If you've already decided that Nvidia's new GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card is the one for you, after reading Dave's in-depth full review, then you might also want to consider giving your gaming PC a bit of all-round update to ensure the mighty Blackwell GPU is supported by the best CPU, motherboard, RAM, and PSU for that graphics card.
I use and test numerous processors, motherboards, RAM kits and power supply units on a daily basis, but not all of them would really suit the RTX 5090. Its high power consumption and ludicrous number of shader cores means it needs an ultra-fast and responsive system to keep it going.
So here are the components that I think are the best match for the RTX 5090. Yes, some of them are expensive, but Jen-Hsun's new GPU isn't exactly cheap, right?
The best CPU, motherboard, RAM, and PSU for the RTX 5090
- AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D | ☹️
- AMD Ryzen 7 9700X | $315 @ Amazon
- Gigabyte X870E Aorus Master | $450 @ Amazon
- G.Skill Trident Z5 Royal Neo DDR5-6000 CL28 | $147 @ Newegg
- MSI MEG Ai1300P | $320 @ Amazon
Best CPU for the RTX 5090
There's nothing I can say about the Ryzen 7 9800X3D that we've not already covered in our full review and anyone who's anyone in PC gaming will know that this is the CPU to get for an all-conquering gaming PC.
Except there's just one teensy weensy problem. It's either out of stock or hugely over-priced because the demand right now is far ahead of the supply. And it's not like you could go with the last-gen Ryzen 7 7800X3D either—because it's only a little slower than the 9800X3D, it's in short supply or sporting a ridiculous price tag, too.
If you're happy to pay the extra price, then you'll find various offers at Amazon, starting at $596. Alternatively, you could just go with a Ryzen 7 9700X ($315 at Amazon) and wait until stocks improve, forcing prices to come back down, but just when that will happen isn't clear. But if you do, the 9700X could be sold to help pay for the 3D V-Cache wonder.
Best motherboard for the RTX 5090
Why this particular motherboard, you might ask? Why not our recommendation for the best X870 board, the MSI MAG X870 Tomahawk? Well, as good as that model is, the heatsinks for the M.2 slots aren't best suited to have a 575 W graphics card right next to them, so it won't do as good a job as the Aorus Master at keeping them cool.
Gigabyte has jammed as many connectivity and expansion options as it possibly can, and although that does mean some compromises have been made, there's little to really complain about.
Take the rear IO panel, for example. You'll find two USB4 Type-C, four USB 3.2 20 Gbps Type-A, four USB 3.2 10 Gbps, and two USB 2.0 ports. The LAN socket is rated to 5 Gbps and it has a Wi-Fi 7 module, which improves download rates even if the router is only Wi-Fi 6.
You also get four M.2 slots and three of those support Gen5 SSDs. The other is 'merely' Gen4!
Other than the steep price tag, the only thing one could really criticise is that although there are three PCIe expansion slots, only the top one for the graphics card is electrically x16—the others are x4 (even though the slots themselves are x16) and the very bottom one is just a Gen3 slot.
Best RAM for the RTX 5090
You can buy faster RAM than this and even for less money, but Ryzen processors take a bit of a latency hit once you go above 6,4000 MT/s and you're far better off going with something that has very low latencies.
That's the biggest feature of this G.Skill Trident Z5 Royal Neo hit and that CAS latency of 28 cycles will help to make any Ryzen chip as speedy as you like.
I use this exact set in my AM5 test PC and it's very stable and fast. It also looks spectacular, thanks to the crystal-effect RGB LED covers and the chrome-like heatsinks. The latter do pick up finger marks very easily but oh boy, they are pretty to behold in the flesh.
Best PSU for the RTX 5090
With the GeForce RTX 5090 sporting a 575 W TGP (total graphics power) limit, and you can be certain it will exceed that at times, you really need a power supply unit that's really set up for this particular GPU.
That's exactly what MSI had in mind when it designed the MEG Ai1300P. Ignore the 1,300 W rating for the moment, and concentrate on the important aspects, such as being ATX 3.1 and PCIe 5.1 rated—together it means the PSU is capable of coping with big power spikes, without shutting down or causing problems.
It also has a dedicated 12V-2x6 socket and cable (a redesign of the 12VHPWR that caused issues with the RTX 4090 of a melty-melty kind). The latter is yellow-tipped, so you'll be able to tell at a glance if the cable is inserted correctly.
It also removes the need to use a bulky adapter cable for the RTX 5090 and having just one cable will make things look all sleek and silky inside your gaming PC.
