[SOLVED] Upgrading from 1060 to 3070 Ti

[Shujee]

I currently own a 4 years old PC with the following specs:

• ASRock > Z370 Killer SLI/ac
• Intel i5 8400
• 16GB RAM (G.Skill DDR-3000)
• MSI 1060 Gaming X: MSI Global - The Leading Brand in High-end Gaming & Professional Creation
• NZXT S340: NZXT S340 Mid-Tower Chassis (White) CA-S340W-W1 B&H Photo Video (bhphotovideo.com)
• EVGA 80+ GOLD 650W,

Though it is still performing decently (has Samsung 970 Evo Plus and boots Win11 under 7 seconds), I'm planning to upgrade my graphics card to something more recent, e.g. 3070 Ti. Can someone help me with the following questions:

1. Is there enough clearance in my motherboard and case to put in a 3070 Ti? Are there any brands that will be too large for it given that MSI 1060 already fits in it.
2. Is it worth the upgrade given that I do not change any other component? Will the CPU or my x16 slot become a bottleneck for the GPU? What kind of performance boost should I realistically expect?
3. Is the graphic card too good for my PSU?
4. If I'm left with a little money after buying the GC (given that the prices are crashing), which other component should I upgrade (I probably can't go for a current-gen processor on this mainboard, right?)

 

[KyaraM]

1. RTX 3070ti 's should be about 12" long based on info on MSI's site, your case takes cards up to 15.4". You are good.
2. Yes, the upgrade will be noticeable. That CPU should be able to handle the GPU just fine, even better at 1440p which I would recommend for this card. It's kinda wasted on 1080p and for that, a 3060, for example, would be enough.
3. You should get a 750W PSU at minimum for a 3070ti.
4. If you got money left after getting a new PSU also, and don't have a 1440p screen yet, go for that. No, a current-gen CPU won't fit your board, and they would want 3200MHz or 3600MHz RAM anyways. I would have to read up on it myself real quick, but a 9th gen CPU could work. A moment...

Edit:
The board should be compatible with 9th gen CPUs up to the i9-9900K. You might want to look at an i7 or an i5 like the 9600K.