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Upgrade Graphics Card

Post Date: 2022-02-12
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Jimmin View Drop Down
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Posts: 18 		  Quote Jimmin Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Topic: Upgrade Graphics Card
    Posted: 12 Feb 2022 at 9:06pm
I have bought three Digital Storm PCs over the years and have been very pleased with all of them.  The one here was bought in 2013 and it has held up very well. 

The one item that needs an upgrade is the graphics card.  Currently has a GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB.  What graphics card makes the most sense to swap in here given my wants and current configuration?

Want to play Skyrim SE, Fallout 4, WoW and similar games at highest resolution (or very close to it). 

Key parts of current configuration:

Chassis Model: Corsair Carbide 300R (With Window)

Processor: Intel Core i7 3770K 3.50 GHz (Unlocked CPU) (Quad Core)

Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V LX (Intel Z77 Chipset) (Does Not Support SLI)

System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)

Power Supply: 800W Corsair GS (Dual SLI Compatible)

Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (480GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks

Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (Model: Black Edition)

Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)

Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB (Includes PhysX)

Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 120mm Radiator Liquid

CPU Cooler (High-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected

Chassis Airflow: Upgrade All Fans to Corsair Airflow 120mm Performance Edition (Up to 6 Fans)

Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock CPU 4.0GHz to 4.4GHz

Thank you,
Jim
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MrCheetah View Drop Down
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Posts: 392 		  Quote MrCheetah Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 12 Feb 2022 at 10:37pm
You do not mention monitor resolution nor your budget.

My initial thought was suggesting a Radeon RX 6700 XT. However, after watching these videos:

World of Warcraft Ray Tracing Benchmarked | RX 6000 Series and RTX 30 Series | WCCFTechTV (YouTube)

Fallout 4 - Test AMD RX 6800 XT - 1440p Ultra | Olivier Carensac (YouTube)

You may want to go 6800 XT, that is, if you are able and willing to pay for it.

One of the reasons to go AMD at the moment is higher availability and overall lower cost.

Some example products:

PowerColor Hellhound AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT | Amazon

AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT | Amazon

PowerColor Red Devil AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT | Amazon

You could seek out older generation graphics cards (e.g., RX 5700 XT, RTX 2080). Although, you probably will not find enough of a cost savings to make it worthwhile. But feel free to search around anyway.
• Ryzen 5600X, ROG Strix B550-I, RX 6900 XT, 32GB Vengeance, 960GB MP510
• be quiet 500DX, i7 11700K, ROG Strix Z590-E, RTX 4080 ProArt + RTX 4070 Ti ProArt, 64GB HyperX Fury, 2TB SN850
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Cretae View Drop Down
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Posts: 7331 		  Quote Cretae Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 13 Feb 2022 at 4:28am
At those prices, maybe a pre-built Lynx 3 makes a lot of sense. The 3060 Ti looks like this against your current card:

https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-RTX-3060-Ti-vs-Nvidia-GTX-660-Ti/4090vs2183

You'd even pick up a 1TB NVMe SSD in the bargain.
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hoserator View Drop Down
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Posts: 7966 		  Quote hoserator Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 13 Feb 2022 at 6:22am
That's a tough call with the gpu prices as they are today and the age of your system. You might do better checking e-bay for a used card with the risks that come with or find one from a friend. It kind of makes sense to go all out and get a new pc like Cretae suggested.


Edited by hoserator - 13 Feb 2022 at 6:23am
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MrCheetah View Drop Down
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Posts: 392 		  Quote MrCheetah Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 13 Feb 2022 at 9:47am
Originally posted by hoserator

That's a tough call with the gpu prices as they are today and the age of your system. You might do better checking e-bay for a used card with the risks that come with or find one from a friend.

eBay seems okay (price wise) for some of the older cards. For example, I searched:

gtx 1080 ti | eBay

The GTX 1080 Ti is comparable to the RX 6800 (non-XT) and does have fair performance in games such as WoW.

However, from my perspective/experience, used marketplace platforms have become cesspools rather than just a little scummy -- this is coming from someone who had plenty of very successful transactions when eBay was still a (mostly) legit online flea market.

Although, even back then a friend once advised me, "Don't spend any amount on eBay you are not willing to lose."

I disgress.

Edited by MrCheetah - 13 Feb 2022 at 10:36pm
• Ryzen 5600X, ROG Strix B550-I, RX 6900 XT, 32GB Vengeance, 960GB MP510
• be quiet 500DX, i7 11700K, ROG Strix Z590-E, RTX 4080 ProArt + RTX 4070 Ti ProArt, 64GB HyperX Fury, 2TB SN850
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MrCheetah View Drop Down
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Posts: 392 		  Quote MrCheetah Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 13 Feb 2022 at 11:01am
There is one more option that could be acceptable: AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT.

Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti vs. AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT | UserBenchmark

Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (3GB) vs. AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT | UserBenchmark

World of Warcraft on a GTX 1060-3GB | UserBenchmark

Probably because of the negative reviews, it is still available and at little to no price hike.

AMD Radeon RX 6500 XT | Best Buy
• Ryzen 5600X, ROG Strix B550-I, RX 6900 XT, 32GB Vengeance, 960GB MP510
• be quiet 500DX, i7 11700K, ROG Strix Z590-E, RTX 4080 ProArt + RTX 4070 Ti ProArt, 64GB HyperX Fury, 2TB SN850
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hoserator View Drop Down
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Posts: 7966 		  Quote hoserator Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 13 Feb 2022 at 3:55pm
I know buying used electronics is a crapshoot but I have and been very satisfied (and also have had to cannibalize the purchased item for parts). You have to do your research, know what you are looking for and check the seller reviews. Sometime that is all you have for legacy hardware.
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Jimmin View Drop Down
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Posts: 18 		  Quote Jimmin Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 13 Feb 2022 at 10:14pm
Thank you for your replies - very helpful and insightful.  I will look at the cards you note.  It is surprising how expensive and elusive even boderline-legacy cards are right now!  I'll also look at the secondary market as well.  Some promising leads on eBay but it's going to be hard finding something below $700 that fills the bill!  Thank you all again!
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