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Upgrading my graphics card from 2060 to 3080?


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I just started playing the F16 module in DCS and absolutely love it. My PC was perfectly fine for all the other games I have been playing since I built it in 2020 but I am craving the experience that I'm missing by having to reduce the video settings. I play on my Samsung 65" 4K TV and therefore need more performance for the 4K screen. I am looking for input regarding an upgrade to the 3080 or 3080 ti. Is this worthwhile in my system or will I see other limitations with just swapping the video card and power supply? My specs are below. Thanks in advance!

Motherboard: MSI Arsenal Gaming AMD Ryzen 2ND and 3rd Gen AM4 M.2 USB 3 DDR4 DVI HDMI Crossfire ATX Motherboard (B450 Tomahawk Max II)

Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X Processor with Wraith Prism LED Cooler - YD270XBGAFBOX

Memory: Patriot Viper Steel DDR4 32GB (4 x 8GB) 3600MHz Kit w/Gunmetal Grey heatshield

Graphics Card: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2060 Gaming OC Pro 6G Graphics Card, 3X Windforce Fans, 6GB 192-bit GDDR6, Gv-N2060GAMINGOC Pro-6GD REV2.0 Video Card

SSD: Silicon Power 256GB NVMe PCIe Gen3x4 M.2 2280 R/W up to 3,100/1,100MB/s SSD (SU256GBP34A80M28AB)

Power Supply: EVGA 550 N1, 550W, 2 Year Warranty, Power Supply 100-N1-0550-L1


Edited by Savage Larry
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First, the SSD.
DCS is quite a big game, so getting a second drive with 1TB (or more) of storage is something you'll appreciate right away on that system as it currently is, that's for sure (and a few other sim/games will also fit). Your MSI B450 Tomahawk Max II motherboard has only one slot for NVME SSD (gen3 or gen4). So, either replace it with a bigger one (1TB or 2TB), or get a separate 2.5'' Sata3 SSD (1TB or 2TB).

Next, the power supply (PSU).
It's probably in your list already but don't skimp on that. Your EVGA 550W won't cut it if going for an RTX3080/3080Ti.
A quality PSU with 850W should be considered for such GPUs, perhaps even a 1000W if purchasing for the very long term (i.e, good also for future GPU upgrade).
If you decide so, there are some good quality and reasonably priced 1000W 80+Gold PSUs worth looking for, for just little more money than 850W counterparts. For example, and among others, check the Corsair RMx 1000w, EVGA SuperNOVA GT (or G6) 1000w, Seasonic Prime (Gold) GX1000 and SuperFlower Leadex (Gold) 1000w. 

Then, the processor (CPU).
The Ryzen 7 2700X is certainly not a slow processor per se, but IPC is not exactly great on it, which is what most games/sims prefer - especially single core biased ones like DCS.
It's not like "it's really urgent" to upgrade your Ryzen 7 2700X, but the upgrade to an RTX3080 or RTX3080Ti will make a processor upgrade even more noticeable.
Your MSI B450 Tomahawk Max II motherboard is compatible with AMD Ryzen 5000 series CPUs (if BIOS is updated), so I'd say to consider going for a Ryzen 5 5600X.
The Ryzen 5 5600X is a really, really good processor for gaming, noticeably faster than you 2700X, it's compatible with your motherboard (direct swap if BIOS is updated) and that processor upgrade won't cost you a fortune (at ~200$) like the more expensive flagships do.

And finally the RAM (memory).
You got 32GB which is enough, but 64GB can smooth things out, especially in Multiplayer. DCS is kinda of a monster, and things with DCS 2.7+ have been pushing true hardware requirements to silly specs. Updates show that this trend is not easing (plenty posts in the forums about it).
So, it's another upgrade that, while not urgent, should be considered sometime later.


Edited by LucShep

CGTC Caucasus retexture mod  |  A-10A cockpit retexture mod  |  Shadows reduced impact mod  |  DCS 2.5.6  (the best version for performance, VR or 2D)

DCS terrain modules_July23_27pc_ns.pngDCS aircraft modules_July23_27pc_ns.png  aka Luke Marqs; call sign "Ducko" =

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Thanks for the in depth response LucShep. I do already have a secondary SSD for all my other files and programs. I keep all my DCS program files on my M.2 drive though because of its speed. I guess ultimately what I'm asking right now is if I only upgrade the video card at the moment, how do you think the system will respond? Will it work fine until my funds allow the other upgrades? When I watch the task manager it seems only the graphics is the weak point at the moment. Thanks again for the replies

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Sure, new meaty GPU + adequate PSU you'll certainly get a big boost for 4K.
Yes, it'll give you time to enjoy the game while planning the following upgrades (better CPU, more RAM), which will later free more performance when combined, and that's for sure.

CGTC Caucasus retexture mod  |  A-10A cockpit retexture mod  |  Shadows reduced impact mod  |  DCS 2.5.6  (the best version for performance, VR or 2D)

DCS terrain modules_July23_27pc_ns.pngDCS aircraft modules_July23_27pc_ns.png  aka Luke Marqs; call sign "Ducko" =

Spoiler

Win10 Pro x64 | Intel i7 12700K (@5.1/5.0p + 3.9e) | 64GB DDR4 @3466 CL16 (Crucial Ballistix) | RTX 3090 24GB EVGA FTW3 Ultra | 2TB NVMe (MP600 Pro XT) + 500GB SSD (WD Blue) + 3TB HDD (Toshiba P300) + 1TB HDD (WD Blue) | Corsair RMX 850W | Asus Z690 TUF+ D4 | TR PA120SE | Fractal Meshify C | M-Audio USB + Sennheiser HD-599SE | 7x USB 3.0 Hub | 50'' 4K Philips 7608/12 UHD TV (+Head Tracking) | HP Reverb G1 Pro (VR) | TM Warthog + Logitech X56 

 

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+1 to the above

I wanna stress this: Don't even try to upgrade the GPU to a 3080ti without putting a better PSU in AT THE SAME TIME !

 

Gigabyte Aorus X570S Master - Ryzen 5900X - Gskill 64GB 3200/CL14@3600/CL14 - Asus 1080ti EK-waterblock - 4x Samsung 980Pro 1TB - 1x Samsung 870 Evo 1TB - 1x SanDisc 120GB SSD - Heatkiller IV - MoRa3-360LT@9x120mm Noctua F12 - Corsair AXi-1200 - TiR5-Pro - Warthog Hotas - Saitek Combat Pedals - Asus PG278Q 27" QHD Gsync 144Hz - Corsair K70 RGB Pro - Win11 Pro/Linux - Phanteks Evolv-X 

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Another note just to make sure you're getting all potential performance with your hardware - make sure that your ram is actually running at that speed. With some mobo's you have to apply a profile to get those speeds and by default it runs much slower.

In an AMD system it can make a bit of difference.


Edited by unlikely_spider

Modules: Wright Flyer, Spruce Goose, Voyager 1

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Thanks for the info everyone. I will go ahead with the graphics card and power supply right now and see how it runs. Hopefully I can hold off on the others as funds are tight.

I have noticed my RAM was running slow so I went into the bios and tried to run it at recommended overclock speeds but it wouldn't get up to what they had stated it should go to. I did some research and concluded this was because I was using 4 sticks instead of 2. That being said, I am running it faster than standard speeds so I suppose that is good enough for now.

Cheers!

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Larry,

 

with 4 sticks it is not uncommon that you have to raise the DDR Voltage from it's XMP value of 1.35v to 1.375--1.40v.

 

Work your way up from 1.35v in 0.01v steps and see if it boots. The volts it boots on might still be 0.01v below where they also run stable.

If you overdo the volts, say you start right away with 1.45v it clould be that your RAM and/or IMC fail due to signal integrity going south.

There is an upper and a lower limit of where they like to run, try to pinpoint the middle.

 

I would dial in 1.40v and see if they boot, if they do, try less and less until they fail again, then go 1 or 2 steps up again and boot the OS and makie some stability tests. Best is a 3-5 day run w/o reboot and some hefty tests in between.

 

I would not go above 1.4v unless you know what Die your RAM has, some die SKU's die an instant death at 1.45v according to some Youtubers like Buildzoid.

If you run Samsung B-Die, the limit is far beyond 1.45v but makes little sense in 99% of the cases.

 

 

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Gigabyte Aorus X570S Master - Ryzen 5900X - Gskill 64GB 3200/CL14@3600/CL14 - Asus 1080ti EK-waterblock - 4x Samsung 980Pro 1TB - 1x Samsung 870 Evo 1TB - 1x SanDisc 120GB SSD - Heatkiller IV - MoRa3-360LT@9x120mm Noctua F12 - Corsair AXi-1200 - TiR5-Pro - Warthog Hotas - Saitek Combat Pedals - Asus PG278Q 27" QHD Gsync 144Hz - Corsair K70 RGB Pro - Win11 Pro/Linux - Phanteks Evolv-X 

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Thanks BitMaster, I've been fiddling around with my RAM settings and I think I have it running as fast as it will with the 4 chips. I took 2 out at first just to make sure that truly was the issue with them not being able to run at XMP settings and proved that theory correct. With 2 chips I can run them at 3600 but with 4 they default to 2100 and XMP doesn't work. I found another area in the BIOS that says "Memory Try It!" which is quite amusing to me but it works. There is a drop down menu of different speeds and timings. I ended up with one of the 3333 settings. I also found that this automatically adjusted the voltage to the maximum which it 1.400v. I suppose I should be happy with this but If I ever build a system again I will just max out the RAM with 2 chips. Thanks again for your help!

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I can second the dram advise everybody mentioned. Perfectly normal to have to raise the memory voltage a bit, also normal and "best practise" to manually enter XMP settings to achieve full speed. So enable the motherboards XMP mode then in addition manually enter those settings along with a voltage of 1.35-1.375v.

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