New Mac Pros... which video card?

[Joe Vinson]

So, we've heard in the past that NVIDIA cards don't play as nicely with RED footage as ATI cards. For that reason, should we stick with the base ATI Radeon HD 2600, or are the new offerings (GeForce 8800 GT, Quadro FX 5600) worth the extra cash?

[Rob Lohman]

Thanks for pointing out there are new cards. I completely missed that for some reason. To be honest we haven't tested those yet, we're gonna get it here for testing!

If you must buy today the safest bet is still the ATI

[Mike Devlin]

Thanks for pointing out there are new cards. I completely missed that for some reason. To be honest we haven't tested those yet, we're gonna get it here for testing!

If you must buy today the safest bet is still the ATI

Hmmm... Apple is recommending either of the NVIDIA cards for FCP. We have several of the older 3.0 GHz 8-cores we can use for RED software. We will just use the new machines for FCP only, but it is unfortunate. We will be glad when you get time to make everything work well on the NVIDIA's, although you guys already have plenty to do.

[Joe Vinson]

Thanks Rob! I guess we can always upgrade the video card later. (Probably cheaper to get it from a third party anyway...)

[Jeff Kilgroe]

Based on card specs and how these cards perform in Windows / Linux, I would say the 8800GT is be optimal choice. BUT... As Rob says, they haven't tested and thus far ATI has been performing better with REDCINE. Curran just ordered his new Mac Pro with the ATI 2600 HD.

I'm going to wait until after MacWorld before I decide what to buy. I'm also eager to see how the new cards test with REDCINE and other software.

[Gunleik Groven]

What about having one of both (one ATI one nVidea) for bootcamp/OSX use?

Does multiple cards (similar or different) improve performance on either platform?

Gunleik

[MikeCurtis]

....this thread is what I came here looking for. Looks like the nVidia has more horsepower in general terms, but the ATI may run more smoothly based on what Graeme/Rob have told us in the past.

Lab Test Time.

-mike

[Mark L. Pederson]

....this thread is what I came here looking for. Looks like the nVidia has more horsepower in general terms, but the ATI may run more smoothly based on what Graeme/Rob have told us in the past.

Lab Test Time.

-mike

My money is on nVidia - literally.

Cover of Forbes Magazine this month as well. Makes me feel good about my 1200 shares.

Apple will stray from ATI soon ....

[Evin Grant]

What about more than one HD 2600s will that make any difference?

[Jeff Kilgroe]

What about more than one HD 2600s will that make any difference?

No.

Only the primary PCI-e slot can be configured as a 16-lane slot with the lane utility. Unless something has changed with these latest systems. Also, Apple doesn't currently support any parallel card configurations (SLI / Crossfire). You can install two HD 2600s and hook up 4 displays, but you can't double the speed of your OpenGL by having two cards.

Of course... If some programmers were to take it upon their selves to enhance their software with the ability to utilize more than one installed GPU... :clown2: