5 best graphics cards to pair with the Ryzen 7 9700X
The AMD Ryzen 7 9700X is the l͏ate͏st addition to the͏ 9000 series which is poised͏ ͏to become the most sough͏t-af͏ter gami͏ng CPU. Its 8 co͏res͏ and 16 threads, and clock s͏pee͏d of up to 5.5 GHz, ͏promise ͏exhilarating performance in both ga͏ming and p͏roductivity͏ when͏ paired w͏ith a su͏itable GPU.
With an exp͏e͏cted release date ͏of Augus͏t͏ 8, 2024, a͏s ͏per AMD's͏ revised schedule, ͏the Ryzen 7 9700X pr͏esents an enti͏cing o͏ption for those b͏uilding a gamin͏g PC. This article will high͏l͏i͏g͏ht͏ five ͏exce͏ptional GPUs th͏at͏ complement this CPU'͏s ͏capabiliti͏es, re͏prese͏n͏ting the fastest and most powerful options currently available͏.
Note: Some aspects of this article are subjective and solely reflect the writer's opinion.
Five best GPUs for the Ryzen 7 9700X
1) Nvidia RTX 4080 Super ($959)
The RTX 4080 Super is currently the best premium GPU you can get for 4K gaming. This GPU currently retails at a discounted price of $959, which makes this card worth buying. It is the best card for ray tracing after the RTX 4090, which is not recommended as it is ridiculously overpriced. The only drawback is that it could be soon replaced by RTX 50-class GPUs.
Owing to the 80 RT cores that this GPU comes with and DLSS support, it is the best recommended GPU to pair with the Ryzen 7 9700X. Powered by 16 GB of GDDR6X video memory, the effective memory speed of this GPU stands at 23 Gbps. The card features 10240 CUDA cores that handle even extreme graphics-intensive scenarios with ease.
Pros:
- Best in class performance paired with Ryzen 7 9700X.
- Best ray tracing performance in an under $1000 GPU.
- Nvidia's DLSS support is extremely good.
Cons:
- Huge power requirement.
- Can be replaced by better 50-series GPUs.
- Requires powerful cooling and a big open cabinet for its house.
2) RTX 4070 Ti Super ($779)
The RTX 4070 Ti Super is another great card from Team Green that is best for 1440p gaming and even handles 4K gaming well. This card competes with the RX 7900XTX which retails for $100 more and the RX 7900XT which retails for $100 less.
Considering you are spending close to $800 on a GPU, you definitely wouldn't want to compromise on ray tracing and thus we recommend the RTX 4070 Ti Super. It features 66 RT cores which back this card to excel in ray tracing along with DLSS support acting as the cherry on top.
The card is also capable of great rasterization with 8448 CUDA cores to handle it. It has 16 GB of GDDR6X video memory built on the 256-bit memory bus, which delivers an effective speed of 21 Gbps.
Pros:
- Excellent for 1440p gaming.
- Great ray tracing capabilities along with DLSS.
Cons:
- Outmatched by AMD cards in rasterization.
3) RTX 4070 Super ($579)
The RTX 4070 Super is another great card from Nvidia that offers great value for money thanks to the recent price cuts it has seen. The card is great for 1440p gaming and is the older sibling of the RTX 4070 Ti Super. This GPU is great for mid-premium PC builds and pairs well with the Ryzen 7 9700X.
This card handles ray tracing equally well as its Nvidia brothers; however, it lacks power in its arsenal compared to them. It features 56 RT cores which can handle ray tracing but needs Nvidia intelligent DLSS software to back it up. The card ships with 12 GB of GDDR6X memory running in a 192-bit memory bus, therefore delivering effective speeds of 21 Gbps.
Pros:
- Great for 1440p gaming.
- Handles ray tracing well supported by DLSS.
- Great for mid-range budgets.
Cons:
- Lower VRAM capacity might not be enough to handle modern AAA games.
4) RX 7900GRE ($529)
RX 7900GRE competes with RTX 4070 Super in the $600 price category and also offers better rasterization performance. This card is recommended to those who do not care about ray tracing and just want to play games at the highest possible FPS. The card is great for 1440p gaming and pairs well with the Ryzen 7 9700X.
It is basically a cut-down version of the 7900XT and therefore features great hardware. It comes with 5120 shading units which offers better raw performance than the Nvidia card. On top of this, the card comes with 16 GB of GDDR6 video memory running on a 256-bit memory bus. This setup gives it an effective speed of 18 Gbps.
Pros:
- Great for 1440p gaming.
- Offers 16 GB of VRAM which is a requirement for most modern games.
Cons:
- Subpar raytracing performance.
- AMD's complement of DLSS—AMD FSR does not deliver compared to DLSS.
5) RX 7800XT ($471)
The RX 7800XT is great for 1080p gaming and effectively supports the Ryzen 7 9700X. On a discount, this card is a great value-for-money purchase. It was launched with significant improvement over the previous generation 6800XT and is probably the only card that demonstrated great improvement. It outperforms the Nvidia GPUs in this price segment in pure raw performance.
The RX 7800XT features 3840 shading units which is enough to deliver high FPS performance in 1080p gaming. The card comes with 16 GB of GDDR6 video memory running on a 256-bit memory bus which delivers an effective speed of 19.5 Gbps. 16 GB video memory is a major plus point at this price point because it provides modern AAA games ample room to process visuals.
Pros:
- Great for 1080p gaming.
- Comes with ample VRAM.
Cons:
- AMD FSR is not greatly optimized.
That sums up our list of the best gaming GPUs to pair with the Ryzen 7 9700X. You can opt for any from the list, based on your gaming requirements. Just en you buy a higher-end GPU only when you want to game at higher resolutions or you will face CPU bottlenecking when pairing this mid-range chip with premium GPUs.