The 5000 series, the "consumer" Blackwell chips without the 5090, are made with the slightly older N4 = 5 nm chips, so they do not exactly use the most pricey waver TSMC got to offer, rather the second highest priced waver. This means, although they still use "fab capacity" in some way, they are not directly competing with the same node the AI industry is using. The 5090, it seems... are simply using the most crap "AI chips" who got so many defective cores so they are "reduced" and offered as a "gamer flagship chip". All the other 5000 series chips are made separately on a "lower node".

The 9070 series, and the 5090 along with the datacenter/AI/server-chips seems to be made of a slightly improved node, the N4P = 5 nm.

Info here: https://fuse.wikichip.org/news/6439/tsmc-extends-its-5nm-family-with-a-new-enhanced-performance-n4p-node/

The datacenter versions of Blackwell as well are offering HBM3e memory, which is faster than GDDR7, at a way higher capacity... so the "apparently awesome 5090" is not in the same "ballpark" vs. the true Blackwell which is not for gamers.

The "Normal Industry" Blackwell"= GB 202 using N4P with 24756 cores and 96 GB HBM3e RAM/VRAM (full scale, it could be reduced at the final stage). Operating at 600 W or more, dependable on final design. Higher efficiency than the gamer version it seems. https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-gb202-blackwell-760mm%C2%B2-gpu-die-shot-revealed-24756-cores-and-512-bit-bus

The "Gamer Blackwell"= GB 202-300 using N4P, with 21760 cores and 32 GB GDDR7 VRAM, not a single core more. Operating at around 600 W dependable on design. "-300" simply means "cut down design".
There is probably a "GB202-300-A1" variant with the difference that it has been built with the lesser N4 node as well (comparable with the other 5000 series) which means... lower efficiency.

Not even top of the line because...

The Server-Blaclwell = GB 102x2 using N4P, is offering 33792 cores and 192 GB HBM3e RAM, although no detailed specs are known. Its for special customers on a "above consumer market": https://www.techpowerup.com/gpu-specs/b100.c4275

Sure the "Server Blackwell" needs 1000 W, but it got 33792 cores, so its efficiency is actually higher than what we know on the "Gamer Blackwell". Of course the Server-Blackwell can not play games because it was not made for it... it is handling datacenter tasks and everything involving AI on the industry level.

Anyway, you see.... even a 5080 which is second highest gaming-tier seems like a "Baby Blackwell" , as it is way out of "this ballpark" with its around 10 000 cores only, even on a lower N4 fab. Still not free for sure.... because 1000 cowboy coins is surely not enough... it still needs way more.

Of course if someone wants to get a 5070 using... uhm... 6144 cores and 12 GB VRAM... then go for it but i would feel betrayed buying "such a crap". It seems to be made for those "eating to much breadcrumbs" and always thanking for it.

You could as well go to Steam, paying lot of bucklets, asking them to provide some DRM locked data you never own... provided by a "33792 core Blackwell" while your own Blackwell is 6144 cores with 12 GB VRAM and please do not forget to "give the game back, as soon as played or account banned... no matter which comes first".

Regarding PS5 Pro: I do not know exactly the node used there but it is most likely the most advanced node, so N4P (same as the RDNA 4 node), else it would be difficult for Sony able to provide this performance with not much more than 200 W TDP.

Sure, in theory N3P is even more advanced, but it is currently not used on non portable GPUs because of some complicated issues with a very high transistor count. GPUs are already expensive enough and it would add even more costs and some other issues (cooling, higher failure rate at higher transistor count).

AMD has been a very loyal customer of TSMC (for Nvidia it was less stable in the past...), so they certainly are a "premiere customer" with good offers provided to them.

"Nvidia RTX 5060 Ti and RTX 5060 announced, starting from $299. The RTX 5060 Ti, in both 16 GB and 8 GB, is set to launch April 16."

https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/graphics-cards/nvidia-rtx-5060-ti-and-rtx-5060-announced-starting-from-usd299-we-can-work-with-our-partners-to-get-these-out-at-reasonable-prices-which-we-are-doing/

So my existencial crisis with current day PC gaming is far from over but i did stick to my plan, in April 2015 i got a new PC and i scheduled getting the next new one in April 2025 - mission accomplished.

I'm done with hardware - i hope - until April 3033, i'm going with an 8 years time frame this time around.

The now "old" pc from 2015 is still going strong and it won't be decomissioned anytime soon, just shifted to a more focused role in terms of day to day gaming life.

Anyway, in which concerns the 5000 series i went with my previously mentioned leanings, 9800X3D + MSI 5070TI Gaming Trio OC.

So that's that.

I see, you are an optimist.
And quite likely an undying vampire.  -,.,-

edit: Oh, never mind. That's exactly what your avatar says: Malkavian.

Oops, the fangs are out of the bag now :)

Hardware failures are always a possibility, no matter the plan you have to accept that it can happen and deal with it if it does. I've been playing the longevity game for a while now and never had a major component die on me. In my PC from 2015 the only part that died, around the 7 years mark, was the cooler and i simply replaced it. Actually this time around the AIO may once again be the weakest link since i kinda doubt the Kraken Elite will last me the full 8 years but we'll see.

You can only make plans based on what you can control and hope that the things you can't control don't show up to ruin your day but should the plan fail you have to be ready to admit that it failed and proceed to adjust.

Thanks.

So i've been binging on some games that were previously not quite out of reach but exceedingly demanding on my old pc to a point performance was a real pain.

The 5070TI is great but in reality the biggest difference is on the cpu, more than anything it was the extremely reliable but by now outdated I7-4790K that was holding me back.

W11 is behaving so far which isn't saying much seeing as for now i've been focusing on very recent games, i expect woes with old games but not right now since for the time being i can rely on my old pc for them (and for PhysX titles seeing how they're a problem with the 5 series)

Anyway, smooth sailing so far, fingers crossed

I attached a couple of vanity pics for the enthusiasts.

I7-4790K is certainly a very reliable CPU but with 11 year of age (since release) it is clearly above the lifetime any modern (non Indie) game may thankfully accept. Problem with CPU simply is that there is a certain minimum performance it need to deliver, else not even low settings are useful. On the GPU at least "low settings" may work wonders, so there is a higher tolerance in this term.

MSI, as i said, i surely can recommend. I got a MSI MB and MSI GPU and so far, despite its high price, this hardware was hassle free and performant for me... so i am very happy with.

Well, currently there are 10x Asus ROG Astral 5090 on stock on my local shop. Which is in theory one of the few pretty sturdy "custom designs" available. Still no good deal for me because it got a technical flaw. The waterpump always seems to run at full speed and there seems to be no way adjusting its RPM: Some people say it is pretty audible. Sure, noise is always subjective but in general i can say... if a waterpump is running at full speed it is always in some way clearly audible... unless someone got a hearing defect... which i hope is not the case. I as well got a liquid cooling system on my CPU and indeed they got a waterpump inside, but i am able to adjust the RPM of this waterpump (Alpenföhn cooler https://www.alpenfoehn.de/produkte/wasserkuehlung/gletscherwasser-360-high-speed ) so it is barely audible for me, not even under 3D load. They simply need to either provide a MB connector allowing the MB to control its speed (best solution i say because it is the most failure proof) or some "in house" software solution, which is apparently not the case or not working.

Most reviewers do not even cover such issues... so it is always a mixed bag buying new hardware. However... in general certain brands are more reliable = lesser issues, than others. Asus, in the recent time period, was rather a brand with a lot of issues, in general... so i would be careful with. Sure, the 5090 Astral is a sturdy card, with the usual design flaw that it can not make power balancing at the card itself (not any of the 5090... Nvidia design flaw) but instead it got some sort of Ampere limiter affecting the cables. So those cables should not melt but hard to say how reliable this "protection" is and which issues it might create if the limiter is triggered (perhaps performance issues... i dunno... the reviewers are not covering it).

MSI on the other hand seems to have on of the most capable engineers around and so far their custom 5090 designs (liquid cooler recommended) seems to be the most reliable ones, out of the 5090 custom designs. The issue simply is... those cards are almost permanently out of stock and their price is insane (3500+ CHF).

Even the Asus Astral (which i already said is unfortunately not the premium option) is 3000 CHF (~3600 USD) for me, which is clearly way to much... just not worth it if there are ANY flaws.

So far... the stuff available is clearly "no deal".

At some point the cpu basically hits a wall. There are usually a couple of cpu bound options in games that can make a slight difference but don't provide anywhere near the same latitude that gpu bound options do. Ten years is feasible but you have to be prepared to "suffer" a bit on the home stretch which is why i've moved the goal posts from ten to eight years.

Asus used to be my brand of choice, the old pc was build with a strix seated on an Asus mobo, but things change and i too currently look at MSI as the best bet in terms of reliability which is why this time around i went with an MSI mobo+gpu combo.

All in all these are surreal days. As if the loony prices weren't enough now consumers have to contend with top range and flagship hardware that right off the bat presents itself with real risks of catastrophic failure.

Building a PC used to be all about excitement and anticipation. Not this time, it was a headache because on top of everything else, for me, it's hard to justify the money - and that's on games, but i won't bore you with it again, i'll just say that today PC gaming at times feels like being in an abusive relationship, we love it still but more and more we realize that every single player in and around the industry has zero investment when it comes to "loving" us back.

You seem to really be equating the 5090, so here's hoping for more sensible prices and for manufacturers to work out the kinks.

Nah.. only the MSI liquid cooled... and because i worry it will stress the cables to much (as i said, lack of load balancing as a initial flaw) i may simply reduce its TDP by 30%... but it may only lose around 15% performance after, so it is still more performant than a 4090 while offering on certain areas, especially RT, some even higher advantage.

But it comes at a price, yes... and this price is probably sane at 2500+ but not higher than that.

As i will only use this PC as a classic PC after 2028, this card does not need to handle even younger (after 2028) games, so it is perfect at 4k up to the year 2028. Anything which comes after is another story which i still have to figure out how to solve it... on a completely new system.

Anything different (weaker than that) is useless because it wont allow me "new ways to play a game" (4k instead of 1080P, native) as it can not add the required push able to make my 3090 TI "obsolete" in the performance area. Not even a 4090 but this is not even a question anymore because this card is now pretty much wiped from the market and as well (still!) extremely pricey now.

Or in other words.. it is simply the only "real upgrade" for me... any other card can not bring it to the table. No use giving me minor upgrades and i do not worry a bit more power bills... i still got enough to eat.

Besides: Yes, Asus was way better in the past, but... now they simply are not at their best game anymore.