Build Advice TH's recommended $1500 budget build looks great, but can I save money on the case or mobo? Or optimize it for minimum price increase?

[PlayerDot]

I'm having issues with my current 5 year old PC that seem to be like an endless game of whack-a-mole, so I'm opting to just get myself a fully new upgrade.

The budget build recommended on the website is looking promising.

CPU	Intel Core i5-13400F	$209
Motherboard	ASRock B760M Pro RS WiFi LGA	$129
GPU	Radeon RX 6800 XT	$579 - $799
RAM	Patriot Viper Steel DDR4 32GB (2 x 16GB) 3200	$74
Storage	WD Black SN850X (2TB)	$159
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P360A	$99
PSU	Thermaltake Toughpower 750W	$95
Cooler	N/A (included)	$0
Total:		1350 - 1500

Realistically, money isn't an issue and I could go for a $2000 budget with no problems,
I just don't want to spend more money than necessary for features on a board or case I'm not going to use or enjoy.

I completely agree with the choice of CPU and GPU, so that's not even up for discussion. I'm willing to put down that much money for the processor and graphics card (even if their performance might exceed my 1080p gaming needs!).
I also have a few barely used 1TB SSDs, so I'm going to be using those instead, and saving money on that front, too.

But...
A WiFi-capable motherboard? If it's barely more expensive than the non-WiFi version, I'll get it just in case. But it's unlikely that I'll connect to WiFi unless I move to a place where wired connections are hard to get.
A case with a million RGB lights, or a glass cover to see inside your PC? I'll likely turn those off, and want to cover the glass.

It bothers me that the case, motherboard and PSU alone would cost me $550 over here, even if I'm looking at the absolutely cheapest deal I can find in my general area.
The $99 case is almost $170 where I live, the PSU would be also be around $170, and the motherboard is around $200. I'm not used to spending more than $300 on ALL of these components.
I tried looking into the alternatives, but other manufacturer's PSU's are about the same price for the same performance, so that's not an option.

So, where could you even save money if you didn't want to compromise on the CPU, GPU or the RAM's performance?
Are there alternatives for the RAM?

 

[Aeacus]

So, where could you even save money if you didn't want to compromise on the CPU, GPU or the RAM's performance?

You can take this as a guideline:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13400 2.5 GHz 10-Core Processor ($234.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock B660M Pro RS Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GAMING OC Rev 2.0 GeForce RTX 3070 LHR 8 GB Video Card ($544.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case ($64.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair RM850e 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1099.93

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-02-25 11:11 EST-0500

Few words;

• Almost same CPU as in example build, but with a diff that CPU has iGPU in it. (Great redundancy when your dedicated GPU happens to die.)
• Cheaper B660 chipset MoBo. Do note that MoBo needs latest BIOS for it to work with 13th gen CPU. Most likely it already comes with latest BIOS.
• For gaming build, 16GB of RAM is good enough. But if you want more RAM, feel free to go with 32GB set. Or you could add more RAM down the line IF you come to a conclusion that you need more RAM.
• I don't like Radeon GPUs (too many driver issues), so, put in RTX 3070, which is equally good but also costs less.
• PC case is personal choice and feel free to switch it out. But put in good airflow PC case that doesn't include unicorn puke (ARGB) nor has TG side panel (not all like glass side panel). PC case also has external 5.25" bay, which can be utilized in may ways (i have, with my PCs).
• Since RTX 30-series has transient power spike issues, GPU needs 850W PSU. So, put in solid unit from Corsair, which is: higher capacity and better build quality than the Thermaltake unit in the guide.

Feel free to mess around in pcpp, replacing components. As how much the actual local prices (or availability is) - that i don't know.

 

[geofelt]

You can build as is.

I have some thoughts:

I would always pay some $15 more for the non F version of the i5-13400. Cheap insurance if you should have graphics issues.
And, you get quick sync:
https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...uick-sync-video/quick-sync-video-general.html

Wifi comes with the B760 chipset so it costs little more.
On my current motherboard, I needed to use wifi to access the site with the driver for the lan.

High end graphics cards can have high temporary power spike demands. I would look at 850w or even 950w.
The incremental price going from 750/850/950w is usually small.
For example, the Seasonic Focus GX750 with a 10 year warranty costs $140:
https://www.newegg.com/seasonic-focus-plus-750-gold-ssr-750fx-750w/p/N82E16817151187
850w is $20 more and the 1000w is $30 past that.
Ad a good estimation of quality, look for at least a 7 to 10 year warranty. Corsair RMx is another good quality line.

Intel performance is not particularly tied to ram speed. 3200 is ok, but, I suspect that a 3600 speed kit might not be much more expensive.

SSD is fine, but do not chase high sequential benchmark speeds. You will not notice any difference.
You can save a bit by reusing your ssd's.
You can always change them out later.

These experts could not tell the difference:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DKLA7w9eeA


Love the case.

Yes, the 13400 does include a cooler.
But, I suggest buying a decent aftermarket cooler.
Under load, the stock cooler will spin up and be noisy.
Modern processors will turbo up performance if the cooling capability is there to do so.
Look at the thermalright peerless asassin:
https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/thermalright-peerless-assassin-120-se

 

[artk2219]

As others have said, the parts list is pretty much a guideline and you can sub parts as needed. Someone had mentioned that AMD cards have more driver issues. That may have been the case 10 years ago or so, it's not really the case today. The rx 6800xt is a much better card than the rtx 3070 for the price, it's a 25% faster card in everything other than ray tracing. That being said, you could pickup an rx 6700xt and get rtx 3070 performance, for 200 dollars less. Below is a review with relative performance between these cards and the fastest card around, the rtx 4090.

https://www.techpowerup.com/review/nvidia-geforce-rtx-4090-pci-express-scaling/28.html

https://www.newegg.com/asrock-radeon-rx-6700-xt-rx6700xt-cld-12go/p/N82E16814930059

 

[Why_Me]

It bothers me that the case, motherboard and PSU alone would cost me $550 over here, even if I'm looking at the absolutely cheapest deal I can find in my general area.
The $99 case is almost $170 where I live, the PSU would be also be around $170, and the motherboard is around $200. I'm not used to spending more than $300 on ALL of these components.
I tried looking into the alternatives, but other manufacturer's PSU's are about the same price for the same performance, so that's not an option.

What country are you located?

 

[Bob.B]

I'm having issues with my current 5 year old PC that seem to be like an endless game of whack-a-mole, so I'm opting to just get myself a fully new upgrade.

The budget build recommended on the website is looking promising.

CPU	Intel Core i5-13400F	$209
Motherboard	ASRock B760M Pro RS WiFi LGA	$129
GPU	Radeon RX 6800 XT	$579 - $799
RAM	Patriot Viper Steel DDR4 32GB (2 x 16GB) 3200	$74
Storage	WD Black SN850X (2TB)	$159
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P360A	$99
PSU	Thermaltake Toughpower 750W	$95
Cooler	N/A (included)	$0
Total:		1350 - 1500

Realistically, money isn't an issue and I could go for a $2000 budget with no problems,
I just don't want to spend more money than necessary for features on a board or case I'm not going to use or enjoy.

I completely agree with the choice of CPU and GPU, so that's not even up for discussion. I'm willing to put down that much money for the processor and graphics card (even if their performance might exceed my 1080p gaming needs!).
I also have a few barely used 1TB SSDs, so I'm going to be using those instead, and saving money on that front, too.

But...
A WiFi-capable motherboard? If it's barely more expensive than the non-WiFi version, I'll get it just in case. But it's unlikely that I'll connect to WiFi unless I move to a place where wired connections are hard to get.
A case with a million RGB lights, or a glass cover to see inside your PC? I'll likely turn those off, and want to cover the glass.

It bothers me that the case, motherboard and PSU alone would cost me $550 over here, even if I'm looking at the absolutely cheapest deal I can find in my general area.
The $99 case is almost $170 where I live, the PSU would be also be around $170, and the motherboard is around $200. I'm not used to spending more than $300 on ALL of these components.
I tried looking into the alternatives, but other manufacturer's PSU's are about the same price for the same performance, so that's not an option.

So, where could you even save money if you didn't want to compromise on the CPU, GPU or the RAM's performance?
Are there alternatives for the RAM?

Consider spending an extra 40 bucks and go up a cpu level and get an igp.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1735134-REG/intel_bx8071513500_core_i5_13500_2_5_ghz.html

 

[PlayerDot]

Consider spending an extra 40 bucks and go up a cpu level and get an igp.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1735134-REG/intel_bx8071513500_core_i5_13500_2_5_ghz.html

• Almost same CPU as in example build, but with a diff that CPU has iGPU in it. (Great redundancy when your dedicated GPU happens to die.)

Feel free to mess around in pcpp, replacing components. As how much the actual local prices (or availability is) - that i don't know.

Oh snap! I mistook the F version for the one WITH an iGPU! Thank you for pointing that out!
It's one of the biggest oversights I had with my last build, since it ended up making troubleshooting graphical issues much harder and the fact that I wouldn't be able use my PC till I got a replacement GPU if my GPU actually properly died.

• Cheaper B660 chipset MoBo. Do note that MoBo needs latest BIOS for it to work with 13th gen CPU. Most likely it already comes with latest BIOS.
• For gaming build, 16GB of RAM is good enough. But if you want more RAM, feel free to go with 32GB set. Or you could add more RAM down the line IF you come to a conclusion that you need more RAM.
• I don't like Radeon GPUs (too many driver issues), so, put in RTX 3070, which is equally good but also costs less.
• PC case is personal choice and feel free to switch it out. But put in good airflow PC case that doesn't include unicorn puke (ARGB) nor has TG side panel (not all like glass side panel). PC case also has external 5.25" bay, which can be utilized in may ways (i have, with my PCs).
• Since RTX 30-series has transient power spike issues, GPU needs 850W PSU. So, put in solid unit from Corsair, which is: higher capacity and better build quality than the Thermaltake unit in the guide.

Feel free to mess around in pcpp, replacing components. As how much the actual local prices (or availability is) - that i don't know.

I'll definitely be sticking with 32gb RAM since I use some applications that can be very memory heavy. DDR4 RAM these days is not that expensive; I can get 2x16gb for half the price I paid for 2x8gb back in 2018.

Spoiler: Also.

I'm also lousy with keeping several tabs and apps open (browser tabs, pdfs, etc) so I tend to struggle with my current 16gb unless I only have a couple things open. Also haven't been able to run massive Minecraft modpacks without stuttering every minute, which is a shame, 'cause that game scratches a certain itch that other games just don't.

The recommended Fractal Design case is more down my alley. Nice find!
That about the PSU is also good to know, I'll keep it in mind. The rough draft I threw together in my shopping basket actually has a 850W Corsair PSU since the price is basically the same, and I'm more familiar with the brand.

As others have said, the parts list is pretty much a guideline and you can sub parts as needed. Someone had mentioned that AMD cards have more driver issues. That may have been the case 10 years ago or so, it's not really the case today. The rx 6800xt is a much better card than the rtx 3070 for the price, it's a 25% faster card in everything other than ray tracing. That being said, you could pickup an rx 6700xt and get rtx 3070 performance, for 200 dollars less. Below is a review with relative performance between these cards and the fastest card around, the rtx 4090.

I've used both Nvidia and AMD GPUs and I'm not really sure what to make of it, really.
AMD is unquestionably the better performance for the price in terms of pretty much every review and benchmark out there, but I agree with the previous posters that there are some issues. For instance I decided to swap out GPUs recently while troubleshooting graphical glitches, and found out that my ancient GTX 660 didn't suffer from some of the graphical issues I was having with the newer RX 580 and the MUCH newer RX 6500. Keep in mind, I also tried all sorts of different drivers with the AMD cards to see if it was just the one bad release I was using.

What country are you located?

Austria.

 

[Aeacus]

Oh snap! I mistook the F version for the one WITH an iGPU! Thank you for pointing that out!

Intel CPU suffixes,
link: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/processors/processor-numbers.html

The recommended Fractal Design case is more down my alley. Nice find!

Fractal Design Focus G is almost a mini version of my PC case: Corsair 760T V2 Black,
specs: https://www.corsair.com/eu/en/Categ...760T-Full-Tower-Windowed-Case/p/CC-9011073-WW

My Skylake build sits in 760T (full specs with pics in my sig). Great case. But since mine is full-tower ATX and most people don't like such big cases + 760T is really hard to find nowadays, i usually put the Focus G into build suggestions.

Btw, Focus G comes in many color variations. Black one is which i included in the build above, but there are 4 more color variants,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/products/compare/YhzZxr,ZKCrxr,Yzbkcf,4vzZxr/

That about the PSU is also good to know, I'll keep it in mind. The rough draft I threw together in my shopping basket actually has a 850W Corsair PSU since the price is basically the same, and I'm more familiar with the brand.

As long as you keep Corsair PSU within RM/RMi/RMe/RMx/HX/HXi/AX/AXi lineups, you're good. Don't get Corsair VS/VX/CX/CXm though, since those are sub-par.

AMD is unquestionably the better performance for the price in terms of pretty much every review and benchmark out there

While Radeon GPUs, for the most part, cost less than Nvidia counterparts, you'll be trading it up elsewhere. Namely, Radeon GPUs consume more power, run hotter and GPU drivers aren't that well made either. Also, high FPS (200+) doesn't matter at all, if you're getting stutters. Quick forum search, and;
link: https://forums.tomshardware.com/search/2063578/?q=stutter+radeon&o=relevance

It's up to you if to go with team red or team green, but i, personally, would get Nvidia.

 

[Why_Me]

Austria.

Nvidia's RTX 4070 and RTX 4060 are due for release this April. I would recommend you wait for the reviews and prices of those cards before making a decision on a graphics card.

https://at.pcpartpicker.com/product/QnD7YJ/fractal-design-pop-air-atx-mid-tower-case-fd-c-poa1a-02
Fractal Design Pop Air Black €95,90

https://at.pcpartpicker.com/product...fully-modular-atx-power-supply-220-g5-0750-x1
EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G5 750W 80+ Gold Modular Power Supply €116.90

Pop Air

Fractal fuse flair with function in the new Pop series of cases that doesn’t skimp on aesthetics or flexibility. The entire series offers a solid foundation and excellent build quality, giving all users plenty of options and room to maneuver.

www.fractal-design.com

https://at.pcpartpicker.com/product...r4-atx-lga1700-motherboard-b760-gaming-x-ddr4
Gigabyte B760 GAMING X DDR4 €151.90

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/B760-GAMING-X-DDR4-rev-10#kf

https://at.pcpartpicker.com/product...13400f-25-ghz-10-core-processor-bx8071513400f
Intel Core i5-13400F €234,90

https://at.pcpartpicker.com/product/QPkWGX/deepcool-ak400-6647-cfm-cpu-cooler-r-ak400-bknnmn-g-1
DeepCool AK400 CPU Cooler €34,90

https://www.deepcool.com/products/C...formance-CPU-Cooler-1700-AM5/2021/15222.shtml

 

[Karadjgne]

I just don't want to spend more money than necessary for features on a board or case I'm not going to use or enjoy.

You are out of luck there, totally. There will always be features in components that you'll find absolutely useless. I don't use half the stuff on my mobo, and while it's the top of the line amd mITX, it's barely any more belled and whistled out than a decent asus atx X570.

Even decent cases come with hdd bays, psu's with floppy dongles, some cases have 1 or 2 optical bays etc.

So I'd ignore the amount of useless stuff, you are going to get it in a bundle, work on finding what components that have what you require/desire.

 

[artk2219]

While Radeon GPUs, for the most part, cost less than Nvidia counterparts, you'll be trading it up elsewhere. Namely, Radeon GPUs consume more power, run hotter and GPU drivers aren't that well made either. Also, high FPS (200+) doesn't matter at all, if you're getting stutters. Quick forum search, and;
link: https://forums.tomshardware.com/search/2063578/?q=stutter+radeon&o=relevance

It's up to you if to go with team red or team green, but i, personally, would get Nvidia.

I have both an rtx 3080 and rx 6900xt in mine and my wife's computers and neither have had any issues, so I can't speak to any of those stutter problems. That said sometimes you get a dud, sometimes you have other things that interfere, and yeah sometimes you have driver or firmware issues. Also AMD hasn't had any hotter, louder, or less efficient cards than Nvidia's since the 5000, 6000, and 7000 series. Id actually say for the 6000 series they're generally more efficient and just as cool vs the RTX 3000 series, 7000 series uses a bit more power vs the 4080, but its not a night and day difference. Not like the R9 Fury X vs the GTX 980TI, GTX 480 vs HD 5970 , HD 2900XT vs 8800 GTS, or FX 5800 Ultra vs Radeon 9800 Pro. I'm not trying to play favorites here since I have used, currently do use, and will continue to use GPU's from all the available vendors, but I do wish that people would quit spreading false Information.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-radeon-rx-7900-xtx-and-xt-review-shooting-for-the-top/8

 

[PlayerDot]

Nvidia's RTX 4070 and RTX 4060 are due for release this April. I would recommend you wait for the reviews and prices of those cards before making a decision on a graphics card.

<trimmed>
While Radeon GPUs, for the most part, cost less than Nvidia counterparts, you'll be trading it up elsewhere. Namely, Radeon GPUs consume more power, run hotter and GPU drivers aren't that well made either. Also, high FPS (200+) doesn't matter at all, if you're getting stutters. Quick forum search, and;
link: https://forums.tomshardware.com/search/2063578/?q=stutter+radeon&o=relevance

Thank you for the suggestions you linked. I'll be looking into them in the afternoon.

Won't the new cards be a fair amount more expensive than the 3070?
I was planning on waiting for the new cards to show up over the next quarters and then build my PC in autumn or winter, but I'm starting to get a bit hasty, since with how my PC has been acting up lately I don't know if it's going to die within a week or last me another few years.

As for the AMD vs Nvidia discussion... I know that was true when I was building my last PC, but the new AMDC GPUs I've been looking at to replace my RX 580 consume surprisingly less power for the same performance as the older generations of cards and seem to have better temperatures. I've had some issues with the drivers and stuttering with both the RX 580 and RX 6500 personally, on games where they hit the benchmarks way out of the park, but I haven't had a newer generation of NVidia card to really compare to.

You are out of luck there, totally. There will always be features in components that you'll find absolutely useless.

Yeah, I know. Often it boils down to the motherboard and case design, and you can't really predict everything ahead of time based on specifications and reviews alone.

I had the issue that I had 2-4 suitable PCIe slots on my motherboard, but in my mATX case even if I removed the cover that separates the drives and PSUs from the rest, the GPU would be sitting right on top of the PSU with basically no air flow if I used the lower one(s). So I could only use the upper ones. But wait, the other ones make the GPU cover the SATA ports, and one of the M.2 slots, and suddenly I have only 1 usable PCIe slot, and even though I didn't use the one M.2 slot right under the GPU, I had to remove the GPU every time I wanted to connect any new SATA cables or check if they're properly attached.
Pcpartpicker's compatibility check also wouldn't point something like this out. Not a problem the first time you're building the PC, but if you're upgrading, troubleshooting, or just want multiple GPUs, it's really inconvenient.

 

[Why_Me]

Thank you for the suggestions you linked. I'll be looking into them in the afternoon.

Won't the new cards be a fair amount more expensive than the 3070?
I was planning on waiting for the new cards to show up over the next quarters and then build my PC in autumn or winter, but I'm starting to get a bit hasty, since with how my PC has been acting up lately I don't know if it's going to die within a week or last me another few years.

As for the AMD vs Nvidia discussion... I know that was true when I was building my last PC, but the new AMDC GPUs I've been looking at to replace my RX 580 consume surprisingly less power for the same performance as the older generations of cards and seem to have better temperatures. I've had some issues with the drivers and stuttering with both the RX 580 and RX 6500 personally, on games where they hit the benchmarks way out of the park, but I haven't had a newer generation of NVidia card to really compare to.


Yeah, I know. Often it boils down to the motherboard and case design, and you can't really predict everything ahead of time based on specifications and reviews alone.

I had the issue that I had 2-4 suitable PCIe slots on my motherboard, but in my mATX case even if I removed the cover that separates the drives and PSUs from the rest, the GPU would be sitting right on top of the PSU with basically no air flow if I used the lower one(s). So I could only use the upper ones. But wait, the other ones make the GPU cover the SATA ports, and one of the M.2 slots, and suddenly I have only 1 usable PCIe slot, and even though I didn't use the one M.2 slot right under the GPU, I had to remove the GPU every time I wanted to connect any new SATA cables or check if they're properly attached.
Pcpartpicker's compatibility check also wouldn't point something like this out. Not a problem the first time you're building the PC, but if you're upgrading, troubleshooting, or just want multiple GPUs, it's really inconvenient.

Expect the 4070 to have a MSRP of $700 and the 4060 $400.

 

[Aeacus]

Won't the new cards be a fair amount more expensive than the 3070?
I was planning on waiting for the new cards to show up over the next quarters and then build my PC in autumn or winter, but I'm starting to get a bit hasty, since with how my PC has been acting up lately I don't know if it's going to die within a week or last me another few years.

RTX 4070 and RTX 4060 aren't out yet, so, it would be hard to tell how they fare price wise. And if scalpers make their way back as well, as they did with RTX 30-series.

Though, newer GPUs offer better price to performance ratio than older ones.
For example, current cheapest RTX 40-series GPU is RTX 4070 Ti, with price starting at ~800 USD,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/products/video-card/#sort=price&c=549

Performance wise, RTX 4070 Ti is equal to RTX 3090 Ti (flagship of RTX 30-series),
comparison: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-RTX-3090-Ti-vs-Nvidia-RTX-4070-Ti/m1818101vs4146

While RTX 3090 Ti starts from ~1700 USD,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/products/video-card/#sort=price&c=520

So, with half the price, you can get equally good GPU.

One option what you could do, is buying the new PC except the GPU. And using iGPU or old dedicated GPU (if you have it), until new RTX 4060/4070 releases. Once they come out, you can then buy it. I'm quite sure you'd get far better price to performance ratio with RTX 4060/4070 than you'd get by going with RTX 3070/RX 6800XT.

I'm not trying to play favorites here since I have used, currently do use, and will continue to use GPU's from all the available vendors, but I do wish that people would quit spreading false Information.

Just because you haven't had any issues with Radeon GPUs, doesn't mean there are none. Above i linked forum search, with loads of people having issues with their Radeon GPUs. Are you saying that all those people have made up their issues?

Id actually say for the 6000 series they're generally more efficient and just as cool vs the RTX 3000 series

Are they? 🤔

Let's take some examples;

• From AMD side - RX 6800 (XT)
• From Nvidia side - RTX 3070

Performance wise, they are equal,
comparison: https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/AMD-RX-6800-vs-Nvidia-RTX-3070/4088vs4083

• RTX 3070 is 220W GPU
• RX 6800 is 250W GPU
• (and RX 6800 XT is 300W GPU).

No matter how i look at it, Nvidia GPU consumes less power than Radeon counterpart. 🙄 Diff of 30-80W.

Spoiler: Temp charts (click here to view)

Min temps:

Max temps:

Source: https://www.techradar.com/reviews/amd-radeon-rx-6800

• RTX 3070 idles at 33C while goes up to 72C
• RX 6800 idles at 46C with max 75C
• (and RX 6800 XT idles around 42C with max 78C).

Again, no matter how i look at it, Nvidia GPU runs cooler than it's Radeon counterparts. 🙄

I'm not trying to play favorites here since I have used, currently do use, and will continue to use GPU's from all the available vendors, but I do wish that people would quit spreading false Information.

So, what i did say about Nvidia vs Radeon, still holds true. Even at today, when comparing RX 6000-series and RTX 30-series.

 

[Karadjgne]

To be fair, to both of you, neither of you are fully correct, nor fully wrong. Those results are atypical, and only apply to that particular bench test. They are going to vary upto a great deal depending on the case actually used and it's airflow properties.

It's entirely possible that because the cards are actually different physical dimensions, and actual different physical brands, there's going to be differences not only in power usage but also in how the card receives its air.

Nvidia heatsinks have been getting progressively larger, which while that can add to cooling ability, can also deter from it if it's stifling by proximity to the psu, meaning even with lower power consumption and better cooling capacity, it still runs hotter.

So while those test runs are a great place to start, they aren't Gospel, nor indicative of every result.

As to drivers, that's a toss up. Depends on which version, which Windows, whether using DP or HDMI, etc. Both Red and Green have had their fair share of Oops and in more than one occasion it's not their fault, but Microsoft. Drivers that worked just fine yesterday all of a sudden are glitchy like crazy because of a Windows update.

There's also user error. I've seen many, many posts where ppl have had other issues, reinstalled windows and gpu drivers and now have glaring gpu problems, all because they did not install the motherboard drivers, or did an Express install not a Custom/clean install.

Hard to lay blame on just Team Red or Team Green having glitchy drivers as there's many occasions where it's user error/other software error that's the root cause and the gpu errors are nothing more than a result, not the fault.

 

[PlayerDot]

One option what you could do, is buying the new PC except the GPU. And using iGPU or old dedicated GPU (if you have it), until new RTX 4060/4070 releases. Once they come out, you can then buy it. I'm quite sure you'd get far better price to performance ratio with RTX 4060/4070 than you'd get by going with RTX 3070/RX 6800XT.

I was actually considering it. That way I would first get to use all my old parts with the new motherboard and CPU to see if it fixes the issues I've having. If not, I am finally completely vindicated and can blame something other than my specs on glitches, clean my old system and pass it down to my family.

Out of curiosity: does using different parts on the same installation of Windows 10 even cause any serious issues if you reinstall drivers, or is it best to just reinstall everything just to be safe?

 

[Aeacus]

Out of curiosity: does using different parts on the same installation of Windows 10 even cause any serious issues if you reinstall drivers, or is it best to just reinstall everything just to be safe?

If you keep same Win installation but with new parts, especially new MoBo, you'll face loads of different issues. Perhaps even OS corruption. So, it is very bad idea to be lazy and transfer the Win installation over to a new build. Better make clean Win install and then transfer over your personal data.

 

[Karadjgne]

Sage advice ^. Keeping Windows installs after major upgrades is like telling your new wife that that's not how your old girlfriend did it. It's not going to go well. Best to have a fresh start, new Windows, no history to get in the way.

 

[digitalgriffin]

I would swap out the 6800XT for a 6750XT. I've seen them as low as $360. While a tad slower than the 6800, it's a much better bang for your buck because 6800 series isn't made anymore. As supply dried up the price went through the roof.

Or wait a few weeks for AMDs new midline product launch. I don't think the price to performance ratio will move much between gens...because greed. I think you'll see a 16GB 7800XT for $700. 10% faster raster and 20% faster RT. But it will be lower power and supported for a longer period. 7700XT will be $550 and 12gig. 7600XT will be $400 and 7500XT $250. And AMD will call them bargains. Blahahahahahaha

 

[PlayerDot]

I would swap out the 6800XT for a 6750XT. I've seen them as low as $360. While a tad slower than the 6800, it's a much better bang for your buck because 6800 series isn't made anymore. As supply dried up the price went through the roof.

Or wait a few weeks for AMDs new midline product launch. I don't think the price to performance ratio will move much between gens...because greed. I think you'll see a 16GB 7800XT for $700. 10% faster raster and 20% faster RT. But it will be lower power and supported for a longer period. 7700XT will be $550 and 12gig. 7600XT will be $400 and 7500XT $250. And AMD will call them bargains. Blahahahahahaha

It's a good suggestion to pick the 6750XT. On German Amazon the difference between the two is about €150.

However, I am apprehensive.
Since I tend to stick to 1080p and less-than-ultra settings, I tend to go for on cheaper cards thinking that I don't need that power.
"Oh look, this one can run this recently released game at 1080p at 160 FPS on very high, and 80 fps on ultra @ 1440p! That's amazing," I happily exclaim.
Four years later I struggle to hit even 60 on medium settings @ 1080p. Not sure if it's optimization on the developers or just bad temperature management on my end.
It's also why I wanted to go over my usual $1000 budget this time to see how much better performance I'll get out of it.

 

[artk2219]

I was actually considering it. That way I would first get to use all my old parts with the new motherboard and CPU to see if it fixes the issues I've having. If not, I am finally completely vindicated and can blame something other than my specs on glitches, clean my old system and pass it down to my family.

Out of curiosity: does using different parts on the same installation of Windows 10 even cause any serious issues if you reinstall drivers, or is it best to just reinstall everything just to be safe?

Entirely your call, the proper advice is to do a fresh install of windows between major parts replacements, regardless ALWAYS keep a set of backups. That said, I've done it, windows 10 and 11 do a MUCH better job of not crashing and properly reconfiguring when you swap out major components than any prior version of windows. If you decide to go that route its best to make an image of your computer, then do a cleanup of software and drivers before shutting it down to do the hardware swap. Then once you have it back up and running get your drivers sorted and do a scan of windows for any corruption.

 

[artk2219]

It's a good suggestion to pick the 6750XT. On German Amazon the difference between the two is about €150.

However, I am apprehensive.
Since I tend to stick to 1080p and less-than-ultra settings, I tend to go for on cheaper cards thinking that I don't need that power.
"Oh look, this one can run this recently released game at 1080p at 160 FPS on very high, and 80 fps on ultra @ 1440p! That's amazing," I happily exclaim.
Four years later I struggle to hit even 60 on medium settings @ 1080p. Not sure if it's optimization on the developers or just bad temperature management on my end.
It's also why I wanted to go over my usual $1000 budget this time to see how much better performance I'll get out of it.

To be honest you're not guaranteed that wont be the case with high end hardware either, especially if theres been a major tech shift in that time. Also you should have blown outyour computer a few times, and cleaned up, and reapplied thermal paste on that card at least once during that 4 year period for the best performance. That said, people that spent $700 on their 1080 TI's back in 2016 have most definitely had their decision vindicated as that card is still excellent and about as good as an RTX 3060 or RX 6600 XT. Finally, you should always buy the best performing card that you can for the amount you're able to spend.

 

[artk2219]

To be fair, to both of you, neither of you are fully correct, nor fully wrong. Those results are atypical, and only apply to that particular bench test. They are going to vary upto a great deal depending on the case actually used and it's airflow properties.

It's entirely possible that because the cards are actually different physical dimensions, and actual different physical brands, there's going to be differences not only in power usage but also in how the card receives its air.

Nvidia heatsinks have been getting progressively larger, which while that can add to cooling ability, can also deter from it if it's stifling by proximity to the psu, meaning even with lower power consumption and better cooling capacity, it still runs hotter.

So while those test runs are a great place to start, they aren't Gospel, nor indicative of every result.

As to drivers, that's a toss up. Depends on which version, which Windows, whether using DP or HDMI, etc. Both Red and Green have had their fair share of Oops and in more than one occasion it's not their fault, but Microsoft. Drivers that worked just fine yesterday all of a sudden are glitchy like crazy because of a Windows update.

There's also user error. I've seen many, many posts where ppl have had other issues, reinstalled windows and gpu drivers and now have glaring gpu problems, all because they did not install the motherboard drivers, or did an Express install not a Custom/clean install.

Hard to lay blame on just Team Red or Team Green having glitchy drivers as there's many occasions where it's user error/other software error that's the root cause and the gpu errors are nothing more than a result, not the fault.

Thank you for this and I agree, we could spend all day grabbing results that refute one another depending on the site, software, and models of cards used and not get anywhere.

 

[Aeacus]

However, I am apprehensive.
Since I tend to stick to 1080p and less-than-ultra settings, I tend to go for on cheaper cards thinking that I don't need that power.
"Oh look, this one can run this recently released game at 1080p at 160 FPS on very high, and 80 fps on ultra @ 1440p! That's amazing," I happily exclaim.
Four years later I struggle to hit even 60 on medium settings @ 1080p. Not sure if it's optimization on the developers or just bad temperature management on my end.
It's also why I wanted to go over my usual $1000 budget this time to see how much better performance I'll get out of it.

This, for the most part, is to do with newer games requiring far beefier hardware than older games. Hence the FPS drop after few years, especially when you play AAA titles.

While the suggestion of getting as beefy GPU as you can afford, has some truth in it, there is also cost effectiveness to be considered.

Following is what i did;
Bought my Skylake build parts way back in 2016, along with GTX 1060 3GB GPU. At that time, GTX 1060 was solid for 1080p gaming.
Few years forward and in 2019 i upgraded my monitor. From 60 Hz TN panel to 144 Hz VA panel. Of course my GTX 1060 wasn't able to push ~144FPS on 1080p Ultra.
So, in 2020, i upgraded my GPU to GTX 1660 Ti. And while i could've gone with beefier GPU, e.g RTX 2060, that would've been inefficient, since my target was 1080p. RTX 2060 would've merit 2K (1440p) monitor.
Now, 3 years later, i'm still running my GTX 1660 Ti, playing on 1080p High/Ultra levels and have no FPS issues. Some games give me ~80 FPS, some give me 144 FPS. I haven't had to reduce in-game graphics below High/Ultra to get the comfortable FPS. Then again, i don't play AAA titles either. So, there's that.

What i would suggest, regarding GPUs;
If you mainly play AAA titles (e.g Hogwarts: Legacy), get the beefiest GPU you can afford.
But if you mainly play small/casual/old games, get the GPU that will give you close to 144 FPS at 1080p, if your monitor is 144 Hz. That would be GTX 1660 Ti/ GTX 1070/ RTX 3050.

 

[Karadjgne]

One of the best advice posts I've seen is simple. Buy the absolute best you can justify. If you can't justify spending more for the 6800XT over the 6750XT, then the value of that 6800XT is nothing more than a capricious whim or bragging rights or benchmark number chasing.

"Future proofing" is not an excuse, nor a justification. It's a guess that may or may not work out in your favor. There's a lot more than can be done/changed, with justification, with that €150 difference that can definitely improve your entire gaming/pc experience considerably more than a handful of fps you may not even see.