As the title suggest how bad is your upgrade itch?
Real bad on specific things.
-----Workstation
I've been on a RX 580 since 2018 and it's been great but I'm now on the inbound pendulum swing of creator mode and need DX12_2, WAY more FP64 and dual encode.
Performance is good but render jobs suffer and to avoid some oddly specific complications, I need better encoding options to avoid running a full time stream+record server.
The executive problem is that I don't understand the direction my favorite platforms are going and if they stick to h264, I'll abandon everything again.
The bare minimum acceptance for quality is h265 but also corners the biggest legal headaches for each platform, which is why it doesn't get adopted anywhere.
AV1 is supposedly the future but we're not there and we're not going to get there for a VERY long time. Doesn't matter what some "stream professor" weirdo says.
So I'm at a crossroads with this GPU noise. I can:
Pick up a used 6900XT for $450 and have zero issues unless AV1 takes over
Try again getting delivery of a functional 7900XT, which has been an absolute clown show ALL YEAR
Or wait it out for an 8800XT in January, assuming the specs and performance are a real successor to defunct GRE junk.
It's one colossal executive disorder hiding a Rubik's Cube Pandora's Box Timecube type of headache.
As for CPUs, my R5 3600 is fine, no push in any particular direction to upgrade but maybe a 5900XT will appear at a good price next year or falls off a cliff.
The way it stands now, it's the last care I put into my workstation and when the 5700X3D and 5900X start looking cutthroat competitive, I'll jump on that.
I've already long since decided that AM5 is NOT a direction that I will go and it's obvious that whatever I pick on AM4, that's the capstone.
My main g3x4 M.2 is on the way out and I'll need a successor next year in the form of dual g4x4. It's probably going to be Crucial.
I have an x1 adapter ready to move the old M.2 into a server in the event that I can get another box to approve of its existence.
-----Rack 1
Needs an encoder card. Probably gonna go with Intel if I can ever find a HHHL A750 or something.
The lack of low profile designs is so paralyzingly stupid.
Intel promises cool new silicon and then derps on packaging.
Those of us with dedicated equipment can't justify a $200 card so of course I'll stick to cramming a $600-700 card in the workstation. BALLS.
I may need to run a new capture card in here soon.
They often ship with their own encoder, which would fix all of this but latency and dual HDMI will be an issue.
-----eMachines
I need to retire a small sub-5TB HDD and replace it with another 16-22TB or something. That sata2 port has recently become too valuable for it.