Building a low-to-mid range PC for 2D graphic design (and a lick of 3D)

#1

Hello there!

I would greatly appreciate any help in this subject.
For a couple of days now I’m trying to build a PC with a very limited budget. It’s focus is 2d graphic (Photoshop, Illustrator, CorelDRAW, InDesign) but I’m doing my first steps in Blender and SketchUp+Kerkythea.

Now, it seems it’s relatively easy to find a build for a gaming PC, forums and hardware sites are full of tests, comparisons and ideas for those. But I would like to get a computer artist perspective on this.

The build as far is:
CPU: Intel Core i5-4460
Motherboard: ASRock H81 PRO BTC
RAM: Corsair 8GB 1600 MHz Vengeance
GPU: MSI Radeon R9 270 2GB or MSI GeForce GTX660 2048MB
PSU: Corsair VS450

Now, the biggest problem I have is choosing either a AMD or NVIDIA graphic card. Is there any advantage in having NVIDIA’s CUDA?

In some time, another 8GB of RAM will be added.
This should last me a year, two in the max.

I would be extremely grateful for any comments or ideas.

#2

Looks good, but Id pick a geforce 750Ti over the 660gtx. Same speed, newer, uses less power.

#3

Hmmm… most comparisons suggest that the GTX 660, though older, has better results.
Example:
[i]http://www.game-debate.com/gpu/index.php?gid=883&gid2=591&compare=geforce-gtx-750-ti-vs-geforce-gtx-660

[/i]Or am I not getting something?

#4

Those automated comparison websites really dont tell you much. By those lists you can make a pretty old card look better than something new. The 660 and 750ti are broadly the same speed; one is a bit faster here, the other is faster there. I only suggest the 750 as it will save you around £100 a year just on electricity costs.

#5

Thx for the comments.

In the end, I think I’m going to go with a Nvidia GeForce GTX760. It’s about 50$ more, but I think it’s worth it (also lower power consumption).