On jeudi 6 avril 2017 22:00:21 CEST Ariel Kanterewicz wrote:
> You could maybe look at some benchmarks? Although what I think is more
> important is the performance of the new CPU vs the GPU you plan to keep.
> Another option is to upgrade the GPU and buy extra RAM for the main system,
> if you only want DT to work faster (an SSD would help too).
> 
> I have a Phenom II X4 945 with lots of RAM (started with 8 GB, have 16 GB
> now), I used to have a NVIDIA 460 and the switch to the Radeon 460 was a
> change between night and day. The NVIDIA perofrmed more or less equal to
> the CPU, the Radeon goes WAY faster than that. I even switched on the full
> sample option on export, it's still way faster than before.
> 
> On Thu, Apr 6, 2017 at 6:50 AM Vasilis Yiannakos <[email protected]>
> 
> wrote:
> > I am using Darktable on a 10-year-old-linux-based AMD Athlon X2 64, 8GB
> > DDR2, GeForce GT 640 2GB RAM ram and it runs pretty usable, but I am
> > considering a system upgrade, something with 8GB DDR3 and the same GPU.
> > The
> > question here is from which CPU would darktable benefit the most: AMD FX
> > 8320 (8 cores), AMD A10 (4 cores) or maybe an Intel i3 (2 cores) (these
> > are
> > the top I can get at my budget).

The catch is in the memory standard: currently, we are at DDR4, DD3 seems on 
its way out already. So upgrading memory might be quite difficult for DDR2.
Not sure how those changing standards influence the GPU or SSD choice (entry 
models use SATA III). And SSD is still quite a bit more expensive per TB...

Also, you compare two GPUs of different generations (NVidia 460: ~2012, Radeon 
460: 2016). Although NVidia seems to have some trouble with openCL (except the 
latest series, 1060 and above, but that's a higher price class).

Some other things to be aware of:
- I see DT use all available cores (4 on my machine) when switching directory 
in light table mode (i.e. when DT has to generate a lot of thumbnails). The 
rest of the time, all cores seem used as well (though in my case, at low 
intensity even when using profiled denoise). I didn't check GPU usage for this.
- you'll need OpenCL to actually use the GPU, and in practice that requires 
the proprietary drivers (both for NVidia and for AMD).
- AMD CPUs absorb more power, and thus generate more heat, than current Intel 
CPUs (120W for AMD vs. 65-95W for Intel). Also a larger GPU requires more 
power. and the PSU has to be able to provide that power (not really a problem 
for a new system, upgrading is different).
- perhaps pay attention to the sockets used by the different CPU's you are 
looking at: the AMD cpus seem to use a fairly old socket, abandonned for the 
latest Ryzen CPUs, which could limit potential future upgrades. The I3 uses 
the 1151 socket, which still seems current.

Remco

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