GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

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mailalan
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GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by mailalan » Sat Apr 27, 2013 8:38 pm

I am building a quiet PC that will not be used for gaming. I would like to be able to attach it to an HDTV though.

I will be using a Fractal Design Define XL R2 case and I will have a 140mm fan in the side panel, probably an Antec TrueQuiet. The motherboard will be an Asus P8Z77-v Deluxe.

What are some quiet GPU's that would work well in such a setup?

Thanks
Alan

Abula
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by Abula » Sat Apr 27, 2013 9:25 pm

You really dont need a dedicated GPU to display in HD TV, any of the modern intel cpus that have decent enough integrated graphics that are good enough for 1080p movie playback, even mulitple screens, a Celeron G530 can handle video fine, but i would probably go for something like Intel Core i3-3225 Dual-Core Processor 3.3 GHz 3 MB Cache LGA 1155 - BX80637i33225 that already comes with intel iGPU HD4000.

Now if you wish to go into madVR + Lav Filters + rendering from a dedicated GPU (again intel hd4000 should be good enough), then it really depends on the settings you will want it to render, for me rendering on a 2560x1440 monitor upscaling with Jincs 3 passes + Anti ring... takes my GTX580 to 55% load, but with bilinear i dont get passed 10%... so all depends on how you want it to be rendered. Personally i think its best to just go for the i3 with the HD4000 and work from there, it should be fine to play any 1080p videos, now if you are going to do some encoding/transcoding you could go into a i5 3570k or i7 3770k, again only with the HD4000 (no dedicated GPU), and test it there, and if you feel you need more because of how you want to render.... then search for GPU that can handle the specific way you want to render.

What will be the uses for this PC? i mean why do you want the XL, its a nice case but its very big.

whispercat
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by whispercat » Sun Apr 28, 2013 5:10 pm

I'm in the same boat, looking for a card (if I need one). No gaming, but I do watch HD videos and planning to get a 27" 2560x1440 monitor in the near future. I have integrated graphics now pushing Photoshop Elements but want to upgrade from my 4 year old system for Adobe CS6. Will the Intel Haswell HD 4000 integrated graphics be enough?

CA_Steve
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by CA_Steve » Sun Apr 28, 2013 9:09 pm

mailalan - if all you want to do is watch videos, then the integrated GPU is all you need.
whispercat wrote:I'm in the same boat, looking for a card (if I need one). No gaming, but I do watch HD videos and planning to get a 27" 2560x1440 monitor in the near future. I have integrated graphics now pushing Photoshop Elements but want to upgrade from my 4 year old system for Adobe CS6. Will the Intel Haswell HD 4000 integrated graphics be enough?
You can run 2560x1440 using Displayport output and the Ivy Bridge HD4000. Haswell will have the HD 5xxx nomenclature for graphics. As for Photoshop CS6, consider this benchmark at Puget Systems. If you are really talking about Ivy Bridge and HD4000, then there is a benefit to getting a low end gfx card if you do a LOT of Photoshop work. If you meant Haswell, there is the potential for 25 to 100% bump in GPU performance. So, you might not need a separate gfx card - find out in June when the intro reviews hit. :)

Pappnaas
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by Pappnaas » Sun Apr 28, 2013 9:36 pm


GPU-enhanced features added in Photoshop CS6

Adaptive Wide Angle Filter (compatible video card required)
Liquify (accelerated with compatible video card with 512 MB of VRAM)
Oil Paint (compatible video card required)
Warp and Puppet Warp (accelerated with compatible video card)
Field Blur, Iris Blur, and Tilt/Shift (accelerated with compatible video
card supporting OpenCL)
Lighting Effects Gallery (compatible video card required with 512 MB
of VRAM)
New 3D enhancements (3D features in Photoshop require a compatible video card with 512 MB of VRAM):
Draggable Shadows
Ground plane reflections
Roughness
On-canvas user interface controls
Ground plane
Light widgets on edge of canvas
IBL (image-based light) controller
http://helpx.adobe.com/en/photoshop/kb/ ... u-faq.html

What does that mean: HD4000 is good enough to go. Even if you had no supported GPU whatsoever, chances are good you do not use any of the "supported" features or if you use them, they are simulated through CPU.

mailalan
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by mailalan » Mon Apr 29, 2013 1:03 am

I appreciate the advice that I do not need a separate GPU but let's assume that I do want one.

What I originally wanted to know was if can anyone recommend specific video cards that will work quietly in a non-gaming setup? For instance I've read about 660 ti's, 670's, and 680's from many different manufacturers. I've read about the different AMD cards. I've even read about passive cards and passive cards that people have rigged up silent fans with. I've seen the list of GPU reviews posted on SPCR.

What I wanted to know was cards that people here have had experience with that have satisfied them both in terms of performance and quietness. Reading about cards reviewed in a lab is one thing. Hearing about people's experience with cards is another, especially people on this forum who care more about sound levels than most.

So can anyone give me some feedback on good currently available quiet cards in general that they are happy with?

Alan

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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by Vicotnik » Mon Apr 29, 2013 5:31 am

Intel HD4000 works very well. Radeon HD7750 with stock passive cooling is also good. A bit faster than the HD4000 and fast enough for my needs. Silent since it has stock passive cooling (I have a Sapphire Radeon HD7750 Ultimate). Compared to other discreet cards the HD7750 have a modest power draw while idle, something that's important to me.

Abula
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by Abula » Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:34 am

mailalan wrote:What I originally wanted to know was if can anyone recommend specific video cards that will work quietly in a non-gaming setup? For instance I've read about 660 ti's, 670's, and 680's from many different manufacturers. I've read about the different AMD cards. I've even read about passive cards and passive cards that people have rigged up silent fans with. I've seen the list of GPU reviews posted on SPCR.
Well 660TI up are mostly for gaming setup, i woudlnt recommend for anyone not gaming or using heavy cuda core application. In either case as per your request, the MSI Twin Frozer and Asus Direct CUII seem good options for high end cards both in performance/noise. I just built a new setup with 3570k + 660ti twin frozer and only the initial startup is noisy, once bios/windows loads its wisper quiet, the built in vbios design makes the card be still at 40% at 75C... so even under load is not that noisy.... but i also tried to use msi afterburner to overide the fan spees, and at 50% speeds starts to become noticeable, past 60% is insane, past 70% its a jet engine, past that you will faint out of the sound waves... lol jk. But if i were buying for me, i would probably go with Asus Direct CUII cooler, SPCR already reviewed the GTX670 DirectCUII and came out good.

As Vicotnik posted, there are some passive cooling solutions out there, that still need case airflow to be able to cool themselves, in my case i straped a 120mm to a passive gts450 and works great..., again really depends on what you are looking, here some models for you to check,
Sapphire Radeon Ultimate HD 7750 1GB DDR5 HDMI/DVI-I/DP PCI-Express Graphics Card 11202-03-40G
HIS HD7750 Radeon Graphic Card H775P1GD
ASUS Graphics Cards HD7750-DCSL-1GD5

With that said.... i strongly recommend you dont get a dedicated gpu unless you have to, a gpu like DIRECTCUII or Twin Frozer will not exit the heat, but dump it inside the case, increaseing the case temp, which will mean other fans will have to spin up faster to to cool it, thats if you have your fans ramping, or higher temps if you have the fans steady at one speed. Intel HD4000 is more than capable for every day task for an usual computer user, it will be much more efficient in terms of cooling and electrical consumption. Haswell comes promising better iGPU performance, as steve pointed, it could be up to twice as fast, some early benches pointed around a GT640.... which is not bad for a intergarted gpu, it should even be capable run popular games like LOL/WOW.... faster decoding/encoding with more capble iGPU... etc. Overall Haswell looks like a very low gain on cpu power while almost doubling the GPU power.

whispercat
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by whispercat » Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:41 pm

If Intel onboard graphics can handle CS5 or CS6, would it be slow compared to having a dedicated GPU? How much real world visible difference would I notice between integrated graphics and say, a GTX 660ti?

Pappnaas
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by Pappnaas » Mon Apr 29, 2013 9:27 pm

whispercat wrote:If Intel onboard graphics can handle CS5 or CS6, would it be slow compared to having a dedicated GPU? How much real world visible difference would I notice between integrated graphics and say, a GTX 660ti?
There will be no difference, because CS5/6 do use GPU for a tiny fraction of all effects. And a HD4000 brings enough power compared to 4 or 5 year old GPUs.

QUIET!
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Re: GPU recommendations for non-gaming rig

Post by QUIET! » Thu May 16, 2013 2:56 pm

I think the one place where integrated graphics has discrete beat is in idle current. I don't see the point in discrete unless you add some real GPU power, that 7750 is kind of weak in that respect.

If you need something better than Intel graphics but still in the low end GPU realm, look at AMD APUs. Some systems have very good idle power with low end gaming capability.

Haswell is only going to have HD 5*** graphics in the bga package mobile parts from what I have heard, desktop parts will get HD 4600 or something which will probably lag behind AMDs APUs and I fully expect Kaveri graphics will trounce anything Intel offers.

Lastly, will your video needs include blue ray playback? Intel graphics is known for having refresh rate issues that can add a stutter or something to bd playback. Most discrete cards and AMD APUs do not have that problem.

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