I'm putting together a new PC now that I'm settled back in the US, and I'm looking for advice on graphics cards. I do a lot of 3D modeling and rendering using programs like Blender and Substance Suite, which I know are typically optimized for NVIDIA. But I also enjoy gaming and don't want to wait two years for the latest RTX 6xxxx series. I'm worried about not getting the best performance with an AMD card in rendering tasks, though I'm aware some rendering engines can handle AMD. I'm on the lookout for a GPU that offers the best performance-to-price ratio and will remain relevant, considering I might upgrade to a 1440UW or even a 4K monitor soon. My budget for the GPU is under $1000, as I can't justify spending over $2500 on a whole computer.
2 Answers
For under $1,000, the 9070 XT or the 5070 Ti is your best bet. AMD's really improved in productivity tasks, so don't overlook them. While NVIDIA has great CUDA support for software like Adobe, Blender tends to work better with AMD cards now. The 9070 XT even outperforms the 5070 Ti in many games and can compete with the 5080. A lot of people are still stuck thinking about AMD's older GPUs, but their current lineup is solid! Just keep in mind that for absolute top-tier performance, especially if you can afford it, you'll want to look at NVIDIA's offerings, but below the 5080, AMD might give you more bang for your buck.
If you're doing a lot of rendering, NVIDIA does have the edge with CUDA cores, especially for Blender. But, honestly, AMD's newest cards aren't what they used to be. They have made significant improvements, but it really does depend on what software you use. If you're focused on productivity, NVIDIA might be the better choice overall, but for gaming, AMD is really coming up strong. I'd say try to weigh what's more important for you—gaming performance, rendering capability, or getting something that won't break the bank.
I'm a bit worried that AMD won't handle Blender well since it heavily relies on CUDA and OPTIX features.