Upgrade graphics card or not

I'll start with the summary. I currently have:
i5 4460
ati r9 280
8 gb ram

I'm wondering if I should upgrade the r9 280. Candidates are rx 580, gtx 1660 (ti), or rtx 2060.

Reason is that for the first time I noticed I couldn't set everything to high in batman origins and AC origins. Most likely because they are not that optimized. Rise of the tomb raider was also struggling until I switched to dx12, then it was buttery smooth.

General musings:
- rx580 was the first candidate. Can already be had for 180 euro around here, though for a decent brand/cooler it is more like 200-210 euro.
- gtx 1660 already starts from 235 euro and is even better. Another reason to go for this one is that it supports the new nvenc (better quality and less cpu usage). I use the steam link a lot.
- or a used gtx 1070, but the price and performance is not that different from a brand new gtx 1660 (ti)
- of course my cpu could become the limiting factor. Then a used i7 4790 is an option, or just a completely new build (based on a ryzen 2600x or so) but I'm kind of a cheapskate.

I also started reading up on the new rtx cards. Obviously the raytracing is not there yet, but I'm getting kind of excited for the future when games (and newer cards) will become available that are more optimized for it. It could make a big different in visual quality.

Nice website I found for Europeans for comparing prices: https://www.gputracker.eu/en

Dunno nothing about Warner's Batman games except reading about pisspoor optimization or horrid controls in their ports from consoles. Origins (and Odyssey) is heavy on CPU, not as much on GPU.

IMO you shouldn't upgrade r9 because of a few badly optimized products.
However, if your aim is to enjoy 60 FPS in games with hairworks enabled, do go for it (GTX 1070 or better/newer like you mentioned 1660 ti).

i7 for gaming, absolutely not, you nuts? You'll waste $ and gain nothing, i5 you have is 3+ Ghz quadcore good for anything (except for AC4 and other Ubisoft unoptimized garbage of a code that requires 4+ Ghz on one core to avoid occassional microstutters even on low graphics preset).
If you want to upgrade CPU nevertheless (that includes motherboard and RAM), go for sixcore ryzen 1600 or 2600.

Finally, I have no idea what steam link is.

I don’t know about out there, but RX580 cards are going for ultra cheap on the used market right now. I picked one up the other day for $130 Canadian.

130 CAD (86 euro) would be a no-brainer. Unfortunately, used rx580 go for around 130 euro here, and then often even the 4gb version which is 150 euro brand new. Crazy what people still dare to ask.

joxer said:

IMO you shouldn't upgrade r9 because of a few badly optimized products.
However, if your aim is to enjoy 60 FPS in games with hairworks enabled, do go for it (GTX 1070 or better/newer like you mentioned 1660 ti).

Click to expand...

Hairworks, is that still a thing?

joxer said:

i7 for gaming, absolutely not, you nuts? You'll waste $ and gain nothing, i5 you have is 3+ Ghz quadcore good for anything (except for AC4 and other Ubisoft unoptimized garbage of a code that requires 4+ Ghz on one core to avoid occassional microstutters even on low graphics preset).
If you want to upgrade CPU nevertheless (that includes motherboard and RAM), go for sixcore ryzen 1600 or 2600.

Click to expand...

I'm glad I'm not the only one with micro-stutter in AC, often in panning shots where the frame rate is not uniform. As you said, even with settings on low it is like the fast forward button is pressed every 2 seconds. Fortunately, during actual gameplay it is not noticably so far. Word is that recent games more and more need at least 6 cores, hence the i7.

joxer said:

Finally, I have no idea what steam link is.

Click to expand...

Steam streaming to the 4k tv.

Not euros, but if it's at one place, must be on another too:
https://www.pcgamer.com/amds-ryzen-5-1600-processor-drops-to-dollar119-its-lowest-price-yet/

AMD's Ryzen 5 1600 processor drops to $119, its lowest price yet

Click to expand...

Stay away from i7, please. If you must buy non-i5 intel's CPU just because, then go for i9.

If you have the money buy the RTX 2060 only because of the extra NVIDIA options, but if you want to save money buy the RX 590 it's comparable to a GTX 1660ti.

Link - https://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Nvidia-GTX-1660-vs-AMD-RX-590/4038vs4033

Here there is not much difference in price between the gtx 1660 ti and the rx 590, but I wouldn't mind paying 220 dollar for that gtx 1660 (189 euro) if it wasn't for the import duties (extra 57 dollar).
https://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-GeForce-Graphics-Windforce-Gv-N1660OC-6GD/dp/B07P76G428

I don't feel like getting a new cpu, mb, and ram. I think I will just wait for a deal the coming months on a gpu.

What you've got is pretty mediocre but you'll still be meeting minimum requirements pretty often.

If you wanted to upgrade to a new 1070/1660ti then the i5 4460 will be a massive bottleneck and the 8GB RAM will start to hurt your performance. You'd probably only get 50% of the videocards potential performance.

Do you have an old i7 4790? With a little overclock this CPU and another 8GB ram could run a 1070 alright. But if you mean buy one second hand I'd just go with the full rebuild. Get a Ryzen 2600 and 16GB and SSD and you'll have no bottleneck.

If you are thinking about upgrading a CPU and are not in a hurry, you should wait for the new AMD processors which are coming this summer. Leaked info shows a lot of promise. Even if you don't want to buy the new ones, the older Ryzens will surely drop in price when the new ones come out.

I'd just say that when you mention switching to DX12 improved performance, that might suggest the cpu is struggling, and DX12's more efficient draw calls are helping. Can't really draw conclusions from a single case, but it might hint in that direction.

I think you are right that the cpu was the problem with rise of the tomb raider (and in AC origins), so a new build would make sense. I was hoping that just a new gpu might be enough to be ok for at least another 3 years (a used i7 is too expensive for what it is). I never understood the upgrade argument of a pc. You are forced to buy a complete new pc anyway (new socket, new memory type, etc.)

So I will wait for it until the end of the year. For Ryzen Zen 2, and hopefully amd navi is also released by then (maybe announced at E3). There are rumors that navi will also support raytracing.

I'm also waiting to see what AMD comes up with before refreshing my hardware.

150 euro for a brand-new rx580 8gb
https://www.ibood.com/extra-be/nl/p...271/gigabyte-radeon-rx-580-gaming-8g-oem.html

Tempting, but no. I have to resist and wait for Zen 2 and navi.

I wonder if you also get two games with that offer.

ilm said:

I have to resist and wait for Zen 2 and navi.

Click to expand...

That's IMO not a good strategy.
The masterplan should be resist and wait for Cyberpunk 2077 release.

The longer you wait the better for tomorrow todays cards will be at yesterday prices.

If you're not in a hurry, I'd recommend waiting a bit more. The crypto-mining craze is dying out and the current graphics card will drop in price even more as new ones come out. Until the ray-tracing is perfected, Nvidia's 3000 series might even get released so I wouldn't hurry all that much if I were you.