Do gamers really need a RTX 5090…?

[pestermess]

I’m on the fence about the current generation of Nvidia graphics cards. For most gamers, the RTX 3050, 3060, 4060, and 3070/4070 are more than enough. Unless you’re a hardcore gamer running ultra settings at 1440p or 4K, the XX80 (Ti) or XX90 (Ti) cards might not be necessary.

 

From what I’ve seen in leaks, Nvidia’s Blackwell 50 series seems like overkill for most gamers, but that’s just my opinion. Personally, I stick to 1080p 144Hz, which is all I need, and I’m sure many still game at 1080p or lower at 60Hz. It’s a tough discussion because there’s such a wide range of gamers out there, and I know some communities mock those who don’t game at 1440p or 4K. I’m curious to hear what the LTT community thinks about this.

[TempestCatto]

Yeah even a 4090 is overkill for most. That said the few games I play are simulators, aka sight seeing games. I want them to look more realistic than real-life. So I'd pony up for a 5090 if it meant realism beyond what's currently possible. But price, the dumb power connector, and size will prevent me from buying one. My 5800x3D and 7900XTX are still very high end and keeping me quite content. Might be a long while before I think about upgrading. Just my three cents.

[porina]

Need, no. Want, YES! If money was unlimited, what would people do? But we don't have unlimited money, so we find a balance point of what is "worth it" for that person. It doesn't have to be the same for everyone.

 

For my preferences, 1080p is kinda baseline acceptable. I can play it, but I'd pick higher resolutions where available. GPU performance will usually dictate a maximum as it is balanced against fps. If you want both high res and high fps, you're going to need a beefy GPU. I'm currently playing at 4k. A very clear quality upgrade from 1440p before. If you were to offer me a gaming display above 4k, I'd consider it. Yes, I'm also shopping for a beefier GPU, although I have no intentions of going 5090.

[SpookyCitrus]

What you need/want and what others need/want is subjective.

 

Some people do more than just game, some people prefer a certain level of performance or fidelity over others. The reason why multiple tiers of cards are available is because there are multiple different use cases and multiple different needs/wants. Just because you are content with what you have, doesn't mean everyone else would be. As the common saying goes. "Different Strokes for Different Folks." 

 

If you're happy with what you have it's pointless to worry about others. Most people learn pretty early in life it's not worth worrying about what other people have or what other people choose to spend their own money on. 

[Dedayog]

38 minutes ago, pestermess said:

I’m on the fence about the current generation of Nvidia graphics cards. For most gamers, the RTX 3050, 3060, 4060, and 3070/4070 are more than enough. Unless you’re a hardcore gamer running ultra settings at 1440p or 4K, the XX80 (Ti) or XX90 (Ti) cards might not be necessary.

 

From what I’ve seen in leaks, Nvidia’s Blackwell 50 series seems like overkill for most gamers, but that’s just my opinion. Personally, I stick to 1080p 144Hz, which is all I need, and I’m sure many still game at 1080p or lower at 60Hz. It’s a tough discussion because there’s such a wide range of gamers out there, and I know some communities mock those who don’t game at 1440p or 4K. I’m curious to hear what the LTT community thinks about this.

You're right, for MOST gamers.... but don't forget that Super UW monitors in both 1440p and 4K exist, as well as 500Hz monitors.  Nothing on earth yet can push them to max on Utra yet.

 

And some just WANT things.  

 

Talk to Freud

 

 

[PaulFCB]

 You kidding me with 1080p and 5090, for the resolution stick with 4070 or 4070 Ti Super and forget about anything better. 

 

 5090 strictly for 4k yes, but as I have a 4090 on my main PC I'm skipping Blackwell just like I skipped Turing, if not, it's gonna be a wild card for 4k 240Hz, that's for sure.

[episcopal]

there's also the question of software. my gamer days are behind me, nowadays I only play very specific things on weekends, and I've long since stopped frequenting communities and getting an idea of what others think. but I think more people are starting to consider buying high-end GPUs when they see what they can do in real games that they want to play (and not in Unreal 5 demos, for example, as we started to see about two years ago).
Talking about the 5090 today is somewhat abstract, not only because it doesn't exist yet, but also because we don't know how it will impact a game that also exists.

[thrasher_565]

people that buy the xx90 are people that make moeny with it, people that can afford too, some might buy it and not upgrade for a long time like 8+ years. game have slowed down and dont need the fastest thing. althow the xx90 is never the best option they would mostly do it with an xx80 ti or so.

 

there also some people that buy the say 3090 and when the 4070ti comes out they sell it hopefully not loosing too much

Edited November 11 by thrasher_565

[starsmine]

2 hours ago, PaulFCB said:

 You kidding me with 1080p and 5090, for the resolution stick with 4070 or 4070 Ti Super and forget about anything better. 

 

 5090 strictly for 4k yes, 

I dont go out and advocate buying a 5090. 
but this is, and will always be bunk

at 1080p, you still see fps gains going to faster GPUs. 

Cards are not measured in a "resolution class" and never should be. A card is not FHD class or QHD class or UHD class. All the cards play all the resolutions. my 3060 12GB regularly plays games at 4k (usually older, but newer with DLSS completely works, its only a 60hz screen)

OP I dont think gamers need 5090s persay, but with the fact that games use TAA to cover up noise and dithering from ray tracing, the stronger the GPU, the less the need for TAA because you can shoot more rays. we need TAA because UE5 does annoying shit like not rendering hair at the actual resolution you are playing at, or LOD dithering between models. 

if TAA can just die tbh ill be happy. The more this generation goes on, the more annoyed I get at how game engines (UE5) is approaching things. 

I want a 5090, I dont want 600W of heat dumped into my room.  I will always want more performance, but as an engineer, I think like an engineer and recognize every thing has trade offs. 

I also dont mock people who play at FHD 60fps. I just dont see why you would ever limit yourself to that. 1440p 144hz is EASY to drive (I use a 3060), makes fast games more enjoyable, and the extra space from 1440p is incredibly useful for productivity. The monitors are cheap as well. 

[Salted Spinach]

3 hours ago, pestermess said:

I’m curious to hear what the LTT community thinks about this.

Downplay or denial of technological advancements (in this case, a new generation of GPU) makes no sense.

 

While there are a lot of things that you do not need or want, it makes no sense to say that the world should just stop innovating or producing all the things that you would not buy. No, the world does not revolve around you. It does not revolve around your notion of "most gamers"

 

There could (in fact probably will) be new '1080p class' of GPUs with Blackwell to supersede everything from the 3050 to 4070

 

There are plenty of gamers who can afford and are using GPU more powerful than the 4070. In fact the the 4090 sold well enough for its retail price to now be higher than it was at launch.

 

Perfectly fine if you are content with what you already have and no intention to get a Blackwell GPU. However coming out to push the notion that it is unnecessary or unwanted is giving us the impression that you are self-centered.

[leegbr]

Why use a knife and fork when you've got fingers?

[Spring1898]

I have never understood threads like this. 

 

One does not need a gaming capable computer at all. It is a luxury.

One does not need a car that can go 200kph, it is also a luxury

 

And how is 1440p at maxed settings constituting a hard core gamer? But 1080p does not?

 

Sounds like a lot of convincing going on

[emothxughts]

Gamers, not much need. Local AI bros on the other hand...

[Dedayog]

9 minutes ago, emothxughts said:

Gamers, not much need. Local AI bros on the other hand...

I think it's so cute people can do "AI" at home.  Like making french fries, it's that easy.

 

/s

 

 

[Stahlmann]

No normal gamer needs such a GPU, but practically everyone would want one if they can afford it. There are already games out there that not even the 4090 can run maxed out and without upscaling or frame generation. So basically the market for more powerful GPUs is already there. And if the 4090 has shown us anything, it's that many gamers have a lot of disposable income to throw at their hobbies.

 

Case in point:

The guy I bought my used 4080 from only sold it because he upgraded to a 4090. And he doesn't even play any games that maxed out the 4080 to begin with. When taking a look at the GPU and testing it out in his system, I even noticed he ran the game on a 165Hz monitor, but capped the fps to 60, even though the 4080 could already easily run the game at 165 fps. He didn't even notice. Those are the kind of people that buy a 4090. He probably still plays at the same capped fps, but now has a much more powerful GPU.

 

That was a very eye opening experience that really showed me how much the average joe knows or cares about hardware. They think they need to upgrade to the latest GPU, but at the same time use Vsync and only play at 60 fps anyway...

 

So to answer your question: Most gamers don't need a 5090. But many will still buy it just to have the best hardware available. "Having the best" is the main reason why 4090 GPUs still fly off the shelves today.

[Dedayog]

8 minutes ago, Stahlmann said:

No normal gamer needs such a GPU, but practically everyone would want one if they can afford it. There are already games out there than not even the 4090 can run maxed out and without upscaling or frame generation. So basically the market for more powerful GPUs is already there. And if the 4090 has shown us anything, it's that many gamers have a lot of spendable income to throw at their hobbies.

 

Case in point:

The guy I bought my used 4080 from only sold it because he upgraded to a 4090. And he doesn't even play any games that maxed out the 4080 to begin with. When taking a look at the GPU and testing it out in his system, I even noticed he ran the game on a 165Hz monitor, but capped the fps to 60, even though the 3080 could already easily run the game at 165 fps. He didn't even notice. Those are the kind of people that buy a 4090. He probably still plays at the same capped fps, but now has a much more powerful GPU.

 

That was a very eye opening experience that really showed me how much the average joe knows or cares about hardware. They think they need to upgrade to the latest GPU, but at the same time use Vsync and only play at 60 fps anyway...

 

So to answer your question: Most gamers don't need a 5090. But many will still buy it just to have the best hardware available. "Having the best" is literally the main reason why 4090 GPUs still fly off the shelves.

Exactly and we'll put.

 

Similar to almost every other industry and product.   Cars, houses, watches, clothes, boats, purses,  etc.

 

Need left the building, want still runs the show.

[lolomid]

NVIDIA is aiming RTX 5090 at the high-end market segment, likely targeting enthusiasts and content creators who need the cutting-edge performance for gaming at ultra-high resolutions, 3D rendering, AI work, and more, Both 5080 and 5090 will require a PCIe 5.0 slot, which debuted earlier this year.

[Dedayog]

1 hour ago, lolomid said:

NVIDIA is aiming RTX 5090 at the high-end market segment, likely targeting enthusiasts and content creators who need the cutting-edge performance for gaming at ultra-high resolutions, 3D rendering, AI work, and more, Both 5080 and 5090 will require a PCIe 5.0 slot, which debuted earlier this year.

Not require.  They'll run fine on PCIe 4.0.

[lvcfr]

sure why not? i'd love to actually push 240 frames on some games, so i'm probably getting one when it's released