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NVidia GTX 285 versus Quadro 4800
I have a very fast Windows 7 system running CS4. I have been planning to upgrade to CS5, but we were buried with projects. We have some breathing room now, so here we go.
We want to change to a Cuda MPE compatible card. After reading a lot of posts here and elsewhere I have narrowed by choice down to a NVidia GTX 285 or a Quadro 4800.
I have not seen anyone do a direct compare. Many posts seem to feel the GTX 285 would actually be faster (as long as you “unlock” it using a widely publicized hack). My fear, however, is heat. It seems to run very hot (as much as 190 dF!!!). That said, I have not seen any information about how hot the Quadro 4800 runs. My suspicion is the temps are similar.
Has anyone tried either card? How are the temps? Do you find that your fans are cranking up all the time? I worried about the noise in an editing environment.
In case it matters, here is my base system:
Intel Core i7 920
12GB RAM
1TB system drive
4TB RAID main video drive
4TB RAID secondary video drive
Windows 7 professionalNeil Myers
Connect Public Relations
CS4 Master Suite, 3DS -
3 Replies
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I believe you may get better use out of the GTX285 while running Premiere Pro. The Quadro series is designed for working with CAD and other 3D environments (architectural software, 3DSMax, etc).
The GTX 285 is cheaper and should work just as well if not better. The heat…well…you can manually change the fan speed in the nVidia control center (I do believe). 190*F may sound warm, but these parts are designed to handle it. If you “unlock” it, which I assume is unlocking the ability to overclock it…that would produce more heat.
I do feel that they are both over-powered for Premiere Pro (however the Quadro is great for CAD as I stated), however they are future-proof.
When I am using Premiere Pro CS5, I only use on of my 4870 X2’s cores (and ATI is terrible at pretty much anything but gaming v_v). While playing back, I get seamless motion, granted, I may be working with a smaller timeline.
HOWEVER! With the new engine they are using in CS5…the Quadro does show some benefits. But again…the price difference. I believe they would offer similar performance, so do you want to go the extra mile for the Quadro?
To get down to a simple answer, the GTX 285 sounds fine.
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The amount of RAM on the GTX 285 is 1GB. The amount on the Quadro 4800 is 1.5GB. See this page on my blog for an explanation of why that’s an important distinction if you’re working with large frame sizes.
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Todd Kopriva, Adobe Systems Incorporated
Technical Support for professional video software
After Effects Help & Support
Premiere Pro Help & Support
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Todd:
Thanks, excellent information. That helps me. I had wondered what the difference in RAM would mean. Since I work in 1080p or 720p so it looks like 1GB will be plenty.
Neil Myers
Connect Public Relations
CS4 Master Suite, 3DS
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