Question What graphics cards are capable of outputting to 4k 120hz?

[g-unit1111]

I just bought a 55" LG QNED TV which has a max resolution of 4K and a max output rate of 120Hz, and is going to be a massive upgrade from my nearly 10 year old Vizio. The PC that I have hooked up to my current TV is a EVGA 2070, but I also have access to a 3060TI and am in the process of updating that system. The question is, is my current system capable of outputting to 4K 120Hz or am I going to have to look at building an entirely new SFF rig? Could I also run it off of the 3060TI as well? I did just buy a Lian Li A4-H20 and will be moving the components of that system over to the new case (mainly because of air flow issues with the Node 202), but I may wind up buying some new hardware as well. If I am looking at buying a new GPU, would the 4070TI suffice?

These are the current specs:

Fractal Design Node 202
Corsair SF600
Asus ROG Strix B550-i
AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
32GB G Skill Trident Z DDR4-3600
1TB WD SN750
EVGA GeForce RTX 2070

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

What graphics cards are capable of outputting to 4k 120hz?

just outputting basic video or actually handling modern gaming with decent performance?

 

[boju]

Im running Lg C1 4k 4096x2160 120Hz with 3060Ti, for a racing sim. The cable connection is fine (using Cruxtec Hdmi 2.1 3m cable as reference) and 3840 x 2160 or 4096x2160 resolutions are available under PC set of resolutions in Windows and NvidiaCP. Tv resolutions is limited to 60Hz so make sure you scroll down to PC set of resolutions to avoid a heart attack lol. But you're probably aware of that.

Performance wise, in Project Cars 2 is great and is very good in Assetto Corsa Competizione as well depending on settings. PC2 being an older title does run better though but this Tv and i suppose yours as well be just as capable scaling 1440p very well, if needed extra performance.

Depending on games you want to play, probably for you, id look at something more powerful, around 3080~3080Ti level to make the most of your Tv. So a 4070Ti would most likely be adequate but youll have to look at benchmarks i guess. Keep in mind though, running games in 4k even on such large screens is so crisp that antialiasing or other image enhancement techniques in games aren't really necessary so you could improve performance further compared to review sites that like to up antialiasing to max.

 

[ttower2020]

As mentioned above, what are you trying to do? Outputting YT video to your TV is something either GPU you currently have are more than capable enough. The real question is what games are you playing. Playing extremely demanding AAA games on max settings is going to require a much more powerful GPU than simpler or older games.

The simplified answer to your simplified question is Yes. We need more details to really give proper advice.

 

[g-unit1111]

just outputting basic video or actually handling modern gaming with decent performance?

Yeah I forgot I should have specified that this will definitely be used for gaming and HD video streaming.

 

[Why_Me]

Yeah I forgot I should have specified that this will definitely be used for gaming and HD video streaming.

 

[Dragos Manea]

Nvidia is stuck with dp 1.4a or hdmi 2.1 which will do video compression for 4k above 60 Hz, if you want true 120Hz 4k image you should go with amd 7000 series which have DP 2.1 which supports native 4k 120 Hz, not compressed.

 

[boju]

Nvidia is stuck with dp 1.4a or hdmi 2.1 which will do video compression for 4k above 60 Hz, if you want true 120Hz 4k image you should go with amd 7000 series which have DP 2.1 which supports native 4k 120 Hz, not compressed.

Not entirely and depends on manufacturer. Hdmi 2.1 can do 4k 120Hz uncompressed. But this is also confusing and i don't think you nor i fully understand the technicalities of it all.

What is HDMI 2.1? An Overview

HDMI 2.1 is arguably one of the most significant upgrades to the HDMI standard. Originally announced in November 2017, HDMI 2.1 significantly increases the maximum bandwidth capability of HDMI up to 48Gbps, and even more when compression is used.

www.rtings.com

https://www.hdmi.org/spec21sub/eightk60_fourk120#:~:text=The specification supports both uncompressed,implement either or both modes

Anyway, don't think it really matters and doubt anyone would notice if signal was compressed or not.

 

[Dragos Manea]

Not entirely and depends on manufacturer. Hdmi 2.1 can do 4k 120Hz uncompressed. But this is also confusing and i don't think you nor i fully understand the technicalities of it all.

What is HDMI 2.1? An Overview

HDMI 2.1 is arguably one of the most significant upgrades to the HDMI standard. Originally announced in November 2017, HDMI 2.1 significantly increases the maximum bandwidth capability of HDMI up to 48Gbps, and even more when compression is used.

www.rtings.com

https://www.hdmi.org/spec21sub/eightk60_fourk120#:~:text=The specification supports both uncompressed,implement either or both modes

Anyway, don't think it really matters and doubt anyone would notice if signal was compressed or not.

I agree in this matter but before you post a suggestion like to use nvidia the OP must be aware of all benefits and disadvantages and let OP decide which he wants. Anyway i m one of that persone which can hear up to 19KHz and see differences between uncompressed and compressed, trust is more like a curse then a benefit.

 

[geofelt]

G.unit-1111;
I can help here.
I also have a 48" LG C1 OLED TV @120hz.
I wanted to get to 120hz.

There are a couple of requirements.
a) The gpu needs to be able to output hdmi 2.1
This capability is present on the 3000 series nvidia cards. I upgraded to RTX3070; your 3060ti should work just fine.
b) Also, there is a spectrum of hdmi cable qualities.
You will want to use an Ultra high quality cable. Monoprice carries them.

DP to hdmi adapters were useless.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

moving up to 4K 120Hz HDR television i also went with RTX 3000.
originally had an RX 6700XT but it offered terrible performance at that resolution with HDR enabled.
the AMD got ~50fps on games like Cyberpunk 2077 & Kingdom Come: Deliverance with mostly highest settings.
the RTX 3080 Ti seems to have no trouble maintaining ~110-120fps.

had a bit of trouble finding a long enough HDMI cable capable of outputting with HDR enabled.

went through a couple that claimed they were up to the bandwidth but could not actually handle it, one from Basesailor and one from Sikai.
though they could do 4K 120Hz, they would not allow HDR to be enabled at the same time.
there are many generics that just use false advertising.

ended up with a 30' Adoreen Fiber Optic that handles it fine.

 

[Avro Arrow]

If you're talking about 2160p120Hz 2D video, sure, the RTX 3060 Ti will do it. Hell, lots of cards weaker than that can do it.

However, 2160p120Hz 3D Gaming is a bit more nuanced:

The newest titles (like Hogwarts Legacy) - No card can do this
Titles from the last 5 years - Only the RTX 4090 might be able to do this

Other titles: You can try but I can't think of a single game that the RTX 3060 Ti can play at 2160p120Hz. It's only a mid-grade gaming card that's more suited to 1080p and 1440p. It was never meant to game at 2160p.

 

[g-unit1111]

If you're talking about 2160p120Hz 2D video, sure, the RTX 3060 Ti will do it. Hell, lots of cards weaker than that can do it.

However, 2160p120Hz 3D Gaming is a bit more nuanced:

The newest titles (like Hogwarts Legacy) - No card can do this
Titles from the last 5 years - Only the RTX 4090 might be able to do this

Other titles: You can try but I can't think of a single game that the RTX 3060 Ti can play at 2160p120Hz. It's only a mid-grade gaming card that's more suited to 1080p and 1440p. It was never meant to game at 2160p.

Yeah the 4090 is a bit too rich for my blood, LOL.

I'll probably wind up looking at something like the 7900XT or even 7800XT when/if that card is available.

 

[SyCoREAPER]

Yeah the 4090 is a bit too rich for my blood, LOL.

I'll probably wind up looking at something like the 7900XT or even 7800XT when/if that card is available.

Might want to hold off until drivers and vapor chamber situation is sorted. The 7900 both ties and outperforms 4080 but doesn't touch 4090. And AMD and Raytracing don't go in the same sentance, so don't expect to be using it.

Also just for context, with a 4090 I still can't play even slightly older games maxed out @4K and maintain 120fps, Wildlands for example.

So just set your expectations accordingly

 

[g-unit1111]

Might want to hold off until drivers and vapor chamber situation is sorted. The 7900 both ties and outperforms 4080 but doesn't touch 4090. And AMD and Raytracing don't go in the same sentance, so don't expect to be using it.

Also just for context, with a 4090 I still can't play even slightly older games maxed out @4K and maintain 120fps, Wildlands for example.

So just set your expectations accordingly

Yeah I'm not looking to get like 200+ frame rates a second. I just want something that can keep up with current tech, and I know my SFF PC as it is right now won't be able to keep up with my new TV, at least if I start to play any games on it.

 

[BJMDO]

As many have said above, there are a lot of variables here. There is not currently a GPU on the market that can hit 120 fps at 4k with max settings on every game. I had a pretty nice setup with a AMD 5800x paired with a 3080Ti, and this setup could not provide a playable 4k experience for me. The FPS were not high enough for it to be an enjoyable so a lot of them I ended up playing on my 2k monitor. now I have an AMD 5950x paired with 4090. Even this setup cannot consistently hit 120 fps with max settings. Granted, it is very close (usually 112+ fps with max settings) in the games I play. Even if you got a 4090, your 5600x is going to bottleneck it. I share this as I do not want you to be disappointed in whatever setup you end up with. You may have to adjust your expectations for another generation or two. The other quick point would be to get a certified HDMI 2.1 cable. Linus Tech Tips recently had a video showing 1 out of 6 HDMI 2.1 cables were bad.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Yeah the 4090 is a bit too rich for my blood, LOL.

I'll probably wind up looking at something like the 7900XT or even 7800XT when/if that card is available.

Honestly, if I were you, I'd also be looking at the RX 6950 XT because I don't expect that the RX 7800 XT will be much more powerful (if not weaker) but I do expect that it will be a lot more expensive. Wait for it to come out before making your decision of course but when it does, look closely at comparisons to the RX 6950 XT because the RX 7800 XT might only match the RX 6900 XT. Then the RX 6950 XT would be faster and cheaper than the RX 7800 XT (and a no-brainer).

 

[g-unit1111]

Honestly, if I were you, I'd also be looking at the RX 6950 XT because I don't expect that the RX 7800 XT will be much more powerful (if not weaker) but I do expect that it will be a lot more expensive. Wait for it to come out before making your decision of course but when it does, look closely at comparisons to the RX 6950 XT because the RX 7800 XT might only match the RX 6900 XT. Then the RX 6950 XT would be faster and cheaper than the RX 7800 XT (and a no-brainer).

Yeah I've really been considering the 6950XT since Micro Center had a good deal on them, though I'm leaning more towards the 4070TI. I'm also considering the 7900XT and really want the XFX Merc 310. Although it will entirely depend on what GPU I can fit in my case.

I'm seriously leaning towards building a new rig from scratch since I have wanted to do one for a while and I have some old hardware that I'm looking to unload. And I think this might be my opportunity for that.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Yeah I've really been considering the 6950XT since Micro Center had a good deal on them, though I'm leaning more towards the 4070TI. I'm also considering the 7900XT and really want the XFX Merc 310. Although it will entirely depend on what GPU I can fit in my case.

I'm seriously leaning towards building a new rig from scratch since I have wanted to do one for a while and I have some old hardware that I'm looking to unload. And I think this might be my opportunity for that.

Well, it turns out that there might be a bit of an issue with the RTX 4070 Ti and it has to do with the RTX 4070. It appears that nVidia is still addicted to doing things in a bass-ackwards manner:

This looks like the RTX 3060 having more VRAM than the RTX 3060 Ti and RTX 3070/Ti. Why take a 12GB RTX 4070 Ti when there will be a 16GB RTX 4070?

It's things like this that have kept me away from nVidia since 2008. I've only used Radeons between then and now (and I've been a happier man for it I think). I've spent less money overall and got more performance for that money than any green card would have given me.

Not having to deal with nVidia's BS when it comes to pricing and their signature oddball actions like this have just been the cherry on top!

 

[g-unit1111]

Well, it turns out that there might be a bit of an issue with the RTX 4070 Ti and it has to do with the RTX 4070. It appears that nVidia is still addicted to doing things in a bass-ackwards manner:

This looks like the RTX 3060 having more VRAM than the RTX 3060 Ti and RTX 3070/Ti. Why take a 12GB RTX 4070 Ti when there will be a 16GB RTX 4070?

It's things like this that have kept me away from nVidia since 2008. I've only used Radeons between then and now (and I've been a happier man for it I think). I've spent less money overall and got more performance for that money than any green card would have given me.

Not having to deal with nVidia's BS when it comes to pricing and their signature oddball actions like this have just been the cherry on top!

OK that's seriously good to know, that might put the 7900XT over the top for me. I was hesitant about buying the 4070TI mainly because of that stupid power connector design that NVIDIA has that's been the cause of so many problems. I think I will definitely go for the 7900XT instead.

 

[Avro Arrow]

OK that's seriously good to know, that might put the 7900XT over the top for me. I was hesitant about buying the 4070TI mainly because of that stupid power connector design that NVIDIA has that's been the cause of so many problems. I think I will definitely go for the 7900XT instead.

I think that's definitely the better route to take, although if I were you, I would wait for the inevitable price drop on them (if you can) because they're not selling at their current prices and AMD will have to do something to change that sooner or later.