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The Ryzen 7 5800X is a super versatile 8 core CPU. Price-wise, it is right between the most popular 6 core CPUs like the Ryzen 5 5600X and Ryzen 5 7600X.
In gaming, these all are very close, but what makes the 5800X special is that it’s also perfect for anyone looking for a serious upgrade as a workstation CPU with 16 threads as opposed to 12 threads.
In this guide, we’ll be looking into 3 GPUs that do the same: balance gaming performance with productivity.
So let’s get started!
Our Top Picks
- 3. MSI Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 12GB Ventus 2X – Best Budget GPU For the Ryzen 7 5800X
- 2. Sapphire NITRO+ Radeon RX 7900 GRE – Best Premium GPU For the Ryzen 7 5800X
- 1. XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 – Our Top Choice
Why Should You Trust Us?
We base our recommendations on decades of PC-building experience and deep knowledge of modern hardware. The author, Konstantinos Chiotis, built his first PC at 14—nearly 24 years ago—and has been passionate about GPUs, processors, and motherboards ever since.
His commitment to analyzing emerging technologies ensures you’ll receive honest, informed guidance every time. Rely on this wealth of expertise to choose the best hardware for your specific needs.
How We Chose the Best GPUs For the Ryzen 7 5800X
Selecting the right graphics card for a CPU as capable as the Ryzen 7 5800X can be daunting. After all, this processor strikes a great balance between gaming and productivity, so it’s important to find a GPU that can keep up with both. Here’s a quick look at our thought process and the criteria we used to come up with our top picks:
- Performance Across Resolutions: We wanted GPUs that could handle 1080p, 1440p, and even some 4K workloads. The Ryzen 7 5800X can drive a wide range of games, so we looked for cards that ensure smooth frame rates in modern titles.
- VRAM Capacity & Future-Proofing: VRAM usage is on the rise, especially in newer games and creative applications. We prioritized cards with higher VRAM capacities to safeguard against potential bottlenecks down the line.
- Thermals & Power Efficiency: A toasty GPU can lead to reduced performance, higher fan noise, and potential throttling. We took note of designs that stay cool under load, keep noise levels in check, and remain power-efficient.
- Build Quality & Durability: Since a GPU is often one of the most expensive parts of a computer, we focused on models with sturdy backplates, robust PCB designs, and reliable coolers to ensure they last through multiple upgrade cycles.
- Price-to-Performance Ratio: Even the most powerful card isn’t worth it if it costs more than the rest of your system combined. We analyzed benchmarks, user feedback, and market pricing to highlight GPUs that give you the best bang for your buck.
- Productivity & Creative Workloads: The Ryzen 7 5800X shines in workstation tasks, so we leaned toward GPUs that have proven performance in video editing, 3D rendering, and streaming—be it via CUDA cores, large VRAM buffers, or efficient encoders/decoders.
Comparison Table Of The Chosen GPUs
Below is a simple breakdown of how these factors played into our picks:
| MSI Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 12GB Ventus 2X | Sapphire NITRO+ Radeon RX 7900 GRE | XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Target Resolution | 1080p (High/Ultra) | 1440p (High/Ultra) | 1440p (High/Ultra) |
| VRAM | 12 GB | 16 GB | 16 GB |
| Thermals & Cooling | Dual-fan, compact | Triple-fan, robust design | Triple-fan, solid build |
| Power Efficiency | Very efficient | Moderately efficient | Very efficient |
| Productivity Features | NVENC encoding | Strong compute performance | Large VRAM & good compute |
All of these cards are carefully chosen for their synergy with the Ryzen 7 5800X, ensuring you get a well-rounded setup that doesn’t compromise on performance—whether you’re streaming, designing 3D models, or just diving into the latest AAA games. By evaluating real-world benchmarks, thermal performance, build quality, and future-proofing potential, we arrived at a shortlist that caters to different budgets and workloads without skimping on quality.
Best GPUs For the Ryzen 7 5800X Reviews
Number 3. MSI Gaming GeForce RTX 3060 12GB Ventus 2X – Best Budget GPU For the Ryzen 7 5800X
I know that this GPU may come as a surprise to you, but it works really well as an excellent 1080p gaming card that also has lots of room for creative applications.
The main theme with the RTX 3060 is efficiency and the Ventus 2X takes full advantage of that. The card itself has a simple design that’s small enough to fit inside mini ITX cases with ease. It has two fans which help keep the temperatures down and even under heavy load, the card barely cracks above 60 degrees Celsius.
The top of the GPU has a metallic backplate which protects the exposed PCB but doesn’t quite help with heat removal. The backplate and PCB is fine but the shroud isn’t very strong so you need to be careful otherwise you may break it.
On the side, you can see one 8-pin connector for power because at most, the RTX 3060 is going to consume 175 Watts which means that all the power it needs can be provided by the PCIe x16 connector and a single 8-pin connector.
Besides that, the GPU performs really well in games at 1080p. In the most graphically intensive games like Hogwarts Legacy, you can play the games at 60 FPS on high settings with Ray Tracing and DLSS. Most other titles run even better like Spider-Man: Miles Morales which runs at 1080p very high settings at almost 110 FPS. No matter the game, the RTX 3060 should easily run it since game developers are targeting this GPU seeing that this is one of the most popular GPUs in the world.
The competition is quite strong against the RTX 3060 with GPUs like the Radeon RX 6600 XT and RX 7600. Even the RTX 4060 is just a few dollars more expensive and newer. Now, while all of these GPUs perform about 5-10% better than the RTX 3060, the question arises, why did I choose this GPU at all? Simply put, the RTX 3060 has a few extra features which make it worth getting especially for those who do more than gaming.
The strongest point of the RTX 3060 is the large 12 GB VRAM buffer which is not only a lifesaver, it helps to work on complex projects that need more memory. Every other GPU I mentioned comes with an 8 GB VRAM buffer, including the RTX 4060 which is supposed to replace the RTX 3060. Frankly, Nvidia should’ve called the RTX 4060 an RTX 4050 instead and lowered the price.
Since games are only going to need more VRAM, the RTX 3060 is easily going to outlast any other GPU in the sub-$300 category. Other than that, the NVENC engine is excellent for video editing and streaming.
All in all, just as you don’t need the Ryzen 7 5800X for gaming only, the RTX 3060 is more than just for gamers. It represents a lot of value for budget creative professionals and those looking to future-proof themselves when a lack of VRAM will become a problem.
To sum up what I like is the…
Excellent at 1080p even with some ray tracing
Large 12 GB VRAM buffer
Power efficient
On the downside…
Delicate fan shroud
RATINGS:
PCB Design: 7.5/10
Performance: 8/10
Aesthetics & Cooler design: 7.5/10
Value for Money: 9/10
Overall Rating: 8/10
Number 2. Sapphire NITRO+ Radeon RX 7900 GRE – Best Premium GPU For the Ryzen 7 5800X
It is very easy to spend a lot of money on graphics cards these days. They are, almost always, the priciest component inside any PC so it is important to invest in something that’s not only fast today, but can last for long into the future.
One of the cards that fits this criteria really well is the Sapphire NITRO+ Radeon RX 7900 GRE. I really like Sapphire’s cards because they are all built really well and the NITRO+ cards are built like a tank. The PCB itself has plenty of fuses and protectors to prevent the card from becoming unusable in the event of a power surge.
The entire card feels like it’s made of metal but it’s just the backplate. The shroud itself is made of a very sturdy plastic and feels unbreakable. There are 3 fans cooling everything and Sapphire has made them easily swappable by using magnetic connectors rather than long flimsy cables. On the side, there are two 8-pin connectors for power, a VBIOS switch, and a long strip RGB LED which can be controlled via software.
The NITRO+ RX 7900 GRE is also quite a big card so it may not be an easy fit in smaller cases. The card is 320 mm long and 122 mm tall so you will need quite a lot of clearance inside your PC case. It is also a true triple slot card which means it doesn’t spill into the fourth slot so you can comfortably plug in other components.
Looks aside, this is a really powerful card with quite a versatile range in various applications. It is squarely a 1440p GPU, but if you want to try some 4K gaming, you can expect 60 FPS in pretty much any title without ray tracing. Cyberpunk 2077 runs at 60 FPS in 4K at high settings but make sure to have Smart Access Memory enabled in your BIOS.
I think the RX 7900 GRE is really interesting and it basically throws a wrench in Nvidia’s perfectly oiled machine. They want to charge quite a lot for an RTX 4070 Super with just 12 GBs of VRAM. The older RTX 4070 has a much better chance against the 7900 GRE when it comes to price-to-performance but it’s still going to be tough to justify paying nearly $500 for a 12 GB card. The only GPU that matches or beats the RX 7900 GRE in specs and performance is the RTX 4070 ti Super. I’ve recommended that GPU for those who need to run applications that work best with Nvidia but at $800, it is too much money when the RX 7900 GRE is not only competitive in gaming, but also performs well in a lot of productivity apps.
In pure rasterization, the RX 7900 GRE matches the much more expensive RTX 4070 Ti Super. On average, it is about 5% slower for 25% less price.
Of course ray tracing is still Nvidia’s forte and even the RTX 4070 can match or surpass the RX 7900 GRE. However, it isn’t quite as bad as it may seem. For example, at the same settings with ray tracing turned on, the RTX 4070 Ti Super can generate around 90 FPS in Cyberpunk 2077 at 1440p with DLSS. The RX 7900 GRE manages to get above 60 FPS on average with FSR and is perfectly playable. Even the RX 7800 XT has enough horsepower to run games well with ray tracing on at 1440p so the RX 7900 GRE can deliver even better performance with no issue whatsoever.
Even for AI applications, 3D modeling, and video editing, the RX 7900 GRE pairs really well with the Ryzen 7 5800X and you can have a super powerful PC for around $1000.
In conclusion, if you’re looking to stick with a GPU for the next 5 years, the Sapphire NITRO+ Radeon RX 7900 GRE is hard to beat. While most 7900 GREs are near the $500 price point, the Sapphire Nitro+ variant is worth paying extra for a sturdy body,
To sum up what I like is that it’s…
Great at 1440p even with ray tracing
16 GB VRAM buffer
Fuses and protection on the PCB
On the downside…
It’s large
RATINGS:
PCB Design: 9/10
Performance: 9/10
Aesthetics & Cooler design: 9/10
Value for Money: 8.5/10
Overall Rating: 9/10
Number 1. XFX Speedster SWFT 319 Radeon RX 6800 – Our Top Choice
The Ryzen 7 5800x still offers some of the best performance compared to how low its price currently is. On a similar note, the RX 6800 has become my go-to choice when recommending a GPU to those who want the best possible performance at a low budget.
The design of the XFX Speedster SWFT 319 can be best described as “sober”. It’s a simple tried and true formula that goes well with black-colored PCs. Unlike the MERC 319 and QICK 319, the SWFT 319 has no words written on the backplate which is a plus point. The large branding is too loud for my taste and cheapens the card’s overall look. It also has two 8-pin power connectors but sadly, there is a BIOS switch button missing. XFX should’ve added a BIOS switch considering this was one of the highest-end GPUs of the previous generation.
The specs of the RX 6800 are its strongest talking points. It has a large 16 GB GDDR6 VRAM buffer that is connected to a 256-bit bus and a gigantic 128 MB L3 cache. This nets the card a bandwidth of 512 GB/s so even some 4K gaming is possible on this GPU.
And speaking of 4K performance, some games like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and Borderlands 3, run at 4K 70 FPS but games like Cyberpunk 2077 drop down to about 40 to 50 FPS. If you do however use this GPU for 1440p gaming, then it should last you for a very long time as any game would work easily and give out on average 80 to 90 FPS.
With such good AAA performance, it also has top-notch eSports performance and can be used for running any game at 1440p and 120 FPS.
When it comes to alternatives, there are a lot of different options to choose from like the RTX 3080 and AMD’s own RX 7700 XT. In terms of price and performance, all three of these GPUs are nearly identical, especially at 1440p. But the reason why I prefer the RX 6800 every time over the other two is the massive 16 GB VRAM and excellent power efficiency. Surprisingly, the RX 6800 consumes the least power of all of these GPUs. For example, in games like Hogwarts Legacy, the RTX 3080 consumes more than 300 Watts and the RX 6800 consumes just around 190 Watts of power while being only 4 to 5 FPS slower.
There is one area where the RX 6800 is going to lag behind both the RTX 3080 and the RX 7700 XT and that is ray tracing. Keep in mind that this was AMD’s first attempt while both the 3080 and 7700 XT are second-generation ray tracing cards so their performance is undoubtedly going to be better. In some games, the RTX 3080 can be 20% faster, but in others, it can be twice as fast. There are instances when the RX 6800 closes the gap a lot and that is thanks to the significantly bigger VRAM buffer. Ray tracing requires a lot of VRAM and once the game starts hitting the 10 GB limit of the RTX 3080, the RX 6800 quickly catches up.
In conclusion, the RX 6800 is perfect for the Ryzen 7 5800x thanks to its exceptional 1440p gaming performance and low price tag. It should serve anyone well given its 16 GB VRAM buffer and can deliver similar gaming performance as the Xbox Series X in any title.
RATINGS:
PCB Design: 8.5/10
Performance: 9.5/10
Aesthetics & Cooler design: 8.5/10
Value for Money: 9.5/10
Overall Rating: 9/10
So what do you think? Which of these is the best graphics card for the Ryzen 7 5800X?
Or do you think another GPU is better?
Tell us in the comments below.
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