Graphics Card Conundrum: Seeking Advice on My RTX 3090 Ti and RTX 3080

[ITAngel]

Hi everyone, it’s been a while. I’ve been stuck in a dilemma about which graphics card to keep or whether I should sell both to get something else. I have an EVGA RTX 3090 Ti FTW3 Ultra and a Gigabyte RTX 3080 Waterforce WD v1.0 model. Note I do have a waterblock also for the 3090 Ti.

Currently, I’m running the 3080 to test it since it’s water-cooled, and my system is water-cooled as well. While swapping my EVGA Z690 Classified board with an ASUS ROG Maximus Z690 Hero Eva Edition, I decided to put the 3090 Ti on air with the idea that I might sell it. A lot of people have told me to keep it since it’s a piece of history, as is the motherboard, but I’m not sure if I should sell both to upgrade to something better

 

[mackerel]

First, what are your own needs? Are they met with either of these, or do you want to get something newer and more powerful? Then cost and availability comes into it.

Of the two, a 3080 is nothing special now. The 3090 Ti should still sell well, as it is probably the cheapest entry point for 24GB GPUs on nvidia side for those doing AI and other big compute stuff. Maybe there's a Titan I'm forgetting but they're even more niche.

 

[freeagent]

I would sell them both, or keep the one you like the most and put it on the shelf.

 

[ITAngel]

First, what are your own needs? Are they met with either of these, or do you want to get something newer and more powerful? Then cost and availability comes into it.

Of the two, a 3080 is nothing special now. The 3090 Ti should still sell well, as it is probably the cheapest entry point for 24GB GPUs on nvidia side for those doing AI and other big compute stuff. Maybe there's a Titan I'm forgetting but they're even more niche.

My needs are being met, so that's not an issue. It's more about whether it makes sense to sell while prices are high and upgrade to something better. Even the 3080 seems to handle everything I need, but I might put the EVGA card back on water cooling and keep the other parts, like the backup GPU and motherboard, as spares. I don't think most of the current tech, like the 50-series cards, is advanced enough to justify the price. It would be nice to have an RTX 4090, but it's not the end of the world. Both my card and the 4090 have 24GB of memory. I was however curious on the Radeon 32GB card but after thinking about it. I might run into the same issue like everyone else with none in stock.

 

[ITAngel]

I would sell them both, or keep the one you like the most and put it on the shelf.

Yeah, I've been thinking about it and leaning toward putting the 3090 Ti back on water and keeping it in my loop, while using the 3080, which is already water-cooled, as a backup. Like I told Mackerel, my current setup meets my needs. Beyond that, I'm not sure if the return is worth it. An RTX 4090 would be nice, but how much better is it compared to the 3090 Ti? I even have an EVGA Z690 Classified motherboard that I was planning to sell.

 

[freeagent]

If they meet your needs keep running. You aren't missing out on much. I have the hated 3070Ti running in my kids computer, its been rock solid.. One day he will get my hated by the internet 4080 12GB

 

[ITAngel]

If they meet your needs keep running. You aren't missing out on much. I have the hated 3070Ti running in my kids computer, its been rock solid.. One day he will get my hated by the internet 4080 12GB

Wow, the 3070 Ti is hated? I had one of those, and it worked great for the longest time. And now the 4080 12GB is hated too? Lol, what is wrong with this world? I'm glad those are working great for you. Honestly, I'm not trying to sell these because they're older; I just haven't kept up with today's market and technology to see if I'm missing out or not. Based on what you're saying, well, that answers my question.

 

[freeagent]

Wow, the 3070 Ti is hated? I had one of those, and it worked great for the longest time. And now the 4080 12GB is hated too? Lol, what is wrong with this world?

The world that is TPU.. like I tell them, we have been enjoying them this entire time lol. You know how people get when they have something nice

Kids now a days

Soon I will have to up or side grade my GPU because my youngest will complain that his GTX980 Classified cannot game like his brothers 3070Ti.. so the stack will get pushed down

I am thinking probably the 5070Ti..

 

[ITAngel]

The world that is TPU.. like I tell them, we have been enjoying them this entire time lol. You know how people get when they have something nice

Kids now a days

Soon I will have to up or side grade my GPU because my youngest will complain that his GTX980 Classified cannot game like his brothers 3070Ti.. so the stack will get pushed down

I am thinking probably the 5070Ti..

Oh yeah, I know the feeling. I just upgraded the kids' laptops to a GTX 1550ti and GTX 1650. Well, I guess it's all good for them since they play Minecraft mainly. They have the console for anything else. XD

 

[ITAngel]

The world that is TPU.. like I tell them, we have been enjoying them this entire time lol. You know how people get when they have something nice

Kids now a days

Soon I will have to up or side grade my GPU because my youngest will complain that his GTX980 Classified cannot game like his brothers 3070Ti.. so the stack will get pushed down

I am thinking probably the 5070Ti..

This got my attention.

 

[freeagent]

This got my attention.

What is old is new again

 

[Kenrou]

In theory, with that software you can use any combo of GPU, which is interesting, but you still need something capable of FG, so one of them has to be an Nvidia 4***+, correct? Could it also work with FSR?

 

[BugFreak]

I still use my evga 3080FTW and haven't found a game I can't run at pretty high, if not maxed out settings. I would keep the 3090 and be happy.

 

[Kenrou]

Echo @BugFreak, haven't tried a game yet that I couldn't run at 1440p 60fps max settings (not counting RT+pathtracing) with my 3080ti, usually much higher, and I know for a fact I would have even higher FPS with any x3D CPU or newer Intel

 

[ITAngel]

Hey guys, thank you for the advice! I've decided to keep them for the time being. That software does look interesting, @Kenrou. I don't know much about it, but I'm trying to learn and see if it can be useful somehow.

 

[don256us]

Yeah. I have a small fleet of 30xx cards. 3080Ti, 3080 x2, 3060. They do what I need from them and my money is going to other projects right now.

I would never consider keeping something simply because I love it (for old times sake). If it no longer meets my needs and I can use it (sell it) to get something that better fits my needs, then that's what I would do.

Selling on the market is a double edged sword. You want to get as much money for your old card as you can by selling early. You want to save as much as you can on the new card by buying late. If you buy early or sell late, the equation changes.

I think that the best advise for buying and selling is that you should do it when you are ready. If you wait on the market, you'll never jump in. This isn't my original thought but I do like it.

 

[ITAngel]

Yeah. I have a small fleet of 30xx cards. 3080Ti, 3080 x2, 3060. They do what I need from them and my money is going to other projects right now.

I would never consider keeping something simply because I love it (for old times sake). If it no longer meets my needs and I can use it (sell it) to get something that better fits my needs, then that's what I would do.

Selling on the market is a double edged sword. You want to get as much money for your old card as you can by selling early. You want to save as much as you can on the new card by buying late. If you buy early or sell late, the equation changes.

I think that the best advise for buying and selling is that you should do it when you are ready. If you wait on the market, you'll never jump in. This isn't my original thought but I do like it.

Thank you, it does make perfect sense and I do appreciate your input on this. I have decided to keep my 3090 Ti which I put back on water and shelving my 3080 water cooled card for now. Next project will involve these rads here on the picture. The large rads are 560mm. My case already have dual 480mm rads. I have to build a box I guess to host them or something.