GPU Buying Guide - (Read first post)

I have finished putting together my build for the next seven or eight years. My income is more than sufficient to allow me to afford such an endeavor.

I was simply interested in seeing if anyone here already possessed firsthand experience with the RTX 2080 series, but it appears I have wandered into the wrong corner of the internet... goodbye.

You probably won't find anyone here rocking an RTX 2080 Ti; this subforum is just too small to have folks willing to drop that much on a single GPU alone. 😬Maybe try checking out PC Expert or Bug.

Anyway, most 2080 Ti models seem to have decent heatsinks, plus they come with a 3-year warranty.

driftinggull33 said:I’m building my rig in about 7 or 8 months. I make more than enough money to afford it.

I was just trying to see if anyone actually had hands-on experience with the RTX 2080 series, but clearly I’m in the wrong place... whatever, bye.

Go ahead and get mad, but what do you expect people to say about a card that barely hits 40-50 FPS in 4K and costs as much as a whole high-end build? Look, obviously I don't own one, but there are plenty of reviews online.

Why are you guys getting so worked up? He asked a question about GPUs in the dedicated GPU subforum.

Sure, there probably isn't anyone here owning that specific card, but that doesn't mean nobody has anything useful to contribute.

The whole "what if there were cheaper cards with 60% of the performance" argument... thanks for nothing. That’s how flagships work. It's always going to be that way.

Right now, it's the top-tier card for gaming. If someone is actually serious about hitting 4K60 or 1440p120, the RTX 2080 is an absolute recommendation.

As for a specific model, just check some reviews and compare the prices.

Just figured I’d throw this out there in case anyone is hunting for a solid deal—assuming you haven't already blown through your entire budget on Christmas shopping:
ASUS ROG Strix Radeon RX560 OC, 4GB
...stumbled upon this one by total accident, but I figured I'd drop the link here just in case... might be worth a look for someone looking to save a few bucks👍

What’s the verdict on the Sapphire Rx 570 4 GB ITX? Since it’s rocking just a single fan, am I going to run into major overheating issues?

Hey everyone,

So, I'm currently rocking a Ryzen 5 3600 paired with 16GB of RAM running at 3200Mhz.

The thing is, I've been really torn about my GPU lately. My gut always pulls me toward NVIDIA because, let's be honest, their driver support is just smoother, everything feels more polished, and you run into way fewer Bugs.

But looking at the current market, it seems like grabbing an RX 5700 or an RTX 2060 is probably the smarter move right now. I'm actually planning to pick up an Oculus VR headset this summer, so I'm trying to figure out which card would be the better companion for that experience. What do you guys think—should I pull the trigger on one of these two right now, or is it worth holding off for a month or two to see if prices drop a bit more?

Thanks! 😉

The only thing worth looking forward to is seeing if the 5600 XT makes an appearance at CES in a few days and eventually hits the US market. That might shift the value proposition in this segment a bit. Otherwise, I guess there's no real reason to wait for 😉

Hey there,

I'm currently running an i5-4460 clocked at 3.2GHz paired with a Corsair 450 w VS450 power supply, so I was wondering which of these two graphics cards would be the smarter pick if they're even compatible with my current setup...

I'm looking at either the XFX Radeon RX 570 8 or the Asus Radeon RX 580, specifically the 4GB GDDR5 version with PCI-E 3.0, though I'm also open to other options if there's something better sitting in that same price range.

The XFX Radeon RX 570 8, xxx ED 1286M D5 3xDP HDMI is definitely the smarter way to go

If the price is about the same, the RX 580 is the way to go. I don't see the point in forcing an 8GB card if the actual chip is weaker overall. Sure, you might be able to crank up the texture settings, but you'll lose out on everything else because you're getting lower FPS and worse performance in general. Honestly, 4GB of VRAM is perfectly fine for 1080p.

Adam Moore3 said:If the price is roughly the same, the RX 580 is definitely the way to go. I don't really see the point in pushing for an 8GB card if the chip itself is weaker overall. Sure, you might be able to crank up the texture settings, but you'll lose out on everything else—you're generally looking at lower FPS and just worse performance. For 1080p, 4GB of VRAM is perfectly fine.

An i5 4460 won't be able to fully utilize the 580

Since the RX 580 is a bit cheaper, I’d probably lean toward that one, but... there's actually a difference between the 4GB and 8GB versions when it comes to memory speed. The 4GB models run at 7 Gbps (while the 8GB ones hit 8 Gbps), just like the RX 570 models. It's pretty well known that Polaris cards often struggle with memory bandwidth relative to the GPU, so even with about 10% more stream processors and slightly higher clock speeds, this RX 580 will likely only be 5-10% faster whenever you aren't hitting a VRAM bottleneck.

Alexander Moore67 said:Core i5-4460 can't handle the GTX 1060...

A GTX 1060 that's 10% weaker? Come on... 🙂

crimsonstag84 said:Since the GTX 1060 is a bit cheaper, I'd probably go with that, but... there’s a catch between the 4GB and 8GB models when it comes to memory speed. The 4GB versions run at 7 Gbps, while the 8GB models hit 8 Gbps. istu It’s the same story with the GTX 1060 models. It's common knowledge that Polaris cards often suffer from insufficient memory bandwidth relative to the GPU. So, even with about 10% more stream processors and slightly higher clock speeds, this GTX 1060 will only end up being 5-10% faster once you get past the VRAM bottleneck.

Everything you said is spot on. Honestly, I’d be right there with you if we were talking about a GTX 1060... $33 It’s more expensive. But let's be real—we're talking about a significantly more powerful card here. A 5-10% difference is still a 5-10% difference, but you're getting way more bang for your buck...

Just as a side note, I'm running a GTX 1060 4GB, so I was wondering if it’s actually possible to bump the memory clock from 1750 MHz up to 2000 MHz? Since it's basically the same card as the 8GB version, does that give me any guarantee it'll actually hit that frequency?

The GPU is the same, but the memory isn't. Most of those 4GB models use Micron chips, which tend to be a bit cheaper and slower. Since it's anything you try to overclock, I guess you just have to test it out. I doubt they'll hit 8 Gbps, though; a buddy of mine used the 4GB versions for mining (with the Micron chips) and he could barely squeeze out 7.5 Gbps.

There is absolutely no Bottleneck occurring with that processor.
In my testing, only a 1080ti managed to Bottleneck the Celeron, and that card is miles ahead of a GTX 1060.

crimsonstag84 said:The GPU itself is identical, but the memory isn't. Most 4GB models use Micron chips, which are cheaper and slower. Like anything you try to overclock, you just have to test it yourself. I doubt they'll hit 8Gbps because I know a buddy had 4GB models for mining (Micron chips) and he could barely squeeze out 7.5Gbps.

So they aren't actually the same after all? The GTX 1060 4GB and 8GB versions aren't quite what people usually claim 🙂

Austin Rodriguez5 said:There's no way that processor is causing any Bottleneck.
In my experience, only a 1080ti could actually bottleneck a Celeron G456, and that card is miles ahead of a GTX 1060.

I don't know what kind of tests you're looking at, but if you run any CPU-intensive game on a G4560, you're going to deal with massive stuttering while that Celeron struggles to stay alive. 🙂

A Core i5-4460 is definitely much stronger; I'd say the GTX 1060 is a perfect match for it.

GTX 1060 paired with a Core i5-4460 shows a 20% Bottleneck

A Bottleneck isn't something you can just pin down with a single number. And even if you could, it wouldn't be 20%. I'd say that depending on what you're playing, there's either no Bottleneck at all or it hits around 20% in CPU-heavy titles.
That definitely doesn't mean the pairing is bad or a waste of money, though. I'm running a Core i5-4460 myself, and in Battlefield multiplayer, it maxes out at 100%, so the GPU isn't being fully utilized.
So does that mean the Core i5-4460 is a Bottleneck and a bad match for a GTX 1060? Do I need at least an i7 for a mid-range card priced around $400? 🙂

Hey there, quick question for you!

My motherboard is an ASUS H81M-K (SOCKET 1150), which lists a PCIe x16 slot in the specs.
How much sense does it make to pick up a GTX 1060 OC DUAL, 4GB GDDR5, PCI-E 3.0 (DUAL-RX580-O4G)? Basically, how compatible are we talking?