mATX-build for photo editing only, a double check

[Dizono]

Hi all,

Thanks for this amazing forum, read and learned a lot allready. My iMac 24" is slowly dieing, so looking to replace it with a new mac. But ouch... expensive! I just started as fulltime freelance photographer so saving some money is more then welcome. That's why i want to build a hackintosh. I'm not really into computers, but I like technical challenges.

So, what do i do with my computer?
-Mainly photo-editing with Photoshop CC, Bridge, and Lightroom
-Some work with indesign
-Internet
-No gaming except for openTTD sometimes.

What do I want for sure?
-2560x1440 resolution output (so displayport i guess)
-a computer that can work with 2GB-photoshop files easily
-I've got a WD external Firewire drive with two 3,5" 3TB drives in RAID1 for storage and quick recovery in case one of the disks fail. I would like to be able to just put them in the build in the same RAID1-setup to increase writing speed.

I decided to look into a mATX-inspired build:

But the big question for me is, do I need the graphics card if i'm not planning on playing games in the near future? And can I add it later on if I do change my mind? I think the GTX 660 is the cheapest card with DisplayPort and the 27"-monitor with 2560x1440 is a must-have for me. The ips-panel inside the Iiyama is the same as in the apple thunderbolt-display by the way, great monitor.

I hope you can tell me if I payed attention and the above setup minus the graphics card and including the two WD-drives will work fine. Thank you so much.

 

[Going Bald]

But the big question for me is, do I need the graphics card if i'm not planning on playing games in the near future? And can I add it later on if I do change my mind? I think the GTX 660 is the cheapest card with DisplayPort and the 27"-monitor with 2560x1440 is a must-have for me. The ips-panel inside the Iiyama is the same as in the apple thunderbolt-display by the way, great monitor.

I hope you can tell me if I payed attention and the above setup minus the graphics card and including the two WD-drives will work fine. Thank you so much.

For GA site:

1. 1 x HDMI port, supporting a maximum resolution of 4096 x 2160 @ 24 Hz / 2560 x 1600 @ 60 Hz
   * Support for HDMI 1.4a version.
2. 1 x DisplayPort, supporting a maximum resolution of 4096 x 2160 @ 24 Hz / 2560 x 1600 @ 60 Hz
   * The DisplayPort does not support other types of display connections by adapter.

So the board will support the resolution. The question is: Will the Intel 4600 gfx support the resolution?
Intel weasels on answers to this question because there are too many variables to give a definite answer. The onlt thing you can do is pose the question in the video forum: "Will HD4600 gfx via HDMI/DP support 2560x1440, given that the board supports it?

 

[Dizono]

Thanks! As far as I can google 2560x1440 should work via DP. Going to order the setup right now, if it doesn't work i'll go for the GTX660. Keep you posted.

Added a simple GPU cooler that should be a lot more silent then the one suplied with the CPU.