The GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super are two of the most widely used graphics cards on the planet. Despite launching in 2019, these Turing-architecture GPUs remain the primary display adapter for hundreds of millions of gamers—most of whom are running pre-built systems or budget builds that have not seen an upgrade. The good news: neither card is dead. The GTX 1650 handles 1080p at medium settings in most titles, and the GTX 1660 Super pushes well into medium-high territory. What they need is the right configuration.
This guide covers per-game recommended settings for the 10 most-played titles, NVIDIA driver tuning specific to older Turing hardware, VRAM management for 4 GB and 6 GB budgets, DirectX API choices, and FSR 1.0 upscaling options—everything you need to get the most out of both cards in 2026. For a broader introduction to GPU and CPU settings optimization, see the complete PC game settings optimization guide.
GTX 1650 vs GTX 1660 Super: The Gap Is Larger Than the Name Suggests
The naming convention implies a small step between these two cards. The real-world performance gap tells a different story.
| Specification | GTX 1650 | GTX 1660 Super |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Turing TU117 | Turing TU116 |
| CUDA Cores | 896 | 1,408 |
| VRAM | 4 GB GDDR6 | 6 GB GDDR6 |
| Memory Bandwidth | 192 GB/s | 336 GB/s |
| TDP | 75 W | 125 W |
| Typical 1080p FPS (AAA medium) | 45–55 FPS | 60–75 FPS |
The GTX 1660 Super carries 57% more CUDA cores and nearly double the memory bandwidth. In real-world gaming it delivers 35–50% more frames than the GTX 1650, performance that places it closer to a GTX 1070 than to its budget sibling. If you own the 1660 Super and expected a modest upgrade tier—you actually have considerably more headroom than the name implies.
VRAM Limits: What to Watch For on Each Card
GTX 1650 (4 GB): Modern titles increasingly breach the 4 GB threshold at High texture settings. BG3, Hogwarts Legacy, Palworld, and Black Myth: Wukong will all push past 4 GB VRAM at High or Ultra textures—causing stuttering and hitching as data is swapped to system RAM. Keep textures at Medium or Low in all new releases. Use GPU-Z or HWiNFO64 to monitor VRAM usage live; if you consistently see 95%+ utilization, drop one texture tier.
Settings that spike VRAM usage the most:
- Texture Quality — the biggest contributor by far
- Shadow Map Resolution — High shadows can add 400–600 MB
- Anti-Aliasing — MSAA x4 adds 300–500 MB; use FXAA or TAA instead
- Volumetric Fog / Lighting — avoid High in DX12 titles
GTX 1660 Super (6 GB): High textures are safe in most games at 1080p. The only exceptions are the most VRAM-hungry titles at Ultra settings (Black Myth: Wukong at Ultra textures, Cyberpunk 2077 at Ultra). For everything else, the 6 GB buffer gives comfortable headroom without overflow.
DirectX 11 vs DirectX 12 on GTX Cards
Both the GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super support DX12 on paper. In practice, DX11 is faster in many titles on GTX hardware—and in some cases significantly so. The reasons:
- Turing lacks the dedicated hardware (mesh shaders, async compute units) that makes DX12 efficient on RDNA 2+ and Ampere GPUs
- DX12 driver overhead runs higher on older Turing relative to DX11
- Some DX12 game paths enable ray tracing or other features by default, adding cost with no quality return on non-RT hardware
Games where switching to DX11 produces measurable gains on GTX hardware:
- Elden Ring: Use
-dx11launch option in Steam; expect 8–15% more FPS - Black Myth: Wukong: DX11 path reduces GPU overhead at Low-Very Low settings; reduces shader compilation stutter
- Final Fantasy XIV: DX11 is noticeably smoother on GTX cards than the DX12 path
- Civilization VI / VII: DX11 performs better on budget Turing
Cyberpunk 2077 removed the DX11 option in a recent patch—use FSR and lower settings instead of seeking a legacy API fallback.
NVIDIA Driver Settings for GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super
Open NVIDIA Control Panel and apply these settings under Manage 3D Settings for a global performance profile. For the complete walkthrough of every NVIDIA Control Panel option, see our dedicated NVIDIA Control Panel Best Settings guide.
| Setting | Recommended Value | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Power Management Mode | Prefer Maximum Performance | Prevents GPU clock drops during light scenes |
| Texture Filtering – Quality | Performance | Reduces GPU workload; indistinguishable at 1080p |
| Texture Filtering – Anisotropic Sample Opt. | On | Free performance from hardware optimization |
| Texture Filtering – Trilinear Optimization | On | Additional filtering efficiency |
| Vertical Sync | Off | Manage in-game or via G-Sync/FreeSync |
| Low Latency Mode | Ultra | Reduces input lag; especially useful in Valorant, CS2 |
| Shader Cache Size | Unlimited | Reduces first-play stutter in shader compilation games |
FSR 1.0 Support: Upscaling Without DLSS or FSR 2
GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super do not support DLSS (requires tensor cores, RTX only) and do not support FSR 2, FSR 3, or Intel XeSS at full quality (these require temporal data and compute paths optimized for newer hardware). However, FSR 1.0 is available in many titles and works on any GPU including older Turing.
FSR 1.0 is a spatial upscaler: it renders at a reduced resolution and applies a sharpening pass via AMD's Lanczos-based algorithm. It has no temporal component, so it is compatible with GTX hardware and delivers a useful quality boost over raw lower-resolution rendering.
FSR 1.0 availability in this article's game list:
- Hogwarts Legacy: FSR 1 explicitly available in graphics settings—use Quality or Balanced mode
- Palworld: Lists FSR but applies FSR 1.0 sharpening on non-FSR-2-capable hardware
- Apex Legends: TSR/FSR options available; FSR 1.0 at Quality is beneficial on GTX
- Elden Ring: No FSR or DLSS—use the in-game Render Scale slider instead (try 85%)
Per-Game Best Settings: GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super
All settings targets are for 1080p with a mid-range CPU (Intel Core i5-10600K or Ryzen 5 5600 equivalent). FPS figures are typical—demanding scenes and open-world areas will push lower.
| Game | GTX 1650 Settings | GTX 1650 Target FPS | GTX 1660 Super Settings | GTX 1660 Super Target FPS | Key Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fortnite | Performance mode, 3D Res 100%, Effects Low, Textures Low | 80–110 FPS | Quality mode, Medium preset, Textures Medium | 100–130 FPS | Performance mode bypasses Unreal Engine overhead entirely; massive FPS gain on budget GPUs |
| Valorant | Low-Medium, Effects Low, Shadows Medium | 150–200 FPS | High preset, VSync off | 200–240 FPS | Both cards are overspecced; prioritize Low Latency Mode in NVIDIA CP |
| Minecraft | Default settings + OptiFine, no shaders | 100–150 FPS | OptiFine or Sodium + Iris, medium shaders | 80–120 FPS (shaders on) | Vanilla runs fine on both; Complementary Reimagined at Medium is 1660 Super territory |
| Elden Ring | DX11 launch, Shadows Low, Textures Low-Med, AA Medium | 40–50 FPS | DX11 launch, Shadows Medium, Textures Medium-High | 55–60 FPS | DX11 flag is mandatory (-dx11 Steam launch option); engine caps at 60 FPS |
| Baldur's Gate 3 | Lowest preset, Shadows Off, Volumetric Fog Off | 30–40 FPS | Low preset, Shadows Low, Global Illumination Low | 45–55 FPS | Act 3 (Lower City) drops 20–30% vs earlier areas on all hardware; both cards struggle here |
| Palworld | View Distance Low, Shadows Low, Textures Med, Effects Low | 40–50 FPS | View Distance Med, Shadows Med, Textures High, Effects Med | 55–65 FPS | View Distance is the single biggest FPS lever (20–30 FPS difference); base lag is CPU/engine, not GPU |
| Hogwarts Legacy | Low preset, FSR Quality, RT Off, Textures Low | 30–40 FPS | Low-Med preset, FSR Quality, RT Off, Textures Med | 45–55 FPS | Hogsmeade outdoor area drops 15–20 FPS vs interiors on both cards; RT adds 30–50% cost at zero benefit here |
| CS2 | Low preset, Shadow Detail Low, Multicore Rendering On, FXAA | 120–160 FPS | Medium preset, Shadows Med, Multicore On | 160–200 FPS | Multicore Rendering must be On; CS2 is significantly more CPU-bound than CS:GO |
| Apex Legends | Low-Med preset, AO Off, Shadow Coverage Low | 70–90 FPS | Medium-High preset, AO Low | 100–120 FPS | Texture Streaming Budget: set to Auto; Model Detail has minimal FPS impact vs visual quality trade |
| Black Myth: Wukong | Very Low preset, Lumen Off, RT Off, FSR 1.0 if available | 20–35 FPS | Low preset, Lumen Off, RT Off, GI Low | 35–50 FPS | Most demanding title on this list; use DX11 path; GTX 1650 is below recommended spec—this is the upgrade trigger |
When to Upgrade: Is the RTX 3060 Worth the Jump?
The GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super are aging into the “Low settings in new AAA titles” tier in 2026. Clear signals that you have hit the ceiling:
- Consistent sub-30 FPS in new releases even at Low settings
- VRAM overflow stuttering on the GTX 1650 even with textures at Medium
- Missing out on DLSS 3/4 upscaling in titles where it dramatically improves visual quality and frame rates
- Sub-60 FPS in games you play competitively
The RTX 3060 is the recommended minimum upgrade target. Key advantages over the GTX 1660 Super:
- 12 GB GDDR6 VRAM — eliminates VRAM constraints at 1080p and 1440p
- DLSS 2 and DLSS 3 support across hundreds of titles
- Approximately 75–85% more raw rasterization performance at 1080p
- DX12 Ultimate compliance with hardware ray tracing and mesh shaders
The RTX 3060 Ti is the value sweet spot if budget allows, delivering roughly 95–100% more FPS than the GTX 1660 Super in rasterization workloads. At current used market prices, both represent significant value for the upgrade.
FAQ: GTX 1650 and GTX 1660 Super in 2026
Is the GTX 1650 still good for gaming in 2026?
Yes, with the right expectations. The GTX 1650 handles competitive titles (CS2, Valorant, Fortnite) very well at 100–200 FPS and plays most of the existing game library at 45–60 FPS with medium settings. New AAA releases in 2026 are pushing it toward Low settings to maintain 60 FPS. It is not dead, but it is reaching its limits in the most demanding recent titles.
Can the GTX 1660 Super run 1080p gaming in 2026?
Yes, comfortably in most titles. The GTX 1660 Super is a legitimate 1080p medium-high card targeting 60+ FPS in the vast majority of the gaming library. It struggles with the most demanding new releases (Black Myth: Wukong, Alan Wake 2), but for the typical gaming mix it remains a fully capable GPU with the settings in this guide applied.
How long will the GTX 1660 Super last?
At its current trajectory, 2–3 more years of viable 1080p gaming at medium settings before Low settings become the norm in new AAA titles. The 6 GB VRAM buffer gives it meaningfully more longevity than the GTX 1650. Competitive gaming titles (CS2, Valorant, Apex) have far lower hardware demands and will remain playable at high frame rates for years.
Do GTX cards support FSR 2 or DLSS?
No. DLSS requires tensor cores found only on RTX 20-series and newer. FSR 2 and FSR 3 use temporal upscaling paths that require hardware-accelerated compute features not present on older Turing. FSR 1.0 (spatial upscaling) works on GTX hardware and is available in many titles as noted in the FSR section above.