Is a single GPU enought to run 4K/UHD?

David Williams · Jul 14, 2014

Hi all,

I recently got a great deal on a 4K/UHD monitor.

i was wondering if a single (affordable) graphics card could run games at 4K/UHD resolution or if a SLI/Crossfire set up is needed.

Any recommendations would be welcome.

Thanks in advance

coolcole01 · Jul 14, 2014

nope sli is the only way as of now the r9 295x is the best single card but it does have two gpus

coolcole01 · Jul 14, 2014

but at the least i think two 780 cards are the route to go

InvalidError · Jul 14, 2014

If you dial details down a few notches, particularly compute-intensive things like high-quality shadows and full-screen anti-aliasing, the top-end single-GPU solutions should be fairly usable. If you want to set everything to ultra then you may end up needing SLI/CF.

David Williams · Jul 14, 2014

coolcole01 :

Thanks for the reply, I've heard that there are issues with SLI/Crossfire setups running 4K/UHD - have you heard anything about that?

17seconds · Jul 14, 2014

You're going to need a pair of cards in SLI.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GTX_780_STRIX_6_GB/25.html

Maybe if you're a big World of Warcraft player.

coolcole01 · Jul 14, 2014

i have heard great things about 2 gpu set ups but horrible things about 3 or 4 it takes time for drivers to catch up

InvalidError · Jul 14, 2014

David Williams :

The most common issue with any SLI/CF setup is micro-stuttering caused by a combination of driver/API/framework interactions and frames not necessarily finishing rendering in-sequence when one GPU renders a more complex frame than the other.

coolcole01 · Jul 14, 2014

if i had to chose two 780ti cards are the way to go

InvalidError · Jul 14, 2014

17seconds :

Only to play with just about everything set to Ultra.

"All games are set to their highest quality setting unless indicated otherwise."

The only thing they dialed back for 4k is anti-aliasing.

David Williams · Jul 14, 2014

InvalidError :

O if a single card solution will work, which would you recommend? Thanks.

David Williams · Jul 14, 2014

my GPU is currently EVGA GEFORCE GTX780 SUPERCLOCKED ACX 6GB - would this be suitable for 4K/UHD gaming? I don't want to drop settings too much or suffer horrible frame rate levels.

coolcole01 · Jul 14, 2014

no it will not get you anywhere near 60fps with any higher settings probably 20-30 in most games but that is a great card get another and you will be alright

17seconds · Jul 14, 2014

David Williams :

Nvidia has better driver support for 4K. Here's a discussion we were having about it.
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2175663/290-crossfire-u2868pqu-60hz.html

17seconds · Jul 14, 2014

David Williams :

I'm sorry, did you not see the benchmarks showing FPS in the 20's with a single card with AA off? There isn't a lot to be gained even if you did take more extreme measures and sacrifice your image quality. You're suddenly not going to go from 25 FPS to 50, and even if you did, the tradeoff in textures wouldn't be worth it. 4K is expensive, you need a lot of GPU power, and you need to understand that up front.

InvalidError · Jul 15, 2014

David Williams :

You already have the GPU and it sounds like you already ordered the display.

My recommendation? Try what you already have and see what little/much you need to give up to get frame rates you can be happy with and decide how much more you are willing to improve that from there.

AMD has historically had many more issues with stuttering in their multi-GPU setups so Nvidia would be the safer option.

David Williams · Jul 15, 2014

coolcole01 :

Thanks - that card was already heavily over priced here in New Zealand, so purchasing another at this point is not an option.

InvalidError · Jul 15, 2014

17seconds :

That depends on which features you are (not) willing to tone down. Things like precision shadows are also GPU hogs and they are usually the first thing I axe since shadows annoy me anyway.

David Williams · Jul 15, 2014

17seconds :

David Williams :

I'm sorry, did you not see the benchmarks showing FPS in the 20's with a single card with AA off? There isn't a lot to be gained even if you did take more extreme measures and sacrifice your image quality. You're suddenly not going to go from 25 FPS to 50, and even if you did, the tradeoff in textures wouldn't be worth it. 4K is expensive, you need a lot of GPU power, and you need to understand that up front.

Thanks, I will check out the thread.
I appreciate the costs involved, but as i said the monitor was worth picking up at the price.
I'm happy to wait and see if my current GPU drops in price and then pick up a second and run in CF.

Is a single GPU enought to run 4K/UHD?

Honorable

Splendid

Splendid

Titan

Honorable

Champion

Splendid

Titan

Splendid

Titan

Honorable

Honorable

Splendid

Champion

Champion

Titan

Honorable

Titan

Honorable

Share this page