Graphics Card Compatibility with PS

[Jenn E]

I am having frequent crashes on photoshop.  After chatting with adobe, they said my graphics card is not supported,  it is AMD Radeon RX5600.  He spent a lot of time with me and made some preference changes and said it was a temporary fix until something got updated and it would happen again.  Well, I didn't run any updates, but I am back to frequent crashes.

If I go to the performance preferences in photoshop it says it does not recognize my graphics card.  Yet I still get crashes.  I had this computer probably 8+ months before I noticed this issue which is why I am so confused that it is a compatibility issue, but I definitely was not editing as much during that time.

I tried using older versions of photoshop and I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling the driver and software with no luck.

 

So, I guess my question is...is this really a compatibility issue or is something else going on? 

If not, do you have another suggestion to try?

 And if so, my old pc is sitting next to me, I pulled out the graphics card - Sapphire R7 260x.  I built that PC myself in 2012ish, so it is about 9 years old.  Should I try installing that graphics card on the new computer or if you think I need to buy a new one, can I please get a recommendation. 

Thank you!!

[Brian]

It's something flaky with the Radeon Driver and the current version of PS. At this point, you can only update the video driver and hope for the best. I did a quick search and aparently there is a video driver that was released on Feb 1, 2021. So that's the latest and greatest.

AMD Radeon™ RX 5600 XT Previous Drivers

[Jenn E]

Thank you.  It is up to date.  Is it worth while trying to put the older card in for the time being?  Or if it gets to the point of being unbearable, do you have a new card to recommend?  Thanks.

[Brian]

Video Cards are very hard to come by these days due to Data-mining Bitcoin and a shortage of Semiconductors. This is results in extremely high prices and not being able to get them. Seriously, I've seen reports of a Automotive Parts Store selling Video Cards. it's very much like trying to get the latest Xbox or PS5. Unless you budget $500 or more, it's gonna be tough recommending one. Personally, I like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 8GB or I can recommend a NVIDIA Quadro RTX 4000 8GB. Both work extremely well with PS.

As far as it being worth it with the older card? Sure. Why not? If you need to get stuff done, do what it takes. I'm also wondering if you completely remove / reboot / and reinstall the latest video drivers? OR install a older set for giggles? Who knows, the Feb 1st Driver could be the reason for your problems. When did they start happening?

[Jenn E]

That is crazy with the supply.  Thank you for the info.  I spent the day yesterday with Adobe, then dell and then with Adobe again.  At least it isn't crashing for now.  But very frustrating Adobe doesn't care about it being incompatible...it works fine for lr and raw.  I will try not to rock the boat and hope for some future updates.  I already did the uninstall/ reinstall on the card...haven't tried earlier versions though...I will keep that route in mind if I get motivated to tinker with this again.  Thank you!!

[Brian]

The fun part is, since it's a Dell, you need to get the video driver FROM DELL!! Sure, sometimes the Manufacture's OEM drivers will work, but often you will have mixed results. Of course, Dell likes to orphan their products after a few years, which puts you in a bad position...like where you are now. PS wants updated drivers, but you have a Dell Version of _________ video card, which changes things since they haven't upgraded their driver for the video card that came with your computer for 3 years. Fun times, eh?

[Jenn E]

ohhh, I'm glad you wrote this.  I would have just bought something and stuck it in not knowing.  Thank you for all the info!

[Brian]

Video Cards are as bad as the latest Xbox and PlayStation Game Consoles. One does not simply walk into a store or even order one online. "Cue the Lord of the Rings Meme..." Seriously, they are being bought up by bots and then resold for triple of the actual cost. $500+ is a starting point. Some of the higher demand cards these scalpers are asking $1000, $1500 or more!

Has Adobe ask you to do this in PS? Head to the Preferences, and set the "Use Graphics Processor Mode" (Advanced Settings Button)

Set it to "Basic," click OK and OK...then restart Photoshop.

[Jenn E]

well...that display was never recognizing the card and was greyed, which was the whole problem. 

But I think I figured it out.  I'm embarrassed to admit this but...I was mixing up my monitor ports and my monitor was not plugged into the graphics card, it was just in the PC port.

I just plugged it into the correct port and restarted and it sees it now!  I can't believe HOURS and HOURS of researching, techs, frustration.  I really hope this is the issue, as simple as the fix is!

[Brian]

Yeah, people are so used to integrated video, they don't think twice about hooking up to the old VGA port. You aren't the first to do this. I just forget about it.

Please tell me you are using either a HDMI Cable or DisplayPort Cable with the video card? You do not want to use the 15-pin VGA cable. That's analog. You want a High Def / Digital Signal. That Blue VGA Port has been around since 1989, and it's meant for the old-style tube displays, not today's fancy flat-screens.

[Jenn E]

Glad it is not just me!  Yes, I have the display port...the one that is angled on just one side. 

I even read about making sure the monitor is in the correct port and double checked it..   I have 2 monitors and they were in 2 different areas.  I had unhooked the extra thinking that was the culprit not realizing that one was actually in the correct port and my main monitor was the one that was wrong.  Now I have them both in the graphics card and all is well.

Thank you for your help!