[SOLVED] upgrade ideas.

Deepwaterlife48

Commendable
Nov 5, 2021
113
6
1,585
okay so. a little over a year and a half ago i made my first build in probably 15 years..
CPU: Ryzen 7 3700x w/wraith prism cooler. MBD: MSI MPG B550 gaming plus
RAM: Adata XPG Spectrix TUF Gaming D41 2x8 gb 3200 cl 16
BOOT SSD: Samsung 960 Evo 250gb HDD: Seagate Barracuda Compute 7200 rpm 2tb x2
GPU: Asus ROG STRIX GTX 1660 Super PSU: Thermaltake Toughpower Grand RGN 750w 80+ Gold
Case: Fractal Design Meshify C ATX Mid Dark Tempered Glass.
Case Fans: Uphere brand RGB 120mm x 5. Front: 2x120mm. intake. Top: 2x120mm Exhaust. Rear: 1x120mm Exhaust.

i just upgraded from the stock 2x120mm gp-12 (120mm) fans(1 front 1 rear) to 5 120mm fans. to help add more cooling and add more color.

i do a little bit of gaming and normal browsing, apps etc. having recently moved more into steam games rather than my ps4 pro over the last year or so, i'm thinking of making a list of possible upgrades.
im thinking my biggest weaknesses are as follows in order:
Ram, SSD, CPU, GPU, Case

Upgrading the ram from xpg spectrix d41 2x8gb 3200 cl16 to either the d45 , d50 or d60, 2x16gb 3600. im thinking this would improve balance of the memory, create a few more fps and efficiency.
Upgrading from the samsung 960 evo to the either 980 or 980 pro. im thinking having a 500gb/1tb/2tb ssd with better speeds on it may improve performance.
Upgrading the cpu from 7 3700x to something like 7 5700x? not sure yet.
Upgrading the gpu to maybe the 2060 s? not sure yet.
Upgrading the case from Meshify C Dark TG to another. Either for space if i upgrade the GPU like the Fractal Meshify 2 or something like the Cooler Master td 500/ Corsair 4000 airflow.


score page from user benchmark.
https://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/54636172


thoughts?
 
Solution
RAM: Upgrading your RAM wont really improve performance unless you are actively running out of memory currently. 3200MHz to 3600MHz likely wont be noticeable. If you are close to running out of memory with normal use, then a capacity upgrade is a good move.

SSD: Upgrading the SSD will have zero impact on the system with the way you use it, anything faster than your current drive will only be noticeable when transferring large numbers of large files between two fast drives (like photo/video editing). Gaming and general use is an absolute waste. So get another larger, basic NVME drive and save the money.

CPU: Likely not needed, your in game performance is likely more GPU bound, but you can confirm this by monitoring usage in game.

GPU...
RAM: Upgrading your RAM wont really improve performance unless you are actively running out of memory currently. 3200MHz to 3600MHz likely wont be noticeable. If you are close to running out of memory with normal use, then a capacity upgrade is a good move.

SSD: Upgrading the SSD will have zero impact on the system with the way you use it, anything faster than your current drive will only be noticeable when transferring large numbers of large files between two fast drives (like photo/video editing). Gaming and general use is an absolute waste. So get another larger, basic NVME drive and save the money.

CPU: Likely not needed, your in game performance is likely more GPU bound, but you can confirm this by monitoring usage in game.

GPU: Probably a good move, prices are dropping at the moment, so I would wait a bit longer and look into a 3060Ti or higher class card.

Case: Personal preference.
 
Solution
I'm not sure I would call a 3700X a 'weakness', or the Meshify C. In the latter I have a Core i9 and 3080 and haven't run into space issues, you'd only have trouble if you wanted to mount a 360mm AIO at the front. Then you'd have to take out the HDD's and would possibly have trouble with a long graphics card.

To me storage is your biggest weakness, I would upgrade that straight away. I'd keep the HDD's for storage but ideally you want your apps and games stored on SSD's. 32GB of RAM would also be an upgrade I would make, but that's not really going to do anything to boost your frame rate, it's just a nice to have for multitasking.

I wouldn't upgrade to a 5700X, that's a waste of money, if you upgrade your CPU then a 5900X should be your minimum IMO. I wouldn't upgrade to a 2060 Super from a 1660 Super either.

Is there a particular goal here, you say you do a little bit of gaming and browsing. Are there scenarios where you find your PC performance insufficient ? It's just to me it's a pretty solid machine already with some good quality components.
 

Deepwaterlife48

Commendable
Nov 5, 2021
113
6
1,585
i think ive built a fairly solid system, but i'm trying to improve efficiency. i find when im gaming i use around 10-12gb of the 16 gb ram available. so i was thinking more ram would be smart.

the 2tb hard drives are mainly for storage as the 250gb 960 evo nvme is my boot drive. the upgrading to the ssd was to give me more space for my boot sd and i worry that it being nearly 6 years old it may not last a long time. im not editing much photos or video editing.

noted about 5900x minimum for the future.

i was looking at the prices on userbenchmark, amazon, ebay and the 2060 super seemed like prices were decent.
 
Yes you'd probably benefit from more RAM going forward. 6 years isn't as much as it sounds, they have a very long lifespan and you bought a good quality one, but you could use more SSD space.

Do you have a budget for these upgrades and are there games and applications that you have in mind when thinking of GPU upgrades?
 

Deepwaterlife48

Commendable
Nov 5, 2021
113
6
1,585
Yes you'd probably benefit from more RAM going forward. 6 years isn't as much as it sounds, they have a very long lifespan and you bought a good quality one, but you could use more SSD space.

Do you have a budget for these upgrades and are there games and applications that you have in mind when thinking of GPU upgrades?

i figured 2x16 will be more solid than 2x8gb.
ive bought recently cyberpunk 2077, the mass effect remaster, red dead redemption 2, the halo master chief collection, lego star wars collection, yakuza kiwami, jedi fallen order.

im trying to try new types of games as most of my franchises i've played for decades are dead or ancient. doom, starcraft, eve online, final fantasy, wild arms, xenogears, shadow of mordor/war, dishonored.

this is all for future planning. so no set budget at the moment.
 
Last edited:
I've played Cyberpunk 2077 on a 1660 Super, you would need to lower the resolution scale to run at high settings. If I remember correctly though Cyberpunk has been updated to support AMD Super Resolution so you might get more mileage out of it. You'd benefit from a faster GPU on that and Red Dead 2, Fallen Order should run quite well. Shadow of Mordor and Halo MCC are easy to run, actually playing the latter now. Can't comment on the others.

The 1660 Super is still a capable card, there's nothing there that you can't get a good result on. However there is a benefit to having more power for the chunky monkeys like Cyberpunk and RD2. If you wanted my two cents, upgrade SSD, RAM but keep the CPU and get a 30 series card instead if your upgrading the GPU. I don't know what prices your looking at for the 2060S, they just didn't seem particularly low to me on ebay.
 
okay so. a little over a year and a half ago i made my first build in probably 15 years..
CPU: Ryzen 7 3700x w/wraith prism cooler. MBD: MSI MPG B550 gaming plus
RAM: Adata XPG Spectrix TUF Gaming D41 2x8 gb 3200 cl 16
BOOT SSD: Samsung 960 Evo 250gb HDD: Seagate Barracuda Compute 7200 rpm 2tb x2
GPU: Asus ROG STRIX GTX 1660 Super PSU: Thermaltake Toughpower Grand RGN 750w 80+ Gold
Case: Fractal Design Meshify C ATX Mid Dark Tempered Glass.
Case Fans: Uphere brand RGB 120mm x 5. Front: 2x120mm. intake. Top: 2x120mm Exhaust. Rear: 1x120mm Exhaust.

i just upgraded from the stock 2x120mm gp-12 (120mm) fans(1 front 1 rear) to 5 120mm fans. to help add more cooling and add more color.

i do a little bit of gaming and normal browsing, apps etc. having recently moved more into steam games rather than my ps4 pro over the last year or so, i'm thinking of making a list of possible upgrades.
im thinking my biggest weaknesses are as follows in order:
Ram, SSD, CPU, GPU, Case

Upgrading the ram from xpg spectrix d41 2x8gb 3200 cl16 to either the d45 , d50 or d60, 2x16gb 3600. im thinking this would improve balance of the memory, create a few more fps and efficiency.
Upgrading from the samsung 960 evo to the either 980 or 980 pro. im thinking having a 500gb/1tb/2tb ssd with better speeds on it may improve performance.
Upgrading the cpu from 7 3700x to something like 7 5700x? not sure yet.
Upgrading the gpu to maybe the 2060 s? not sure yet.
Upgrading the case from Meshify C Dark TG to another. Either for space if i upgrade the GPU like the Fractal Meshify 2 or something like the Cooler Master td 500/ Corsair 4000 airflow.


score page from user benchmark.
https://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/54636172


thoughts?
Instead of guessing run your stuff and monitor.

What's busy?
What's full?
What's too hot?
What does not work to your liking?
 
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Deepwaterlife48

Commendable
Nov 5, 2021
113
6
1,585
Instead of guessing run your stuff and monitor.

What's busy?
What's full?
What's too hot?
What does not work to your liking?

im trying to listen to lafong, gamer, and night hawk and proceed as noted.

steam and various games run 10-12gb out of the 16gb of ram i have,
cpu temps sit around 62. gpu around 47.
fps are fine most of the time. however red dead 2, cyberpunk seem to cause both cpu/gpu temps to spike, some occasional frame lag. fallen order is mostly smooth. eve online can lag however i believe thats more the game and not the computer.

the ssd i've been looking at is the samsung 980 m.2. 1tb. i'm not a photo or video editor so i dont feel i really need the pro version. as well as someone above stated that its overkill for what im using my computer for.
- battle is 960 evo 250gb vs 980 1tb.

the gpu's ive been looking at are the 2060s and the 3060 as they both seem to be around $415.

if i upgrade the gpu will the ryzen 7 3700x be able to handle the 2060 super or the 3060 or would i need to upgrade to the 7 5900x?

nighthawk said his 3080 card fits into the same case. so unless i get an unusually long card i should be good. what is the strongest gpu the 7 3700x can accommodate?
 
Last edited:
fps are fine most of the time. however red dead 2, cyberpunk seem to cause both cpu/gpu temps to spike, some occasional frame lag. fallen order is mostly smooth. eve online can lag however i believe thats more the game and not the computer.
I play Cyberpunk and RD2, they are both very demanding, particularly Cyberpunk. The latter will use all 8 cores and 16 threads on the 3700X if your running the game with ray tracing enabled so it will heat up the CPU.

the gpu's ive been looking at are the 2060s and the 3060 as they both seem to be around $415.
I'm in the UK so can be a little tricky looking at prices, but the 2060 Supers looked too expensive to me. Unless you get a bargain I think your better off with a 3060.

if i upgrade the gpu will the ryzen 7 3700x be able to handle the 2060 super or the 3060 or would i need to upgrade to the 7 5900x?
Generally yes the 3700X is more than capable of handling a 2060 Super or 3060. There are improvements to be had with newer CPU's if your playing at very high refresh rates like 144/165hz, but how much so would be highly dependant on the game and what graphical settings.

The reason I suggested a 5900X is not because you need one, it's because your CPU is already very good, that the upgrade to the 5700X is more of an incremental one. I don't know what budget you have available, but games like RD2 and Cyberpunk require a lot of GPU horsepower to run on high settings. In my view the GPU therefore should be the component you prioritise for an upgrade.

nighthawk said his 3080 card fits into the same case. so unless i get an unusually long card i should be good. what is the strongest gpu the 7 3700x can accommodate?
For reference I have a Palit 3080 Gaming Pro in my Meshify C which is 294mm long. As above it depends on what your doing with it, if your playing competitive multiplayer in Battlefield or Cod Warzone at very high refresh rates then it's possible to run into a CPU bottleneck with a high end card. However if you run games like Red Dead 2, Assassins Creed Valhalla or Cybperpunk at max settings at 1440p for example, then pairing a 3080 with a 3700X wouldn't be wasted.
 

Deepwaterlife48

Commendable
Nov 5, 2021
113
6
1,585
my current gpu is a rog strix 1660 super i nabbed off of newegg about december 2020 for about $240 new.
basically i just want to be able to run all the games i have at at least high if not max settings without overheating. which is one of the reasons i swapped out the 2 stock 120 fans for 5 120mm fans that have a better rpm speed performance. i would possibly like to get into streaming at some point as another form of income but it seems that field has also exploded recently, maybe due to twitch and the pandemic.

looking into things more, the 2060 super was the direct upgrade to the 1660s.
the 2060 super via ebay and amazon run about $420
rog strix 3060 is available nearby for $470 american. 3060 ti $480
2070 $480.
2080/ 2080 ti are out of my price range.

max i can spend for now is around $500 american.
i can either go gpu next or ssd/ram for around $250 ish. and then save up again for the next upgrades or just wait longer and do them all at the same time. i'm thinking the smart thing is to do it one piece at a time so that i dont tax my budget so hard.
 

Deepwaterlife48

Commendable
Nov 5, 2021
113
6
1,585
according to cpu-z and gpu-z as recommended in a previous thread i made, i run around 45-50C on the gpu and 58c -65c on the cpu with 3x120mm intake fans(front), 3x 120mm exhaust fans(2 top, 1 rear) and the wraith prism cpu cooler that came with the 3700x under load.
 

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