[SOLVED] Should I upgrade my GPU?

Jul 9, 2020
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Hey everyone!

I wanna upgrade my PC but unfortunately I can't upgrade everything!

These are my PC specs atm:

Motherboard: Asus H110-Plus

CPU: i7 7700 non k

Ram: 16GB 2133mhz

GPU: GTX 1070

and these are my two options:

1. Upgrade my MB to Z490 along with i7 10700k and 3200mhz ram

2. Upgrade my GPU to RTX 3070

I can only pick one of the two options.

Btw I game on a 1440p monitor!

Any help would be appreciated!
 
Solution
It depends on the games you play:

  • If you want to play CPU-intensive games at high frame rates, then upgrading your GPU will result in disappointing performance; upgrade your CPU instead.
  • If you want to play games with resolution and settings maxed out at a locked 60 fps, then upgrading your CPU won't make much of a difference in many games; upgrade your GPU instead.
It depends on the games you play:

  • If you want to play CPU-intensive games at high frame rates, then upgrading your GPU will result in disappointing performance; upgrade your CPU instead.
  • If you want to play games with resolution and settings maxed out at a locked 60 fps, then upgrading your CPU won't make much of a difference in many games; upgrade your GPU instead.
 
Solution
Jul 9, 2020
19
0
10
It depends on the games you play:

  • If you want to play CPU-intensive games at high frame rates, then upgrading your GPU will result in disappointing performance; upgrade your CPU instead.
  • If you want to play games with resolution and settings maxed out at a locked 60 fps, then upgrading your CPU won't make much of a difference in many games; upgrade your GPU instead.
Well I mostly either play open world games like cyberpunk 2077, RDR2, GTA V or competitive FPS games like rainbow six siege, csgo, etc.
 
Well I mostly either play open world games like cyberpunk 2077, RDR2, GTA V or competitive FPS games like rainbow six siege, csgo, etc.

Ironically, open world games like the ones you mentioned AND competitive FPS games like the ones you mentioned are very heavy on the CPU.

In Cyberpunk, RDR2 and GTA V, the many objects and NPCs that are spawned result in lots of work for the CPU, making these games difficult to run on older, less-capable CPUs.

Rainbow six siege and especially CSGO are very CPU-reliant and will hit fps ceilings on older CPUs.

I get it that most people equate a GPU upgrade with more gaming performance, and in many situations this is true, but trying to play the games you listed with a RTX 3070 is going to lead to disappointing fps and stutter in a lot of situations due to your i7-7700's inability to feed your GPU the pre-rendered frames it needs effectively. Even if that wasn't the case, 4 core / 8 thread CPUs are considered the bare minimum to run modern games these days, and more often than not its not enough: 6 core / 12 thread CPUs are the new baseline for most. Thus, I 100% recommend you upgrade your motherboard, RAM, and CPU first, and then save up for a GPU upgrade for later down the line.
 
As a side note, not only do I think you'll benefit more from a CPU upgrade, but right now is an absolutely horrible time to buy a GPU, with shortages and hugely inflated prices. Conversely, right now is a great time to buy a Z490 motherboard and i7-10700k; the 10700k has been discounted at least once recently due to the release of Ryzen 5000 series CPUs.

If you buy a new motherboard and CPU now, you'll get it for a great price. And then later down the line when you can afford a new GPU, the stock and pricing issues will have been fixed and you can buy the model you want for a fair price.
 
Jul 9, 2020
19
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10
As a side note, not only do I think you'll benefit more from a CPU upgrade, but right now is an absolutely horrible time to buy a GPU, with shortages and hugely inflated prices. Conversely, right now is a great time to buy a Z490 motherboard and i7-10700k; the 10700k has been discounted at least once recently due to the release of Ryzen 5000 series CPUs.

If you buy a new motherboard and CPU now, you'll get it for a great price. And then later down the line when you can afford a new GPU, the stock and pricing issues will have been fixed and you can buy the model you want for a fair price.
Well I've already found an RTX 3070 for a good price actually, I've heard some people say that those games will run better with a better GPU so Im really confused
 
Well I've already found an RTX 3070 for a good price actually, I've heard some people say that those games will run better with a better GPU so Im really confused

Both will cause your games to run better, but both will come with compromises due to replacing only the CPU/GPU but not both at the same time.

I've explained the compromises to you and recommended you upgrade your CPU first.

It is up to you now (since different people will give you different recommendations) to decide which compromises you are more willing to live with.
 
Jul 9, 2020
19
0
10
Both will cause your games to run better, but both will come with compromises due to replacing only the CPU/GPU but not both at the same time.

I've explained the compromises to you and recommended you upgrade your CPU first.

It is up to you now (since different people will give you different recommendations) to decide which compromises you are more willing to live with.
Okay thank you!
If I went for a better cpu, is there any cpu better than i7 10700k that I can get at the same price?
 
Okay thank you!
If I went for a better cpu, is there any cpu better than i7 10700k that I can get at the same price?

At the same price, no not quite.

Stepping up the the 10850k will add 2 more cores , 4 more threads, and a few 100 MHz of clock speed. The power draw is very high on this chip: a 280 mm / 360 mm AIO is basically required to keep it from thermal throttling, and there is a decent chance you'll need a better power supply than the one you have.

The new Ryzen 5800x is faster in many scenarios than the 10700k and even the 10900k in some instances. As a bonus, the 5800x is MUCH more power efficient than similar Intel CPUs due to Intel being stuck on their 14 nm process node while AMD is on the TSMC 7 nm process node. A new power supply probably won't be necessary, although you'll still need to buy a new CPU cooler (AMD recommends a 280 mm AIO for best performance, but it's not required).

Bottom line, you have options for even better CPUs than an i7-10700k, but they will cost more to purchase, keep cool (and, if you're buying an Intel CPU) supply with power. If you can't afford to upgrade your CPU and GPU at the same time, you probably can't afford all the supporting components that are needed to get the most out of a top-shelf CPU. The i7-10700k should do quite well for your needs and budget.
 
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Jul 9, 2020
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At the same price, no not quite.

Stepping up the the 10850k will add 2 more cores and 4 more threads and a few more 100 MHz of clock speed. The power draw is very high on this chip: a 280 mm / 360 mm AIO is basically required to keep it from thermal throttling, and there is a decent chance you'll need a better power supply than the one you have.

The new Ryzen 5800x is faster in many scenarios than the 10700k and even the 10900k in some instances. As a bonus, the 5800x is MUCH more power efficient than similar Intel CPUs due to Intel being stuck on their 14 nm process node while AMD is on their TSMC 7 nm process node. A new power supply probably won't be necessary, although you'll still need to buy a new CPU cooler (AMD recommends a 280 mm AIO for best performance, but it's not required).

Bottom line, you have options for even better CPUs than an i7-10700k, but they will cost more to purchase, keep cool (and, if you're buying an Intel CPU) supply with power.
I guess I better stick with 10700k then, thanks for your help :)
 
Dec 29, 2020
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You can't see much difference with i7-7700 and 3070. It can make big bottleneck. Besides, 3070 is more for 1080p.
If you want to play horribly optimized Cyberpunk 2077 at 2k on ultra, you should buy 3080 or RX 6800XT.
Why not lower your CPU little more as 10600K or 5600X and buy it with 3060ti? It would be way better than just CPU or just GPU upgrade.