Upgrading from 1600af nad RX580 8GB

[SoyLago]

Hello everyone, this will be my 1st post here and I'm asking for suggestion to upgrade my rig with 1600af and Sapphire RX580 8GB. I'm using the template from the top of this forum and edited it a bit so tell me if there's something more I need to provide.

 

1. Budget

Didn't actually have any specific budget but also I don't have unlimited money lol. Probably will upgrade 1 thing at a time and maybe just CPU & GPU. But I'm open for the 3rd (this will probably be storage. Only have 1TB m.2 SATA SSD, yes I made mistake, it's awful . And an 8TB spinning drive) and or 4th stuff to be upgraded (PSU, RAM, Monitors, etc)

Can you provide like the best price range to go for that product in USD? (Go for card A if it's around X USD for example)

2. Aim

Mostly gaming, primary game is ETS2 now and I want to reach at least 60fps

Will probably try games like RDR2, GTA, mostly single player stuff if possible

3. Monitors

only use 1 monitor and didn't plan to add in near future. Resolution now is 1080p 144hz monitor, but want to try 1440P if possible, 60fps is ok with 1440p

4. Why are you upgrading?

As I told in point no 2 I want to play ETS2 with at least 60fps which is previously achievable, now with the same settings I can only get 20-30ish fps. With this build aged around 5 years now I hope it can last around the same time without me needing to upgrade stuff after accomplishing the upgrade

 

RAM is 16GB DDR4 3200, PSU CX650, using stock 1600af cooler, B450 Tomahawk Max

Thanks everyone

[191x7]

Latest Bios. Ryzen 5600, 5700X, or 5700X3D, depending on the budget. Then a Radeon RX 6700XT 12GB or 7700XT 12GB.

[Why_Me]

First upgrade:

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: *AMD Ryzen 5 5600 3.5 GHz 6-Core Processor  ($118.00 @ Amazon) 
Total: $118.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2025-06-24 10:34 EDT-0400

 

[Ha-Satan]

1 minute ago, SoyLago said:

As I told in point no 2 I want to play ETS2 with at least 60fps which is previously achievable, now with the same settings I can only get 20-30ish fps. With this build aged around 5 years now I hope it can last around the same time without me needing to upgrade stuff after accomplishing the upgrade

Hang on - if the same game (especially a game like ETS2, which I don't believe should be getting updates to make it much more demanding) is performing way worse than it used to, then that suggests that you maybe just need to fix something with your hardware instead of upgrading. More specifically, with a build of this vintage, it's very possible that the thermal paste on the CPU and/or GPU has dried out and is causing your PC to thermal throttle.

 

Before you spend any money, I would see if you can get your PC running better by replacing thermal paste.

[OddOod]

Welcome to the forums!
I thoroughly agree with Satan, if the same (non-live-service) game is performing worse on an old rig, I'd check thermals. Replacing CPU paste is safe, easy, and cheap (though technically not free)
That being said, an upgrade to Ryzen 5000 is gonna be a huge performance boost

[KidKid]

1 hour ago, SoyLago said:

Hello everyone, this will be my 1st post here and I'm asking for suggestion to upgrade my rig with 1600af and Sapphire RX580 8GB. I'm using the template from the top of this forum and edited it a bit so tell me if there's something more I need to provide.

 

1. Budget

Didn't actually have any specific budget but also I don't have unlimited money lol. Probably will upgrade 1 thing at a time and maybe just CPU & GPU. But I'm open for the 3rd (this will probably be storage. Only have 1TB m.2 SATA SSD, yes I made mistake, it's awful . And an 8TB spinning drive) and or 4th stuff to be upgraded (PSU, RAM, Monitors, etc)

Can you provide like the best price range to go for that product in USD? (Go for card A if it's around X USD for example)

2. Aim

Mostly gaming, primary game is ETS2 now and I want to reach at least 60fps

Will probably try games like RDR2, GTA, mostly single player stuff if possible

3. Monitors

only use 1 monitor and didn't plan to add in near future. Resolution now is 1080p 144hz monitor, but want to try 1440P if possible, 60fps is ok with 1440p

4. Why are you upgrading?

As I told in point no 2 I want to play ETS2 with at least 60fps which is previously achievable, now with the same settings I can only get 20-30ish fps. With this build aged around 5 years now I hope it can last around the same time without me needing to upgrade stuff after accomplishing the upgrade

 

RAM is 16GB DDR4 3200, PSU CX650, using stock 1600af cooler, B450 Tomahawk Max

Thanks everyone

Keep the motherboard, get a Ryzen 5 5600X or 5700X or 5700X3D for the CPU. For the GPU, maybe an RX 9060XT 16GB.

[SoyLago]

6 hours ago, Ha-Satan said:

Hang on - if the same game (especially a game like ETS2, which I don't believe should be getting updates to make it much more demanding) is performing way worse than it used to, then that suggests that you maybe just need to fix something with your hardware instead of upgrading. More specifically, with a build of this vintage, it's very possible that the thermal paste on the CPU and/or GPU has dried out and is causing your PC to thermal throttle.

 

Before you spend any money, I would see if you can get your PC running better by replacing thermal paste.

I think, CMIIW the game has been updated especially when they redesigned some cities. So my issue isn't really new but I need to tweak some settings now just to get around 50fps.

And I have replaced the thermal paste before on both, but not the GPU thermal pads as when I'm about to do it I've researched that the thickness is uncommon. Did this probably around 3 years ago, is it possible that I need to re-paste it this soon?

[OddOod]

Honestly, that's a 7 year old GPU, if you're looking for more FPS on ETS2, you're gonna need a better GPU. If you've got 5-600 to spend, the 3080Ti is going for about that on ebay. It's (apparently) a heavily GPU bound game. Especially if you're eyeing Q/UHD in the near future. 
As for repadding, meh, it *could* help, but check your thermals to see if it's actually a problem
And yeah, pumping that CPU up to a 5000 series will improve stuff remarkably. 
 

[SoyLago]

So if I can only upgrade 1 part at a time it's best to go with GPU first?