new mid range PC build - opinions please

M

malibudutchie

Well-known member
For just over $2K i am having this built - is it enough - is it ever enough ?
Would like some opinions on where to scale up as a mid range option. Thx

OS: Windows 7 Pro or Windows 8.1 Pro
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790k 4.0GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 4GB
RAM: 16GB (2x8GB)
Storage: 250GB SSD + 2TB
Optical Drive: DVDRW Burner
PSU: 500W
OS: Windows 7 Pro or Windows 8.1 Pro
 
Looks good. Don't skimp on your power supply quality. I use a CORSAIR CS550M CS Series™ 550W Power Supply w/ Modular Cables, 80 PLUS® Gold. I have a similar lower power requirements build. For graphics ASUS GeForce® STRIX GTX 960 1228-1317MHz, 2GB GDDR5 because the fans don't need to spin at low usage paired with a Fractal Design Define R5 case for low noise.

Check out avadirect.com if you are not building it yourself.
 
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Why not add a blu-ray burner? They have gotten pretty cheap. If nothing else, they give you the capability to burn 25GB M-discs for permanent archival footage backup with media life expectancy limited only to risk of mechanical damage. A hot swap drive bay can also be useful. I shoot uncompressed footage so my projects consume 2TB drives for lunch. But it is a useful way to organize and backup active projects and drives are cheap.
 
I would recommend all SSD drives if you can. If not now due to cost plan for upgrades down the road, will make a big difference in performance. I'd also suggest bumping the RAM up to 32 gigs if you are going to have complicated timelines or take advantage of After Effects. A good Power Supply is key too. Otherwise specs look good.
 
For >$2k? That looks like a $1k build to me...

When you say you are having it built, by whom are you having it built? That price is what Dell or HP etc charge for their desktops with warranty/support, so if its a DIY build I'd expect to get a lot more for that money.
 
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nyvz it's a local computer shop. They're a good bunch of guys - so I have to pay for labour as I can't do it myself.
So it looks like add SSD's, a faster card, more RAM and a better power supply, what about this for an extra #500:

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790k 4.0GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 4GB
RAM: 32GB (4x8GB)
Storage: 250GB SSD + 2TB
Optical Drive: DVDRW Burner
PSU: 650W
OS: Windows 7 Pro or Windows 8.1 Pro
 
How much is labor? In Korea every shop charges around $20 if you pick the parts. Also, it's not really that difficult to build, but the first build may give anyone some trouble.
 
I guess I never really got the point of having someone guy build you a computer for the same price a reputable company can build it. Resell value is much better for a brand-name computer and a lot more R&D goes into those that you can benefit from. For example, you could get an Alienware Area-51 with liquid cooling for the same price, or a Mac Pro for only slightly more. Or if you want more options, xoticpc builds them with more options for similar prices...

Custom builds are great if you build it yourself because building a computer is pretty simple and you'll likely only spend about half as much if you buy and assemble the computer yourself plus you get exactly the components and price you want.
 
I really dont want to build it myself and if I have problems I'll still need someone to fix it. These guys give me a 3 year warranty and they are pretty trustworthy. It's not so much the price but the set-up and quality of the components for upgrading later on. What do people think of the second option - or is this really an expensive deal.
 
Hi

Couple of points. I have video and audio workstations built here in LA for between $100 and $150 labor. I oversee it but that's the head tech at a facility that builds lots of machines. Clean wire runs and lots of knowledge. Everything is burned in as well. These are big machines with lots of hardware.

Your choices are good, I guess - but then you don't say what you want to do with the machine. That's why you are getting different opinions. People are assuming different purposes for your machine. Are you doing short stuff, long stuff, 4K, color correcting? What software are you intending to run? All these things and many others make a difference. If you just want to try everything that's great to, but let the forum know. It would be a shame for you to get good advice for something that is not your issue and bad for you.

Best of luck to you
 
I shoot and edit video up to and including 4K. I shoot and edit promos, TVC's and short docos. I run Premiere CC and do a little aftereffects for colour grading. What I want my machine to do optimally is be able to edit 4K natively while also adding effects to the timeline. I need lots of RAM and storage and grunt to run the beast.
 
Consider installing Blu-ray writer and a hot swap drive bay if you move a lot of footage. 25GB Blu-ray M-discs are a decent low cost solution for permanent archival storage. Hot swap drive bay is very useful to me for managing projects and backups with high data load formats like 4k or raw.
 
I think they are really over charging you on this build. I just bought my new computer set up for $2300 out the door with a 6 core and a Titan X GPU to run it all
 
good idea Razz - are a lot of production houses archiving to Blu Ray ?
Can I ask why you wouldn't just archive to an external HD ?
 
Hi

I think the key for you is whether you can fit the files you are working on onto SSD drives. If so working with 4K that's the way to go.
The ram will help After Effects.

Question: You color grade. Do you need 10 bit color? If so then you go with a Quadro GPU.

With 4K you might also want to consider the x99 Intel chipset for it's bandwidth and other advantages for you.

I build video and audio workstations in LA. Email me if you want to chat.
 
Mine is the following but keep in mind that I will be upgrading the ram very soon as well and built this for upgrading in the next few years

Asus X99 A Motherboard
Titan X GPU
Intel i7 5820k 6 Core
16gb DDR4 Ram
850 Watt Power
Case
128gb SSD (Just for software, I will be doing a full 24tb Raid Based Drive inside for editing)
CPU Cooler
 
malibudutchie said:
good idea Razz - are a lot of production houses archiving to Blu Ray ?
Can I ask why you wouldn't just archive to an external HD ?
Click to expand...

I keep active projects on hard drives, but the M-discs are truly permanent, hard drives don't stand long term storage well and any magnetic or ram based media will degrade in just a few years. M-discs are mineral based, the data is literally burned in stone. Absent external physical damage to the disc it is good for centuries. I only use them for the very small percentage of footage I want to keep permanently. LTO tapes are supposed to be good for a few decades, but the machines to record them are very expensive.
 
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