Question What gaming system would you build to get the lowest input latency?

[klavs]

What system would you build to get the lowest input latency? Please include the list of components as text, so people don't have to click external links that may not exist in the future.

I found this interesting new video on YouTube that looks at input latency from mouse to screen, depending on the components of your total system:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QDoy7X0cOY


Here is a link to a picture from the video of a comparison between GTX 1060, RTX 3090 and RTX 4090 (the video also includes AMD cards):

https://imgur.com/a/QANncOC

View: https://imgur.com/a/QANncOC

This is the system I chose for myself, which is not optimal is (I refuse to spend more money on a gaming system, but I would like to know what the optimal system is and I am too lazy to test myself):

Motherboard       ASUS TUF Gaming X570-Plus
CPU               AMD Ryzen 7 5700X 3.4GHz
GPU               ASUS GeForce RTX 4070 Ti TUF Gaming OC
RAM               2x16GB G.Skill Trident Z Neo DDR4 3600MHz CL14
SSD               Samsung 990 Pro 2TB

I may switch the CPU to a 5800X3D. In case it matters to you, I am using a Logitech Superlight mouse and G915 keyboard.

 

[Ralston18]

I would build a system based on the game or games' stated hardware and OS requirements.

Often listed in the form of "minimal", "recommended", or "best".

Most games provide some listing of hardware requirements in the form of "minimal", "recommended", and "best".

You do not want "minimal" and you do want as much "best" as you can afford.

What games do you want to play?

Mouse and keyboard rarely matter.

CPU/GPU/RAM/ and even PSU being more relevant.

Many systems will play games very well without needing some "gaming" labeling applied.

Spec's matter - not labels.

 

[klavs]

I would build a system based on the game or games' stated hardware and OS requirements. [...] you want as much "best" as you can afford.

I mainly play shooters and prefer low latency and fast frame rates and also go for as close to "best recommended hardware" as my budget allows.

CPU/GPU/RAM are more relevant. Spec's matter - not labels.

That's what the video I linked is about, although it only covers AMD & Nvidia GPUs and Intel & AMD CPUs. I was surprised to see such a big difference in latency, depending on the choice of GPU/CPU which is not something I have looked at before. I wrongly assumed that the latency was almost the same, and that only the FPS was affected. Most normal people wont tweak their settings or research how to do it, and will get the differences in latency, similar to the image I pasted from the video.

 

[Ralston18]

I am always leery about such charts and comparisons. Actually more skeptical and cynical overall about such things is a more accurate statement.

Ideally to be fair, everything should be exactly the same except for the specifc component being measured.

Note, for example, that the 4090 and 3090 do not list the memory while the 1060 clearly shows 6 GB.

Why?

FYI:

https://www.pcworld.com/article/1348123/nvidia-geforce-rtx-4090-review-ada-lovelace.html

Scroll down and take a look at the much more detailed specifications.

= = = =

There will be differences in performance/latency.

However those differences may not really be meaningful and possibly within some margin of error. Plus completely transparent to the gaming process at any level barring gross variations. Something that can be explicitly tweaked via clocking and voltage with an end user impact.

Or those latencies completely made moot because of internet and/or even network latencies. "Only as fast as the slowest".

You are quite correct in looking into ways to minimize latency.

Just keep in mind that "differences" may not be what they appear to be and might not make any difference at all.

"Best recommended hardware" per budget should be good as I see things.

 

[kerberos_20]

if gpu is doing upscaling, then it also adds input latency
how to check if your GPU is upscaling or not? check display settings, active signal should be same as desktop resolution

here you can see gpu driver is used for upscaling

and here no upscaling is used, but if your monitor has to upscale aswell, then that will also add input latency

another stuff for improving latency on both AMD and nvidia is radeon anti-lag/nvidia low latency driver settings, keep in mind to have those things working, GPU cannot be maxed, it has to have free resources so it can render ahead, so scene gets prepared faster and you get your lower input lag
maybe thats why so big diff between gtx 1060 and rtx 4090, as rtx 4090 has way more free resources during gaming than gtx 1060 has

 

[Lucky_SLS]

If its competitive gaming, it comes down to the internet connection that most would give you the most latency.

The packet loss and ping matters. Typically if you are getting 30ms or lower ping with 0 packet loss, you have a good stable connection.

the selected 4070ti can deliver high fps in most esports titles and a 5700X is more than enough.

You could even downscale to a WD770 SSD. 3500mbps vs 7000mbps wont give any performance difference...

 

[GarrettL]

What system would you build to get the lowest input latency? Please include the list of components as text, so people don't have to click external links that may not exist in the future.

I found this interesting new video on YouTube that looks at input latency from mouse to screen, depending on the components of your total system:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QDoy7X0cOY


Here is a link to a picture from the video of a comparison between GTX 1060, RTX 3090 and RTX 4090 (the video also includes AMD cards):

https://imgur.com/a/QANncOC

View: https://imgur.com/a/QANncOC

This is the system I chose for myself, which is not optimal is (I refuse to spend more money on a gaming system, but I would like to know what the optimal system is and I am too lazy to test myself):

Motherboard       ASUS TUF Gaming X570-Plus
CPU               AMD Ryzen 7 5700X 3.4GHz
GPU               ASUS GeForce RTX 4070 Ti TUF Gaming OC
RAM               2x16GB G.Skill Trident Z Neo DDR4 3600MHz CL14
SSD               Samsung 990 Pro 2TB

I may switch the CPU to a 5800X3D. In case it matters to you, I am using a Logitech Superlight mouse and G915 keyboard.

Does Asus offer an updated verison of the TUF without the chipset fan? I have been runnign this motherboard for over three years without any issues. Was my main gaming rig with a 3800x and 2070S at 1440p 144Hz. Wife neded a pc and went to her.

Built a 5800x3d, MSI GAG Tomahawk x570s (no chipset and better aduio than Asus Tuf) with a 4070 TI at 1440p 144Hz. Killer gaming rig with no issues and smooth as silk.

 

[klavs]

Does Asus offer an updated verison of the TUF without the chipset fan?

I have also been looking for a motherboard without a chipset fan and couldn't find any for a reasonable price / that I liked. I am considering the, although expensive but sturdy, Gigabyte X570 Aorus Xtreme 2.0. Do you have an opinion on that board?

Built a 5800x3d, MSI GAG Tomahawk x570s (no chipset and better aduio than Asus Tuf) with a 4070 TI at 1440p 144Hz.

What do your consider cons of the MSI x570s? Btw, as far as I recall the Asus has 8.0 audio, the MSI only has 7.1 ... I may remember wrong. Therefore I figured that the Asus had better sound than the MSI (I am not on expert on sound cards/audio chips). Did you listen to the sound with the same headphones/speakers/amps/equalizer?