Need Dual-Link DVI capable Video Card (will not use for gaming)

[MaxGlobin]

Hello All,

I just upgraded to one of those korean 27" lcds and need to purchase a video card that supports dual-link dvi output; currently I have on-board intel 3000 which does not support necessary outputs and resolutions.

Computer will NOT be used for gaming, but will be used for heavy photo processing (ie photoshop)....

Please suggest which video card to purchase for the lowest amount of money and one that will meet my photo needs for years to come.

Thank you!


comp specs: (I did not purchase vid card as I do not play games on comp)

Crucial 128 GB m4 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive SATA 6Gb/s CT128M4SSD2

Seagate Barracuda XT 2000 GB 7200RPM 64MB Cache 3.5-Inch Bare Drive - ST32000641AS

Intel Core i7-2600K Processor

Scythe Mugen 3 CPU Cooler for LGA 775/1155/1156/1366 & AMD AM2/2+/3 Model, SCMG-3000

ENERMAX NAXN 82+ ENP650AWT B 650W ATX12V 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

ASUS Black Blu-ray Burner SATA BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop

ASRock Z68 EXTREME4 GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

ENERMAX FULMO GT ECA1092AG-BL Black SEEC 0.8mm ATX Full Tower Computer Case

 

[Rustyy117]

Almost all modern graphics cards support dual link DVI, If you go with a modern nVidia graphics card it'll have CUDA support which will aid your CPU in photoshop with tasks like applying filters.

Here's a relatively cheap suggestion: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130609

If your not bothered about CUDA support then a HD5450 would be a cheaper alternative.

 

[MaxGlobin]

Thanks for the suggestion! It led me to ASUS ENGT430 DC SL/DI/1GD3 GeForce GT 430 (Fermi) 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121448... I'd prefer to having a d-sub input and it looks like its clocked a little higher... same price too... thoughts?

 

[Rustyy117]

Seems that one has been deactivated, to be honest it doesn't really matter about clock speed as you won't be gaming, go with which ever is cheapest

 

[nforce4max]

Get nothing with d-sub and aim for a card that has two dvi ports. If you ever decide that you need d-sub then get an adapter. You could consider a gts450 that has very decent cooling and is good quality. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125397

You can still make good use of what the card has to offer if you get the right plugins for photoshop.

 

[Temile]

What is your budget? Did you get a 2560x1440 resolution monitor? Modern Photoshop uses the GPU for some tasks and will be using it more and more over time.

Adobe has a list, but it doesn't say much about which are best:

http://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/tested-video-cards-photoshop-cs5.html


If you want good Photoshop performance over the next few years, I would go with a more modern GPU. Each generation the hardware manufacturers add shader features. Currently Photoshop wants you to have Shader Level 3.0, but you can bet than in 5 years they will want (or require) a higher level of support. Notice I say "modern". I would prefer a lower power GPU from the latest generation to a higher power GPU from the previous generation for Photoshop, even though the older card might work faster in games. Unless you think you are going to upgrade your graphics card again when a new version of Photoshop comes out.

Again, without a budget, I can't make a recommendation. nVidia is a little behind AMD in introducing this generation of cards: there is no real low-end GTX 600 series card from nVidia. Also, this generation of nVidia card is not as good at double-precision as the AMD cards, and I suspect some Photoshop filters will use double precision. I'd look at a 7750 or 7770 series card, or go higher up if you can afford it. These cards have 1 dual-link dvi port. If you buy a second dvi monitor, you'll have to get an adapter or go with an nVidia card in the current generation.