Any Thoughts/Help Building My New Edit PC

E

ElectricMayhem

Active member
Hey everyone,

I'm going to be building myself an edit machine from the ground up within the next month or two. Right now, I've been pushing my 1.6Ghz Intel Centrino Duo Processor and 1GB of ram in my HP laptop for all of my freelance editing work. [I have a pretty decent but old tower at my job where I do a majority of my stuff... but for anything outside of work... well my set up is shameful]

I use it for Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere CS3, After Effects CS3, Photoshop/Illustrator/Encore. It works, but I know I can't survive off of it as I want to progress into bigger and better things. I'd like to some day start working in some 3D modeling as well.

That being said... I'd hope not to spend more than 2 grand if at all possible. I don't know if anyone on here uses a similar set up of software and could recommend anything to me as far as hardware goes. CPU/Motherboard/Graphics Cards/Etc/Etc.

From what I've gathered from looking around, Intel seems to be the way to go if I want to go to go high end, with the i7 or the core2 extreme quad. (Either of which could blow half/two-thirds of that budget) Probably rock a WD Raptor drive as my OS drive... or a similar variation. Probably will avoid a 64bit OS ... because, well, I have no clue what's going on with it. So I'll cling to a copy of XP Pro before they leave the shelves for good.

I'm a novice as far as the processor/motherboard harmonious meshing goes. The last thing I want to do is get a great processor with a shitty motherboard.

So it is with humility that I ask if anyone has any recommendations, especially since I've not been terribly active on the forum since I joined. Thank you to anyone who can recommend anything.



Sincerely,

Matt
 
I know I'll get a lot of people who disagree with this and they are not without merit BUT I really would go 64-bit if you can. I've been using Vista 64 for awhile and really have not had any problems.

The main reason being that 32-bit OS can only utilize a few gigs of memory...with 64 bit you'll run out of RAM slots on your mobo before your OS is capped. :)

As I'm sure you know, anything media intensive gobbles RAM.
 
Hrm. Its definitely something to look into. I think I've been on edge regarding it because a) I really don't know too much about the 64bit OS in general. Other than the being able to utilize more ram. And that you will run into some programs not playing too well in the new OS.

I doubt I'd go into Vista because I'm holding on to XP for dear life. However, I'm curious to see what performance changes Windows 7 brings along.

I know Avid works pretty well, but what about the Adobe CS3 Suite? Would I be kicking myself in the ass if I wound up building my system up to only find out Adobe can't even support it?

I agree though... media does eat up your ram... but I was under the impression that if my processor could handle a decent portion of the load and as long as I wasn't attempting to run more than 1 application at a time, then additional ram wouldn't really help the situation.
 
Very true. I thought about it, but I assumed that designing based on Avid could hinder the possibility of my Adobe products working at full potential.

So, thank you very muchas gracias, Butcher for the heads up.

I guess now, I just need to figure out... which is the better than the minimum specs they recommended. Think I should keep similar families of things? For example, get a better Intel processor, nVidia Graphics card, etc etc?

Still on the fence about the 64 bit OS which I guess could potentially help decide some key factors? By the way, I do greatly appreciate the help I've received thus far.
 
Hello, first post on this site. I thought I could add insight to the question.

I'm actually a computer network engineer by profession. I've found this fantastic site as I'm trying to dive into filming comedic shorts. So I know little about film making, a lot about computers, and a little bit about the latest editing software through recent research.

In any system you buy or build, the money is in the processor and motherboard. Everything else is easier to upgrade/replace. 64-bit processors are what everything will soon be. Because a 64 bit processor will obviously allow more processes to actively reside in the RAM simultaneously, it gives you more horsepower for doing such tasks as rendering with ease.

I was able to test Sony Vegas Pro 8 (my editing software), using AVCHD video, in a lab environment (i.e. spare servers at work :laugh: ) and much of the whole editing process is more processor intensive over seek/write intensive (HD, mem speed). Therefore IMO, you'll definitely want a PC with lots of processing speed.

As a side note, I worked heavily with 3DS Max some years back for side projects in HS and college. That program was heavily relient on processing, as all big graphic programs are.

If the money is available, I would buy a machine with a 64-bit processor. If possible, load that sucker up with 4GB RAM or more, as you can to reap the benefits. I'd buy a decent video card, but nothing too expensive.

If you don't want to use the 64 bit version of your OS because you're afraid of the software support for it, that's fine. The majority of 32 bit OS's out there (Linux, Windows, OS X, etc.) will run on 64 bit hardware. Down the road, when you're comfortable, you can upgrade to the 64 bit version of your OS, and have a machine already prepared to run it properly... BTW Vista x64 can run almost all 32 bit apps with no issues.

I'm often asked by people "What computer should I buy". And I'll normally reply with "how do you intend to use it?" I'll normally recommend a reputable brand's PC that's on sale because most just want to surf the web, check emails, play a few games.

Since you're needing to edit video, processing speed is priority number one. RAM and a graphics card rank next. I wouldn't overpay for the graphics card or RAM. Graphics cards are often over-rated in apps for editing and graphics. The graphics card could potentially be more taxed in your 3D modeling app when compared to your video editing app. All of the above is not to say I would go cheap on a graphics card either... especially if you're serious about the 3D graphics... Just don't be talked into buying some crazy expensive card is all I'm saying. Again, you can always replace a graphics card in a tower with ease down the road if you're not 100% certain about working with 3D modeling heavily right now.

Let me know if you need anymore help, especially when you get to specifics.
 
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No Prob. I figure since I'm about to assault this message board with noob film making questions (after I read stickies and search existing threads ofcourse), I'd try to contribute anyway I can :laugh:
 
i'm going to back butka up here.

get the fastest processor you money can afford. it will save you in the long run. especially since you can always upgrade ram/graphics card down the road easily.

i would also look into 64 bit os. it's a lot faster and more stable than it's ever been. when you think about it, don't even think of that mess of xp's 64 bit. vista is going to be the way to go, especially since a lot of the companies don't even have the drivers to xp anymore. now you can go make sure for all of the parts you buy that they still have a xp driver, but i don't think it's worth it. go with the flow of technology. i personally like vista 64 bit more than xp if you have a fast enough system.

sorry for the rambling.
 
Don't forget hard drive configurations!

Fast Internal or External HDD for editing, RAID, and don't forget to back up everytting!

Do some research and see what brand motherboard Hewlett Packard uses for their AVID editing systems.
 
butka said:
If the money is available, I would buy a machine with a 64-bit processor. If possible, load that sucker up with 4GB RAM or more, as you can to reap the benefits. I'd buy a decent video card, but nothing too expensive.

I wouldn't overpay for the graphics card or RAM. Graphics cards are often over-rated in apps for editing and graphics. All of the above is not to say I would go cheap on a graphics card either... especially if you're serious about the 3D graphics... Just don't be talked into buying some crazy expensive card is all I'm saying.
Let me know if you need anymore help, especially when you get to specifics.
Click to expand...

Butka,

Glad to see your post.I have a DVX100B and I'd thought about a MB Pro FCExpress system and then I found out about Vegas. Would you recommend building a Shuttle Prima P2 system for editing? (See Here)

I know it is generally thought that towers are better for heat release. Also, do you know of any reputable place where I could have a system built to specs?

Thanks!
 
Carmen:

Vegas is great software but just be aware that it is an "island" application, meaning that it's output files are not compatible with everything everyone else uses in the professional end of the industry. That is why everyone who does this for a living uses FCP and Avid, they are the most common professional tools and both support OMF output for composers and sound designers, and can also output XML and other formats that readable on other editing systems, film out, DI and color correction systems.

I wrote a three part article last year on Adam Cultraro's film, Corrado. He cut on Vegas and lived to regret it. His decision cost him thousands of extra in labor if I recall his quote correctly. Vegas is great if you are doing and will be doing EVERYTHING in your workflow yourself but if you need to exchange files with pros, better to get a pro application like FCP or Avid.

Dan
 
Thanks Dan, but I'm just a lil amateur having fun and Vegas fits my budget. I don't make any money (real money) from my projects. I mostly shoot stuff my friends and I do or the occasional event.....that's it for now. If I were making money for my work, I'd spent a lot more money. For now it's a hobby.

I do appreciate the advice. That what I love about this forum.

(PS: The company whose link is below is co-founded by me, but we mainly screen independent projects.)
 
I like the way you guys think. You guys solidified what I thought. That I should consider a processor as my top priority. However, I was thinking that XP 64 would be the OS of choice.

Thank you Niko for bringing up the driver issue if I were to revert to XP. I won't lie, I'm scared of moving forward. However, with 7 on the horizon, I might as well bite. I think that'll be my goal. Ideally, I have up to 3 grand to safely spend building this system. I'd prefer to keep it around 2 but I can flex some if need be.

Your rambling though is useful. I actually see that you're from Easton. If you'd ever wanna meet up to talk, let me know. I live in Bethlehem. And/or what do you do? Perhaps we could work together some time if the opportunities are right. I just finished a music video.. so if anything else comes up and youre game, we should give it a whirl.

Niko18042 said:
i'm going to back butka up here.

get the fastest processor you money can afford. it will save you in the long run. especially since you can always upgrade ram/graphics card down the road easily.

i would also look into 64 bit os. it's a lot faster and more stable than it's ever been. when you think about it, don't even think of that mess of xp's 64 bit. vista is going to be the way to go, especially since a lot of the companies don't even have the drivers to xp anymore. now you can go make sure for all of the parts you buy that they still have a xp driver, but i don't think it's worth it. go with the flow of technology. i personally like vista 64 bit more than xp if you have a fast enough system.

sorry for the rambling.
Click to expand...
 
If you stick with the Avid requirements, most of the other apps should run fine.

Avid has generally had the tightest requirements out of all our vendors.

Here's the link to the Avid requirements:
http://www.avid.com/products/Media-Composer-Software/system-requirements.asp

Double the minimum memory to 4 gig instead of 2 gig. Stick to the list and don't deviate unless you have the technical expertise and the spare time to experiment.

Here's a list of Avid qualified computers:
http://www.avid.com/resources/qualified/MediaComposer-NewsCutter-Qualified-PC-Workstations.pdf
 
I've made a couple posts on this topic which might help you out if you haven't built yet.

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=160418

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=160263

Check out the benchmarks. Also read what I wrote about graphic cards, especially since you might want to get 3dsMax eventually.

If it is possible to wait a couple of months, the Core i7's should be dropping in price and more motherboards will be coming out. Right now, all the i7 mobos are mucho expensive. Usually, you can get a great motherboard for <$150. The i7 platform hasn't really hit mainstream yet, so most of the mobos are $250-$300 and require pricey triple channel memory.

Also, I don't blame you for wanting to stick with XP64.

Shoot me a PM if you have any questions. Hardware is something of a guilty pleasure of mine.

:p
 
Alright.. so a bit of a bump. I've pieced everything together... and just have yet to commit and buy. This I guess is a bit of a dream PC right now. A lot of it is over kill. I already e-mailed everything to Eximious to help look over for me. But I wanted to see what anyone else thought.


The list / prices are as follows:

NVidia Quadro FX 3700 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express / $849.99

Intel Core i7 940 Nehalem 2.93Ghz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core / $569.99

Intel BOXDX58SO LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Motherboard / $244.99

Kingston HyperX 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM 1600 / $217.99

Antec P182 Gun Metal Black Mid Tower / $149.99

Corsair CMPSU-1000HX 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / $259.99

1 Western Digital Raptor WD740ADFD 74GB 10000RPM / $99.99

2 Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200RPM / $139.98

SYBA PCI-Express 1394 Firewire Card / $42.99

LG Black Super Multi Blu-Ray Disc Burner / HD DVD Rom GGW-H20L / $199.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (64 bit) / $272.99



Total Damage: $3,060.88



I could probably drop to the Nvidia 1400, dropping about $400 bucks off. Plus the PSU is almost 300 bucks. The only reason I threw it on there was because I saw it was compatible with the Intel Core i7. However, I could probably do just fine with another 1000w PSU that doesn't break the bank.

Any other thoughts? Will this even run or suffice? Anyone? Thanks for any input!!!
 
ElectricMayhem said:
Alright.. so a bit of a bump. I've pieced everything together... and just have yet to commit and buy. This I guess is a bit of a dream PC right now. A lot of it is over kill. I already e-mailed everything to Eximious to help look over for me. But I wanted to see what anyone else thought.


The list / prices are as follows:

NVidia Quadro FX 3700 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express / $849.99

Intel Core i7 940 Nehalem 2.93Ghz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core / $569.99

Intel BOXDX58SO LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Motherboard / $244.99

Kingston HyperX 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM 1600 / $217.99

Antec P182 Gun Metal Black Mid Tower / $149.99

Corsair CMPSU-1000HX 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / $259.99

1 Western Digital Raptor WD740ADFD 74GB 10000RPM / $99.99

2 Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200RPM / $139.98

SYBA PCI-Express 1394 Firewire Card / $42.99

LG Black Super Multi Blu-Ray Disc Burner / HD DVD Rom GGW-H20L / $199.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (64 bit) / $272.99



Total Damage: $3,060.88



I could probably drop to the Nvidia 1400, dropping about $400 bucks off. Plus the PSU is almost 300 bucks. The only reason I threw it on there was because I saw it was compatible with the Intel Core i7. However, I could probably do just fine with another 1000w PSU that doesn't break the bank.

Any other thoughts? Will this even run or suffice? Anyone? Thanks for any input!!!
Click to expand...

I'd say for what your needs are the video card is definately overkill. I would probably shop around a bit more for the power supply. When looking for mine I found that a lot of folks had reliablity issues with the big Corsair units. I think you will be VERY happy with the Nehalem and the Western Digital Caviar blacks, they are great hard drives for the price.
 
HCPROD and everyone else,

Thank you for all of your help. I've actually made the purchase (one week ago to be exact, and its finally up and running as of last night)

I bolded what I changed since the last post. I agree about the video card being overkill. So I scaled back the bare requirement of Avid Media Composer. The PSU was scaled back a bit and saved me a chunk of change. Also, as per suggestion, I grabbed a different motherboard. Saved over $150 bucks on changing to a Corsair pack for RAM and with the extra savings, added a third Caviar Black to run a Raid 5 with parity as opposed to relying solely on stiping.

I know that there are a lot of people currently looking to build... so I'd definitely recommend something in the vein of my set up. I'm incredibly happy with its performance and reliability. Not to mention the Antec case is very spacious with an abundance of fans.


The list / prices are as follows:

PNY Quadro FX560 128MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Workstation Card/ $109.99

Intel Core i7 940 Nehalem 2.93Ghz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core / $569.99

MSI X58 Pro LGA 1366 Intel ATX / $569.99

Corsair XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM 1600 / $98.99
Antec P182 Gun Metal Black Mid Tower / $149.99

Antec TPO-850W ATX12 / $169.99
1 Western Digital Raptor WD740ADFD 74GB 10000RPM / $99.99

3 Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200RPM / $139.98
SYBA PCI-Express 1394 Firewire Card / $42.99

LG Black Super Multi Blu-Ray Disc Burner / HD DVD Rom GGW-H20L / $199.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (64 bit) / $272.99


Damage after shipping costs: $2,330.57



Thanks again to everyone!
 
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