GeForce 1050, 1060 or Radeon?

[charlie-x]

Hello all,

Long-time lurker, first-time poster. I'm about to build my first Hackintosh, and I'd like some graphics advice.

I use FCP X, but also Premiere Pro CC and other Adobe apps. I have read that FCP prefers AMD and Adobe favors nVidia. I myself favor nVidia (for obscure and probably no longer valid reasons) but I'd like to get the "best" graphics card that is also affordable (i.e. no Titan cards). Also use Logic Pro X and have been playing around with Audition.

I'm not a gamer, so I don't care about that, but I would like to get a graphics card that is a good all-around compromise. Obviously I'd prefer to spend less (hence the 1050) but I could be talked into spending more.

Any advice? Thanks very much!

 

[chedda7]

Yeah, you fall in that middle ground. It really depends on how much you use FCP-X over other things. If that is your main application I would probably stick to something like a RX 470/480 (literally just got refreshed to the 5xx series, so they can be found at a discount). If you have a more balanced use case, perhaps stick with the 1050 ti, it's a great card.

 

[Adrian B]

FCPX is heavily optimised for AMD cards - the HD7970 and R9 280X models have been popular for a very long time. The new RX 470 and RX 480 cards are a pain if you dual boot with windows, you can use them but it is not the most polished experience. Use the search facility to find further information.

Adobe optimise heavily with nvidia cards and you will find that a 1050 or 1050Ti type card will work very well here. If you use FCPX as a hobby or light use then it is less important to use an AMD card. If you really use FCPX a lot and want to get the best out of the application then be aware that the nvidia 980Ti will be slower than an R9 280X or any of the newer model cards.

https://www.tonymacx86.com/threads/macos-sierra-pb-need-testers-for-new-amd-radeon-drivers.197273/

 

[charlie-x]

Thank you both for the advice. So is this a fair statement: "pretty much everything on a Hackintosh runs faster with nVidia cards EXCEPT Final Cut Pro X" ?

What about Logic Pro (I assume that's not making much use of the GPU)?

I think that, unless I run FCP every day (which I don't) that I'd be better off with an nVidia card, and just live with the poor FCPro performance. Does that sound correct?

 

[Adrian B]

FCPX runs just fine with a reasonable nvidia GPU to give some processing assistance. It scores higher benchmarks with certain AMD card models, but this isn't relevant if you are only an occasional user. I would rephrase your quote as FCPX is heavily optimised for AMD but works well with nvidia for more general application use.

I have an old i5 SandyBridge rig, first build back in 2011 or so with an old AMD 7770 GPU, It has 24GB RAM and no SSD. It is what I use for editing my and some other friend/family video with. It is still capable and quick enough for the projects that and a couple of others use it for.

Logic Pro uses RAM and CPU in a big way. Large orchestral pieces are demanding on both the CPU and RAM, but the graphics card will virtually idle as there is zero processing done here and the monitor display requires very little GPU power. Modern GPU cards generally do not have any fans spinning until their temps get to about 65 degrees Centigrade (heavy use).