Best GPU for Ryzen 9 5900X

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Graphics Cards for Ryzen 9 5900X

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One of the most exciting CPU’s to hit the market this year is the Ryzen 9 5900X. With 12 cores, a 4,8 GHz boost clock speed, and a cache double the size of the 5800X, this CPU provides us with a generational leap from the Zen 2 series of processors. To take advantage of this new Zen 3 processor, we need to start looking for the best GPUs for Ryzen 9 5900X and find the most optimal setup.

AMD has improved the new series of CPUs, boosting their performance by around 20% across the board when comparing them to the previous generation. The Zen 3 architecture is without superior to Zen 2, marking this year as AMD’s year. Furthermore, shortly after the launch of the 5000 series, AMD announced their new 6000 series of graphics cards and we’re going to explore them as well. There are some exciting features that work best when a 5000 CPU is paired with one of the new GPUs, but that doesn’t mean other graphics cards won’t be more than suitable in a 5900X build.

So, let’s start exploring the top GPUs that should be combined with the Ryzen 9 5900X.

7 Best GPUs for Ryzen 9 5900X

1. AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT Graphics

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 4,608 | Base/Boost Clock: 2015 MHz/2250 MHz | Memory: 16 GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 16Gbps | Power Connectors: 2x PCIe 8-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1 VRR and FRL, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a
Key features:
  • Radeon Image Sharpening
  • Radeon Anti-Lag
  • Ray Tracing support
  • Smart Access Memory
  • Radeon Boost

The RX 6800 XT is AMD’s answer to Nvidia’s RTX 3080. Judging by technical specs alone, this GPU is certainly powerful from almost every point of view. AMD decided to go with 16GB of GDDR6 memory instead of using GDDR6X like Nvidia, but it compensates by having more if it than its 3080 rival. At the same time, the RX 6800 XT packs a serious punch with clock frequencies around 2000 MHz, going up to 2250. This is highly impressive, especially because AMD managed to keep the power requirements down despite the high performance.

With that being said, the RX 6800XT is meant for 4K gaming systems, but it remains affordable enough for most average gamers as well. In fact, this GPU is just slightly under the RTX 3080’s price, which certainly makes it attractive considering the performance. But more importantly, AMD finally introduced what it was lacking when compared to Nvidia, and that is ray tracing. It is now available with the 6000s series of graphics cards, together with other important features like variable-rate shading, smart access memory, and supersampling.

In addition, the RX 6800 XT comes with Radeon Boost, a software feature that improves in-game performance during motion by dynamically reducing the render resolution. Once there’s no more movement, the resolution scales back up without you even noticing. This feature can lead to significant frame rate improvements in certain games. However, keep in mind that not all games offer this support so you should regularly check the list for driver updates.

All in all, the RX 6800 XT is a solid 4K-capable alternative to the RTX 3080, and due to AMD’s hardware optimizations it will benefit from operating together with the Ryzen 9 5900X.

2. Nvidia Geforce RTX 3080

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 8,704 | Base/Boost Clock: 1440 MHz/1710 MHz | Memory: 10 GB GDDR6X | Memory Clock: 19Gbps | Power Connectors: 2x PCIe 8-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
Key features:
  • Nvidia DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling)
  • Ray Tracing
  • Nvidia Reflex
  • PCI Express 4.0 support
  • RTX I/O
  • Nvidia Broadcast

The RTX 3080 is one of the most talked-about graphics cards out there for a good reason. It pushes all the performance boundaries, delivering more than Nvidia’s previous flagship, the RTX 2080 TI at a lower price. The RTX 3080 has double the number of stream processors, a throughput of nearly 30 TFLOPs, and a solid boost clock up to 1710MHz. In other words, it’s an ideal candidate for 4K gaming, especially when combined with a powerful processor like the Ryzen 9 5900X.

In addition to raw power, the RTX 3080 brings improvements to the previous generation’s ray tracing and introduces next-gen PCI Express 4.0 support together with the rest of the 3000 series. Furthermore, it’s a future-proof graphics card due to the addition of the new GPU-accelerated storage technology, known as RTX I/O. The advanced architecture allows the graphics card to decompress game assets directly and to offload some of the CPU workloads onto the GPU cores. This new feature also prevents CPU bottlenecks because data is sent from the SSD to the GPU, thus increasing frame rates and reducing loading times.

Finally, the RTX 3080 also includes a series of utilities that are useful outside of gaming. With the increase in streamers, there’s obviously a need for better streaming technology and quality, and this GPU is here to deliver that through its Nvidia Broadcast feature. This piece of software improves the quality of the stream and uses AI to remove background noise and replace your real background with the game’s background.

In conclusion, you can’t really go wrong with the RTX 3080 when it comes to HD or 4K gaming and the features it comes with are also useful for workstations.

3. AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT Graphics

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 5,120 | Base/Boost Clock: 2015 MHz/2250 MHz | Memory: 16 GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 16Gbps | Power Connectors: 2x PCIe 8-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1 VRR and FRL, 2x DisplayPort 1.4a
Key features:
  • Radeon Image Sharpening
  • Radeon Anti-Lag
  • Ray Tracing support
  • Smart Access Memory
  • Radeon Boost

The RX 6900 XT is AMD’s top of the line GPU that seems to be rivaling Nvidia’s behemoth, the RTX 3090. With an impressive boost clock going up to 2250 MHz and 128MB cache, this GPU is a 4K gaming powerhouse, despite the fact that it has 16 GB of GDDR6 memory, unlike the 24GB the 3090 has. AMD chose to compensate with their cache technology to reduce memory latency instead of opting for the fast GDDR6X memory like Nvidia has. This also reduces the amount of power needed and it allows AMD to significantly undercut Nvidia’s RTX 3090 price by a whopping $500. Depending on future benchmarks, the RX 6900 XT might become the top high-end gaming GPU.

According to AMD, the new 6900 XT, just like the other GPUs in the 6000s series, is developed on the RDNA 2 architecture and it’s going to provide up to 65% more performance per Watt when compared to its predecessor. This giant leap in performance gives us a lot of power without demanding an unmanageable or expensive power supply. AMD seems to have gone for a well-balanced approach in design with the 6900 XT and it will certainly be an excellent choice for gamers that opt for the Ryzen 9 5900X.

But technical specs aren’t everything. And fortunately, AMD has caught up to Nvidia’s software improvements and added their own ray tracing support and smart access memory, further future-proofing their 6000s series of GPUs. These new features improve the quality of the graphics and reduce loading times as well due to faster data transfer rates between the SSD and GPU. Finally, AMD’s Radeon Boost feature can significantly improve the frame rates, depending on the game.

All in all, we can’t go wrong with the RX 6900 XT, especially when pairing it up with an AMD CPU like the Ryzen 9 5900X.

4. Nvidia Geforce RTX 3070

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 5,888 | Base/Boost Clock: 1500 MHz/1730 MHz | Memory: 8 GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 14Gbps | Power Connectors: 1x PCIe 8-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
Key features:
  • Nvidia DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling)
  • Ray Tracing
  • Nvidia Reflex
  • PCI Express 4.0 support
  • VR Ready
  • Nvidia Broadcast

The RTX 3070 is the next-gen GPU for the budget-conscious that always wanted that RTX 2080 TI but it was somewhat out of reach. In essence, the 3070 is a weaker RTX 3080 that performs just as well as Nvidia’s last gen flagship, but at half the price.

The RTX 3070 is good enough for most 4K setups thanks to its 1,730 MHz boost clock and 8GB of GDDR6X memory, but it truly shines when it comes to 1440p gaming. With double the number of stream processors compared to its predecessor, the RTX 2070, this is one affordable beast. Furthermore, just like the RTX 3080, it has PCI Express 4.0 support, just like the Ryzen 9 5900X, so it’s an excellent future-proof GPU.

In the features department, the RTX 3070 is just as well-equipped as its bigger brother, the 3080. Therefore you’ll get to enjoy ray tracing, improved super sampling, as well as the RTX I/O technology.

In general, the RTX 3070 performs really well, even in 4K setups, however, keep in mind that some games might not run at 60 fps on ultra high settings. But considering the fact that it’s as powerful as the RTX 2080 TI for half the cost, it’s definitely worth buying.

5. AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT Graphics

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 2,560 | Base/Boost Clock: 1605 MHz/1905 MHz | Memory: 8 GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 14Gbps | Power Connectors: 1x PCIe 8-pin and 1x PCIe 6-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI, 3x DisplayPort 1.4
Key features:
  • Radeon Image Sharpening
  • Radeon Anti-Lag latency reducer
  • PCI Express 4.0 support
  • Energy efficient
  • VR Ready

While everyone is chasing the RTX 3000s series, there are still other solid options, such as the RX 5700 XT from AMD. This mid range GPU is comparable to the RTX 2070 and therefore it’s a great choice for 1080p and 1440p gaming. However, there are some missing features in this series of graphics cards, such as ray tracing. AMD lagged behind with this model compared to Nvidia, but they sought to compensate with raw power, thus focusing on designing a GPU purely for gaming.

The 5700 XT has a high base and boost clock speed when compared to other similarly priced GPUs. This aspect alone somewhat compensates for the lack of ray tracing. However, it does have its own version of supersampling called Radeon Image Sharpening, which intelligently improves the graphics by preventing artifacts and faulty textures from being generated.

With that being said, this GPU isn’t meant for 4K setups. But it is made for competitive gamers who are seeking an edge over their adversaries. By sacrificing some of the quality of the graphics, but providing a lot of raw power and the Anti-Lag software, the 5700 XT GPU becomes a strong choice. Lag is the enemy of all gamers and AMD managed to prevent some of it by telling the CPU to hold on until the GPU is prepared to send the next frames. Therefore without a frame buffer, we end up with a highly optimized graphics card.

With that being said, the RX 5700 XT is a good choice together with the Ryzen 9 5900X, particularly for gamers who aren’t interested in 4K gaming.

6. Nvidia Geforce RTX 3090

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 10,496 | Base/Boost Clock: 1400 MHz/1700 MHz | Memory: 24 GB GDDR6X | Memory Clock: 19.5Gbps | Power Connectors: 2x PCIe 8-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI 2.1, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
Key features:
  • Nvidia DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling)
  • Ray Tracing
  • 8K gaming performance
  • PCI Express 4.0 support
  • RTX I/O
  • Nvidia Broadcast

The RTX 3090 is a beast of a GPU meant to replace the Titan line and it’s as large as it’s powerful. Designed for 4K and 8K gaming, as well as high 3D rendering performance for workstations, this card is physically massive with an equally large heatsink, so keep that in mind when purchasing your case and motherboard.

While the base and boost clock frequency are nearly identical to the RTX 3080, this GPU comes with a whopping 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus and almost 10,500 CUDA cores. This is a significant increase but the card comes with a really high price tag, though nothing close to the old RTX Titan. With that being said, this GPU is meant for professional 3D modelers and gaming enthusiasts with deep pockets. For most gamers, the RTX 3090 is most likely an overkill and the RTX 3080 is more than enough. The price difference doesn’t necessarily justify the added performance boost.

While the RTX 3090 is a monster when it comes to technical specs, its functionality is also improved through software, just like the entire 3000 series. It benefits from all the bells and whistles, such as ray tracing, RTX I/O, and super sampling. On the downside, this also means we have to talk about the amount of power it needs to run. According to Nvidia, a 750W PSU is enough, but that’s highly debatable. If we’re using the 3090 at maximum capacity it’s going to use slightly more than 350W on its own. Adding a powerful CPU and other devices would certainly push a 750W power supply to its limit. So if interested in this card, a 900 to 1000W PSU might be the safest bet.

In essence, the RTX 3090 is for enthusiasts and not for the average gamers. Even if you’re interested in 8K gaming, keep in mind that there are barely any 8k monitors to choose from right now.

7. Nvidia Geforce RTX 2070 Super

Specifications:
Stream Processors: 2,560 | Base/Boost Clock: 1605 MHz/1770 MHz | Memory: 8 GB GDDR6 | Memory Clock: 14Gbps | Power Connectors: 1x PCIe 8-pin and 1x PCIe 6-pin | Outputs: 1x HDMI 2.0b, 3x DisplayPort 1.4a
Key features:
  • Nvidia DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling)
  • Ray Tracing
  • Nvidia Adaptive Shading
  • Nvidia SLI-Ready
  • VR Ready

The RTX 2070 Super is the improved version of the 2070 graphics card. Nvidia increased its number of stream processors, as well as the base and boost frequencies, bringing the GPU almost at the same level as the RTX 2080. This card is ideal for 1440p gaming as well as rendering work for those who don’t have a big budget for 4K builds or high-end workstations.

What truly sets the RTX 2070 Super apart compared to other GPUs is the fact that it comes with the same software improvements as the RTX 3000s series. In other words, we have access to ray tracing, adaptive shading, and super sampling without having to reach for the next-gen GPUs. However, with the launch of the RTX 3070, the 2070 Super starts to feel somewhat out of place and unnecessary. The two of them cost nearly the same and since the RTX 3070 is superior, there’s not much point in choosing the 2070 over it. With that in mind, this GPU might be worth getting in the near future once Nvidia drops the price.

Final Thoughts

The Ryzen 9 5900 is an impressive CPU that performs really well in gaming and productivity setups, so it’s only natural to pair it with an equally great gaming GPU. Whether you’re an AMD or Nvidia fan, or you just want to get the most performance per dollar, this last has something for you. The last-gen graphics cards from both companies are still good and worth getting. But the RTX 3000s series, as well as the newly announced RX 6000 series are the best for a future-proof build. Lastly, you can also check out this bottleneck calculator to better determine which of the GPUs above is best for your Ryzen 9 5900x.

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