Question GPU Upgrade From XFX Speedster SWFT319?

[ascendant]

I just built a new PC, and I got the "XFX Speedster SWFT319 ,Radeon RX 6800 Core Gaming Graphics Card with 16GB GDDR6, AMD RDNA™ 2". It works great, but from what I was told on here, that GPU would be my bottleneck on this current build I have. I have a little more money I can put into it now, and was considering getting one that's better. I could spend up to $100 more for one. But if I am going to go through the trouble of ordering another one, returning this one, etc., I'd want it to be worth it - something that would be a definite and decent upgrade within an extra $100. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[In2Photos]

What games are you playing? At what resolution?

 

[ascendant]

What games are you playing? At what resolution?

I play all kinds of games. I've played Doom (plan to play the Eternal one soon), BG3, Fortnite with my boys, etc. I want to be able to run games at max resolution without it killing the fps. I play everything from first-person shooters, to strategy (SC2), rpgs, etc.

With Fortnite, when I max out the graphics settings, it goes down to about 40-60 fps. I'd like to bring that up some, as with Fortnite, every split second counts, but I also don't want to have to drop down my graphics settings to make it happen.

 

[In2Photos]

I play all kinds of games. I've played Doom (plan to play the Eternal one soon), BG3, Fortnite with my boys, etc. I want to be able to run games at max resolution without it killing the fps. I play everything from first-person shooters, to strategy (SC2), rpgs, etc.

With Fortnite, when I max out the graphics settings, it goes down to about 40-60 fps. I'd like to bring that up some, as with Fortnite, every split second counts, but I also don't want to have to drop down my graphics settings to make it happen.

Do you have ray tracing turned on as well? It's been a while since I played Fortnite, but when I did I don't recall seeing FPS that low and I played with pretty high settings, albeit at 1080p. But Fortnite isn't a game that I think really needs max settings. The difference between max and some of the other presets isn't much, but FPS goes up pretty well when lowered.

What did you pay for the 6800 again? I'm not sure there's much to upgrade to with $100. Maybe an RX7800XT.

 

[Iron Woode]

I just built a new PC, and I got the "XFX Speedster SWFT319 ,Radeon RX 6800 Core Gaming Graphics Card with 16GB GDDR6, AMD RDNA™ 2". It works great, but from what I was told on here, that GPU would be my bottleneck on this current build I have. I have a little more money I can put into it now, and was considering getting one that's better. I could spend up to $100 more for one. But if I am going to go through the trouble of ordering another one, returning this one, etc., I'd want it to be worth it - something that would be a definite and decent upgrade within an extra $100. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

what are the system's specs?

I use a Sapphire Pulse RX6800 on an AM4 system (R7 5700x) and it works great in many games like Doom Eternal @ 1440P.

 

[gdansk]

I am curious the other specifications. Resolution, CPU. As even the fastest GPU, the RTX 4090, is only 1.9x as fast as at 1080p. And that's $1600+.

How much can you return it for? RX 7800 XT is possibly the only faster card available in that price +100 range. And it's only about 20% faster.

 

[manly]

Do you have ray tracing turned on as well? It's been a while since I played Fortnite, but when I did I don't recall seeing FPS that low and I played with pretty high settings, albeit at 1080p. But Fortnite isn't a game that I think really needs max settings. The difference between max and some of the other presets isn't much, but FPS goes up pretty well when lowered.

What did you pay for the 6800 again? I'm not sure there's much to upgrade to with $100. Maybe an RX7800XT.

I suspect he paid about $350 + tax, making it the best GPU value < $400. I don't think $100 more will quite get him to a 7800 XT, and it's a worse value at this time. It will have better longevity, and that could make sense if you never intend to buy a drop-in replacement graphics card.

 

[In2Photos]

I suspect he paid about $350 + tax, making it the best GPU value < $400. I don't think $100 more will quite get him to a 7800 XT, and it's a worse value at this time. It will have better longevity, and that could make sense if you never intend to buy a drop-in replacement graphics card.

Yeah that's why we steered the OP to the 6800. It was the best bang for his budget.

 

[ascendant]

Do you have ray tracing turned on as well? It's been a while since I played Fortnite, but when I did I don't recall seeing FPS that low and I played with pretty high settings, albeit at 1080p. But Fortnite isn't a game that I think really needs max settings. The difference between max and some of the other presets isn't much, but FPS goes up pretty well when lowered.

What did you pay for the 6800 again? I'm not sure there's much to upgrade to with $100. Maybe an RX7800XT.

Yes, I did have ray tracing on. Is that one of the graphics settings that has a bigger impact on performance?

Paid $370 for the card. From what I'm seeing on here, seems like this card is probably going to be my best bet for now. I think I just need to lower the settings some in it. You're right, I probably won't notice much difference anyway.

 

[ascendant]

what are the system's specs?

I use a Sapphire Pulse RX6800 on an AM4 system (R7 5700x) and it works great in many games like Doom Eternal @ 1440P.

Motherboard - MSI B650 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard
CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor
Memory - G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory
Video Card - XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 16 GB Video Card

I probably just need to mess with some of the video settings on Fortnite to figure out what is slowing it down. It's not like it's horrible, I mean it plays alright maxed. It's just not the greatest frame rate.

 

[manly]

Motherboard - MSI B650 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard
CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor
Memory - G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory
Video Card - XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 16 GB Video Card

I probably just need to mess with some of the video settings on Fortnite to figure out what is slowing it down. It's not like it's horrible, I mean it plays alright maxed. It's just not the greatest frame rate.

I'm no expert but I think that GPU is a pretty good match for that CPU.

AMD is comparatively shitty for RT, so that is just something you should expect to live without unless you're willing to spend a lot more (7900 XT/GeForce 4070S). Yes, RT has a massive impact on performance.
A 7800 XT is close to $500, and an argument could be made if you want to game at 1440p AND want longevity. It's not really "worth it" for $125 more but sometimes spending extra up front and never upgrading is a viable strategy. If you're gaming at 1080p, don't bother.

 

[marees]

Yes, I did have ray tracing on. Is that one of the graphics settings that has a bigger impact on performance?

Paid $370 for the card. From what I'm seeing on here, seems like this card is probably going to be my best bet for now. I think I just need to lower the settings some in it. You're right, I probably won't notice much difference anyway.

The 6800 is a pretty decent card. Given that TSMC fab billing rates are increasing, I would advise you to sit tight on your investment for next 4 years. & then buy a card that is as good a deal then as the 6800 is today

 

[In2Photos]

Yes, I did have ray tracing on. Is that one of the graphics settings that has a bigger impact on performance?

Paid $370 for the card. From what I'm seeing on here, seems like this card is probably going to be my best bet for now. I think I just need to lower the settings some in it. You're right, I probably won't notice much difference anyway.

OK. Yes AMD cards are a little (OK, quite a bit) behind on ray tracing. Just turning that one setting off should dramatically increase your frame rates.

Edit: Alternatively you could try enabling FSR with ray tracing on and see if you like it.

 

[ascendant]

OK. Yes AMD cards are a little (OK, quite a bit) behind on ray tracing. Just turning that one setting off should dramatically increase your frame rates.

Edit: Alternatively you could try enabling FSR with ray tracing on and see if you like it.

Wow, so yea, just turning of ray tracing alone made a huge difference. Went right up to about 100fps on even the most graphically-demanding content I know of on there (tilted zone wars). I again appreciate your help (and everyone elses too of course).

Is there any good sites to use as reference for things like that - information that will let me know AMDs strengths and weaknesses when it comes to graphics settings like that, so I know how to optimize for other games as well?

 

[marees]

Wow, so yea, just turning of ray tracing alone made a huge difference. Went right up to about 100fps on even the most graphically-demanding content I know of on there (tilted zone wars). I again appreciate your help (and everyone elses too of course).

Is there any good sites to use as reference for things like that - information that will let me know AMDs strengths and weaknesses when it comes to graphics settings like that, so I know how to optimize for other games as well?

Turn off ray tracing in Nvidia sponsored games, I guess

UE5 engine based games (such as Hellblade 2: Senua's Saga) should be kinder on AMD cards, I suppose

Also as others have suggested, try FSR 2/3 along with AFMF

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Motherboard - MSI B650 GAMING PLUS WIFI ATX AM5 Motherboard
CPU - AMD Ryzen 5 7600X 4.7 GHz 6-Core Processor
Memory - G.Skill Trident Z5 Neo 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory
Video Card - XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 16 GB Video Card

I probably just need to mess with some of the video settings on Fortnite to figure out what is slowing it down. It's not like it's horrible, I mean it plays alright maxed. It's just not the greatest frame rate.

Just turn off nanite and lumen in fortnite, it's a competitive game, it doesn't need to look THAT good. Those are the performance crushers.

For non competitive games you can give AFMF2 a try by installing the preview drivers -

Increased latency is bad juju in MP games, so don't use it there. You should be able to tweak ray tracing and visual quality in games that don't support FSR 3 frame generation, for a smooth and visually acceptable experience with AFMF 2.

 

[BurnItDwn]

I'm running the same 6800 here, 3440x1440, i dont play much AAA or new stuff, though I did play BG3 and Cyberpunk with it. Its very clearly pretty much always my bottlneck, since I've got a 7800x3d CPU, but, I bought this card back a couple years ago when it first came down to $500 and i was pretty desperate to upgrade from an old 2060.

6800XT or 7800XT is a step up but IMO not worth the trouble. The 6800XT's are going for for around $380 or so, so you could sell your 6800 and get a 6800xt ... but, seems like a lot of time/effort to put into such a minor upgrade.

7900GRE would be a decent upgrade if it dropped down to $500 again, but, that's quite a bit more than $100 over the value of selling a used 6800.
Sometimes 6900XT or 6950XT cards are available used around like $425-450 ... and those might be worth considering...

Otherwise, January 2025, we hopefully will finally get new midrange card from AMD and we will see how crazy Nvidia prices their 5xxx series. I was t one time hopefully for battlemage, but, it seems like Intel is in serious trouble right now.

 

[ascendant]

I'm running the same 6800 here, 3440x1440, i dont play much AAA or new stuff, though I did play BG3 and Cyberpunk with it. Its very clearly pretty much always my bottlneck, since I've got a 7800x3d CPU, but, I bought this card back a couple years ago when it first came down to $500 and i was pretty desperate to upgrade from an old 2060.

6800XT or 7800XT is a step up but IMO not worth the trouble. The 6800XT's are going for for around $380 or so, so you could sell your 6800 and get a 6800xt ... but, seems like a lot of time/effort to put into such a minor upgrade.

7900GRE would be a decent upgrade if it dropped down to $500 again, but, that's quite a bit more than $100 over the value of selling a used 6800.
Sometimes 6900XT or 6950XT cards are available used around like $425-450 ... and those might be worth considering...

Otherwise, January 2025, we hopefully will finally get new midrange card from AMD and we will see how crazy Nvidia prices their 5xxx series. I was t one time hopefully for battlemage, but, it seems like Intel is in serious trouble right now.

I appreciate the response. I'm just sticking with what I have. I wasn't aware that certain types of graphics cards are good at some things, and bad at others. As soon as I adjusted what was suggested previously (removing the ray tracing), my fps jumped up to where I feel it should be and it runs smooth and great. Even with a higher-performance GPU, it's just something these GPUs aren't good at, and now I know.

I just have to put some time (when I'm able) into learning what graphics settings AMD GPUs do and don't handle well, and adjusting those settings in future games accordingly. I'd imagine there's something in the Adrenaline Edition software that gives suggestions just like my Nvidia one used to, I just have to take some time to check it out. Just been really pressed for time lately is all.

 

[In2Photos]

I appreciate the response. I'm just sticking with what I have. I wasn't aware that certain types of graphics cards are good at some things, and bad at others. As soon as I adjusted what was suggested previously (removing the ray tracing), my fps jumped up to where I feel it should be and it runs smooth and great. Even with a higher-performance GPU, it's just something these GPUs aren't good at, and now I know.

I just have to put some time (when I'm able) into learning what graphics settings AMD GPUs do and don't handle well, and adjusting those settings in future games accordingly. I'd imagine there's something in the Adrenaline Edition software that gives suggestions just like my Nvidia one used to, I just have to take some time to check it out. Just been really pressed for time lately is all.

The only thing that your card doesn't do well is ray tracing. Your card is AMD's first generation that supports it. Ray tracing requires a lot of horsepower. Nvidia cards do better than AMD, they are now on 3rd generation hardware that supports ray tracing so AMD is one generation behind. Other than that you have a great card that should handle most things you throw at it.

 

[ascendant]

The only thing that your card doesn't do well is ray tracing. Your card is AMD's first generation that supports it. Ray tracing requires a lot of horsepower. Nvidia cards do better than AMD, they are now on 3rd generation hardware that supports ray tracing so AMD is one generation behind. Other than that you have a great card that should handle most things you throw at it.

Oh, ok I see. Thanks again for the information, that's really good to know.

In response to that, do you know by any chance if software updates will improve the AMD's performance to any noticeable extent, or is it more likely going to be hardware updates with future GPUs that will make the difference?

15+yrs ago, I knew computers inside and out, but so much has changed since then. Plus, I was familiar with Nvidia back then since they were ahead of AMD at the time (although AMD CPUs were always better for gaming from what I remember). Wish I still had time to keep up with it, but work, college, kids, etc.

 

[In2Photos]

Oh, ok I see. Thanks again for the information, that's really good to know.

In response to that, do you know by any chance if software updates will improve the AMD's performance to any noticeable extent, or is it more likely going to be hardware updates with future GPUs that will make the difference?

15+yrs ago, I knew computers inside and out, but so much has changed since then. Plus, I was familiar with Nvidia back then since they were ahead of AMD at the time (although AMD CPUs were always better for gaming from what I remember). Wish I still had time to keep up with it, but work, college, kids, etc.

AMD cards tend to improve over time with driver updates but for Ray tracing it's a hardware limit. Each generation sees improvement. But games also get more demanding. Both Nvidia and AMD now offer frame generation to help combat lower frame rates during both rasterized and ray traced images. But this also creates other issues like input lag. So those options may work for some games (like your strategy or RPGs or open world games) but not for others (like first person shooter).