Looking at upgrade options RTX 3080 12GB or RTX 3080 Ti vs RTX 4070 Super

[Tech Tweaker]

Well, been thinking about upgrading my video card lately.

Currently on an RTX 3070, been considering upgrading to an RTX 3080 12GB, or RTX 3080 Ti (also 12GB) or RTX 4070 Super.

I can find an RTX 3080 12GB for around $400-475 used on ebay, RTX 3080 Ti for around $450-550 used, or RTX 4070 Super new for anywhere between $600-800 (or more) depending upon what model I'm looking at (what level of cooling I want, what sort of features I'm looking for, and/or what aesthetics (some colors more expensive)).

I tend to upgrade my video card every 3-4 years, and it's been a little over 3 years since I bought the current one.

The RTX 3080 or 3080 Ti would be compatible with my current system, but for an RTX 4070 Super I would need either a dual 8-pin to 16-pin adapter or a new power supply that supports the newer style ATX3.1/PCIE 5.0 connector.

Anyone have thoughts or suggestions?

 

[freeagent]

The GPU comes with the adapter.

40 series all the way bud.

 

[Woomack]

I wouldn't get a graphics card without a warranty, and most second-hand RTX3000 are already 2-3 years old.
RTX4070 Super is great for 1440p and 4k (not maxed-out settings in more demanding games), but if you have a larger PC case, get something with a larger cooler so fans spin slower. Smaller models bump fans' speed to 100% from time to time, and it's annoying (like ASUS Dual / Dual EVO). When you manually set a lower speed, they still do that when the GPU temp reaches around 89°C (I don't remember exactly how it is on my card).

As freeagent said, power adapters are in the box with every RTX4000 card. RTX4070/Super gets a 2x8-pin, 4070Ti+ gets a 3x8-pin.

The RTX5000 series will be out at the beginning of next year, but I guess the premiere will be around CES, and stores will have them about a month later. I would say to wait for the premiere, but it may take longer than expected. I bet we also see higher models first, so the premiere of something affordable for the masses can move to March-May.

 

[mackerel]

I'd throw in the standard 4070 for consideration also. It's still comparable to a 3080 in performance if you're not sure about paying more for the Super.

 

[rainless]

Seems like we have a very similar upgrade cycle. (Though my cards tend to be more "mid-tier"...) I had the 960, 2060 Super, and now I have the 4060.

I was looking at the same options as you. I could've gotten the 3070 cheaper... but I'm glad I went with the newer tech because of the lower power consumption and new AI features. (Even DaVinci Resolve, my video editor, took seven minutes to setup its new machine learning capabilities.)

So my vote's for the 4070 if you can afford it.

Power supplies are dirt cheap. I've got like a few of them casually laying around.

You can generally get any wattage you want, used, any brand, for under 100 bucks.

I don't think they even cost much more new.

I think I have an 850 watt XFX now that I probably paid 40 bucks for. Worked just fine with the 4060 right out of the box.

I think I paid 20 used for my previous 550 watt Corsair.

I'll probably stick to the same pattern as you until I strike it rich. Skip the 5000 series... pick up a 6060. (Maybe even a 6070 if I start saving now... )

Then once my app comes out... it's a new X090 every week!

 

[Kenrou]

4070s benchmarks the same or slightly faster than the 3080ti (depending on the game), gives you access to new tech in games and draws as much power as your current 3070 (200w-250w peak depending on the model, less during gaming), I would call it a no brainer for an upgrade at this point in time IF you can get it at a decent price point? I also jumped from a 3070, but my 3080ti was the deal of a lifetime, so completely worth it. So far, zero complaints

Side note, jump from a 3070 to a 3080 is not really that noticeable in gaming unless you use more than 8gb vram, IMO you'll need something more powerful to make it worthwhile considering the prices tags nowadays...

 

[Woomack]

4070s benchmarks the same or slightly faster than the 3080ti (depending on the game), gives you access to new tech in games and draws as much power as your current 3070 (200w-250w peak depending on the model, less during gaming), I would call it a no brainer for an upgrade at this point in time IF you can get it at a decent price point? I also jumped from a 3070, but my 3080ti was the deal of a lifetime, so completely worth it. So far, zero complaints

Side note, jump from a 3070 to a 3080 is not really that noticeable in gaming unless you use more than 8gb vram, IMO you'll need something more powerful to make it worthwhile considering the prices tags nowadays...

4070 is more like 170-190W. 4070 Super is about 200-220W. My Strix RTX3070 had about 260W

The difference in W is about the same as in performance between RTX4070 and 4070 Super = ~15% +/- 2% here and there. The difference in price looking at Nvidia website is around 10%, so I wouldn't get anything below RTX4070 Super right now. It's just a matter of finding it cheaper as some stores have weird prices, like the difference between the same model, but black or white is sometimes 10%.
I don't recommend 2-fan versions (only if you want a tight ITX PC). 3-fan versions cost about $20-30 more. Here is a higher Gigabyte for $630:

Gigabyte NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Super Gaming Overclocked Triple Fan 12GB GDDR6X PCIe 4.0 Graphics Card

Buy Gigabyte NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Super Gaming Overclocked Triple Fan 12GB GDDR6X PCIe 4.0 Graphics Card from NVIDIA Geforce Store. Checkout description and buying options for Gigabyte NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Super Gaming Overclocked Triple Fan 12GB GDDR6X PCIe 4.0 Graphics Card

marketplace.nvidia.com

I guess you can find this or another higher model a bit cheaper.

 

[EarthDog]

Yeah, out of these NV options, 4070 super. 3080/4070 isn't a worthwhile upgrade from a 3070 performance-wise, and you might as well get the more efficient hardware.

As mentioned, you won't need a new psu as the connector comes with tbe card (like 6+2 came with prior gens).

I'll assume you're gaming at 2560x1440 or below, yes?

 

[Pepi93]

I wouldn't get the 3000 series for the TDP. It's too high but if you have a strong PSU then it doesn't matter. Also the warranty but I've only had one GPU go bad in 25 years.

I just upgraded my 2080ti to a 4070Ti and it works nicely with my current system and I can still build a system around it in the near future while still keeping my current PSU.

 

[infinitevalence]

I would wait as AMD is about to kick out their RX 8800XT and its expected to be 4080 performance for $500-600 as well as a big RT update to nearly match current NVIDIA Ray Tracing performance.

AMD Radeon RX 8800 XT Specs

AMD Navi 48, 2430 MHz, 3584 Cores, 224 TMUs, 96 ROPs, 16384 MB GDDR6, 2438 MHz, 256 bit

www.techpowerup.com

AMD's next-gen RDNA 4-based Radeon RX 8000 series GPUs to have 48MB to 64MB of Infinity Cache

AMD's next-gen RDNA 4 GPUs will feature between 48MB and 64MB of next-gen Infinity Cache says leaker, prices for desktop RX 8000 series GPUs at up to $599.

www.tweaktown.com

 

[EarthDog]

Good point ^^

If you can, waiting isn't a bad idea... both AMD and Nvidia are to have cards out in early 2025. If they aren't enticing (or too pricey or can't find them, lol), last-gen cards will likely be less expensive.

 

[Kenrou]

Something to keep in mind, AMD has stated that they're dropping out of the race for high-end GPUs and stay in the low to middle range, as far as I'm concerned, anything above **70 is considered high-end, so tone down your expectations on performance of what's coming ahead

 

[infinitevalence]

Something to keep in mind, AMD has stated that they're dropping out of the race for high-end GPUs and stay in the low to middle range, as far as I'm concerned, anything above **70 is considered high-end, so tone down your expectations on performance of what's coming ahead

For this generation they are not going after 5090 because its such a small market and it costs so much to develop for it. They did the same thing with RDNA 1 and the RX 5700 XT.

I would say matching 4080/7900xt at $599 is a hell of a value and that a 4080/7900xt is also high end.

I was not going to drop $2500 on a 5090 anyway so that level of "high end" might as well not exist to most gamers.

 

[mackerel]

When AMD were doing "high end" they were still a tier or so behind Nvidia, although they have been playing the numbers game so AMD tier numbers are often about a tier inflated too, especially at the higher end. So I wouldn't expect a 5080/5090 class competitor given their comments. AMD's 5070 class competitor could potentially compare to 4080, which might be high end now but things move on. The 3070 matched the previous gen top end 2080 Ti, but you wouldn't call it high end today as it falls into mainstream in one gen.

Personally I'm going to watch the 5080 closely. If rumours are true, it is faster than a 4090, and I'm guessing it will be priced much less than a 4090. That should keep me happy at 4k for a while.

 

[freeagent]

I went from a 3070 Ti to a 4070 Ti and it was a super solid bump imo.

I will grab a 5080 and just run it for a few years. My 4070 Ti will go to my oldest son and my youngest will get the Ampere.

 

[KeeperOfTheButch]

I see 4070Ti's for sale for $500 quite often. I have personal purchased 4070Tis for 585. The Ti has been out longer than the super, so better deals are out there. If you willing to spend $800 you can get a 4080 Super. I'm running a 4080 super myself, I paid $750 for it.

I have 3 different versions of 4070 Supers. They all seem to overclock the same. I would not be to worried about brand. Two versions of the 4070Ti, same deal.

 

[Woomack]

I replaced RTX3060 with RTX4070 Super in my gaming PC about two months ago. I still have RTX4070 FE and RTX4080, but I need them for other things. As much as I feel RTX4070 Super is great, I don't recommend ASUS DUAL / DUAL EVO. I have the EVO version, and I have mixed feelings about it. They're considered the best two-fan options, and they're nothing special; that's why I said earlier that it is better to get anything higher with three fans (if the space in the PC case isn't an issue).

If AMD won't improve efficiency, there is no point in waiting for them. Especially when most AMD cards are worse quality than Nvidia, and you often find out about problems after the purchase. I'm not on any side, but I test/review everything, and it's not hard to notice that except for brands like Sapphire or single/top models of PowerColor or ASUS, AMD cards get worse quality coolers, and there are always some design flaws. I like the RX6800XT Red Devil that my brother is using right now, but it's far from perfect, and the efficiency is pretty bad.
The premiere of new AMD cards was supposed to be around October, but we can't hear much about it, and the leaks say it will be presented at CES. We still have four months until then + at least one month for the product release, but I would say closer to March next year, so ~half a year waiting, and we don't really know if it's worth it. The same story as with the RTX5000. We don't know the prices, and we don't know if the GPU that replaces something like RTX4070 Super will be kept at the same price/performance.

 

[dfonda]

I see 4070Ti's for sale for $500 quite often. I have personal purchased 4070Tis for 585. The Ti has been out longer than the super, so better deals are out there. If you willing to spend $800 you can get a 4080 Super. I'm running a 4080 super myself, I paid $750 for it.

I have 3 different versions of 4070 Supers. They all seem to overclock the same. I would not be to worried about brand. Two versions of the 4070Ti, same deal.

Where did you see a 4080 Super for $800 ? Can I get a link?

 

[KeeperOfTheButch]

Where did you see a 4080 Super for $800 ? Can I get a link?

I got it used of market place

 

[dfonda]

I got it used of market place

Okay thanks. That's not an option for me I don't have Facebook. I'll get over to Best buy when I get a chance that's the cheapest one I've seen.