Best value NVDIA card on Amazon? ($300-500.00 range?)

CybersoxCybersox Posts: 9,142
edited April 2017 in The Commons

[Best value NVDIA card on Amazon? ($300-500.00 range?)]The title says it all.  I just figured out that I can turn in a bunch of airline miles for an Amazon gift card in order to get the NVDIA card I've been really needing... well, okay, that I've been really WANTING desperately.  As a benchmark, I'm currently rendering Iray purely on CPU, though I'm loaded there with an I7 with 32gb of memory and WIndows 7 Ultimate 64 (can't remember the exact specs of fthe top of my head as I'm on a different computer at the moment.)  I'll NEVER use it for playing games so this is strictly going to be for rendering and animation with DAZ Studio, Photoshop, Poser (for Virtual World Dynamics) and iClone.  The one catch is it's got to be available on Amazon, and preferably via Prime. 

Any thoughts?

 

Post edited by Richard Haseltine on

Comments

  •  

    I just bought this one: https://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-GeForce-Compact-Graphics-ZT-P10700G-10M/dp/B01LLAJ8PU/ref=sr_1_6?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1491593556&sr=1-6&keywords=1070+graphics+card

    PHANTASTIC! Incredible fast and due to its small size definitively fits to almost any computer case.

    The price $334.99 looks reasonable.

    Do not add an offered 'n-year protection' from Amazon. If you register the card at the Zotac website, you get a 5 year warranty from the vendor for free.


     

  • Richard HaseltineRichard Haseltine Posts: 104,508

    It might be a good idea to specify your power supply and case size, some cards can eat a fair bit of power (though Pascal is more efficient than some of the older models) and take up a lot of space.

  • Silver DolphinSilver Dolphin Posts: 1,629

    It might be a good idea to specify your power supply and case size, some cards can eat a fair bit of power (though Pascal is more efficient than some of the older models) and take up a lot of space.

    I agree it come down to what fits your budget and what you can fit into your case. If at all possible also know that Iray heats up your video card more than gaming does. If you have the space go 3 fans if not get better cooling solution for your card before it burns up.

  • the3dwizardthe3dwizard Posts: 495

    I just got a MSI GTX 1070 8gb to go with my MSI GTX 980 TI. The 1070 renders just a hair faster than the 980, so I almost doubled my render speed.  Couldn't bring myself to spring for something only slightly faster but a lot more money when I already have the 980.

    So I agree with advice above, get the fastest card you can afford and computer can handle.

    Cheers!

  • CybersoxCybersox Posts: 9,142

    It might be a good idea to specify your power supply and case size, some cards can eat a fair bit of power (though Pascal is more efficient than some of the older models) and take up a lot of space.

    I agree it come down to what fits your budget and what you can fit into your case. If at all possible also know that Iray heats up your video card more than gaming does. If you have the space go 3 fans if not get better cooling solution for your card before it burns up.

    I think I'm in pretty good shape on this, but correct me if I'm wrong.  My main render computer was built by my company's old IT guy back when we had an exceptioonally good quarter and I asked him to use my bonus to build something as future-proof as a system could be and leave lots of room for expansion, so the current specs are:

    Power Supply            Corsair CMPSU-1050hx

    Case - CoolerMaster HAF X, which is loaded with fans as follows

    • VGA card holder: 1 x 80 x 15mm fan
    • VGA card fan duct: 1 x 120 x 25mm / 120 x 38mm fan
    • Rear: 1 x 140mm fan
    • Top: 1 x 200mm fan
      Side: 1 x 200mm fan
    • Front: 1 x 230mm red LED fan

    Motherboard  -  ASRock Model Z77 Pro4 with three PCI slots (all available) and 3 PCI-Es (2 Available)

    Operating System -   Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit SP1

    CPU       Intel Core i7 3770K @ 3.50GHz    32 °C

                   Ivy Bridge 22nm Technology

    RAM

                   32.0GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 666MHz (9-9-9-24)

    Graphics

                   DELL U3011 (2560x1600@60Hz)

                   SyncMaster (1920x1200@59Hz)

                   Intel HD Graphics 4000 (ASRock)

                   3072MB ATI AMD Radeon HD 7900 Series (ATI)  

                   CrossFire Disabled

    Storage - Internal

                   3726GB RAID-5 (RAID)

                   238GB M4-CT256M4SSD2 (SSD)

    Storage - External  (running on a Cable Matters external powered hub) for Mass, Backup and Portable Storage, which currently includes:

                   1863GB Western Digital WDC WD2002FAEX-007BA0 (SATA)

                   1863GB Western Digital WDC WD2002FAEX-007BA0 (SATA)

                   1863GB Western Digital WD Ext HDD 1021 USB Device (USB (SATA))

                   3726GB Seagate Expansion Desk USB Device (USB (SATA))                             

                   698GB Western Digital WD My Passport 0730 USB Device (USB (SATA))

                   931GB Seagate Expansion Desk USB Device (USB (SATA))   53 °C

                   3726GB Seagate Expansion Desk USB Device (USB (SATA))         

    (there are another 5 TB or so of portable drives and memory sticks that are also in rotation.)    

    Optical Drive - Optiarc BD-ROM BR-5100S ATA Device 

     

     

     

  • kyoto kidkyoto kid Posts: 41,446
    edited April 2017

    It might be a good idea to specify your power supply and case size, some cards can eat a fair bit of power (though Pascal is more efficient than some of the older models) and take up a lot of space.

    ...the 1070 actually consumes less power (150W) than my 4 year old 1 GB 460. Recommended power supply:  500W

    With the Corsair CMPSU-1050hx, I don't see much of an issue unless you intend to run the AMD card as well to support  your displays.  The 7900 series is a bit of a power hog as at peak they vary between 250W and 375W based on which model you have.

    Post edited by kyoto kid on
  • the3dwizardthe3dwizard Posts: 495

    Cooling of the 1070 shouldn't be an issue.  When I had mine so the GPU fans were next to the 980 it stayed relatively cool while rendering.  Now when I swapped them the 980 TI did get hot.

    Cheers!

  • CybersoxCybersox Posts: 9,142
    edited April 2017

    Thanks to everyone who's taken the time to reply.  At this point it's looking like it's going to be a 1070.  One thing I'm still trying to figure out, though, is whether the clock speed will have any real effect.  I see that there are some models that have a much higher number for only about 30 dollars or so more like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GXOX3SW/ref=psdc_284822_t2_B01HHCA1IO ; So... is having a clock speed of 8018 MHz going to have any real effect on Iray or video rendering vs. one that's rated at 1771 MHz?  Or am I correct in assuming that it's just going to make everything run hotter for no appreciable benefit? 

    Post edited by Cybersox on
  • Charlie JudgeCharlie Judge Posts: 13,033
    edited April 2017

    Thanks to everyone who's taken the time to reply.  At this point it's looking like it's going to be a 1070.  One thing I'm still trying to figure out, though, is whether the clock speed will have any real effect.  I see that there are some models that have a much higher number for only about 30 dollars or so more like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GXOX3SW/ref=psdc_284822_t2_B01HHCA1IO ; So... is having a clock speed of 8018 MHz going to have any real effect on Iray or video rendering vs. one that's rated at 1771 MHz?  Or am I correct in assuming that it's just going to make everything run hotter for no appreciable benefit? 

    It looks like you are trying to compare apples to oranges. That is you are comparing the memory clock speed of one (8018 mhz) to the processor clock speed of another (1771 mhz)

    Post edited by Charlie Judge on
  • CybersoxCybersox Posts: 9,142

    Thanks to everyone who's taken the time to reply.  At this point it's looking like it's going to be a 1070.  One thing I'm still trying to figure out, though, is whether the clock speed will have any real effect.  I see that there are some models that have a much higher number for only about 30 dollars or so more like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GXOX3SW/ref=psdc_284822_t2_B01HHCA1IO ; So... is having a clock speed of 8018 MHz going to have any real effect on Iray or video rendering vs. one that's rated at 1771 MHz?  Or am I correct in assuming that it's just going to make everything run hotter for no appreciable benefit? 

    It looks like you are trying to compare apples to oranges. That is you are comparing the memory clock speed of one (8018 mhz) to the processor clock speed of another (1771 mhz)

    Oh, duh... yeah.  Too little sleep and the confusing fact that Amazon's direct comparison grids mix the specs under the single category "Memory Clock Speed."     

  • CybersoxCybersox Posts: 9,142
    kyoto kid said:

    It might be a good idea to specify your power supply and case size, some cards can eat a fair bit of power (though Pascal is more efficient than some of the older models) and take up a lot of space.

    ...the 1070 actually consumes less power (150W) than my 4 year old 1 GB 460. Recommended power supply:  500W

    With the Corsair CMPSU-1050hx, I don't see much of an issue unless you intend to run the AMD card as well to support  your displays.  The 7900 series is a bit of a power hog as at peak they vary between 250W and 375W based on which model you have.

    Finally got the gift card and was going over these notes berfore pushing the button.  I HAD planned on using the AMD card as well...

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