Do I need a dedicated graphics card?

Hello everyone,

My 7 year old computer is dying, so I am cobbling together a new desktop which I will use for Word processing, Logos, photo editing an some video editing (very rarely). I am planning on doing some multitasking (listening to music, editing a photo and reading Logos).

Here are the components I have on order: an intel 4790k processor, ASRock Fatal1ty Z97 Killer, G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3 2133 RAM, and a Samsung 500gb 850 EVO SSD.

My monitor is really old (bought in 2002. I think it is a 720p) and I plan on upgrading my monitor in November (probably to 1080p. I can't afford and don't see the need for a 4k monitor).

Will my processor and RAM be able to sufficiently handle the graphics portion of Logos, or do I "need" a graphics card. In other word: what would a dedicated graphics card add to this setup that would make Logos better?

In Christian love,

Michael

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Comments

David P. Moore

To me the short answer is yes, as you don't want a frustrating experience using the software. That said, you may be fine without it given your set-up. See Mark Barnes' post from May: https://community.logos.com/forums/p/104444/722342.aspx#722342 to see his take on it.

Mikael S

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759494#Comment_759494

What is the monitor interface? DVI or VGA? I would suppose discrete graphics cards with both VGA and DVI connectors are getting hard to find and/or expensive, although I haven't checked that's only what I suppose. So having both interfaces in the discrete card would be an unnecessary expense if You would need a new monitor soon anyway. Can that specific motherboard use on-board graphics until November and then adding the discrete (i.e. dedicated) graphics in November? That's my suggestion. In my experience good on-board graphics is OK, not perfect but excellent graphics is expensive and the refresh rate of Your old monitor may not be better than 5 ms which limits performance (although just very slightly).

Deacon Steve

Although Logos works fine with integrated graphics, I think the motherboard you are describing is built with the Intel Z97 chipset. That chipset does not have integrated graphics. You probably need to buy a graphics card regardless.

Make sure you look everything up and get the details sorted out beforehand.

[:)]

EastTN

Based on the uses you described, the video editing is the task that's most likely to tax your video processor. If your current computer is 7 years old, the integrated video on a current motherboard will almost certainly be much faster than one what you have now. Now, if you wanted to do serious gaming, a dedicated graphics card would become much more important! [;)] One thing you could consider is purchasing a motherboard with integrated graphics that also has an empty slot for a dedicated graphics card (most do). That way if a year or so later you became dissatisfied with your video performance, you could drop a dedicated card in.

Michael Sullivan

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759514#Comment_759514

Thanks for all the feed back. The z97 "mobo" I ordered does not have dedicated graphics. It relies on the processor (which has Intel's HD 4600 graphics built into it). The mobo does have vga, dvi and hdmi ports.

My current monitor uses a VGA port.

I do have a 2009 ATI Radeon HD4650 1gb (DDR2) discrete graphics card that I was using with my old system. Would this improve on the dedicated graphics (Intel's 4600) built into the processor?

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759565#Comment_759565

I do have a 2009 ATI Radeon HD4650 1gb (DDR2) discrete graphics card that I was using with my old system. Would this improve on the dedicated graphics (Intel's 4600) built into the processor?

Intel 4600 benchmark is 718 on mid range chart => http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/mid_range_gpus.html

Radeon HD 4650 is 342 on low end graphics => http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/midlow_range_gpus.html

Graphics Price / Performance => http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu_value.html

#1 GeForce GTX 750 ($ 74.99) benchmark is 3,246 that is # 72 on high end list

#3 GeForce GTX 750 Ti ($ 109.99) benchmark is 3,686 that is # 61 on high end list

The 750 graphics use relatively low power (and associated heat).

High end benchmark list => http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html

Keep Smiling [:)]

mab

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759572#Comment_759572

FWIW, Win 10 is said to favor AMD over Nvidia. Something to consider although I'm not sure that will be true once some software changes get lined up.

Mark Barnes

You certainly don't need a dedicated graphics card, and in Logos I doubt you'd notice the difference between having one and not having one with your components. You might notice a small difference if you had a slow CPU, low RAM, 4k or a multiple monitor set up — but with those components, I doubt you'll see a difference.

You're much more likely to notice a difference in photo/video editing, but only if you're using professional software that supports GPU acceleration (e.g. Photoshop or Premier Pro). Even then, very few video cards are supported. Check to see if your software supports GPU acceleration before making a purchase.

Michael Sullivan

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759593#Comment_759593

Thank you to everyone who responded.

Geo Philips

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759593#Comment_759593

I have a feeling that list has not been updated since it does not include anything in the GTX 900 series.

If you do wish to go for a graphics card (like Mark said, this would probably be beneficial only for Lightroom/Photoshop/Premiere), consider something in the GTX 950 or 960 series (latest gen) or drop back a generation to get discounts on the GTX 760.

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/759773#Comment_759773

consider something in the GTX 950 or 960 series (latest gen) or drop back a generation to get discounts on the GTX 760.

Graphics Price / Performance => http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu_value.html

# 2 GeForce GTX 950 ($ 159.99) benchmark is 5,563 that is # 22 on high end list.

# 4 is GeForce GTX 760 ($ 149.99) with benchmark of 4,955

# 6 is GeForce GTX 960 ($ 194.99) with benchmark of 5,988

Caveat: GeForce GTX 950, 760, & 960 have 6 pin power connection(s) so need adequate power supply (and heat dissipation).

Keep Smiling [:)]

abondservant

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/760383#Comment_760383

I picked up a radeon 290x for 175 shipped on amazon... Good deals are out there, just watch for them.

I don't think you absolutely need one specifically for Logos though.

Michael Sullivan

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/760609#Comment_760609

Thank you for all the replies. I will keep my eyes open. Maybe I can find a good price on a new monitor and graphics card during the November sales. Sadly, I was a little ignorant when it came to purchasing a power supply - I only got a 500W (Bronze) which might be borderline weak for some of the higher end graphic cards.

Keep Smiling 4 Jesus :)

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/761262#Comment_761262

I only got a 500W (Bronze) which might be borderline weak for some of the higher end graphic cards.

Newegg has a refurbished superclock GeForce 750Ti for $ 99.99 => http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814487114

Keep Smiling [:)]