… The problem is that GPU manufacturers have changed the definitions of budget GPUs and mid-range cards, moving price categories slowly over the years. Today, gamers are forced to pay hefty amounts for budget GPUs, and mid-range has become the new high-end in terms of pricing. …
… With mid-range GPUs, a Ryzen 7 9800X3D is as good as a Ryzen 5 7600X, making the premium worthless. You could argue that the 3D V-Cache still increases the 1% low FPS, but I'd rather invest in a faster GPU and a 6-core CPU for better overall performance.
… Every time a new GPU drops, benchmarks that don't include DLSS or FSR feel nothing more than theoretical, because nobody actually plays that way. …
… From launching the "world's first GPU" and the CUDA architecture for parallel programming to the iconic Pascal lineup, and bringing real-time ray tracing to games with the Turing GPUs, Nvidia has been at the cutting edge of GPU computing. …
… Luckily, we're seeing a steep discount that drops the price down quite a bit, now coming in at $640. …
… You can thank the pricing of parts for that, as well as the niche nature of the device itself. …
… My GPU usage still behaved the same way it did when my 32GB kit was running at 6400MT/s. …
… The 9600K is also permanently tethered to PCIe 3.0 on aging Z390 motherboards, leading to another situation where pairing a beefy GPU would be futile. Even if you have a modern RTX 50-series or RX 9000-series GPU, your experience will almost certainly be crippled by a massive CPU bottleneck. …
… Gamers are paying more than ever for less GPU horsepower when comparing SKUs across price segments. Then, there are the abysmal QA standards of modern GPUs. You would have heard about the missing ROPs on RTX 50 series GPUs and the "improved" 12V-2x6 connector still melting in consumer builds. …
… Most of the time, your GPU is the limiting factor. Even someone who plays AAA titles with an RTX 5090 is GPU-bottlenecked at 4K unless they're deliberately chasing high frame rates with DLSS. …