GPU rendering for Blender

samfyfe

Honorable
Jan 21, 2013
1
0
10,510
I need help with a purchase. I'm going to buy a couple GPUs for my new computer, and I'm trying to decide which one. I'm planning on buying two, for multiple tile rendering. I need to buy NVIDIA because of it's compatibility with Blender (which is what I will be using most of the time). I was thinking the new 600 line of the GTXs, but they're more pricey. Is there a huge increase in performance between the 500s and 600s? Also, should I get 50s or 60s? if I buy 60s, they'd have to be the 500 series because of price. I'd love your feedback! All these cards and prices and features can get confusing after a while!

Purchase time: This week or next
Budget: $350
Overclocking: Maybe (my MoBo has CPU+GPU boost)
Uses (most to least): 3D modeling (blender), Photoshop, Illustrator, Games
Preferred site: Newegg

My system specs:
Intel i7 2600k @ 3.4GHz Sandy Bridge
ASUS P8Z77-V LK LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
8GB G. Skill Ripjaw Ram DDR3 1600
Seasonic 620W PSU
Rosewill Challenger case with 5 120mm fans.
 
Well a workstation card works better then a gaming card for rendering. Though they suck at games though. A workstation card would be able to render faster, more accurately then a gaming card.
 


Would have been my response if Blender supported OpenCL/GPGPU, but they officially blame AMD for the lack of support. If they did support it, the 7xxx would blow the 6xx out of the water.



Alot of charts comparing various workstation and gaming gpus *for Blender* show the 570s as the best price/performance, subject to price variations of course.