GPU for photo editing

[Jamesev]

Budget (including currency): 

Country: 

Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: 

Other details (existing parts lists, whether any peripherals are needed, what you're upgrading from, when you're going to buy, what resolution and refresh rate you want to play at, etc): 

Is GPU of much importance for image editing (not video editing).

 

I understand that image editing programs will eat as much RAM as you give them and running the programs off a nice quick m.2 OS drive and then having a decent sata ssd for image file storage

 

so was thinking of something like 

 

Ryzen 9 5950x

Asus ROG crosshair dark hero (I originally thought the ASUS TUF x570 plus but this might need bios flash for the 5950x)

Samsung 980 m.2 1tb (might scale it down to a 500gb)

Samsung 860 evo 2tb storage

3x32gb 3200 Corsair vengence I can then add more later

750 w PSU Corsair

Lian li PC 011 dynamic

not sure whether to go with CPU cooler dark rock pro 4 air cooler or maybe have a go at an AIO maybe a fractal design Celsius s36 not sure if the case will take the 36

maybe a couple of case fans to keep things cool

 

then the question is the GPU - either a 1660 which is low for the rest of the spec or 2070 but that comes down to whether there’s any benefit for image editing from the GPU.

 

any advice would be very welcome.

 

[emosun]

2 minutes ago, Jamesev said:

then the question is the GPU - either a 1660 which is low for the rest of the spec or 2070 but that comes down to whether there’s any benefit for image editing from the GPU

Editing 2d images will not benefit from any gpu add in card and can be done with just basic onboard graphics.

[emosun]

5 minutes ago, Jamesev said:

3x32gb 3200 Corsair vengence I can then add more later

also this will need to be 2x or 4x as ddr4 isn't triple channel capable

[Henry2026]

Ok, I like AIO's for the looks, and the Dark Rock for the value. Either way, you can't go wrong. I thing you should go with a 3060 or 3070 for their great value. It improves performance, but you don't need a monster GPU. I still recommend 30 series cards for their power and usability for the future. 

[Hibyemy]

1 minute ago, Henry2026 said:

Ok, I like AIO's for the looks, and the Dark Rock for the value. Either way, you can't go wrong. I thing you should go with a 3060 or 3070 for their great value. It improves performance, but you don't need a monster GPU. I still recommend 30 series cards for their power and usability for the future. 

if u can find them at msrp

[boggy77]

depends on the software. is it mostly photoshop?

if yes, photoshop doesn't scale much on multiple cores, but likes single core performance. a ryzen 5800x would be the best cpu for photoshop.

gpu doesn't help that much, it's important though too have at least 6gb of VRAM, which the 1660 does. I wouldn't go any lower than a 1660.

 

also the crosshair dark hero is completely overkill. it's the best and most expensive motherboard, used by enthusiasts for breaking overclocking records, not for day to day workstation needs. it's not really worth it spending that much money.

 

as for ram, go for 2x32, not 3x32. 3x32 doens't make sense, as you won't use more than 64gb anyway, and you want dual channel for better performance. 3 sticks will just make your ram unstable and you might have to lower the frequency.

 

[Hibyemy]

1 minute ago, boggy77 said:

depends on the software. is it mostly photoshop?

if yes, photoshop doesn't scale much on multiple cores, but likes single core performance. a ryzen 5800x would be the best cpu for photoshop.

gpu doesn't help that much, it's important though too have at least 6gb of VRAM, which the 1660 does. I wouldn't go any lower than a 1660.

 

also the crosshair dark hero is completely overkill. it's the best and most expensive motherboard, used by enthusiasts for breaking overclocking records, not for day to day workstation needs. it's not really worth it spending that much money.

 

as for ram, go for 2x32, not 3x32. 3x32 doens't make sense, as you won't use more than 64gb anyway, and you want dual channel for better performance. 3 sticks will just make your ram unstable and you might have to lower the frequency.

 

why go ryzen tho  intel much cheaper 

[boggy77]

1 minute ago, Hibyemy said:

why go ryzen tho  intel much cheaper 

what intel cpu with comparable performance to the 5800x is much cheaper?

[Hibyemy]

Just now, boggy77 said:

what intel cpu with comparable performance to the 5800x is much cheaper?

well no but an i7-10700kf is like 300$ vs 450$ so ya.

[boggy77]

1 minute ago, Hibyemy said:

well no but an i7-10700kf is like 300$ vs 450$ so ya.

op wanted to spend $1000 on a 5950x, so i think recommending a 5800x is not so bad. a 10700kf needs a more expensive motherboard and is less efficient, creating more heat. it also doesn't support pcie 4.

[Jamesev]

4 minutes ago, boggy77 said:

depends on the software. is it mostly photoshop?

if yes, photoshop doesn't scale much on multiple cores, but likes single core performance. a ryzen 5800x would be the best cpu for photoshop.

gpu doesn't help that much, it's important though too have at least 6gb of VRAM, which the 1660 does. I wouldn't go any lower than a 1660.

 

also the crosshair dark hero is completely overkill. it's the best and most expensive motherboard, used by enthusiasts for breaking overclocking records, not for day to day workstation needs. it's not really worth it spending that much money.

 

as for ram, go for 2x32, not 3x32. 3x32 doens't make sense, as you won't use more than 64gb anyway, and you want dual channel for better performance. 3 sticks will just make your ram unstable and you might have to lower the frequency.

 

Would you go for something like the TUF x570 and do a bios flash if I was say intent on the 5950x

 

yes sorry I did mean 2x32

 

yes the Adobe editing software. I read you can configure Scratch drives using RAM with PS which can help if you’re doing things like photo stitching and lots of adjustments as the workflow history version are put into temp stoarage amd RAM would be quick for that.

 

I really appreciate your input on this.

[Henry2026]

10 minutes ago, Hibyemy said:

if u can find them at msrp

Yeah, that's going be hard to find

[Hibyemy]

5 minutes ago, boggy77 said:

op wanted to spend $1000 on a 5950x, so i think recommending a 5800x is not so bad. a 10700kf needs a more expensive motherboard and is less efficient, creating more heat. it also doesn't support pcie 4.

its very overkill and no Asus ROG crosshair dark hero is like a 400-500$ mobo u can get great z590 ones for 224$ which btw has just about every feature u'd need realistically and gen 4 which idk what u need that fast of an ssd for 

[Jamesev]

10 minutes ago, Hibyemy said:

if u can find them at msrp

Yes at the moment it’s trading off maybe $200 on the GPU for the CPU and RAM

 

My thoughts are fast M.2 to run the programs

RAM as the programs eat memory.

 

then CPU / Motherboard combo.

 

the other bits to fit around those priorities.

[boggy77]

3 minutes ago, Jamesev said:

Would you go for something like the TUF x570 and do a bios flash if I was say intent on the 5950x

 

yes sorry I did mean 2x32

 

yes the Adobe editing software. I read you can configure Scratch drives using RAM with PS which can help if you’re doing things like photo stitching and lots of adjustments as the workflow history version are put into temp stoarage amd RAM would be quick for that.

 

I really appreciate your input on this.

I would press you to reconsider. if you're only doing photoshop, you don't need the 5950x.

 

as for motherboard, a b550 strix-f or strix-e would be ideal. if you insist on x570, again x570 strix-f or strix-e are good, if you want to stick with asus. aorus master is also a good option, as well as msi tomahawk (both b550 and x570 for master and tomahawk).

 

I've heard about scratch drives using ram, but I haven't done it myself, so I can't advise on that.

[Hibyemy]

1 minute ago, Jamesev said:

Yes at the moment it’s trading off maybe $200 on the GPU for the CPU and RAM

 

My thoughts are fast M.2 to run the programs

RAM as the programs eat memory.

 

then CPU / Motherboard combo.

 

the other bits to fit around those priorities.

lmao 970 is completely fine that cpu/mobo overkill++ ram kinda overkill i would go 2x16 realistically 32gb is enough 

[Jamesev]

1 minute ago, Hibyemy said:

its very overkill and no Asus ROG crosshair dark hero is like a 400-500$ mobo u can get great z590 ones for 224$

I think I’m erring towards the ASUS TUF X570 plus wifi and then figure out how to flash the bios to talk to the 5950x. 
 

it’s things like flashing bios and putting the heat sinks on the CPU that make me most nervous, the rest seems a bit more plug and play.

[boggy77]

3 minutes ago, Hibyemy said:

z590 ones for 224$ which btw has just about every feature u'd need realistically and gen 4 which idk what u need that fast of an ssd for 

yes but the cpu itself doesn't support gen 4. and the only good appplication for gen 4 ssds is photo editing.

 

3 minutes ago, Hibyemy said:

its very overkill and no Asus ROG crosshair dark hero is like a 400-500$ mobo u can get great z590 ones for 224$

yes, but I've told OP to go for a $150 b550 tomahawk or strix-f

[Hibyemy]

2 minutes ago, boggy77 said:

yes but the cpu itself doesn't support gen 4. and the only good appplication for gen 4 ssds is photo editing.

not really gaining much for how much u pay

[boggy77]

1 minute ago, Jamesev said:

I think I’m erring towards the ASUS TUF X570 plus wifi and then figure out how to flash the bios to talk to the 5950x. 

the issue with the x570 tuf plus wifi is that it does not support bios flashback. which means you'll need a supported cpu (2000 or 3000 series) to update bios.

 

all the other motherboards I suggested (strix-f, strix-e, master, tomahawk) in both b550 and x570 versions have bios flashback, which means you can update bios without a cpu installed, making the process easier.

what's more, b550 boards, since they are newer, might support the 5000 series out of the box without needing a bios update.

[boggy77]

1 minute ago, Hibyemy said:

not really gaining much for how much u pay

have you seen OP's plan and budget? it's clear OP wants the best photo editing machine, not a budget or good enough photo editing machine.

paying $200 instead of $100 on a gen 4 1tb ssd to get double speed and double photo loading time is a bargain for someone who wants to splurge on a 5950x.

[Hibyemy]

2 minutes ago, boggy77 said:

yes, but I've told OP to go for a $150 b550 tomahawk or strix-f

thats like a 20$ saving vs 150$ going intel 

[Hibyemy]

1 minute ago, boggy77 said:

have you seen OP's plan and budget? it's clear OP wants the best photo editing machine, not a budget or good enough photo editing machine.

paying $200 instead of $100 on a gen 4 1tb ssd to get double speed and double photo loading time is a bargain for someone who wants to splurge on a 5950x.

its photoshop not blender render and how long does it even take to load a 25mb image 

[boggy77]

3 minutes ago, Hibyemy said:

thats like a 20$ saving vs 150$ going intel 

so for the last time, you're advocating for this:

$225 z590 board + $300 10700kf = $525   -   photoshop score 977

 

i'm advocating for:

$150 b550 board + $450 5800x    = $600   -   photoshop score 1224 (30% more performance for 15% increase in price)

 

 

what would you chose?

[Jamesev]

13 minutes ago, boggy77 said:

the issue with the x570 tuf plus wifi is that it does not support bios flashback. which means you'll need a supported cpu (2000 or 3000 series) to update bios.

 

all the other motherboards I suggested (strix-f, strix-e, master, tomahawk) in both b550 and x570 versions have bios flashback, which means you can update bios without a cpu installed, making the process easier.

what's more, b550 boards, since they are newer, might support the 5000 series out of the box without needing a bios update.

This is part of the confusion with all the various letters/numbers. What’s the fundamental difference between x570 and b550?

 

I was fairly set on ASUS but I heard MSI are good and if I’m. It going the crosshair route and the TUF would be a faff upgrading the bios then I’m not erring towards the Tomahawk. Would the 
 

MAG B550 Tomahawk or

MAG X570 Tomahawk

 

Suffice. I read the MSI hierarchy is 

 

MEG - top of the line

MPG

MAG - more for workstations

 

most build guides seem to be all set up for gaming purposes which throws a spanner in the works when the prime function is to have a beast of an editing PC.