Question What GPU to upgrade to?

[Xzoyed]

My current build is

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 465X RGB GAMING CASE

Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-10600K (4.1 GHz) 12 MB Cache

Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME Z490-P (LGA1200, USB 3.2, CrossFireX) - ARGB Ready

Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)

Graphics Card
MSI Nvudia GeForce RTX 3060Ti Gaming Z Trio

1st Storage Drive
512GB PCS 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)

2nd Storage Drive
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE

Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET

Processor Cooling
Corsair H100x Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler

What should i upgrade my GPU to? I play at 1080p feel like my sytem is being held back possibly by my CPU though but really don't want to go through upgrading that if I can help it just as I have never installed a CPU before. Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[Lutfij]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

Where are you located? What is your budget for your GPU purchase? Preferred site for purchase for said GPU?

I play at 1080p feel like my sytem is being held back possibly by my CPU
IMHO, you're in good hand with your current setup if 1080p is where you're at. What makes you think that? What sort of titles are you taxing the system with? Pass on benchmarking scores for your platform and perhaps in-game metrics.

1st Storage Drive
512GB PCS 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)
Make and model of your SSD? You might want to consider adding an NVMe SSD to your platform and have all games on it. I'd look into a PCIe3.0x4 1~2TB SSD. The OS can remain on your 2.5" SSD.

BIOS version for your motherboard?

 

[logainofhades]

A 3060ti should still be quite good for most 1080p gaming, and your CPU I don't think should be holding you back, unless you are playing some very CPU dependent games. The two things I would do with that system, is swap that ram out for a 2x32gb kit, and get yourself a 2tb NVME drive to put your games on. I am assuming you are running them off of that HDD. The SSD you are using could also be running full, due to its small size, if running games there and that will slow you down too.


PCPartPicker Part List

Memory: TEAMGROUP T-Force Vulcan Z 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($46.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Silicon Power UD90 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($92.97 @ B&H)
Total: $139.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-03-14 09:13 EDT-0400

 

[QyInvoLing]

3060ti is fine, learn how to replace motherboard+CPU and replace this 10600k

 

[Xzoyed]

3060ti is fine, learn how to replace motherboard+CPU and replace this 10600k

Yeah that definitely may be the option

 

[Xzoyed]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

Where are you located? What is your budget for your GPU purchase? Preferred site for purchase for said GPU?

I play at 1080p feel like my sytem is being held back possibly by my CPU
IMHO, you're in good hand with your current setup if 1080p is where you're at. What makes you think that? What sort of titles are you taxing the system with? Pass on benchmarking scores for your platform and perhaps in-game metrics.

1st Storage Drive
512GB PCS 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 450MB/W)
Make and model of your SSD? You might want to consider adding an NVMe SSD to your platform and have all games on it. I'd look into a PCIe3.0x4 1~2TB SSD. The OS can remain on your 2.5" SSD.

BIOS version for your motherboard?

Hi thanks for the response forgot to mention i do have a WD BLACK SN770 1TB M.2 Internal SSD installed now. But I will look into new ram for sure. What GPU upgrade would you recomend if i was to as well?

 

[logainofhades]

That would depend much on your budget.

 

[Xzoyed]

That would depend much on your budget.

No budget what's probably the best card that can go in my rig without upgrading CPU?

 

[SkyNetRising]

No budget what's probably the best card that can go in my rig without upgrading CPU?

You really have to specify budget.
With no budget limitations - RTX 5070 ti.
If you upgrade PSU, then RTX 5080 or RTX 5090.

But I can imagine, you wouldn't want to be paying current scalper level prices for those cards.

 

[Xzoyed]

You really have to specify budget.
With no budget limitations - RTX 5070 ti.
If you upgrade PSU, then RTX 5080 or RTX 5090.

But I can imagine, you wouldn't want to be paying current scalper level prices for those cards.

Let's say 1000 then

 

[SkyNetRising]

Let's say 1000 then

1000 of what?
AUD, CAD, EUR ?

 

[QyInvoLing]

No budget what's probably the best card that can go in my rig without upgrading CPU?

There's no need upgrading your graphics card if you keep your 10600k to play 1080p games. If you want a better card, buy a better monitor too, and you'll find great improvement of display quality.

 

[logainofhades]

A 10600k can start to see a slight bottleneck, around the RTX 3080 levels of performance, at 1080p, looking at the 10600k, 11600k and 12600k techpowerup reviews. Honestly, I wouldn't change that 3060ti without changing platforms. The money spent will not provide you much of an FPS boost.

With $1k you could go with getting a nicer GPU, and maybe a nice 1440p monitor, to help alleviate said bottleneck. Problem is good cards are hard to get, due to recent launches, and shortages.

 

[Xzoyed]

1000 of what?
AUD, CAD, EUR ?

Would be GBP

 

[SkyNetRising]

Would be GBP

RTX 5070 ti and RX 9070 XT would fit within your 1000 GBP budget.

Note MSRP for those cards is $750 and $600 respectively. You'd be paying quite a premium in current market.

 

[ohio_buckeye]

Current market is crazy now. Best bet if staying at 1080p is platform upgrade then you are ready to grab a faster gpu and nicer monitor if the market begins to even out.

 

[helper800]

Would be GBP

With no budget in mind and a way to alleviate your CPU bottle neck as much as possible while also getting a monitor/GCard upgrade I would do this:

PCPartPicker Part List

Video Card: Palit GamingPro GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card (£829.99 @ AWD-IT)
Monitor: Philips Evnia 8000 27M2N8500 26.5" 2560 x 1440 360 Hz Monitor (£599.99 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £1429.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-03-14 18:28 GMT+0000

If you don't want a new monitor the 5070 ti is about the best you can get without getting super deep into scalper price territory. The 9070 XT is an honorable mention if you can get if for cheaper. I have a feeling like you may want to upgrade the whole system after you experience such a monitor and graphics card and are held back a bit by the 10600k.

 

[rcald2000]

Hello Xzoyed. Which games do you play?

What is your goal here? To double your FPS? Increase your in-game graphics settings (e.g. from medium to ultra)? Your answer to these questions would help us get a better understanding of why you feel that you need a component upgrade.

Your specs
Core i5-10600K | Asus Prime Z490-P | 16GB (2X 8GB) 3200MT | 512GB SSD / 1TB HDD | MSI RTX 3060 Ti Gaming Z Trio | Corsair TX750M