GPU rendering OS X ArchiCad 19 Please help

[Anonymous]

I am trying to wrap my head around GPU rendering on OSx

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2015)
3.2 GHz Intel Core i5
AMD Radeon R9 M390 2048 MB

Archicad 19

iStat menu says the GPU memory is being used but not the processor

Can I get GPU rendering to work with this setup? Should I just return this iMac and get one with a better CPU? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[Anonymous]

ArchiCAD does not use the GPU for rendering, only for 2d display and OpenGL in the 3D window.
If you want to use GPU rendering you will need to purchase Octane Render plugin but it is not usable on your iMac or really any new Mac as it requires Nvidia cards for Cuda which is not available on the Radeon cards used in current Macs
Scott

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the clarification.

Do you think I made a good descision on the specs of the iMac?

I plan to upgrade the ram and the hard drive to an ssd(I know it's a major surgery)

I have 2 weeks to return or exchange.

I only use cad 3-4 small jobs per year. This isn't my full time job.

[Anonymous]

The iMac is OK as for intermittent use of ArchiCAD and 3D rendering as long as you have enough RAM.
If you were using ArchiCAD every day I would suggest more of a workstation class machine but Apple do not currently make a workstation worth buying, the current MacPro is very out of date and very expensive (A$10.5k for MacPro equivalent of A$4k HP z440 workstation).
Scott

[David Maudlin]

kylealkim:

I have a 27" iMac, but with the i7 rather than i5 chip and 24 gb RAM. It has been great for small to medium size projects.

David

[Brad Elliott]

For occasional small project use it is fine. The RAM is an easy upgrade and I recommend it. Not so sure it is worth cracking a new machine to put an ssd in unless you are experienced with that kind of thing.
Rendering is slow no matter what you have so you need to make time for it either way. The question is whether going from a 30 minute render to a twenty minute render is worth the money.