So, the time has come to upgrade my i7 4790k and GTX 760.
I'm looking at getting the following, but I'm stuck on what graphics card to get (this is something I am happy to replace in a couple of years, if I was to get something like the 4060)
PC specs that I have landed on.
- AMD 7800X3D
- 32gb of DDR5 6000Mhz CL36 rammy boys
- Gigabyte B650 ATX motherboard
- Noctua 140mm CPU cooler
I am carrying over the following from my old PC
- Case (Fractal Disign Pop)
- SSD storage
- EVGA 850w gold PSU
I am having difficulty picking a graphics card, I'm looking at the 4060, is there anything as good as from team Red that I could consider? I do plan on upgrading in a couple of years time.
GPU choice is a bit more complicated than it used to be, it's become less of just a performance comparison and more about ecosystem.
AMD's GPUs are cheaper and better in terms of raw performance. They also have better Linux support if that matters to you.
Nvidia's GPUs are more expensive but they support better tech in games. Specifically, Nvidia GPUs support DLSS which is an amazing upscaler and can boost performance massively on games that support it without sacrificing any noticeable visual quality. Nvidia GPUs are also way better at Raytracing or anything AI related.
The choice is hard but Nvidia is the safe option. I'd recommend a 3060 Ti instead of a 4060, it's better and goes for cheaper. The 6750xt as the other guy recommended is also a really solid choice if you don't care about DLSS or Raytracing.
DLSS is nicer than FSR but it’s still an upscale, not magic, it results in blur and artifacts. Sometimes worth it but it depends. Not an important feature in my personal opinion.
The newer updates of DLSS 2 fixed most of the issues, you'd have to be looking for artifacts to spot them. I turn on Quality on every game and never notice it. It's a night and day difference to FSR.
I truly use DLSS all the time, every update, it looks like upscaling. I see the ghosting, the shimmery edges, the blur, the artificial sharpening to compensate. It is there.
Having screwed around with a handful of different budget GPUs and monitor resolutions- don’t rely on upscaling with new GPUs if you’re starting below 1440p. 1080p is rough with DLSS/FSR Quality.
FSR is wonderful for keeping older tech in service, but Nvidia/AMD relying on upscaling and frame-generation for brand new GPUs to keep games running acceptably at the resolutions we declared were acceptable back in the days of the 1080ti is fucked up.
Honestly the price points across the whole industry for 1080p-class GPUs is perverse. Every GPU is named about 1-1.5 tiers higher than it actually should be.
gotta disagree with you there, DLSS is just okay in some cases, but in many others it works so well it might as well be magic. I'd say it's worth it in almost every game you can enable it
Have you seen DLSS 3.5?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr85Lc_WT38
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qv9SLtojkTU
The path tracing looks good. Otherwise it’s an encoded YouTube video that is blurry at best.
I use DLSS regularly, like on a real display. It is blurry and artifacty upscaling. 3.5 won’t change general upscaling beyond path tracing.
It looks about as good as a TAA frame. There are worse ways to blur and artifact your picture. You should check out the DF video, they have people from Nvidia on the discussion.
I did watch much of it. And kinda (depends on res, I might agree for 4k w/ DLSS Quality) but TAA introduces artifacts in general.