[NVIDIA] GT430 vs GT520 (2 Viewers)

[James]

After years of service my 8500GT has died and needs replacing. I'm looking at the GT430 or GT520.


Geforce GT 520

* 810 MHz core clock * winner
* 1620 MHz shader clock * winner
* 1400 MHz memory clock
* 14.4 GB/s bandwidth
* 64-bit memory interface
* 48 CUDA cores
* max power use- 29 watts * winner


Geforce GT 430

* 700 MHz core clock
* 1400 MHz shader clock
* 1400-1800 MHz memory clock * winner
* 22.4 – 28.8 GB/s bandwidth * winner
* 128-bit memory interface * winner
* 96 CUDA Cores * winner
* max power use- 49 watts

There is a lot advice recommending the GT430 for HTPCs. Including anandtech (AnandTech - Discrete HTPC GPU Shootout)

However, there are two things going for the 520. 1) it has lower power use and 2) its cheaper (only about 65% of the 430 price here).

I'm considering these two cards:

430: ASUS ENGT430 DC SL/DI/1GD3
520: GIGABYTE GV-N520SL-1GI

I'm not doing anything fancy, just normal HTPC stuff (HD video file playback etc). So, I don't think I will miss the extra power of the 430?

Suggestions, comments, recommendations?

 

[Paranoid Delusion]

Hi James

Long time no hear from, hope alls well with you!!

My personal feelings is for a 128bit memory interface always, this keeps in pace with the main memory of pc, can be a big bottleneck on performance which i think you would notice at some point.

 

[logifuse]

The key question is how much of the content you watch is interlaced? i.e. most TV (live & recordings). If you are planning on using it for that, then the 430 is the way to go (as per that AnandTech article) as the bandwidth limitation of the 520 restricts its ability to do high quality deinterlacing.

I've run a 430 with LAV CUVID & LAV Filters with their highest settings for deinterlacing & the result is outstanding. Haven't tried a 520 (because of the design flaw, I haven't bothered to get one to test), but my onboard Nvidia GPUs (9400, ION, ION2) all struggle due to the low number of CUDA cores & show clear jaggies when using the MS decoder (as they can't do adaptive deinterlacing).

If your content is mainly progressive (MKVs, AVIs, BD, etc.), then the 520 will be fine.

 

[Owlsroost]

+1 for the GT430 - and the recent nVidia drivers have pretty aggressive clock control, so at idle it will drop the clocks down to about 100MHz to save power.

To give you an idea about performance, using the LAV CUVID video decoder in high-quality mode with 1440 x 1080i HD TV uses 50-60% GPU on my GT430 (according to GPU-Z) - and I agree with Logifuse, the picture quality is excellent

Tony

 

[Jelmo]

AW: GT430 vs GT520

+1 for GT430 --- combined with LAV CUVID and a Tesla Driver will give you an perfect result.

The only card wich i would try instead of GT430 is a GT545. But looks like, that this cards will never reach the public customer marked.

 

[Owlsroost]

There is also a GT440, which is basically a GT430 with higher clock rates.

Tony

 

[Jelmo]

AW: GT430 vs GT520

But

GT440 = 96 CUDA Cores
GT545 = 144 CUDA Cores

--> in conclusion to LAV ... GT 545 should be much more reliable

 

[Paranoid Delusion]

For current video playback, none of that really matters

 

[Jelmo]

AW: GT430 vs GT520

Not for the playback, but for the performance @Deinterlacing.

 

[James]

Also doesn't look like the GT530 (OEM) will come to the market.

GPU Engine Specs:
96 CUDA Cores
700 Graphics Clock (MHz)
1400 Processor Clock (MHz)

Memory Specs:
Up to 898MHz
1 GB or 2GB DDR3
128-bitMemory Interface Width
28.8 Memory Bandwidth (GB/sec)