Intel v/s AMD, latest CPU, which to buy for photoshop work

<p>I want to buy / build a new computer -<br>

Pl suggest =Intel v/s AMD, latest CPU and Motherboard combination, RAM and Power Supply.which to buy for photoshop work.<br>

price also constrain but not so much, reasonably priced (but not cheap) best performance.<br>

If it is discussed earlier pl give link, photo.net or other site also.<br>

Link below is interesting<br>

example from=<br>

<a href="http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/282362-28-phenom-1055t-intel-quad">http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/282362-28-phenom-1055t-intel-quad</a><br>

 

<p >1) Intel Core i5 750 Quad Core (or i7 860) <br />Radeon HD 5750 1GB <br />Ripjaws 10666 4GB DDR3-1333 <br />MSI P55-GD55 Motherboard </p>

 

<p >2) AMD Phenom II X6 Processor Radeon HD 5850 1GB Graphics<br />Radeon HD 5850 1GB Graphics<br />Ripjaws 12800 4GB DDR3-1600<br />ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 Motherboard</p>

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<p>Either configuration will work fine, though you will want to bump RAM up to 8 GB and go to 64 Bit Windows 7 for optimal performance. I just got the #1 configuration above (primarily because I'm an Intel stockholder) with the i7 860 processor. Works darn fast.</p>

<p>A second internal SATA HD, one of those 10,000 RPM Velocity Raptor high speed drives, would also be quite beneficial to you because it would speed up the file read/write access times. This will make you file opens, edits, and closes go quicker. I have one of these in my e-Machine desktop at home and it does make a noticeable difference. You can make this drive the main 'active projects' drive when you are working a set of pictures.</p>

<p>For the moment, Intel has the best performing processors. The i5-750 is probably the best value for money, but the i7-860 should perform better for Photoshop (that's what I recently got). Increasing the RAM to 8G should also be helpful, though you'll need the 64-bit version of Windows. Unless you're also using the computer for 3D gaming, the video card doesn't matter much.</p>

<p>Back when Intel's top CPU line was the Pentium 4, AMD was widely considered to have the performance lead. But when Intel released the Core 2 family, they took back the performance crown, and have kept it with the Core&i7 family which essentially replaces the top end of the Core 2 line. So if you want performance from your CPU, you should go Core i7. Core i5 is built off the same basic architecture, but is aimed somewhat lower (by disabling or restricting some aspects of performance, depending on which specific CPU you're looking at).</p>

 

<p>As others have said, more than 4 GB of RAM will be beneficial. You don't need a high-end video card for Photoshop in general, though there are some specific operations which CS4 and later can offload onto the video card's GPU to speed things up; look into that, decide whether any of them are important to you, and choose a video card accordingly.</p>

 

<p>64-bit Windows is the way things are going, but there are still compatibility issues, particularly with older hardware. 32-bit drivers <b>cannot be used</b> in 64-bit Windows, so if you're going to connect any device (scanner, printer, camera, PDA, GPS navigation unit, anything) to your new computer, check to make sure that 64-bit drivers are available. This is generally not a problem with reasonably recent devices, but it's wise to check first. I have also run into problems with some older software, primarily stuff that has to interact with the internals of the operating system (such as VPN clients), so if you rely on any software that's more than a few years old, check that, too.</p>

<p>Both solutions are fine, get as much ram as you can, lastly, you should really think about a very good quality power supply. It is the last thing home builders think of but a good psu would delivery more consistently to keep those beastly things you have under the bonnet.</p>

<p>The i7-860 (and I mean that specific CPU and not Intel in general) is the best in class CPU for Photoshop. But unless you game, skip the expensive video card and get a Radeon 5570. You won't be able to tell the difference and it's much less expensive and very low power consumption.</p>

<p>Don't bother with the expensive RAM. It won't do anything for you.</p>

<p>I'm using a system similar to your #2 option...<br>

AMD quad-core Phenom II @ 3200 MHz,<br>

8 GB of DDR3 RAM on a Gigabyte USB3 motherboard<br>

Radeon 46xx (don't remember which) video card w/1 GB of DDR3 RAM<br>

2x 1 Terabyte HD<br>

Windoze 7 Professional</p>

<p>I use it mostly for CAD design work, with ray tracing applications that eat CPU cycles for lunch. Much heavier CPU loading than most photo apps. The system works quite well.</p>

<p>I've been designing microprocessor-based equipment for over 35 years. I've used exclusively AMD CPUs since they started making them. Wouldn't use Intel on a bet.</p>

<p>- Leigh</p>

 

<p>One possibly important piece of hardware that Steve didn't mention: SCSI cards. Very few of them have 64-bit drivers. Most of those that do are intended for the corporate servers whose specialized hard disks are the last members of the nearly extinct SCSI species. They carry a price commensurate with that application; and if they have an external connector it will be the 68-pin "ultra-wide" variety, so you'll have to find an adapter to make it connect to your 50-pin scanner.</p>

<p>I did find one reasonably-priced SCSI card with 64-bit support, the $99 Ratoc PCI30U. It's apparently available only from Ratoc directly. I didn't order it because I decided to try my Canon FS4000US with its USB interface. It was horribly slow the last time I tried it (using Windows 98, I think). But with my new machine I was pleasantly surprised to find it only slightly slower than SCSI, and definitely acceptable. The (32-bit) Canon driver is supposed to work with 64-bit Vista, but since I've always used Vuescan I didn't even try to install it. Vuescan works fine.</p>