Graphics card choice ? (etc)

Hi All

New build planned (W7 64bit, 8gb RAM ideally, i5 Quad Core, 4 HDDs [OS, Scratch, 2 for data]) but not sure about the graphics card???

I hope to upgrade to CS5 in future (CS2 now) and also get LR, now Adobe list these as suitable cards for CS5:-

NVIDIA GeForce
7000, 8000, 9000, 100, 200, 400 series

NVIDIA Quadro FX
x500, x700, x800, FX370, FX380, FX580 series, Quadro CX cards

So again for future 'proofing' (second monitor one day?) I wish to have a card with two DVI outputs & what would be nice if it does not break the bank is for it to have 2 LUTs so each monitor can be independently calibrated.

I do not play games so as long as the other spec like GPU speed and onboard RAM meets the minimum for CS5 I would hope I would be OK. But can anyone suggest (using & experience???) a "best" card ins the above series that fit this bill???

TIA for any insight

If you're not gaming, just about low-end cards these days are more than powerful enough to run CS5 in a dual-monitor setup.

Places like Newegg always have discounted cards each and every week in the $30-50 range w/dual DVI outputs.

BeritOlam wrote in post #10342437
If you're not gaming, just about low-end cards these days are more than powerful enough to run CS5 in a dual-monitor setup.

Places like Newegg always have discounted cards each and every week in the $30-50 range w/dual DVI outputs.

Thanks for the feedback

I should have said that I am in the UK so the likes of Newegg are not on my 'supplier' list

Though I take from what you say that the most basic version of the nVidia chipped cards listed will do the job ~ just need to Google more deeply to find those will dual DVI and min spec as stated by Adobe.

That's pretty much what I did as well. I knew I would have dual Dell U2311H monitors and I wanted dual DVI outputs so they would have the same connection and all. I got one of the lower XFX Radeon cards with 2 DVI outputs and 1Gb of memory. Has done the trick so far for me. Apparently most of the current generation of graphics cards are overkill for a lot of applications.

Here's what to look for in a graphics card for PSCS5:

• supports OpenGL
  
• has enough RAM to support Photoshop functions--at least 128 MB of RAM. The recommended amount of RAM for the best experience in Photoshop is 256 MB or more.
  
• has a display driver that supports OpenGL 2.0 and Shader Model 3.0

• Scrubby Zoom
  
• HUD color picker
  
• Color sampler ring
  
• Brush dynamic resize and hardness control
  
• Bristle Brush flotilla
  
• Crop with Rule of Thirds grid
  
• Adobe Repousse
  
• 3D overlays, including ground plane, widget, light widget, bounding box for mesh and materials.

• Smooth Display at All Zoom Levels
  
• Animated Zoom Tool
  
• Animated Transitions
  
• Hand Toss Image
  
• Birdseye View
  
• Rotate Canvas
  
• Smooth Display of Non Square Pixel Images
  
• Pixel Grid
  
• Move Color Matching to the GPU
  
• Draw Brush Tip Editing Feedback via GPU
  
• 3D GPU features include:
  • 3D Acceleration
    
  • 3D Axis
    
  • 3D Lights Widget
    
  • Accelerated 3D Interaction via Direct To Screen
    
  • 3D Ground Plane
    
  • 3D Selections via a Hi-light Overlay

Go with at least a 9800, which should be sufficient with currrent apps.

Thanks guys for the feedback.

So far I have found that the Quadro FX380 and the GeForce 9600GT have 2 off DVI others have a mix of DVI & Display Port (I have read of a few issues running DVI using an adaptor cable off of DP in 2 monitor usage?) and yet others are DVI, VGA and HDMI outputs ~ odd that so few simply have twin DVI


Edit ~ not ignoring the fact that for a non gamer the graphics card should not be costing more than the rest of the build kit put together

GPU CUDA support is the way of the future... CS5 supports some of that. So any nVidia card 8+ series. I myself upgraded my 7600GT for a 8800GT (112 stream processors!). If you want more bang for your money, get something with at least 128 stream processors.

You can get away with a cheaper graphics card. I'd suggest nvidia 2xx series. If you can afford it, go with a "beginner" GTX-260. It's a great card for the money. check out newegg - they often have them on sale.

If you plan on using Premiere Pro and After Effects, get yourself a GTX285, there's more than just CUDA supported. If you mean only photoshop, skip the video card and get a i7 875 to upgrade your i5 to something better.

basroil wrote in post #10380934
If you plan on using Premiere Pro and After Effects, get yourself a GTX285, there's more than just CUDA supported. If you mean only photoshop, skip the video card and get a i7 875 to upgrade your i5 to something better.

Hi

Most of what I have done is PS related hence my thought about upgarding to CS5 eventually. I have done and also will do again in future some video NLE but not necessarily sticking with Premiere for this.

I i5 I have selected is Quad core so AFAIK a lot of horsepower for both PS and NLE work especially when I throw in 8GB of RAM ~ and from what I have read & learned so far a CUDA card with at least 256MB of onboard RAM and a multi-streamed graphics card is the target spec.

I take your point now about the i7 875 (quad core & on board graphics) would suit an H55 motherboard but I do want in future to use dual monitors and that route will mean adding a card in future.....?

Budget is not unlimited so unless the GTX285 has dual LUT so each monitor can be independently calibrated the extra £100 is not good!



Edit ~ if using the i7 875 with an H55 chipset motherboard ~ how well does such a system calibrate the monitor using in my case a Spyder 3 Elite? Versus the P55 and a graphics like the GTX260, FX380, GTX285 etc

Box Brownie wrote in post #10381095
Hi

Most of what I have done is PS related hence my thought about upgarding to CS5 eventually. I have done and also will do again in future some video NLE but not necessarily sticking with Premiere for this.

I i5 I have selected is Quad core so AFAIK a lot of horsepower for both PS and NLE work especially when I throw in 8GB of RAM ~ and from what I have read & learned so far a CUDA card with at least 256MB of onboard RAM and a multi-streamed graphics card is the target spec.

I take your point now about the i7 875 (quad core & on board graphics) would suit an H55 motherboard but I do want in future to use dual monitors and that route will mean adding a card in future.....?

Budget is not unlimited so unless the GTX285 has dual LUT so each monitor can be independently calibrated the extra £100 is not good!



Edit ~ if using the i7 875 with an H55 chipset motherboard ~ how well does such a system calibrate the monitor using in my case a Spyder 3 Elite? Versus the P55 and a graphics like the GTX260, FX380, GTX285 etc

You have to ask Rene about LUT considerations. I'm guessing it's a driver based issue rather than card based one. And CUDA with photoshop is useless (compared to just using a faster processor), might as well just get two of the cheapest cards you can instead. Two 5450 from ati can be gotten for $100, two 210/310 nvidia cards can be had for about $150-200.