolution?

https://pcpartpicker.com/search/?q=RTX+3070+Ti
RTX 3070 Ti 8GB

https://pcpartpicker.com/search/?q=rtx+3080+10GB
RTX 3080 Ti 10GB

https://pcpartpicker.com/search/?q=RTX+4070+Ti
RTX 4070 Ti 12GB

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My advice is to upgrade to at least a Ryzen 7 5700x. AM4 is cheap and easy to upgrade to. But really the best advice I could give on the platform I think is to go with AM5. It's going to last for years. Intel 13th gen is a good choice as well but I think AM5 is better. And as far as the graphics card goes I think you should aim for an RTX 4070 Ti because it's newer and will outlast those older 30 series cards. You want the latest generation of GPU why? Because not only is it newer but they often come with better technologies that last gen didn't have. That alone can make a huge impact on your experience with the card and the amount of time before you must upgrade.