Question Graphics Card Recommendation

[BobB99]

I have an older computer that runs just fine for the things I do except the graphics card does not meant Adobe's recommendations for Lightroom and Photoshop. Adobe suggest 8GB of dedicated GPU RAM or 16GM of shared memory, a benchmark of greater than 2,000, and Direct X 12 support.



The current card is an EVGA GeForce GTX 560 Ti Super clocked 1024MB GDDRS PCI Express 2.0. Motherboard: A Gigabyte GA-Z68XP-UD3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 SATA 6GB/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel. Power supply: Corsair Enthusiast series 750-Watt 80 Plus Bronze Certified Power Supply.



I have told that my Gigabyte motherboard is a PCI Gen 2 and will not allow a PCI Gen 3 or 4 graphic card to run satisfactory, if at all. And that PCI Gen 2 cards don't come with 8 or more GB of RAM.



Is this true, what alternatives, short of replacing the whole computer, do I have?

If it is not, what graphics cards would you recommend and are compatible with this motherboard and meat Adobe's requirements?


I will be most appreciative of your thoughts.

BobB99

 

[Darkbreeze]

You definitely don't need anwhere near 8GB of VRAM to run either of those programs. Recommended is a far cry from the minimum required. Unless you are doing very high end work with tons of layers or very huge files, you can get by with a fairly inexpensive card.

Do you just need this for that or are you going to be using it to game with as well?

What can you reasonably afford to throw at a new card?

What resolution are you working with on your display and what resolution are the images you're normally working with? As in, your camera settings?

 

[BobB99]

Thanks for the response.

Display = 1920 x 1200

Files: 41MB

Sizes 7952 x 5304

I'd like to get to Adobe's recommendations. These large files are slow to load. I really want to increase speed. I could throw 500 to get it to really hum.

 

[Zerk2012]

My suggestion would be sell what you have and build a modern PC.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Any system running on a Z68 board is so old that it is likely not even worth it to invest in a graphics card that will meet the expectations of modern software. Better, as Zerk mentioned, would be to simply take the money you would invest in any graphics card, and put it towards an entirely new platform, preferably WITH an integrated graphics adapter in the CPU, which will already then undoubtedly meet the expectations and potentially offer just as good or at least good enough performance for Photoshop and lightroom.

Seriously, gonna cost you at least 100-150 for even the most basic graphics card that will actually be capable enough to call "good" in this case, ESPECIALLY if you are looking to meet the "recommended" level of performance and not just something "good enough" for it to run.

Something like this would do the job, and then some. And would not be a waste of your money in the end. And also, give you FAR more options going forward.


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i3-12100 3.3 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($129.97 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B660M-HDV Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 CL16 Memory ($47.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $267.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-09-23 21:32 EDT-0400

 

[BobB99]

My suggestion would be sell what you have and build a modern PC.

Thanks for the response. Goods suggestions. I appreciate it.

 

[BobB99]

Any system running on a Z68 board is so old that it is likely not even worth it to invest in a graphics card that will meet the expectations of modern software. Better, as Zerk mentioned, would be to simply take the money you would invest in any graphics card, and put it towards an entirely new platform, preferably WITH an integrated graphics adapter in the CPU, which will already then undoubtedly meet the expectations and potentially offer just as good or at least good enough performance for Photoshop and lightroom.

Seriously, gonna cost you at least 100-150 for even the most basic graphics card that will actually be capable enough to call "good" in this case, ESPECIALLY if you are looking to meet the "recommended" level of performance and not just something "good enough" for it to run.

Something like this would do the job, and then some. And would not be a waste of your money in the end. And also, give you FAR more options going forward.


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i3-12100 3.3 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($129.97 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B660M-HDV Micro ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 CL16 Memory ($47.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $267.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2022-09-23 21:32 EDT-0400

Thanks for the response. Goods suggestions. I appreciate it.

 

[Darkbreeze]

If you really just want the most basic card that will do what you need it to do in order for those programs to run and still be compatible with your system, I'd look at something like the GTX 750 or 950. Both should probably work on your older board. Hell, even a GT 730 should be fine so long as you aren't actually looking to game.

 

[BobB99]

Thanks for the response. I'll check them out.