Is it better to go with Nvidia or AMD for photoshop?

[Jionix]

This issue is being confused.

It's not about whether CS6 supports any specific graphic card. Yes, if you look at the "supported" list of cards, everything from several generations back is "supported" by CS6. That's not what this thread was started for.

The issue is about which cards take ADVANTAGE of Adobe's new OpenCL acceleration to speed up it's different programs/plugins/what-have-you.

CUDA used to be that way in the previous versions. But not any more. Adobe has replaced the CUDA acceleration with OpenCL acceleration.

http://semiaccurate.com/2012/04/24/adobe-accellerates-cs6-with-opencl/

Anyway, I'm thinking that right now, only AMD cards can be utilized to take advantage of the OpenCL acceleration.

 

[Keysplayr]

This issue is being confused.

It's not about whether CS6 supports any specific graphic card. Yes, if you look at the "supported" list of cards, everything from several generations back is "supported" by CS6. That's not what this thread was started for.

The issue is about which cards take ADVANTAGE of Adobe's new OpenCL acceleration to speed up it's different programs/plugins/what-have-you.

CUDA used to be that way in the previous versions. But not any more. Adobe has replaced the CUDA acceleration with OpenCL acceleration.

http://semiaccurate.com/2012/04/24/adobe-accellerates-cs6-with-opencl/

Anyway, I'm thinking that right now, only AMD cards can be utilized to take advantage of the OpenCL acceleration.

"In Premiere Pro CS6, nearly all of the things that can be processed with CUDA on certain Nvidia GPUs can also be processed by OpenCL on certain AMD GPUs."

Lets see how many different ways this can be interpreted.

 

[Gordon Freemen]

I just started editing my Photos in Photoshop CS4 extended edition and it works very well and fast on the CPU and GPU I use with is a Phenom II x4 and an nvidia GPU.

 

[AnandThenMan]

Several people at my work have started using CS6 (including me), the AMD equipped boxes run really sweet, the Nvidia ones not as smooth. Nvidia needs to toss CUDA and get busy with full OpenCL support. This is a role reversal, on CS5 the AMD systems felt more laggy to me.

 

[Jionix]

I'm not even sure of what is going to be accelerated..

 

[Ferzerp]

"In Premiere Pro CS6, nearly all of the things that can be processed with CUDA on certain Nvidia GPUs can also be processed by OpenCL on certain AMD GPUs."

Lets see how many different ways this can be interpreted.

Premier Pro =/= Photoshop

OP is specifically asking about photoshop.

 

[ocre]

This issue is being confused.....................


Anyway, I'm thinking that right now, only AMD cards can be utilized to take advantage of the OpenCL acceleration.

your thinking is wrong. Nvidia cards have no problem using openCL and if its not fast enough ever still one can even use CUDA with CS6 with a simple driver hack.

http://forums.adobe.com/message/4443091

GTX 680 now supported in the newest After Effects CS6 update
May 25, 2012 7:32 AM

I just received an update for both After Effects CS6 and Premiere Pro CS6 in the Adobe Application Manager. I downloaded and installed both, and discovered that the new GTX 680 is not only supported, but is also "officially" certified for After Effects' RayTracer feature as of this After Effects CS6 11.0.1 update. Unfortunately, one still needs the CUDA "hack" for the GTX 680 for Premiere Pro CS6 6.0.1 as the cuda_supported_cards.txt file remains unchanged from the original release.



The files have not yet appeared on the main updates page.



I just want to remind users about this.

i think the biggest confusion are because CS6 is still so new. As things level out, we can all expect the same level of support for CS6 as CS5 as far as nvidia cards go. The openCL effects were natively supported. Nvidia will bring CUDA for their cards, its always been there because of nvidias own funding, their own efforts and drive. Right now you can already use CUDA with a driver hack.

people are trying to make this huge change up in CS6 from CS5 but its not gonna be a lot different in the end.

 

[Sable]

premier pro =/= photoshop

op is specifically asking about photoshop.

but nvidia!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Grooveriding]

but nvidia!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Keysplayr]

but nvidia!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hmm. Looks like you're going after me instead of the data I'm presenting. Ferzerp did the right thing. And Groover just followed you up like a lemming.

Photoshop CS6 can utilize GPU's that support OpenCL v1.1. according to the notes.

 

[Sable]

Hmm. Looks like you're going after me instead of the data I'm presenting. Ferzerp did the right thing. And Groover just followed you up like a lemming.

Photoshop CS6 can utilize GPU's that support OpenCL v1.1. according to the notes.

I didn't mention you. Paranoia much?

 

[BD231]

Typical AMD, beat someone to the punch then get slaughtered in the long run. Wonder how long this OpenCL buff will last.

 

[AnandThenMan]

Typical AMD, beat someone to the punch then get slaughtered in the long run. Wonder how long this OpenCL buff will last.

What in the....

 

[Magic Carpet]

Typical AMD, beat someone to the punch then get slaughtered in the long run. Wonder how long this OpenCL buff will last.

So true.

 

[Keysplayr]

I got to give it to AMD though if they worked so closely with Adobe to actually get something positive done. Good Dev relations mean so much to the value behind their product.

 

[Csx-2011]

Several people at my work have started using CS6 (including me), the AMD equipped boxes run really sweet, the Nvidia ones not as smooth. Nvidia needs to toss CUDA and get busy with full OpenCL support. This is a role reversal, on CS5 the AMD systems felt more laggy to me.

Real world experience... thanks for the input.

Thanks for all the replies from everyone else too. I think I am running CS5, so it shouldn't matter too much either way.

Maybe Nvidia will get OpenCL optimized support eventually too.

 

[3DVagabond]

Real world experience... thanks for the input.

Thanks for all the replies from everyone else too. I think I am running CS5, so it shouldn't matter too much either way.

Maybe Nvidia will get OpenCL optimized support eventually too.

nVidia has to be hurting about this. It might be a while before they get up to speed. They'll either have to take resources from elsewhere (CUDA/PhysX?) or add an additional layer of support. We all know how much nVidia likes to promote their own closed standards.

Oh, and if you are using CS5, nVidia might be a bit better. Splitting hairs here, but that is often the case.

 

[AnandThenMan]

I got to give it to AMD though if they worked so closely with Adobe to actually get something positive done. Good Dev relations mean so much to the value behind their product.

What made it possible is AMD adhering to a standard. Yes AMD supporting Adobe to help them take advantage of the hardware is an important component, but from Adobe's perspective they are able to code to a non proprietary software layer instead of having to work with each vendor in a vacuum (and risk having that work go for not if the proprietary stuff goes away). That's what makes standards so valuable, and in fact the very reason the PC is able to exist at all.

BTW, CS5 does seem happier on Nvidia hardware, but I have not used After FX and Premiere extensively enough on CS6 to say how they compare in respect to AMD and Nvidia. I've mainly been using Photoshop and Dreamweaver. Side note, Dreamweaver is one application I feel has no viable replacement.

 

[borisvodofsky]

What made it possible is AMD adhering to a standard. Yes AMD supporting Adobe to help them take advantage of the hardware is an important component, but from Adobe's perspective they are able to code to a non proprietary software layer instead of having to work with each vendor in a vacuum (and risk having that work go for not if the proprietary stuff goes away). That's what makes standards so valuable, and in fact the very reason the PC is able to exist at all.

BTW, CS5 does seem happier on Nvidia hardware, but I have not used After FX and Premiere extensively enough on CS6 to say how they compare in respect to AMD and Nvidia. I've mainly been using Photoshop and Dreamweaver. Side note, Dreamweaver is one application I feel has no viable replacement.

I feel so n00b using my Swishmax 2.0 for flash.

 

[borisvodofsky]

Real world experience... thanks for the input.

Thanks for all the replies from everyone else too. I think I am running CS5, so it shouldn't matter too much either way.

Maybe Nvidia will get OpenCL optimized support eventually too.

There is so much wrong with cursory work observation.

No established baseline in hardware.

Maybe the newer batches of amd equipped machines had i5 instead of i3, or there were inter-machine differences between versions and updates of CS5..

OR, some guy really likes flash games, and downloads bloatware just to play them. Thus one machine is very bogged down, vs a cleaner install.

 

[AnandThenMan]

I feel so n00b using my Swishmax 2.0 for flash.

I've given up on Flash, honestly I hope it dies.

There is so much wrong with cursory work observation.

I don't work on machines with bloat or OS problems. There are no performance differences that I've seen from CS5 patches although there might be in some cases. I'm offering my real world observations and I believe they are valid I use Photoshop extensively. OpenCL acceleration is really cool I hope it spreads to more applications.

edit - I wanted to add that AfterFX CS5 does not take advantage of CUDA in any way that I've noticed but Premiere does. I don't know about CS6 for either application, or in respect to OpenCL for that matter. I don't use the video apps consistently enough to really put them through their paces, although I absolutely love AfterFX I think it is the best application Adobe makes. The Adobe forums have a ton of info about all this stuff I have not had time to catch up on it lately.

 

[Keysplayr]

What made it possible is AMD adhering to a standard. Yes AMD supporting Adobe to help them take advantage of the hardware is an important component, but from Adobe's perspective they are able to code to a non proprietary software layer instead of having to work with each vendor in a vacuum (and risk having that work go for not if the proprietary stuff goes away). That's what makes standards so valuable, and in fact the very reason the PC is able to exist at all.

BTW, CS5 does seem happier on Nvidia hardware, but I have not used After FX and Premiere extensively enough on CS6 to say how they compare in respect to AMD and Nvidia. I've mainly been using Photoshop and Dreamweaver. Side note, Dreamweaver is one application I feel has no viable replacement.

We can look through history and see just how much "proprietary stuff" became a standard. So, I never bought into the "proprietary is bad" mumbo jumbo. It's only a matter of time before CS6 supports Nvidia 6 series. In CUDA or OpenCL.

 

[nismotigerwvu]

We can look through history and see just how much "proprietary stuff" became a standard. So, I never bought into the "proprietary is bad" mumbo jumbo. It's only a matter of time before CS6 supports Nvidia 6 series. In CUDA or OpenCL.

But you'd have to dig pretty deep to find "proprietary stuff" that was vendor locked and became standard. Just as Glide/RRedline/all the vendor specific APIs of the mid 90's gave way to OpenGL and DirectX so too will CUDA. Sure there is the possibility of NV opening the standard to Intel and AMD, but that would happen happen after it's far too late. You might even be able to make a case for it already being too late with the momentum OpenCL has picked up recently.

 

[Keysplayr]

What does it matter if its vendor locked if the vendor also supports everything else?
Last I checked, Nvidia well supports OpenCL and chairs the OpenCL committee.
So thinking that using CUDA is the only way to use Nvidia GPUs would be an error in ones understanding.

 

[nismotigerwvu]

What does it matter if its vendor locked if the vendor also supports everything else?
Last I checked, Nvidia well supports OpenCL and chairs the OpenCL committee.
So thinking that using CUDA is the only way to use Nvidia GPUs would be an error in ones understanding.

Nice strawman, but do explain how how CUDA usage dropping in favor of OpenCL or whatever MS eventually comes up with as a usage drop for NV chips. Vendor locked APIs have a finite shelf-life; they serve an important purpose for laying the foundations of future effort (much as Glide showed that full-on OpenGL was too obtuse for gaming usage, leading to a more streamlined D3D eventually) and then fade off into the sunset. No shame in being the company that led to a paradigm shift (unless you bleed $100 lunches daily like 3dfx).