[SOLVED] Upgrade: GPU or CPU? (RX 5700 XT or Ryzen 7 3700X)

[rcrlmpgs]

I'm currently running on an i5 6600K GTX 970 setup (16gbs of RAM of course). I can only upgrade one component at a time (due to budget constraints): either the CPU/MOBO combo or GPU. I'm currently eyeing out the Ryzen 7 3700X (paired with a decent B450) or Gigabyte RX 5700XT Gaming OC. Which should I upgrade first? I'm averaging 50-70 fps in Call of Duty Modern Warfare right now and I want to increase it to have better gameplay. I'm gaming on 1080p 165hz by the way, and I have no plans yet of migrating to 1440p gaming . Thank you!

 

[Shektron]

Depends in what games you play. Also, what is the speed of your current RAM?

If you play games which need the 165 Hz monitor to be maxed out (i.e., get at least an average of 165 FPS), then I'd suggest getting the GPU for now. But if you are fine with slightly lower FPS and/or you play the latest demanding AAA titles, and if you do any type of content creation or workstation tasks with your PC, then I'd upgrade the CPU first, though that 970 is starting to feel its age with new games at this point. Still, from 4 cores to 8 cores is a huge upgrade for some new AAA games, and if you play them or want to play them in the future, then 8 cores will be quite handy and important for a good experience, and you can still get good FPS at medium-high settings with the 970, though of course not 165 FPS.

It's really up to the games you play, and what FPS is comfortable for you in said games.

 

[TheoJames18]

upgrade your GPU first. you cpu should last 1-2 years

 

[rcrlmpgs]

Depends in what games you play. Also, what is the speed of your current RAM?

If you play games which need the 165 Hz monitor to be maxed out (i.e., get at least an average of 165 FPS), then I'd suggest getting the GPU for now. But if you are fine with slightly lower FPS and/or you play the latest demanding AAA titles, and if you do any type of content creation or workstation tasks with your PC, then I'd upgrade the CPU first, though that 970 is starting to feel its age with new games at this point. Still, from 4 cores to 8 cores is a huge upgrade for some new AAA games, and if you play them or want to play them in the future, then 8 cores will be quite handy and important for a good experience, and you can still get good FPS at medium-high settings with the 970, though of course not 165 FPS.

It's really up to the games you play, and what FPS is comfortable for you in said games.

Hi, thanks for the quick response. My RAM speed is currently at 2400 only. True, 970 is kinda struggling nowadays.

Nowadays, I mainly play Call of Duty Warzone, maybe it takes up around 70% of my PC usage, the rest is either GTA V/Sea of Thieves/CSGO/and other internet stuff. I'm also interested in streaming on twitch to save my gameplay replays, so I'm using OBS. As to fps, I just want to exceed 100 fps on average --- Lastly, I just really want to have that assurance that whatever I will upgrade into, will last for around 4-5 more years.

 

[rcrlmpgs]

upgrade your GPU first. you cpu should last 1-2 years

I see, just really worrying about the 4 cores thing; where as everything else is at least 6 cores and having hyperthreading. Do you think COD MW is a CPU/GPU based game?

 

[TheoJames18]

before PS5 release, 4 cores is safe for gaming because games dev tend to port games from console for max perf on both console and pc

 

[Shektron]

Hi, thanks for the quick response. My RAM speed is currently at 2400 only. True, 970 is kinda struggling nowadays.

Nowadays, I mainly play Call of Duty Warzone, maybe it takes up around 70% of my PC usage, the rest is either GTA V/Sea of Thieves/CSGO/and other internet stuff. I'm also interested in streaming on twitch to save my gameplay replays, so I'm using OBS. As to fps, I just want to exceed 100 fps on average --- Lastly, I just really want to have that assurance that whatever I will upgrade into, will last for around 4-5 more years.

Considering that you also want to record your gameplay, I would really suggest going with the CPU upgrade first, because 4 cores might handle most games but it really cannot handle recording them simultaneously, and you will see a difference in smoothness when upgrading to 8 cores. If you upgrade the CPU now, how long would it take for you to save up again for a GPU upgrade?

 

[rcrlmpgs]

Considering that you also want to record your gameplay, I would really suggest going with the CPU upgrade first, because 4 cores might handle most games but it really cannot handle recording them simultaneously, and you will see a difference in smoothness when upgrading to 8 cores. If you upgrade the CPU now, how long would it take for you to save up again for a GPU upgrade?

I see. Maybe around a year? Lol.

By the way, in your opinion, if I upgrade the CPU, how much % will my FPS increase? (Considering that my average is 50-70 right now on medium settings).

Thanks for the help by the way, I really need people's opinion on this.

 

[Shektron]

I see. Maybe around a year? Lol.

By the way, in your opinion, if I upgrade the CPU, how much % will my FPS increase? (Considering that my average is 50-70 right now on medium settings).

Thanks for the help by the way, I really need people's opinion on this.

For that you'll need to check your GPU usage when playing games. If it's 100%, your FPS will NOT increase when you upgrade - it will only become more consistent and smooth. If it's less than 95%, which is unlikely given your CPU, it might increase, but by how much is difficult to tell - it'll just depend on how much the GPU can push out when running at 100% usage in that game, at those settings. If you want more FPS with your upgrade, and your GPU is currently at 100% usage, then you need to upgrade the GPU. Upgrading the CPU will not lead to a huge FPS increase, just smoothness of FPS and ability of the PC to multitask.

 

[logainofhades]

Since you are streaming, via OBS, I would recommend a 2060s or better. NVENC can handle the tasks, for your stream, much better than the encoder, from AMD.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYOWEyyDcb8&t=275s