Intel iGPU for display only + Nvidia GPU for compute/render only (no display) ?

[Olivié Charbonneau]

Dear fellow PC enthousiasts and content creators,

I have a setup to share and would like your opinion :

On my desktop I use the Intel iGPU for display only and the Nvidia GPU for compute / render only (no display).
= My screens are only pluged to the Intel iGPU with DisplayPort or HDMI, and no screen is pluged to the Nvidia GPU.

Intel iGPU : Intel Core i5 12600K (up to date drivers from Intel website, not from Windows Update).
Nvidia GPU : GeForce RTX 3060 (up to date Studio driver, not Game Ready driver).
The idea is somewhat the same as "Nvidia Optimus" back in the day.

My main tasks : After Effects + C4D Redshift + Chrome/Office + a mix of apps for CG & whatnot.
Zero gaming.
After Effects detects and uses the GPU : display & video coding-decoding with "Adobe Mercury hardware accelerated".
C4D Redshift detects and uses the GPU : renders just fine.

My understanding is : for display the iGPU is enought in Ae & C4D even with pretty big projects, and for compute / render the GPU is detected so it's great for :
> low power (watts) = good efficiency overall. Less electric draw, less heat, less noise. Sounds smart to me...
> maximum available GPU compute / render performance when needed. Sounds good to me...



So guys, is this a smart setup or a dumb setup for my needs ? lol



Thanks and have a good time!
Best regards.

Olivié

 

[Jerry James]

So guys, is this a smart setup or a dumb setup for my needs ? lol

Well, I've usually found that you don't save too much power with the iGPU to be too noticeable as even a discrete GPU won't go full throttle unless it really needs to.

low power (watts) = good efficiency overall. Less electric draw, less heat, less noise. Sounds smart to me...

> maximum available GPU compute / render performance when needed. Sounds good to me...

But a few tests can confirm how much you're saving by running your display through your GPU and then through your iGPU, while tracking power usage across multiple apps with HWInfo

PS. Do post the results if you decide to test it out!