Matrox video cards are frequently recommended on this forum for use with Photoshop. I am using the Matrox G700. It is a dual head (2 Monitors) You can profile both monitors separately which is very nice. It will run either Analogue or Digital monitors. (the 2 outputs are digital but it comes with analogue adapters.)
I only run Photoshop as my major app and I have no problems. I don’t know about performance with the 3D stuff and I am not a gamer.
I think the G700 is around $150 and the G600 somewhat less. The main difference is that the G700 (Tripple head)can drive 2 monitors and a TV/VCR all at once. The G600 is only a dual head, 2 monitors or
1 monitor and a TV. You can profile 2 monitors separately with the G600 as well.
If I had it to do over I would probably go with the G600. I don’t use the TV output.
Erv
I’m no expert on this, but just as Ervin mentions, Matrox cards are commonly recommended in this forum. I’ve never seen anyone suggest a need or an advantage in using the high-priced cards such as the Quadro. I believe Photoshop’s needs are relatively modest as far as the graphics card is concerned and I’d suggest that the key factors to consider are the resolutions and refresh rates offered by a given card and whether that is suitable for whatever display you use. Beyond that, if you do use dual monitors then obviously a dual-head card is desirable. Finally, how well the card renders text and graphics, in terms of providing a sharp display, is important also but is again pretty easily found in a good-quality yet reasonably-priced card like the Matrox offerings. Personally, I’m still using an old Ultra TNT2 Nvidia card and it has been just fine for my needs while also supporting 3D games reasonably well.
As far as I know, Open GL is a factor only where 3D graphics is concerned and is not used by Photoshop in any way. If you are working in Bryce or particularly 3D Studio Max, then Open GL may well be a benefit and perhaps the higher-end cards also become more important. But, for Photoshop, you can keep your graphics card pretty simple.
Regards,
Daryl
