nVidia GT 1030 - Best low profile single-slot GPU that requires no supplemental power, for 4K?

[Eug]

Hi, I was wondering what the best GPU would be that is single-slot width and low profile that can give me 4K and HDMI 2.0 support. I don't care about gaming, but would love to be able to run a 4K 2160p60 monitor. Having 4K Netflix support would also be a bonus. Since my power supply isn't generous, I would want a card that can function solely on slot power. Quiet is also much preferred.

I was checking out the Radeon RX 550 but I can't seem to find a low profile single-slot card. Then I came across the nVidia GT 1030 which seems to fit the bill. Gigabyte makes the 2 GB GB-N1030D5-2GL which is both single slot and low profile. Is this the best card for this purpose? It's a 15 cm card. There are also the MSI and Zotac cards, which also seem to fit the bill and are priced roughly the same. The MSI has both DisplayPort and HDMI.

 

[whm1974]

I would get the MSI since it has both HDMI and DisplayPort.

 

[Eug]

I would get the MSI since it has both HDMI and DisplayPort.

Yes, that's my intent, but my main question was if the GT nVidia 1030 is the best solution for this, specifically, low profile, low power, and single-slot, with 4K 2D support. (I'm not needing 4K gaming support.) I ask, because I haven't been keeping up with GPU technology these days much. I looked into the RX 550 which on paper seems like it would fit the bill, but I couldn't find a model that met all the above criteria for some reason.

BTW, has anyone matched something like this to an old machine? Any problems? I'd be using it on an AM3 motherboard with Phenom X6.

 

[whm1974]

Yes, that's my intent, but my main question was if the GT nVidia 1030 is the best solution for this, specifically, low profile, low power, and single-slot, with 4K 2D support. (I'm not needing 4K gaming support.) I ask, because I haven't been keeping up with GPU technology these days much. I looked into the RX 550 which on paper seems like it would fit the bill, but I couldn't find a model that met all the above criteria for some reason.

BTW, has anyone matched something like this to an old machine? Any problems? I'd be using it on an AM3 motherboard with Phenom X6.

Well I never used such a low end GPUs like this since I do play games, but these types of GPUs are meant for your use case. The MSI has DP 1.4, and HDMI 2.0b so this will work. Enjoy.

 

[cbn]

GT1030 doesn't support 4K netflix:

http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/4583/~/4k-uhd-netflix-content-on-nvidia-gpus

 

[whm1974]

GT1030 doesn't support 4K netflix:

http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/4583/~/4k-uhd-netflix-content-on-nvidia-gpus

Bummer. I guess that is due to only having 2GB on the card? Don't know if this is a Nvidia or Netflix problem.

 

[Eug]

GT1030 doesn't support 4K netflix:

http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/4583/~/4k-uhd-netflix-content-on-nvidia-gpus

Damn, but thanks. That's very useful to know. Not a deal killer but a negative nonetheless.

I wonder if this will be addressed in the low power Volta models. However, I may just be better off buying a whole new Kaby Lake or later Core i3 system instead. The iGPU should be able to handle it.

 

[fuzzymath10]

Hi, I was wondering what the best GPU would be that is single-slot width and low profile that can give me 4K and HDMI 2.0 support. I don't care about gaming, but would love to be able to run a 4K 2160p60 monitor. Having 4K Netflix support would also be a bonus. Since my power supply isn't generous, I would want a card that can function solely on slot power. Quiet is also much preferred.

I was checking out the Radeon RX 550 but I can't seem to find a low profile single-slot card. Then I came across the nVidia GT 1030 which seems to fit the bill. Gigabyte makes the 2 GB GB-N1030D5-2GL which is both single slot and low profile. Is this the best card for this purpose? It's a 15 cm card. There are also the MSI and Zotac cards, which also seem to fit the bill and are priced roughly the same. The MSI has both DisplayPort and HDMI.

I have the MSI GT 1030 hooked up to a Dell U2718Q. It is fantastic. I am running it with a slightly underclocked TDP-capped i7 3770 in a small mitx box with a 90W pico psu that has only 6A on the 12V rail so I doubt you'll have power issues. In theory, I've heard the reason 4k netflix is unsupported is because of the 2GB memory since all the other standards should be in place.

I struggled to find the RX 550 in the same form factor. If my case had the space, I would have gotten one of the passive low profile (but 1.5 slot) GT 1030 cards since the fan is not the greatest on the MSI.

 

[XavierMace]

However, I may just be better off buying a whole new Kaby Lake or later Core i3 system instead. The iGPU should be able to handle it.

That would be my recommendation.

 

[Eug]

Turns out such a card does exist... as the Quadro P1000. I’m told it’s basically a downclocked 1050 but with 4 GB RAM and some tweaks.

Unfortunately it’s a workstation GPU and priced as such. $$$

It can run four 4K monitors simultaneously though.

http://www.pny.com/nvidia-quadro-p1000

 

[ultimatebob]

Bummer. I guess that is due to only having 2GB on the card? Don't know if this is a Nvidia or Netflix problem.

Wow, that sucks. Once you get to cards that have 3 GB of memory, you have to start competing with the cryptocurrency miners for them.

You might be better off getting a new motherboard with an Intel Kaby Lake CPU, since they enable Netflix 4K streaming as well.

 

[whm1974]

Wow, that sucks. Once you get to cards that have 3 GB of memory, you have to start competing with the cryptocurrency miners for them.

You might be better off getting a new motherboard with an Intel Kaby Lake CPU, since they enable Netflix 4K streaming as well.

From what I read elsewhere this may be due to digital rights management of 4K Netflix.

 

[Eug]

Wow, that sucks. Once you get to cards that have 3 GB of memory, you have to start competing with the cryptocurrency miners for them.

You might be better off getting a new motherboard with an Intel Kaby Lake CPU, since they enable Netflix 4K streaming as well.

I mentioned earlier that 4K Netflix would be a nice bonus, but not having it is not a deal killer. I actually already have a Kaby Lake desktop, and a Kaby Lake laptop. It's just that it would have been nice to have it as an option as well on this secondary machine.

I was considering waiting for two things:

1) A nice deal on a good 4K monitor with USB-C and DP/HDMI support.
2) The new crop of 2018 GPUs out, and decent pricing.

But I might just scrap the idea completely and if a decent inexpensive 2560x1440 monitor shows up, as it should work with my existing GPU. It turns out my CPU in this ancient machine handles 1440p VP9 YouTube just fine with software decode, without ramping up the fan too much, and 1440p already looks good, but going to 4K VP9 is a sometimes problematic if just software decode.

 

[Burpo]

Not single slot, but..

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150814

 

[Ken g6]

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150814

Looks like two slots to me.

 

[Alpha One Seven]

Hi, I was wondering what the best GPU would be that is single-slot width and low profile that can give me 4K and HDMI 2.0 support. I don't care about gaming, but would love to be able to run a 4K 2160p60 monitor. Having 4K Netflix support would also be a bonus. Since my power supply isn't generous, I would want a card that can function solely on slot power. Quiet is also much preferred.

I was checking out the Radeon RX 550 but I can't seem to find a low profile single-slot card. Then I came across the nVidia GT 1030 which seems to fit the bill. Gigabyte makes the 2 GB GB-N1030D5-2GL which is both single slot and low profile. Is this the best card for this purpose? It's a 15 cm card. There are also the MSI and Zotac cards, which also seem to fit the bill and are priced roughly the same. The MSI has both DisplayPort and HDMI.

When comparing DisplayPort 1.3 with HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort 1.3 has several key advantages. First, the video bandwidth of DisplayPort 1.3 is much higher than HDMI 2.0. This means that DisplayPort 1.3 can support higher resolution timing such as 8K at 60Hz, where as HDMI 2.0 can support 4K at 60Hz max. Second, DisplayPort 1.3 has the ability to transmit multiple video streams on one cable through the MST feature allowing multiple monitors to be daisy-chained together (although there are limitations as to the number of displays and resolution supported, which makes it more appropriate for desktop uses than video walls). Finally DisplayPort includes installer-friendly locking connectors.

For the consumer electronics market, DisplayPort 1.3 included AdaptiveSync, which is meant to enhance gaming action and video playback through active frame rate control, providing smoother and better-quality images, as well as achieving higher color quality in low color resolution display panels.