Question I'm looking to buy a graphics card, should I replace my CPU as well ?

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stripedalucard

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I'm looking to replace my graphics card, should I also replace my CPU? I like to build but sadly I'm electronic stupid any advice would help.

this is what I have now:

Video Card: Radeon (TM) RX 480 Series

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X 6-Core Processor

RAM: 64 GB

Motherboard: MPG x570 Gaming Edge WIFI (MS-7C37)

Tower: 15D x 8H x 17H
 
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dark_globe
stripedalucard said:
Just gaming

I might be able to go 500 over but I don’t know yet
Click to expand...

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($206.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 BLACK 78.25 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B850-P WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Venom 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: PowerColor Reaper Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Montech TITAN GOLD 1000W 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1535.95
Prices include...
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We advise users to stylize their thread with info asked of in this thread;

*How to Ask for Advice about Choosing a New GPU*

Look at the Tom's Hardware Graphics Buying Guides and review the most recent "Best Graphics Cards for the Money" Article (published monthly) to get you started. Tom's Hardware has a staggering amount of information about all of the latest and greatest graphics cards to keep you up to date...
forums.tomshardware.com forums.tomshardware.com

Additionally, include the make, model and age of your PSU?

Tower: 15D x 8H x 17H
Make and model of your case is what we look for.
 
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I guess the question is: What do you want to do with your PC, that you cannot do with your PC right now? And after that, "What is your budget?" The 5600X was a value champ when released in 2021, and the RX 480 was a great midrange card in the late 2010s. They both could be upgraded for sure, but it may be that your current PC is still perfect for your needs.
 
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if your budget is limited i would start with upgrading your graphics card
because the old radeon 480 is holding you back much more than your cpu .
5600x can hold its own for a while longer and can be replaced after you save some more money
then you can decide whether you want to just grab 5700X3D/5800X3D or
you will build an entirely new AM5 or intel platform system based on pcie 5.0 and DDR5 .


stripedalucard said:
I would like to keep it around 600 but I can go 1000
Click to expand...
is this in US dollars , pounds , euro or some entirely different currency ?
what is your location ?
 
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stripedalucard said:
What’s the difference between CPU and graphics card
Click to expand...

CPU/Memory sets the maximum frame rate possible with a game engine. GPU sets the maximum resolution/details you can achieve while doing so.

If you increase the resolution and graphics settings enough then the CPU matter less, as long as it is fast enough to deliver instructions to the GPU. CPU becomes the limit when you reduce settings for maximum performance, faster the CPU, the more FPS the system will be capable of rendering.
 
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dark_globe said:
if your budget is limited i would start with upgrading your graphics card
because the old radeon 480 is holding you back much more than your cpu .
5600x can hold its own for a while longer and can be replaced after you save some more money
then you can decide whether you want to just grab 5700X3D/5800X3D or
you will build an entirely new AM5 or intel platform system based on pcie 5.0 and DDR5 .



is this in US dollars , pounds , euro or some entirely different currency ?
what is your location ?
Click to expand...
what is better for gaming AM5 or Intel?
its in US dollars
 
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stripedalucard said:
64gb speed is 2667 MHz i dont know latency
Click to expand...
that´s not great to be honest , especially if latency is high
ideally to get the maximum performance out of AM4 platform cpus you want
to have your ram running at 3600MHz with cl16 latency (timing) .
for AM5 the sweet spot is 6000MHz and CL30 ...

do you have 2 modules or 4 ?


my suggestions :
1st if you decide to stay at AM4
2nd if you decide to move to AM5
3rd option would be to replace the video card and
replace the rest of the system later down the line ...
it would also be smart to replace your power supply sooner rather than later
if you decide to go with rtx 5070 or 9070/9070xt


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D 3 GHz 8-Core Processor ($265.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 BLACK 78.25 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory ($67.98 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus PRIME GeForce RTX 5070 12 GB Video Card ($609.99 @ ASUS)
Total: $982.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-13 12:23 EDT-0400

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($206.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 BLACK 78.25 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper Venom 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI VENTUS 2X PLUS GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($489.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $970.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-13 12:28 EDT-0400


rtx 5060Ti is about 35% slower compared to rtx 5070
but at least you would get moving to a new platform out of the way .
in any case both of these cards are immensely faster compared to your old radeon and
they also pack a hefty set of useful modern features .
(5xxx series nvidia cards have some problems when it comes to drivers at the moment
but that should not be a long term issues)
 
Last edited:
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dark_globe said:
that´s not great to be honest , especially if latency is high
ideally to get the maximum performance out of AM4 platform cpus you want
to have your ram running at 3600MHz with cl16 latency (timing) .
for AM5 the sweet spot is 6000MHz and CL30 ...

do you have 2 modules or 4 ?


my suggestions :
1st if you decide to stay at AM4
2nd if you decide to move to AM5
3rd option would be to replace the video card and
replace the rest of the system later down the line ...
it would also be smart to replace your power supply sooner rather than later
if you decide to go with rtx 5070 or 9070/9070xt


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X3D 3 GHz 8-Core Processor ($265.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 BLACK 78.25 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16 Memory ($67.98 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus PRIME GeForce RTX 5070 12 GB Video Card ($609.99 @ ASUS)
Total: $982.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-13 12:23 EDT-0400

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($206.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 BLACK 78.25 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B850M Pro RS WiFi Micro ATX AM5 Motherboard ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper Venom 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI VENTUS 2X PLUS GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB Video Card ($489.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $970.96
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-13 12:28 EDT-0400


rtx 5060Ti is about 35% slower compared to rtx 5070
but at least you would get moving to a new platform out of the way .
in any case both of these cards are immensely faster compared to your old radeon and
they also pack a hefty set of useful modern features .
(5xxx series nvidia cards have some problems when it comes to drivers at the moment
but that should not be a long term issues)
Click to expand...
i have 2 ram modules also on the second list lets say i could go over $1000 would it be better for me to go for the better CPU or better video card and what power supply do you recommend
 
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stripedalucard said:
i have 2 ram modules also on the second list lets say i could go over $1000 would it be better for me to go for the better CPU or better video card and what power supply do you recommend
Click to expand...
better video card is more important for gaming .
9600x is basically the best gaming cpu under $250 if you decide to move to AM5 platform . that being said if you don´t want to make upgrades any time soon 9700x may be the better option since it is an 8 core cpu .

will you be doing any other serious work besides gaming on your system ?

how much more over a $1000 are we talking about ?

if you live in the US than adata core reactor II power supplies (not VE)
are very competitively priced at the moment and
they are very solid - 850w unit would do for now but i recommend getting a 1000w unit
just for the sake of any future upgrades you may want to make .
 
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My last PC ran on a 5600x with a 3060ti and it was more than capable. I decided to do a full rebuild so I could take advantage of the new mobo's and ddr5 ram etc.

But if I was in the position to choose from CPU or GPU I would have gone for the GPU. The only logical upgrade I found for the money from the 5600x is the 5800x3d which is very hard to get right now as it's been discontinued. It might be worth changing your ram as it seems slow? 32GB should be enough for gaming.
 
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dark_globe said:
better video card is more important for gaming .
9600x is basically the best gaming cpu under $250 if you decide to move to AM5 platform . that being said if you don´t want to make upgrades any time soon 9700x may be the better option since it is an 8 core cpu .

will you be doing any other serious work besides gaming on your system ?

how much more over a $1000 are we talking about ?

if you live in the US than adata core reactor II power supplies (not VE)
are very competitively priced at the moment and
they are very solid - 850w unit would do for now but i recommend getting a 1000w unit
just for the sake of any future upgrades you may want to make .
Click to expand...
Just gaming

I might be able to go 500 over but I don’t know yet
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Lutfij said:
We advise users to stylize their thread with info asked of in this thread;

*How to Ask for Advice about Choosing a New GPU*

Look at the Tom's Hardware Graphics Buying Guides and review the most recent "Best Graphics Cards for the Money" Article (published monthly) to get you started. Tom's Hardware has a staggering amount of information about all of the latest and greatest graphics cards to keep you up to date...
forums.tomshardware.com forums.tomshardware.com

Additionally, include the make, model and age of your PSU?

Tower: 15D x 8H x 17H
Make and model of your case is what we look for.
Click to expand...
thau cpu shopuld be finre with a nre gpu
stripedalucard said:
Just gaming

I might be able to go 500 over but I don’t know yet
Click to expand...
that cpu wshould be fine with a netter gpu. a rtx4060 or b580 arc would work pretty well actually
 
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4060 isn't worth buying at the moment, cheapest one is $340 right now (which is normal, though still high, lately been $380), and the 5060 is likely to be at that same price in a few days.

B580, if you can get it below $300 is a great buy, okay at $350, and terrible at $400+. Only seems to be in stock regularly in Europe and Canada.

B570 are easier to find, but not amazing compared to something like 7600 XT, at least for the money.
 
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stripedalucard said:
Just gaming

I might be able to go 500 over but I don’t know yet
Click to expand...

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 9600X 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor ($206.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ID-COOLING FROZN A620 BLACK 78.25 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI PRO B850-P WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Venom 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($159.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: PowerColor Reaper Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card ($799.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Montech TITAN GOLD 1000W 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($149.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1535.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-05-14 14:42 EDT-0400


but as i have told you and as others also suggested already:
your current cpu can keep up for a while longer if you want to delay changing the platform
however in some scenarios your gpu will be limited
and slower memory hinders the performance of your cpu even further .

either way i would advice against buying an old radeon x800/x700 chips with FSR3 or older .
intel gpus lack raw performance and are more of a budget build options -
even rtx 5060Ti is much faster than arc B580 ...

get the new radeon 9070/9070xt
or nvidia rtx 5070 and figure out the rest later if you must .
(9070xt would require a psu replacement just to be safe)
 
Last edited:
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