Lordjas1231

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Jul 13, 2014
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So i plan on upgrading my pretty old graphics card from ASUS GTX Strix 970 to an MSI RTX 3070 Ventus 2X OC for the long run and i don't plan on buying another GPU for like a long time.

But i'm a bit worried that with my current setup there might be major problems such as bricking my CPU or motherboard because my GPU is too strong and might cause bottleneck as well and blue Screens of Death,but i've heard that I can prevent most of the bottleneck by turning on Vsync ingame while gaming.

But before i actually make the purchase,i would like to hear an opinion from a expert for an approval before proceeding

Current Spec
ASUS GTX Strix 970
intel I7 4790K
24GB RAM
GigaByte GA-H97-D3H
Platinum 860w
 
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Solution
Worry not, 'bricking' or getting a 'BSOD' because a graphics card is more powerful compared to the rest of your setup will not be an issue. Those kind of issues stem from software bugs which go far beyond a simple graphics card replacement, not saying it's impossible but unlikely.

As for bottle-necking, that is an issue worth mentioning since you have a 4790K CPU. I'd recommend only upgrading once you're also ready to upgrade everything else since all your current components are pretty outdated for a 3070.

Allow me to elaborate why v-sync won't solve your issue. VSync only locks the Framerate of a game to your monitor's refresh rate. Say for example you have a 1080p monitor at 60FPS (which seems most likely with your build) turning on...
Dec 19, 2020
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You should change motherboard and cpu the 3070 will be bottlenecked for sure with those specs. As for the psu youwill be good with this 860w platinum. Consider some 5000 ryzen or if you have smaller budget you can go 3000 ryzen.
 
Worry not, 'bricking' or getting a 'BSOD' because a graphics card is more powerful compared to the rest of your setup will not be an issue. Those kind of issues stem from software bugs which go far beyond a simple graphics card replacement, not saying it's impossible but unlikely.

As for bottle-necking, that is an issue worth mentioning since you have a 4790K CPU. I'd recommend only upgrading once you're also ready to upgrade everything else since all your current components are pretty outdated for a 3070.

Allow me to elaborate why v-sync won't solve your issue. VSync only locks the Framerate of a game to your monitor's refresh rate. Say for example you have a 1080p monitor at 60FPS (which seems most likely with your build) turning on vsync will only force the game to run at 60FPS. While a 3070 can definitely pump out that many frames at 1080p, you are essentially limiting the GPU's horsepower to a fraction of it's overall potential. And especially at 1080p, a lot of games utilize the CPU more than the GPU, which is where the bottleneck mostly comes into play. Getting a bigger resolution monitor, ex 1440p (2k) or even a 4K monitor, would alleviate that CPU bound issue, the CPU would still drag down the full performance of the 3070 since the CPU still has some function while gaming. A weaker CPU will offer lower overall performance

So while your computer can definitely run a 3070 with no software issues and crashes on a rig as old as yours, it's not advised unless you plan to update the rest of the rig soon after. I'd recommend a modern board that has PCIe Gen 4 support, though Gen 3 is just as fine if you don't want to spend too much.
 
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Solution
Not to worry.
The critical factor is the power supply, and 850w is plenty for anything.
Most games depend on graphics for performance, more than on the processor.
Particularly at resolutions higher than 1080P
If you are looking at 1440P gaming, a 3070 is an excellent choice, regardless of the processor. Even 4k gaming will be ok.
You may have difficulty finding any 3000 series card to buy.
 

Lordjas1231

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Jul 13, 2014
102
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10,695
Sorry for the late reply,So if i'm understanding correctly,RTX 3070 is a bit too overkill for my current spec? If so,then what GPU is good for me in the long run that can run most future games at ultra settings?

But even so if i do somehow decided to get RTX 3070,it would run at my current spec no problems,but i would be only be using half of the GPU power and is a waste of money if i understand correctly.

Would perhaps RTX 3060 be good? or maybe RTX 2070? i don't have the budget to buy a new gaming motherboard and a new CPU at the moment. If i have to do it,then i might have to wait until next year or so because i don't earn a lot of money at my job and i'm only doing this because some games like Cod cold war, modern warfare 2019, cyberpunk requires a RTX GPU to get 60 fps or so and at my current spec,i could only play at like medium settings at perhaps 50-60 fps and i feel like my GTX 970 is holding me back