Recommended Video Cards

Applicable SongShow Plus Versions: 
This article applies to all versions of SongShow Plus.

This article is intended for those of you who are considering the purchase of a new system or video card for use with SongShow Plus. This is not necessarily a recommendation to upgrade your current video card if it is working for you sufficiently, however, as systems become dated and technology changes, it may be necessary to update from time to time.  You can find the most up to date system requirements at the link at the bottom of the Store page. 

In the past we had listed specific cards and drivers, however, it became apparent that this is limiting in both scope and accuracy as things change over time.  The default approach is that we assume that any video card and driver that meets our general guidance will work as expected with SongShow Plus until it is determined that it does not, either through our testing or a customer report. If it is determined that an issue exists, it will be documented in a separate KB article.

Generally speaking, we recommend the "Gaming" versions of video cards as they do the same type of work for games that is required in SongShow Plus.

nVidia vs. ATI/AMD Video Cards
Over time, our preferred video card solutions have come from nVidia and the bulk of our testing is done on nVidia cards.  That said, both our partners and customers have reported favorable results using ATI/AMD video card solutions.  This is as much a personal preference as it is a cost consideration. 

Card Selection
When selecting a video card we recommend that you get the highest level card you can afford as generally this would be the best performance.  For the budget conscience, the best "bang for your buck" is usually just above the mid-range of the manufacturer offering and the lowest we would recommend as an effective solution.

Drivers
We recommend that you use the newest tested and certified release (not beta) driver available for your selected card. If you do run into an issue after updating, it may be necessary to try one of the previously listed drivers from the Manufacturers website.

nVidia Quadro Cards (and other "workstation" cards)
We do not specifically test or recommend the Quadro line cards.  That is not to say they will not work, only that they are untested by us.  Some users have experienced problems with them in the past, but others state they work just fine.  While the Quadro cards, by design, have all the same capabilities of the GeForce line, the Quadro cards are built for a specific purpose and have features that SongShow Plus will not take advantage of.

The Quadro line is also much more expensive than the consumer level GeForce line due to the more rigorous and specific testing and certifications that NVIDIA does on the Quadro line. The 2x to 4x price increase from the GeForce line make the Quadro cards a poor choice for SSP from a budget perspective.

This is also true regarding other specialized "Workstation" card models from other vendors.  These cards typically have a specific and narrow set of specifications geared for a specific purpose and with that have a higher price. 

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