Graphics card upgrade for architecture student

[omershkedi]

Hello to all,

 

I'm approaching the last year of architecture school and would like to upgrade the graphics card on my PC. I'm currently using AutoCAD, Sketchup, Rhino, Adobe CC and just starting on Lumion and Revit. My current configuration is as follows:

Intel i7 3770, Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H motherboard, 16GB RAM, PNY Quardo 600 connected to 2 monitors via HDMI/DVI, Samsung 840 Series SSD, FSP Aurum 600W.

I can spend around 350$ and I really don't know where to begin. I've been looking into GFX 970 and the R9 390 but some people suggested to go for the Quadro cards.

Which card would give me the best performance per cost? how do I choose between different vendors of the same GPU? can I even expect better performace at my budget or should I wait and buy something better when I have some more money to spend?

 

By the way - I've been having some strange issues with Rhino and Sketchup like flickering lines/surfaces mostly with orbit, long rendering time and slow response times when working with large files. I don't know if that's GPU-related. I've tried updating my drivers but no improvement. I'll try to capture some screenshots and add them to this post.

 

Thanks in advance!

[Francisco Penaloza]

For that budget, get the GTX 970. everything will work fine.

[jensandersen]

Wait a month or two. Nvidia is releasing their new cards atm and AMD will follow soon. So prices on all cards should drop a little.

 

You might even consider getting a used card now that many gamers will be upgrading. The GTX 970 as Francisco mentions should suffice. Brand doesn't matter much. Try and get one with a good cooler on it though. Asus, Gigabite and MSI comes to mind.

[elipan]

Consider the red's new RX 480 that will be out next month.

[Dimitris Tolios]

The Autodesk products (AutoCAD / Revit) are Direct3D (what "gaming" cards are and have horrible driver support anyways (ontop, Autodesk doesn't work with nVidia or AMD to "certify" compatibility with newer cards, so most likely the s/w will be unaware of your GPU model and even call it "uncertified / incompatible). There is often the case that you will need to disable GPU acceleration all-together to stop Revit from crashing its viewport engine with complex 3D Views...I am working on computers that range from Quadro K2000, K4000, K4200 and GTX 970. The biggest performance driver for Revit is the CPU, and ofc RAM if you are using complex models. For ACAD h/w is not an issue.

 

For the OpenGL viewports, none of the programs you've mentioned would benefit greatly from a powerful Quadro card, as none has a really advanced OpenGL engine & optimized drivers for it. Btw, the viewport clipping you are experiencing is common with those viewport engines. The remedy for me is changing the FOV angle in Sketchup (select zoom tool and shift-move the cursor up/down, usually smaller angles have less clipping issues) and/or zooming to extends and in again for both SU and Rhino.

 

Learning to manage your model and organizing it in groups / components / layers, hiding un-needed stuff when you are working on details is the only solution for super-complex jobs.

 

Now, for performance boosts...I don't think the GTX 970 will rock your world with difference EDIT: over cheaper GTX cards of its generation...would be worlds better for gaming, but for these apps, its just ok EDIT: "ok" as in as fast as cheaper GTX cards . A 2GB 950 or 960 will probably be just as "faster" as the aging Quadro 600 you have now. Hell, even a 750Ti will be much faster.

 

The new 10xx line is already out, but not in enough volume to really change the market. In a month or so, the used market will be filling with used 970s and 960s, so I would recommend you waiting.

Edited June 24, 2016 by dtolios

[joelmcwilliam]

I just love to read when Dimitris answers! Thanks Dimitris for always taking the time for giving such in-dept answers.

[James Vella]

Yes, very informative thanks Dimitris!

[omershkedi]

Thank you all and especially dimitris for your answers!